Because Mark and Gabriella had to deliver the fox cubs to the beast merchant who had messaged them a few days ago, the three youths decided to go shopping.
The shopping centers and stalls in Jiro-City were much grander than the ones in Artes city and filled with many different things to buy which one couldn't purchase in Artes city.
Greg and Jason were astonished about the things they could purchase because it was the first time for Jason to be in a different city than Artes city. Greg had never been to a shopping street when he was younger and the Flers used to live in Cyro-City.
Malia was unbothered by most things one could purchase, except some clothes and exotic weapons that attracted her attention, which Jason found funny.
Jason had around 20 million credits and he wanted to use them to purchase mana stones and other things.
When he would reach Cyro-City he would have a week left before school started and it was very important for him to increase his combat prowess until then, because of different reasons, including the student rankings on the first day…
Because of that, he would have to improve his combat experience and combat skills.
That´s why Jason wanted to enter a two-star wild zone when he would be in Cyro city.
To protect himself he wanted to purchase a mana gun or more exactly the ManaM9 with an effective firing range of 200 meters. With its black metallic color made of black iron, a length of 217mm(8.5 in), and a barrel length of 125mm (4.9 in) Jason would be able to use it easily with one hand. Jason also adored the exterior design and the smooth glossy finish causing him to purchase one.
A common M9 pistol was a grade-1 Mana gun with its specialization being a pistol with weak recoil and a standard magazine size of 15 bullets.
It could easily kill evolved beasts with a single shot to the vital area and was as such extremely dangerous.
But the most frightening aspect about this weapon was its price.
The selling price of the M9 was 3,000,000 Credits with 4 filled magazines(common mana bullets)
However, Jason still decided to purchase it as a defensive measure, and furthermore, Jason bought another 300 common mana bullets and many other types of ammunition like armor-piercing bullets, explosive bullets, boat tails bullets, and more.
After adding everything together, Jason´s bank balance was reduced by around 4,000,000 Credits with a single purchase, causing a devastating expression to appear on his face.
`My money!!` He sulked but this thought was quickly replaced.
Because he still had around 16 million credits left, Jason decided to use 4 million credits to purchase mana stones as an investment for himself.
With 12 million credits and 97 small mana stones, Jason was confident to reach the later levels of the Novice rank, easily!!
Jason even saw some soul weapons inside the shops, but he was uninterested in them at the moment because he wasn't able to afford them even if he feigned a lack of interest.
Meanwhile, Greg came across a heavyweight vest which one could adjust to one's required weight to train.
While Greg bought a heavyweight vest which he could adjust from 1 kg to 3000 kg, Jason found it to be useful equipment and he decided to purchase a heavyweight vest with an adjustable weight ranging from 1 kg to 500 kg.
It was priced at 2 million credits and Jason had now only half of his fortune left.
Nevertheless, Jason would wear it during every workout and adjust his strength accordingly.
They continued with their stroll when Jason's eyes fell on something he didn't think he could find in the previous stall.
Jason´s knowledge was deep and profound compared to his peers, except for his lack in deciphering the pictures to some beasts, which he was already catching up.
When he saw a particular fruit at a stall with its mana fluctuations, Jason´s eyes bulged slightly and he went closer.
Jason hadn't seen many fruits that radiated mana, but this fruit even had a weak black color radiating from it.
This was something he had never seen, and he wondered what was going on with this fruit.
It was a Holy white bacuri which was a low-Class-1 fruit and its selling price was stated for 10 million credits.
Malia and Greg noticed his gaze and Malia informed him about the fruit.
"The Holy white bacuri fruit is a rare fruit which can only be found in mana dense magic zones or permanent rifts, occasionally it is found in four-star wild zones but it is extremely rare.
This fruit is able to completely dissolve one's mana core shackles until one reaches the low-Adept rank.
It is used by influential heirs to increase their cultivation speed to a certain degree.
If one were to compare their speed with the same amount of mana sensitivity and control, the one who used a Holy white bacuri fruit would be much faster to reach the levels fourth and seventh up to the Novice core limit.
There would be relatively fewer difficulties in crossing the thresholds between the 3rd and 4th, and 6th and 7th level if one used the Holy white bacuri fruit. The fruit was potent in getting rid of all the impurities and one could easily enter the Adept rank.
Looking at this fruit, I feel certain that this is only one of the lowest-ranked Holy light bacuri fruit that exists, otherwise, its price would have been much higher."
The vendor listened to the youths talking and in the beginning, he was confident that one of these youths might purchase the Holy white bacuri fruit, but after the young woman finished her small lesson, he began to sweat lightly…
It was true that this fruit was one of the worst possible ranks and the asking price of 10 million credits was probably a scam, but he had to sell it because he was in huge debt, so he tried his best to make the benefits of the fruit sound more appealing.
"My dear customer...If you purchase this Holy white bacuri fruit for 10 million credits, this grade-2 perennial neoxid box prevents the Class-2 herbs from perishing and keeps them intact for more than 5 years if it's not opened consistently."
Listening to the vendor, Jason´s interest was piqued.
The fruit was already in a box and couldn´t release its magical effect, but if Jason bought this fruit it would be without the perennial neoxid box.
He didn't want to purchase the holy white bacuri fruit for himself, rather it was to experiment with something once he got a new soulbond.
Jason was way too curious and he had already spent some time researching about the price for purifying items or fruits and the lowest price was around 25 million credits.
This Holy white bacuri fruit would probably be the cheapest purification fruit Jason would be able to lay his hand on, at least for the time being, so he decided to purchase it.
Receiving a grade-2 perennial neoxid box in addition to the holy white bacuri fruit was also nice because it was worth 2 million credits alone.
While Jason transferred 10 million credits, he was left with around 100,000 Credits.
Malia and Greg were a little bit astonished about his purchase, but they found that it was still a good idea. Jason had no time left to break through the shackles and saving time was always good and a decent investment in the human capital.
Right now, Jason was just too weak and it would only hinder him to wait for a natural breakthrough.
They hadn't known that Jason had purchased the fruit for his future beast, not for himself, but he wouldn't say it out loud if nobody asked.
Jason was also curious as to why there were numerous obstacles from the 4th to the 7th level. While the obstacles to a new rank were quite normal, he couldn´t understand the walls in between the ranks.
One had to know that the ranking system had been only established 200 years ago, and there were still many theories out that the "mana-cultivation" system was wrong and should be revised.
But there weren't any proofs and theories alone were not good enough to cause a revision of an established system.
Suddenly the three of them heard a loud siren resounding through the streets and a mechanical voice booming in the air right afterward.
**Attention please, attention, please…
Due to some unforeseen reasons, a large number of beasts have stepped through the magical dome. They are now on their way towards the city walls.
Please stay calm and go to the closest shelter or a secure location.
This is not a test. This is not a test! **