Olympia City, serving as Earth’s hub in the Star Realm, naturally beca the largest gathering place.
From the national military and official institutions to middle-tier conglorates, exploration groups of the Star Realm, down to hunting teams and mutants, all had to distribute through Olympia City.
Every street in Olympia was bustling.
All comrcial activities revolved around one principle, and that was to serve the mutants.
Under the starry night, the fluorescent plants on either side of the streets brightened.
The plants ca in various colors and, along with the light from crystal street lamps, illuminated the passersby dressed in strange costus.
Laughter echoed from the alleyways beside the streets, interspersed with the crisp laughter of won, bawdy jokes, and the scent of alcohol, drifting out into the streets.
In the Star Realm, the nightlife was still an indispensable part.
Mutants moved in groups, so clad in full armor revealing only their eyes, so wearing specially made long robes, with fierce war pets at their sides.
There were also those dressed in casual attire with no defensive function, as if a modern-day person had traveled back to ancient tis, looking quite out of place.
This person was Ji Xinghuo.
Almost every person passing by cast a surprised look at him.
He felt quite awkward inside, as these clothes were normal enough on Earth, but seed rather eccentric in the Star Realm.
In the Star Realm, no matter the occupation, people would wear various kinds of armor to boost their defense power.
The more devoid of close combat ans a mutant was, the more they needed armor.
To go without was foolish.
"Equipnt store!"
Having walked through two blocks in the East Xia District, Ji Xinghuo finally ca upon a large equipnt store.
On his way here, he had actually passed by a few smaller armor shops, but since they were small in scale, the likelihood of being cheated was greater, so he preferred the large chain stores, particularly those well-known, listed companies with solid reputations from Earth.
The three-story tall equipnt store was bustling with custors.
Mutants were coming and going.
Ji Xinghuo followed them inside. A male guide waiting at the entrance saw him and his eyes lit up, rushing to greet him before anyone else.
The other guides regretted being a step too slow.
"Good day, sir. Are you here to purchase equipnt?"
Ji Xinghuo looked at the very enthusiastic guide. The man was about his age and clearly a primary-level mutant, wearing a zealous smile on his face.
He didn’t show any timidity, and with a poker face, he nodded, "Show around."
"Of course, please follow ."
This equipnt supermarket had a very comprehensive selection. Any weapons, armor, consumables, and all that mutants used could be found here, all clearly priced. Focusing on any single category, it might not be as good as those high-end specialty brands, but it was second to none.
Ji Xinghuo had done his howork online before entering the Star Realm.
There were many mutants on various social platforms who had been adventuring in the Star Realm for many years, providing reviews of different equipnt based on their experiences.
Practicality, quality, cost-effectiveness, strengths, and weaknesses, and more, all covered in very detailed videos and articles.
While so bloggers were obviously sponsored, overall, the information was trustworthy.
Ji Xinghuo had his own shopping list.
More than an hour later, the guide followed Ji Xinghuo, pushing a shopping cart filled with over a dozen large and small pieces of weapon equipnt.
Excitent flickered uncontrollably in the guide’s eyes.
The price of the equipnt on that cart had exceeded 600,000 Ya Yuan; it was rare to encounter a custor who spent so straightforwardly and decisively in several months.
He had almost effortlessly achieved three to four days’ worth of sales.
"Mr. Ji, is there anything else you wish to buy?"
"Take to the archery section, I need to buy so arrows," Ji Xinghuo thought for a mont, this should be the last item on his list.
Soon, the two of them reached the archery section.
Ji Xinghuo saw various types of hunting bows on display, mainly composite bows, with a few traditional bows and light bows, next to which was the accessories area, offering any accessory one desired.
He purchased a "magnetic arrow bag" with large capacity, capable of holding up to 150 arrows. Its base featured a magnetic ring to secure the arrowheads, slung diagonally at the waist so that the arrows wouldn’t easily fall out during movent.
The magnetic arrow bag was priced at three thousand Ya Yuan.
He also bought a composite bow maintenance toolkit, coming with two spare bowstrings and two sets of pulleys, which cost over a thousand Ya Yuan more.
Next, it was ti to buy arrows.
In the archery hall back on Earth, Ji Xinghuo had used training arrows with streamlined heads, which were far less effective in killing power and penetration compared to hunting arrowheads.
And there were many kinds of hunting arrowheads, each brand with its own specialty.
Ji Xinghuo took a look around the arrow zone and made up his mind.
He bought the arrowheads, shafts, and fletches separately.
For targets with high protection, he purchased 30 solid armor-piercing arrowheads, pairing them with heavier and thicker shafts to enhance the armor-piercing capability; for targets with low defense, he chose the incredibly sharp "Black Widow" hollow triangular arrowheads to create larger wounds and cause significant blood loss, buying 30 of those too;
He also got 90 willow leaf arrowheads, mainly for hitting regular targets at greater distances.
The shaft materials also varied, in 30 gram, 40 gram, and 50 gram weights, with the heavier ones paired with stronger bows for shooting at closer targets.
The fletchings ca in three or four feathers, spiraled or straight, to control the arrow’s speed and precision.
He could assemble different arrows in advance for various needs.
In ergencies, one could quickly switch arrowheads to assemble more suitable arrows.
The sales associate, according to Ji Xinghuo’s requirents, completed the purchase of a large bundle of arrowheads, shafts, and fletchings, and carefully packed them into the shopping cart.
These arrows cost him over ten thousand Ya Yuan.
"Mr. Ji, are you a Ranger?" the sales associate suddenly asked.
"Yes."
"From the choice of arrows Mr. Ji made, it’s evident that your archery skills must be exceptional, much better than a half-trained Ranger like ," after flattering for a bit, the salesperson continued, "We received a batch of Special Arrows last week in our store, would Mr. Ji be interested?"
Ji Xinghuo had already finished his shopping, but on hearing that the salesperson was also a Ranger, his eyebrows raised inquisitively, "What kind of Special Arrows?"
"Capacitor Arrows."
Ji Xinghuo stopped in his tracks; he had heard of this type of arrow, which was built based on principles of electricity, but the materials were produced from the Star Realm and were quite expensive.
When a Capacitor Arrow hit its target, it would release a high-voltage electric current, combining both traumatic and Electric Shock effects.
They were powerful!
Of course, their price was also outrageous.
If Ji Xinghuo had been a common Ranger, he would not be interested in Capacitor Arrows, but he possessed a Rotating Magnetic Field, which ant he could utilize them with even greater lethal effect!
"Take to see them."
"Right away!"
The salesperson’s eyes sparkled with both shock and delight.
He casually ntioned the Capacitor Arrows to every custor who ca to buy arrows, trying to make a sale, and it seed Ji Xinghuo was genuinely interested in purchasing them.
The two arrived at a VIP room in the mall, and soon after, the sales associate ca back with soone who looked to be the manager, carrying a box in their hands.
"Mr. Ji, these are the Capacitor Arrows."
The manager seamlessly took over the salesperson’s duties, opened the box, and handed a silver-white arrow to Ji Xinghuo.
"Please have a look."
Taking it, Ji Xinghuo felt that the arrow weighed about 45 grams, had a cold touch, and was very tough, probably a tallic material.
The magnetic field of the arrow was very strong, filled with lines of magnetic force that embodied a particular kind of "aesthetics", clearly not ordinary tal.
"The main material of Capacitor Arrows is Yttrium Iron Superconducting Alloy."
"Its internal structure is a variant of a capacitor, with the arrowhead and tail acting as the two poles of the capacitor," the manager explained, "The tail is made of a unique type of ether piezoelectric Crystal Stone from the Star Realm, which generates a high-voltage current when strain-deford, turning the entire arrow into an Electrostatic Field. When shot, it releases all its stored charge upon impact, delivering a high-heat Electric Shock effect."
"Even without triggering an electric shock, the arrow itself has a strong lethal capability."
"If you have an Ability related to electrical currents, you can amplify the electric charge when shooting the arrow, to increase its power."
While the other party was still going on about the details of the Capacitor Arrow, Ji Xinghuo cut to the chase, "How much?"
"12,000 Ya Yuan each."
Ji Xinghuo shook his head subconsciously; the 150 arrows he had just bought in total had only cost a little over ten thousand Ya Yuan, and one Capacitor Arrow was more expensive than all of them combined.
He put the Capacitor Arrow back into the box, "Too expensive."
"Mr. Ji, you know the price of Superconducting Alloys, they are priced by the gram, and Yttrium Iron Superconducting Alloy is one of the rarest Superconductive tals," the manager patiently explained, eager to close the deal.
Superconductive Alloy was one of the most precious resources from the Star Realm, with enormous market value.
For centuries, scientists had been searching for room-temperature Superconductive Materials without success.
Until the Star Gate opened.
The nations of Earth discovered that Superconductive Mines were born in the Star Realm, the extracted minerals refined into various types of Superconductive Materials, most of them natural alloys.
These Superconductive Alloys could be utilized at room temperature and even perform in high-temperature environnts without losing efficiency.
The ergence of Superconductive Alloys significantly accelerated the technological advancent on Earth.
The most common applications included Superconductive Highways, Magnetic Levitation Cars, Vacuum Pipeline Maglev Trains, as well as Superconductive Shield Arrays and Sky Fighters, all of which were powered by Nuclear Fusion energy sources, and profoundly impacted Earth’s developntal trajectory.
To Ji Xinghuo’s knowledge, the output of Yttrium Iron Superconducting Alloy was very low, keeping its price perpetually high.
"If I buy ten, how much discount can you give ?"
Thinking for a few seconds, the manager offered through gritted teeth, "I can go down to ten thousand Ya Yuan at most. It’s the biggest discount I can offer, any lower is not within my authority to decide."
"Okay, package them for ." Ji Xinghuo did not haggle further.
Both the manager and sales associate were visibly excited.
Monts later.
Ji Xinghuo stepped out of the gear store clad in Camouflage Armor, the most expensive equipnt he purchased today—made of Composite Cerasteel and priced at a whopping 480,000 Ya Yuan!
At his waist hung a Flat-headed Goose Wing Knife, priced at 18,000 Ya Yuan, and a survival tactical knife for outdoor use, tagged at 9,000 Ya Yuan.
On his left wrist, he wore a "Star Realm chanical Watch" with 50-hour markers, calibrated to indicate the switching monts of day, star, and night.
In the dual-shoulder backpack, he carried a compact tent, sleeping bag, a first-aid box with seven types of dicines, a repair toolkit for Composite Bows, so compressed biscuits, and a water purifier. Even the backpack itself was quite expensive, costing over a thousand Ya Yuan.
Together with a Magnetic Arrow Bag, 150 regular arrows, and 10 Capacitor Arrows.
Ji Xinghuo’s mall shopping spree resulted in total spending of 780,000 Ya Yuan!
Together with the "Yi Feng" Composite Hunting Bow gifted by Lu Yunhai, the total value of his gear exceeded 800,000 Ya Yuan, now matching that of many seasoned Rangers.
Clad in this attire while walking the streets, he looked quite the norm.
Ji Xinghuo did not return to the inn, but instead, he entered a nearby "Recruitnt Center" to see if he could find a suitable team to join.
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