349: Pest control operation

The reason Lin Tianwei always waited until the last moment for each auction wasn't because he enjoyed the feeling of making a grand entrance at the final hour.

It was simply because he didn't know the approximate prices of these auction items.

Bidding casually could easily lead him to overpay, making him a patsy in the eyes of other Cosmic Beasts.

Asking Luo Ji seemed like a good option, but Lin Tianwei would never do something so beneath him.

Sometimes.

Keeping subordinates in awe of him was the best way to manage them.

"Ten thousand units of Origin!"

Every bid from Lin Tianwei was a decisive blow.

Instantly, the two Cosmic Beasts who had been bidding fell silent, as if they had never existed.

Past experience told them that Source Essence Bro was an all-powerful being; they couldn't contend with him, nor could they win.

As for intentionally driving up the price? Inflating the auction item's value to make Lin Tianwei suffer huge losses?

Some had tried such a thing before, but their fates were, without exception, horrific.

When you try to trick others, you also become their prey.

The most unfortunate Cosmic Beast even had to sell himself into servitude, becoming a Slave stripped of freedom and will, because he couldn't pay the price of his bid.

So, even though he was unwilling, Garian had no choice.

He could only watch as Pan Di brought down the hammer, and the Lizardman became Lin Tianwei's property.

Just then, a communication request came through. Garian was a bit puzzled; why would Filiche be looking for him?

He didn't seem to be his customer, nor did he have much interaction with him.

However, he didn't refuse Filiche's communication request. His intuition told him that Filiche seeking him out might be for a good reason.

As soon as the communication connected, Filiche got straight to the point: "Garian, I have a way for you to easily acquire this Lizardman. What do you think?"

As a member of the Lotus Slave Market, Filiche naturally had the authority to know the identities of auction customers.

Although customer identities needed to be kept strictly confidential, Filiche hadn't leaked anything to the outside world, so it barely counted as a violation.

One could only say he was playing a very close game.

"Easily acquire? That joke isn't funny." Garian said dismissively, "Things swallowed by other Cosmic Beasts aren't so easily spat out."

"Filiche, if you're only contacting me to joke around, then I don't have time to play games with you."

Garian spoke with extreme arrogance, but he certainly had the confidence to back it up.

Cosmic Level Seven strength was his greatest asset.

In the Extremely Cold Universe, he didn't have to give face to any Cosmic Beast or owe anything to any Cosmic Beast.

As long as he didn't foolishly offend the major powers, he could easily live to a ripe old age.

The reason he wanted to buy this Lizardman was, naturally, because he valued the Time-element Talent it possessed.

Time Deceleration, though the most common Time-element Talent, was extremely simple in effect yet incredibly potent, capable of producing miraculous results in many scenarios.

For Garian, owning such a Slave would definitely be the icing on the cake, making him even safer.

If he could gain insight into the Law of Time by studying the Lizardman's Time-element Talent and comprehend his own Time-element Talent, that would be an even greater boon for Garian.

That was a Time-element Talent; even if it was only elementary, it had many wonderful uses.

Yet, such an excellent Slave was snatched away right under his nose. How could Garian not be depressed?

It was a pity that Lin Tianwei's financial power left him despairing, unable to muster any thought of resistance.

Otherwise, even if it meant taking out a loan from Tongbao Bank, he would have fought Lin Tianwei.

This was the power of Lin Tianwei's previous extravagant spending, making even those Cosmic Beasts who could barely contend with him unable to entertain any thoughts of competition.

If it were to be bid on little by little, this Lizardman would definitely reach a price of around thirteen thousand units of Origin.

Lin Tianwei's lavishness was not mindless squandering.

Missing out on what he desired already made Garian incredibly depressed, but he hadn't expected Filiche to actively seek him out and make fun of him.

This was undoubtedly rubbing salt in Garian's wounds.

This was also why his temper was so volatile.

Facing Garian's anger, Filiche remained unfazed, saying:

"Mr. Garian, don't be so quick to anger. I've come to you with a great opportunity."

"This Cosmic Beast called 'Source Essence Bro' is truly too ignorant, daring to snatch things from Mr. Garian."

"He even brazenly plundered auction items that other Cosmic Beasts wanted at the auction, which is utterly unreasonable."

"Now, many Cosmic Beasts are displeased with him and plan to unite to teach him a lesson."

"I wonder if Mr. Garian is interested in joining us to collectively teach him a lesson."

"By then, I believe he will regretfully present this Slave to Mr. Garian to appease Mr. Garian's wrath."

Although Filiche spoke very subtly, Garian was not stupid and quickly understood Filiche's meaning.

He was somewhat surprised, wondering where Filiche got the courage to dare to act against such a financially powerful Cosmic Beast.

Financial power often equated to strength.

He didn't believe that Source Essence Bro's strength would be low.

But he also knew that Filiche would never make baseless claims, so there must be a reason for his words.

Thinking of this, Garian asked curiously, "How many Cosmic Beasts share the same idea?"

"Twenty? Or thirty?"

"If the number is large enough, I might reluctantly join you."

Pfft.

Facing Garian's question, Filiche burst out laughing, saying, "Mr. Garian, you really underestimate me a bit."

"With me organizing it, what are a mere twenty or thirty Cosmic Beasts?"

"Conservatively estimated, at least a hundred Cosmic Beasts will participate in this operation, and each one will possess Cosmic Level strength."

A hundred Cosmic Beasts?

And each one at least Cosmic Level strength?

Even though Garian was somewhat prepared, he was still startled by Filiche's words.

Such a grand operation just to deal with a Cosmic Beast of unknown strength? This, this, this was really making a mountain out of a molehill.

So many powerful Cosmic Beasts could easily sweep through a medium-sized or small force without any problem.

Yet now they were only being used to deal with a Cosmic Beast of unknown strength?

Thinking of this, Garian said incredulously, "Filiche, you're not joking with me, are you?"

"How could so many Cosmic Beasts participate in this operation?"

"I love how ignorant you are, like a bumpkin," Filiche said with a smile, "How could I be joking with you?"

"He disregarded everyone and snatched up auction items belonging to everyone at this auction, offending the vast majority of powerful Cosmic Beasts completely."

"I merely raised my arm and issued a righteous call to crusade against evil, and countless Cosmic Beasts responded."

"However, most Cosmic Beasts are useless to us; Cosmic Beasts below Cosmic Level are not even cannon fodder."

"So, after screening, we barely managed to keep a hundred Cosmic Beasts."

He said "barely," but Filiche's slightly upturned lips betrayed him, indicating he was extremely proud.

Seeing Garian still hesitating, Filiche added, "Don't worry, we will definitely win this operation!"

"To be honest, besides ordinary Cosmic Beasts, there is also an extremely special existence in this operation, a super big shot, a super big shot belonging to the Lotus Slave Market."

"This super big shot has the authority to use Miguel; with him backing us, our operation simply cannot fail."

"Of course, to gain the support of this big shot, we also have to pay a small price."

"But compared to the big shot's support, this small price is simply not worth mentioning."

The matter of using Miguel was confidential, and Filiche didn't intend to expose himself.

Instead, he fabricated a big shot and acted under this big shot's authority.

Moreover, even if he truly claimed to have the ability to control Miguel, most Cosmic Beasts probably wouldn't believe him.

Since that was the case, it was better to attribute everything to the so-called big shot, allowing him to hide behind the scenes and minimize the possibility of exposure.

Miguel?

Garian was utterly shocked.

He never imagined he would hear that term from Filiche.

He said, utterly stunned, "The Miguel you're talking about is that Miguel?"

"The Miguel who can instantly annihilate countless Cosmic Level Cosmic Beasts?"

With Cosmic Level Seven strength, Garian's knowledge was not shallow, and he naturally knew about Miguel.

Although he didn't know much, he was aware that it was the ultimate weapon of the Lotus Slave Market, possessing world-destroying capabilities.

If Miguel was there to hold the line, this operation could be said to be completely foolproof.

Moreover, even without Miguel, with just these hundred Cosmic Level Cosmic Beasts, while not invincible, dealing with a mere Cosmic Beast was absolutely no problem.

Garian truly couldn't imagine how they could lose.

Thinking of this, Garian's mind was made up. He said, "If the adult controlling Miguel also participates in this operation, then I agree to join."

"Filiche, if you dare to deceive me, I will absolutely make you regret living in this world."

Filiche smiled and said, "How could I deceive you?"

"I promise you, in this operation, if you find it different from what I described, you can withdraw at any time."

"You wouldn't think I have the strength to force you to do anything, would you?"

Filiche's last sentence immediately put Garian's mind at ease.

That's right, why should he be afraid of Filiche, a mere Cosmic Beast of Cosmic Level One strength?

Even if he dared, he absolutely had no ability to do anything to him.

Thinking of this, Garian smiled and said, "Filiche, you're right."

"This Cosmic Beast is truly too ignorant, daring to brazenly snatch auction items belonging to everyone at the auction."

"As a righteous messenger, how could I sit by and do nothing?"

"I'm in for this operation."

Are you speaking beast-speak?

Filiche felt that Garian was truly shameless, almost catching up to him.

He said with a smile, "Alright, it's settled then. I'll name this operation 'Pest Control Operation.'"

"I'll send you the specific operation plan later; remember to keep it confidential."

"Alright, regarding the 'Pest Control Operation,' I still have many details to prepare, so I won't waste any more time with you."

Having said that, Filiche directly hung up the communication.

The so-called at least one hundred Cosmic Beasts required him and Udo to contact them one by one; he had no time to delay here.

As for the confidentiality requirement?

Filiche just said it casually; he was certain Garian wasn't a fool and wouldn't blab about such things.

However, his saying it actually gave Garian an idea.

That's right, why shouldn't he leak this operation and use this information to exchange for a large amount of Origin?

Anyway, this operation was bound to succeed; whether the other party knew or not was irrelevant.

Why not take the opportunity to earn an extra sum?

He believed that Source Essence Bro would definitely be willing to pay a hefty price for his inside information.

Of course.

To prevent the other party from escaping, the timing of selling the intelligence needed to be carefully considered.

Letting the other party escape for a small profit would truly be a loss-making endeavor.

After a moment of thought, Garian decided to contact the other party to sell the intelligence after they had left Lotus Planet, returned to the universe, and entered the encirclement of the Pest Control Operation.

This way, it wouldn't affect his earning money, nor would it allow the prey he had caught to escape.

This was truly a win-win situation.

What a perfect plan; I'm a genius.

Thinking this, Garian became even more excited about the so-called Pest Control Operation.

Filiche had still underestimated Garian's shamelessness; he probably never imagined that Garian could come up with such a despicable plan... Feeling the increasingly cold chill, Lin Tianwei knew that a conspiracy against him was rapidly brewing.

However, he wasn't flustered in the slightest, his expression unchanged, still calmly observing the Lotus Auction.

With Lin Tianwei's current state of mind, it was impossible for him to be moved by such trivial matters.

Danger also represented opportunity.

It had been too long since he had had a good stretch of his muscles and bones.

Inactivity for too long was bad for the body; he only hoped that the other party wouldn't disappoint him and would allow him to get some exercise.

Ignoring the warning from the Talent: Danger Perception (Legendary), Lin Tianwei looked at the auction platform again.

Just now, the moment this Mental Power weapon appeared, Kai, who was in a private room in Tiger Tooth Space, suddenly seemed to sense something and sent a message to Lin Tianwei:

"Master, I feel a familiar sensation."

"The exact same sensation as that previous wreckage."