Chapter 114 - 106: Black Market, Iron Cloth Shirt Advancement, Recommendation

Chapter 114: Chapter 106: Black Market, Iron Cloth Shirt Advancement, Recommendation

As dawn gradually broke, Su Chen skipped breakfast. Instead, he took out another Qi Blood Pill to continue his relentless consumption. By now, he had already taken five Qi Blood Pills, but his progress was effectively at five and a half pills. He only needed to consume four and a half more to upgrade his Iron Cloth Shirt.

After finishing the Qi Blood Pill, Su Chen brewed and drank his remaining five doses of Blood Boiling Powder. It wasn’t until the afternoon of the following day, when Su Chen swallowed his eighth Qi Blood Pill, that the interface refreshed.

"The Iron Cloth Shirt has finally reached the second level!"

Su Chen let out a long sigh of relief. A faint, pale white stream of mist shot from his mouth, leaving a trail in the air nearly twenty centimeters long.

"The quantity of my internal force hasn’t changed; it’s still at the fifth tier. However, its quality has improved significantly," he observed. "Even the rate at which my internal organs are refined has accelerated. My breathing is deeper and longer, my heartbeat is steadier, and my liver, kidneys, and spleen have all been strengthened to varying degrees.

"And, most importantly..." Su Chen stared at his palms in pleasant surprise. A faint film seemed to linger over the surface of his hands, shifting like water vapor whenever he flexed his fingers. This was his internal force! "My internal force can now adhere to the surface of my palms!"

This sight reminded him of Tao Dingfang. If he remembered correctly, Tao Dingfang’s internal force seemed capable of adhering to weapons, which had caught him off guard. Had it not been for his exceptionally strong physique, he likely would have suffered severe injuries at the time.

"Right now, my realm should be about the same as Tao Dingfang’s was back then. But my actual combat prowess is far beyond what he could compare to," Su Chen calculated. "According to Master Ye’s way of measuring things, a conservative estimate is that I could beat five Tao Dingfangs!"

Banishing the glorious image of Master Ye from his mind, Su Chen gathered his thoughts. He gradually calmed down from the thrill of his increased strength and shifted his focus to other pressing issues.

"However, just upgrading the Iron Cloth Shirt from the first level to the second requires ten Qi Blood Pills. At the Black Market, a single Qi Blood Pill costs 300 taels. Buying one or two is fine, but in the long run, this will become an enormous financial burden for me."

The requirements to advance the Iron Cloth Shirt from the second level to the third had also appeared on the interface: twenty Qi Blood Pills. Based on Black Market prices, that would be six thousand taels. He only had a little over ten thousand taels left on him. At most, he could afford one more massive pill-popping session before running out of funds.

Coupled with the fact that he was new in town and needed money for many things, living off his savings was not a viable long-term plan.

"When I was browsing the Black Market tonight, I saw many medicine peddlers selling Qi Blood herbs and pills. Their business seemed pretty good. I could actually look into that avenue," he mused. "After all, I have two types of medicinal formulas on me: a Nameless Medicine formula and the Blood Boiling Powder."

Maintaining a steady stream of income alongside expenses was the only sustainable path. Su Chen planned to prepare more Blood Boiling Powder during this period so he could sell it the next time the Black Market opened. Otherwise, constantly spending without earning would quickly drain even the deepest pockets.

Besides, he only had about ten thousand taels on him—he was entirely out of touch with the truly wealthy!

Sheng Mansion.

Located in the bustling prime area of Honglan Square, the estate spanned two streets from east to west. It looked extraordinarily imposing, exuding an aura of wealth and nobility from every corner.

"Halt! What’s your business here?"

Before Su Chen could even approach the vermilion main gates, he was sharply stopped by a row of guards standing at the entrance. Pairs of stern eyes locked onto him.

"I’m here to see Madam Sheng, Qin Xue!" Su Chen replied, his tone neither haughty nor humble.

The head guard sized Su Chen up from head to toe and asked, "Who are you?"

"A distant relative of Madam Qin Xue," Su Chen said after a brief silence.

"Do you have any proof?"

Su Chen retrieved Hong Ming’s letter of introduction from his robes and held it up for the man to see. "This is my proof. Just go and report it."

"Could you hand the letter over to me so I can go and inform them?" the man pondered upon seeing the letter.

Hearing this, Su Chen hesitated for a moment before finally nodding and handing the envelope to the guard. The guard turned and walked inside.

Su Chen waited by the door, having no idea whether she would actually agree to see him.

Although Hong Ming had mentioned that Qin Xue was his childhood sweetheart, Su Chen’s inquiries revealed that she had married long ago. Furthermore, she hadn’t married just anyone, but Hong Risheng, a Hall Master of the Profound Water Gang.

This was evident just from the estate she resided in. It was even more magnificent than the Government Office in White Stone City, radiating elegance inside and out.

Carrying Su Chen’s letter, the guard made his way inside, passing through courtyard pavilions and artificial rockeries as he headed toward the backyard.

"Young Master."

Suddenly, a handsome young man approached from the opposite direction. He was dressed in light clothing and had been practicing martial arts in the courtyard. Seeing the guard’s hurried expression, he asked, "What is the rush?"

"A distant relative of the Madam has come to visit," the guard bowed, not daring to lift his head even a fraction.

"A distant relative?" the handsome man voiced a soft exclamation of surprise. Ever since his father became a Hall Master of the Profound Water Gang, visitors had been flocking to their doors in an endless stream. Among them were so-called distant relatives, but most were complete frauds with absolutely no real connection to their family.

Hearing this, he waved his hand impatiently. "What distant relative? It’s probably just another shameless opportunist trying to leech off us. Why would you bother my mother with something like this? What are you even paid for?"

"Forgive me, Young Master!" The guard hastily dropped to his knees to beg for mercy. "I will drive him away immediately."

As he spoke and prepared to leave, the handsome young man suddenly stopped him. "Hold on, what are you holding in your hand?"

"It’s a letter from that guy. He said the Madam would understand once she read it."

"Let me see it!" The handsome youth furrowed his brows.

Snatching the letter, he shot a sideways glare at the guard and scoffed coldly. "Why haven’t you scrammed yet?"

"Yes, right away!"

Ignoring the guard, the handsome man opened the letter. After reading just a few lines, he shouted, "Halt!"

"Does the Young Master have any other orders?" The guard, who had been speed-walking away, stumbled to a halt at the sudden shout, nearly tripping over his own feet.

The handsome man didn’t reply. His face gradually darkened, and his brows knotted tighter and tighter until he finally let out a harsh sneer from his nose.

The longer the guard watched, the more anxious he became, his scalp prickling with dread. In his mind, he had already cursed Su Chen’s ancestors countless times.

"Take him to the side hall and make him wait."

After leaving those instructions, the handsome man threw on his outer robes and hurried away.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!

"Come in!"

Inside the study, an elegant middle-aged man spoke in an indifferent tone. Seeing his son’s deeply furrowed brow, he asked, "What is it?"

"Father, take a look at this letter." The handsome man placed the letter on the desk.

The middle-aged man opened the letter suspiciously. Gradually, his expression morphed into the exact same dark look his son had worn just moments ago.

"Father, who is this Hong Ming?" the handsome man couldn’t help but ask curiously once the middle-aged man put down the letter.

"Hong Ming? Hmph, just an arrogant, ignorant loser!" The middle-aged man sneered, his face turning ugly. "I didn’t expect him to still be alive after all these years."

Having read the letter, the handsome man naturally knew of Hong Ming’s relationship with his mother, but that wasn’t his primary concern right now.

"Father, no matter who this Hong Ming is, you absolutely cannot give the recommendation quota for the Profound Water Sect to this person," the handsome man said, pressing his lips together.

Aside from reminiscing about the past, the letter was laced with a request between the lines—hoping that Qin Xue would recommend Su Chen. This was something he could not accept under any circumstances.

The recommendation quotas for the Profound Water Sect were incredibly precious. Even his father, as a Hall Master of the Profound Water Gang, only received one per year. He had already reserved this year’s quota for his fiancée’s younger brother. How could they hand it over to a stranger of unknown origins?

"What are you panicking for? There’s more than one recommendation quota this year. Your mother has another one," the middle-aged man, Hong Risheng, said evenly.

"Even so, are we really going to just give such a highly coveted quota away for free to this guy?" the handsome man, Hong Chen, argued indignantly.

"It’s just a quota. If giving it makes your mother happy, then so be it," Hong Risheng said, shaking his head dismissively.

Hong Chen was left speechless.

"However..." Suddenly, Hong Risheng shifted his tone. "He’s just a country bumpkin. The Profound Water Sect doesn’t accept just anyone."

"What do you mean, Father?"

Hong Risheng placed the letter down, flicked his sleeves, and stood up with an enigmatic look in his eyes. "Give the letter to your mother. Even if she thinks of her old ties and hands over the quota, it won’t matter. The Profound Water Sect has no use for mediocrity."

"I suppose... alright!"

In the side hall.

Su Chen sat quietly, waiting. Fifteen minutes had already passed, yet no one had come to see him. Just as he stood up out of boredom, the rapid sound of footsteps suddenly echoed from outside the door.

A faint, refreshing fragrance drifted in like a spring breeze. A young woman, exuding mature elegance from head to toe, slowly walked in. Upon seeing Su Chen, her eyes lit up.