"Well, that was worth the risk. Not bad at all." With three hundred million marks in hand, Merrick was overjoyed. Even for someone of his level, earning that much wasn't easy. He had worked for just one day and already made a fortune. The thrill of getting rich overnight felt amazing. He even started to look at Aiden more favorably. 'Ding! Merrick's favorability toward you has increased.' 'Current favorability: 60' "That fast?" Aiden raised an eyebrow. In Doomsday, NPC favorability had no upper limit. But a score of sixty was already considered very high. It meant the NPC trusted you completely. It was also the minimum requirement for most trade options with NPCs. Usually, players needed to complete a long chain of missions and spend a lot of time building trust to reach that level.But Aiden's base Charisma Points were already fifty. Then he spent three hundred million marks, which instantly pushed Merrick's favorability past sixty. "So having a high charm stat really does make things easier," Aiden thought. The power of the Wealthlord's luck was already showing on the first day. Aiden asked, "By the way, Merrick, I have a question." "Go ahead." "Does the Hall of Supremes have any Life Essence? I'd like to buy some. The price is negotiable." "Life Essence? What do you need that for?" Merrick frowned, then suddenly looked shocked. "Don't tell me you actually stole a dragon egg?" Aiden nodded. Merrick froze for a second, then let out a sharp breath in disbelief. It's a Tier-5 dragon egg! And not just any dragon, but a descendant of the Holy Judgment Dragon.Even as a top-ranked powerhouse who had traveled the world for years, he had never heard of anyone possessing something that rare. Once it grew up, it could kill a top-ranked powerhouse as easily as swatting a fly. Of course, dragons lived very long lives and took ages to mature. Raising one would cost a fortune. But considering the young man in front of him had spent three hundred million marks without blinking, Merrick didn't think that would be a problem. After a moment of thought, Merrick said, "I can help you get Life Essence. But first, I need to see the egg." Aiden hesitated for a moment, then took it out from his basic storage space. "It really is a dragon egg." Merrick recognized it right away the moment he saw it in Aiden's inventory. It was unmistakable. "A direct descendant of a Tier-5 dragon..." Merrick's eyes burned with envy. Honestly, if he didn't have this strange fondness for Aiden, he might have already tried to steal it.The thing was priceless. But as a senior member of the Hall of Supremes, Merrick still had his principles. He said in a serious tone, "I have five bottles of Life Essence. The market price is five million marks per bottle. I can sell them all to you." "Thank you, Merrick." Aiden's eyes lit up. He knew the value of Life Essence. It could only be found in high-level boss lairs, and even then, the drop rate was extremely low. It was always in high demand. Five million a bottle was more than fair. In fact, it was a great deal. He had never heard of anyone selling five bottles at once. Merrick waved it off. "It's fine. I don't have much use for it anymore. It's just sitting there. Since I like you, I'll sell it to you. But..." He paused. "Since that's a Tier-5 dragon egg, five bottles might not be enough." "Not enough?" Aiden was surprised. Life Essence was expensive because it had a powerful effect on contracted beasts. Normally, a beast egg that needed decades to hatch could do so instantly with one bottle. If even five bottles might not be enough, then the dragon egg's vitality was unimaginable. Merrick thought for a moment. "By my estimate, you'll need ten bottles of Life Essence." "Does the Hall of Supremes have more?" Aiden asked. Merrick shook his head. "No. This stuff is rare. Even if some of the elders have it, they won't sell it. But I do have one bottle of Holy Life Essence. It's as effective as five regular bottles." Aiden looked calm. "What's the condition, Merrick? Just say it." Merrick looked surprised. "How did you know I was going to ask for something?" "It's simple. If it were just a mark trade, you wouldn't split it into two offers," Aiden said flatly. "And something like that isn't the kind of thing you can buy with marks alone." "True enough." Merrick nodded proudly. "I'm not bragging, but even if you searched the entire Hall of Supremes, I'm the only one who can get you this Holy Life Essence."