Chapter 45: Flying on Shoes = Walking on Air?

Chapter 45: Chapter 45: Flying on Shoes = Walking on Air?

Su Han had no idea how the old beggar managed to fool everyone. He only knew that after the old beggar left the Liu Residence, the plaque on the main gates was replaced with a new one: "The Number One Gang in the World, the Beggar Gang—Lingzhou Sub-Branch."

Without expending a single soldier, the old beggar had single-handedly barged into the Liu Residence and effortlessly incited everyone to defect—from the Patriarch down to the cook.

Standing outside the gates of the new Beggar Gang Lingzhou Sub-Branch, Su Han finally confirmed one thing when he saw Liu Laoer walking out of the former Liu Residence dressed in a beggar’s outfit. The old beggar he had roped in on a whim was truly a fucking genius.

Over the next two days, people continuously inquired about this so-called number one gang in the world, both openly and in secret. It was no longer possible to trace who leaked the information first. But two days later, any faction in Lingzhou City—big or small—that cared to pay attention had basically grasped some information about the Beggar Gang.

Rumor had it that the Beggar Gang was a mysterious and powerful organization. No one knew exactly how many members they had. It could be the beggar you casually tossed one cent to in the morning, the owner of the noodle shop where you had lunch, the top courtesan you caught a fleeting glimpse of at the brothel at night, or the patriarch of the prominent family you sneaked into late at night. No matter what public identities they held, in secret, they could all share the same identity: a disciple of the Beggar Gang.

According to the rumors, the Beggar Gang was the greatest gang in the world, with hidden forces spread throughout Jiuzhou. It was said that when a Beggar Gang disciple was in trouble, help would come from all directions. Offending just one disciple meant becoming the common enemy of all Beggar Gang members. 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ

Some said that the Beggar Gang was a major power even in the Central State, and that the Beggar Gang Leader once forcefully suppressed a True Dragon using the Eighteen Dragon-Slaying Palms. Others rumored that a Nine-Bag Elder of the Beggar Gang in Yongzhou once annihilated an entire sect single-handedly with nothing but a Cyan Bamboo Stick. There were even whispers that a certain Major Sect in the Central State might be secretly backed by the Beggar Gang.

Various tales about the Beggar Gang spread like wildfire in just two short days, leaving people dizzy and overwhelmed. The mix of truth and falsehood in these reports made people skeptical, yet partially convinced. This was especially true because the rumors were laced with actual unsolved mysteries from across Jiuzhou that Su Han had coaxed out of Liu Ming. When these real events were attributed to the Beggar Gang—a group that had never shown itself before but dared to proclaim itself the number one gang in the world upon its debut—it became all the more shrouded in mystery.

This bewildering effect was exactly what Su Han wanted.

Once the news about the Beggar Gang completely spread, the various factions in Lingzhou City tacitly chose to wait and see. No one was foolish enough to believe hearsay without seeing any substantial evidence.

Oh, wait, there was someone.

Liu Laoer was exactly this kind of fool. However, such a foolish yet occasionally smart-alecky existence was unique to the Liu Family in the entirety of Lingzhou City.

With the Beggar Gang being made out to be so bizarrely powerful, no one dared to openly deny its existence. What if it was real? Even if only one of those rumors turned out to be true, it was not something a mere small noble family in Lingzhou City could afford to provoke. Even Prince Jing and the Princess Consort secretly investigated this suddenly emerged Beggar Gang.

Over the two days, the news about the Beggar Gang continued to ferment. It was not just the local factions in Lingzhou City; even the figures who had continuously poured into Lingzhou City from all over Jiuzhou over the past month paid some attention to the news. Of course, most of these newcomers scoffed at the legends surrounding the Beggar Gang.

During these two days, ever since the old beggar successfully bamboozled Liu Laoer, Su Han had locked himself in his room, not stepping out once. Even his meals were brought in by Xi. However, he was not consolidating his cultivation as others might think; his cultivation did not need consolidation after a breakthrough.

Shut in his room for two days, Su Han refined a complete set of three-star Magical Artifacts for himself. At the same time, based on his Celestial Dao Foundation Establishment Method, he created a Cultivation Method for Liu Laoer that could be popularized within the Beggar Gang. While its profundity naturally fell short of the Hundred-Day Foundation Establishment Method, it was actually not much worse than the Nameless Foundation Establishment Method passed down by the royal family.

As for Magical Artifacts, the first item Su Han refined was a three-star Flying Sword. He didn’t spend too much time on it. In fact, with the Suiyuan Swordsmanship skill, his demand for swords was not high. However, despite not having high requirements for a Flying Sword, Su Han still carved dozens of three-star Arrays onto it after it was forged—such as Sturdiness, Sharpness, Weakness, and Paralysis—and further enhanced it with ninety-nine Inscriptions. Although his Suiyuan Swordsmanship might not necessarily hack someone to death, with these Arrays and Inscriptions adding negative effects, anyone struck by his blade would be affected to some degree.

Had highly toxic Refining Materials not been so difficult to find, Su Han would have even prepared to forge a lethally poisonous Flying Sword for himself.

After completing the Flying Sword, Su Han refined a three-star Magic Robe for defense. The Magic Robe was engraved with nine hundred and ninety-nine four-star Inscriptions and accompanied by a massive cluster of three-star Arrays, making it an integration of both defense and counterattack. Although the finished Magic Robe was only graded at three stars, its actual defensive and counter-offensive capabilities surpassed even those of a four-star Magic Robe.

After finishing the Magic Robe, Su Han was just about to end his seclusion when a sudden whim struck him. He wondered if flight by controlling objects truly had to involve Sword Control or saber control. Couldn’t he control something else? Theoretically speaking, a Flying Sword was a Magical Artifact, and a saber was a Magical Artifact. If weapons could be manipulated by Divine Thought to carry a person in flight, other items should be able to do the same.

Thus, Su Han delayed his exit for another half a day to conduct a new round of experiments. Whether controlling a sword or a saber, one had to step on it. Therefore, when deciding to refine a unique Flying Magical Artifact, the first thing that came to Su Han’s mind was shoes. Since both swords and sabers were stepped on anyway, shoes shouldn’t be a problem, right?

That was the idea, but when he actually got down to it, Su Han realized things weren’t as simple as he thought. Shoes were meant to be soft and comfortable, whereas things like Flying Swords were forged for sturdiness. Sword Flight essentially worked by using Divine Thought to control the Arrays carved within the Flying Sword, achieving the effect of carrying a person. However, these Arrays had very high requirements for the material of the Magical Artifact. While he could refine shoes capable of flight, the resulting footwear would be as hard as a Flying Sword. If one wasn’t afraid of grinding their feet to the bone, they could certainly try wearing them.

Meeting a roadblock with his concept, Su Han didn’t lose heart. If one path didn’t work, he would just try another. Since directly flying with the shoes was a failure, he would simply add something inside the shoes that could be inscribed with flight Arrays.

Consequently, when Su Han forged a new pair of three-star Magical Artifact shoes, he embedded eighty-one embroidery needles, connected end-to-end, into the soles of each shoe. These embroidery needles were all carved with Arrays and evenly distributed across the soles of both shoes.

Attempting to control the needles with his Divine Thought, the shoes flew up exactly as Su Han had envisioned. Putting on the Magical Artifact shoes, Su Han lightly hopped in place. He didn’t crash through the roof, nor did he feel any discomfort under his feet. Manipulating the embroidery needles in the soles with his Divine Thought, the shoes lifted Su Han into the air.

If an unaware observer were to witness this scene, anyone would surely suspect he was an expert at or above the Immortal Platform Realm, capable of floating mid-air.

Flying slowly around the room—spinning, leaping, and stopping to hover with effortless precision—Su Han couldn’t help but let out a smug laugh.

"Hahaha, this Crown Prince is indeed a fucking genius!"

He thought, "Now... let’s see if this Crown Prince doesn’t fool those ’geniuses’ from Jiuzhou to death!"