Since he only needed one sale, and he needed 38 more coins to buy an egg from the shop, Lin Fang wrote 7600.
A blinding flash of light filled the screen for a moment before a notification appeared.
*Ding!
[7600 Credits have been exchanged for 38 coins]
At the same time, his phone buzzed. He lifted it to see the message from the bank that 7600 credits had been deducted from the account. Where that money was transferred, or how it was deducted, nothing was mentioned in the message, but one thing became clear for Lin Fang. Somehow, the system had access to his bank accounts, and not just his own body functions.
But then again, Lin Fang couldn't care less about that anyway. His focus was on making the sale.
He went back to the Character Interface and scrolled down, clicking on Summoner's Shop.
Two products are visible.
[Panda King egg] [Growth potion]
The former costs 100 coins while the latter costs 500 coins.
Lin Fang clicked on the former.
*Ding!
[100 coins were deducted]
[A Panda King egg has been purchased. Please select the element.]
[Fire] [Water] [Thunder] [Earth] [Shadow] [Light]
"Hmm... an element, huh..." Lin Fang grabbed his chin, falling into thought.
He expected the system to have given him a choice because it is a beginner's gift. But, seeing that he can pick any type of Panda King to sell, Lin Fang felt like slapping his forehead, realizing how foolish he was, trying to get a second monster.
"Hmm... anyway, which one should I pick for the sale?"
When he chose an element for Po, he chose light because he needed a healing tank. But not everyone would want that.
"The ones who buy monster eggs from online shopping would be either youngsters in college or those in their 30s who were too busy to go out."
Lin Fang couldn't help but fall into a dilemma.
The youngsters would be bold and likely want an aggressive type of Panda, meaning a Fire/Thunder variant, while the older ones would play it safe like the Light/Earth variant.
After thinking about it, Lin Fang clicked on Light in the end, as college kids mostly use their parents' money.
[A luminous panda egg has been sent to the inventory]
"Okay, good."
Lin Fang nodded with a smile.
He went back to his laptop, opened his shop dashboard: Fang Fang Pets.
No active products.
No followers.
No store badge.
No sales.
Everything is a flat line at the moment.
He clicked Add New Product.
As soon as he did that, a system prompt, on a holographic screen, appeared before his eyes instead.
*Ding!
[Please select the new product you wish to sell through Fang Fang Pets]
He clicked on the inventory. From there, he selected the lone shining treasure of his store:
Item: Luminous Panda King Egg
Grade: Legendary
Max Level: 50 (King Tier Potential)
Attribute: Light
Hatch Time: Instant upon bonding
Description: A rare, light-element panda species with natural healing affinity. Ideal for defense-heavy builds and support roles. Limited hatch availability.
*Ding!
[The product has been selected. Please type the Price.]
"This is a tank/healer type monster with King Tier potential.. In terms of store earnings, the production costs are like 10,000 credits, and regarding other earnings, it's 20,000 credits. So, normally, I should sell this for 30 to 40,000 credits," he muttered, "but I'm not trying to be rich yet. I just need to store earnings swiftly with a bit of profit."
He entered:
Price: 15,000 Credits
With a final breath, he clicked Publish.
*
Somewhere far away, deep in the towering skyline of Peking, the capital city of Northern Yan, a luxury apartment complex hovered in the sky.
Inside, a young man in a loose robe lounged on a massage bed with a holographic screen floating in front of him.
He scrolled lazily through NovaMart, the pet supplies section. His golden-brown eyes narrowed as he swiped.
"Boring… boring… overpriced trash… fake brands…"
A lazy yawn escaped him as he scrolled again, and then his thumb paused.
Luminous Panda Egg – 15,000 Credits
Potential: King Tier.
Seller: Fang Fang Pets
New Listing – 32 mins ago
He blinked. "Huh?"
He tapped the listing. The product shimmered in the interface, the soft glow of a Light-element aura rotating behind the egg's image.
"Luminous Panda?" he murmured, suddenly alert. "I know Pandas, but aren't they basically Earth element in nature? I never heard of a light-element Panda before. And since when did a Panda have a King Tier potential? They are at best Commander Tier. Must be a variant…"
He clicked the seller's name.
Fang Fang Pets
No badge. No reviews. No description.
Registered 33 minutes ago.
"Is this a scam?" He scratched his head, uncertain. The price was suspicious, too.
It was too low.
"Maybe stolen?" he mused. "No… no one posts stolen goods here. NovaMart has AI flaggers. They'll get you locked down before you even breathe."
His thumb hovered over the "Buy Now" button.
There was one thing that pushed him past the hesitation:
COD (Credit on Delivery) – Available (+100 credit Free)
Drone Delivery – Available within the country. (+500 Credit Fee)
"Worst case, I lose 500 credits," he muttered. "Not even enough to pay my bathwater bill."
With a lazy smile, he tapped Purchase and selected his address.
Order Confirmed. Drone in queue.
Far away, back in Lin Fang's residence, a soft ding chimed inside his head as he was in the shower.
*Ding!
[Order Received — Luminous Panda Egg Sold]
Lin Fang froze mid-shampoo. "Wait… what?!"
He fumbled to rinse the soap off his face and scrambled out of the shower like a soldier answering a war horn.
Barefoot and dripping, he dashed across the room, grabbed a towel, and swung into his desk chair with a wet splat.
He logged into his NovaMart seller dashboard.
Buyer: Anonymous (COD)
He stared for a moment. "Someone actually bought it? It hasn't even been an hour."
He wiped his face dry with the towel and immediately switched tabs. The money hadn't yet reached him, of course, not until delivery was confirmed, but the order processing window had opened.
Lin Fang took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, then placed the arm-sized black/white egg into a normal cardboard box and sealed it with normal black tape.
Then selected on the dashboard: [Ready to Ship > Send to Fulfillment Center #0482]
Since he had no physical storefront and had listed himself as a Cloud Seller, it would route through NovaMart's automated fulfillment center, which would handle the packaging, security, verification, and drone dispatch. He wouldn't have to do anything.
With everything set, Lin Fang sighed and sat back, waiting for the money to drop into his bank account.
Later that Evening – Capital City
The sky was red with dusk as the highrises of the capital shimmered in amber light. On the 84th floor of a luxurious condo, the young man from earlier, with tousled hair, fair skin, and a lean athletic frame, was immersed in battle. Not the real battle, but a virtual battle. In other words, he was playing a game.
"Summon: Flame Chameleon. Tactical flank, right now!"
A holographic battlefield surged with light as his virtual summon darted forward.
But then…
Ding-dong.
The door alert blinked red.
The man sighed and hit Pause, stepping away from the console.
"Must be the delivery."
Shang Wei approached the door, where a compact delivery drone hovered mid-air, blinking a holographic interface on its screen.
Order Delivery – Fang Fang Pets (COD) Fee for package opening already paid: 500 credits. Note: No Returns Permitted After Accept. Would you like to accept the delivery?
There was a Yes and a No.
The drone had scanned him earlier via facial recognition. His order details were already verified.
He didn't click the button. Instead, he tapped on the button on top of the crate.
The crate hissed open with a soft click, revealing the egg inside, sleek and round, its bottom half pitch-black, and the top half a smooth, radiant white. Thin strands of gold shimmered in a spiral pattern from top to bottom.
The man whistled low. "This isn't a scam…"
He finally tapped Yes on the screen.
Please pay the amount through the app or scan the QR Code and pay on the website. The words are displayed on the screen before a QR code appears on the screen.
He scanned the code and went through the payment.
Confirmed the Payment. Thank you for shopping with NovaMart. Have a good day.
The drone zipped away silently, fading into the night sky.
Meanwhile, Shang Wei carefully carried the egg to his couch and pricked his finger.
A drop of blood slid down his fingertip and touched the egg's top.
For a heartbeat, nothing happened.
Then, light surged outward in a circle. The egg pulsed, and the mana in his blood resonated, forming a soul bond with the creature hiding inside the egg.
And then the shell cracked.
A soft paw poked out.
Then, a fuzzy black-and-white head peeked from the broken shell, blinking with innocent golden eyes.
"You're real," the man breathed.
The baby panda yawned, then clumsily rolled onto his lap as if it were natural for the creature.
He reached for the bio scanner and ran it over the creature.