57: Zero-dollar purchase?

"If I remember correctly... back at the Traveler Merchant Guild auction on Blackstone Star, basic standard-issue weapons phased out by the Free Star Alliance 30 years ago sold for an astronomical price of 9 billion Star Coins. These are current standard-issue sets; their value is ten, maybe a hundred times higher!"

Zhang Huaiyuan looked over the goods projected on the light screen again in surprise.

"Wait... his pictures... they seem..." Zhang Huaiyuan narrowed his eyes.

He suddenly realized that the backgrounds of these items were not right. For example, the Olan "Love and Death" limited edition couple rings were displayed in an exquisite showcase in the projection, with a product tag next to it: Price: 12 million Credit Points. Location: Showcase 014, Olan Building, District 6, Heim Star.

It seemed the other items were also in display cases in various locations, as if the images had been randomly stolen from the official websites. The pictures of the Free Star Alliance's active-duty equipment, in particular, looked more like snapshots of a group of soldiers flying by.

"Marcus, are these things authentic?" Acting on the instructions received in his ear, Tarian asked.

"Hey, Mr. Tarian, we've traded many times before; when have I ever sold you fake goods?" Marcus looked left and right, then lowered his voice again: "I don't mind telling you, the goods you see are taken directly from the corresponding shops. What you see is exactly what you get when you receive them."

"Many of these things are only available now because of the rampant Disaster Zone and the chaos within the Star Alliance. You won't find another opportunity like this once this village is gone."

"Good grief, isn't this the legendary zero-yuan purchase..." Zhang Huaiyuan understood immediately.

One could only say the Free Star Alliance was truly free. No wonder the Traveler Merchant Guild was able to get their hands on standard-issue models from 30 years ago; their management was just too lax.

"Won't they be reclaimed... I don't want to get into any trouble."

"Hey, don't worry, buddy. As long as you don't go into the Free Star Alliance territory, there won't be any problems. That shouldn't matter to you pirates, right?" Marcus laughed.

"Of course. In that case, buddy, we need a full set of the Star Alliance's current basic standard-issue equipment, a high-precision laboratory bench, some rare mineral extracts... and finally, some relevant research materials." Under Zhang Huaiyuan's instructions, Tarian listed their requirements one by one.

"Hmm... let me calculate... Some minerals are in government-controlled areas, so I might not be able to get them. As for those research materials, I can't read them anyway, so I'll get as many as I can and just throw them in for free... It'll be 13.2 billion Credit Points in total. Just pay a 30% deposit first, and pay the rest when the goods arrive."

The smile on Marcus's face grew even brighter: "However, I need to clarify a few things in advance. The current basic standard-issue sets might take some time, and we only guarantee that they are generally in good condition; we don't guarantee they will definitely work. In addition, those weapons might require special ammunition and have encrypted identification, so you might just end up buying decorative items."

"No problem." Zhang Huaiyuan didn't care. As long as the items were real, he could use his ability to analyze the technology within them. Even if he couldn't replicate them perfectly, he could greatly improve the strength of his existing armaments.

"Old Ma, see how much these are worth." Tarian opened the spatial storage box, which contained the wealth that "Wind and Waves" had accumulated over so many years.

"Eh... handicrafts from the Star Dome Empire. These are rare goods!" Marcus's eyes lit up.

If it were luxury goods from the Free Star Alliance itself, it would be quite troublesome to sell them, as most of the items in the hands of these pirates were stolen goods, and many shops wouldn't dare to buy them back. But there were no such concerns with goods from other countries.

It just so happened that a luxury goods store they had robbed of quite a bit of jewelry was in urgent need of stock. He could send someone else to sell it to them later and make a killing.

"Adding these all up, I can offer 4 billion Credit Points."

"What about these weapons?" Zhang Huaiyuan gestured for Tarian to take out the 12 extraordinary weapons stored in the "Wind and Waves" treasure vault. These weapons were not compatible with their abilities, and in his view, the enchantment craftsmanship was also very crude, with no value in keeping them.

"Yo... Mr. Tarian, Mr. Finn, you've struck it rich. You're even selling extraordinary weapons." Marcus glanced at them with some surprise, took out a scanner, and scanned the twelve weapons. A series of numbers appeared on it, with the lowest being 21 and the highest being 29.

"Hmm... these are all ordinary weapons with average strength, but they are considered hot items. I can offer at most 500 million each."

"That's about the market price, Master." Tarian whispered into the communicator.

"Then that's settled." Zhang Huaiyuan nodded. Being able to sell such trash extraordinary weapons at this price was already unexpected; he even considered whether he could spend some time producing a batch to sell.

"Deal, Marcus. Happy doing business with you."

"Brother, happy doing business with you. This is the 6.04 billion Credit Points after deducting the deposit. Should I still deliver the goods to the old place?"

"Yes."

Soon, both sides completed the transaction.

"Master, are we leaving, or shall we look around here? Hehe... I know that the 'Golden Palace' at number 888 has received quite a few..."

"Shut up, you idiot. Open your dog eyes and look clearly. Master's main body is still on Fenglang Star. What kind of stupid things are you saying? And do you think Master is someone like you!" Finn interrupted with a low shout.

"Ah... sorry, Master... I didn't think it through..." Upon hearing this, Tarian immediately scratched his head and laughed awkwardly.

"It's fine... Let's go look around the shops near the bottom." Zhang Huaiyuan said after a moment of thought.

From a brief glance earlier, he noticed that the facilities at the roots of Sea Tree Island seemed to involve complex technology related to "Energy Studies," which might just provide some inspiration for his lowest-progress field, "Energy Studies."

"Okay."

...

Meanwhile, on the other side. Zhang Huaiyuan's main body on Fenglang Star was focusing most of his attention on the design of the starship and the new combat robot.

Not every battle could be like this one, infiltrating the enemy's hinterland silently and taking out most of the enemies before the war even started. Most of the time, it was a test of frontal capabilities.

"In terms of materials and technology, no matter how much I study, it's impossible to surpass the official level for now... My advantage is my mastery of the extraordinary spectrum, which allows me to perfectly find the points of convergence."

"Leveraging extraordinary power to raise the ceiling of materials..."

"The power supply system can wait for a moment... The technology of Sea Tree Island has given me new insights into energy, and perhaps I can develop a reactor with a higher conversion rate..."

Zhang Huaiyuan constantly adjusted his plans, his eyes glowing with a fanatical light.

"Only when this new series is designed will I have a sliver of self-preservation power."

"By then... I can truly begin to encroach on the surrounding Pirate Groups, manufacture more combat robots, and finally, step by step, annex 'Jifeng' and the other three major forces to become the hegemon of the Golden Star Sea."

"Taking the first step toward controlling my own destiny."