Chapter 431: Mere Tricks?

"Don't look down on leakage stones. They aren't worth anything in Chongguang Cheng, and since they cost you nothing, you can take as many as you want. But if you could transport them to the surface, plenty of people would scramble for them."

The companion made an estimate, "One catty can sell for 10 coins."

"How much money would that be?"

The martial artist shook his head with a smile. He must have been crazy; he had actually felt tempted at the start. What leakage stones? They were just piles of dung!

The companion grabbed him, "Weigh it yourself. How heavy is one leakage stone?"

The martial artist picked one up, half-doubting, and his wrist sank slightly. He hadn't expected a single leakage stone to weigh several tens or even a hundred catties.

Doesn't that mean a ball-sized leakage stone is worth 1 tael of silver?

The number of leakage stones spread across the open-pit mine before them was far more than tens of millions. If you did the math...

The martial artist was lost in his fantasies. If all the leakage stones before him were transported to the surface, wouldn't that be...?

His companion poured cold water on him, "Do you think others haven't thought of that?"

That's right!

For leakage stones to be worth anything, they must be transported from underground to the surface. How much transport capacity would a hundred-catty stone require? To make big money, you have to sell them on a large scale, and the transport capacity required for that is simply...

The martial artist suddenly calmed down. He knew why no one did this business: it wasn't worth it!

In these chaotic times, transport capacity is the most precious resource. Rather than transporting large quantities of leakage stones for profit, it is better to switch to other lighter, higher-priced goods.

Transporting a few scattered leakage stones at most adds some fertilizer to one's own land. It's not worth it!

"Sigh, I can't do it either."

The martial artist exhaled. Leakage stones are truly like chicken ribs—the business is impossible to do.

The companion patted his shoulder, "Don't be discouraged. There are other ways. Let me think of something else for you."

While the two were talking, many people arrived at the open-pit mine, using baskets to load three or five leakage stones, clearly for their own use at home.

The sound of ox hooves rang out, and Zhou You and the youth arrived at the open-pit mine.

"Old man, every time I go home, I have to make Daqing carry a few leakage stones back."

"I carry firewood when I come, and leakage stones when I go home. Each time, it helps subsidize quite a bit of money, but it's a pity the leakage stones are too big and heavy."

"During transport, I inevitably run into bandits and wild beasts. To save my life, I have to throw away the leakage stones so Daqing can run faster."

Hearing this, the martial artist shook his head. Indeed, carrying such heavy things makes it impossible to defend against the risks of the wilderness.

Zhou You looked at the ocean of 'gold fertilizer' before him and clicked his tongue in wonder. It was truly a natural marvel, magnificent and spectacular.

The boundless leakage stones extended from the land beneath his feet into the darkness that had no end. It is said they were formed tens of thousands of years ago.

On the road before he arrived, he heard the youth mention the use of leakage stones, and he made his decision immediately.

Young man, a bowl of tea, a meal of noodles—the kindness of a drop of water must be repaid with a gushing spring.

"Niu, I see you have quite a bit of strength. How many leakage stones can you move in one go?"

The youth perked up upon hearing this and flexed his arm, "Old man, let me tell you, I can move 100 leakage stones that weigh a hundred catties each."

"Hmm, 100 leakage stones, that's 1,000 catties. You said leakage stones cost how much per catty on the surface?"

"10 coins per catty."

"Let me calculate... that would be 100,000 coins. Converted, that's worth 100 taels of silver."

Zhou You finished calculating and shook his head, "I don't believe it, unless you can move these stones right in front of me."

The companion shook his head upon hearing this, "This old guy is quite wicked. Seeing the young man is honest and simple, he's deliberately teasing him."

He could also see that the youth was a laborer. Even though the man had plenty of strength, it couldn't be wasted; it all had to be sold for money to fill his stomach.

Moving leakage stones here until his stomach was empty—wouldn't that be a waste of effort? The youth beamed, spat into his palms, and said, "Old man, watch closely." He squatted down, hugged a leakage stone with both arms, exerted force to pull the stone up, walked a few steps, and set it aside.

The martial artist nodded as he watched. The youth was an experienced worker; unlike those who didn't know how to work and only bent their waists, he used the strength of his lower limbs and arms to pull from the bottom up, which caused the least damage to the lumbar spine.

Some laborers have spinal deformities and end up paralyzed in bed before they are forty, just because they didn't know better when they were young and wore out their lumbar joints.

A moment later, the leakage stones the youth had moved were already piled into a small hill.

Sweat poured down like rain, his strength gradually waned, and the arms holding the leakage stones trembled slightly.

"Can you still hold them?"

Hearing this, the youth swallowed with a dry throat, "Old man, I... I'm still okay. I can move 3 more."

"If you can move 3, why not move 2 more and make it 5?"

After the youth moved 5 more, his legs went weak, and he almost couldn't stand steady.

Zhou You said again, "I see you still have strength. Let's round it up—move 5 more and make it 10!"

After moving another 5, the youth really couldn't move anymore and sat on the ground, "Old man, I really can't move anymore. Let me rest."

The companion on the side couldn't help but speak up, "You old thing, is teasing him fun?"

The martial artist thought to himself that Kaibeishou Yan Ping was no kind soul. If they started fighting over a disagreement later, he would have to warn his companion to be extra careful.

Zhou You ignored him and turned to the youth, "You really can't move even one more?"

The youth nodded and wiped the sweat from his face, "Old man, I moved 112 in total. That's a lot."

"Good!"

Zhou You clapped his hands, "These leakage stones are all yours now."

He pinched his own sleeve and said softly to the pile of leakage stones the youth had stacked, "Collect!"

A gust of wind rose from the flat ground, swirling down from the sky and landing on the stone pile. *Pat-pat, pat-pat*, the leakage stones collided and rubbed against each other.

*Boom*, the stone pile instantly scattered, and the leakage stones didn't fall to the ground but instead converged toward the void.

The scene was like a stone sinking into the sea; one by one, the leakage stones vanished without a trace.

In the time of a few breaths, the 112 leakage stones the youth had moved had all disappeared from the spot, not even a speck of stone dust remained.

This scene stunned everyone.

The martial artist and his companion had grave expressions. It wasn't an illusion or a trick; those leakage stones had truly and tangibly disappeared, right before their eyes.

"Old sir, so you are an immortal; I kowtow to you."

Zhou You pulled a pouch from his sleeve and shoved it at the young man, "From now on, lead your Daqing home, do not stop for even a moment on the road, and only open this pouch after you arrive home."

"If you do even one of these steps wrong, you will have failed the tea and noodles you treated me to."

Having said that, Zhou You turned and walked away.

The martial artist's brows twitched, and he beckoned toward his retreating back, "Wait!"

Zhou You ignored him, his figure flickering once before vanishing into the darkness, leaving no trace behind.

A moment later, the martial artist walked up to the young man, "What a coincidence, I happen to be going to the village where you live, let us travel together!"

"Ah, this..."

"Don't worry, that 'old immortal' from just now hasn't gone far, I wouldn't dare harbor any ill intent toward you."

The martial artist was truly curious: where had the stone gone, what was inside the pouch the other party had given, and what kind of trick was Kaibeishou Yan Ping playing? To find the answer, he decided to escort the young man safely back to his village to get to the bottom of it.

(End of chapter)