Wu Ming possessed extraordinary patience.
In order to wait for Bao Bujué’s rise to prominence, he silently lurked outside the latter’s residence, tracking him day and night, for a whole month.
With his general-level strength, naturally Bao Bujué couldn’t detect the slightest anomaly.
Moreover, fearing any interference, he even dispatched Hou Yong and Zuo Yunling, operating entirely alone.
“Bao Bujué, time to work!”
“Ah, coming right up!”
…
After a day’s hard work, Bao Bujué carried a pot of aged wine, slowly swaying back to his destitute, nearly empty residence.
In reality, it was merely a rented room, where the landlord would frequently come knocking for unpaid rent, making the scene appear particularly pitiful and wretched.
Yet Wu Ming noticed something different.
“Hmm… this Bao Bujué lives extremely methodically every day, working odd jobs in the city like a novice spirit tamer, earning spirit coins, then buying wine to indulge in drunkenness day and night…”
“But… his skills are quite impressive. Though doing menial tasks, he earns ten percent more than ordinary spirit tamer apprentices. And it seems he colludes secretly with the wine seller, swapping fine wine for inferior stock. Is he secretly saving money, disguising his strength to prevent enemies from sabotaging him? Truly worthy of being the future King of Assassins! His scheming mind runs as deep as the ocean, his heart as treacherous as mountainous terrain!”
He silently watched Bao Bujué drunkenly endure daily humiliations, feigning cowardice like a meek man, and felt a slight chill creep into his heart.
Unfortunately, no matter how cunning this King of Assassins might be, he could never rival Wu Ming, for he faced an enemy who knew all his secrets and was fully committed!
“One month… although the Star-Moon Empire may not have uncovered my identity yet, they should have pinpointed my general location by now. Enemies might already be on their way…”
A trace of anxiety flickered in Wu Ming’s heart. The time advantage gained through the Iron-Winged Golden Eagle was gradually slipping away, yet the prey had still not fallen into his trap.
This was a contest of patience, undoubtedly. The one who lost composure first would become the loser.
His eyes darkened as he gazed at the seemingly drunken Bao Bujué, his figure slowly fading into concealment.
…
Three days later.
Slap!
A fierce slap struck Bao Bujué’s face, sending him spinning onto the ground. His face looked like a paint shop had exploded across it, colors vividly splashed.
“Hahahaha… Bao Bujué, you never expected it, did you? Back then, you surpassed me in talent, had more extraordinary encounters, and thus stood above me. But now, you’re nothing but a dog!”
Opposite him, a soldier-class spirit tamer wore a face of vengeful satisfaction, removing his foot from Bao Bujué’s face and spreading his legs wide: “If you don’t want to die here today, crawl under my legs!”
“I… no! No!!”
Bao Bujué feigned reluctance on his face, his heart burning with fury as he silently vowed: “Even if ‘endurance’ means a blade above my head, I must endure! I’ll remember every bit of this humiliation today! One day, I’ll make you pay back tenfold, a hundredfold!”
“Oh?”
The spirit tamer opposite seemed to find something amusing, smiling: “If you crawl under, I’ll even buy you another pot of good wine. How about that?”
“Wine?!”
A muscle on Bao Bujué’s face twitched. His eyes suddenly lit up, and finally, he couldn’t help himself, pushing himself up and crawling forward a step.
“Hahahaha… Haha… Here’s the ‘Old Master’s reward’ for buying wine! You’re utterly useless, forever a good-for-nothing!”
After venting his pleasure, the spirit tamer tossed a small pouch of spirit coins and strode away.
“Quick, look! That’s Bao Bujué!”
“He’s definitely the shame of us soldier-class spirit tamers!”
“What shame? He’s the disgrace of all spirit tamers, not just the soldier class!”
…
A large crowd gathered around, pointing fingers, laughing, jeering, and cursing. Yet Bao Bujué’s face remained expressionless as he picked up the pouch of spirit coins and headed to a tavern: “Innkeeper, one pot of Ice Jade Brew!”
“Damn! This drunkard actually knows how to enjoy himself…”
“Trading spirit coins earned by crawling under someone’s legs for wine immediately—this man’s face must be thicker than any in the world!”
The surrounding drinkers chuckled mockingly.
“Again you… hand over the money, get lost, get lost!”
The innkeeper Feng Xiangzi came out, snatching the coins from Bao Bujué’s hand and tossing him half a pot of wine carelessly: “One pot? You can’t afford that with your money. This half is all you get. Scram, or I’ll beat you up!”
Unnoticeably, their eyes met for a moment.
“Hahaha… Well done, innkeeper!”
“Feng Xiangzi, you’re such a kind soul! If it were me, I’d take the money and chase him away immediately…”
…
Amidst a hall filled with laughter, Bao Bujué’s face showed cowardice, fleeing in embarrassment.
“No! I can’t endure any longer!”
At night, a shadow swiftly darted out from his residence: “Adding today’s earnings, I’ve finally saved enough. Time to act—go buy a spirit enhancement!”
For a spirit tamer to rise above others, at least an elite-rank spirit contract was necessary.
Wu Ming, having run businesses before, knew that even an elite spirit egg often cost thousands or even tens of thousands. Particularly rare ones could cost hundreds of thousands!
“Just for our friendship, this will be the last time!”
In the alley behind the tavern, Feng Xiangzi sneaked out, handing a pouch of spirit coins to Bao Bujué with careful instructions before turning and leaving immediately.
“Don’t worry! There won’t be a next time!”
Bao Bujué clenched his fists tightly.
The night was pitch black.
He quickly moved to several locations, retrieving large amounts of spirit coins and crystal cards hidden in crevices and secret compartments.
“Tsk tsk… impressive! At least seven or eight thousand, I’d say? Who knows how many years he’s been saving…”
Wu Ming followed closely behind him, his heart increasingly excited: “This man retrieving his coins must definitely be for purchasing a second spirit… Could this be where the key to Ghost Heaven Mechanism’s transformation lies?”
In his memory, the Ghost Heaven Mechanism Star made its debut as a general-level spirit, far beyond the form he had previously observed.
Clearly, this transformation might just happen tonight!
“If he intends to buy a spirit egg, he’ll choose… the black market!”
Wu Ming concluded decisively, then watched without surprise as Bao Bujué changed clothes, concealed his face completely, and headed towards the outskirts of Zhongzhou City.
“Exactly as expected! Though his money comes honestly, if he were to openly enter a shop to purchase, he’d likely be killed by enemies the very next day. Therefore, his only choice is this…”
Zhongzhou City was a major commercial hub, also home to a black market.
This market cared not for the origins of goods, only for money. Though filled with many fakes, it also harbored rare treasures. However, once leaving the black market, safety was entirely the customer’s own responsibility.
Such a market naturally wasn’t located within Zhongzhou City proper, but rather in the suburbs.
Bao Bujué, familiar with the route, quickly found the black market and entered without needing to verify his identity.
Boom!
Underneath a dilapidated building, a massive underground cave sprawled out, filled with neatly arranged shops, glowing lights, and growing increasingly lively as the night deepened.
“Again… the black market…”
A trace of gloom flickered across Bao Bujué’s face before he quickly regained his composure, swiftly scanning the spirit beast shops.
“Big Gray Wolf? Common breed, no interest!”
“Storm Falcon, elite breed! Pity its tail is damaged… discard!”
“Sunflower Demon? Excellent attributes, just too expensive… I can’t afford it…”
…
Wu Ming followed Bao Bujué, watching him linger around the spirit beast hatchling section. Eventually, clearly strapped for cash, Bao Bujué bit his lip and moved towards the spirit egg shop nearby.
Compared to various hatchlings, spirit eggs were naturally cheaper, though they carried greater risks, requiring the spirit tamer to judge carefully.
On the shelves, various spirit eggs gleamed as white as jade, shimmering with colorful lights.
Suddenly, Bao Bujué halted his steps and turned toward a corner.
There, scattered about, were several eggs of extremely poor appearance, some even unidentifiable.
“This is…”
He picked up a spirit egg, his eyes suddenly flashing with complex emotions: “…It resonates with my spirit… What kind of egg is this?”
Then, Bao Bujué seemed to realize something suddenly. He quickly flipped the egg over and immediately saw a star-like mark: “Indeed… there’s one here too!”
He stepped back, murmuring to himself.
In a flash, memories surged into his mind—recalling the moment years ago when he first saw the cursed spirit egg he had cursed a thousand times.
“Same position… same mark. Coincidence?”
Although Bao Bujué had some talent, he lacked a renowned master, and his abilities were merely average. Otherwise, he would have become rich long ago and wouldn’t be living such a miserable life.
The reason he had previously gambled everything on that spirit egg was because of an extraordinary encounter—he had seen Jia Kongming’s notes.
His teacher, the old wandering swordsman who had introduced him to the path of spirit tamers, though not strong, had broad knowledge. Among his belongings was a page of documents, rumored to be a draft handwritten by Jia Kongming himself!
Though mostly damaged, the latter half of that draft recorded one of the characteristics of a certain spirit egg from the Netherworld—the star mark!
Unfortunately, the manuscript was incomplete. Bao Bujué only knew that eggs bearing this mark had a high probability of being Netherworld spirits, but he had no idea what specific type or abilities they possessed.
Yet, out of blind faith in Jia Kongming, he had taken that gamble once. Now, was he about to gamble again?
“How much for this spirit egg?”
After a moment’s hesitation, he asked in a hoarse voice.
“Even our appraiser was unsure about this one. It might have other special abilities. Only one thousand spirit coins!”
The attendant smiled, that familiar expression of seeing a fool only deepening Bao Bujué’s sense of déjà vu.
“One thousand, huh?”
That was no small sum. Though he could afford it, purchasing an elite spirit egg would severely strain his budget.
And was it really worth taking this gamble?
Losing one thousand coins might mean missing out on his dream spirit altogether!
He hesitated, placed the egg back on the shelf, took a few steps away, and looked toward other counters.
“Chirp chirp!”
At that moment, a black mark appeared on his wrist. His seemingly harmless spirit unexpectedly communicated with his soul through their contract, conveying a sense of reluctance.
“Wait! Perhaps I shouldn’t give up!”
Bao Bujué turned around, seemingly resolved, only to discover that the spirit egg had already been taken by another customer.
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