Universe Infinite Canteen

Ma Lu picked up his phone, ready to call Yan Wu to inquire about the prices of the remaining materials, only to find that the hardware store owner had already contacted him first.

"Hey, kid, I've already negotiated a deal on your behalf—41,000, no more discounts possible. Besides, a 70% deposit is required upfront. As soon as the money is transferred, they will immediately arrange the shipment. Don't worry about trustworthiness; I've been doing business with this partner for many years."

"..."

Listening to the silence on the other end of the line, the Werewolf Boss immediately guessed what was happening, "What's the matter, not enough money?"

"Do I really need that much Star Currency just to add an equipment slot?" Ma Lu said innocently.

"So, how much were you planning to spend?"

"Well... about 10,000," Ma Lu said. "All the Star Currency I have barely totals up to just over 10,000. I don't have any more than that."

Yan Wu was somewhat annoyed. "Do you think High-Dimensional Artifacts are as cheap as cabbage? You expect to buy one for 10,000? Have you ever seen any High-Dimensional Artifacts for under 10,000 in my store?"

"Then... do you have any second-hand ones?"

"What I sell are already second-hand."

"It's okay if the condition is a bit worse," Ma Lu said. "As long as it can be kept under 10,000, no matter how bad the condition is."

With No. 6 around to repair damaged High-Dimensional Artifacts, in theory, the older the condition of the High-Dimensional Artifact Ma Lu bought, the more cost-effective it would be.

Hearing this, Yan Wu could only sigh. "I'll ask around for you again, but don't get your hopes up too high."

"Thanks for your effort, Boss Yan," Ma Lu said as the hardware store owner seemed ready to hang up. He quickly added, "Wait, I also want to buy some No. 173 Spherical Algae and Free State Grey Energy Body."

Yan Wu was amused by his request. "You don't have that much money, but the things you want sure aren't few."

Without asking why Ma Lu needed these items, Yan Wu simply said, "I have some stock left of the Free State Grey Energy Body, 500 Star Currency per pound. Take it if you want it, no bargaining. As for the No. 173 Spherical Algae... 6,000 per pound. Of course, if you need a large quantity, the price could probably go down a bit."

Ma Lu was taken aback once again. The price for the Free State Grey Energy Body was reasonable at 500 per pound, since a pound was enough to last him nearly half a year, but the No. 173 Spherical Algae was exorbitantly priced.

Could it be that Pointy Hat exaggerated in his opening report?

"What now, you think that's expensive too?" Yan Wu seemed to read his mind and snorted, "The price being high is accurate. No. 173 Spherical Algae isn't that rare of an item in itself, and it wouldn't be much more expensive than the Free State Grey Energy Body outside. But have you thought about where we are?"

"Where are we? Isn't it just City B? Wait a minute..." Ma Lu thought about the free shipping district. "Are you saying that the cost is mostly because of the shipping?"

"Exactly, we're outside of The Grand Alliance and within a blocked off Plane. There are no official routes here, so everything must come in by smuggling ships. Of course, the shipping fees will be high."

Yan Wu added, "Let me be clear, no matter the value of the goods you want, even if they're trash, once the shipping fees are added on, it won't be cheap. So from a cost-performance perspective, if you're going to buy any High-Dimensional Artifact, you might as well choose one with better quality."

"Then why did you sell me that broken Desktop Cultivation Field?"

"You don't know squat. That thing wasn't produced in high numbers to begin with, even a broken one is sought after by many. And as long as you can find an Artisan, it can still be repaired—it's just that we don't have any Artisans here. Otherwise, do you think I would've sold it to you for just 140,000 Star Currency?"

"Oh."

Ma Lu had already made up his mind that he would never let this Werewolf know about the existence of No. 6, otherwise, he would be out of opportunities to take advantage.

Moreover, he suspected that the origin of his Desktop Cultivation Field might be somewhat questionable; otherwise, if it was as remarkable as the hardware store owner boasted, it should fetch a higher price outside.

Could it be that this Werewolf wasn't just a second-hand dealer on Idle Fish but also worked part-time in disposing of goods for some dark syndicate?

However, Ma Lu only pondered this idly. No matter what Yan Wu's real identity was, as long as there was wool to shear on his side, Ma Lu would resolutely continue fleecing.

After all, the laws of The Grand Alliance could not reach Earth.

The conversation also enlightened Ma Lu, and he went on to ask the hardware store owner, "Those smuggling ships you mentioned, how often do they come by?"

"About every three to five months, I reckon. It's not really set in stone; they come when they have accumulated enough cargo for a shipment, and if it's not cost-effective, they won't bother. Plus, my goods only make up a small part of their cargo. Any issues with that?"

"I was just thinking, since they come here fully loaded, they probably don't go back empty-handed, do they?"

"Of course not. To maximize profits, they do take other goods back. But this Plane doesn't have any specialties to speak of, so they mostly collect from clients in different dimensions."

"Would they be interested in food ingredients?"

Ma Lu had been thinking about how to deal with the surplus food ingredients. The most straightforward solution would certainly be to increase the restaurant's daily sales volume, but even with Old Wang's cooking efficiency, there was a limit.

And with the restaurant's limited space—he had already made use of the curb next to it—the waitstaff and he himself were bustling all day long, daily on a roll without pause.

If he wanted to increase sales further, he'd have to break the contract with Zhen Ye, which involved a penalty fee, then take more time to find a new location and recruit additional staff. Besides, after all these efforts, he would earn regular RMB, not Star Currency.

Ma Lu didn't think he had made enough money. Even with more than two million in cash lying in his account, he still felt short. Comparatively, the gap in his Star Currency was obviously bigger. If he could exchange the surplus food ingredients for Star Currency, it would add a new source of income for the restaurant and wouldn't be too exhausting.

"Food ingredients? Oh, are you referring to those collected from other Planes? What, you have more than you can use?" Yan Wu seemed surprised.
Continue your adventure with empire

Unaware that Ma Lu had repaired and upgraded the Desktop Cultivation Field, he assumed it was just imported from elsewhere.

"If they are high-star ingredients, then they would certainly be interested. But do you have enough quantity on your end? If it's only a small amount, they probably wouldn't care much. Tell you what, I'll give you a contact. You can have a chat with him first."

Soon after, Ma Lu received a string of phone numbers from Yan Wu.

Checking the area code, it was surprisingly China Unicom, causing him to wonder, "Has China Unicom's service become this widespread?"

"What are you thinking? Lao Hei is in charge of buying goods, he mostly resides in this Plane, so it's quite normal for him to have a mobile number," Yan Wu explained.