Su Mo turned his head and to his surprise, he found that it was Ye Jing, accompanied by a group of beautiful women and many elite subordinates.
"If Young Master Ye has spoken, then of course there's no problem."
The vendor very shamelessly switched sides, but of course, that was only to be expected; inside this safe zone, who would dare not to give Young Master Ye face?
Unfortunately, Su Mo was that exception.
"I've already bought this item."
Su Mo said expressionlessly.
"Uh, bro, are you dumb? The person wanting this is Young Master Ye."
"You've already said it was a done deal."
Su Mo lifted his head to look at the vendor in front of him.
The young man seemed to sense Su Mo's murderous aura and instinctively stepped back, a trace of fear visible on his face.
Ye Jing, standing at the side, couldn't help but take another look at Su Mo, revealing an extremely interested expression.
"Brother, you've got quite the presence. Judging by your equipment, you seem to be an expert. Where are you from?"
"We're not acquainted."
Su Mo wasn't very interested in dealing with Ye Jing.
"Interesting. Fine, let's not beat around the bush. Though the vendor has agreed and you've taken a fancy to the item, there's a saying that a deal isn't complete until the money has exchanged hands. How about this? Let the highest bidder take it. Conquering with money is the real skill."
Ye Jing hadn't encountered someone who didn't give him face like this, but he quite liked it. It made things interesting.
At this point, the vendor was naturally more than willing inside, who wouldn't want to make more money? So he outright said,
"I think Young Master Ye has a point, brother, sorry about this."
Although Su Mo was quite unhappy with the vendor's actions, he did not want to have a direct confrontation. Although this was a safe zone, there was actually little order, and he was at a disadvantage being alone. Any matter that could be resolved with money wasn't a problem.
"Fine."
Hearing Su Mo's response, the young women next to Ye Jing covered their mouths and giggled. In their eyes, Su Mo must be a fool; he actually wanted to compete with Young Master Ye over money.
"500."
Ye Jing stretched out a palm.
The vendor, upon hearing this price, smiled so broadly his mouth nearly couldn't close.
"1,000."
Su Mo did not indulge Ye Jing.
Ye Jing was also slightly taken aback; even 500 was an astronomical price, considering the item normally cost just seventy to eighty. He wouldn't have spent so much if he didn't have an important use for it.
"1,500"
Ye Jing continued to bid, a frown forming on his brow.
"2,000"
"2,500"
"3,000"
...
The two of them kept raising the bids, and soon Su Mo had driven the price up to 5,000. Ye Jing's expression had become quite serious, and even the young women beside him fell silent.
Even the vendor became uneasy; he felt like he might have done something stupid, suspecting that this young man before him was also not a simple character.
Just as Ye Jing was about to continue bidding, a butler beside him spoke up in a low voice, reminding him,
"Young Master, that's enough."
Ye Jing immediately realized, although this sum of money was trivial to him, it indeed wasn't appropriate to spend so much on such a worthless item. There had to be a limit to fighting spirit. They were wealthy, not nouveau riche.
So, Ye Jing turned to Su Mo with a smile and said, "You win. I wonder, what might be your name?"
"Do I need to tell you?"
Su Mo replied calmly.
"Alright, your financial capability is impressive. I hope we meet again sometime."
Ye Jing smiled and left with his people, not angry at all. He might be arrogant, but he had his principles; when he lost, he lost.
At this point, the vendor looked at Su Mo uneasily and gave a slightly embarrassed smile.
"Brother, I had no choice, I can't afford to offend Young Master Ye. How about I charge you a little less?"
"Account number."
Su Mo replied very succinctly.
The stall owner hesitated for a moment but still quoted a price to Su Mo.
It didn't take long for Su Mo to pay and leave, taking his things with him and leaving the stall owner standing there, filled with trepidation.
-----------------------------------------------------
In the corner of the safe zone to the west, seventy to eighty members of the Dream Guild gathered together.
Tang Zhi was chatting with many sisters.
"Let me tell you, Lan Xi is back alive, and Sister Wu is taking her to report to the higher-ups now," she said.
"Really? I remember all her teammates died, right?"
A few girls nearby asked curiously.
"That's right, they all died, and it was all because of Lan Xi," Tang Zhi said seriously.
"Ah? Could there be some misunderstanding?"
Some girls expressed their surprise.
"Whether there's a misunderstanding or not is not important anymore because that's not even the worst part. Do you know how Lan Xi came back alive? I tell you, she clung to the thighs of the enemy who killed her teammates, shamelessly coming back alive," Tang Zhi explained.
"Is that true?"
"I'm not falsely accusing anyone. If you don't believe it, you can go offline later and ask in the guild's logistics channel to see if she's the one who caused her teammates' deaths. Moreover, she ran off with the enemy. Ah, when someone's heart turns wicked, it's simply too frightening," Tang Zhi continued.
"I can't believe she turned out to be that kind of person," someone said.
"Exactly, it's terrifying. You really can't judge a book by its cover."
...
The girls nearby chimed in agreement.
Just then, a slightly handsome man joined in, "I saw it coming. Back in the training camp, I felt something was off about her. It's a good thing I wasn't grouped with her."
"Zhou Ji, I remember you were very eager to be in the same group as her at the beginning, weren't you? It was just that you weren't chosen later on," a girl nearby asked with a hint of suspicion.
"What are you talking about? At first, I was fooled by her appearance. But later, I sensed something was wrong and wisely backed out. Otherwise, I might have been sold out by now and would probably be dead," Zhou Ji quickly defended himself.
"That makes sense."
The girls agreed.
Just then, Sister Wu came over with Lan Xi. They had finished explaining the situation to the guild's top management. The guild decided to fine Lan Xi for a month, and that settled the matter.
Seeing them, Tang Zhi and the others stopped talking.
"Everyone's here!" Sister Wu greeted.
"Hello, Sister Wu."
"Sister Wu, how come you have time to come over? Are you free now?"
...
The girls responded with laughter.
Sister Wu smiled back, "Free? The game has just begun, and the guild is seriously short-staffed. There are so many things to coordinate; I'm incredibly busy."
"Sister Wu, you're working hard."
"Yes, you're taking on so much. Make sure you rest enough. Otherwise, you'll age quickly."
The sisters flattered Sister Wu.
Sister Wu smiled and said to the girls, "Alright, sisters, I'll make sure to rest. I've come because there's something I need to discuss with you all."
"What is it, Sister Wu? It wouldn't happen to be about finding a team for Lan Xi, would it?" Tang Zhi said with a meaningful smile.
The place, which had been lively before, fell silent upon Tang Zhi's words. The atmosphere suddenly became very awkward.
Sister Wu frowned slightly; she didn't like Tang Zhi very much. This was just causing trouble for her, disrupting what she had intended to say.
But since things were as they were, she didn't beat around the bush and spoke straightforwardly to the girls.