Chapter 6: [The Old Grandma Didn't Lie!]
The girl Gu stood by the ticket counter, watched for a while, then shifted her steps to walk away—No!
Something was terribly wrong!
Why didn't those people pay when buying tickets? That little iron box just swiped, made a beep sound… What was that about?
What should I do?
Third Uncle said buying train tickets in the outside world requires an ID card, but the certificate he made for me is different from others!
Also, money…
Why doesn't anyone use money here? That little iron box just swipes?
The girl couldn't help but pinch the stack of paper banknotes—Dragon Coins hidden in her pocket—all ten-yuan and five-yuan denominations.
Just at this moment, several small thugs near the station had already set their sights on her.
This girl, at first glance, dressed so dirtily it was sinister.
Look again at her face, yet she was so beautiful it was sinister!
Two or three small thugs closed in, one of whom stood right in front of girl Gu.
"Little sister, can't find a place to eat, huh? Want us to take you to a cheap eatery?"
The one speaking right in front kept his eyes fixed on the girl's face, then looked at the pale white neck exposed by her collar.
Holy crap!
Can a golden phoenix really fly out of a straw nest?
This girl dresses so dirtily, yet she's so beautiful it's sinister!
Which mountain hollow did she crawl out of?
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Girl Gu looked at the three, secretly took a breath.
She silently recited Third Uncle's words from before she left a few times in her heart.
The next second, a sweet smile spread across the girl's face.
She nodded, her voice soft and sticky: "Okay~"
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A few minutes later, in a small alley two hundred meters outside the station.
The three small thugs lay behind a garbage pile; one of them had his arm bent at a grotesque angle.
Girl Gu walked out hugging the wall, casually wiping a tender palm against the wall to brush off dust.
Hmm, got blood on it, made my sleeve dirty, not happy!
She turned her head, looking dissatisfied at the three people lying on the ground.
Holding the little iron box in her hand—snatched from someone's grasp.
How does this thing work?
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Back outside the station, girl Gu walked around the station once, saw the freight yard behind it, checked left and right to ensure no one was around, then crouched low…
She vaulted over the red brick wall.
Can't buy a ticket, can't I just hop the train!
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Moreover, moreover, moreover…
A freight train was moving along the tracks.
The middle open carriage was filled with coal.
The young girl sat in the coal pile; her originally neat little jacket was now stained black all over.
The girl felt even more unhappy in her heart.
People in this outside world only wear one piece of clothing!
Hmph, that Chen family dog-man, I'll hold you responsible for all this!
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Four days later, Chen Yan had already boarded a flight to Gang City.
Chen Yan possessed a Gang City permit—HR had required him to get it three months ago upon joining, saying what if he needed to travel to Gang City for the company later, what if?
So he got it, and what's more, paid for it himself.
Just those few dozen yuan, they wouldn't even reimburse.
Well, anyway, everyone in the workplace knows HR doesn't do HR stuff.
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The seventh day of mourning had passed, the funeral back home had ended, and the elder was buried and at rest.
Chen Yan had settled affairs back home and thanked the villagers as required.
Leaving home this time, sitting on the plane, actually Chen Yan felt somewhat uneasy in his heart.
This trip to Gang City, Chen Yan had gritted his teeth to make the decision, because… the flight ticket cost almost all of Chen Yan's savings.
After buying the ticket and booking a cheap small hotel in Gang City online, Chen Yan's bank card balance was left with only three hundred and thirty-eight yuan, not even enough for a return ticket.
As the plane took off, Chen Yan almost held the mindset of "The wind blows bleakly, the Yi River is cold"—if this bank account was fake, if the Old Grandma was playing him, then Chen Yan's only way out would be to beg his way home from Gang City.
After the plane climbed to altitude and flew steadily, Chen Yan took out the Old Grandma's "secret manual" and continued flipping through it.
This had become Chen Yan's daily habit these past few days.
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The contents recorded in the secret manual left by the Old Grandma were mainly divided into three major categories.
The first is a cultivation method.
He memorized two sets: one called the "Primordial Qi Transport Method," and the other called the "Fortune Circulation Cycle."
Upon seeing the "Fortune Circulation Cycle," Chen Yan immediately understood it was for fortune-telling and calculating luck—he had grown up with the Old Grandma and learned some Tiangang and Disha numerology algorithms, so with that basic foundation, he grasped this "Fortune Circulation Cycle" at a glance.
He just didn't know if the fortune-telling was actually effective.
The "Primordial Qi Transport Method" could be regarded as a basic cultivation method; in martial arts novels, it would be internal energy, while in the cultivation system, it is called cultivation method spiritual power. However, in the Old Grandma's booklet, it was named Primordial Qi.
It stated that all living beings are born carrying the Primordial Qi of Heaven and Earth, but once they enter the world, it slowly dissipates, leaving little residue. The older one gets, the less remains.
Therefore, most ordinary living beings are healthy when young, but become sick, frail, and weak in old age.
Those born weak simply lacked sufficient Primordial Qi at birth; their Qi had leaked away while still in the womb.
For ordinary people, after birth, the Primordial Qi only decreases and never increases. But with a cultivation method, this Primordial Qi can be slowly accumulated.
When Primordial Qi is inhaled into the body, it strengthens the physique in minor cases; at higher depths, one can use this Primordial Qi to cast various strange arts.
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Chen Yan began trying to practice this Primordial Qi Transport Method the day after he obtained the booklet.
That same night, he felt a slight sensation in his upper, middle, and lower dantians, and his whole body experienced the taste of slightly absorbing the Primordial Qi of Heaven and Earth into the body—like soaking in warm water, repeatedly and subtly flushing the inside and outside of his body.
Finally, having cultivated until the Primordial Qi entered his body, Chen Yan judged that he had entered the threshold.
That night, in the middle of the night, he suddenly felt unbearable abdominal pain, bounced up from the bed, and rushed straight to the toilet.
Then, that night, he ran five or six times!
In the end, Chen Yan was completely exhausted; he simply didn't return to the room, took a pillow, sat directly on the toilet, and rested his head against the wall.
Chen Yan actually had some fantasies in his heart that day:
He had seen these symptoms in ancient web novels: when practicing a cultivation method, one starts by purifying the body and expelling impurities from within?
Was this wave a Renaissance?
It wasn't until the next day that he realized it was just gastroenteritis.
He hadn't eaten anything two days before the Old Grandma's funeral and had starved himself badly.
Later, when he stopped grieving, he ate a huge meal, and then... his stomach couldn't handle it.
However, he didn't know if it was psychological, but he felt that after running to the toilet all night, sleeping until dawn, and getting up, his body felt much lighter.
Moreover, when practicing this Primordial Qi Transport Method again, the sensation of Primordial Qi entering the body became much smoother; it was no longer intermittent as at the start, but became faint yet continuous.
Hmm, at this point, Chen Yan was certain that his Primordial Qi Transport Method had officially entered the threshold.
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The second major category recorded in the booklet was various spells.
They looked colorful and dazzling.
There was the method to open the Third Eye and observe Qi to view people, the method to retrieve objects from a distance, the manipulation of strange arts for transport, and lethal means to suppress evil and slay ghosts...
To put it this way, Chen Yan felt it was very fantasy-like.
The third category was object appraisal—this was very fragmented, similar to instructions for making simple magical artifacts.
However, Chen Yan could not yet use the second and third categories.
His Primordial Qi had just entered the threshold; he had not yet been able to cast spells, and as for making magical artifacts... there was no sign of that yet.
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During the days handling the funeral in his hometown, Chen Yan persisted in sitting in meditation to practice the "Primordial Qi Transport Method" every day—actually, the book didn't say whether sitting in meditation was necessary to practice this thing, but Chen Yan thought that having watched so many movies, TV shows, and novels, whenever one practiced martial arts, it seemed to be done in this posture.
As for the "Fortune Circulation Cycle," which could calculate luck, Chen Yan calculated his own fortune seven or eight times every day.
According to the fortune algorithm, his recent luck was good; it wasn't great fortune, but overall, he should encounter some small luck.
Chen Yan waited for two or three days, and finally, on the night before leaving home, on the way back after thanking the village head.
He picked up five yuan.
Then he calculated his own fortune again... and it was just a flat line.
This... counts as effective, right?
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A few hours later, the exhausted Chen Yan walked out of Gangcheng Airport, carrying the Shanzhai Rimowa suitcase he had bought on Taobao six months ago, looking at the unfamiliar streets, still feeling as if he were in a dream.
Gangcheng was not large, but prices were high, and taxis were expensive. A bottle of mineral water in the supermarket cost several yuan.
He checked the time; it was just before two in the afternoon.
No hotel; straight to the bank!
……
On a certain street in Central, Gangcheng.
Looking at the building before him, which was obviously very grand.
He carefully read the sign and confirmed he had not gone to the wrong place—a branch in Gangcheng of an old private bank with British capital, said to have a long history.
Chen Yan took a deep breath and walked into the lobby.
Unlike the atmosphere in banks on the mainland, which were always bustling, with many retired old men and old women coming to enjoy the air conditioning, the lobby of this private bank was not very spacious, and it was cold and empty, without the huge enclosed counters found in domestic banks.
Behind a reception desk sat a female employee in professional attire; she looked like a local Hong Kong girl.
Seeing Chen Yan sneak in somewhat suspiciously, this female employee immediately stood up, smiled politely, and then said a sentence in English.
Chen Yan was a poor student; during his school days, his English had barely scraped by the passing line.
He frowned, "Can you speak Dragon Country Standard Language? I have business to handle."
The polite professional smile on the female employee's face remained unmoved, but her eyes clearly... hmm.
Chen Yan stared into the other person's eyes and took the hexagonal key out of his pocket.
Only then did the female employee's expression become solemn; her face immediately showed a smile again. She picked up the phone on the desk, dialed a few numbers, and said something.
Two minutes later.
"Hello, Mr. Jin Guang, I am Luca Sommer, the manager in charge of Asia-Pacific region clients for this bank. It is my honor to serve you."
Standing before him was a white, well-dressed, handsome older gentleman, clearly the kind of pure-blooded old white man.
Unexpectedly, this white, handsome older gentleman's Chinese was actually quite standard.
Chen Yan glanced at the Hong Kong girl behind the reception desk.
In these times, countless foreigners study the Dragon Nation language diligently just to do business with Dragon Nation people, yet some locals in Hong Kong still put on airs, thinking that for Dragon Nation people to speak the Dragon Nation language is a disgrace to them?
Two words to describe it: cheap!
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After the white, handsome older gentleman asked Chen Yan to show his account and key, he sent someone to verify them, then soon personally led Chen Yan into a VIP elevator.
"Your account is that of our VIP-level user, located in the bank's underground vault. According to regulations, you may store or withdraw any of your items inside at will."
Chen Yan actually knew this; before coming, he had searched online. The vault service of this ancient private bank: it recognizes the key, not the person. Clients could even leave no specific personal information.
Hmm... seems very convenient for some things that can't see the light of day.
After the white, handsome older gentleman brought him to the underground vault, accompanied by him and two people who should be security personnel, Chen Yan entered a room.
Sommer pointed to another door in the room: "Your exclusive vault is inside..."
Isn't it a safe?
It's a 【vault】?
Chen Yan was somewhat surprised.
"Our authority only allows us to accompany guests this far. The first door of the room can be opened with your account code; the vault door inside can only be opened by your exclusive key. Wish you a pleasant mood."
After Sommer finished speaking, he led the two security personnel and politely withdrew outside the door.
Chen Yan watched the door close and took a deep breath.
He entered the account code into the password door on the other side of the room.
After the door opened, inside was a passage that was not too narrow.
Three to five meters long, and at the end stood, unmistakably, a large all-metal door.
Chen Yan's heart pounded as he walked over, found the keyhole on the large door, his fingers trembling slightly, took out the hexagonal key, inserted it into the keyhole, and then gently twisted it.
After a series of "click-click-click" sounds came from inside the door, this circular metal door slowly opened.
Standing outside the vault door, Chen Yan took just one glance inside at the various blinding Jin Guang, his eyes filled with excitement, happiness, and shock!
"Grandma... indeed didn't lie to me!!"
At this moment, Chen Yan was so happy he almost had a cerebral hemorrhage!
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End of Chapter
