Great, we're doomed now!

"Marshiel!"

Leos called out his companion's name in a tenor-like voice and quickly wrapped the treasure in cloth.

'The acting is terrible!'

Ye Shou, who was at the very front, twitched slightly at the corner of his eye.

However, he need not worry, because even a fleeting glimpse is enough to steal the hearts of adventurers in an instant from that beautiful thing...

Acting skills?

Nobody cares about that kind of thing. Right now, even if you stripped a stunningly beautiful woman naked and put her next to you, no one's attention would be diverted!

Ye Shou looked around, waiting for someone to come up and snatch it... but no one made the first move, which made him slightly disappointed.

'It would be more effective if there were people scrambling to grab it!'

He hoped the "atmosphere" would be more intense; losing a little money wasn't a problem, but he underestimated the hierarchy of this other world:

Most adventurers are homeless; they are registered as adventurers in the guild, but once they leave, they become vagrants.

The individual combat strength in this world is not outrageous. There are very few people who can form an army on their own. Most of them are blank warriors like Leos. There will be no strong people who can fight against the system on their own. Therefore, they will obediently pay taxes to the island lord.

These people dared not make a move against Ye Shou, who was clearly a wealthy merchant and nobleman—at least not in public!

This explains why a village chief, who had neither martial prowess nor wisdom, was able to possess the gold mine of the maze, and why no one ever forcibly took it from him.

It's important to understand that even the powerful Elven race primarily obtains land deeds here through political negotiations (after all, this is a time of peace; things would have been different in the past).

Ye Shou left with a slight disappointment, but the adventurers' fervor had only just begun. Everyone's topic of conversation turned to them and the mountain of treasure, and they were extremely curious about what kind of conditions the island lord had offered.

"But don't you find it strange?"

In the tavern, a halfling drinking beer among a group of adventurers suddenly remarked thoughtfully, "Why doesn't the island lord agree?"

"Ok?"

"That guy was a bit greedy, but at most he asked for a high price; he shouldn't have driven people away like that."

The halfling frowned, hesitated, and said, "Could it be that they've directly refused?"

Now that you mention it…

The adventurers exchanged glances: "But there's no reason for it!"

Yes, there's no reason!

Anyone with eyes can see that the maze is different now than it was a few years ago. It can no longer produce a lot of wealth. It's like a rich mine has been emptied out, leaving only some scraps to be developed slowly.

The island owner has already profited handsomely from the rich mine, and now that a wealthy person is willing to take over, he should happily hand over the land deed.

Because the price negotiations fell through?

Although that person was of low character, he had been a lord for so many years, so he must have some knowledge of trading skills...

There's definitely something wrong here!

Without further guidance, the halfling only uttered one sentence, and the adventurer, blinded by wealth, began to speculate on his own.

"Ultimately, why spend so much money on a maze that offers little benefit?"

"Currently, we can only detect up to the sixth and seventh layers. The further down we go, the more difficult it becomes, and the less we can find."

"Did he hire Leos's team? Maybe we can get some information out of him..."

"No way, that guy's an idiot. At most, he just accepted a guard assignment. They wouldn't discuss things with him anyway—he wouldn't understand anyway!"

Yeah~

"After all, it's Leios!"

"He still can't say my name!"

"What an idiot who doesn't even realize they've been scammed!"

For some reason, everyone agreed that they couldn't get any information from Leos.

Those who have a deeper "relationship" with Leos are more likely to think so.

"Could it be that some priceless treasure has been discovered in the maze?"

"—!"

Everyone was drawn to this possibility, and the more they thought about it, the more it seemed to make sense.

"The island owner already knew about it beforehand, which is why he refused to sell it!"

"That makes sense..."

"But what could be something that would make someone spend such a large sum of money to buy it...?"

"Even a small share would be enough to live a life of debauchery for the rest of your life, right?"

Everyone's heart started pounding.

"On which floor will it be?"

Such scenes were constantly playing out among the adventurers on the island.

The next day, amidst the undercurrents, countless people stayed up all night dreaming of getting rich, only to have the tranquility shattered by a jarring gong at dawn.

"Hurry to the port to help! A ship has run aground!"

"Hurry! Hurry!"

The adventurers weren't very enthusiastic about unpaid labor; everyone seemed rather uninterested.

Until someone ran back with their pockets stuffed full, the group scattered in a flurry, rushing towards the harbor—

"It's a treasure ship! It's loaded with supplies and treasure!"

"Where did it come from?"

"Who cares! Go help!"

Chapter 70: Time is running out!

The shallows are washed by the clear seawater again and again. Among the yellow sand and gravel, not only are there various seashells, but occasionally a dazzling golden light can also be seen.

And after that alluring glittering light, within three seconds a wave of water will surge in, powerful legs will kick up mud and sand to wade through the muddy water, but swift hands will still be able to reach in and accurately scoop up the gold jewelry!

This is a panacea!

Even homeless people begging on the roadside ran over, their legs moving swiftly. The large influx of people turned this once peaceful beach into a chaotic battlefield, with people pushing, shoving, grabbing, and cursing at each other, like a pot of thick soup simmered by demons!

The cargo ship that ran aground and capsized in the shallow sea looked like a stranded whale, and the people who rushed over at that moment became swimming champions, not caring what they stepped on, and killing any monsters in the sea without hesitation!

Nothing could stop them. The adventurers, who had been tormented by the "golden dream" all night, simply could not resist the enormous wealth that was at everyone's disposal.

They transformed into worms and crabs, burrowing in from various places and constantly gnawing at the whale's internal organs, cutting out its glittering, jewel-like flesh.

No one stopped them, and no one recognized or claimed the cargo ship from beginning to end, so it naturally became a feast for the senses!

First the internal organs, then the muscles, and even the bones and skin—even the gilded figurehead was scratched.

It was like watching an animal documentary, with the process of the giant beast rotting accelerated a hundredfold... In less than half a day, only a mess remained on the shallows, and the adventurers had all vanished, leaving only the guild members cleaning up the mess.

But that's not enough... How can that be?

Many people were not full, and some didn't even have a chance to take a bite before the meal was over.

Having tasted the sweetness, they could not possibly be satisfied with just that!

Everyone was speculating about what others had gained, and all were wary of their own finds being discovered. The day didn't bring the expected revelry; instead, everyone hid in their rooms, clutching their found jewels, their minds a jumbled mess.

"...That's terrifying."

Just as the shallows returned to tranquility, a sailboat quietly set sail. Passing by the scene and seeing the riddled "ship carcass," Chilchak, who was in charge of watching the wind direction, couldn't help but swallow hard.

"Ye Shou... if you go back now, you'll definitely get robbed!"

The halflings were very confident because Ye Shou's previous actions had already provoked them, and the shipwreck was a catalyst that made them break all rules and taboos and plunder wealth that did not belong to them.

Once something is done, it will happen again. If Ye Shou continues to provoke them like that, the outcome will be completely different.

However, Chilchak thought about it again and realized that Ye Shou didn't actually care about this at all—he wouldn't stop the adventurers, and would even encourage them to do so!

This man was prepared when he came up from the first level of the maze; the extravagant wealth he displayed was all for this purpose!

Chilchuck wiped away his cold sweat.

Regardless of Ye Shou's true motives, his actions and financial resources are no different from those of the demons in his hometown's fairy tales!

"Can you tell us now?"

Chilchuck felt like he'd boarded a black ship. He'd initially thought Ye Shou was just trying to create momentum by hiring halflings, but now it seemed he actually wanted to sow discord among the entire island's population!

However, he will still continue to follow Ye Shou, because a contract has already been signed, and the amount given is just too much—how can he not control himself!

"Even if you were to buy the entire island, you wouldn't need to spend this much!"

Ye Shou glanced at the map, then looked northeast for a moment. After a black line appeared in his field of vision, he nodded before turning back to look at the others.

Leios, Sensi, Marusir, Farin... none of them quite understood what Ye Shou was planning, but they all inexplicably followed him.

Part of the reason was curiosity, and another was being attracted by Ye Shou's mysterious and dangerous aura—after all, they were both adventurers.

Especially Leos, although he was indifferent to ordinary people, he felt very comfortable spending time with Ye Shou, as if he were with some kind of "non-human being".

"The island is definitely going to be bought, but I don't have that much time to haggle with the island owner, nor do I have time to deal with the adventurers' problems. This method is a bit stimulating, but it's very effective... Now they're going to dance to my tune."

"Time?" Marushir asked, puzzled. "Are you in a hurry?"

“Of course,” Ye Shou paused, then said something that made everyone's eyes widen, “because this maze doesn’t have much time left!”

"Varied!"

Everyone except Farin was incredibly surprised, and Leos was even more ashen-faced, looking like he had witnessed the end of the world.

"Why do you say that? What's your basis for saying so?"

"Yes, you must find it hard to believe that I'm saying this all of a sudden... Oh right, I don't think I've ever introduced my background before, have I?"

"This……"

They looked at each other, hesitant for a moment.

They assumed Ye Shou had a mysterious background and a powerful connections, so they hadn't investigated him, but they never expected him to bring up the topic himself.