352: Chapter 352 Is this how you rip people off?

Chen You waved his hand heroically and clicked purchase immediately.

[System Notification: Your gold balance is insufficient. Would you like to top up now?]

"Ah, this..."

Chen You gave an embarrassed laugh and chose to top up.

[Ding! Congratulations, top-up successful. Gold +200,000!]

[Ding! Payment successful! Deducted 99,800 Gold.]

As the crisp and pleasant system notification echoed through the empty lobby of the Supreme Tower, Chen You's newly topped-up gold instantly dropped by a significant chunk.

But he didn't even twitch an eyebrow; money is only real money once it's spent.

The virtual panel in mid-air, which looked like a cheap browser game interface, dissolved into a sky full of golden light before condensing into a magnificent treasure chest radiating prismatic light, landing steadily on the grease-stained counter.

"Boss, you're so generous!" Hill gripped the edge of the counter with both hands, her eyes sparkling with golden light, her voice rising an octave.

"Open it quickly! Let's see just how shocking this hodgepodge... cough, I mean, this meticulously prepared limited edition gift bag really is!"

Chen You glanced at her, not calling out her clumsy slip of the tongue.

He rubbed his hands together with the peculiar piety of a gacha player and reached out to press the lid of the treasure chest.

*Click.*

The chest opened. There was no pillar of golden light shooting into the sky as expected; only three items lay quietly inside.

[Congratulations, you have obtained: Heaven-Grade Spirit Recovery Pill × 100]

[Congratulations, you have obtained: Unique Title 'Wealth Can Reach the Gods']

[Congratulations, you have obtained: Unknown Curious Object × 1]

Chen You first picked up the bottle of Heaven-Grade Spirit Recovery Pills.

The jade bottle shimmered with a warm luster. Upon pulling the stopper, a spiritual energy so dense it almost turned physical rushed out, even forming a miniature mist of spiritual energy at the bottle's mouth.

"It's alright, I guess," Chen You curled his lip.

Although his current mana pool was so large that ordinary pills couldn't restore it at all, in actual combat, he had never lacked mana.

If there really were a monster he couldn't defeat even after running out of mana, it would only mean he was too weak.

Next, he opened the title panel.

[Title: Wealth Can Reach the Gods (mythological-grade Unique)]

[Equip Effect: Enjoy a 1% discount (9.9- fold) at all neutral and friendly NPC shops in the Source Realm.]

[Additionally, when encountering non-Boss hostile units, there is a 0.01% chance to trigger 'Monetary Temptation.' By paying gold equal to double the enemy's value, you can directly bribe them to work for you (Duration: 10 minutes).]

[Remark: Money makes the world go 'round; if it doesn't work, it means you aren't rich enough.]

Chen You stared at that '1% discount' for a full five seconds.

"Hill." Chen You took a deep breath, his tone terrifyingly calm.

"Ah? I'm here, Boss!" Hill was busy counting the gold that had just arrived, not even looking up.

"A hundred-thousand-gold gift bag, and you give me a 1% discount?" Chen You shoved the title panel in Hill's face.

"My math isn't great. Help me calculate how much I need to spend to make back the hundred-thousand-gold price difference?"

Hill coughed twice, pushed up her goggles, and explained with a serious face.

"Boss, you can't look at the books that way. This is a mythological-grade Unique title! The key is the hidden 'bribe hostile units' mechanic!"

"Think about it. On a battlefield with thousands of troops, you throw money and make the enemy's elites defect on the spot. How majestic is that?"

"The emotional value this provides is definitely worth far more than a hundred thousand gold!"

"A 0.01% chance, and I still have to pay double their value," Chen You sneered. "I don't want this emotional value. Give me a refund."

"Goods sold are non-refundable! That is the iron law of the Source Realm!" Hill immediately covered her pockets and took two steps back warily.

"Besides, isn't there still an 'Unknown Curious Object'? That's my prized treasure. It's definitely worth more than what you paid!"

Chen You snorted coldly and turned his gaze to the final item at the bottom of the chest.

It was a fist-sized black iron lump.

Its surface was covered in pitted rust, and several chunks of dark brown filth of unknown composition clung to the edges, emitting a faint smell of machine oil.

Chen You reached out and picked it up. It felt cold and heavy in his hand.

[Name: Iron Lump Covered in Unknown Filth]

[Grade: None]

[Description: A piece of scrap iron Hill randomly picked up from a scrap yard to level out the broken left-rear leg of a vending machine.]

[Due to spending years in a dark and damp corner, it has perfectly integrated with its surroundings.]

[Perhaps... it really is just a piece of scrap iron?]

The air in the lobby suddenly went still.

Chen You slowly raised his head, his gaze locking onto Hill.

Hill's eyes began to dart frantically between the ceiling, the floor, and the window, as fine beads of sweat broke out on her forehead.

"Uh... the weather is quite nice today, isn't it? Very sunny."

"A doorstop?" Chen You slammed the iron lump onto the counter with a *thud*.

"A hundred thousand gold, and you give me a vending machine doorstop?"

"I let you scam me, but this is how you do it? Do you think just because I've only just reached Foundation Establishment, I'm easy to bully?"

"Boss, let me explain!" Hill jumped up in a panic.

"The system judged it as an 'Unknown Curious Object,' which proves it's definitely not an ordinary doorstop!"

"The Source Realm's system is absolutely fair. Since it could be stuffed into a hundred-thousand-gold gift bag, it must have value!"

"Fine." Chen You nodded, pointing at the iron lump.

"Then demonstrate for me right now what value this thing actually has."

"If you can't demonstrate it, I'll tear down this Supreme Tower of yours today and expose you for selling fake goods."

Hill swallowed hard and cautiously leaned toward the iron lump.

She first took out a magnifying glass and circled the iron piece once.

"How should I know what value it has..." she muttered under her breath.

Then she pulled out an instrument resembling a Geiger counter and scanned it.

Zero reaction.

"This... this might require special trigger conditions." Hill wiped her sweat.

"You're a Cultivator. Why don't you try inputting some spiritual energy?"

Chen You reached out a finger skeptically, and a wisp of pure spiritual energy flowed from his fingertip into the iron piece.

One second, two seconds, three seconds.

The iron piece didn't move at all; even its temperature remained unchanged.

"Useless." Chen You withdrew his hand, his gaze becoming increasingly dangerous.

"Then... try calling it 'Daddy'?" Hill suggested an extremely ancient web novel trope.

Chen You looked at her expressionlessly. "Do you even hear what you're saying?"

Hill scratched her head awkwardly.

Suddenly, her eyes lit up.

"Boss, the Source Realm definitely recognizes money; that's a fact. Since this thing is a system-judged Curious Object, could it be that it also only recognizes money?"

Chen You paused.

Though it sounded ridiculous, thinking carefully, it seemed extremely logical.

He opened his inventory, casually swiped out a hundred gold coins, and dumped them directly onto the iron lump.

The glittering gold coins piled up around the rusted iron piece, creating an extremely sharp visual contrast.

Silence.

"Look at this..." Chen You was about to mock her when his voice stopped abruptly.

The pile of gold coins suddenly began to tremble slightly.

Immediately after, the surface of the gold coins emitted a soft glow, transforming into wisps of pure golden energy that were sucked into the black iron lump like a hundred rivers returning to the sea.

In just two short seconds, the hundred gold coins vanished into nothingness.

Then, a series of system notifications appeared before Chen You.

[EXP +1000!]

[EXP +1000!]

[EXP +1000!]

...