"Don't worry, Manager. I know running a shop alone is exhausting work. I’ll send men to transport the gear back myself," Qin Ming nodded slightly, not dwelling on the logistics of the delivery.

  Instead, he shifted the topic. "However, as you know, the Cloud Mist City treasury is stretched thin due to the preparations for the Beast Tide. Therefore, I was hoping you could offer us a discount."

  "Of course, I’m not pressuring you. I only hope that, as a fellow resident of Cloud Mist City, you would be willing to contribute your part to its protection."

  Qin Ming’s words were tactful, but the subtext was clear: he was using moral high ground to fish for a lower price. Those in the Imperial court always spoke in circles, and by those standards, Qin Ming was actually being quite blunt.

  "City Lord Qin, I certainly want to do my part," Kael said in a measured tone.

  This wasn't a lie. After all, the System had issued a quest specifically to help the city survive the crisis. The problem was that the System had only given him the quest—it hadn't given him any authority to lower prices.

  Qin Ming felt a glimmer of hope at Kael’s response. With the city's current funds, equipping the City Guard with standard gear was a stretch, but doable. The problem was that the gear in Kael’s shop was anything but standard. Both the price and the quality were unprecedentedly high. As much as he wanted his men fully armored, the treasury simply wouldn't allow it.

  If the Empire had allocated a military budget, Qin Ming wouldn't have hesitated for a second to buy out the whole shop.

  "However," Kael continued with a sharp turn, "this is a small business, and I truly cannot afford to offer a discount."

  Kael shut him down instantly. If he gave a discount, he’d have to sell himself just to pay the System back for the difference.

  "Sigh. I know it’s not easy for you, Manager, but the treasury simply cannot produce this many Spirit Crystals," Qin Ming said, falling back on the oldest trick in business: playing the victim. Regardless of the actual state of the vaults, he had to claim poverty first. "You must understand, five hundred sets of equipment is no small sum."

  "I am aware. But as for the discount—you don't need to plead poverty, City Lord. I really won't give one," Kael said, being completely transparent.

  Five hundred sets—even if each consisted of just one weapon and one piece of armor—would cost 200,000 Spirit Crystals. Throw in pills for every man, and the price would skyrocket. More importantly, "armor" wasn't just one item; it included chest plates, bracers, boots, and capes. Even a 5% discount would bankrupt Kael, as the difference would be docked directly from his personal share.

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  "However, I have another proposal, if you're interested," Kael said, looking seriously at Qin Ming. Meanwhile, he was frantically interrogating the System in his mind.

  System, do the shop's buildings belong to me as the Manager?

  [System: Theoretically, yes.]

  So the Trial Room is completely under my control? Kael asked. He prided himself on his ability to find loopholes in the System’s logic.

  [System: Correct. The Trial Room is a facility provided by the System for the Manager to increase his strength. It can be opened to outsiders, but it requires Spirit Crystals to fuel it.]

  The System seemed to know exactly what Kael was thinking and answered directly.

  How much will it cost? This was Kael's biggest concern. If it was too expensive, the plan would fail.

  [System: Brave-rank Trial Space: 1 Spirit Crystal per hour. Class-rank Trial Space: 10 Spirit Crystals per hour.]

  Kael breathed a silent sigh of relief. It was based on duration, not attempts.

  For Kael, the Trial Room froze time during his advancement quests—a perk provided by the System. For outsiders, time would flow normally. A standard Brave-rank trial didn't involve fighting a literal demi-god; usually, a result was reached within a few hours. Charging by the hour was the most cost-effective way to do this.

  Seeing Kael’s serious expression, Qin Ming sighed and cupped his hands. "I am all ears."

  "I assume many soldiers in your Guard have reached Level 20, but are stuck there because they lack Trial Crystals to advance?" Kael was always direct.

  "Indeed. Even among the elites I selected, many are hit by that bottleneck," Qin Ming said, his expression turning solemn.

  "In that case, I’ll be blunt: my shop has a way to open a Brave-rank Trial Space, allowing your soldiers to obtain their Brave-rank Sigils."

  "But the cost of opening it is significant. Therefore, I offer this to you as your 'discount,'" Kael said firmly.

  Qin Ming froze. He stammered, "Manager... I know Trial Crystals are incredibly rare and expensive. Using that as a discount... it’s far too valuable!"

  In Qin Ming’s worldview—and the worldview of everyone in this world—Trial Spaces could only be opened by the consumption of a rare Trial Crystal. This was why he misunderstood Kael’s words.

  "No, City Lord, you misunderstand. When I say the cost is significant, I am not talking about a Trial Crystal," Kael said after a pause, realizing the confusion. He decided to explain the truth in a way Qin Ming could grasp.

  "Ma... Manager, what did you say?! Are you telling me you can open a Trial Space using a Magic Array Disk?!" Qin Ming shouted, his shock overriding his composure.

  Even with his vast experience, he couldn't stay calm. Opening a Trial Space with a man-made array was fundamentally impossible. A Trial Space was a realm acknowledged by the laws of heaven and earth for advancement. Passing it to receive a Sigil was the immutable law of the world.

  Throughout history, countless legendary mages and alchemists had tried to create artificial Trial Spaces, and all had failed.

  And now, what was he hearing? This little shop could open one at will? Even if it was "only" for Brave-rank, it was enough to trigger a global upheaval.

  "No... it’s impossible. Absolutely impossible. Manager, please don't joke about such things. Let's get back to discussing business," Qin Ming said, a stiff, forced smile on his face.