Chapter 14: This Young Man Is a Bit Arrogant

Chen Mu’s keen gaze instantly detected a flaw, and the woman’s face registered surprise. She withdrew her smile that stretched to her ear and said resignedly, “Sir, you are very clever. Indeed, many unlucky souls have died here. But since you’ve already found a way out, please leave. I won’t stop you.”

After speaking, she released Chen Mu’s arm, signaling that he was free to go.

“Leave? Why should I leave?” Chen Mu shrugged. “I’m just here to buy something. What I said earlier was merely a warm-up. I’m afraid I’ve grown too arrogant and might lose sight of the rules over time.”

The woman stared at Chen Mu in astonishment. This young man had effortlessly uncovered the secret of the rules—and he claimed it was just practice? What audacity! More importantly, the fact that he could immediately see the path to survival spoke of exceptional insight and wisdom. This young man seemed to have every right to be arrogant.

“You say you’re here to buy something?” the woman asked.

“Of course. Take me to the most expensive shop you have here,” Chen Mu said with the calmest tone, uttering the most audacious words.

Had anyone else said that, the woman would have thought he was courting death. The priciest shops here casually sold goods that cost hundreds of thousands of Underworld Coins—how could ordinary people afford that? Only fools would dare.

But hearing Chen Mu, she sensed genuine confidence. Such a shrewd and composed individual would not come here to die.

Could this young man really produce tens of thousands of Underworld Coins?

For some reason, as she looked at Chen Mu, the woman found him quite handsome. Rich and composed—such a man even attracted those of the supernatural realm.

Thinking this, the woman in her red uniform smiled again, stepped forward, and intimately linked her arm with Chen Mu’s, warmly leading him into the marketplace.

The most expensive shops in the Fallen Marketplace were on the top floor—the sixth floor.

Upon reaching the sixth floor, the woman gave Chen Mu an introduction: here were wines, clothes, jewelry—all sorts of expensive goods, all luxury brands from the supernatural world. Anyone with money could buy them.

Before leaving, she kindly reminded Chen Mu, “Everything here is very expensive. If you buy something but don’t pay, you will die. If you want something cheaper, there are affordable goods on the second floor. I’m on duty at the first floor; if you have any problems, you can find me anytime.”

With that, she left to resume her post.

Having understood the situation on the sixth floor, Chen Mu began to consider what gifts to buy for the Duke’s family—gifts that could win the Duke’s favor and help him acquire the Death Heavy Armor.

The Duke likely favored tobacco and wine. Chen Mu had heard from a previous life that the Duke kept a wine cabinet dedicated to collecting fine red wine.

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Later, Chen Mu learned that the Duke had fallen on hard times, and the wine cabinet was now empty.

Thus, one of the Duke’s wishes was to refill the cabinet with many expensive red wines.

Bringing a large batch of red wine would surely please the Duke.

With this in mind, Chen Mu entered a wine shop.

Inside, a saleswoman greeted him warmly.

“Sir, what kind of wine would you like? We have red wine, white wine, beer—all specially tailored to the tastes of the supernatural world. They are famous luxury items here.”

She eagerly introduced the products, hoping to make a sale.

If Chen Mu couldn’t pay, he would die here, and she would earn a commission.

She did not believe Chen Mu had the money to afford these luxury wines.

In recent days, several reckless young men had come in, only to perish in the shop after failing to pay.

To her, Chen Mu seemed just another fool.

“Pack all your most expensive red wines in gift boxes. I want 100 bottles,” Chen Mu said.

A hundred bottles would fill the Duke’s wine cabinet. Such a generous gift would surely move the Duke.

Chen Mu’s careful choice of gifts had another vital reason: he had heard that the Mist Museum held another “Phantom General-level” artifact.

However, the Duke was secretive about it, and the outside world could only speculate—no one had ever obtained it.

If Chen Mu could get his hands on two “Phantom General-level” artifacts, it would be an enormous windfall.

When the saleswoman heard Chen Mu ask for 100 bottles, she snickered inwardly—surely another fool.

Each bottle cost between 10,000 and 20,000 Underworld Coins, with the most expensive at 100,000. There was no way he could afford them!

Soon, the saleswoman packed the order.

Only then did she reveal her true intentions, smiling slyly, waiting for Chen Mu to be unable to pay.

“Sir, these 100 bottles total 2.3 million. Please pay, or you’ll have to leave your head here as collateral.”

Chen Mu pulled out stacks of money and said coolly, “2.3 million? That’s nothing—I can pay.”

The saleswoman didn’t even glance at the money. “Sir, this is Underworld currency. You need to pay 2.3 million Underworld Coins.”

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A few days ago, a rich heir had come and bought over a million worth of goods.

At checkout, he realized he had to pay with Underworld Coins—currency from the supernatural apocalypse.

He was stunned and scared silly.

The saleswoman assumed Chen Mu was the same—a wealthy man with plenty of money but no Underworld Coins.

Yet Chen Mu was unfazed. He calmly said, “Yes, these are Underworld Coins I’m giving you.”

At those words, the saleswoman looked down in disbelief at the stacks of money Chen Mu handed her.

They were truly Underworld Coins, radiating a strong supernatural aura!

Now it was the saleswoman’s turn to be stunned, her mind frozen.

Impossible! How could this be? The apocalypse had only just begun a month ago—how could anyone have this much currency?

This man was... unbelievably wealthy!

The scene shattered the saleswoman’s understanding. She looked at Chen Mu, lost for words.

After a moment, she recovered and hurriedly changed her tone. “Sir, please wait—I’ll call the manager right away.”

A transaction of over two million Underworld Coins was beyond her authority; the manager had to intervene.

Chen Mu was unhurried, letting the saleswoman assist him to a sofa, where he comfortably sipped a freshly brewed cup of red tea, patiently awaiting the manager’s arrival.

With this purchase, Chen Mu had emptied the shop’s stock of red wine.

The store only kept about 100 bottles in stock because such wine was so expensive that even high-level phantoms rarely indulged.

Previously, the midnight canteen’s owner—a phantom of considerable rank—had not dared drink such wine for over a year.

Only at the Duke’s peak could dozens of bottles be bought at once.