Back in his dorm, Allen sat at his workbench and took out a transparent container.

Inside was the grayish-black gland he had extracted from the Shadow Demon Spider. It was about the size of an egg, its surface seemingly veiled in a faint, shifting shadow.

The fluid within the gland was the final piece of the puzzle for the Spider Slayer to achieve its conceptual breakthrough.

But before he could use it, he had a tricky problem to solve.

Allen pulled up the project information.

[Project: Spider Slayer (Competition Version), Current Audited Cost: 590 Low-Level Magic Stones]

The rules for the Black Tower New Star Cup were written in black and white, stating clearly that the total cost of a competing Mechanical Body could not exceed one thousand Magic Stones.

This meant he had a budget of only four hundred and ten Magic Stones left for this crucial gland.

A Shadow Demon Spider Gland—a rare material that could grant a Mechanical Body the ability to "cross realms"—was essentially priceless on the trading market. There were buyers, but no sellers.

If one ever appeared on the shelves, forget four hundred—even at eight hundred Magic Stones, it would spark a bidding war among the Alchemy Apprentices who specialized in this field.

Allen thought for a moment, then pulled up a name on his personal terminal: Roy.

After Draven’s promotion to First-level Wizard, this scrawny apprentice, who once couldn’t even form a stable Wizard’s Hand, had become Draven’s agent in the academy, responsible for maintaining the network and assets Draven had left behind.

Allen contacted Roy and had him use Draven’s network to investigate transaction information in the Apprentice Trading Market.

The results came back quickly.

"Mr. Weisren, I found it. The most recent public transaction record for a ’Shadow Demon Spider Gland’ was eight months ago. The closing price was eight hundred and fifty Low-Level Magic Stones," Roy said from the other end of the communication.

"Got it." Allen ended the call, his expression unchanged.

The historical transaction price was eight hundred and fifty. This meant that no matter how he explained it, as long as this item appeared on his Mechanical Body, its material valuation could never be lower than that figure.

Allen fell silent for a moment, deep in thought.

The manipulative tactics from the capital markets of his past life flashed through his mind.

’Market price?’

’When you’re the only seller on the market, you *are* the market price.’

A sole supplier meant absolute pricing power.

What he needed to do wasn’t "prove" this thing was only worth four hundred, but create a "fact."

A real, verifiable, public transaction record.

Familiar plays from his past life’s financial markets came to mind: a left-hand-to-right-hand transaction. Just a bit of price laundering.

Allen contacted Roy again.

"Roy, I need you to do something for me."

"Sir, please give me your orders." Roy’s voice immediately became deferential.

After working together for some time, he had become completely convinced of the capabilities of this ridiculously young "little boss."

"I have a Demon Spider gland here."

Allen looked at the gland before him and said,

"Tomorrow, I’ll have someone take it to the Apprentice Trading Market and list it at the ’Divine Medicine and Materials Shop’—the one Draven often worked with. The listed price will be six hundred Low-Level Magic Stones. I need you to arrange this."

Roy was silent for two seconds on the other end, apparently processing the strangeness of the order.

’List something worth over eight hundred for six hundred?’

But he didn’t ask why. He simply replied, "Understood, sir. The owner of the Divine Medicine and Materials Shop owes Wizard Draven a favor. He’ll cooperate on a small matter like this."

"Excellent."

Allen continued, "After it’s listed, it doesn’t need to actually be sold. It just needs to sit on the shelf long enough for people to see it. Then, you’ll say it’s already been bought."

"I understand." Roy instantly grasped Allen’s intention. "Create the illusion of someone ’getting a steal’ to publicly endorse the material’s value at that price."

"Exactly."

Allen said with approval, "After it’s done, I’ll have Colin retrieve the item completely untouched. Tell the shop owner we’ll pay him fifty Magic Stones as a rental fee for the shelf space."

"Yes, sir."

「The next morning, at the Apprentice Trading Market.」

Colin arrived early, clutching the Alchemy Box that held the Demon Spider gland.

Following Allen’s instructions, he found the small storefront of the "Divine Medicine and Materials Shop."

The shop owner, a middle-aged man with a large white beard, was opening up for the day. Upon seeing Colin, he gave him a knowing smile.

"For your fifty Magic Stones, you’ve made me go against the teachings of my ancestors."

Although Colin didn’t understand the reference, he was deeply struck by it. He then did as the shop owner said and placed the Alchemy Box on the most conspicuous counter in the shop.

A label, already written in elegant script, read:

[Rare Material: Low-Grade Shadow Demon Spider Gland]

[Effect: Can be used to create spatial-attribute potions or a coating for a Mechanical Body, granting the ability to briefly travel through the Shadow Realm.]

Not long after Colin left, apprentices began to trickle into the shop to buy things.

Soon, an apprentice with a keen eye spotted the rare item.

"My god! It’s a Shadow Demon Spider Gland!" an apprentice in the robes of a Witchcraft School exclaimed, immediately drawing the attention of those nearby.

"What? A Shadow Demon Spider? For real?"

"It’s real! Look at that faint glimmer of realm rejection! My research project needs this! I’ve been looking for months!"

"Am I seeing things? A Shadow Demon Spider Gland?"

Another Advanced Apprentice who was selecting materials rubbed his eyes and rushed directly to the counter.

"Shopkeep! I’ll take it!" another quick-reacting apprentice shouted, already reaching for his bag of Magic Stones.

"Don’t push! I saw it first!"

In an instant, the owner’s counter was swarmed by apprentices, packed in so tightly they couldn’t move.

The shop owner, however, put on a look of deep regret and said to everyone, "Sorry, folks. This item has just been reserved by a customer for 600 Magic Stones. They’re coming to pick it up tomorrow."

"What? Reserved by who? I’ll add 200! Sell it to me!" a lavishly dressed apprentice yelled, unwilling to give up.

"Highest bidder gets it, shopkeep!"

The shop owner spread his hands, an expression of helplessness on his face. "This is the first time I’ve ever received a material like this. Who knew it was so valuable? I just sold it without thinking. Ai, what a huge loss."

"But a reservation is a reservation. It really can’t be sold again. This shop values its reputation above all else. The customer is everything. If I go back on my word and cheat people, tell me, how could I stay in business?"

"Shopkeep, you’re a surprisingly good person, but your business sense really sucks."

The apprentices let out a chorus of annoyed sighs and curses, stamping their feet and beating their chests in frustration.

Everyone felt like they had missed out on a million-dollar opportunity, cursing themselves for not arriving five minutes earlier.

In the afternoon, the potion shop owner took the item down, announced it was sold, and left only the price tag behind.

That evening, Colin smoothly retrieved the untouched Alchemy Box from the shop’s back door, along with a "proof of transaction" issued by the shop and stamped with a Magic Seal.

For the entire process, Allen had spent a mere fifty Low-Level Magic Stones on a "listing and display fee."

...

Inside the dorm, Allen looked at the proof of transaction Colin handed him and nodded in satisfaction.

The certificate clearly recorded: [Item: Shadow Demon Spider Gland (Low-Grade) x 1, Transaction Price: 600 Low-Level Magic Stones.]

"Sir, your methods... they’re just... incredible!"

Colin looked at Allen, his eyes filled with adoration. "There are still people on the trading market forums discussing who managed to get such a huge bargain!"

"It’s just the expected reaction."

Allen carefully put the certificate away.

Now, the gland in his hand was, both on the surface and according to the rules, an "ordinary" rare material worth six hundred Magic Stones.

By turning it into a coating and then quoting the cost as if he only used two-thirds of the paint, he would perfectly meet the material cost requirements for the Black Tower New Star Cup.

Allen stood up, walked to his workbench, and his gaze fell once more upon the prototype of the Spider Slayer.

Everything was ready.

Now, it was time to turn theory into reality, to forge this cold, steel spider into a true—and ruthless—killer.