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◎First Release◎
The orc, surrounded by the crowd, was so anxious that sweat broke out on his forehead. "S-Stop talking nonsense! The thing I just sold him was obviously fine. It's impossible for it to break in the blink of an eye!"
Thrown on the ground was a C-level equipment that the wolf-beast orc wanted to return. It was now in such tatters that it looked like scrap metal.
The orc said, "Are you saying I deliberately replaced my equipment with a bad one just to extort some money from you? Ha, I wouldn't be that broke just for a C-rank piece of equipment!"
At this moment, another pointy-eared orc nearby chimed in, "I see the orcs of the Bei tribe are mostly wearing B-grade equipment. They wouldn't deliberately extort money for a small C-grade piece of equipment, especially at a trade fair jointly held by the Eagle and Red Fox tribes. If they were to label us as "denied trade" for deliberately causing trouble, it would be a real loss."
"Yeah, that's impossible. I've been to the trade fair several times and never seen anything like this happen. How come a little cat-like orc like you suddenly discovered substandard equipment when you came to sell things? You're the more suspicious, aren't you?"
The orcs who were watching had clearly been misled by the two "passersby" who were talking to the wolf-beast orcs. The more they thought about it, the more they thought their words made sense. They chimed in, "Yeah, that's definitely never happened before. Cats selling things are really suspicious."
"He wouldn't have sneaked in on purpose to exchange his ragtag equipment for money, would he?"
"I heard the cat tribe is incredibly poor. How could they possibly sell quality C-rank equipment? He's definitely selling inferior equipment. The trade fair inspectors must report him and shut down his stall!"
When the cat orc heard that everyone was going to shut down his stall, tears suddenly fell from his eyes. He looked extremely frightened and knelt down in front of everyone.
"Please don't report me! I'm willing to compensate this customer! My companions are still waiting for money to buy life-saving medicine. Please, don't let the organizers remove my stall!"
Li Lu was originally a member of the cat hunting team that went out to look for new resource points, but they encountered many high-level monsters and other tough races along the way, and the team lost nearly half of their companions.
Later, when they were being chased by several level 60 wild monsters, everyone panicked and fled in different directions. Li Lu and his team of more than ten people accidentally got lost and ended up in the territory of the Red Fox Clan.
Coincidentally, they helped a red fox couple bring back their lost child in the forest. The couple happened to be members of the trade fair's patrol team, so they made an exception and gave them a chance to set up a stall and make money.
The claws of those level 60 wild monsters were poisonous. Except for Li Lu and two or three others, everyone else was hit and their health was decreasing every second.
So everyone gathered some equipment and let Li Lu enter the trade fair, hoping to barter and exchange the equipment for some antidotes and large and small red medicines.
However, Li Lu went to several medicine stalls, but the stall owners refused to barter and only accepted gold coins.
He finally found the stall that the Red Fox couple had arranged for him, and started selling some C-rank equipment, making some money before quickly buying medicine. However, the first piece of equipment he sold caused trouble.
Li Lu was so anxious that his forehead was covered with sweat, and his tears were like beads that had broken off the string, falling down.
However, this pitiful appearance did not arouse the sympathy of the onlookers. Instead, they kept clamoring for him to pay compensation.
Seeing this, Li Lu could only consider himself unlucky. Trembling, he took out the gold coin he had earned earlier and handed it back to the orc. "Look, is this okay? Please don't report me. I really need this stall."
At the trade fair, no stall is strictly prohibited from selling goods. If caught, not only will you be fined, but you will also be blacklisted from the trade fair for life, and even fellow orcs will be affected.
The wolf-hound rolled his eyes at the stall. "No, how can I just compensate you for the C-rank equipment? I have to pay for my mental damages too! Otherwise, I'll report you by real name!"
He had a firm grasp of Li Lu's vital points and threatened him without mercy.
"Then, what else do you want?"
"In addition to compensating me with one gold coin, you also need to compensate me with a good C-rank equipment. Here, just the ones on your stall will do. I want to choose them myself so you don't have to pass off inferior goods as good ones."
Hearing the words of the orc from the wolf tribe, the orc from the cat tribe had a sad face and showed a very painful expression, but in the face of the increasingly unfriendly eyes of the onlookers, he had no choice but to agree with tears.
The orc didn't hesitate and immediately picked out a long sword with the best attributes among the C-level equipment. He flicked the blade with his fingers and heard the crisp and pleasant sound. Then he nodded with satisfaction: "Okay, this is it."
After making his selection, the wolf-hound glanced threateningly at Li Lu and warned him in a codeword only the two of them could understand: "Kid, you're out of luck. Don't sell damaged equipment anymore. Others aren't as easy-tempered as I am. If this gets to the organizers, you'll be in trouble."
After saying this, he waved to the onlookers around him and said, "Everyone, disperse. I guess this guy has learned his lesson this time. He will definitely be a conscientious businessman in the future. Let's give him another chance."
Since the victims had forgiven Li Lu, and Li Lu had compensated them with both money and things, everyone was too lazy to dwell on his mistakes and they all dispersed.
Li Lu was left with only tears in his eyes. However, in order to quickly earn money to buy the antidote, he had to force himself to be brave. He wiped his face roughly, forced a smile and shouted loudly: "C-level equipment, only one gold coin for sale. Quantity is limited, first come, first served! Everyone hurry up and sell!"
However, perhaps influenced by the troublemakers just now, everyone was worried about buying defective products, so no one went to his stall.
Yan Yu watched the whole process.
The reason for not taking action was to prevent the situation from escalating and to understand the full facts.
She gave Wilfred a look and nodded her chin in the direction where the wolfhounds left. Wilfred nodded slightly in understanding, then turned around and chased after them.
Then she took Cadoline and the others to Li Lu's stall.
"Hello, customer. Is there any equipment you need? Take your pick. Each piece only costs 1 gold coin." Li Lu greeted them habitually, but his voice suddenly fell silent after he saw the cat ears on Yan Yu and the others' heads.
"You...you guys? Are you also cat beastmen?"
Yan Yu and the others were all cat orphans who usually lived in an orphanage. Therefore, there were few people of their kind who knew them, and Li Lu certainly didn't know them either.
Yan Yu hummed, then turned the topic to Li Lu and the others: "I just heard you say that your companion was injured?"
Li Lu's eyes dimmed. "We encountered a few level 60 monsters earlier. Many of us were poisoned, and our health was constantly decreasing. We were in imminent danger. I wanted to sell my equipment quickly to buy antidotes and potions, but who knew I'd be so unlucky. I finally sold some equipment, and then I ran into a scammer."
In fact, he could also choose to continue to confront the orcs of the wolf tribe. Even if the matter was brought to the attention of the organizer, he would be in the right, and he might not have to pay money or equipment in the end. However, the lives of his companions were much more important than these trivial matters. For various reasons, he had to choose to keep quiet.
He also heard the threat from the wolf-hound orcs. If he didn't pay compensation, the other party would continue to send people to cause trouble at his stall. By then, he would have no chance of selling a single piece of equipment.
Yan Yu thought without hesitation: "We still have some money, otherwise we will go to buy medicine for you. Saving your life is the most important thing."
Li Lu looked at the overly young faces of Yan Yu and the others and suddenly realized something: "Are you not the newly-adult orcs from the orphanage?"
He knew almost everyone in the town, at least he was familiar with their faces, not like he did now, where he had no impression of them at all.
The only explanation is that they are all newly adult cat beastmen in the orphanage.
Thinking of this, Li Lu shook his head. "Your lives are not easy, how much money do you have? The antidote and the big red medicine are very expensive. I guess you can't even afford a bottle together. You should save some money to buy some food."
Yan Yu looked at the 150,000 gold coins in his pocket: "..."
Cadoline, Beulah, and Hill looked at the 5,000+ gold coins they had received: "..."
Seeing Yan Yu and the others fall strangely silent, Li Lu thought he had hit upon their predicament and felt extremely sad. "Alright, you guys go have fun. I'll buy medicine for your fellow tribesmen. Don't worry about it."
The cat orphans have a hard life. After they grow up, they have almost no money except for the dilapidated house that Chief Lihong can give them. How can they solve his urgent needs?
It's good that they have this intention.
Yan Yu didn't try to explain anything. Instead, he pointed his bracelet at Cardolin's and directly transferred 10,000 gold coins to it. He ordered, "Cardolin Stern, Beulah, and Hill, go buy 1,000 bottles of the best antidote and 1,000 bottles of big red medicine first. With the remaining money, you can look for other worthwhile potions and buy them as well. We'll contact each other later via the bracelet."
The competition-specific bracelet has the function of communication between team members.
The amount of medicine to be purchased was very large, and it was estimated that several stalls would not be able to buy enough, so Yan Yu directly sent three people.
As for Li Lu, whose eyes were wide open, mouth gaping with shock, and whose face was so shocked that he lost the ability to think, Yan Yu simply gave a clear order: "You, pack your things quickly and take me directly to the injured orcs."
Li Lu subconsciously said, "Ah? Oh, okay, okay!"
After realizing what was happening, he hurriedly pulled seven or eight pieces of C-level equipment from the stall into his backpack, his hands and feet trembling uncontrollably.
The corners of his mouth were trembling and he couldn't utter a complete sentence.
It looks strangely funny.
A small group of cats went out to explore new resource points and were now gathered in a hidden cave outside the valley. Only three orcs who were not poisoned were left to take care of everyone.
Almost all the poisoned cats were breathing in more than breathing out, their faces were blue and purple, and there were many ominous dark purple lines on their bodies. If their chests were not still rising and falling slightly, they might be mistaken for corpses.
Li Min was worried: "Everyone is too deeply poisoned. If this continues, I'm afraid they won't survive for more than half an hour."
"I don't know how Li Lu is doing? Have those C-level equipment been sold successfully?" Li Jue next to him was also in a heavy mood. He kept feeding water to his lover Li Min, trying to delay her death from the poison.
But it was visible to the naked eye that her vitality was gradually fading away, and Li Jue was so anxious that his mouth was full of blisters.
"We cats have never been eligible to enter the trade fair. The races that can enter the trade fair are almost all large tribes with high rankings. I hope Li Lu will not be harassed or excluded. I hope everything goes well."
What they didn't know was that their worries had already come true. Someone saw that Li Lu was alone and came from a weak race, so they came to his house and forcibly looted him 1 gold coin and 1 good equipment. It was like getting two C-level equipment with good attributes for free without spending a penny.
"Even if Li Lu sold all his equipment, he could only make a dozen gold coins. But a bottle of ordinary antidote costs one gold coin, and a good one costs about three gold coins. With the poisoning being so severe, each person would need at least two bottles of good antidote, which would cost at least 60 gold coins. That doesn't even include the money for the red potion..."
In fact, Li Lu, Li Jue, Li Min and others all knew that there was little hope of rescuing all of their companions, so they had to sacrifice some of their lives.
This is a difficult decision. None of them wants to bear the guilt of not helping someone in need.
The cave was filled with silent despair until Li Lu brought back a strange young cat-like orc.
Li Jue rushed forward, grabbed his shoulders with both hands, and asked anxiously, "Li Lu, how is it? Have you sold all the equipment? Have you bought the antidote or something?"
Li Lu felt a slight pain from Li Jue's grip, but he understood the other person's feelings and didn't show any discomfort. He simply shook his head and said, "I only sold one piece, and I got scammed by someone. Not only did I not make any money, but I also lost a good piece of equipment."
Hearing Li Lu's words, Li Jue loosened his grip, stumbled suddenly, and almost fell to the ground.
Li Jue muttered in a low voice with a look of despair: "What should I do? Is Li Min and everyone else doomed?!"
"Um, Li Jue, don't get excited yet. I didn't sell my equipment to buy medicine, but Li Yu has already paid for it and asked her companions to help buy medicine."
Li Yu is Yan Yu's name in the cat clan.
Li Jue, Li Min: ??? !!
Li Lu scratched his head and stepped aside, revealing Yan Yu's appearance. "This is Li Yu, an orphan from our clan..."
"What, an orphan?" Li Min interrupted Li Lu, saying incredulously, "An orphan who can barely support herself, how can she possibly afford to buy medicine for us? Li Lu, are you crazy? You actually believe something like that?"
After that, Li Min said to Yan Yu, "Little girl, don't joke about money and medicine. This concerns the lives of ten people. If you make a little joke, they will go to hell soon!"
"Forget it. What's the point of me telling you all this? Even if I condemn you to death now, it won't help." Li Min turned to Li Lu and extended a hand. "Li Lu, quickly give me those C-level equipment. I'll sell them to buy medicine. I hope it's not too late."
Li Lu: “But, but…”
"Don't keep coming and going here. Give me the thing quickly! I don't have time to joke with you now!" Li Min was too lazy to listen to Li Lu and Yan Yu's explanation. He just wanted to seize the time to make amends. Seeing that Li Lu still didn't move, he was so angry that he was ready to grab it.
Li Lu and Li Yu really don't know the seriousness of the matter. If the ten fellow tribesmen lying on the ground die, they will definitely be blamed!
Li Min was so angry that he almost cut Li Lu's arm when he tried to snatch his backpack.
At this moment, Yan Yu, who had been silent, said, "Wait, my teammates are coming."
After buying the medicine, Cadoline, Beulah and Hill contacted Yan Yu through the bracelet and walked towards the cave according to the route given by Yan Yu.
Li Min: "Come over if you want. What's the point of coming over?!"
The more he looked at Yan Yu, the angrier he became. The cat tribe had been very kind to these orphans, at least raising them safely until they reached adulthood. Unexpectedly, they would repay their kindness with evil!
He deliberately used the excuse of buying medicine to delay Li Lu's time to make money, and also delayed everyone's final rescue time.
If everyone dies, Yan Yu is the culprit!
Yan Yu raised his eyelids, ignoring Li Min's fiery eyes, and instead approached his poisoned fellows on the ground, checking them one by one using advanced detection techniques.
[NPC·Cat Orc Li Min]
Level: 38 (30000/128000)
Health: 60/3000 (poisoned state, -15 health points per minute)
Strength: 220 (+22)
Constitution: 290 (+33)
Agility: 460 (+48)
Spirit: 100 (+5)
Talent: D-level speed talent (increases dodge rate by 20% during combat)
Equipment: C-level shadow dagger, C-level vine armor, C-level frost necklace, D-level shadow windbreaker, D-level ordinary cloth boots, D-level storage ring
Skills: Intermediate Wind Step, Elementary Fingering, Elementary Manipulation
The attribute panels of the other nine people were not much different from Li Min's, with their health points less than 100 points, and they were in imminent danger.
"Hey, you, the culprit, actually have the nerve to get close to them!" Li Min was so angry that he jumped to his feet.
Yan Yu said coldly: "Shut up."
Then he looked at Cadolin and the other two: "Have you bought everything?"
"I bought everything. A total of 1,000 bottles of advanced antidote, 1,000 bottles of large red potion, 3,000 bottles of small red potion that adds 30 health points, and 500 bottles of energy supplement."
Yan Yu: "Okay, first give each of them two bottles of advanced antidote and two bottles of big red medicine." Each bottle of big red medicine can replenish 1,000 health points. Two bottles can replenish 2/3 of their health points, and the rest can be recovered slowly.
Upon hearing Yan Yu's instructions, Cadoline, Beulah and Hill immediately took action and fed medicine to the cat orcs on the ground one by one.
It is indeed an advanced antidote. After taking one bottle, the patients who had been in a coma for a long time immediately showed signs of waking up. After taking another bottle, the toxin was completely eliminated, and everyone's faces visibly turned less purple.
Then, she added two bottles of red medicine, and her face quickly became rosy, as if she had never been poisoned.
They woke up one after another. "What happened to us? I remember we were being chased by a level 60 monster and were poisoned... Hey, is the poison completely gone?"
Seeing that Yan Yu's companions had indeed brought the antidote and the big red medicine and saved his teammates, Li Lu was so excited that he grabbed Li Min's collar tightly and refused to let go: "Hahaha, did you see that? They really saved everyone!"
"I knew that Li Yu and the others would not lie to me!"
Li Lu grabbed Li Min's collar and shook it hard, almost making Li Min vomit.
Li Min opened his eyes wide and felt a burning pain on his face.
Woo woo woo, he was mean-spirited, and now he’s been slapped in the face… However, he admits the slap. It was just a slap in the face, but in exchange he saved ten lives.
After everyone regained consciousness, Li Min immediately ran to Yan Yu and sincerely apologized: "Li Yu, I'm really sorry. My attitude was not good before. I wronged you and your friends and said a lot of unpleasant things. I now fully realize my mistakes. You can hit me or scold me as you please!"
After saying that, he bowed deeply in the direction of Yan Yu and the others, his face full of shame.
Yan Yu generously helped Li Minxu up and said, "You are too worried about the safety of your fellow tribesmen. There is no need to beat or scold them. Just apologize."
His starting point was not wrong. If it were her, with her companions' lives in danger, she would not easily trust a few "strangers".
"Thank you, thank you, you are so generous."
After the ten compatriots woke up, Yan Yu checked them one by one. After making sure that the toxins in their bodies were completely removed, he had the leisure to learn about what they had seen and heard since they left the cat tribe.
Li Lu pulled out all the C-rank equipment from his backpack and returned them one by one to their original owners. "Before, the situation was urgent and I didn't have enough money, so I had to take some of your equipment to the trade fair to exchange for money. Alas, it's a pity that two pieces of C-rank equipment were lost."
One was bought by a wolf-dog orc, but the money was eventually paid back, and the other was given as compensation for his mental damages.
Li Min patted Li Lu's shoulder and consoled him, "Think positively. If it weren't for that orc from the Bei tribe causing trouble, Li Yu and the others might not have noticed you. If they hadn't noticed you, these poisoned tribesmen would probably have died in the end."
That being said, Li Lu was still furious no matter how he thought about it.
That damned beastman from the wolfhound tribe must have picked on him because he saw that he was alone and his race was too weak!
Ahhh, it's all his fault. He was so busy selling the equipment that he didn't leave any backup for himself. Otherwise, he wouldn't be so passive.
Two pieces of C-rank equipment, that's worth 2 gold coins! 2 gold coins is enough for his family of three to spend for two or three months, with some left over!
He was really pissed off.
Noticing Li Lu's indignation, Yan Yu curled her lips and smiled slightly: "Don't worry, the two pieces of equipment you lost will be returned soon."
Li Xi:? ? ?
【Author’s words】
Thank you to the little angels who voted for me or provided me with nutrient solution between 2024-02-24 19:34:54 and 2024-02-27 22:01:16~
Thanks to the little angels who irrigated the nutrient solution: Xicixixi, Li 1 bottle;
Thank you very much for your support. I will continue to work hard!
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