Chapter 305: Hard to Deal With?

"You all look at the records from the past few days; have you noticed any pattern?"

Bing Li highlighted several rows on the table in yellow.

"What pattern?"

"There are two days when he came in the morning and left by noon."

"And there are two other days when he simply didn't show up."

"What does that indicate?"

The three of them were indifferent.

Just as they themselves don't come to headquarters every day.

"Now look at the dates above."

The three looked upward.

Suddenly, they realized something.

"You figured it out, didn't you?"

A cold smile appeared on Bing Li's face.

"In the past two or three months, he would come at least five days a week; the days he was absent were mostly on weekends. Yet on every first and fifteenth of the month, even if it was a workday, he wouldn't be here—he'd arrive in the morning and leave in the afternoon. What do you think the reason is?"

"Black Market."

The three simultaneously blurted out the same two words.

"Exactly, it's the Black Market."

Bing Li sneered.

He only examined these records because he was out of options, trying a dead horse as if it were alive.

As a result, he actually uncovered something remarkable.

"That kid has a Black Market Bid Token on him? How did he get it?"

"No wonder we scoured outside the city and couldn't find his whereabouts; so he fled to the Black Market?"

"The Black Market's recruitment criteria aren't simple; they mainly accept Spiritual Thought Masters, and they also recruit capable Force Warriors. Yet that kid is only a Level 2 Force Warrior. How could the Black Market let him in? Could he still be a Spiritual Thought Master?"

When his words finished, Bing Li's expression changed slightly.

Perhaps that possibility is real.

Because when Hong Cha recruited the latter, the latter requested a Spirit Visualization Method, and Hong Cha nodded in agreement.

Who would have thought...

"Hmph!"

Thinking of this made anger surge in his heart.

"What can a Level 1 Spirit Mind Practitioner do? If he truly hides within the Black Market, would the Black Market cause trouble for us because of him?"

"That may be so, but Bing Li, it's better not to offend the Black Market," someone whispered.

"Indeed, they hold Auctions not only in the Outer City District but also in the Inner City District; many high-ups attend, even the one behind us can't afford to offend them."

"He's just a Level 1 Spirit Mind Practitioner; it's not that serious, right? It sounds as if we're gearing up for war with the Black Market."

Another person frowned and said, "Besides, whether he's in the Black Market or not is debatable; even if he is, we can still negotiate with them, appeal to their emotions and reason, and they'll agree."

"Right."

Bing Li nodded.

"I know a contact of theirs in the Outer City District, Yang Chun. If it's confirmed that that Cang Hai fellow is hiding in the Black Market's territory, I'll reach out to Yang Chun once; I'm confident getting him to hand over the latter won't be hard. So the priority is to quickly verify whether that kid is inside."

"I'll take responsibility for this matter."

A man laughed, "As the saying goes, if you want to stay unnoticed, you must not act. All Black Market members live in Dinghu Community; if he really is there, he would have been seen by some guards when he entered. Just spend a little money and we can find out the result."

"Alright, quickly."

Bing Li nodded.

"I'll take care of it right now."

After saying that, the man walked straight out.

"I think that kid is most likely inside Dinghu Community."

"I agree, but this kid hides deeply; not only is he a Level 1 Spirit Mind Practitioner, he also obtained a Black Market Bid Token. How did he manage that?"

"Let whatever method he used be irrelevant."

Murderous intent flared in Bing Li's eyes.

"Daring to betray the Dawn Society seals his fate to death! Not only him, but also his family—none of them can escape!"…

The next day.

Morning.

Jiang Cheng summoned Yang Chun again.

He demonstrated the Alchemy Technique after reaching Mastery Level.

At Proficient level, with a batch of herbs, a single furnace could produce five or six finished pills.

Now, with the same amount of herbs, a furnace yields ten pills, all finished—a 100% success rate! Yang Chun gasped in amazement.

Is this genius?

It's only been a few days.

Jiang Cheng's Alchemy skill has risen another notch! "Brother Yang, what do you think next?"

Jiang Cheng rubbed his hands in anticipation.

In fact, two days ago his Alchemy Technique had already reached Mastery.

But to stay low-key, he waited until the remaining herbs were all refined before calling the latter.

Of course, the current Experience Bar is no longer three times, but five times the original.

Originally, using ten portions of herbs would raise the Experience Bar by 13%; now it's only about 3%, because his skill has improved and the pills he refines are almost all Gao Ji Yao Shen Dan.

Not to mention the increase in Experience Value each time, the loss has also dropped to twenty thousand—congratulations.

If this trend continues, he may no longer incur losses.

Upon hearing Jiang Cheng's words, the smile that had just appeared on Yang Chun's face vanished instantly.

"Brother, this really puts me in a bit of a bind?"

He let out a sigh.

"Given your status as a Level 1 Spirit Mind Practitioner, borrowing a million resources is already an exception; borrowing more would be putting me, your older brother, in a difficult spot. How about this: you keep refining, and once you've repaid about seventy to eighty percent of that million, I'll lend you another million. How does that sound?"

"Brother Yang, what you say does make sense. However, I have a premonition."

"……"

"Alright, alright, I understand."

Yang Chun, unable to laugh or cry, said, "If I give you enough herbs, your Alchemy Technique can reach a higher level, right?"

"Yes."

Jiang Cheng sketched a scheme.

"Brother Yang, look, right now I can only refine one batch of Primary Spirit Nourishing Pill, earning only five thousand yuan per batch. To repay the one million debt, how many batches would I need? With my current Spiritual Power, how many days would it take?"

"But if you give me enough resources again, letting me keep trying, perhaps I could refine a batch of intermediate Spirit Nourishing Pill or even a Gao Ji Yao Shen Dan. Then the repayment speed would be several times faster, wouldn't it?"

"But that way, the amount you owe would increase again."

"Brother Yang, do you think I wouldn't be able to repay? How about this: Brother Yang, lend me another one or two million worth of herbs, and later I will definitely give you a surprise."

"Is two million a bit too much? How about one million?"

"One million is a bit low, Brother Yang. I feel I've already touched the breakthrough threshold, just missing that final kick. Moreover, my loss per batch has already decreased a lot; on the surface you lent me two million, but actually it's only about one million or even less."

"Fine, fine then."

Yang Chun gritted his teeth and agreed.

He was persuaded by Jiang Cheng.

After all, facts trump rhetoric.

Moreover, he also wanted to see where Jiang Cheng's limit lies.

Soon, another two million worth of herbs reached Jiang Cheng's hands, enough for him to elevate his Alchemy Technique to the Great Achievement Realm.

Leaving the Lian Dan Shi, Yang Chun took a deep breath.

"It's fine, it's fine."

Jiang Cheng is now an Alchemy Master Level 2, even Level Three, because a Mastery Level alchemist can, using two portions of herbs, theoretically refine a single Gao Ji Yao Shen Dan.

So what does a three‑million investment matter? It can all be earned back later! At that moment, his phone rang,

He took out the phone and, upon looking, his expression changed.

The caller was Hong Bin.

He also has another name, Bing Li.

(End of chapter)