"At the moments of your pride, the restrained aura leaks out, leading to the mistake you made this time."

Yuan Shuo spoke with an easy tone, yet the knitted brows clearly conveyed the worries in his heart.

"Are you worrying about whom the quotas for exploring the ancient ruins this time should be given to?"

The woman pinpointed Yuan Shuo's concern with just a single sentence.

"Yes."

Yuan Shuo nodded, his narrow eyes filled with faint sorrow:

"Many people are stuck at the peak of the Fourth-Rank Martial Warrior and can't break through, just lacking an opportunity."

"And the ancient ruins, perhaps there is a way to help them break through their current strength."

"Although it's said that entering the ancient ruins is certainly dangerous, for these martial warriors, being trapped in the same realm for their entire life without being able to break through from it is much more torturous than death itself."

"It's just that, even though we have ten quotas on our side, they are still very hard to allocate."

Yuan Shuo said this and rubbed his somewhat aching head, feeling that he would rather go and have a good fight with someone than consider these issues.

In fact, the quotas could be distributed based on merit before, but the key problem is that in this peaceful and prosperous era, these martial warriors are unlikely to have any meritorious deeds.

"What about Liu Na?"

As Yuan Shuo thought about this, the woman's voice behind him also sounded, and the two exchanged glances, discerning each other's thoughts through their eyes.

Outside the door.

Just as he was about to knock and enter, Wang Ye's hand, which had been reaching forward, paused mid-air.

Liu Na?

He had actually heard the name "Liu Na" from the mouths of Yuan Shuo and the woman beside him.

As a Third-Grade Martial Warrior, Wang Ye had very acute hearing, and Yuan Shuo, along with the woman beside him, did not lower their voices deliberately while discussing the matter.

So Wang Ye, standing outside the door, easily overheard the conversation between Yuan Shuo and the woman beside him.

Although Wang Ye wanted to continue listening, he knew that based on the strength of the two people inside the office, even though he hadn't knocked yet, the two had probably already sensed his presence outside.

If he continued to listen from outside, it would likely leave a bad impression on them, and he would also not be able to learn any useful information from Yuan Shuo and the woman beside him.

Wang Ye knocked on the door directly; the door swung open instantly, Yuan Shuo having opened it from inside using his strength.

Yuan Shuo looked somewhat disappointedly at Wang Ye; he knew there was some relationship between Wang Ye and Liu Na, and he had initially intended to have Wang Ye keep waiting outside.

In doing so, he could have said some words in jest, teasing Wang Ye a bit.

Yet unexpectedly, Wang Ye knocked on the door directly.

This made Yuan Shuo feel somewhat regretful.

The woman behind Yuan Shuo glanced at him and sensed the disappointment on Yuan Shuo's face, feeling somewhat helpless in her heart.

Even at this point in time, Yuan Shuo still felt the urge to play.

As soon as Wang Ye entered, the expression of regret on Yuan Shuo's face instantly disappeared, replaced by him standing up from his seat, his face brimming with enthusiasm as he greeted Wang Ye:

"Wang Ye, you're here! Come come come, have a seat, have a seat."

Yuan Shuo's face bore a smile typical of a crafty merchant: "Boss Wang gracing us with his presence, are you thinking of making a substantial investment with our Xijiang Provincial Martial Arts Association to improve the living standards of our Xijiang Provincial Martial Arts Association?"

"That's possible!"

Since Yuan Shuo wanted to act, Wang Ye had no objection to playing along with him.

Wang Ye casually crossed his legs: "An investment of ten billion, how about that? In exchange for a spot to enter the ancient ruins."

Although Wang Ye was joking, there was also some seriousness in his words.

However, Yuan Shuo was neither too rigid nor surprised that Wang Ye knew this news.

After all, even the heads of the five major families in Xijiang Province had heard about this news, so it was not surprising that Wang Ye knew of it.

If Wang Ye hadn't known about this matter, that would have been more problematic.

"That's also possible, but with a ten billion investment, if you give it to the officials directly, you could get a spot for yourself to go in. There's no need to take up my spot here." Yuan Shuo said with a grin, bantering back and forth with Wang Ye, but in the course of the conversation, he seemed to have resolved some issues.

"Ten billion can exchange for a spot? That cheap?"

Yuan Shuo's words made Wang Ye pause slightly.

Originally, Wang Ye had thought that the spots were very precious, but to think that a mere ten billion could secure a spot so easily, he felt, in a mere instant, that the entry spots to the ancient ruins seemed quite cheap.

Facing the somewhat malicious gazes of Yuan Shuo and the woman by his side, Wang Ye finally came to his senses at this moment.

To Wang Ye, ten billion might not seem like a lot, but to Yuan Shuo and others, it was an enormous sum.

For ordinary people, not to mention ten billion, even one percent of ten billion, ten million, could allow them to live without struggling for the rest of their lives, constantly immersed in enjoyment.

"However..."

As for the spot, Wang Ye was confident that as long as he arrived here, he would definitely secure one, so he wasn't overly concerned about whether he could get a spot.

It was just that there was some confusion and doubt in his heart.

Wang Ye voiced the question that had perplexed him on the way here: "The ancient ruins represent an unknown era. Shouldn't the officials be keeping it well-protected and exploring it themselves? Why would they allow everyone to crowdfund for the exploration?"

This question had been on Wang Ye's mind all along, and he hadn't figured out the reason even up to this point.

Upon this question being raised, the expressions on the faces of both Yuan Shuo and the woman behind him became serious instantly.

Yuan Shuo explained: "Actually, our Martial Arts Association, we're also considered part of the official movement."

"Official?"

Wang Ye was taken aback once again.

He had always thought of the Martial Arts Association as merely an official association, but he hadn't expected the Martial Arts Association to be an official organization.

"Yes, although the Martial Arts Association may seem..."

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