Wang Zhan followed Cheng Shu through the thick curtain and into the shop's interior.

The shop was not particularly large. A dazzling array of weapons hung on the walls, and various cultivation methods and elixirs were displayed in the counter. Other than all the items being related to Martial Artists, the shop was not much different from other ordinary city shops.

Behind the counter sat a drowsy old man who was startled by the bell on the curtain. He rubbed his sleepy eyes and looked at Cheng Shu and Wang Zhan.

"Little fatty, got new goods to sell?" The old man greeted casually, clearly familiar with Cheng Shu.

"Boss Liu, this is my Brother Zhan. Those forty bottles of Grade-1 Essence Pills last time were from him. This time, Brother Zhan wanted to come himself, so I led the way," Cheng Shu explained with a smile.

Boss Liu casually nodded at Wang Zhan.

Wang Zhan didn't mind. He placed his backpack, containing ten bottles of Grade-5 Essence Pills, on the counter and unzipped it.

"Oh, quite a quantity this time, and all of them are high-quality goods exchanged from the army." Boss Liu finally showed some interest. After looking through the bag for a while, he nodded and said, "Alright, I'll go get the money."

Boss Liu quickly disappeared into the back room of the shop.

Wang Zhan was puzzled. "How can he go get the money without even discussing the price? Isn't he afraid we won't sell? Or that we might steal something?"

This was the first time he'd met such a unique businessman.

Cheng Shu explained, "Brother Zhan, Boss Liu is renowned for his fairness in Chu State City's Black market. His prices are fair to everyone. They aren't fixed; they depend on the quality and quantity of the goods, and sometimes even on the person... In short, you don't have to worry about a thing when selling to Boss Liu. You definitely won't get ripped off."

"Is that so?" Wang Zhan was genuinely impressed.

Cheng Shu continued, "As for stealing... In the past, there were people with ill intentions, but they all faced the consequences they deserved."

"What consequences?"

"Breaking all four limbs and throwing them to traffickers to be used as cannon fodder on the battlefield." Boss Liu's chilling voice interjected as he pushed open the door to the inner room and emerged, holding an anonymous bank card.

"Ten bottles of Grade-5 Essence Pills. The market price is 340,000 each; I'll give you 320,000. I have to make a profit too, right?"

Wang Zhan looked at Cheng Shu. Cheng Shu gave a slight nod. "This price is generous. The last time I sold here, the boss only offered 310,000."

"That was Family stock, and only three bottles. Poor quality, hard to offload." Boss Liu shook his head. "This young man's supplies are all good items from the Military Supplies Center; naturally, they command a higher price."

Wang Zhan casually accepted the bank card, quickly transferred 3,000,000 to his own account via his personal terminal, then tossed the card to Cheng Shu. "Here, it's yours."

"Thanks, Brother Zhan." Cheng Shu grinned. Two hundred thousand for just leading the way! No wonder they say Brother Zhan is generous.

After selling the Essence Pills, Cheng Shu led Wang Zhan out of the strange shop.

"Why are we in such a rush? I wanted to have a look at what he's selling," Wang Zhan said, a bit disgruntled.

"Uh, Brother Zhan, it's not that I look down on you..." Cheng Shu said awkwardly. "The items in Boss Liu's shop are mostly destined for auction; he rarely sells things privately."

"Going to auction?" Wang Zhan was taken aback.

Cheng Shu spoke with a peculiar tone, "Brother Zhan, every single piece of equipment on that wall is soldier-level or higher, including several general-level pieces."

"Damn! How could I not tell? I thought they were just ordinary equipment."

"Not just those. The elixirs and cultivation methods in the counter are at least Mixed Essence Pills or Profound-level martial arts. Several million really isn't much; tens of millions is just barely enough to get your foot in the door."

Hearing this explanation, Wang Zhan instinctively looked back at the unassuming shop.

"Truly hidden depths; I couldn't tell at all," Wang Zhan exclaimed. "What's Boss Liu's background?"

"I don't know. Everyone guesses he's from the Federation, and I think so too," Cheng Shu shook his head. "Anyway, there's no need to pry. Boss Liu has been running this business for over a decade, and his dealings are honest, so most people don't pay much attention to his identity."

Seeing Cheng Shu's secretive look, Wang Zhan didn't press further.

Having sold the Essence Pills, Wang Zhan wasn't planning to leave just yet. Since he had come all this way, he might as well explore the Black market.

Accompanied by Cheng Shu, Wang Zhan continued deeper into the Black market.

"By the way, you were talking about Essence Pills earlier—those from Families and the Military Supplies Center. Is there a difference?" Wang Zhan asked out of curiosity. He'd never heard of these things before.

"Mm-hmm, Essence Pills are made by extracting energy from beast cores. Although the method is top secret, once you reach a certain level and possess sufficient strength, you can produce Essence Pills. Many Families use this as a source of income. But of course, private small workshops can't match the quality of official products. Hence, even for the same level of pills, the prices can vary."

Wang Zhan had a flash of understanding. "So the ones from schools and the military must be the best, right?"

"Of course. No one dares to cut corners in that area."

The two continued to wander around. Suddenly, Wang Zhan stopped in front of a stall.

"Hmm?" Wang Zhan crouched down and picked up an old-looking technique book from the stall. Just like before, there wasn't a single word on the cover of the technique book; it was clearly meant for people to buy based on luck.

"Brother Zhan, I told you before, these martial arts and technique books are most likely scams. Don't be fooled by how old this book looks; many are deliberately aged," Cheng Shu quickly cautioned.

However, Wang Zhan shook his head slightly and continued to examine the book in his hand.

Cheng Shu had a point. Along the way, Wang Zhan had seen quite a few ancient-looking books, with varying workmanship, but they were mostly imitations made to look old.

But the book in Wang Zhan's hand now was different. He had previously come into contact with similar ancient-looking books and was familiar with how they felt.

The texture of this book is virtually identical to the Body Refining Technique King Xing gave me. This is a quality those other deliberately aged books didn't have.

Thinking this, Wang Zhan subconsciously looked at the stall owner, only to find him looking impatient. Apparently, he had heard Cheng Shu's loud comments and was convinced that Wang Zhan wouldn't buy it.

"Boss, have you read this book?" Wang Zhan nonchalantly asked.

"Haven't read it, don't know." The stall owner shook his head. "It was part of a big batch I bought; who knows what's written in it. Are you buying it or not? One hundred thousand for it. Pay up if you want it, put it down if you don't."

"One hundred thousand? Are you out of your mind?" Cheng Shu's eyes went wide. He'd frequented the Black market for so many years, but this was the first time he'd seen a stall daring to ask such a price.

A hundred thousand... It's worth the gamble, Wang Zhan thought. If I lose, it's just a hundred thousand. But if this book's contents are really on par with the Body Refining Technique, I'll have struck gold.

"Transfer it." Wang Zhan decisively transferred one hundred thousand to the stall owner.

Seeing this, Cheng Shu was so shocked for a moment that he couldn't speak a word.

"Brother Zhan, you sure are rich."

"You don't know anything," Wang Zhan casually replied, then eagerly opened the book. It turned out the book was written in traditional characters.

Just like King Xing's Body Refining Technique!

Wang Zhan's heart pounded with secret excitement.

Just as he was about to read further, a hand suddenly reached out from the side to grasp the ancient book in his hand.

Wang Zhan frowned slightly, stepped aside to avoid it, then looked up to see who it was.

It was a young man about his age, clean-looking with a hint of arrogance on his face, surrounded by a few followers.

When he saw Wang Zhan dodge, the young man's eyebrows knitted slightly. "Kid, let me see that book."

Who is this clueless punk? Wang Zhan was bewildered.

"Who's the moron? Am I your daddy? Why should I give you whatever you ask for?" Wang Zhan looked the young man up and down. "If you really think you're someone important, get lost and stop being an eyesore."

If it weren't for this guy, I'd almost have forgotten my own glorious, wild past. Always either fighting or on the way to a fight, either beating people up or on the run—that was youth!

As Wang Zhan's words fell, before the young man could respond, his minions started clamoring.

"It's an honor that Young Master Zheng wants something from you, don't be ungrateful when you're shown favor!"

"You country bumpkin, don't even recognize Young Master Zheng!"

"You'd better kneel down and apologize to Young Master Zheng!"

The followers provoked with a few words. Wang Zhan subconsciously looked at the young man, only to see a look of disdain on his face.

"Hand over the book and get lost," the young man said. "I'll pretend what just happened didn't happen. Otherwise, I'll make you understand the consequences of offending me."

Wang Zhan exchanged a look with Cheng Shu.

"Cheng Shu, do you recognize this guy?"

"From what those lickspittles said, this guy is Young Master Zheng, right? From the Zheng Family in Chu State City. Quite a large Family," Cheng Shu replied honestly. "And considering his arrogant and domineering behavior, he must be Zheng Sikai."

Cheng Shu explained without any hint of fear, merely stating facts, "This kid's father is the head of Chu State City's Internal Affairs Department, probably one of the top five most powerful figures in the city."

"Oh, a big shot, huh?" Wang Zhan remarked with dawning understanding.

"Hmph, so you have some sense after all," Zheng Sikai sneered, holding out his hand. "I'm honoring you by wanting your book. Hand it over."

Wang Zhan ignored Zheng Sikai and continued asking Cheng Shu, "His father is a big shot. What does that have to do with him?"

"None," Cheng Shu shook his head honestly, then added, "But, it's rumored that he went to Yanjing Martial Arts Academy a couple of years ago. I suppose he does have some skill, for a dandy."

"There are so many students from Yanjing Martial Arts Academy; they can't all be like him, right?"

"Not all of them. He's one of those with a particularly low moral compass."

Wang Zhan and Cheng Shu completely ignored Zheng Sikai, exchanging remarks back and forth—loud enough for him to hear.

Zheng Sikai's face turned livid, and finally, he couldn't hold back.

"You're courting death!"

Seeing that Zheng Sikai was indeed charging towards them, Cheng Shu's face changed.

"Brother Zhan, save me!"

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