Chapter 448: Apple Tree

Chapter 448: Chapter 448: Apple Tree

"Alright, alright, I’ll sell it to you, but it’ll be five Crystal Cores!" The man figured he had a point and decided to go for broke.

Martin Lee’s eyes widened in disbelief. "Didn’t it only cost you one Crystal Core to get it?"

"Yep," he said, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "If you want to buy it, you have to accept my price."

Now it was Martin Lee’s turn to hesitate. ’Are five Crystal Cores really worth it?’

’Five Crystal Cores can be exchanged for twenty-five Game Coins. If I spend twenty Game Coins, is it really possible I won’t be able to get a single apple doll?’

’There’s no way my luck is *that* bad!’

Martin Lee’s gaze drifted toward the claw machine, which was filled with dolls.

’But what if there are only fifteen apple dolls in the entire machine?’

The thought sent a jolt through Martin Lee. ’That can’t be allowed to happen!’

’Doesn’t that mean one machine will only give out the mysterious grand prize for the apple dolls once?’

Martin Lee couldn’t control his train of thought. He walked over to the claw machine and began to carefully count the dolls.

Some of the apple dolls were buried underneath others. Martin Lee could only see five or six of them.

He had three, and a few other customers had also won three.

’That means there are six out in the open. It’s over. It might be exactly as I thought!’

Martin Lee spun around decisively and walked up to the customer. "Five Crystal Cores, right? Here."

The customer didn’t understand why he had suddenly become so resolute.

But thinking it would be foolish not to take a good deal, he immediately took the Crystal Cores and handed over the doll. "Here. A fair trade. No take-backs!"

Martin Lee couldn’t help but laugh to himself. ’We’ll see who regrets this later.’ He tucked the doll away with delight.

Coincidentally, the other two customers were watching from the crowd. Since he’d already started, Martin Lee decided to go all the way and decisively sought them out, hoping to buy their apple dolls with Crystal Cores.

One of them agreed readily, but the other refused to sell no matter what.

Martin Lee couldn’t just rob the guy, so he could only hope his theory was wrong...

After a long wait in line, it was finally his turn again. He rolled up his sleeves, ready to go all out, and exchanged ten Crystal Cores for a cool fifty Game Coins.

Lily Hart was in the RV, eating fruit and drinking milk tea while she watched Martin Lee at the claw machine. He had an expression of absolute determination.

Once the fifty Game Coins were gone, Martin Lee had successfully snagged every visible apple doll.

But there were still some buried under the other dolls, completely out of sight. ’How am I supposed to grab those? This is impossible!’

Martin Lee had no choice but to find the machine’s owner. He said, full of righteous indignation, "Hey, can you open this machine? The doll I want is buried at the bottom."

The owner hesitated, unsure if that was allowed. He glanced toward the RV, looking to Lily Hart for guidance.

Lily Hart recalled playing claw machines where you couldn’t only adjust the dolls’ positions, but if you won one you didn’t like, you could even swap it for another one in the same machine.

With that thought, she made up her mind and gave a decisive wave of her hand. "Do it!"

Having received his confirmation, the owner nodded hurriedly. He found the ’open’ button on his Light Brain, and after pressing it, he still had to perform a facial recognition scan at the machine.

The machine officially unlocked only after a successful scan.

The owner rummaged through the pile of dolls. Knowing Martin Lee wanted the apple ones, he dug them all out and placed them right on top.

Martin Lee’s eyes lit up, and he couldn’t help himself. He was already imagining the final grand prize as he eagerly stepped up to play again.

The other customers stopped pressuring him and just watched from the sidelines. This was for the grand prize, one you could only get by collecting fifteen apple dolls!

The anticipation was palpable!

After spending nearly twenty more Crystal Cores, Martin Lee finally had fourteen apple dolls. Only one remained, and it was in the hands of the customer who absolutely refused to sell.

Martin Lee was seething. ’That guy must have figured something out. He’s just trying to screw me over!’

But there was nothing he could do. He already had fourteen; he couldn’t possibly give up now.

Frustrated and resentful, Martin Lee had no choice but to approach the man again. He pleaded and argued, but the man wouldn’t budge. When he finally did relent, it was to demand one hundred Crystal Cores!

’Isn’t that a death sentence? I couldn’t get a hundred Crystal Cores even if I sold myself!’

He was anxiously wringing his hands when the image of Boss Hart flashed through his mind. His eyes lit up, filled with renewed hope, and he rushed to the RV.

"Boss Hart! Boss Hart! Are you in there?" Martin Lee yelled, jumping up and down. ’Strange, is no one home?’

Lily Hart got up from the sofa, still nibbling on a duck neck. Seeing him hopping around in a panic, she asked, "What’s wrong?"

Martin Lee said urgently, "Boss Hart, can I borrow a hundred Crystal Cores? It’s an emergency!"

"What for?" Lily Hart asked cautiously.

Martin Lee frantically explained the situation. Lily Hart quickly understood and decisively pulled out a hundred Crystal Cores. "Here. Pay me back as soon as you can."

"I can’t thank you enough!" Martin Lee said solemnly, sighing in relief as he took the sack with both hands.

Then, grinning, he carried the sack over to the man and threw it down in front of him with a flourish. "The doll. Payment for goods!"

The man was stunned that he had actually produced a hundred Crystal Cores. He couldn’t help but wonder if there was some hidden secret to the doll.

But after turning it over and over, he couldn’t find anything. He reluctantly handed it over to Martin Lee.

Martin Lee held his breath, trying his best to keep a straight face. The moment the apple doll was in his hand, he finally let out a sigh of relief and broke into a smile.

He quickly stored it in his space and ran gleefully toward the claw machine. He was about to find out what mysterious grand prize fifteen apple dolls would get him!

Seeing this, the other customers parted, clearing a path for him to walk unimpeded to the claw machine.

After all, everyone knew he was collecting the fifteen apple dolls for the mysterious grand prize.

And everyone is curious.

Lily Hart also got out of the RV to watch up close. She saw him count out the apple dolls, stuffing them into the redemption slot one by one until the last one was in.

The crowd fell silent, their eyes glued to the machine.

A white light flashed, and an apple tree appeared before him. It was much larger than the one in Stan Sterling’s vegetable patch.

It was at least two stories tall, and its branches were heavy with dense clusters of bright red apples.

The branches were bent low from the weight. Martin Lee stared, dumbfounded. An apple was hanging right in front of his face.

He instinctively reached out, plucked it, and took a bite without even washing it. CRUNCH. It was sweet, crisp, and incredibly juicy.

Martin Lee devoured the apple in a few quick bites, then simply stared at the tree full of fruit. ’It’s so beautiful.’

’So many apples... and they’re all mine, along with the entire tree!’

He was stunned. The mysterious grand prize was an apple tree!

A line of text floated beside the apple tree: [Apple Tree. Fruits refresh daily. Attack Power: Zero Stars. Defense Power: Ten Stars. Will provide its owner with delicious apples!]

Martin Lee was shocked all over again. ’An apple tree that refreshes every day? This is a divine item!’

The surrounding customers were also stunned. If they had known the prize was an entire tree, they would have done anything to collect the dolls themselves!