Just as the original work described Flender, the man was a thorough-cut profiteer.
When he first appeared, he asked a hundred gold coins for a stone whose effects even he didn't understand; the instant Tang San agreed without hesitation, he unreasonably jacked the price to five hundred, showing his true colors, and he pulled similar stunts countless times afterward.
Yu Yan didn't like Tang San, and he certainly wasn't going to like this fault-ridden Flender either.
'When you buy something, isn't it normal to take a good look? Besides, if you don't look carefully, how can you tell whether the goods are any good—or whether you even need them?'
Hearing Flender's words, Yu Yan glanced at him and tossed those questions back.
'The wares here aren't ordinary goods; they're all things my friends and I found in ruins years ago. Whether you can gain anything from them depends on your luck.'
Half-reclining on his chair with eyes closed, Flender explained the stock of his little shop—and in this he wasn't lying: everything inside had indeed come from ruins.
What he didn't say was that every item in the shop was worthless junk; the truly good stuff he'd never part with.
'Is that so? Then I'll have to take a careful look—I trust my own judgement.'
Yu Yan eyed the spirit tools adorning the three walls, all emanating spirit power fluctuations, looking genuinely intrigued.
Knowing Yu Yan had come seeking an Opportunity, Xiao Wu likewise studied the goods hanging on the walls, pondering which one could be the Opportunity that had drawn him here.
Seeing two kids so easily hooked, the half-reclining Flender smiled to himself; he loved self-important, wealthy little fools.
Yu Yan and Xiao Wu weren't from rich families, but after earning plenty of money their clothes had naturally improved.
The garments they now wore, in both fabric and cut, could rightly be called fine.
Yu Yan sported the classic, versatile black-and-white combo; under his influence Xiao Wu also leaned toward black-and-white, though she hadn't abandoned her favorite pink—tiny pink embroideries dotted her monochrome outfit.
If you still lived hand-to-mouth after making money, then making money would be pointless.
Precisely because their clothes were good, Flender marked them down as children of wealthy houses.
After a seemingly careful but actually careless selection, Yu Yan casually picked up a slightly cracked little cauldron and walked up to Flender. 'This one catches my eye—what's your price?'
'Five thousand gold coins.'
Flender swept a glance at the cauldron and quoted an outrageous figure.
'Huh? Five thousand? You shameless profiteer—this thing's so obviously damaged and you dare ask five thousand?'
Before Yu Yan could haggle, Xiao Wu, hearing the price, abandoned her own browsing, rushed to Yu Yan's side, and jabbed a finger at Flender in indignation.
'This is a spirit tool. For a mere five thousand gold coins you're getting a spirit tool crafted with long-lost techniques—quite the bargain.'
Still half-lying in his chair, Flender didn't even open his eyes.
Yu Yan patted Xiao Wu's shoulder to calm her, then looked at Flender. 'I like the look of it, so I'm willing to buy—how about a hundred gold coins?'
Xiao Wu, who had been rather angry, suddenly lost most of her fury when she heard Yu Yan's hundred-coin offer; she turned to watch the profiteer, curious how he'd respond.
'A hundred's too low. Since you're sincere, three thousand.'
Surprised by the kid, and knowing full well five thousand was impossible, Flender promptly slashed two thousand off the spot.
'If people hear I paid three thousand for this thing, I'll be laughed at—two hundred, and that's final.'
'This is a genuine ruin-find—one thousand, absolutely no less.'
'Two-forty. That's my absolute top, and only because it used to be a spirit tool.'
Yu Yan tossed the cauldron lightly, set it on a nearby table, and delivered his final offer in a dead-serious tone.
'You yourself said it's a spirit tool—six hundred. That's my lowest.'
Sensing the cauldron placed on the table, Flender stressed that it was a spirit tool and gave what he felt was a fair figure.
'Let me pour spirit power into it—if it shows even the slightest effect, I'll pay your original five thousand. Otherwise, three hundred coins and I take one more item: take it or leave it.'
'Three hundred for two pieces? Absolutely not.'
Flender refused the proposal outright without a second thought.
'Relax—I won't touch any of the spirit power items on the walls.'
Yu Yan casually glanced around, then pointed at the dirty crystal by the door. 'That filthy crystal. Plenty of Impurities, and the ugliest crystal I've ever seen—I'll take it back as a joke for my friends. Both items for three hundred coins—deal?'
Flender eyed the grimy crystal, stared at the expressionless Yu Yan for a long moment, then nodded. 'Fine—call it charity. Three hundred for both.'
The cauldron had once been a spirit tool, but now it was utter trash; the faint spirit power fluctuation was something he'd faked with special means.
As for the dirty crystal, he'd tried selling it before—no one wanted it. People liked pure, sparkling crystals, not grimy, Impurity-ridden chunks.
Selling the two for three hundred gold coins was pure profit.
'Done. If this cauldron hadn't caught my eye, I'd never have paid three hundred for these.'
Yu Yan picked the cauldron back up, looking genuinely pleased.
Understanding that the real target was the crystal, Xiao Wu drew three hundred gold coins from the storage soul tool at her neck, slapped them on the table, and—with some disgust—dropped the plank crystal gold filament into the tool.
Payment and goods exchanged, Yu Yan, cauldron in hand, left the shop with Xiao Wu.
Another easy three hundred gold coins.
Flender lifted a coin, sniffed its scent, then swept every gold coin into his own storage soul tool.