Chapter 53: Chapter 52: "High-speed Identification" Trait, Half-beastmen In the next few hours, they visited several stalls in Lizard Alley, with Ron steadily improving his Herb Recognition experience points thanks to his precise identification skills. At a stall specializing in rare plants, he found the third material on the list—Thirsty Dead’s Tongue Moss. This thing looked like a shriveled piece of gray tissue, covered with a layer of fine crystal structure, emitting an unsettling aura. Its method of acquisition was extremely cruel—as Andre had mentioned before, it requires binding a living person in the desert to die of thirst, then extracting specific tissues from the corpse. This inhumane practice makes it nearly impossible to obtain through legitimate channels, forcing one to seek it in the gray areas of the black market. The stall owner was a hunched old woman, her skin exhibiting an unhealthy yellowish hue, with eyes sunken so deeply into the sockets that the pupils were almost invisible. "This is the real Thirsty Dead’s Tongue Moss, young man." The old woman’s voice was hoarse and dry, like a throat deprived of moisture for a long time: "Not many know about this item, and even fewer can recognize it. What are you doing to be interested in such a thing?" Ron didn’t answer directly, instead reaching out to take the glass container. The moment his fingers touched the container, an intense feeling of thirst suddenly struck him, his throat feeling as if it were on fire. This was the most distinctive trait of the Thirsty Dead’s Tongue Moss—it induces a strong sense of thirst in those who touch it, mimicking the dying pain of the deceased. [Precise Identification! Herb Recognition Experience Points + 2] [Breakthrough! Herb Recognition (Beginner 50/50) → Herb Recognition (Proficient 1/100)] [Gained Additional Trait: High-speed Identification (Increased Identification Speed; Slightly Increased Accuracy)] An odd sensation welled up in his heart, and Ron felt that his perception ability towards herbs had suddenly reached a new level. Previously, he needed to carefully observe, touch, or even taste to determine the authenticity and quality of a material. But now, with just a glance, he could quickly capture the key traits of a material and make accurate judgments. It was like a blurry vision suddenly becoming clear, or a complex musical score being simplified to a simple melody, all details becoming clear and distinguishable in an instant. "What’s wrong?" Andre noticed Ron’s sudden pause and asked quietly, a hint of vigilance in his eyes, worried about any potential traps. "It’s nothing, just a new discovery." Ron smiled slightly, suppressing the joy in his heart, outwardly maintaining a calm and composed demeanor. He discreetly hid the joy of his breakthrough in his heart and continued focusing on the current transaction: "This is indeed a genuine piece, and it is very well preserved. Ten Magic Stone Fragments, that’s the highest price I can offer." "Ten?" The old woman let out a sarcastic chuckle: "Young man, do you know how difficult it is to acquire this material? At least twenty, and that’s already a discounted price for your keen eye." Ron shook his head, placing the glass container back on the stall: "I’m well aware of the market trends, even in a place like Lizard Alley, Thirsty Dead’s Tongue Moss doesn’t exceed ten. Fifteen, that’s my final offer, you’ll definitely make a profit." After some haggling, the deal was finally made at fifteen Magic Stone Fragments, lower than Ron had expected. Having bought the four main materials, the pouch at his waist had noticeably deflated. He had spent dozens of Magic Stone Fragments, nearly half of all his savings. "I need to think of ways to earn some Magic Stone Fragments." He pondered to himself: "Maybe I could use the High-speed Identification ability to do some appraisal work on the black market?" As he packed up the materials and prepared to leave, Ron noticed a peculiar gleam in the murky eyes of the old woman. It wasn’t just the calculative look of a merchant but a deeper, almost greedy observation, as if seeing a fat prey. "Be careful, I feel that old guy has some ill intentions." After leaving the stall, Ron whispered to Andre: "The way she’s looking at us, it’s not like how you look at customers, more like prey." Andre nodded slightly: "Indeed, people doing business in places like this are rarely just simple merchants. Most have other identities—information brokers, bounty hunters, or even spies for certain factions." As they turned a corner, Ron sensed his intuition being triggered. He didn’t turn back, but his Spiritual Power subtly unfolded, forming waves to probe out. "We’re being followed," he said calmly, his voice low enough for only Andre to hear: "Judging by the footsteps, there are at least three half-beastmen and a goblin scout guiding them. They’ve been following us since the old guy’s stall." Andre’s expression suddenly turned serious, his hand quietly moving towards his waist, where a small but sharp dagger was hidden: "Half-beastmen? This is not good... Their physical strength far exceeds ordinary humans, I can barely handle one on my own, three would be... Should we shake them off?" "No hurry," Ron smirked slightly: "Let’s let them think we haven’t noticed, see what they want." Andre gave him a questioning look but nodded, trusting his decision. The two continued walking forward, casually stopping at various stalls, acting just like ordinary customers. But Ron’s Spiritual Power remained focused on the four sneaky followers behind them. The physique of the half-beastmen was terrifying, even the smallest among them had shoulders twice as wide as those of an average adult, their exposed skin showing an unhealthy bluish-gray tone. Their faces were somewhere between human and beast, with tusks exposed, and eyes sunk deep in protruding bone sockets, emitting a disturbing yellow glow. Most striking was their equipment—unlike ordinary street thugs, these three half-beastmen wore matching leather armor, war axes hung at their waists, moving in unison, clearly trained in combat. This was not some makeshift robbery gang, but a well-trained mercenary squad. "Something’s not right," Andre frowned and murmured: "Those guys don’t look like ordinary thugs, more like some kind of bounty hunters. Well-equipped and organized." Ron sneered: "They probably got the word from that old woman, knowing we’re easy targets...." He cautiously scanned the surroundings, quickly identifying a suitable alley for setting an ambush. It was a dead end, with a narrow entrance and walls on either side almost devoid of windows, making it an almost perfect battlefield. "Follow me." Ron suddenly grabbed Andre’s wrist, quickly heading towards the alley: "We’ll wait for them there." Andre was a bit surprised but followed quietly.