Goblin Dependency-Chapter 684 - 343: Debt-Free and Unburdened (Part 2)
He wasn’t in a hurry to say goodbye and leave.
Instead, he waited for Edwina to put away the Fog Lamp Grass, then took out the biological material he had stripped from the Fog Lamp Monster and placed it on the counter.
"This is a trophy I collected from a demon in a canyon. See if it has any recycling value."
Xia Nan naturally couldn’t treat the other party as a fool.
The body characteristics of the Fog Lamp Monster were so obvious that even he could tell, let alone the owner of this long-established herbal medicine shop.
Saying it had nothing to do with Fog Lamp Grass would only raise suspicion and make him seem insincere.
Anyway, that druid’s wooden house and garden had already been burned down by him, and the diary was in his possession.
It would be better to simply explain the situation, making it easier for the other party to judge.
"I suspect it mutated from Fog Lamp Grass and has a strong aggression towards humans." 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢
"It’s just that there seems to be only this one in the whole canyon. I searched again later and found no signs of its kind."
Edwina didn’t think much of it.
After all, even in the villages around River Valley Town, it’s possible to find mutant crops different from their kind during each autumn harvest.
The Mist Forest is rich in Magic Particles, and the canyon is located on the outer edge of the forest, so the concentration of Magic Particles in the air is higher than other places.
Coupled with the special nature of Fog Lamp Grass, which belongs to Magic Crops and actively releases Magic Particles when it blooms.
No matter how low the probability, the occurrence of some special changes over the years, nurturing a plant spirit-type demon, is not surprising.
The smile on her face gradually faded away. Edwina’s expression became focused as she slightly leaned over, examining the biological material Xia Nan had taken out.
The thing that naturally caught her eye first was the Fog Lamp Monster Core, which, even though it had been separated from the body for many days, still emitted a blue-white glow and misty vapor.
"Is this the inflorescence of Fog Lamp Grass? No, it’s obviously larger in size and fuller in shape."
The lady carefully observed it, murmuring to herself.
"Ordinary Fog Lamp Grass flowers emit a softer glow and extinguish quickly once removed from the body. But this... it has almost completely crystallized, like some kind of gemstone essence."
Edwina picked up the flower core with tweezers and squinted at the light.
"The crystallization purity is very high, with traces of Magic Power circulation... The light glow from these Fog Lamp Grasses seems to have been condensed and solidified in this core."
"Hmm, I can feel the gradual loss of Magic Particles within. Obviously, it’s not a constant light source and cannot be used as material for Enchanted Equipment, but if used for Alchemy..."
Her long curls gently fluttered in the breeze that blew into the shop from the door. The lady frowned slightly, contemplating the potential use of this Fog Lamp Monster Core.
After a while, she gently put the crystallized Fog Lamp Grass flower down.
Her gaze shifted to the other side, to those few bundles of purple-green thorny vines that also came from the Fog Lamp Monster, the toughest part of its body.
Compared to the luminescent crystal core, these vines were obviously easier to judge.
Edwina simply picked up one of the bundles with her hands, tugged and inspected it for a few minutes, and already had a general analysis:
"Performance in physical properties is excellent, with resilience even surpassing many known Magical Woods. If you have a need to create Advanced Trap, Longbow, or Thorny Whip, you might consider keeping it and finding a suitable craftsman to handle it."
"Of course, a detailed strength test still needs to be conducted before that, which you need to pay attention to."
Edwina straightened up, folding her hands in front of her, regaining her gentle amiable appearance.
"To be honest, I can’t price these trophies according to conventional materials."
"Such naturally mutated demons are very rare. Just for Fog Lamp Grass, you might not see one in decades."
"I hope you can understand this."
Xia Nan nodded slightly, indicating his agreement.
From the diary, he knew that the Fog Lamp Monster was an experimental creation made in advance by an evil druid for his sublimation ritual, and there would be no second one in the entire world.
This premise meant that its biological material had no other references.
Its value and worth depend entirely on the eye of the buyer.
"Then I’ll be straightforward." Edwina leaned forward, her gaze sincere as she looked at the black-haired young man before her.
"Although I have some vague processing plans in mind now, acquiring them poses a certain risk for me."
"After all, it’s a completely new material never before seen on the market, and everything has to start from scratch."
"Material quality, magical reactions, compatibility with other materials..."
"If later on, it turns out that their quality doesn’t match expectations or if experiments fail, then this money would be essentially wasted."
"There’s a significant risk involved, with little room for error, and the potential returns are uncertain."
"So even though the material itself is rare, my purchasing price won’t be very high."
"But I can guarantee that in all the shops in River Valley Town capable of handling this unfamiliar material and willing to take it, my terms will absolutely be the most generous."
Edwina spoke earnestly and, after explaining the situation, directly offered her quote:
"The Crystal Core, along with these few bundles of vines..."
"320 gold."
Xia Nan’s heart couldn’t help but waver. Clearly, the other party’s offer had already met his expectations, but he didn’t rush to agree and instead thought carefully.
First, just like the "Rock Hammer" Blacksmith Shop, Ms. Edwina of the "Green Grass Cauldron" always had a good reputation among adventurers in the town, and he had cooperated with the other party many times, establishing a deep relationship.
The other party had no reason to ruin the shop’s years-built reputation and brand name for a profit of just a few hundred gold coins.
The offer... is most likely reasonable.
Secondly, he had no need for the "Advanced Trap, Thorny Whip, and Longbow" mentioned by the lady, as they didn’t suit his combat style. With no corresponding demand, there was no need to keep them to make equipment, and selling them for cash was just fine.
Finally, to be honest, before coming, Xia Nan did have certain expectations for the price of these materials.
Unlike Edwina, he did have some comparables.
Armored Monster — Challenge Level 4, he missed the most valuable Feather Gills, but still sold parts of the nerve fibers, carapace, and a single eyeball for 100 gold.
Petrified Lizard — Challenge Level 3, among the same level demons it’s the most valuable type, combined with its rare attributes in the Mist Forest, the partial skeleton brought back with Adeline’s help, along with its heart and stomach pouch, brought a total of 683 gold.
Using these two as reference.
The Fog Lamp Monster’s Challenge Level, based on Xia Nan’s experience in battle, was about level 2-3, a bit lower than the previous two.
Plus, he didn’t bring back its body completely, only taking the core flower crystal and some tough vines.
Hoping to earn some extra money.
In this situation, 320 gold already exceeded the total profit from several commission rewards and fragmented materials of this mission.
Greatly exceeding Xia Nan’s original expectations!
He no longer bargained and nodded at Ms. Edwina, who was patiently waiting for his answer in front of him.
"Deal."
...
Ding—
The bell rang softly.
Xia Nan pushed open the door of the "Green Grass Cauldron" herbal medicine shop and walked out slowly.
The backpack that was originally bulging was now completely deflated.
Replaced by three additional Crystal Cards in his waist pouch.
Once the bureaucracy for a few commission tasks on the association’s side is done, and the rewards are in his account, plus the 320 gold just earned.
The total profit from this adventure will be 575 gold, 7 silver, and 3 copper (fluctuating 10 gold based on the specific revenue from two goblin-clearing missions).
Adding his original savings and the recovery price of the Chain Armor.
The number on the bank account...
Reaches four digits again!
Even if it’s just temporary, and after paying off the debt for Enchanted Armor, it would fall again, Xia Nan couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Feeling that the body, which had become increasingly heavy under the pressure of bills and debt, suddenly lightened.
The whole person seemed to have shed some kind of invisible burden.
Even his steps grew lighter as he headed in the direction of the Blacksmith Shop.
