"Hehehe, Brother Yu, you're being too polite."
The shopkeeper spoke politely, but his hands moved swiftly to stash the ten gold coins into his pocket.
After pocketing the gold coins, the shopkeeper changed his tone, pulled Yu Yan aside, and whispered:
"Even in Vast Sea City, this Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue is a rare item that one can only hope for but never guarantee. Having stayed here for so long, you should understand why that is."
"Coincidentally, the captain of the Purple Pearl Pirates recently encountered an injured Ten-Thousand-Year Sperm Whale in the ocean. Their pirate group joined forces and slaughtered it."
"At the auction in three days, Materials from this sperm whale will be auctioned off. If Brother Yu is interested, I can give my auction spot to you."
The shopkeeper, now acting on the payment, explained where to get the Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue while placing an invitation on the counter.
His hand did not let go of the invitation; clearly, ten gold coins were not enough for him to gift it away.
"Since you brought out the invitation, it means there's nothing in this auction you want. So, this is the maximum price I can offer."
Yu Yan placed another twenty gold coins on the table, putting his other hand on the invitation.
"This auction isn't something ordinary people can participate in. Brother Yu, you should think it over carefully!"
When Yu Yan tried to pull the invitation away, the shopkeeper pressed down hard on it, wanting him to increase the price further.
"This is all I have on me, there's no other way. Brother, please be more understanding of a lowly errand runner like me."
"Besides, I already know that Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue is being sold at this auction. I could simply report this information upward; the only difference would be receiving a slightly smaller reward."
Yu Yan did not place any more gold coins on the table. He pushed the 20 gold coins toward himself, having used both soft and hard tactics.
"Sigh~ We're both just working and running errands, there's no need to make things difficult for each other. I'll let you have this invitation, brother."
After a brief standoff, realizing Yu Yan wouldn't budge on the price, the shopkeeper quickly released the invitation and snatched the 20 gold coins near Yu Yan into his hand.
"In that case, thank you, brother."
Yu Yan took the invitation and examined it carefully to confirm its authenticity before offering his thanks.
Having achieved his goal, Yu Yan chatted with the shopkeeper for a bit more before making an excuse to take his leave.
The shopkeeper, who only had a business relationship with Yu Yan, did not try to keep him. He gave a simple cupped-hand gesture of farewell... Returning to his temporary residence with the Whale Glue, Yu Yan saw Xiao Wu playing with the Spirit Cat in the courtyard.
The Spirit Cat, rescued from poachers, had grown for over a month and was now able to walk simply on the ground.
What made Xiao Wu quite jealous was that even though she had cared for the Spirit Cat the longest, the cat preferred Yu Yan instead.
Sure enough, as soon as Yu Yan entered the yard, the Spirit Cat that was walking toward Xiao Wu immediately turned and hurried toward him. It stood before Yu Yan, looking up and meowing.
Yu Yan, who quite liked small animals like cats, reached down and picked up the Spirit Cat.
"Well, you ungrateful little kitten, I'm clearly the one who's best to you, yet you..."
Seeing the Spirit Cat lying in Yu Yan's arms, so comfortable its eyes were closed, the jealousy in Xiao Wu's voice was impossible to hide.
"Why are you still jealous of me?"
Accustomed to this, Yu Yan sat on a chair with no intention of giving the Spirit Cat back to Xiao Wu.
"You've changed, Yu Yan. A few days ago, you would have given the Spirit Cat to me..."
"Stop, stop, stop. I shouldn't have let you read those romance novels; you've been talking strangely these past two days."
After teasing Xiao Wu, Yu Yan briefly explained that he would be attending an auction in a couple of days to buy Ten-Thousand-Year Whale Glue.
"An auction? I want to go too."
Hearing that Yu Yan was going to an auction, Xiao Wu, who had never attended one, proposed going along.
"I'm afraid not. This auction is invitation-only; you can only enter with an invitation. I only have one, so I'll take you with me next time there's a chance."
Regarding this, Yu Yan really had no choice. There was only one invitation, and he couldn't exactly let Xiao Wu go alone.
Knowing there was only one invitation, Xiao Wu didn't insist further. She reached out and snatched the Spirit Cat from Yu Yan's arms, holding it in her own.
Once the Spirit Cat became familiar with them, Xiao Wu and Yu Yan tacitly stopped mentioning the idea of selling it for money... Time flew by, and soon it was the day the auction was set to begin. Having tidied himself up, Yu Yan arrived at the venue with the invitation in hand.
After showing the invitation to the guards at the door, Yu Yan put on a mask and entered the venue.
The auction was held in a place resembling a massive lecture hall, extending in a fan shape around the auction stage.
Yu Yan's seat was Row 108, Number 36.
After taking his seat, Yu Yan noticed many Spirit Masters dressed in pirate attire sitting around him, talking loudly as if no one else were there.
Based on the conversations of these pirate Spirit Masters and their distinctive clothing, Yu Yan recognized them as members of the Purple Pearl Pirates.
The Ten-Thousand-Year Sperm Whale Spirit Beast Materials in this auction were provided by the Purple Pearl Pirates, which was likely why they were here.
From their conversation, Yu Yan got a general idea of how they hunted the Ten-Thousand-Year Sperm Whale, as well as their supposedly invincible captain, Purple Pearl.
Yu Yan had some impression of Purple Pearl; she was a Rank 68 attack system Battle Spirit Emperor with a Sea Viper Spirit. She had a heroic look and a unique kind of beauty.
The captain of the Purple Pearl Pirates led a group of over 200 Spirit Masters.
In the manhua adaptation's setting, she was once the Holy Maiden of Spirit Hall, later drifting near Sea God Island and accidentally losing her memory before becoming a pirate leader; this setting did not exist in the novel.
Because of this, Yu Yan, who read the novel and watched the anime, once had an argument with a roommate who read the manhua over this character, which was why he remembered her.
Of course, that was back when Yu Yan was still a die-hard Douluo fan.
Listening to their discussions and following their gaze, Yu Yan saw the powerful 'Big Sister' Purple Pearl they were talking about in the front rows of the auction.
She was a woman in her early twenties with a high nose, beautiful large purple eyes, and short purple hair that made her look sharp and full of heroic Spirit.