Chapter 9

Chapter 7: Zhan Meng and Mr. Rabbit

"I want to go out, let me out!..."

The voice was loud and filled with a childlike tone.

"Kid, can't you be a bit quieter? You're disturbing Mr. Rabbit's sleep!"

This voice was loud and resonant, yet carried a sense of沧桑 (沧桑 means "weathered" or "aged," but in this context, it can be translated as "aged").

The boss looked a bit embarrassed: "They are inside. One of them is a young genius from the Southern Wasteland's Zhan Clan. He's not very old, but his strength is considerable. The other is a magical beast that understands our language."

"Boss, open the door and let us take a look," said Tuoba Ye.

He was curious. A talking magical beast must be a highly cultivated demon beast, right?

If it was so cultivated, how could it have been captured and ended up in a slave market?

His mind was full of questions, but no one was there to answer them.

The boss hesitated for a moment but then opened the room.

Inside the large room, there were only two iron cages, one big and one small.

In the larger cage was a boy who looked to be around eleven or twelve years old, extremely robust, with his hands and feet bound by thick iron chains.

When the boy saw the door open, he swung the iron chains, his eyes bloodshot as if he wanted to devour someone.

The four iron chains, weighing over a hundred pounds, were wielded with great strength, causing the iron cage to shake and shift.

"What a robust boy!" Tuoba Ye marveled inwardly.

He used his divine sense to investigate the boy. The boy was only a little over five years old, and to his surprise, he found that the boy had a spiritual root within him, and it was a top-quality single gold attribute spiritual root.

"Genius! A world-class genius! With proper cultivation, he can become a world-class talent," Tuoba Ye praised inwardly, but he didn't show it on his face.

Xia Yuxuan suddenly exclaimed, "What a cute rabbit!"

In the smaller iron cage, there was a spotless white rabbit, looking very adorable. However, the rabbit's hind legs were also bound by iron chains, preventing it from moving, and it seemed to be dozing off.

When it saw Tuoba Ye, it clearly trembled, its eyes filled with enthusiasm, and it stood up immediately.

Only then did Tuoba Ye notice the creature calling itself "Mr. Rabbit." His divine sense swept over it, and he was even more shocked.

This white rabbit was definitely not just a rabbit. There was a vast amount of energy within it, which even Tuoba Ye's divine sense couldn't fully probe.

"A mysterious and magical rabbit!" he exclaimed inwardly.

"I'm not just a rabbit, I'm Mr. Rabbit!" the white rabbit said, apparently having made a decision and becoming calm.

Xia Yuxuan, hearing the white rabbit speak, was shocked but even more interested: "Xiao Ye, let's buy the white rabbit to play with you, okay?"

"Sure! This white rabbit is quite cute and can talk to entertain us," Tuoba Ye agreed, going along with her.

The boss quickly said, "This rabbit is not an ordinary rabbit. Capturing it cost us a lot of manpower. It's likely a powerful demon beast, just injured. So, its price is not low..."

"Boss, my son likes the white rabbit. What's your price?" Xia Yuxuan smiled. "It's just a pet for play, so the price shouldn't be too high."

The boss was about to quote a high price, but he hesitated when he heard her words.

This rabbit was indeed mysterious, but capturing it didn't cost much, and it was hard to tame, making it difficult to sell. The white rabbit had been sold several times and returned.

The boss was afraid that if he quoted too high a price, the beautiful woman might not buy it.

After much thought, he said, "One hundred gold coins to take it away, but with one condition: it cannot be returned."

The service at the slave market was excellent. Unsatisfactory slaves could usually be returned within a month. The competition was fierce, and poor service meant no business, no livelihood.

"Mother, this pet is so expensive. I could buy a lot of toys with that money," Tuoba Ye pouted, gesturing with his hands.

The boss quickly said, "Such a magical rabbit that can speak is already very cheap at this price."

Xia Yuxuan, who managed everything in the Tuoba family, was quite skilled at haggling.

She played along with Tuoba Ye: "It's really too expensive. Boss, if it's ten gold coins, I'll take it."

The magical rabbit just looked at Tuoba Ye, not speaking, seemingly deep in thought.

The boss looked pained: "Twenty gold coins, that's the bottom line! Any less, and it's not worth it."

"Alright, deal!" Xia Yuxuan agreed.

The boss was a bit reluctant but quickly moved on to the next transaction: "Do you want to buy this robust boy? He's a genius from the Zhan Clan, born for battle."

"Let me out, I won't be tamed, let me go..." the boy shouted.

Xia Yuxuan frowned: "Boss, are you selling untrained slaves?"

"That's your choice. I don't force anyone," the boss sighed.

Tuoba Ye gave Xia Yuxuan a look, and she knew her son wanted it: "Boss, how many gold coins for this untrained slave?"

"Ten thousand gold coins..."

"What! Ten thousand gold coins! That's highway robbery," Xia Yuxuan exclaimed before the boss could finish.

"Cough, cough." The boss cleared his throat, a bit embarrassed: "If the Zhan Clan boy is tamed, he's worth ten thousand gold coins. But he's not tamed. If you want him, one thousand gold coins. I paid one thousand gold coins for him, and this deal is a loss. Don't ask for a lower price. If it's less than one thousand gold coins, I'd rather spend more time taming him."

"I won't be tamed, I won't..." the boy shouted.

The boss said, "This Zhan Clan boy has innate strength, comparable to a one-star innate martial god. If you're not sure you can tame him, think carefully. Like the rabbit, he can't be returned."

"Alright, we'll take him," Xia Yuxuan said without haggling.

"Figure out how to take him away. After you pay, I'll give you the keys," the boss said.

Xia Yuxuan took out a gold card and handed it to the boss: "Charge it!"

The boss, seeing the gold card, became more polite: "Madam, young master, that boy is extremely violent, be careful."

He took out the keys and left to process the payment.

"Mother, let's go in. I'll tame the boy," Tuoba Ye whispered.

They entered the room and closed the door.

Tuoba Ye first looked at the white rabbit and asked, "You're Mr. Rabbit. Do you want to come with me?"

The white rabbit nodded quickly: "Yes!"

"Mother, unlock him," Tuoba Ye handed her the keys.

He approached the Zhan Clan boy, examined him, and asked, "Zhan Clan boy, do you want to come with me?"

"No!" the boy said expressionlessly.

"If I can give you strength and make you a superior person, will you come with me?" Tuoba Ye said.

"If you can defeat me, I'll come with you," the boy thought for a moment and said.

Tuoba Ye took out the keys, opened the cage and chains, and released the boy: "Come on!"

"Ah!" The boy roared and pounced on Tuoba Ye.

The Zhan Clan boy moved very fast and skillfully. It seemed he didn't want to hurt Tuoba Ye, so he used grappling techniques. Even so, the techniques were powerful, and the sound of the air being split could be heard.

"Overlord Lifting the Cauldron!" Tuoba Ye moved even faster, using his signature move.

Both used grappling techniques, but clearly, Overlord Lifting the Cauldron was superior. The boy was lifted high and couldn't move.

Tuoba Ye said calmly, "You're not my match, you're far from it."

"I don't accept it, you cheated just now!" the boy shouted.

"Then let's continue!"

Tuoba Ye used the same move nine times, and the boy fell for it each time.

After nine times, he was thoroughly convinced.

"Zhan Meng pays respects to his master!" the boy, though unwilling, kept his promise.

Tuoba Ye said happily, "Zhan Meng, a good name. Get up. Follow me, and you don't need to use such formalities. Just call me Young Master."

"Yes, Young Master."

"Mother, let's go."

Xia Yuxuan smiled, "Xiao Ye, you're really amazing! Do we want to buy more slaves?"

"Let's go! Buy a few nine-star innate martial artists. We can't always be without guards," Tuoba Ye suddenly thought.

Originally, he planned to buy some talented boys and train them to protect his family in the future.

But there were too few talented boys. It was a waste to use someone like Zhan Meng, with a top-quality spiritual root, just for guarding the house.

Since that was the case, it was better to buy ready-made experts and train them to become innate martial gods.

Directly buying innate martial gods was too expensive and hard to afford.

Buying a few nine-star innate martial artists was more cost-effective. It saved gold coins and ensured loyalty.

If Tuoba Ye trained the nine-star innate martial artists he bought into innate martial gods, they would be grateful and more loyal.

"Madam, here's your gold card. Do you need anything else?" the boss was extremely respectful. He was surprised to see Zhan Meng standing obediently behind Xia Yuxuan but didn't ask.

In the Warring States, there were few people who owned gold cards, and each card represented a powerful force.

This boss was just one of many in the slave market and couldn't afford to offend someone with a gold card.

Xia Yuxuan said, "Do you have any nine-star innate martial artists? Take us to see them."

"Of course, we do!" the boss was delighted, knowing he had a big customer.

Soon, they arrived at a tall building. The boss said, "All the slaves inside are at least five-star innate martial artists, and there are even innate martial gods."

"Go directly to the eight-star and nine-star innate martial artists areas," Xia Yuxuan said.

"The eight-star innate martial artists are on the third floor, and the nine-star innate martial artists are on the fourth floor. Let's go right away," the boss said happily.

Xia Yuxuan wanted to give Tuoba Ye more choices, so she planned to check the eight-star innate martial artists area to see if there were any good finds.

Tuoba Ye didn't refuse. It wouldn't take much time to check, and there might be some good finds.

The building was large, and just the third floor was over ten thousand square meters, with many separate rooms for the slaves.

The stronger slaves had better treatment.

In the center was a large open area, clearly for selecting slaves.

"Madam, young master, please wait. I'll bring the slaves here for you to choose freely," the boss said enthusiastically.