Chapter Three: The Exchange Beneath the City

Paddles chimed. Eighty million. One hundred million. Two hundred million. The elegant crowd turned to study Lin like property being inspected. Zhao Qian emerged on the VIP balcony, green dice glittering at his cuffs. “Mr. Gu bids seven hundred million for the remainder of Lin Mo's life.” “The vault is behind him,” Qin whispered. “We have one chance before midnight clearing.” Lin looked at his two copper tokens, then raised a bidding paddle. “Seventy billion.” The hall went silent, then erupted in laughter. Zhao narrowed his eyes. “With what collateral?” Lin slapped the winning ticket onto the desk. “Gu Changqing's account.” The screen paused, then flashed green. COLLATERAL VALID. BIDDER LIN MO NOW RANKED FIRST. The laughter died.