Gacha games can't save this bizarre world.

Golden Shovel grinned: "Iron essence is certainly available, and as for the price, I'll give you a discount! 13 silver coins per pound, or 260 dollars per pound. If it's barter, then it depends on what you're offering!"

The fat man shook his head: "Too expensive! I'd better go to the market!"

The man with the golden shovel pouted and said, "I hate you Song people the most. You always have this 'compare prices' thing... Don't you know that time is money, my friend?!" He muttered as he put the oxcart back to its original position.

But he quickly smiled again, "You Song people say that even if a business deal doesn't succeed, a customer relationship has already been established. How about I give you a ride? In the future, whatever you need, just order directly from Jin Chanchan. I have plenty of connections in Freedom City!"

The three of them exchanged glances. Although the campsite was not far away, about two kilometers away, and it would only take another ten minutes or so at most, it was still good to have a car to ride in.

The main reason was that Zhao Hao and Gou Quan were really curious about the goblin golden shovel!

This is the first time I've encountered intelligent beings that aren't human!

On the way, the fat man explained to the two what iron essence was. It is a metal that has been refined from cast iron and infused with spiritual energy. Because of its good conductivity with spiritual energy, it is one of the most commonly used extraordinary metals.

Some major powers in the surface world manufacture them on a large scale, and they are used in many places.

As for the extraordinary silver coins of the inner world, they are spirit silver coins made by refining silver and infusing it with spiritual energy.

After undergoing many secret processes, this spirit silver can be transformed into mithril.

That's a rare and precious metal, considered top-tier even in the Underworld. It has exceptionally good psionic conductivity. Many high-end devices require it, so it's also used as currency in the Underworld.

In the inner world, many extraordinary individuals also accept the currencies of the outer world, though only a few are accepted.

For example, there were official coins from the Song Dynasty, the US dollar, and the currencies of several powerful European countries. The exchange rate between extraordinary silver coins and the US dollar was approximately 1:20.

As for the extraordinary individuals from smaller countries, they can only use gemstones or precious metals.

When the golden shovel learned that Zhao Hao was a newcomer among the extraordinary beings, its eyes lit up with greed, and it was incredibly enthusiastic! It was as if the words "fat sheep" were written all over its face!

This is because most newcomers to the superhuman realm don't have much capital, and to go far on the path of the superhuman, they need a lot of information, knowledge, and resources, all of which cost money.

What do you do if you need money but have no capital? Get a job!

Newcomers with extraordinary abilities may not have much else, but they do have psychic powers, right?

Many tasks in the Otherworld require the consumption of spiritual energy, but this repetitive consumption is not a good thing for cultivation progress.

Those senior superhumans naturally have more important things to do and won't waste their spiritual energy and time on repetitive tasks, such as infusing iron essence and spirit silver with spiritual energy.

Therefore, many new extraordinary individuals are forced to become laborers in the underworld.

This is why iron essence and spirit silver can be used as currency. First, they have intrinsic value; second, they require spirit energy to produce, and their production is limited. They're somewhat similar to a decentralized virtual currency.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Hao felt a pang of inexplicable sorrow: He never imagined that even after being reborn in another world and becoming a superhuman, he still couldn't escape the fate of being exploited and harvested like a leek! This evil capitalism!

Sitting in the swaying four-horned oxcart, Zhao Hao gradually arrived at the main entrance of the large market!

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Chapter 49 The Witch's Sequence Potion

This market is located on the edge of a large forest, a flat area with a high slope.

Not far from the gate, Zhao Hao could see the wooden houses and tents on the distant hillside.

It's called a market, but it's more like a camp or distribution center.

The outermost perimeter is just a simple wooden fence made of logs, the kind where the bark hasn't even been peeled off, giving it a wild and untamed feel!

The market entrance was just a simple wooden frame without a door; it was just left wide open.

At this moment, Zhao Hao saw even more people, as well as non-humans; the crowd was definitely quite large.

As soon as Zhao Hao stepped into the market, he received a notification from the Destiny Card System in his mind: You can check in!

Zhao Hao: Here? Isn't this too embarrassing?! Damn it! I'll risk it!

Just when the fat man and the others never expected it, Zhao Hao suddenly did a bodybuilding move on the spot—a back biceps extension!

Destiny Card System: "Successfully checked in at the Liberty City Market in the Otherworld, obtained the card: Mini Torii Gate".

Mini Torii Gate

Black Iron 4-Star Item Card

Placement: Creates a persistent protective barrier that repels evil.

Note: Evil spirits, begone! Begone! Begone!

Zhao Hao's card is in hand, that's great!

Fatty, Gou Quan, and the goblin with the golden shovel were all stunned and stood there dumbfounded.

Three people: W-What's going on? What happened?

You know what, Zhao Hao's physical fitness and training have improved rapidly recently. His physique, build, and muscles are pretty impressive!

Other people nearby also suddenly noticed this scene, and one of them, a bearded dwarf, even gave Zhao Hao a thumbs up!

Sure enough, once you reach a certain level of fitness, you'll attract the attention of the same sex!

It was a short, bearded man who was probably not even as tall as Zhao Hao's waist. He was very thick and looked like a jar.

Not far away, there was an even shorter dwarf who looked very young but had a beard!

There are also unknown beings with the upper body of a human and the lower body of a deer or some kind of horse or other ungulate!

Several strange humanoid creatures, covered in scales and with some reptilian features on their faces, were whispering amongst themselves in a corner.

Not far from Zhao Hao, a burly man with brown skin, over two meters tall, was asking a Native American wearing a bird feather headdress about the price of his goods.

The big guy's face was bizarre, with two fangs protruding from his mouth. It was an orc!

There's even a pig-headed, human-bodied guy drooling over a fruit stand! Is this some kind of demi-human pig-man?

By the way, Zhao Hao didn't recognize a third of the fruits on that fruit stand!

……

Zhao Hao's check-in action surprised the fat man: Has Zhao Hao gone crazy because he can't handle the pressure?!

He looked at Zhao Hao and Gou Quan with concern, especially Gou Quan: "How are you? Can you still handle it?"

Gou Quan's expression was also off; his eyes were wide open, and he was breathing rapidly. Zhao Hao was worried that he might not be able to withstand the mental shock.

Zhao Hao: I don't think they were shocked by me!

This situation is actually quite dangerous for ordinary people.

Because psychic energy is the aggregation of spirituality, it is ultimately the power of the mind. Its influence on the mind is therefore most significant.

Even before Zhao Hao came into contact with the inner world, Uncle Tie had him copy scriptures to train his mind and adapt to the influence of spiritual energy on the mind, so as to avoid drastic changes in his mind or mental distortion.

If this underground market were to suddenly appear before ordinary people, it would cause their values ​​to collapse due to conflicts of opinion and other issues.

Gou Quan's lips trembled, his face filled with excitement: "Is this the Otherworld? It's so exciting!"

Fatty + Zhao Hao: This guy's brain is a bit different from ordinary people!

Seeing this, the fat man didn't say anything more, and waved his hand: "I know you must have a lot of questions, but this is not the place to talk. Come on! I'll take you to the tavern!"

The three said goodbye to the goblin shovel, who had already set up a stall somewhere, and then left.

The market looked simple, without even a gate, but it was actually alright inside. At least the ground was paved with stones. Although it wasn't exactly flat, it wasn't a muddy dirt road either, so it was acceptable.

Along the way, Zhao Hao and Gou Quan saw at least a dozen different races, as well as many shops and stalls. There were quite a few people buying, selling, and just watching the excitement!

After several twists and turns, the fat man led Zhao Hao and his companion to a tavern.

The fat man took the lead, pushed open the door, and went inside. The tavern was just like the kind of small-town tavern in a 1960s Western movie.

Upon entering, you'll find yourself in a large hall with tables of various sizes, and a bar not far away.

The tavern wasn't very bright. Zhao Hao had already noticed that this world seemed to have no electricity system. There were no telephone poles or anything like that in sight, and naturally, no electric lights either.

However, the extraordinary beings in the other world didn't use oil lamps or candles; they used a kind of light source whose principle was unknown. Zhao Hao sensed fluctuations of spiritual energy in that thing.

However convenient psionic energy may be, it can't compare to the universality and cheapness of electricity. At least, there aren't many psionic lamps in this tavern, so it's a bit dim. Of course, maybe that's the atmosphere the tavern is meant to have.

Although it looks like a two-story log building from the outside, with some mud plastered for fire prevention, the interior is actually quite nice. Both the walls and ceilings are decorated, and the floor is a hardened cement floor.

The fat man tossed a superb silver coin to the waiter and said, "Three beers, please."

The three of them sat down in a corner of the tavern, and the fat man quietly explained the market to the other two.

In the Otherworld, most places are wildernesses, and they are all somewhat dangerous. There are not many places with permanent settlements; they are generally corresponding to certain large cities in reality.

Because humans are the mainstream of this world, even in the inner world, even among extraordinary beings, it is difficult for them to exist independently of the humans of the outer world.

Fatty: "Of course, places like that do exist, they're all legendary, mysterious fairylands, like Penglai, Kunlun, and stuff like that. The West also has similar places, like some kind of utopia... but I've only heard of them, never actually seen them!"

This market gradually formed after Liberty City prospered. Because it's not very old, it still looks rather simple.

This place really is a market. There aren't many people here regularly. It only comes together on specific market days when everyone comes to trade.

The fat man drank his wine, a proud expression on his face: "After all, Amei has only been prosperous for a few decades, and the development of the inner world hasn't caught up yet. This is already one of the few well-known supernatural gathering places on the East Coast. Generally, if you need any supernatural materials or information, you have to wait until this day of the month to try your luck at the market. After all, the number of supernatural beings is too small to be considered a large-scale operation..."

As for the other humanoid races in the camp, the fat man's explanation was also very simple.

"Don't think those legends and myths are all fiction; they're just distorted history, but they still explain things to some extent. For example, the monsters in our Song Dynasty, and the elves and dwarves in the West, all exist. It's just that after the appearance of the Inner World, they gradually moved away. And when the psionic energy subsided, the remaining few also moved to the Inner World, as the Outer World was no longer suitable for them to live in..."

The fat man took a swig of his drink. "But I've heard that quite a few extraordinary races have started to emerge in the surface world in recent years! In Freedom City alone, I've heard that a vampire family started secretly building their power ten years ago! After all, they don't have a high demand for psionic energy, but they do have a high demand for blood and can't live without mortals..."

The fat man's speech was not very organized; he talked about whatever came to mind, or he made the two of them ask questions.

Zhao Hao and Gou Quan suddenly came into contact with all of this and felt that there were problems everywhere, but they didn't know where to start asking questions. They could only say that they were getting to know each other slowly.

The three of them didn't stay long at the tavern; they finished their drinks and left.

After all, we came to the market, not to drink.

The fat man led the two back to the main street. The market had only two main thoroughfares on the flat ground below the slope, one horizontal and one vertical, forming a cross. The area uphill was where the superhumans from the inner world lived; their houses were much more elaborate, and there were even two-story villas!

The fat man said that the shops over there were more professional, unlike the market stalls here, many of which were actually there to rip off unsuspecting customers.

Looking at the stalls of all sizes, with all sorts of herbs, dried animals, ores, and potions, Zhao Hao felt as if he had come to Diagon Alley!

On the way, Zhao Hao bought some things, after all, he didn't want to come all this way for nothing.

He bought a dozen spiritual papers, saying they were made from a certain herb from the underworld.

This thing is usually used for writing or drawing in rituals, but Zhao Hao thinks it can be used as a consumable for paper shikigami.

This thing is made from spiritual objects from the other world, infused with many materials. It has excellent spiritual energy adhesion, and is definitely better than yellow paper for making paper shikigami, paper figures, and paper horses.

He also saw some very "dark" items, such as animal skulls and hearts, and dead people's hair and nails.