"Why are you blocking my way? Are you an idiot?"
Bai Ye was suddenly bumped on the shoulder, snapping him back to attention.
Bai Ye watched the man walk past him without bothering to argue. He then headed towards the standee for the Evil Spirit Clan.
There were two main points on the Evil Spirit Clan's standee.
The first was recruitment, and the second was acquisition.
"Young man, are you interested?" A young man, seeing Bai Ye standing before the standee, immediately and enthusiastically stepped forward. "Do you know about the Hidden Dragon Society? Have you been chased by them? Those guys are incredibly vile..."
"Stop..."
Bai Ye already knew that the Evil Spirit Clan used the Hidden Dragon Society as a gimmick during their early recruitment.
The general idea was to gather people who had been bullied by the Hidden Dragon Society.
If you hadn't been bullied by the Hidden Dragon Society, that was fine too.
The Evil Spirit Clan members would tell you that the Hidden Dragon Society was a vicious organization, that they were numerous, that they hunted others everywhere for fragments of the God Stone, that they collectively entered restricted areas to monopolize quest rewards and slaughter other chosen ones within those areas.
So...
You don't want to be bullied by the Hidden Dragon Society, right?
You don't want to be isolated and helpless when the Hidden Dragon Society attacks you, do you?
Beyond that, there was, of course, a hidden message...
You also want to bully others like the Hidden Dragon Society does, and seize fragments of the God Stone, don't you?
You also want a group to monopolize restricted areas and claim quest rewards, right?
Excellent, we have reached a consensus.
Join the Evil Spirit Clan, and you can have all of this too.
Bai Ye knew all of this perfectly well, so he decisively interrupted the other person.
Bai Ye had no interest in joining the Evil Spirit Clan. Moreover, Bai Ye had always felt that the Evil Spirit Clan's rise in his previous life was not only because their leader, Harvey, was a smart person, but also because...
The early president of the Hidden Dragon Society was an idiot.
This was because the things the Evil Spirit Clan offered could actually be offered by the Hidden Dragon Society as well.
By joining the Hidden Dragon Society, one would naturally not be bullied by them.
By joining the Hidden Dragon Society, one could also bully others alongside the Hidden Dragon Society members.
So, why must it be the Evil Spirit Clan?
If Bai Ye were the president of the Hidden Dragon Society, he would simply start recruiting with the same conditions.
This was a winning hand, a clear strategy that could completely stifle the Evil Spirit Clan's development.
Unfortunately, the current president of the Hidden Dragon Society might not have a good head on his shoulders, stubbornly focusing on developing his own world's chosen ones as the core.
Initially, they had only been accumulating manpower and had no thought of active recruitment, thus giving the Evil Spirit Clan an opportunity to grow.
Sometimes, a leader with brains was truly important.
At least in Bai Ye's previous life, the Hidden Dragon Society wasn't completely squandering a good hand, but comparison was the thief of joy.
If one had learned about the Evil Spirit Clan's rise to prominence and then compared it to the Hidden Dragon Society, the difference in leadership caliber was strikingly apparent.
However, what did this have to do with Bai Ye?
Bai Ye didn't intend to do anything about the Hidden Dragon Society; they had their foundation and would surely develop. But with the Evil Spirit Clan, Bai Ye didn't mind lending a hand.
"I'm not planning to join you," Bai Ye said, pointing at the "acquisition" sign. "I have something I want to sell, but it's a bit unusual. I don't think most people could offer me satisfactory compensation, but perhaps your Evil Spirit Clan can."
"Oh?" The man didn't seem bothered by Bai Ye's refusal. He smiled and asked, "What do you intend to sell that needs to be described as 'unusual'?"
Bai Ye replied, "Restricted Areas!"
The man froze. "Restricted Areas?"
Could restricted areas be sold?
Bai Ye glanced at the standee. "You really dislike the Hidden Dragon Society, don't you?"
The man nodded. "Of course! I almost died at their hands. Do I not have a reason to hate them?"
Bai Ye smiled. "Then you should be very familiar with the Hidden Dragon Society's operational methods, right?"
The man said, "I know quite a bit."
Bai Ye continued, "Then you should know how they deal with restricted areas. After finding a restricted area, they don't enter immediately. Instead, they gather enough manpower and then activate it."
The man nodded. "This way, they have enough manpower to slaughter others wantonly within the restricted area and have a high probability of completing the restricted area quests."
Bai Ye then asked, "So, why can't restricted areas be sold?"
As Bai Ye spoke, he took out a fragment of the Heart of Dawn. "With this item, one can enter the Primal Domain."
The man looked at the Heart of Dawn and hesitated. "I need to discuss this with someone. This is the first time I've encountered someone wanting to sell a restricted area."
Bai Ye casually extended his hand. "Please do."
The man took out a paper crane and handed it to Bai Ye. "I'll need some time. You can wander around for now. I'll contact you via paper crane later."
Bai Ye nodded.
The man extended his hand. "My name is Gao Ming."
Bai Ye shook Gao Ming's hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you."
After speaking, Gao Ming asked others to watch the standee and then hurried away.
Bai Ye watched Gao Ming's retreating figure. The person he needed to discuss this with, was it Harvey Stanson?
The Evil Spirit Clan wasn't very large at this point, so Harvey might be hands-on. However, Bai Ye recalled that Harvey Stanson had spent a lot of time in magical regions and later settled in cyberpunk regions.
So, the possibility of him appearing here wasn't very high.
Bai Ye mused as he casually strolled to the side.
Bai Ye currently possessed the Insect Breathing style and two Blood Demon Arts. Moreover...
The most frustrating thing after obtaining the Rumble-Rumble Fruit was that...
The Thunder Breathing style and instant transmission had become useless!
With the instant transmission of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit utilizing the electric field, Bai Ye found no use for the Thunder Breathing style. In fact, even the value of instant transmission had diminished.
The instant transmission of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit had no time limit and didn't require positioning. As long as one was within an electric field, it could be used, almost negating the need for other movement abilities for supplementation.
However, Bai Ye had already used both, so they couldn't be put up for trade.
Bai Ye continued to walk through the market, lost in thought.
Suddenly, Bai Ye stopped and looked at a stall on the side, with a standee erected next to it.
The stall owner was selling a weapon – the Fang of Thunder's Rage.
Bai Ye recognized this weapon. It was a black-quality weapon, shaped like both a knife and a sword, making its exact classification difficult to determine due to its lightning-shaped, alien blade.
The reason Bai Ye knew of it was that he had once drawn it from a gacha machine.
Seeing it unexpectedly now made Bai Ye's eyes light up.
The effect of the Fang of Thunder's Rage weapon was a perfect match for the Rumble-Rumble Fruit!