Chapter 4 —

The underground black market, hidden beneath the abandoned old factory area of ​​the East District, is the darkest corner of Yuejiang City.

It's a breeding ground for crime, a haven for **** trading, illegal beast fighting, smuggling… you name it. Its entrance is disguised as a dilapidated warehouse, guarded by burly men with fierce eyes, all around level 3 in strength.

The beastmen, driving Lin Jiangxing's car, finally arrived after a winding, circuitous journey. The leader rubbed his hangover head and whispered to the others:

"Remember, these three guys provoked and beat us first. We were just acting in self-defense… The price should be about right. Sell them, get the money, and get out of here!"

The other beastmen nodded repeatedly in agreement. After agreeing on the details, they dragged the three **** men out of the car and carried them into the black market like sacks of potatoes at a construction site.

The black market was brightly lit and bustling with noise. The air was thick with the stench of sweat and blood.

The roadside stalls were filled with strange and unusual goods: from organs and tissues of various creatures to bizarre otherworldly artifacts—a dazzling array.

Just as the orcs were searching for merchants who would buy humans, a bald, middle-aged man in a suit, who appeared to be in charge, stepped forward. He squinted at Lin Jiangxing and his companions, saying:

“Hey, greenskins, first time in the black market, huh? Let me see your merchandise… Goodness, cleaners? Aren’t you afraid the Association will come after you? Tsk tsk, the Association members have supernatural abilities; they’re valuable, but also risky.”

Hearing this, the leading orc knew this man intended to buy the three, and quickly explained, “Oh, boss, these three guys had too much to drink and got into a little trouble with us… We were also drunk at the time, and in a moment of carelessness, we hit them a little too hard…” "The three are still alive, just ****—don't you black market people love this kind of 'live goods'? I'll sell them to you cheaply, get rid of them quickly so we can make a run for it."

The middle-aged man stroked his chin, then reached out and probed under Lin Jiangxing and the other two's noses, his beady eyes darting slyly around their sockets:

"Alright, they're all still alive. The association's cleaners, they have special abilities, and recently a big shot has an order that requires this kind of 'goods'... Here's the deal, three people—60,000 Illusionary Magic Coins in total. Don't complain about the small amount, take the money and get out of here!"

The beastmen exchanged glances, finding the price acceptable, and quickly nodded in agreement.

Taking the "goods" from the beastmen, the middle-aged man waved to several of his men, who tied the three up, threw them into an iron cage, and headed towards the black market's dungeon. Then, he turned his back and made a throat-slitting gesture to his men, before releasing the beastmen to drive away. Watching the orcs slink away, the middle-aged man wiped his gold watch and sneered:

"A few ignorant green-skinned apes, blame yourselves for selling the goods to that dragon princess. I, a mere middleman in the underground black market, can't let a few fools who know the 'goods' escape..."

…………

After an unknown amount of time, Lin Jiangxing, covered in bruises and wounds, slowly awoke from his unconsciousness, clutching his head. He opened his eyes to find himself lying in a cold, dark cell, his hands and feet bound.

Beside him were Liu Hongyu and He Yuanyuan, also ****. Both were pale and breathing weakly.

"Where… am I?" he murmured, struggling to sit up against the damp wall. "Awake?" Outside the cell, a skinny guard noticed him, grinning as he approached. "Kid, you guys are really lucky. You were just sold here by those greenskins and a buyer has already taken a liking to you—oh right, the buyer's coming soon… I wonder if he'll treat you as slaves or experimental subjects? Hahaha!"

Lin Jiangxing paid no attention to the guard, rubbing his temples as he tried to recall the chaos of the previous night—the effects of the **** hadn't completely worn off, and although his brain felt like it'd been churned, he could still piece together a rough outline:

Restaurant, orcs, fight, unconsciousness, and then… waking up here.

"Damn it, those green-skinned gorillas were too audacious! They actually dared to sell us outright—"

He cursed under his breath, then looked around: outside the cell, besides the guard, it was all darkness; he couldn't see anything.

Lin Jiangxing, enduring the excruciating pain, gently nudged Liu Hongyu and He Yuanyuan beside him with his elbow. The two groaned and woke up a moment later, opening their eyes to find themselves tied up in a cell. They were dazed for a few seconds, then their faces turned grim.

"Lin...Brother Lin, where are we? How did we get tied up?" Liu Hongyu asked, his voice trembling.

He Yuanyuan leaned against the wall, her eyes red and on the verge of tears. "Hongyu, my head hurts so much… Where are those beastmen? Were we sold?"

"Shh, keep your voice down," Lin Jiangxing whispered, forcing a bitter smile. "That's right, we've most likely been sold to the black market by those green-skinned gorillas. The guard just said a buyer has taken a liking to us… Don't panic, I'm thinking of something."

As he spoke, he tried to bite the rope, but it was tied too tightly and he couldn't bite it at all:

"Damn! Is this rope specially made? My ability isn't combat-oriented, so it's completely useless now… I should have brought that pen with me—no, even if I had, those green-skinned gorillas would probably have stolen it!"

Just as the three were whispering about how to escape, a series of hurried footsteps suddenly came from outside the cell. Hearing the commotion, the thin guard quickly straightened up, a fawning smile plastered on his face:

“The buyer’s here! The buyer’s here! You lot, keep quiet, don’t displease the big shot!”

After saying this, the guard sullenly retreated from the cell.

Immediately afterward, a man wearing a raven mask entered—he was tall and thin, dressed in a long black robe, his face obscured, but the eyes visible beneath the mask gleamed with a cold, piercing light.

Behind him followed several other figures also dressed in black robes. These men had curved dragon horns protruding from their heads, and their skin shimmered with scales—these features clearly identified them as dragon-people! Their eyes were arrogant, their steps steady, as if they were surveying their territory.

Dragon-people, as a type of demi-human, are extremely rare on Earth. According to incomplete statistics, there are no more than 50 dragon-people currently existing on the entire planet—and now, five of them are here! Lin Jiangxing and his companions were utterly shocked: "What's going on? These dragon people... I've never even seen this species in reality, so naturally I wouldn't have any conflict with them—but we were sold out, and they bought us right after. Could there be some kind of conspiracy?"

But that wasn't all. What shocked Lin Jiangxing and his companions even more was that behind those dragon people were three enormous dragons!

The three dragons walked in a triangular formation. The two on the left and right were common, low-grade, yellowish-brown earth dragons, less than five meters long, covered in thick scales, with claws sharp enough to easily tear through steel.

The one in the middle stood out completely—its entire body was covered in hard, silvery-white dragon scales; a pair of enormous silver horns on its head gleamed with a chilling light, like weapons; a pair of broad dragon wings sprouted from its back, slightly folded; and its golden, vertical dragon eyes swept over the three of them with the sharpness of swords…

The three immediately recognized it as a silver dragon—judging from its size and aura, its status among dragons was definitely not low!