The words from Tiya caused Bennett’s expression to freeze immediately. He stood there, unsure of what to say, and an unusual silence fell over the room.

Tiya covered her mouth and let out a light laugh, her demeanor strikingly similar to that which Kaine possessed.

“Miss Tiya, to be frank, this old man does indeed have a favor to ask, but I assure you it carries no ill intent. I merely wish to make the acquaintance of the ‘Ethereal Mercenary Group,’” Bennett coughed slightly before speaking slowly.

Tiya simply blinked at him, offering no immediate reply.

“Miss Tiya, please accept these little magical beasts; even if you—” Bennett started to say more, but Tiya interrupted him.

“You’ve come at a bad time. My Brother Xiu is deeply engrossed in research and has no time to meet with you. Many of the other members have already left this place!” Tiya murmured.

Research? Left?

Bennett felt a touch of confusion, unable to grasp the true meaning behind Tiya’s words.

“If today is inconvenient, this humble elder can certainly arrange to visit another day!” Bennett said with genuine sincerity. “It’s just that—” Tiya appeared hesitant, pausing before continuing, “It might be inconvenient for some time!”

Bennett stiffened momentarily. He instinctively suspected Tiya was making an excuse to brush him off. Though disappointed, he courteously cupped his hands and said, “Then I shall not impose further today!”

With that, he signaled to Obot beside him, and the two rose to leave.

“Wait a moment, your magical beasts—” Tiya quickly stopped them.

“These are gifts for Miss Tiya; I hope you will not refuse them again!” Bennett’s expression remained amiable; he showed no anger despite being rejected.

These small magical beasts were a trifle to their “Tilari Family,” and there was no precedent for reclaiming a gift once offered.

“In that case, how about this!” Since one cannot accept a gift without giving something in return, Tiya suddenly said after a moment of thought, “I will tell you something. Consider it thanks for these magical beasts.”

Bennett stood attentively, leaning in to hear what Tiya would say next.

Tiya gathered her thoughts and then spoke, “My Brother Xiu said that in less than half a year, humanity will face a great catastrophe.”

As she spoke, she lowered her voice, her expression becoming unusually serious!

“A great catastrophe?” Bennett was slightly startled and couldn’t help but ask, “Miss Tiya, could you elaborate on that?”

“In less than six months, countless Mite-insects—far more formidable than those appearing now—will plague this world,” Tiya explained briefly.

Bennett’s face immediately changed color. He pressed again, “Miss Tiya, is what you are saying true?”

“My Brother Xiu told me; it is absolutely certain. The other members of the ‘Ethereal Mercenary Group’ have already returned to move their families to safe locations. You should also make preparations early!” Tiya said with obvious concern.

“Miss Tiya, why the deadline of ‘half a year’? And where are those Mite-insects coming from? Can you be more specific?” Bennett grew anxious. He had only just dealt with the Mite-insects, believing things would settle down, only to receive such dire news. It was severely testing his capacity for composure!

“Even if I explained, you wouldn’t understand, as I don’t know much either. I only know that ‘Access Points’ will successively appear all over the world at that time, and no one will be able to stop the advance of the Mite-insects!”

Successive ‘Access Points’?

Bennett felt as if a great hammer had struck his very soul. His vision began to conjure up gruesome scenes of Mite-insects slaughtering the great cities! Though it was merely imagination, the bloody sight made Bennett’s heart pound uncontrollably!

“Do you know? The Mite-insects appearing in the world now are just ordinary, small ones. The truly powerful ones are hundreds, even thousands of times stronger than what we see now!” Tiya had only meant to offer a kind warning to Bennett. But the words that reached Bennett’s ears sounded like a threat!

Hundreds or thousands of times stronger? Heavens above, what level would that reach?

At this moment, Bennett felt cold sweat breaking out on his back. Those mere common Mite-insects had nearly caused the entire ‘Gold Harvest City’ to fall. If creatures hundreds or thousands of times more powerful appeared, wouldn’t this ‘Gold Harvest City’ be...

“Alright, I have told you what I know. You must be careful!” Tiya’s face finally regained its previous smile.

However, Bennett could not manage a smile now. On the contrary, he felt an urge to weep. Why must fate torment him so? One problem resolves only for another to arise immediately. Was ‘Gold Harvest City’ destined for endless misfortune?

“Miss Tiya, does your ‘Ethereal Mercenary Group’ have any solution?” Bennett had become somewhat distraught. With matters like this, it was better to believe it true than false! Furthermore, he trusted that Tiya had no reason to lie to him!

“My Brother Xiu is researching a way to resolve this crisis. I believe he will have a solution by then,” Tiya said vaguely. Such matters were beyond even Zhong Shenxiu’s definitive grasp, so she dared not make any wild guarantees!

※

Time passed quickly; three days had flown by in a flash.

In these three days, there was no news concerning Charlotte or the others. However, there was no need to worry for them, as they were now all “monsters” who had undergone mutation!

Zhong Shenxiu’s research had yielded some success. Two days prior, he had successfully developed a special “Scroll.” It was called special because its function was unique: it was specifically designed to close those “Access Points”!

Zhong Shenxiu named this scroll the “Lockdown Scroll” and it had already been released onto the market with a tentative price set at “ten gold coins each”!

Perhaps readers will find it strange why such a unique and powerful scroll was priced so low. Given its function, it could have sold for “ten diamonds each” and still been instantly snapped up. What exactly was Zhong Shenxiu thinking?

The truth was, Zhong Shenxiu had intentionally set the price so low. His goal this time was not profit, but to mobilize the power of the masses!

When the “Access Points” became rampant, if enough people possessed several of these scrolls, it would exert a powerful force, greatly curbing the appearance of Mite-insects. This was just the initial market price; it could very well drop lower later, perhaps even to “ten silver coins each”!

In addition to the “Lockdown Scroll,” Zhong Shenxiu had also taken the opportunity to invent a potent insecticide. Once this agent was introduced into a Mite-insect’s mouth, it would kill the creature within three seconds! Because this agent was compressed into blocks, its selling price was “five gold coins per block.”

Of course, neither the “Lockdown Scroll” nor the “Insecticide” could cure the root cause, but even so, the moment the two products hit the market, they triggered a massive buying frenzy!

Everyone in the world now recognized the terror of the Mite-insects. To have products available from the “Dark Commerce Guild” that dealt with them, especially at such low prices—only a fool wouldn't rush to buy!

Thus, while other shops stood deserted, the entrance to the “Dark Commerce Guild” was packed with people, constantly clamoring, appearing afraid they wouldn't get any.

Their worry was somewhat excessive. Since Zhong Shenxiu intended to temporarily suppress the rate of Mite-insect appearance with these two products, why would he limit production?

To ordinary people, these two items might seem mysterious and powerful, but to Zhong Shenxiu, they were quite commonplace. Moreover, their production cost was extremely low, totaling less than fifty copper coins for both combined. From this, we can grasp the immense profit margins hidden within the other goods offered by the “Dark Commerce Guild,” and it’s safe to assume that Zhong Shenxiu is currently the wealthiest man in the world!

Ah, exorbitant profits, what exorbitant profits!

These two products were no longer being bought only by individual small vendors; major families had begun placing orders, including the Royal Family and the “Tilari Family”!

Having suffered once under the Mite-insects, the Royal Family and the “Tilari Family” treated money like dirt, frantically pouring funds into these two commodities solely to hoard enough stock for future contingencies!

In the end, the situation developed beyond Zhong Shenxiu’s initial expectation. The sheer profit generated by just these two items surpassed that of any previous product. He hadn't primarily intended for them to make money, yet unexpectedly, they brought unimaginable wealth to the “Dark Commerce Guild”! Ah, perhaps this is what they call an unintentional success.

While these two items were selling like wildfire, another product that Zhong Shenxiu had been researching was finally about to debut.

This product would be different from the previous two; it would offer effective protection against Mite-insect assaults.

※

Obot had been very busy these past few days. His great-grandfather had assigned him a task that was both arduous and relaxed: to visit the “Dark Commerce Guild” every day to snatch up goods! Simultaneously, he was to focus on building a good rapport with Tiya!

One day, he arrived at the entrance of the “Dark Commerce Guild” early. The younger disciples he had brought along, without needing instruction, had already rushed inside the Guild to purchase goods.

Obot strolled slowly towards the entrance. When he was still dozens of meters away from the Guild doors, a graceful figure suddenly walked out.

“Miss Tiya,” Obot hurried to greet her.

However, the graceful figure rolled her eyes, glanced at him without emotion, and stated flatly, “You have the wrong person.”

What? This person was Robin!

Obot felt an indescribable fear toward Robin and was momentarily at a loss for words. Robin paid him no further mind, descending the steps and stopping in a clearing nearby.

“Huh? What is she doing?” Obot suddenly wondered, as he watched Robin take out a very strange object.

What he did not know was that this strange object was the third commodity invented by Zhong Shenxiu!