Rebirth of the Thief Who Roamed The World Chapter 308-309

Chapter 308 – Super Trade Channel

「Of course. Or do you really think I’m that rich?」Nie Yan chuckled. No merchant could become successful without a bit of cunning. Both Holy Empire and Sapphire Shrine would inevitably fall under his control. Borrowing the name of the Dragonsoar Financial Group simply made the pill easier for them to swallow. Truthfully, it didn’t matter whether the investment came from Asskickers United or the Dragonsoar Financial Group. A guild without a powerful backer could only last so long. With Sleepy Fox and Fa Lan’s financial abilities, it was only a matter of time before their members would move on to greener pastures. Just having a powerful ally wasn’t enough to keep a guild afloat.

Many financial groups recognized the current climate in Calore. Asskickers United held tremendous sway over the decision making of both Holy Empire and Sapphire Shrine. Even if you did invest in these two guilds, their fates were subject to the whims of an outside party. There would be no way to safeguard your interests. Given the situation, who would be willing to throw in their money just to watch it float away?

Holy Empire and Sapphire Shrine were stuck in an awkward predicament.

Fa Lan couldn’t help but feel dejected after thinking to this point. But what other choice did he have? It wasn’t like he was swimming in a sea of options. So what if Asskickers United acquired Sapphire Shrine? All it would do was solidify their alliance!

Sleepy Fox also clearly understood his current position. As a professional player, his prime focus lay in securing the best deal. By allowing Asskickers United to invest in Holy Empire, it would remove the final barriers between them. And with him still owning 40% of the guild, he would continue to receive benefits well into the future.

Asskickers United would surely also have to depend on Holy Empire and Sapphire Shrine at times. When the several of them joined forces, they didn’t lose out in the slightest to Bloodlust Blades, Divine Protectors, and Alliance of Mages.

「What’s their offer?」Fa Lan asked. Sapphire Shrine and Holy Empire currently had four strongholds between them. This was their leverage!

Finances were tight for both Sapphire Shrine and Holy Empire. Developing their strongholds required tens of thousands of gold. Currently, the vast majority of their income came from the contributions of guild members. This amounted to roughly 2,000 gold a day, which wasn’t anywhere near enough to meet their demands. They would only have a reliable source of income after their strongholds were developed. This is what led to the current situation where they were struggling to make ends meet. If they ran out of capital mid-way through, what awaited them was bankruptcy. They attempted to find funding through the Credit Exchange before, but practically all of the gold on the market had been snatched up by the large financial groups. There was nothing left for them!

Nie Yan was also aware of their situation. He carefully thought things over, only to find that he had been too kind in how he dealt with these matters. When Holy Empire and Sapphire Shrine allied with Asskickers United, he didn’t intefere with their plans out of principle. But in reality, he should’ve put them firmly under his grasp from the start. This would’ve been beneficial for both sides.

Sapphire Shrine and Holy Empire brought in several thousand gold a day at most. All they could do was tighten their belts and hope their days of hardship would quickly come to pass. They weren’t like Nie Yan, who had mountains of gold flowing in from his various properties like the Starry Night Potion Shop, along with other sources of income.

「We’ll invest 150,000 gold into your guilds over two months spread out across 20 installments, with the first installment being 30,000 gold for each guild. It will be delivered immediately after signing the contract. Naturally, all expenditures will be recorded. We’ll appoint a supervisor to both your guilds to handle all administrative affairs related to Asskickers United and the Dragonsoar Financial Group. We’ll also subsidize the costs of your contracted members, up to 5,000 credits per person with a quota of 500 players for each guild. Control over the development of the real-world business districts in your strongholds will be handed over to Asskickers United. Finally, we’ll continue to support you financially after the initial investment by paying out a bonus of 100,000 gold for every additional stronghold you capture,」Nie Yan replied. 150,000 gold was a monumental sum to both Holy Empire and Sapphire Shrine. It was like a bright light at the end of a dark tunnel.

Both Sleepy Fox and Fa Lan were pleasantly surprised by Nie Yan’s generous terms, especially the subsidy for their contracted players. This was timely assistance for Holy Empire and Sapphire Shrine. Like this, they could secure the loyalty and devotion of their elites.

The vast majority of players joined Conviction with the aspiration of making a living out of it. If Holy Empire and Sapphire Shrine were slow on providing them with benefits, and there were no other gains for being in the guild, players would seek their fortune elsewhere. This held true not just in the game but also in reality. With a monthly salary of 5,000 credits, who in their right mind would leave?

Nie Yan wouldn’t lose out either. The Dragonsoar Financial Group highly valued every real-world business district. For each one he acquired, they would pay him a tremendous sum. He would make a killing selling four real-world business districts to them.

Each group got what they wanted out of this deal. Nie Yan obtained control over Holy Empire and Sapphire Shrine. The Dragonsoar Financial Group obtained four real-world business districts. Holy Empire and Sapphire Shrine obtained the investments they so desperately needed, and their players received a significant boost in salary. And last but not least, Fa Lan and Sleepy Fox’s shares would rise in value, which meant they would net a larger profit. Everyone was happy.

Nie Yan had settled the matter of face. On the surface, it looked like Holy Empire and Sapphire Shrine simply received the investment of the Dragonsoar Financial Group instead of being swallowed up by Asskickers United.

Holy Empire and Sapphire Shrine would have an incredibly difficult time developing without an investor. On top of this, their real world business districts would be rotting away without buyers. Wanting to support a guild’s expenditures with just the daily taxes from their strongholds was wishful thinking.

「I agree to these terms, but I want to add in another clause. Sapphire Shrine will remain independent. It won’t be forced to merge with Asskickers United,」Fa Lan said. Even though he sold 60% of the guild’s shares to ensure its prosperity, he wasn’t quite willing to see the name disappear.

「No problem. But if war breaks out, I hope Sapphire Shrine will have Asskickers United’s back.」

「Naturally, so long as it doesn’t harm our interests,」Fa Lan agreed.

「Then I guess we’re more or less done. All that’s left to do is iron out the finer details. Sleepy Fox, what are your thoughts?」Nie Yan asked. The business world was cutthroat. Everyone only looked out for their own interests as they tried to navigate this complex landscape. Things that weighed you down like friendship had no place here.

「I’m fine either way. I’m an organization owner, after all. I only established Holy Empire to secure the livelihoods of the people under me. It doesn’t matter who we receive an investment from. As long as my brothers can comfortably put food on their tables, I’m satisfied,」Sleepy Fox replied. He was quite open minded about the offer. In fact, Nie Yan mentioning the subsidy for his contracted players was what sealed the deal. He didn’t care where the money came from, only that his brothers could put food on the table.

「Well, I suppose that settles it. I’ll have Watchful Snail draft up the contracts, then send it over for you guys too look at. I hope we can continue to get along for a long time to come,」Nie Yan said. He began his preparations for the signing of the contracts, relaying everything back to the guild headquarters.

When Sleepy Fox and Fa Lan signed the contract, Sapphire Shrine and Holy Empire would truly be bound to Asskickers United. Their alliance was previously shaky at best, with very few interlinked interests. But now, these three guilds were inseparable allies, becoming an unprecedented powerhouse. Even conquering the entire Viridian Empire wouldn’t be out of the realm of possibilities.

Nie Yan chatted a bit more with Fa Lan and Sleepy Fox about the particulars of the buyout, then hung up. This time, he had come out with a considerable harvest.

…

Nie Yan and his group continued to travel deeper into the Crystal Caverns. For the time being, they didn’t require him to personally take action. These members easily dispatched the monsters they came across.

Nie Yan withdrew to the back of the group, his attention on another matter of importance. He was starting a new chat server, different from the Union of Assassins but similarly an amazing money-maker. Its foundation was based in auction houses, a Super Trade Channel!

He first made a directory with various filters which included: chest armour, gloves, shoulder guards, weapons, crafting materials, and so on. Numerous pages were created, each filled with various items that showed a detailed description and a price. It aggregated all the data from the three auction houses he owned in Calore. Anything listed there would show up in this channel, and anything sold would automatically disappear.

The system’s amazing computing ability was seemingly limitless!

Nie Yan planned to open this chat server to the public. Players could freely enter and browse through a wide selection of items. If something caught their eye, they could simply hit purchase and however much it cost would be deducted from their account. After which the staff in the auction house would mail the item to the buyer’s personal storage to complete the transaction.

The chat server allowed players to shop while out levelling in the wilderness. Anything they purchased would be waiting for them in their personal storage when they returned to the city. This was extremely convenient. With the help of this trade channel, Nie Yan could exponentially increase the amount of sales in his auction houses. At the same time, he also got to collect an additional service charge.

The Super Trade Channel would never gain the same market dominance as the Union of Assassins. But with the support of the three largest auction houses in Calore, he believed no other auction house could match his catalogue. As the channel gained recognition among the player base, it would increase the number of transactions made by his auction houses, which in turn would encourage more players to list their items up for sale in them, forming a virtuous cycle. From then on, the gold would keep pouring in from all sides!

Chapter 309 – Great Thief

Setting up the Super Trade Channel was actually pretty easy. Aggregating all the data from the auction houses was no problem. The other steps were just as simple. Nie Yan hid his name to maintain anonymity, while at the top of the announcement board he wrote a simple welcome message: For convenient trading between players. In addition, he specified the origin of goods—all came from the three auction houses in Calore. That way, the channel also served as a form of advertisement. Of course, goods from the Starry Night Potion Shop would be sold here too.

「What’s this?」Guo Huai asked in a daze after Nie Yan invited him to the channel.

「A channel for trading,」Nie Yan replied, then explained his plans for the Super Trade Channel.

Guo Huai’s eyes lit up. Nie Yan’s idea for a Super Trade Channel was most certainly doable, its potential endless. It was similar to online shopping in the sense that players could browse for goods to purchase without ever needing to return to the city. This would have a significant effect on the entire game. Advertising the trading channel wasn’t anything difficult either, a few server announcements would suffice.

「Hire some staff to make the deliveries, and also get a supervisor,」Nie Yan instructed. Since he lacked the time to manage the Super Trade Channel himself, he could only delegate the job.

「Got it, I’ll put Zhao Li in charge. I’ll assign him and his staff to help you manage the Super Trade Channel,」Guo Huai said. Both he and Hao Cheng were supervising an overwhelming amount of other work, leaving only Zhao Li available.

「Then it’s decided. Zhao Li will be responsible for this,」Nie Yan nodded.

「This is a great idea! If this channel starts gaining traction early on, it’ll have enormous potential!」Zhao Li exclaimed.「Should we also contact the owners of other auction houses and pull them into this channel? We could even ask for an entrance fee and a fixed commission for each successful sale.」

「Sharp thinking! Keep working on it and get back to me in a bit.」Nie Yan smiled. Zhao Li has a rather bright mind.

「What’s the channel called?」Zhao Li asked.

「The Super Trade Channel. It’s easy to remember and rolls nicely off the tongue.」

「That works,」Zhao Li nodded.

By the time Nie Yan left the call, Zhao Li had started on perfecting the trading system in the channel. On the other end, Guo Huai had also begun working on the logistics of the delivery staff, such as their wages.

Back in the Crystal Caverns, Nie Yan followed behind the group as they cleared the mobs up ahead. After an hour or so, they suddenly received several server announcements—advertisements from Guo Huai which provided a basic introduction to the Super Trade Channel. They included basic information such as its purpose, the convenience of purchasing items anytime and anywhere, and so on.

The Super Trade Channel immediately attracted a tidal wave of attention once the announcements were out. Before long, Nie Yan’s traffic charts exploded as players flooded into the channel. To their astonishment, they discovered that the Super Trade Channel was actually connected to the three biggest auction houses in Calore! Goods were well stocked, and the prices were nearly identical to the auction houses’!

Players started testing out the system, purchasing some items they needed. After just several minutes, they received a system announcement informing them that the item they purchased had been deposited into their personal storage.

The first transaction was completed successfully. The second transaction was completed successfully. The third transaction… In a mad frenzy, the players in the Super Trade Channel began purchasing everything they wanted. Traffic in the channel soared in a flash from thousands to tens of thousands, the number of sales increasing accordingly.

The hysteria in the Super Trade Channel rid Nie Yan of the last bits of doubt in his mind. His experiment was successful: the profitability of the Super Trade Channel vastly outperformed the Union of Assassins. Then again, the Union of Assassins only involved a small subsection of the playerbase, while the Super Trade Channel was relevant to every player. Online shopping was something everyone enjoyed, so they naturally flocked to the Super Trade Channel to purchase a large variety of goods. This much was apparent from the soaring traffic numbers.

Once players became completely accustomed to navigating, browsing, and purchasing items, the number of sales per day would grow beyond imagination. Even charging a miniscule commission for each transaction would accumulate to a vast sum.

With this new stream of income, Nie Yan could attract players from all over and bring more and more experts into Asskickers United. Most guilds warred for resources. But with a booming treasury, who could compete with him?

Although other auction houses might also start their own variation of a trade channel, the Super Trade Channel would always remain at the forefront since it was the first to appear.

With it fully operational, funding the salaries of the delivery staff would pose no problem.

The Super Trade Channel had processed several hundred items in a matter of minutes, and the transaction volume just continued rising exponentially. It was truly an astonishing speed.

Even Nie Yan hadn’t expected results to bloom so quickly. It seemed that the system announcement had quite the effect. But then again, after investing 2,000 gold, it was only natural there would be some sort of result. They could continue investing more into advertisements to spread the word when the Super Trade Channel became even more profitable, allowing it to become the go-to place for all shopping players.

Nie Yan instructed Zhao Li to make sure no issues occurred in the delivery process, and also ran over each segment of the system in detail with him.

The Super Trade Channel would become one of his largest sources of income, so of course he had to be careful with it.

After settling everything, Nie Yan closed out of the voice chat. Smoke Stub, Bladelight, and the others turned their gazes toward him.

“Are you behind this Super Trade Channel?” Smoke Stub asked. They had been killing mobs for just a short while, yet Nie Yan had already started another huge commotion. This was quite impressive.

“Yep,” Nie Yan replied with a light smile. “How is it? Any trouble so far?”

The Super Trade Channel was a revolutionary idea that would change the way the game was played. It gave way to an entirely new way of trading.

“Not bad,” Smoke Stub answered. “I picked up a few consumables just now. It’s pretty convenient. I received them just a few minutes after purchasing them.” The Super Trade Channel was welcomed by Smoke Stub with open arms, and one could imagine that other players felt the same. In fact, it would be strange if this were not the case.

In less than 10 minutes, Nie Yan’s income had reached an astounding 20,000 gold, all of which was pure profit! He was looking forward to seeing how much the Super Trade Channel would grow in the future.

A while later, Guo Huai finished drafting up the contracts for the buyout of Holy Empire and Sapphire Shrine. Nie Yan, Sleepy Fox, and Fa Lan verified the terms before signing it. After which Nie Yan ordered Guo Huai and Bird to deposit the first 30,000 gold installment into their guild treasuries.

From now on, Nie Yan would be the largest shareholder in Sapphire Shrine and Holy Empire. The future development of this alliance was just around the corner.

Sleepy Fox and Fa Lan went back to their guild headquarters to announce the news to their members. A guild obtaining an investor was something worthy of celebration. It signified the start of a period of rapid growth!

Nie Yan and the others pressed forwards into the Crystal Caverns. There were seven Level 50 Elite Crystalline Molemen in an opening up ahead. It would already be an impressive feat if they could deal with two or three of these elites at once, to say nothing of all of them.

This was the exact point where the expedition team of Bloodlust Blades wiped.

These Elite Crystalline Molemen completely blocked off their path.

“What should we do?” Everyone was brainstorming for ways of dealing with the group of monsters barring their way.

Nie Yan recalled the information gathered on the forums regarding Crystalline Molemen, then said, “I’ll lure five of them away. You guys take care of the other two.”

“Big Bro, let me join in,” Sun said.

“Do you want us to help too?” One Strike Vow chimed in.

“No need. More people will just complicate things. Who here has Shadow Arrow?” Nie Yan looked over the group. Shadow Arrow was a rather special skill that didn’t generate much aggro.

“I do,” Natural Fiend said.

“Good, that makes things a lot easier. I’ll go lure the mobs. When I have their attention, use Shadow Arrow to split the aggro,” Nie Yan said and set up the entire mobbing process.

Crystalline Molemen moved rather slowly. So long as he wasn’t cornered, there would be no problem. But to do this in the confines of the Crystal Caverns posed a bit of a challenge.

Bladelight and the rest of the group finished up preparations, while Nie Yan entered stealth and used Transcendent Insight to investigate the Crystalline Molemen

Crystalline Moleman (Elite): Level 50

Health 120,000/120,000

These Crystalline Molemen were roughly three meters tall, not much larger than the typical Elite. Covering their bodies were crystalline lumps that protruded out like stakes. In combination with the two-meter long thick pikes they wielded, these Molemen appeared quite fearsome.

It was a mystery what items would drop from killing a Level 50 Elite.

At Level 50, players could attempt a Class Advancement Quest. Their stats would rise exponentially if they successfully completed the quest. To accommodate for this sudden increase of the average player’s strength, the mobs also received a buff at Level 50. This led to Level 50 becoming somewhat of a special number in the minds of the players.

Nie Yan glanced at his current level, 31. After dealing with these Elites, he would still have to keep on working on his level. After reaching Level 50, he could undertake the Class Advancement Quest for a Great Thief; the reward for completing this quest was something he already looked forward to.

Typically, one or two in every one hundred Level 50 Thieves that attempted the Great Thief’s Class Advancement Quest would succeed. In the previous timeline, Nie Yan had only done so when he was nearly Level 70.