Chapter 60: The Candidate
The sudden visit from a Goblin Merchant Guild shareholder was inevitably surprising. After all, Su Xiao had no deep dealings with the Goblin Merchant Guild, having only purchased rare items from them before.
But the moment this Goblin Merchant Guild shareholder opened his mouth and uttered the classic "My dear friend," Su Xiao already knew who it was. Even though the other party's appearance, aura, and tone were different from before, when he said those words, the expression—four parts cunning, three parts sleazy, and three parts shifty-eyed—was something no one else could imitate.
That's right, that bastard Kaiser had come to Arcane Eternal Star, and he had disguised himself as one of the Goblin Merchant Guild's shareholders. How he managed this, Su Xiao didn't know, but he was certain this guy was here to cause trouble.
Inside the room, Su Xiao and Kaiser sat across from each other at the tea table. Kaiser hadn't come alone; he had brought two assistants.
These two assistants were also goblins, but one was fat and the other thin. The fat one wasn't just plump; it was a bloated, solid fat. The thin one wasn't emaciated but wiry and lean.
Both goblin assistants wore suits and sunglasses and carried briefcases. Combined with Kaiser's current attire, no matter how you looked at it, these three didn't seem like proper goblins. But this fit the vibe of Goblin Merchant Guild shareholder Kama quite well.
Besides Su Xiao, Kaiser, and the two assistants, the steward of the Dawnlight Manor and Green Gillian were also present.
Don't underestimate the stewards of Dawnlight Manor. On the surface, they were polite to everyone, but once they sensed something suspicious, the consequences were nearly catastrophic.
As for Green Gillian, who was eating fruit salad with Beini on the side, she was, after all, Sefeiliya's disciple.
Even without these two present, being on the spellcasters' turf meant some things couldn't be said openly between Su Xiao and Kaiser.
"Last time we parted at the Great Gathering Place, it's been a while."
Kaiser spoke with a smile, revealing two gold teeth in his mouth.
"Yeah, it has been a while. The last batch of potion commissions I gave you all..."
Su Xiao began chatting idly with Kaiser. On the surface, that's all it seemed. In reality, Su Xiao had activated the Dawn Team and sent Kaiser a team invitation. As long as the other party joined the team, they could communicate through the team channel without anyone else possibly detecting it.
[Tip: Goblin Merchant Guild shareholder Kama has joined the team.]
Seeing this prompt, Su Xiao wasn't surprised. For Kaiser to come to Arcane Eternal Star in his current disguised identity and be treated as a distinguished guest, this identity had to be solid enough to withstand scrutiny.
After Kaiser joined the team, the first thing he did was remove the name disguise on his identity within the team, changing his name in the team to Nicholas Kaiser.
Not only that, but Kaiser also had Su Xiao invite his two goblin assistants into the team through the team channel.
At first, the names of these two goblin assistants were unfamiliar. But after they removed their name disguises, Su Xiao realized they were none other than Violent Rat and Toad. So, the three scoundrels of the Arbiters had come together this time.
Through Kaiser's narration, Su Xiao learned why the three had come here together and what punishment mission Kaiser had received after being expelled from the Land of All Beings.
As Su Xiao had guessed, Kaiser was thrown into the Gloomy Continent to fight a World War there—more precisely, to act as an Arbiter.
As a former Transcendent Primordial World, even if it had declined, it was still one of the top-tier Eighth Rank primordial worlds. After the source of deathly stillness there was resolved, the start of a World War was inevitable.
This World War originally involved only three parties: Reincarnation Paradise, Death Paradise, and Sanctuary Paradise—a struggle among madmen, killers, and divine stick figures. But after the war began, Apocalypse Paradise and Holy Light Paradise joined in.
In such a chaotic free-for-all, the contractors from Apocalypse Paradise and Holy Light Paradise were hugging each other tightly from the start. Both sides' contractors were quite bewildered. Weren't they not supposed to participate? Why the sudden change of heart?
Ignoring the psychological shadow area of these two sides' contractors, when the contractors from Reincarnation Paradise, Death Paradise, and Sanctuary Paradise entered, their own side and Sanctuary Paradise clashed directly near the landing point.
In the past, those divine stick figures could hold their own against their own madmen. The problem was, this time, their own lineup was truly fierce.
Mr. J, the Dean, Mad Doctor, Dust, the Three Brothers of National Football, Gourmet, the Illusionist of the Traveling Group, Gulu, the Witch, and Spirit Crow—these were just the known members of their own side.
With such a lineup, Sanctuary Paradise's side was nearly beaten into shock in the first round. Even the people from Death Paradise were a bit stunned. Their first thought was that this time, Reincarnation Paradise's side was really too strong.
Compared to these two sides, the contractors from Apocalypse Paradise and Holy Light Paradise had even bigger psychological shadows. Although they knew Reincarnation Paradise's combat power was strong, reaching this level was hard for them to accept.
That night, after the divine stick figures from Sanctuary Paradise were thoroughly beaten, they naturally felt unwilling to accept defeat. Their leader-level figure, the Fifth Divine Envoy, came up with a countermeasure: since they couldn't win head-on, they'd play dirty and win through strategy.
After the divine stick figures adopted this strategy, Mr. J, the Dean, Gourmet, and the Illusionist all expressed their approval. Before the next morning, they had sent off the Fifth Divine Envoy, that old yinbi who tried to take on four at once.
In the first two days, after the other four sides were tossed around, everyone put on a mask of pain. But they didn't know this was just the beginning.
By the morning of the third day, Kaiser, who had been behind the scenes, stepped up. Using Gulu, Spirit Crow, and others as representatives, without showing himself or directly interfering, he united several major forces within the High Wall city and several large beast clans on the wasteland outside.
Normally, this World War should have been settled. But don't forget, the other sides also had Arbiters.
Eight Arbiters with Void Tree Reputation over 1200 points used their impartial voting authority to vote Kaiser out. They naturally knew how hard Kaiser was to deal with, so they didn't confront him at all. Instead, they used an extreme eight-for-one trade-off, sacrificing themselves to be expelled from the Gloomy World to kick Kaiser out.
It had to be said that these eight Arbiters from Death Paradise, Sanctuary Paradise, Apocalypse Paradise, and Holy Light Paradise had excellent big-picture awareness. They all understood one thing: without that bastard in the world, there might still be a glimmer of hope for a comeback.
Among these eight Arbiters, seven had been dominated by the three-scoundrel Arbiter team of Kaiser, Toad, and Violent Rat. Even though the other two scoundrels weren't present now, these Arbiters still felt uneasy.
Kaiser's exit meant that, given the advantages he had created and their own lineup advantage, this match should have been basically secure.
But as the saying goes, unexpected things happen. On the fourth day of the World War, a ruthless figure named Enzo from Death Paradise stepped up. This was a powerhouse so strong it was against the rules.
Not many might know the name Enzo, but if you mentioned his other title, Water Brother, many would recognize it.
In the Treeborn World, Water Brother was the top of the kill leaderboard and received the first-place reward, the Primordial Demon Mirror.
In the past, Water Brother was already a powerhouse extremely skilled in one-on-one combat. He killed to god-tier in the World of Paintings and remained firmly in the top tier in the Treeborn World.
After obtaining the Primordial Demon Mirror, a "Daddy Rank" artifact, Water Brother should have gone silent for a while, either to get rid of the mirror or to get used to it.
The reality was that although Water Brother and the Primordial Demon Mirror were far from the collusion between Kaiser and the Abyssal Jar, they did have a certain degree of compatibility.
As the name suggested, the Primordial Demon Mirror was a mirror—an ancient metal floor mirror. If someone else obtained it, every time they stood before this demon mirror, as long as they thought of something, they would soon achieve it due to an extreme surge in fortune.
When someone first obtained the Primordial Demon Mirror, they would experience a series of windfalls in a short time, rapidly growing stronger. Everything would seem so wonderful.
Of course, this came with a condition: you had to stand before the mirror and constantly fantasize about these things. Simply put, the Primordial Demon Mirror could fulfill the holder's wishes by extremely enhancing their fortune.
From this perspective, the Primordial Demon Mirror wasn't a "Daddy Rank" artifact at all. It wasn't dangerous at all—it was practically a reasonable version of a wish-granting device.
Was that really the case? Of course not. When the mirror's owner stood before it and fantasized about their wishes, the reflection in the mirror would become clearer and clearer until it was identical to the person in front of the mirror.
At that point, the nightmare began. The reflection of oneself would step out of the mirror—this was the Mirror Ghost.
The Mirror Ghost wasn't an evil spirit or the like. It was far more terrifying than those things. Simply put, the Mirror Ghost was a replica of the mirror's owner. It would have the same appearance, the same abilities, and even the same memories as the original. The difference was that the Mirror Ghost had nearly infinite greed and malice.
When the Mirror Ghost encountered the original, both would have the same thought: kill the other.
As for using the Primordial Demon Mirror in moderation—only a few times without giving it a chance to project a Mirror Ghost—that seemed feasible but was actually suicidal. Once you looked into the demon mirror, greed would cling to your heart like a demon. Looking into the demon mirror was either zero times or countless times.
Water Brother was an exception among all the mirror's owners. Water Brother was blind. His blindness wasn't just a physical issue; even on the soul level, he was blind. Otherwise, Water Brother would have found a way to restore his vision long ago, rather than choosing a system that required blindness for inheritance.
More precisely, in the concept of Water Brother's existence, there were no causal connections related to eyes, vision, or the like.
Since he couldn't see the endless desires within the demon mirror, the Mirror Ghost it projected was naturally different.
After obtaining the Primordial Demon Mirror, Water Brother didn't use it to fulfill any fantasies. Instead, he would sit quietly before the mirror until a Mirror Ghost appeared, then kill it. He was constantly overcoming himself and absorbing the trace amounts of "Primordial" energy that scattered after killing the Mirror Ghost. This caused the already strong Water Brother to go a step further.
In fact, even before Water Brother stepped up, Death Paradise's side was not easy to deal with. In this World War, Death Paradise's leader was Nightmare Ghost Kain, and Scale Dragon Alec was also present. Even so, turning the tables was still difficult for them.
After learning all this, Su Xiao had no particular thoughts. Compared to the rewards he might get from winning the World War, how to handle Arcane Eternal Star was what he needed to focus on.
After inquiring, Su Xiao learned that Kaiser had come to make up for his losses. After being voted out of the Gloomy Continent, that bastard missed out on several benefits that were almost within his grasp, which made him restless.
If he didn't find a chance to make a profit, Kaiser wouldn't be able to sleep well for the next month. Thinking that Su Xiao must be at Arcane Eternal Star, he rushed over.
But what identity to use was always a problem. If Kaiser and his two companions came as Arbiters, they definitely wouldn't get much benefit.
Kaiser originally planned to come under his fake alias as a Void Merchant. But after arriving at Lighthouse Star and checking into the hotel booked by the Merchant Alliance, he discovered that Kama, one of the Goblin Merchant Guild's shareholders, was also staying there temporarily.
Upon seeing this Goblin Merchant Guild shareholder, Kaiser's thoughts became clear. After learning that the other party had brought two assistants, Kaiser's thoughts became even clearer.
At this moment, the real Goblin Merchant Guild shareholder Kama and his two assistants were somewhere on Lighthouse Star. In a few days, their sealed memories would break free, and their appearances would return to normal.
Before that, Kaiser, Toad, and Violent Rat had perfectly replaced this Goblin Merchant Guild shareholder and his two assistants.
These three hadn't come to target the treasure vault, the Clock Tower, or other resource storage locations. This was Arcane Eternal Star. Even Kaiser had to stay "low-key" here.
Weighing the risks and rewards, Kaiser and his two companions shouldn't have come to find Su Xiao. Once their disguised identities intersected, it would be somewhat disadvantageous for their subsequent collaboration. In other words, Kaiser, Toad, and Violent Rat had no choice but to come here.
After some idle chat, Su Xiao had Green Gillian and Beini go to the restaurant downstairs to order a late-night snack. As a foodie, Green Gillian was very enthusiastic about this.
Seeing this, the steward of Dawnlight Manor greeted them and left, apparently no longer suspicious of Kaiser and his companions' identities. In fact, Dawnlight Manor had already contacted the Goblin Merchant Guild earlier and received a reply that they had indeed sent shareholder Kama as their representative for the Arcane Festival.
Only Su Xiao, Kaiser, Toad, and Violent Rat remained in the room. Violent Rat took out a small wooden box from his bosom and opened it. Fine lightning spread to the surroundings, quickly covering the inner walls and ceiling of the room.
"This will last at most five minutes. Within five minutes, no one can monitor us."
As Violent Rat spoke, he leaned back comfortably on the sofa and propped his crossed legs on the tea table.
"We got lucky. We were staying at the same hotel as Goblin Merchant Guild shareholder Kama. You can guess what happened next."
Toad spoke while placing the briefcase in his hand on the table. Opening it, he took out six Goblin Merchant Guild checks. He continued:
"Six checks, each with a maximum limit of 100,000 Soul Coins. I've dealt with the protective arrays on them, and Kaiser handled the signatures. But the contract notarization..."
Toad pointed to the contract notarization section on the checks. Somehow, the three of them had managed to turn the contract notarization sections on all six checks dark red, indicating failed contract notarization.
Su Xiao picked up one of the Goblin Merchant Guild checks and ran his thumb over the contract lines. Just from the feel, he knew that the anti-tampering contract had been mostly activated. Before the check could self-destruct, a misleading contract had suppressed it. But within a day or two, these six checks would be destroyed.
"The contract on these is very troublesome."
Su Xiao put down the Goblin Merchant Guild check. Hearing this, Kaiser showed a sly smile, Toad grinned widely, and Violent Rat gave a thumbs-up.
"We split the benefits evenly. Four of us, 25% each."
Toad spoke.
"Fifty percent."
Su Xiao made a counteroffer. Hearing this, Kaiser across from him had already roughly guessed Su Xiao's opening price. Toad and Violent Rat both widened their eyes.
"You're asking for the sky. At most, 30% for you."
Violent Rat spoke. Kaiser beside him wanted to stop him, but it was too late.
"Deal."
"Damn."
Violent Rat exclaimed. Kaiser grinned slyly. From the moment Su Xiao asked for 50%, Kaiser knew what Su Xiao meant. In all their past collaborations, Su Xiao never made exorbitant demands. So this time, asking for 50% was just a casual try. If the three of them insisted on an even split, they could reach a cooperation without any further negotiation.
But unfortunately, Violent Rat hadn't collaborated much with Su Xiao before and was settled in just two sentences.
Su Xiao didn't care how the remaining 70% was divided among Kaiser and his two companions. He just needed to get his 30% and do what he was supposed to do.
With the benefit distribution settled, it was time to get to work. Su Xiao picked up the Goblin Merchant Guild checks.
Six checks meant a maximum total of 600,000 Soul Coins. But there was one catch: these checks had to be spent quickly.
So, not only did they need to resolve the contract issues on these six checks, but they also had to carefully consider how to spend them. As for the losses caused to the Goblin Merchant Guild, inflating the price of a Technique Soul worth 100,000 Soul Coins to 150,000 was their handiwork.
Su Xiao took out a piece of parchment and neatly arranged the six Goblin Merchant Guild checks on it. Then he took out another contract parchment, laid it on top, and sandwiched the six checks between the two contract parchments.
After that, he began writing and drawing on the top contract parchment. Finally, he imprinted the ψ mark in the center of the parchment. The ψ mark represented the Void Tree.
But that wasn't all. He also imprinted the ф mark, the € mark, and the £ mark around it.
These three marks: the ф mark naturally represented Reincarnation Paradise, the € mark represented Apocalypse Paradise, and the final £ mark represented Death Paradise.
After all these marks were imprinted, Su Xiao awakened this contract parchment. In an instant, six marks shone through from below and were finally fixed on this parchment.
The Goblin Merchant Guild's contract mark had a high contract level? No problem. Let it contend with the marks of the Void Tree, Reincarnation Paradise, Apocalypse Paradise, and Death Paradise.
As Su Xiao lifted the top parchment, the contract notarization sections on the six Goblin Merchant Guild checks below had returned to white. No matter how you looked at it, these six checks were perfectly fine.
"It's done."
Toad spoke with a chuckle. As he spoke, he picked up a Goblin Merchant Guild check and flicked it lovingly, as if it made the most pleasant sound.
The lightning patterns in the surrounding air gradually disappeared. Soon, Beini and Green Gillian, who had gone out to buy a late-night snack, returned.
After sharing a late-night snack, Kaiser and his two companions took their leave, agreeing to attend the opening ceremony of the Arcane Festival together the next morning.
...
The next morning, 10:00 AM.
Boom~, boom~
The sound of fireworks outside was incessant. Su Xiao checked the time and went out to knock on the door of the adjacent room.
Knock, knock, knock~
After a moment, the door opened. The Goddess of Fortune stood inside, dressed in a light white banquet gown.
"You are?"
The Goddess of Fortune looked at Su Xiao with confusion. Although they had been neighbors for a few days, they had no interaction.
"Holy Flame."
"Oh~! I've heard of you. What a coincidence. But why are you looking for me?"
"The luncheon is about to start. I'm inviting you to join."
"Alright, let's go together."
"..."
Su Xiao didn't continue the small talk. He went downstairs with the Goddess of Fortune and took the rail train to Dawnlight Manor.
When the rail train stopped, the sound of noisy voices came. Getting off and standing on the nearby viewing platform, he could see the vast Dawnlight Manor crowded with people.
An hour later, inside the No. 3 Grand Banquet Hall.
Su Xiao sat at a dining table. The Goddess of Fortune was beside him, and Beini was on the other side. Three days ago, Beini had "accidentally gotten lost" and met the Goddess of Fortune. After that, they became acquainted. Who could refuse a smart, elegant cat that was extremely wealthy in potions? Especially since Beini also had some beauty and skincare secret potions custom-made for female powerhouses.
This was also why Su Xiao had invited the Goddess of Fortune to the luncheon earlier and introduced himself as Holy Flame. The other party said it was a coincidence. The Goddess of Fortune didn't know the Holy Flame Alchemist himself but recognized his cat.
Su Xiao savored the delicious food. The ingredients on the table were very rare. Unfortunately, the chef's skill was slightly inferior to Xia's—no, it should be said that the chef was evenly matched with Xia's culinary skills. It was just that Su Xiao was more accustomed to Xia's dishes. This unknown famous chef had a natural disadvantage.
"Delicious~, my brain is melting."
Green Gillian, sitting next to Beini, squinted her eyes in bliss. Seeing this, Lune beside her cast a disdainful glance and then gulped down several big mouthfuls of honey-glazed tail meat.
Su Xiao enjoyed the food and suddenly thought of Amu. If Amu were here, and this luncheon was buffet-style, he could definitely unleash his full "power."
The luncheon lasted until 3:00 PM. By this meal, guests from all races were full and satisfied. Their dissatisfaction with Arcane Eternal Star had lessened somewhat—after all, they had been fed.
In the courtyard, Su Xiao was about to head to the winery when he saw Kaiser, Toad, and Violent Rat walking over, supporting each other. Their waistlines were now at their all-time maximum. But considering they were disguised as goblins, and goblins' style was to eat free food until they were stuffed like this, it was normal.
Or rather, Kaiser was being restrained. If it were usual, he would feel uncomfortable all over if he didn't sneak something from the kitchen.
Seeing the three walking toward him, Su Xiao abandoned the idea of going to the winery and started chatting with them. This place had many eyes and ears. More contact in such settings would prevent suspicion even if they acted together later.
Time passed quickly. Under the lively atmosphere of Dawnlight Manor, the sky darkened, and lights lit up everywhere in the manor.
Seeing this, Su Xiao walked toward the No. 5 Banquet Hall in the middle-rear area of the manor. When he arrived at the No. 5 Grand Banquet Hall, there were already many people there.
The dining tables were somewhat scattered. Most of the people present were young—the outstanding talents from various races participating in the upcoming "Combat Competition."
Looking around, the young people of various races were either chatting and laughing, toasting, or sitting alone in corners. They seemed aloof, but the occasional glance at black stockings revealed a restless heart in that youth.
At a table in another corner, among the few people there, only one was attracted by the black stockings—Green Gillian.
"Green."
Su Xiao spoke.
"Huh?"
Although Green Gillian responded, her eyes were still fixed on the legs of a Mist-Ear Clan girl. The girl was so embarrassed she used a curtain to cover her legs.
"Green."
Su Xiao emphasized his tone, which made Green Gillian, who had been frequently disciplined by him lately, instinctively shudder and quickly withdraw her gaze.
At this table, besides Su Xiao, Beini, and Green Gillian, Kaiser, Toad, and Violent Rat were also present.
"Green, among these people, who do you think is the most promising?"
Su Xiao spoke. Hearing this, Green Gillian grinned and said, "It's definitely Edeir. Look at her..."
Green Gillian was halfway through her sentence when she noticed Su Xiao's increasingly stern gaze. She quickly changed her tune:
"But then again, Edeir is weak in close combat."
The Edeir Green Gillian mentioned was no outsider—she was Wood's younger sister. As for why their age and strength gap was so large, that was a question for Wood's father.
Among this competition's participants, Su Xiao needed to select a seed candidate. Using this person as the starting point of the plan, he could then unfold the entire plan.
Through Green Gillian's introduction, Su Xiao roughly understood the few championship favorites for this Combat Competition.
First was the demon clan's Yaba. This young demon was one of the rare ones in recent years who could use the Molten War Sword. That greatsword was one of the demon clan's inherited weapons. If its full power could be unleashed, even if the user wasn't great, it would still be a mid-tier Ninth Rank combat power.
Of course, at this moment, the young demon named Yaba could only initially use the Molten War Sword and wasn't fully recognized by this heavy sword. But even so, Yaba was rarely matched among the younger generation.
The feather clan siblings, Yaoyi and Yuli, were also championship favorites. Although they didn't dare speak when teased by Green Gillian, Green Gillian had Ninth Rank strength. She might have a silly personality, but she was far from weak.
Besides the feather clan siblings, the demon clan's Edeir was also a championship favorite. However, this pale-faced girl with a thin, sickly beauty seemed fragile but was actually stubborn at heart. She always wanted to surpass her brother. But Wood, who doted on his sister, had never shown his true power in front of her. This gave his sister the illusion that if she kept working hard, she could definitely surpass her brother.
Perhaps only Edeir herself didn't know that her brother was the ruthless one who dared to carry the Abyssal Jar alone to the Treeborn World to break the chains for the demon clan.
"Look over there. That guy still wearing a hood in the banquet hall. His name is Elqi. He should be the champion of this Combat Competition."
Green Gillian said while eating small snacks, pointing to a figure at a table in the opposite corner.
"Elqi is from the Soul Faction. To be honest, although he's from the younger generation, I feel it's quite unfair for him to participate in this Combat Competition."
Green Gillian finally showed a rare serious expression.
"Oh, no, there's another one just as ruthless. The one over there drinking from a bottle—yes, her. Her name is Nairo. She's White Bull's adopted daughter. Among this younger generation, I feel only she can fight Elqi."
Hearing Green Gillian's words, Su Xiao looked in the direction she pointed and saw Nairo sitting cross-legged on a chair, drinking straight from a bottle without using a cup.
The last time they met was when White Bull brought Nairo to the Starry Sky Seat. Back then, Nairo was so well-behaved she didn't dare speak loudly. Now, she had shown her true colors.
Su Xiao stared at Nairo expressionlessly. Nairo, who was letting loose and drinking from the bottle, suddenly shivered. She looked around nervously, searching. Although she didn't find anything, she obediently put down the bottle and dared not let loose anymore.
Seeing this, Su Xiao looked away. Among the seed candidates present, Nairo was definitely not an option. Elqi was also out—he was from Arcane Eternal Star's Soul Faction.
Edeir couldn't be chosen either. If he chose her, Wood would really come to fight him to the death.
As for Yaba, he was the only seedling in the demon clan who could use the Molten War Sword. It wasn't good to choose him either.
Thinking this way, only the feather clan siblings, Yaoyi and Yuli, remained. Recalling the resemblance between Yuli's demeanor and that of the God King's younger brother, Donkey Aotian, and their similar way of doing things, this was the perfect choice. It's decided—you, feather clan genius Yuli.
Having chosen the candidate, Su Xiao stood up and walked out of the banquet hall. Just as he exited, Kaiser behind him said:
"My dear friend, remember tomorrow night's auction. See you there."
With that, Kaiser walked toward the commercial street on the south side of the manor.
Su Xiao would certainly attend tomorrow night's auction. That was where the six Goblin Merchant Guild checks would come in handy.