Chapter 194 - Dealing With The Devil Is Bothersome

After finishing his meal, Liam first paid a visit to the alchemy association and booked a high-end production room which cost him an arm and a leg. 

He was rather short on time, so investments like these were an absolute must. 

Also, with an increased success rate and high-tier equipment, he could make so much more of the product and earn back this initial excess expenditure.

Liam spent the next few hours inside this high-end room, leisurely concocting the Fire-Resistance potion in bulk. 

He also made another batch of health potions, and mana potions as he was using these like there was no tomorrow.

Using potions like these left a mark on the body and the impurities would slowly accumulate and corrode the body from inside out.

Others were oblivious to this fact, so they carelessly kept over-using these items, considering there was no cooldown option.

However, Liam also did the same even when he knew the side effects because when he ultimately purifies his body again, all of these could be removed.

Only after that, he would need to be more careful and couldn't gulp these down like water. 

This was also why he hadn't bothered to progress in the quest he had obtained at the very beginning.

The reward for that quest was either a recipe or a vial with an invaluable treasure that could perfectly rebuild his body. This would also increase his strength and foundation tremendously.

However, that came at a price. Once something was extremely clean, it was very easy to dirty it. So there would be a lot of limitations on what he could put into his body after that treatment.

With this in mind, he decided to put it off for now. 

When he reached Level 50, it would be an entirely different ball game with several things in the mix. For instance, players would be able to form mana core.

Just like recipes and skill scrolls, the methods of forming mana cores would also drop from elites and dungeon bosses.

So at that time, it would be best to take care of this foundation cleansing and start fresh so that he could form the best mana core possible.

Liam roughly thought about these numerous objectives in his mind as he mechanically concocted the potion that he was familiar with.

His mana control had also increased tremendously since last time so doing this was a breeze for him and might as well be a form of relaxation after hours and hours of continuous combat.

As he whistled contently and poured the sparkly orange liquid in one glass bottle after another, he couldn't help but look at the other person present in the room along with him.

Liam smiled helplessly and comforted the poor thing who had been sulking for quite a while now.

"I know you want to start immediately, but you need to wait and be more patient. We should find out more details about that gemstone first, Luna."

Kyuuuu. The fox whined in place, without looking up.

"It's yours. I promise. Just wait a while."

Kyuuuu.

Liam smiled with a soft sigh and continued doing his work. Unlike her, he had many responsibilities so he had to think through each and every small detail.

He first needed to get that gemstone inspected. It seemed to be part of a unique quest, at least from the little information that he had managed to gather from Gu Zui.

So there could be many things associated with it. He might even find a clue to another special quest. 

Though he had a lot of knowledge about the nice things in the game, his knowledge was far from being exhaustive. It was always best to approach new things with caution.

And the fact that the ape managed to form a partial mana core with this gemstone was also a huge hint.

Even after this, if he ignored the gemstone, he could only be called an idiot.

Moreover, items such as that were also typically gold sinks, so grinding for more money came first. How could he possibly explain these things to the little fox?

So he gave up and decided to coax her later with some good food.

Liam spent a few more hours in the high-end alchemy room before finally finishing everything that he had on his to-do list.

His inventory space was already filled to the brim so he had to take the last few items in an actual bag. 

Lugging everything along with him and also taking the sulking fox under his arms, he then made his way to the auction house.

Combined with his clothes and the way he was hauling a huge ass bag around, he stood out like a sore thumb. 

Among the players who were covered with sparkly equipment and dazzling ornaments, studded with gemstones, he looked like a beggar who couldn't even afford inventory space purchases.

Several people gave him disdainful looks as he neared the posh huge building. 

It was one of the most crowded areas in the city so people did not appreciate players who came that way just to take a look.

And from the way he acted, everyone could tell with one glance that he belonged to that category. Moreover, he had his face covered. Who was he trying to fool?

They sneered at him in contempt and then went back to minding their own business. 

After all, they could only look down upon the poor and the naive, they couldn't really ban these idiots from mingling in the game.

Liam as well was too busy to notice anyone around him. He leisurely sat down at an empty spot. 

It was fine to even sit right next to someone else. They won't be able to see another player's interface and the transactions would remain a secret, only visible to self.

"Ok. Let's start then." Liam first took out 5 Fire-Resistance potions from his inventory space and put them up for auction.

This one single act instantly created a stir amidst the gathered crowd as if suddenly someone had dropped a few hundred dollar notes on a crowded dance floor.

Everyone started contacting their guild and messaging the higher-ups, trying to gather as much funds as possible.

"This person is such a villain! He has once again put the fucking potions on a 2 hours bid without a buyout option! Just how greedy can he be!"

"Fucking bitch. He can only enjoy this spotlight as long as this stupid dungeon is relevant. Let's see what he is doing after that!"

"Ya. you are right. What an idiot! He has a golden goose but he doesn't know how to use it properly." 

"If it was me, I would have used this chance to make friendly relations with a lot of top guilds, instead of antagonizing everyone like this."

The entire area fell into an uproar and several people started complaining and cursing loudly at the mysterious anonymous person.

Even the player sitting next to Liam let out a long sigh. 

"You should be grateful that you don't have any money and suck at this game. Top players like us are suffering right now." He lamented out loud. 

But from the corner of his eyes, he could see that the noob dressed in scraps was not paying attention to his words at all.

"You know… I am in a good mood today. What item do you want? I can help you buy it!" 

He smiled while sneering inwardly, anticipating how the noob's attitude was going to take a 180 now. Not paying attention to me, now we will see!

However, a couple of seconds passed and his neighbor was still unresponsive.

"Fuck. Even this little bitch is ignoring me. Just what I needed today. Why am I even talking to idiots." The player angrily grumbled and he also went back to his work.

Meanwhile, Liam's hands were very busy. They were moving non-stop plotting his next step.

After putting up the potions for sale in the auction house, he sent a message to Abraki. "Is any of you guild members near Yleka city auction house?"

Almost instantly, he received a reply. "I will be right there!"

"Alright. Open a trade window when you are here."

"Thank you." Abraki curtly replied.

For two players to trade their goods, they only needed to be in the vicinity. It was not required for them to be face to face. 

This added a level of protection against any sneak attacks, especially in a crowded place like this.

"Whatever he does, he does it perfectly without any loopholes." Abraki sighed. Dealing with Liam was a pain in his ass. In this aspect, the informant hadn't been wrong.

Every single interaction he had with him made him feel like he was being played around by a cunning mastermind.

However, unfortunately, he still had to continue dealing with him. In the case of people like this, it was better to be friends than enemies.

Not that he expected any help from. He would probably never get something like that out of him. But it was still good to be not on the bad side.

Abraki soon arrived and opened his trade window, simultaneously contacting Liam. 

Promptly, a stack of 20 Fire-Resistance potions appeared in his window without any other reply from him.

"20 potions?" Abraki's eyes went wide. "Damn it. This confirms it."

"This guy can concoct the Fire-Resistance potion. He would not have been able to obtain these many potions otherwise." He lamented to his guild member. 

"How much is he charging you?" His friend asked.

And suddenly Abraki realized something…

"He did not mention a price." He smiled bitterly. This meant that he had to suggest a price and the other party will either accept it or reject it.

If he suggested something too high, then he will lose out. If he suggested something too low, then this bridge he was trying to create was as good as burnt.

Moreover, there was another set of potions being auctioned right now.

Why would he sell these to him, instead of auctioning everything for the same high price?

Abraki's head hurt. He had a feeling that he was once again being played with.. This person was very troublesome.