Chapter 1284: The Reasonable Mr. Xu
The underground trading market lived up to its name—it really was underground.
"Flower City manages the city so strictly, how was this underground trading market established?" Xu Huo asked as he walked along an abandoned section of track through the underground passage.
"That's not difficult," Jiao Cheng said. "People who want to traffic in contraband aren't just ordinary players. If you have connections above, business below is easy. Besides, this place isn't something you can just find and shut down."
He pointed to a device near the entrance. "That thing is specifically used to deal with flying surveillance drones. It makes them go blind around here."
Xu Huo glanced at it, then swept his gaze over two nearby players.
This special hidden underground section had no tracks laid down, but every certain distance, a new passage branched off. Unlike the main passage, which was over twenty meters wide, these side passages could only accommodate three people walking side by side. And here, the "shops" were based on these small passage openings.
A rough mental scan revealed that some of these small passages were independent, while others intersected, like branches growing from a tree trunk, one section connecting to the next, covering a large area—plenty of escape routes had been left.
It was relatively easy for players to alter their appearances, and almost no one covered their faces. Instead, they made changes to their height and physique.
It seemed to be an unwritten rule not to set up stalls on the main passage. Some people even fought over a small passage opening, but they were quickly "persuaded" by those around them.
Besides buyers and sellers, there was another type of person in the passages. They moved between different stalls, presented some kind of proof, and then picked up sealed packages.
"Couriers?" Xu Huo raised an eyebrow.
Jiao Cheng explained, "These people have business dealings with each other. Those who can't show up in person hire couriers. The couriers are also players, and their fees aren't cheap. I'm not hiding this method from you, but some transactions only accept face-to-face dealings."
As he spoke, they stopped in front of a small passage opening.
The person squatting at the stall was a scruffy old man. In front of him was a floating small table, on which lay a few pieces of low-quality ore—far from "diamond-like." They looked like nothing more than a few white stones containing impurities.
Jiao Cheng stepped forward and knocked on the table. "Buying ore."
The old man lifted his eyelids and glanced at them. "Got money?"
"Since we came to buy, of course we have money. Old man, are you looking down on us?" Jiao Cheng's attitude shifted.
The old man let out a raspy laugh. "Plenty of people come here to buy ore, hoping for a prophecy item. But in the end, not many actually get one. I'm just afraid you'll buy it, get nothing good, feel ripped off, and then come back to smash my stall."
"I'm betting on that possibility," Xu Huo cut in. "Otherwise, I'd just go buy a high-priced item directly."
The old man stared at him for a few seconds before asking lazily, "How much do you want?"
"As much as you have." Xu Huo's demeanor was calm and composed, as if he were sitting on a mountain of gold.
Jiao Cheng chimed in, "How much do you have? It's not just these few crappy stones in front of you, is it?"
The old man rolled his eyes. "You've come to the wrong place to show off. Get lost, get lost. Don't waste my business."
"One wrong word and you're kicking people out? Do you even want to do business?" Jiao Cheng couldn't help but say. "It's not like we don't have money!"
"Got money, and I still won't sell to you! Get lost!" The old man barked, drawing quite a few looks.
Xu Huo held Jiao Cheng back. "Forget it if he won't sell. I don't believe I can't find good stuff with money."
Jiao Cheng had no choice but to follow him away first. After a moment, he used a silencing item. "That old man is the only one here dealing in ore. If he doesn't budge, you won't be able to buy it anywhere else."
"No rush." Xu Huo glanced at the nearby stalls. "Let's see if there's anything decent to buy a couple of things."
Genuinely good items wouldn't be brought here to sell. Even the things that spoiled rich kids got their hands on—items that couldn't be openly traded—had other methods of transaction. Even in Jiao Cheng's eyes, these stalls didn't have much good stuff. Most of it was potions or pollutants smuggled out of some laboratory, or damaged items waiting to be reforged, or else a bunch of miscellaneous ores.
There were some ordinary items too, mostly stolen goods or lost property, but their grades weren't high.
Xu Huo bought some potions and focused on examining some damaged items, as if he were genuinely trying to find a bargain.
There were many eyes in the passage watching him. Even Jiao Cheng began to wonder what he was really doing here.
The things here were indeed worthless, but they represented the loopholes in Flower City—that was their true value.
If someone could get potions out of a laboratory, it meant they must have access to people connected to the lab, perhaps the staff inside, or their family members. After a couple of degrees of separation, you could reach the inside of the lab. Being able to bring things out meant the lab's internal security wasn't one hundred percent foolproof.
The same logic applied to the ore veins.
Xu Huo wasn't really trying to buy ore. He just needed to find one person. Regardless of whether the business deal could go through later, he now had a breakthrough.
He didn't stay in the underground passage for too long. He and Jiao Cheng came out, but as soon as they were back on the surface, they were followed.
"Go to a place you usually hang out," Xu Huo said.
Jiao Cheng's expression turned reluctant. "If people find out who we are, and then you leave..."
He could see it now—Xu Huo was bound to stir up trouble sooner or later. Once he was done, he'd just wash his hands and leave. When the reckoning came, where would he and his companions run?
Xu Huo glanced at him. "Can't go to your own place. Can we go to someone else's?"
Jiao Cheng was stunned by his reasonableness.
Xu Huo smiled. "Do you think I'm easy to get along with?"
Jiao Cheng didn't dare delay any longer. He quickly hailed a flying vehicle.
Of course, Flower City also had places where dangerous elements gathered. But because of the government's strict policies, these people almost never openly walked the streets—this could be considered a form of resistance against the uniform clothing.
Flower City had achieved true control over the entire city, so every street was filled with flying surveillance drones. Even if people didn't wear the same clothes, they still lived under the government's watch.
"Ordinary people don't usually come to this area." Jiao Cheng covered his mouth and said, "Quite a few people die on the streets here for no reason."
Xu Huo nodded. From the moment they stepped into this area, at least twenty pairs of eyes had locked onto them—probably people who were about to go crazy from being cooped up. The evil of human nature, amplified by evolution, wasn't so easy to lock away.
"Little brother, are you from an outer zone?" A female player in light clothing leaned out from a second-floor window, smiling. "If you're going further in, you'd better hire two bodyguards. Want big sister to escort you?"
Behind the female player, two burly men who looked anything but friendly stood up.
Jiao Cheng wanted to leave, but Xu Huo had already looked up and started talking to her. "I want to buy some ore. Do you have any connections?"