As Elias moved through the bustling market, he blended in effortlessly, like a fish gliding through water. The air was filled with the chatter of vendors and the smell of various goods, but Elias had only one goal in mind.
After some time, he stopped in front of a small, almost hidden stall. It wasn't a popular spot, but that's exactly why Elias was drawn to it. The table was cluttered with a strange assortment of items—organs, bones, and vials of blood, all from aether beasts.
This stall wasn't selling the prized parts of these creatures; instead, it dealt in scraps. Most aether beasts weren't sold whole; their valuable parts were divided and sold separately.
It also means that some parts that were not so useful were left behind, and those were the ones being sold at a low price on the stall.
The merchant, a middle-aged man with a bald head and a thick beard, noticed Elias examining the goods. He bowed slightly and asked, "How can I assist you, little sir?"
With a serious expression, Elias asked, "What's the highest-ranked scrap you have? I don't care what part or how damaged the meat might be."
The merchant was a bit taken aback by this request. He had thought the boy was just curious or maybe lost, but when he noticed the small pin on Elias's chest, he realized he was a clan member.
With a commercial smile, he answered, "… I have some rank 3 high wolf guts, but they're nearly rotten. I was thinking of throwing them away. Do you want them? I can give them to you for free if you buy something else."
Elias shrugged and nodded. "Sure, I'll take it. What else do you have?"
The merchant rummaged through his wares, eventually pulling out a large, bloody sack. "Well, I have some rank 2 beast organs, but they're a bit damaged, and no one wants them anyway. I'll give you everything in the sack for one awakening stone."
Usually, this would have been a pretty good and fair deal. However, Elias wasn't satisfied. "Add another bag of rank 1 scraps, and we have a deal." Elias bargained.
"Young man... It is already a good idea for you, so adding more would be..."
Elias did not react and only looked at him with a neutral face.
After a few seconds of awkward silence, the merchant asked. "Young man?"
Yet Elias did not respond and only stared at him.
"Young man, you are hurting my business... Please go away if you are not interested," he insisted.
Once again, Elias ignored him and only glared at him.
After a few minutes, the merchant started to feel that something was off and had a strange, uncomfortable feeling. With no choice, he finally gave up. 'A bag of rank 1 scraps isn't worth much,' he reassured himself. "...Fine. But stop looking at me like that! It's creepy!"
When Elias smiled, the sudden uncomfortable feeling suddenly disappeared as if it was a mere mirage. Unknown to the merchant, Elias had used the natural aura of his rune.
When he played Forgotten Games, he often shamelessly used this natural aura for bargaining. It would sometimes even work on cultivators. Moreover, the best part is that since no aether would be used, they couldn't detect it either.
Although it wasn't much, he could use it for free.
"You won't see me anymore today... If you tell me something. Where are you guys' dumpsters?" Elias asked, his tone calm.
Before the merchant could sigh in relief, Elias had once again taken him aback. 'The ... dumpster?'
The merchant was surprised by the strange request. 'Is the clan so poor they send children to look for trash?' he thought, eyeing Elias's clothes more closely. 'No, it wouldn't make any sense. This kid isn't a beggar, and even his clothes are expensive. Maybe he's just a weirdo. that would explain why this kid had been so strange... Whatever, let's just get rid of him as fast as possible.'
"We drop it at the back of the market. But everything gets burned at the end of the day, so… quickly go." the merchant replied, a bit confused.
"Thanks, I'll take it," Elias said, handing over the awakening stone. He then lifted the two bloody sack, which was half his size, and slung it over his shoulder with ease.
The merchant watched him walk away, a look of bewilderment in his eyes.
.
.
.
Elias soon arrived at the back of the market, where a large pile of garbage was heaped up. The stench was unbearable, and the air buzzed with flies, with worms wriggling around in the filth.
Looking around, Elias found that he was alone. Ignoring the smell, he began digging through the trash, searching for anything useful.
After a while, he found a small, dead bird. Its wings were broken, and its body was covered in dried blood. Some worms were feasting on its corpse.
"Rank 1 Flower Singing Bird," Elias muttered to himself, carefully placing the bird into his bag. He continued his search, undeterred.
Soon after, he found another dead bird, larger this time, with a strange cloud pattern on its feathers. Like the previous one, scavengers had also partially eaten its body.
"Rank 1 Cloud-patterned Bird," he noted, putting it into his bag and adding it to his collection.
Elias continued to sift through the trash, finding a few more interesting items. By the end, he had gathered eleven different kinds of ranked materials.
Elias was satisfied. He had found many useful things, and they were all free.
He knew that not all ranked beasts' body parts were useful; some were naturally useless or so damaged and rotten that they became worthless. But that was exactly what Elias was looking for.
The trash heap was a gold mine for him, and he had been able to find many things. Elias was not concerned if someone saw him or his reputation. It was pretty much meaningless to him for now.
With his bag full, he went into a dark alley, looking for a suitable place.
Once he found a secluded spot where none could be seen, Elias sat down and took out the materials, placing them in front of him. He took a deep breath, his eyes closed as he took out the rank 3 beast guts.
Placing his hand on the rank 3 beast's guts, a dark paste emanated from his palm. The paste was liquid but as thick as tar and slowly seeped into the rank 3 beast's guts.
Once the paste had completely soaked into the beast's guts, it began to bubble and boil, releasing a foul stench.
After a few minutes, the once solid guts dissolved into a lump of sticky goo that eventually turned into a fine-gray powder. Slowly, the black paste retracted back into Elias's palm, leaving only the black powder where the guts had been.
Elias sighed, his expression calm.
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[Rank: 1]
- [Lifespan: 82.19 years]
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[MANIFESTATIONS]
- [Rank 1 Manifestation slot]: [Free]
- [Additional rank 1 Manifestation slot price: 50 years]
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- [Rank up cost: 100 years]
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'The meat had been left alone for too long. The rewards are not as good as they would have been if it was fresh. Whatever, it is still about 36 days of lifespan gained for free.' he thought as he examined the powder.
Unlike what most people might think, the dark liquid Elias used and affectionately called "Black Goo thingy" isn't a manifestation. Instead, it's a special substance created by a rune that Elias possesses.
Although it seemed like the black goo was absorbing something from the beast's guts, it wasn't. This substance serves only a single purpose.
Destroying.
More precisely, it destroys ranked material or manifestation, and in exchange, the user gains a portion of the beast's total lifespan.
It could seem like a more or less fair trade, but in reality, it wasn't. No matter the world, the most precious resource, the resource that can't be gained indefinitely, even after reaching the ultimate rank 9 cultivator, is... Lifespan.
Yet, Elias was actually transforming garbage that no one would want into the most precious resource: Lifespan.
With a sigh, Elias was about to begin the next process when he noticed a small movement out of the corner of his eye.
He turned his head, his gaze falling on a small, shadowy figure that was hiding in the shadows.