Chapter 60: Transactions and Deals
When Leon asked the question, Theodore Warden hesitated for a moment. He seriously considered it for a long time before finally nodding, "This matter is simple. There are many ways to control the Ji position. You can refer to the posts [The Handbook of Ji Position Selection] and [Advanced Ji Position Compendium]."
Leon quickly searched for these two posts, glanced through them briefly, and then shook his head, "This isn't what I want. What I'm looking for is something that can spiral around the main fortress and form massive rain clouds or cloud layers. This would allow the main fortress and various defense measures to move freely within the clouds, achieving overall mobility."
Theodore Warden, being a top student in biological studies, understood what Leon wanted even though not all the details were explained.
"You're researching Eastern-style bone dragons and found that those without wings can't fly, right? That's actually the distinction between the Eastern and Western styles. There's a lot in the Eastern style that's invisible. This has actually been studied by experts before. You can refer to the post [All Issues Concerning Eastern-Style Ghost Dragons], where there's a detailed explanation. Additionally, ghost dragons don't use rain clouds but rather something like a dark sky curtain. I think you're familiar with that, right?"
Upon hearing Theodore Warden's explanation, Leon quickly searched again and indeed found such a post. However, it appeared to be a paid post, and it wasn't cheap.
Normally, Leon might have skipped it, but with Theodore Warden's introduction, he gritted his teeth and bought the post, studying it quite seriously.
After about half an hour of reading, Leon slapped the table and stood up, "This is exactly what I needed. Thanks, Theo... Wait, where did Theo go?"
Realizing Theodore Warden had already left, Leon didn't linger in the forum. He copied the post [All Issues Concerning Eastern-Style Ghost Dragons] and converted it into a card to take with him.
After leaving the forum, Leon swiftly left the school and headed underground toward the southwest of Sun City, where the trading point for players with shadow attributes was located. Leon had a new idea and planned to buy some items there.
It was the same store, Black Bone Goods, from last time. As soon as Leon entered, he shouted, "Blackie, are you there? I need to buy something."
The store owner, who was entirely black, with even his eyes devoid of whites, quickly walked out from the back. Upon seeing Leon, he smiled, "Oh, it's you again. What are you looking to buy this time?"
"Let's not talk about that for now. I have 11 units of fire-attributed bones, 67 units of regular electrical fragments or parts, and 21 units of electrical fragments or parts with fire or shadow attributes. Help me estimate their current value; I'll use them for trading later."
As Leon spoke, he brought out the spoils he had gathered from Storm Archipelago. Of course, he had kept anything useful; these were the items of little value to him.
Blackie didn't say much and swiftly began testing the items with various instruments. Unlike Leon, who could only bring out cards as a Level 0 weakling, Blackie was a Level 2 advanced player and could directly materialize the items from the cards into the virtual world.
After calculating everything, Blackie gave Leon a price. It was equivalent to 271 units of magical mercury or about 9,117 units of currency.
Now knowing how much money he had on hand, Leon began selecting items from Blackie's store. His goal was clear, and he pointed directly to many things, turning them into cards and taking them with him.
Seeing Leon's choices, Blackie couldn't help but comment, "Looks like you've hit it big this time. But with all these high-quality items, what if you fail your class change?"
"Don't jinx me!" Leon rolled his eyes at Blackie, who couldn't roll his own due to a lack of eye whites. "Can't you say something nice? I risked my life for these things. If something goes wrong because of your bad luck, how would I deal with that?"
Blackie chuckled mischievously, and then, as if remembering something, said, "Oh, by the way, I just received a treasure map. It's for Level 0. Want to take a look?"
Upon hearing this, Leon hesitated for a moment. After some thought, he shook his head, "I probably won't have the time. I've got too many things on my plate right now, most of which are slow and time-consuming. I came here today to buy all the materials I need in one go, so I can spend the next six months in the lab."
Hearing Leon's words, Blackie let it go. After all, Leon wasn't his only customer. It's just that Leon had brought in valuable items today, making Blackie think Leon's luck had been good recently and that treasure hunting might yield even more rewards.
After leaving Black Bone Goods, Leon visited a few nearby shops, buying large quantities of materials he needed. Most of these materials were Level 2, but since Leon had spread out his purchases, no one knew what he was planning.
With the materials he had bought, Leon returned to the forum and actively sought out Theodore Warden again, asking him to help breed some Level 0 Jiaos.
Leon didn't have high expectations for the battle capabilities of these Jiaos; his only requirement was that they not be too large, preferably around the thickness of a person's arm. They could be sourced from snakes or carnivorous fish.
Additionally, they needed to be able to fly freely within the dark sky curtain, capable of growing by devouring flesh or negative energy. If they could naturally build nests and generate new Jiaos, that would be ideal. If not, the quantity would have to make up for it.
To these requests, Theodore Warden casually replied that there was no problem. These Jiaos could be supplied in whatever quantity was needed, and they could be delivered immediately.
Thus, when Leon returned to his rented space, he had nearly a thousand Jiaos with him.
Bringing these Jiaos into the space, Leon didn't kill them but instead threw them near the energy distribution chamber. Then, he cast a summoning spell there.
These Jiaos were exactly as Leon had requested—small but incredibly agile and unintelligent. When thrown near the energy distribution chamber, they tried to scatter and flee.
However, they were quickly enveloped by the surrounding ghostly mist, and the seven vines above the temple swiftly moved. The fine white-haired vines beneath the leaves pierced into the Jiaos' bodies like needles.
In an instant, the thousand Jiaos turned into dried corpses. Most of these corpses crumbled into dust and merged with the ghostly mist. Only about a hundred Jiaos reanimated under Leon's summoning spell, transforming into corpse Jiaos that clung to the vines, spiraling endlessly around the energy distribution chamber.