Elven cultivators

Bishui Harbour, Tidal Street.

Anton pushed open the oak doors of the Tulip Chamber of Commerce headquarters and stepped into the spacious hall.

The staff in the hall were already very familiar with this distinguished guest. When he entered, they immediately greeted him respectfully and led him to the reception room on the second floor.

Anton had just taken a sip of his black tea when the door was gently pushed open, and Harold walked in with a big smile on his face.

"Long time no see, sir."

Anton's eyes flickered slightly. He put down his teacup and asked with a smile, "Judging from your expression, you must have some good news to tell me."

"Sir guessed correctly."

Harold didn't keep them in suspense any longer, gesturing for his apprentices behind him to bring in a wooden box about half a meter tall and gently place it on the ground.

"Here's what you wanted."

Anton's eyes lit up, and he immediately got up and opened the box.

The box was lined with a layer of soft black velvet, and in the very center lay a heart the size of a pumpkin.

It is a deep, dark brown color, and its surface is covered with gnarled veins like those of an old tree root. A faint yellowish-brown halo can be seen meandering and flowing between the flesh and blood.

Even though it had been separated from the body for an unknown period of time, the heart was still beating slightly, and each contraction emitted a faint elemental fluctuation, causing visible ripples in the surrounding air.

"The heart of a cave dragon," Harold introduced with a smile, a hint of pride in his tone. "This is no easy thing to find. Our guild used many channels to finally obtain it from a long-established mercenary group in the Green Highlands. We even had to use a lot of favors to get it."

Anton reached out and touched the surface of his heart, feeling the surging energy emanating from his palm, a hint of satisfaction flashing in his eyes.

Cave-dwelling dragons are sub-dragon species, generally possessing combat power levels ranging from lower to middle gold. They are cunning and ferocious by nature, adept at ambushing prey in underground lairs, making them extremely difficult to kill.

A well-preserved cave-dwelling dragon heart might cost five or six hundred gold coins.

It is more than sufficient to be used as the main material for the earth element.

"Thank you for your hard work, Chamber of Commerce." Anton closed the box and nodded slightly to Harold.

Harold waved his hand, his smile sincere: "Sir, you're too kind. Thanks to the Scaled Lizard skins you've sold us over the years, we've been able to firmly control most of the leather armor market. The entire Chamber of Commerce is extremely grateful to you."

Anton remained noncommittal, saying, "I want this cave-dwelling dragon's heart. Name your price."

"You are a distinguished guest of our chamber of commerce, so just give me the cost price." Harold held up five fingers. "Five hundred gold coins."

"Thank you very much."

Anton didn't stand on ceremony and immediately took out gold coins to pay the bill, then put the cave dragon's heart into the storage talisman.

Having obtained the goods, he lingered and left the Tulip Merchant Guild with Harold's respectful farewell.

Walking on the bustling street, Anton was in a great mood.

The five main materials have now been gathered in four categories, and only the metal-attribute marrow is missing.

However, it will be soon. Once the cooperation agreement between the clan and Grayrock Fortress is finalized and the development of the Frostweave Silver Vein is initiated, it will be in our hands very soon.

Everything is proceeding according to plan.

"But the money is almost gone."

Over the years, Anton had spent a lot of his savings on purchasing materials, and with this purchase of the cave dragon's heart, he had almost spent all the money he had.

Considering that if the clan and Grayrock Fortress were to venture deeper into the Thousand Rock Hills to develop the mines, they would definitely kill a lot of Scaled Rock Lizards. Even if he didn't go out hunting, he wouldn't lack Scaled Rock Lizard meat.

However, this means losing the opportunity to make money by selling scaly lizard skins.

That being said, Anton wasn't too worried.

There are plenty of ways to make money.

Putting aside everything else, simply improving a potion and handing it over to the Tulip Merchant Guild for sale can bring in a large amount of gold coins.

With both the professions of "Pharmacist" and "Alchemist," making money couldn't be easier.

While pondering, Anton turned at the fork in the road and entered a quiet alley.

This shortcut would get him to the Misty Tavern in the port area faster, and he planned to stop by to see if the wanted poster was still there.

However, just as they reached the middle of the alley, a figure suddenly appeared at the corner ahead, blocking their way.

Anton paused, squinting as he sized him up.

The newcomer was a burly, bald man with broad shoulders and a wide back. He wore a heavy suit of iron-plated leather armor and had a double-edged battle axe hanging at his waist.

He stood in the middle of the alley, like an iron wall, completely blocking the already narrow space.

At the same time, faint footsteps came from behind.

Anton turned his head slightly and caught a glimpse of a lean middle-aged man blocking the entrance to the alleyway he had come from.

His left hand rested on the hilt of his sword, his gaze sinister as he brazenly looked him up and down.

"Sir," the bald, burly man grinned, his smile forced, "our guild leader would like to invite you to his residence."

"The president?" Anton raised an eyebrow. "Which chamber of commerce?"

"Liu Huo Merchant Guild, I'm sure you've heard of our guild's great reputation."

The lean man took over the conversation, his voice deep, "The chairman heard that you have a lot of supplies and wants to do business with you, so he specifically instructed us to invite you."

Upon hearing this, Anton immediately understood.

The Tulip Merchant Guild and the Blazing Fire Merchant Guild are both top-tier merchants in Biyue Port, and their rivalry has never ceased over the years.

His sale of large quantities of Scaled Lizard skins to the Tulip Merchant Guild, which virtually monopolized the raw material market for leather armor, could not have gone unnoticed by the Blazing Fire Merchant Guild.

The fact that the other party is now sending people to "invite" him is most likely because they want the source of his scaly lizard skin.

With a thought racing through his mind, Anton remained calm and said indifferently, "Go back and tell your president that I'm not interested."

The bald, burly man's smile vanished instantly, and a fierce glint flashed in his large, bell-like eyes.

The lean man still smiled, but there was a hint of coldness in his smile: "Sir, it's not convenient to refuse the president's invitation."

"Is that so?"

Anton remained expressionless, not even moving an inch.

"I'd like to know, however inconvenient it may be."

"What an ungrateful wretch!"

Upon hearing this, the bald, burly man could no longer suppress the fierce glint in his eyes. He sneered, took down his double-edged battle axe, and strode towards Anton.

"Since you want to suffer a bit, then I'll grant your wish!"

The moment he finished speaking, he suddenly sprang up, his double-edged battle axe swirling with a powerful gust of wind as it slashed fiercely at Anton.

Anton remained unfazed, slapping his waist with his palm. With a clear, resonant clang, his sword flashed like a shooting star, meeting the incoming battle axe.

Clang!

Short, crisp sounds of metal clashing rang out one after another; in the blink of an eye, the axe and sword had clashed no less than ten times.

In their final clash, Anton's longsword suddenly erupted with a blinding crimson light, and three blazing halos of light slowly emerged from the blade, exploding with a roar amidst rolling waves of flames.

Caught off guard, the bald, burly man was violently thrown by the heatwave, his back slamming heavily against the alleyway wall, shattering bricks and sending dust billowing up.

"You were so arrogant, I thought you were something special."

Anton remained calm, the tip of his sword pointing diagonally at the ground.

"So it was just a mid-level Silver rank."