Chapter 431.4: That's Where The Sky God Fell!

Dismounting from Roshan, Tail approached the stall, looking at the books and scrolls spread across the carpet. It was as if she had discovered a new continent as a look of excitement lit up her face.

Looking up at the stall owner sitting under the tent, Tail asked eagerly, "Sir, do you have any treasure maps for sale?"

"Treasure maps?" The stall owner was taken aback for a moment, not immediately understanding, but soon, his wrinkled face broke into a smile.

Reining in his smile, he coughed lightly, adopting a mysterious expression, and spoke in a lowered voice. "Customer, I shouldn't be saying this, but since we're fated... "

Tail's eyes sparkled. "Since we're fated?"

The stall owner smiled slightly. "Have you heard of Lost Valley?"

If she had, the nonsense he was about to spout wouldn't be necessary.

However, as he expected, this girl was obviously visiting for the first time. Perhaps it was even her first time in the desert, and had never heard of that cursed place.

Tail quickly shook her head, her face full of anticipation, looking at the old man behind the stall. "No! What's there?"

The stall owner's gaze drifted leisurely, pausing to build the suspense before he started speaking again. "Ah, there are many good things there... It's said that the Lost Valley was where the Sky God fell."

"Ohhhhhhhh? Oh, oh, oh! The Sky God?!" Hearing the intimidating title, even Roshan’s eyes were sparkling.

Glancing at the white bear who could talk, the stall owner paused for a moment before he continued the story. "Yes, that was a very long time ago. The gods came at midnight. The dark sky lit up like it was the middle of the day and the once united gods fought fiercely in the realm of mortals, turning on each other. Eventually, the Sky God was slain. The scepter slipping from his hands destroyed the blessings of the Spirit of the Desert, turning what was once an oasis into a cursed wasteland..."

Seeing the girl in front of him listening with shining eyes, the stall owner knew his opportunity had come, so he lowered his voice and threw out the bait. "... These are public rumors, but few people know what happened after that war ended,"

"What happened?!" Tail gulped, her face full of anticipation.

The stall owner lowered his gaze slightly. "The followers of the Sky God found his body and built a temple over it. Two hundred years have passed and his servants have followed him, disappearing into the endless sands... However, it's said that the Sky God's armor is still there, enshrined in the buried temple!"

Tail clenched her fists in excitement.

A hidden quest!

Giao!

"So you're saying, if we find that temple, we can find the Sky God's armor?"

"Exactly." The stall owner shot her a look of approval, and as a reward, he picked up an aged scroll from the stall. "I happen to have a treasure map here. I was planning to hire a few mercenaries to check it out, but as you can see... Business here is so busy, I simply can't find the time to leave. I've been waiting until my hair is almost white. If you're interested, I can sell it to you."

Tail yelled instantly, "How much?!"

The stall owner pondered for a moment before speaking again. "Hmm... Let me think, after all, I bought it from another traveler, and I paid him 10,000 Camel Coins. Since we're fated, I'll sell it to you for the same price."

"10,000 Camel Coins?" Tail's face sank in disappointment, "

Ugh

... I don't have that much."

When she had rescued that man named Buma, she had recovered some coins embossed with camels from the marauders they had casually dealt with.

Buma had told her that those small gold coins were Camel Coins, with small denominations of 1 and large denominations of 10.

However, she only had a small bag of those gold coins. Although she hadn't counted them carefully, they couldn't possibly add up to 10,000.

The stall owner, sensing that she had probably just arrived and hadn't had time to exchange local currency, quickly offered, "Dinars then? Dinars are fine! 10,000 will do! Or you can do CR, but I can't give you a good price for that. How about 30,000 or 40,000 CR?”

Tail shook her head like a rattle drum. "Nope I don’t have any."

The stall owner's expression showed slight disappointment.

He had thought this young lady looked decent. Although a bit dusty and disheveled, her complexion was clearly better than that of most travelers. She didn’t just raise an exotic beast as a pet but also had a truck. She looked like a rich young lady who had fled from Oasis No.9. As it turned out, he couldn’t even squeeze a bit of profit from her.

Shame...

However, holding the thought that every little bit helps, he still put on a performance, making a hesitant expression, and said with pained reluctance, "Alright then, alright, since we're fated, I'll sell it to you for 6,000 Dinars... Think it over, for the price of just 6 strong slaves, you can buy this treasure map. If you find the Sky God's armor, it might even help you rebuild your family!"

"Oh! Rebuilding my family!" Tail's eyes brightened even more, then she looked pitifully at Sisi who was waiting for her in the driver's seat.

"Sisi..."

Seeing that pitiful expression, Sisi sighed helplessly, "Alright, Tail, we should head to the hotel now. This guy clearly thinks you’re a fool and is trying to scam your money."

Tail complained, "But what if it's a hidden quest? A treasure map bought in a foreign town market, actually hiding a shocking secret..."

Seeing her eager expression, Sisi sighed, pulled up the handbrake, pulled out the car keys, and jumped down from the driver's seat.

The stall owner looked at the woman in front of him with a wary expression.

His instincts told him the newcomer wasn't as easy to fool as the last.

Sisi counted her money pouch, looked at the stall owner, and said, "I happen to have a bag of Camel Coins. We have 90 or so. If you're interested we'll buy it, if not, we're off."

"90 Camel Coins?! You might as well ask me to give it to you for free!" The stall owner's eyes widened, unable to accept the price difference. Eventually, he said through gritted teeth, "... 3,000 dinars, that's my bottom line!"

Hearing her initial offer cut in half, Tail was shocked. "Eh?! Wasn't the discount for Tail because we're fated?"

"Uh..." The stall owner smiled awkwardly, looked away, and didn't dare meet those eyes.

Sisi also smiled faintly. "Maybe the stall owner feels he's more fated with me."

The stall owner laughed sheepishly, scratching the back of his head, "Beautiful miss, you're right! How about 2,500? This really can't be cheaper! I'd rather hire a few mercenaries and look for it myself, "

"80." Sisi dug a few coins out of her money pouch, stuffed them in her pocket, casually tossed the money pouch on the stall, and picked up a book. "Plus this as a gift."

[Tzobar Mountains: An Oasis Beneath The Sands]

Looking at the name of the book, it should help her understand the situation in this area.

The old man named Buma they met on the road had helped them out of goodwill, but even though they had saved his life, she didn't fully trust him.

They were on the wasteland, not a fairy tale.

The stall owner's face turned ashen and he ground his teeth.

Seeing his pained expression, Tail suddenly felt a bit guilty. She tugged gently at Sisi's sleeve, and whispered. "Sisi, let's go... I suddenly don't want it anymore."

Forcing others to do something unwilling always made her feel a bit uncomfortable.

Sisi smiled and didn't insist. "Oh, then let's do as Tail says."

With that, she put down the book she was holding and turned to leave.

Just at that moment, the stall owner, whose face was ashen a second ago, suddenly jumped up like a squirrel whose tail had been stepped on. He grabbed the money pouch in Sisi’s hands.

"80! Fine, 80 it is! It's a deal! That scroll and that book are yours now!"

"Really?!" Tail grabbed the map with a look of excitement.

Predicting his reaction, Sisi smiled faintly, picked up the book and stuffed it into her bosom. "Thanks."

The truck started up again.

Watching the truck disappear at the end of the street and the girl leading the bear, the stall owner spat, cursing under his breath.

Weighing the money pouch in his hand, his wrinkled face showed a trace of worry.

Only 80 coins earned from one transaction.

He didn’t know how long he would need before he could sell anything else. If he had known, he would have given in earlier...