Chapter 310: Overall Price Hike, Regret Comes Too Late (42k, seeking subscriptions)

In the blink of an eye, a month has already passed.

This morning, the Prison Administration of the Southern Hub City was, as always, bustling with people and busy with various daily affairs.

An Ruqin, whose expression could be described as cold and devoid of any emotion, serious and silent, stepped into her office as usual, dressed in her solemn black robes.

She had no particular thoughts on the usual orderliness here, but recently, situations different from the past had been occurring, appearing somewhat out of place and making her feel increasingly discordant and grating.

For instance, one of her colleagues of the same rank could not help but speak to her at this moment: "Supervisor An, I heard that the Traveling Official Du is about to wash his hands of the business soon; in other words, these next two days are the final deadline!"

It was the final deadline to buy magic tools, to buy spirit meals, to buy spirit items—to buy these things personally produced by the dignified genius Du, Master Du.

Facing her colleague's good intentions, An Ruqin did not change her expression, only coldly replying: "That is merely one of his methods for profit. Normally speaking, it should not have stirred up a wave of this magnitude, yet you all happen to fall for it; I truly cannot fathom why."

The expression of the supervisor who spoke immediately stiffened, and the Golden Core stage minor clerks and attendants around the two lowered their heads in silence, secretly winking and making faces, each harboring their own little thoughts.

The two supervisors above did not pay attention, and An Ruqin's colleague only wanted to say something but stopped.

Because he was also someone who had genuinely participated in the panic-buying at a premium, he had just been directly included in that category, seemingly treated as a fool in an invisible way.

"Cough! Traveling Official Du is, after all, that Traveling Official Du, and although there is some premium, it is at least produced by a famous master, quite exquisite and unique..."

Saying this to save face, he took out the magic tool he had snatched up a few days ago, a fourth-tier mid-grade Black Jade Wu Hook, which radiated treasure light and had an impressive quality, immediately drawing appreciative envy from the crowd of Golden Core stage cultivators.

Although there was a bit of a premium, it wasn't too much, and displaying it and talking about it made him feel like he had plenty of face!

However, An Ruqin clearly did not buy it. She took a scrutinizing look and only said: "Quite a shoddy piece of work; there are obvious signs of hasty processing and refining. The base body is also an off-the-shelf item, not something personally crafted with care from start to finish. Even if you truly wanted to pay a premium to acquire it, you should have visited in person to make the request; that would be appropriate."

"Uh, is it that shoddy?"

"After all, he is a master of artifact refining; it is impossible for him to only have this level of skill."

She felt this was not an empty rumor, because right under her nose, not long ago, when Du En was still at the Golden Core stage, he had once collapsed a prison wall that Yang Dong had personally refined and built, and he was also able to use the other party's iron sand guards to successfully use their own force against them through on-site refining, dismantling the prison's defensive measures from the inside.

Although that was a situation where Yang Dong had held back, Du En was only at the Golden Core stage back then; now that he has broken through to the Nascent Soul stage, his various aspects have soared and improved, so it is normal for him to officially step into the ranks of masters.

So in fact, unlike other critics, she had actually been to the purchase site, but she was quite disappointed with those finished products, believing that Du En was just using tricks to swindle people.

Yet this bunch of fellows all fell for it, leaving her with only sighs and contempt.

"This..."

The colleague supervisor did not doubt An Ruqin's words; looking at the magic tool in his hand now, he suddenly felt as if he had lost quite a lot.

As if to mirror this situation, another Nascent Soul stage supervisor from the same office walked in, his expression particularly conflicted, carrying a look of heartache and regret.

"Why do you have such an expression?"

"Sigh, what else could be the reason? I just went to snatch up a magic tool and ran into a fourth-tier high-grade one. There were many colleagues snatching it at the time, and my head got hot, so I directly shouted double the price. This caused a massive hemorrhage; I spent eight hundred supreme-grade spirit stones, almost draining my savings. Naturally, I am conflicted and pained."

This newly arrived colleague said this while taking out a copper-yellow treasure mace, its spirit light shimmering. It did not look conspicuous, but it invisibly made the hearts of the Golden Core stage cultivators working in the room sink, as if they were burdened by a heavy weight, and for a moment, they were unable to catch their breath.

"... Isn't this quite good? The quality is excellent, much better than mine."

The colleague supervisor's voice was sour.

"But it's expensive!"

The new supervisor's heartache was not fake.

Two fools!

An Ruqin thought this silently.

However, she had to admit that Du En's ability to stir the emotions of these Nascent Soul stage colleagues and make them pay a premium for various things was indeed quite skillful.

It was just that he would definitely be resented afterwards.

Especially regarding the quality of the finished magic tools, it was simply clear at a glance; the later ones brought out were better, clearly showing he was swindling people.

But this actually could not be blamed on him; as his proficiency in artifact refining accumulated, his craft was indeed getting better and better.

Until now, he had already rapidly broken through to a new stage, and could even attempt to refine fifth-tier magic tools, so naturally, even with the prerequisite of using ready-made artifact embryos for mass production, he could produce various fourth-tier magic tools of relatively superior quality.

Just as the atmosphere in this office seemed strange, an uncoordinated outsider suddenly burst in.

Seeing that sheep face, the three supervisors did not delay and hurriedly turned to greet him.

"Eh? The magic tool produced by that fellow, Traveling Official Du, Master Du?"

"Yes."

"Correct."

"What is the price? I'll buy it back at a premium!"

Yang Dong directly waved his large hand, completely throwing his original intention to the back of his mind, only speaking with hatred: "Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will win every battle. Through my dedicated research, the defensive measures for the new prison are already prepared, but there are still some unsatisfactory points. It just so happens I ran into you two; come, give me a price. I will take it back to disassemble and study; it will surely allow the defenses to reach a higher level, specifically targeting that fellow who is swindling people!"

There's such a good thing?!

The two supervisors were first overjoyed, but then reacted differently.

"Uh, although there is indeed some premium and I feel I lost quite a bit, perhaps, um, never mind, I'm not selling, I hope you'll forgive me."

"I'll sell, I'll sell! After all, I really paid too much of a premium. The original price was eight hundred supreme-grade spirit stones; no need for more, just the original price will do!"

"Hiss! How, how much?!"

Yang Dong could not help but gasp, unable to stop himself from taking a step back, and spoke bluntly: "With such a black-hearted price, how did you dare to buy it? I truly cannot understand!"

He was one step away from calling them fools to their faces!

However, the supervisors here were used to this fellow's foul-mouthed temper, and furthermore, they now had to rely on him to buy it back and break even, so naturally, they hurriedly buttered him up with flattery.

"Hahaha! You're sensible!"

"Also, what you said is somewhat reasonable. Anyway, I am not using it for normal use, but to analyze the technique of artifact restrictions, so it is a purchase for research, not for use."

"Fine, I'll buy it!"

You are the biggest fool of all.

An Ruqin watched Yang Dong, who had been fooled into submission in just a few words and was now digging out spirit stones, thinking this silently in her heart.

Then, she suddenly felt a desire to sigh.

Because around her, there were always such impulsive fools, making her, who was naturally cold and serious, always feel somewhat uncomfortable.

Especially seeing that after the transaction was completed, Yang Dong actually seemed to have come specifically for this and was about to turn and leave, it caused ripples in her state of mind.

"Supervisor Yang, what was your original intention for coming? Was it to collect the final assessment for that new prison from before?"

"Ah, yes, yes, yes, I almost forgot."

Yang Dong turned back around, somewhat awkwardly, and took the jade scroll she had already prepared and handed over.

Then, very casually, he began to flip through it on the spot, and immediately couldn't help but start cursing.

"Damn it! Although the final result was the loss of the heavy reward and the abduction of the prisoners, it doesn't have to be described so poorly, right? What kind of bastards are your group of review officials? Is it that I didn't work hard enough on my end? It's clearly because that Du Youli is too cunning! You all need to stick to the facts!"

Facing this cursing, the other two supervisors could only offer bitter smiles.

An Ruqin was not surprised, and coldly replied directly: "In the end, the prisoners were indeed abducted; that point is not wrong."

Not wrong—that is the biggest wrong of all!

If your prison cannot hold people, what could possibly be more problematic than that?

"You!"

Yang Dong's face immediately flushed red, his hands trembling with anger, but facing An Ruqin, who wasn't afraid in the slightest, and considering that he couldn't actually beat her without the advantage of the terrain, he could only flick his sleeves and leave in resentment.

"Supervisor An, you really should be a bit more accommodating when dealing with Supervisor Yang."

"That's right, even though that guy has a foul mouth, he at least cooperates closely with us."

"I was merely pointing out where the problem lies, as it is."

Saying this, An Ruqin seemed to size them up, wanting to also point out where their recent problems lay, which made the two of them immediately change their expressions, laugh it off, and hurry away back to their own workstations.

This corner of the Prison Punishment Division thus returned completely to its usual state.

Throughout the day today, no further waves were stirred up.

Until nightfall, the Luo Yu Immortal Sect, having long since finished brewing and preparing, officially pushed the reform decree across the entire territory.

That is, all graded and spiritual items, whether raw materials or finished products, regardless of whether they are commodities, treasures, or even private transaction pricing, are all uniformly increased to five times their original price!

Those who dare to defy the order will be demoted to prisoners and sent to the battlefield!

In an instant, everywhere from the hub cities down to the small towns, everyone was dumbfounded and caught off guard; there was absolutely no psychological preparation in advance!

How could it suddenly increase by five times across the board for no good reason?

Clearly, the situation in all regions was incomparably normal and stable; normally speaking, it should have been like a stagnant pool, without the slightest change for thousands of years!

How could it be so sudden this time?

And then, there was no "then," only acceptance.

It was just that noisy discussions were inevitable.

After all, this actually concerned their own interests!

Amidst this commotion, An Ruqin was only somewhat dazed.

As for the other two colleagues, one was first shocked then happy, and the other was first shocked then regretful.

"Hahaha! I knew it, Du Youli is Du Youli after all; there must be a reason for how he does things!"

"Oh no! Why didn't you say so earlier? Damn it, I lost out!"

A two-fold premium meant an original price of four hundred, but now, it costs at least two thousand; invisibly, it seemed like they hadn't lost any spirit stones, but in reality, they had lost one thousand two hundred!

That's more than a fifty percent cut!

It was practically a blackout before their eyes; they were on the verge of fainting on the spot.

Especially after hearing the whispers of the Golden Core stage cultivators.

"Hehe, I actually went to snatch some up too. Although it was impossible to snatch the magical artifacts or spiritual meals, the various spiritual herbs personally harvested by Master Du could still be snatched."

"Me too, me too. I steeled my heart, took out my life savings, and entrusted someone to snatch a few stalks for me. Tsk tsk, if I were to sell them now, I'd make a direct profit of several times over!"

"Hahaha! We must thank Master Du for looking after us and not stopping the spiritual harvesting!"

"Perfect Master Du!"

You lot, you actually had the free time to go snatch and buy, is that it?

As expected, their duties are too relaxed!

The supervisor, who hadn't fainted, turned his head and wanted to increase the intensity for these subordinates.

Then he suddenly noticed that An Ruqin was gone.

"Eh! Where is Supervisor An?"

"Hm? That's right, where is she..."

Amidst their surprise, a thought suddenly popped up.

Immediately, the two of them also acted like their hair was on fire, hurriedly using spatial movement to leave at top speed.

Need it even be said?

They must be going to the Sanhe Square stalls to see if there is any stock left!

It wasn't just the supervisors here who thought of this; many Nascent Soul stage cultivators who hadn't gone to snatch and buy earlier—and had scoffed or grumbled about it—as well as those who had bought some but only to decorate their facades and still had savings, all erupted with their fastest movement speeds.

If they went late, there might be nothing left!

"It's gone, it's gone! It's really gone!"

"I said yesterday morning that by the Zi hour last night, Du Youli would resign and stop!"

"It was you yourselves who didn't believe it, and even thought we were playing tricks... Oh my, you were being clever, and now do you dare to make a move?"

The three officials who were packing up their stalls faced the many peers of the same rank who had arrived aggressively, showing not a shred of cowardice; instead, they held their heads high, looking eager to try, and if anyone really wanted to spar, they would certainly oblige.

It would be even better to bet some stakes!

When the time came, they would see them—having the advantage of proximity—bring out fourth-tier supreme-grade magical artifacts produced by a genius, crush them soundly, and then make another profit!

Seeing that these three were fearless and clearly had confidence, the Nascent Soul cultivators couldn't help but curse under their breath, yet they dared not attack in a group, because the Great Cultivators were certainly watching their movements; therefore, at most, it would be one-on-one, a normal duel or sparring.

How hateful!

Although they were itching with hatred, there was nothing they could do, and in the end, they could only disperse in frustration, filled with regret.

"Sigh~!"

"I thought it was just someone shameless, grandstanding here, but I didn't expect that I was actually the clown!"

"Du Youli is someone valued by our sect, possessing their own channels and reaching the heavens with their influence. This time, it must have been a kind gesture, specifically intended to stimulate purchases and get ahead of the overall price hike, granting us the convenience of a price difference. It is just a pity that we were self-righteous, and thus now we have gained nothing!"

As they left, they sighed one after another, each with their own reflections.

The three Supervisors of the Prison Justice Department also reunited on the road.

"Sigh, we arrived too late!"

"Supervisor An, you arrived first; did you manage to snatch any?"

"...... No."

An Ruqin's words sounded exceptionally flat and dull; at this moment, she could not help but ask herself, perhaps she had been too arrogant and conceited in the past?

Otherwise, how could she have ended up like this, watching the opportunity slip away, and having to pay several times more spirit stones to purchase items of the same quality in the future?

Especially since products from Du En already had extra added value; after this incident, it would only increase further, and the private resale price in the future would likely rise by quite a bit more.

With one back and forth, they had suffered heavy losses out of thin air!

Sigh!

The three of them sighed again in unison, returning together in dejection.

Of course, the degree of dejection was different, especially for An Ruqin, whose Dao heart could be said to be shaken, leading to self-doubt.

(End of this chapter)