C7 Ye Xiaomis Decision

Tang Tianyuv blinked and asked, "Are you saying... my crystal has evaporated?"

"Yes," Xiao Mi confirmed with a nod, swiftly pulling a box from behind the counter. "This is a Crystal Box, crafted from Worm Iron Ore. Universe Energy Crystals have to be stored in it to prevent evaporation. You didn't know this and you went stone shopping?"

Staring blankly at the box, Tang Tianyuv felt a heaviness in his chest as his dreams and hopes crumbled to dust in an instant.

Xiao Mi let out a sigh and plopped down. On the nearby holoscreen, the protagonist—also named Tianyuv—was having a meltdown: "I've lost everything—no wife, no family, no friends. What are you doing to me, God?"

As Tang Tianyuv turned and trudged away, his silhouette spoke volumes of his desolation. The looming question of how to scrape together ten thousand yuan for rent in a month weighed on his mind.

Xiao Mi watched his retreating figure and only then realized he was just a boy, barely in his teens. She exhaled softly, a sudden urge to act taking hold of her.

On this day, in the year 5830 of the Carlos Federation Calendar, the stunning Ye Xiaomi impulsively made a decision that defied logic. Yet, as time would tell, it was a stroke of genius that would transform her life.

She stood and called out, "Wait!"

Tang Tianyuv looked back, bewildered.

"Little brother, come over here," Xiao Mi beckoned with a warm smile. "Are you in some kind of trouble? Talk to me about it."

Convinced now that the woman was off her rocker, yet overwhelmed by his own gloom, Tang Tianyuv found himself walking back into the energy trading shop.

Maybe confiding in a madwoman was safer; after all, if she spilled his secrets, who would believe her? That was Tang Tianyuv's rationale.

Five minutes later...

"So, you're saying you're without a house, a car, a girlfriend, and you're ten thousand yuan in debt," Xiao Mi tallied, ticking off her fingers. "And to top it off, you're too weak for any strenuous work. Looks like your only option for making money is doing homework for grade schoolers, huh?"

Tang Tianyuv nodded with a sense of resignation. "Yes."

He was actually quite sure he could nurse his health back to normal, but the whole situation was so bizarre that he preferred to keep it to himself.

"I can cover your rent, and if you're ever short on cash for food, just let me know," Xiaomi offered earnestly. "I have just one condition: any Energy Crystals you find in the future, you have to sell them to me."

Tang Tianyuv looked up at Xiaomi, skepticism written all over his face.

"My word is my bond!" Xiaomi declared, her temper flaring. She pulled out a wad of Federation Coins and slammed them onto the counter. "Here, little brother, take these for now!"

Ye Xiaomi came from a wealthy family and had excellent grades. Her job as a civil servant might have been dull, but it was stable, and she always carried a few thousand dollars with her. She pushed a Crystal Box toward Tang Tianyuv with a gruff command, "Take this."

"For what?" Tang Tianyuv inquired.

"To buy stones, you dunce," Xiaomi retorted with contempt. "Next time you get an Energy Crystal, make sure it goes in the box."

Tang Tianyuv gazed at Xiaomi for a long, silent moment, a faint touch of emotion flickering in his eyes before it solidified into resolve. He meticulously smoothed out each Federation Coin on the counter, stacking them with care, and tucked them away in his pocket. Then he picked up the Crystal Box, gave Xiaomi a deep bow, and walked out. At the door, he paused and turned back, looking earnestly into Xiaomi's eyes. "Big sister, even if you're only giving me this money because you've lost your mind, I swear I'll repay you!"

After Tang Tianyuv had left, Xiaomi stood frozen behind the counter for a full five seconds before the meaning of his words hit her. Suddenly, the usually quiet Energy Auction House was filled with her hysterical yelling, "This is infuriating!"

Tang Tianyuv re-entered the Worm Iron Ore market of Black Stone Lane, this time with three thousand seven hundred Federation Coins in his embrace.

The intangible force enveloped him once more. Tang Tianyuv closed his eyes, taking a long moment to savor the sensation before he opened them and moved on.

Now that he knew the Universe Energy Crystals were the source, he didn't have to aimlessly roam as he had the day before. He resolved to seek out his target by following the trail of the power.

Nearly two hundred storefronts lined the area, with the smaller ones boasting just a few dozen stones and the larger ones housing tens of thousands. These stones, sometimes languishing unsold for over a decade, were a testament to the Worm Iron Ore business's lengthy investment cycle. The profits for these merchants weren't as substantial as one might imagine. The real windfalls were claimed by those who extracted energy crystals from the stones by gambling.

The military wouldn't purchase Worm Iron Ore directly; even their considerable finances couldn't cover the cost of all the stones, let alone gamble on the minuscule chance of success.

After a thorough examination, Tang Tianyuv found himself squatting in front of a humble stall.

Not every trader owned a shop. Some speculators with scant resources would mysteriously come into possession of a handful of stones and set up a temporary stall. These stalls offered stones at rock-bottom prices, but the likelihood of finding anything of value was slim to none, as the premium pieces were usually snapped up by larger establishments before these stalls even opened. Consequently, despite their low prices, these stalls rarely drew customers.

The stall owner's face lit up with fleeting delight as he noticed Tang Tianyuv's keen interest. "Young man, these stones are fresh from a space explorer's haul and haven't been picked over yet. Don't be fooled by the modest pricing—these stones are of excellent quality and could very well contain crystals."

Tang Tianyuv let out a soft laugh.

Truth be told, he was entirely out of his depth with the intricacies of the trade and didn't buy into the stall owner's pitch one bit. However, the vendor was inadvertently correct about one thing: there were indeed crystals among these stones, not just one but two. Out of the fewer than thirty stones on display, two resonated with Tang Tianyuv, an astonishingly high hit rate.

The stone that caught Tang Tianyuv's eye was the one perched at the very edge of the stall, also the one with the lowest price tag. That alone told him the stall owner had little faith in its potential.

In Tang Tianyuv's estimation, the energy crystal within the stone wasn't particularly potent. However, with only a few thousand yuan to his name, it was the only stone he could afford.

"I'll be straight with you, I don't know much about grading these things. I'm just looking to take a small gamble," Tang Tianyuv said with a confidence that made him disinclined to mince words. "I'll take this stone."

The vendor's face brightened at his words. He wasn't a Worm Iron Ore specialist, but he was no novice either. The stone Tang had chosen was one he deemed unlikely to yield anything of value, given its unimpressive appearance and size. Initially, he had priced it at 2,000 yuan, but later decided to mark it up to 3,500 yuan, thinking he might as well make an extra profit if he could dupe a novice. If it didn't sell, he could always drop the price later. To his surprise, a sucker appeared almost immediately, not even bothering to haggle before making the purchase.

The vendor swiftly pocketed Tang's money and then offered, "Would you like to cut it open right here?"

"Go ahead," Tang replied nonchalantly. "It's a gamble, after all. Why keep it whole?"

He accompanied the vendor to the alloy cutter and suddenly requested, "Let me draw a line."

Indifferent, since the deal was done and the stone was surely worthless, the vendor handed Tang a pen to mark the stone. He couldn't suppress a smirk when Tang's line bisected the stone's center, meaning it would be split in half.

"Why bother with a line if you're cutting it down the middle? Really..." The vendor shook his head, convinced that Tang was a clueless big spender, probably trying to mimic the sophistication of others. Without revealing his thoughts, he operated the cutter and sliced the stone open.

A collective sigh rippled through the gathering crowd.

"No worries, give it another slice," Tang Tianyuv said without a hint of emotion, feigning concentration as he drew a line on the half-piece of stone. "Follow this line, and be careful not to make a mistake."

The vendor sneered subtly, yet his demeanor remained enthusiastic. "Sure thing!"

With a "Chi La!" sound, another slice was made, revealing nothing but red. Tang Tianyuv let out a sigh, walked over, and lifted the quarter piece of stone that had just been split. Shaking his head, he declared, "I'm done cutting. The vibes here aren't right. I'll take this half piece home and cut it at my leisure."

The crowd erupted in laughter, convinced the young man was a bit off his rocker. After two cuts with no sign of anything, the stone was clearly a dud, and yet he insisted on lugging it home. They'd never seen anyone quite like him.

Little did they know, there was indeed an energy crystal hidden within the stone, nestled precisely within the quarter piece Tang Tianyuv was holding. He hadn't intended to stage such a performance, but the stone's weight was simply too much. Even though he had grown stronger, a whole stone weighing nearly 100 kilograms was more than he could handle. That's why he had the vendor make those two cuts, and those lines? They were deliberately calculated to avoid damaging the crystal inside.