Chapter 104: Chapter 103: "Don't you recognize me?
Just a tiny trinket, 3 million.
Wearing this prop on your hand is equivalent to carrying around a suite in the core area of Fengtian City.
He couldn't help but glance at the people who had been bidding just now, wondering how they dared to bid. How long would it take an ordinary person to earn 3 million credit points, and did all these people have 3 million in their pockets?
He suddenly felt an urge to ask these people how they made their money and why they had 3 million in their pockets?
If it weren't for the fact that he had cornered the market at this major event, to be honest, he wouldn't have known when he could have saved up 3 million unless he blackmailed several more times.
If only someone could teach him how to make money.
And at that moment—
The woman in the cheongsam on stage presented the next auction item.
"Prop Name": Hanged Man·Firearm Skin.
"Prop Level": D level (Collectible).
"Prop Effect": Can designate any firearm and activate the prop, which will transform into a permanent skin for that firearm, increasing its magazine to 1000 rounds, and each bullet has a 1% chance of causing a 3-second immobilization effect,
"Prop Restriction": Only applicable to firearms, and cannot be removed once chosen.
"Prop Description": "Within range, all is truth."
"Starting bid, 1 million!"
No sooner had the voice fallen.
The people below instantly became restless, and soon the bidding voices surged, raising the price!
"2 million!"
"5 million!!"
"I bid 10 million, everyone calm down, think about how long 10 million can last you, how long you can spend it living it up, don't be impulsive, earning this 10 million is not easy, just leave it to this little brother!"
"Nonsense, all the convenience stores in Fengtian City are mine, do I lack money? 12 million!"
Almost instantly, the price soared to 12 million!
"..."
Chen Miao, who hadn't finished reading the prop panel, looked at the auction site, which had almost instantly turned into a vegetable market, and was dumbfounded. What are you guys doing, bidding 12 million like it's nothing?
He had just been considering bidding for this firearm skin, after all, he quite liked its effect, the immobilization effect was very attractive to him.
This was the first time he had seen other firearm skins.
But the price soaring to 12 million so quickly was a little frightening for him!
Are you kidding me? Right now, he only had about 13.5 million himself, and in a daze, the price had shot up to 15 million. He couldn't afford the thing with all his assets.
15 million, huh!
You could buy three villas for that, what the hell are you guys after?
Chen Miao was momentarily unable to comprehend these people's values.
"Crazy, how can this thing be worth 15 million."
"Is this your first time here, brother?"
A young man sitting next to Chen Miao overheard his muttering, leaned his head over with a smile, and said, "At every Gunman auction, firearm skins are always priced high, without exception."
"Moreover, this time's firearm skin is of the Collectible level."
"It's from the Tarot Series of Collectible skins. Only 18 pieces of all Collectible firearm skins were ever produced, there won't be any more, and there's little difference from the top Unique level. Plus, the effect is very good, increasing magazine capacity to 1000 rounds, and with other power-up props, you could even reach approximately 2000 rounds. That's quite exaggerated, and then there's this immobilization effect; the price is pretty normal."
"See over there? That's Sang Biao."
"He's the strongest gunman in Fengtian City. He's not bidding right now because his signature firearm already has a skin, though not as strong as this one. Probably regretting it deeply right now, wishing he had waited for this skin instead of using the previous one."
"I'm also strapped for cash; if only I had a bit more money, I would've bid too."
"Tsk tsk, I can't even imagine how awesome it would be to have this skin."
"In the secret realms, wouldn't that be a relentless outpouring of firepower?"
"..."
Chen Miao nodded noncommittally, without further comment. Even with all the explanations in the world, he couldn't see how such a thing could be worth so much money. How long would it take to earn that much money? If this thing was worth so much, then how much would that 'Tao Wood' skin he used on the Thomson be worth?
It's also of Unique level.
Must be worth a hundred million, right?
And that 'Taotie' skin in his backpack not yet used; if he were to sell it, probably all the transcendent gunmen in the Federation would have to liquidate their assets to attend the auction.
Finally!
The prop was bought by a mysterious bidder for 37 million.
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37 million.
Looking at the final bid, Chen Miao couldn't help but wince. Were all the attendees at the auction this wealthy? He began to wonder if it might be lucrative to kidnap these people for ransom.
Perhaps because Chen Miao's reaction was so exaggerated, it once again caught the attention of the young man next to him.
At this moment, the young man couldn't help but laugh and said, "It's quite normal, the world hasn't been 'supernaturalized' for long, just over twenty years in total. Before the supernaturalization of the world, there were still quite a few wealthy people. But having money is one thing, having power is another."
"Money is useless."
"Even if you run a great business, it's essentially just serving those in power."
"Many wealthy individuals have learned this lesson the hard way. After the world became supernatural, they also crazily invested in themselves and those close to them. Because nowadays, power essentially equates to authority. To put it bluntly, no matter how big your business is, if your family doesn't have a powerful transcendent, your business will quickly be devoured, leaving not even scraps behind."
"So, this 37 million is not just the price of this prop—it's the protection for the family."
"Many here have monopolies in their industries, like that convenience store chain in Fengtian City; it's all owned by one family over there. And see that guy in the floral shirt? His dad is the head of the Urban Landscaping Bureau."
"He runs a landscaping company. All the street greenery in Fengtian City is contracted to his company by the government. Tsk, tsk, if you're not in this business, you might not know the outrageous profit in it. There's an old saying—money from the official family is not like ordinary money."
"Terrifying profits."
"And there, that guy wearing sunglasses and a hat, trying to look all prim and proper—that's the young son of the Black Hand Gang's leader. No need to mention the Black Hand Gang, right? The largest underground force in Fengtian City. Anything that skirts the edge of legality, or is blatantly illegal―like selling AI pills―they're involved in it, and they're the biggest players."
"That guy in the front wearing a suit, his family is in the construction business. Now that's a firm grip. You know how tight their grip is?"
The young man smacked his lips with a hint of emotion and said, "So tight I wouldn't dare to speak of it. I can only tell you they have sky-high connections. Over in Jingjiu City, I've heard they've settled a lot of matters. All the forest bureau repairs and maintenance, and the construction of government buildings, are nearly always contracted out to them—and they always win the bids."
"They make quite a bit of money too."
"Every person sitting here is supported by countless others pouring money into them. How could they not be wealthy? It looks like it's just one person with money, but in reality, there are thousands of people entrusting their entire fortunes to them. A few million for a prop is nothing to them."
"If you're not willing to spend money, without strength, any amount of wealth won't save you from being trampled on. Only power is the true currency."
"I see," Chen Miao murmured contemplatively, finally understanding. It seemed this place was filled with high-roller players, and he was the only poverty-stricken one. Then, he turned to the talkative young man beside him and asked curiously, "What kind of business do you do?"
"I am but a humble man," the young man smiled and took out a business card from his pocket, handing it to Chen Miao, "My name is Zhang Liu, a modest boss of three psychological clinics. A minor accomplishment, it might not be noticeable here, but it should be somewhat better than you."
"You seem unfamiliar, probably here by some fortunate coincidence for the first time, right?"
"But there's no need to feel too pressured. After all, this is how society operates. If we can't resist, we might as well enjoy it. Take it easy; I was also an ordinary person before. It was through some fortunate coincidences that I managed to climb up."
Even though society had developed rapidly, it still retained the ancient method of initial interactions—business cards.
Chen Miao took the business card and glanced at it. For some reason, he always seemed to encounter those who ran clinics, and they were invariably run by all kinds of odd characters.
Swordsman running a men's health clinic.
Gunman running a psychological clinic.
If you keep switching careers like this, how are the real doctors supposed to survive?
However, what Chen Miao found more curious was that this man didn't recognize him. It was understandable for others not to know him, but this young man in front of him was from the Gunman Profession. As a gunman, how could he not recognize Chen Miao?
Hadn't he made quite an impression at the last major event?
"You don't recognize me?" Chen Miao raised his head and asked the young man curiously.
"Er..."
The young man was puzzled by Chen Miao's question. After rapidly searching his mind and confirming he had never seen this face before, he hesitantly asked, "May I inquire about your name?"
Could it be that he carelessly struck up a conversation with a notable figure?
"Chen Miao."
"Chen Miao?" Zhang Liu pondered for a long time then shook his head, saying, "I haven't heard the name, indeed. It's just my ignorance. I have been in a secret realm until today; I haven't paid much attention to outside information."
"This period of time?"
Chen Miao caught the phrasing in Zhang Liu's words. Does a secret realm require 'this period of time'?
"Mm-hmm," Zhang Liu replied with a hint of pride and satisfaction, "A story-based secret realm. It took a little longer, about a week, but the gains were quite substantial." Experience tales at m v|l e'm,p| y- r
Story-based secret realms would at least be of D-level.
Completing a D-level secret realm was indeed something to be proud of.
"A story-based secret realm, huh."
Chen Miao nodded thoughtfully. So, Zhang Liu was at least a 15-level transcendent. Ordinary people couldn't enter a D-level secret realm.
However, at this moment, his attention was no longer on such matters, as the next item up for auction captured all his focus. It was the very target of his visit—
The blueprint for crafting the D-level prop "Hell Gatling."
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