CHAPTER 70: CHAPTER 67: HIDDEN QUEST II

Phosphorus Fire Trading Market.

Xia Ling walked slowly to the medium-sized transport vehicle, her eyes examining the Lin Qi she hadn’t seen for a few days, a hint of surprise flickering in her golden pupils.

She hadn’t expected that after just a few days, Lin Qi’s Qi and blood had visibly strengthened.

Although it was impossible to determine exactly how much stronger he had become, from his Qi and blood, it was clear that he definitely had the Apprentice Level strength, which in an outdoor gang would be considered a master.

However, in Xia Ling’s memory, the last time Lin Qi came, he had definitely not reached the Apprentice Level, and even the butler said he was still several years away from it.

"Miss Xia, I’m here to trade again; I hope I’m not disturbing you," Lin Qi said with a smile as he greeted Xia Ling who was approaching.

Xia Ling’s status in the Phosphorus Fire Trading Market was not low, which made trading much less risky.

Previously, he was really worried that after last trade, Xia Ling had figured out his background, knew that the Crocodile Rhino Beef was picked up, and would be unwilling to deal with him, but luckily Xia Ling still came out.

"Mr. Lin, you’re joking. We at the Phosphorus Fire Trading Market trade with our doors open; how could we possibly turn guests away?" Xia Ling smiled, not probing further into Lin Qi’s Qi and blood, and said, "I wonder what Mr. Lin is trading this time?"

To the Phosphorus Fire Trading Market, neither apprentices nor quasi-martial artists mattered; any guard here could suppress a quasi-martial artist, and apprentices were nothing but ants.

"Miss Xia, just take a look in the cargo box," Lin Qi gestured to the medium-sized transport vehicle behind him.

"Mr. Lin likes to be mysterious," Xia Ling laughed, thinking Lin Qi was indeed making a fuss; even if he were to trade another ton of Crocodile Rhino Beef this time, there was no need to be so secretive.

However, Xia Ling was a very easy-going and friendly person and didn’t mind Lin Qi’s mysteriousness. She opened the side door of the cargo box alone and went in.

As for safety, Xia Ling was not worried at all. Not to mention this was the Phosphorus Fire Trading Market, she herself was just half a step away from being an Extreme Apprentice and was confident she could hold her ground for a long time unless facing an expert at the Martial Artist Level.

Inside the not-so-large cargo box, besides a large metal box, there was also a corpse over three meters in size, looking like a large gray bear but with a long tail, lying there quietly.

"Single-Horned Gold-devouring Rat!"

Xia Ling was momentarily stunned at the sight of the corpse, her eyes full of surprise and bewilderment.

The Single-Horned Gold-devouring Rat, though the weakest monster, was exceedingly difficult to kill. A normal quasi-martial artist could confront it head-on for a short time but couldn’t harm it.

Unless they had B Level weapons, but the Single-Horned Gold-devouring Rat was cunning and would flee once it knew it couldn’t overpower, and as they generally lived in groups of three to five, even martial artists found them troublesome.

Of course, with significant manpower, a group of Extreme Apprentices or quasi-martial artists with B Level weapons could kill a Single-Horned Gold-devouring Rat, and that’s how some big gangs in the wild and suburban gangs acquired monster meat, but the sacrifice was substantial, and not many crazy gangs would do so.

More often, it was about purchasing from martial artists to continuously accumulate strength for the gangs; that was the real solution.

It was hard to imagine a burgeoning faction in the wild capable of hunting Single-Horned Gold-devouring Rats.

"Miss Xia, may I know what price you would offer for this Single-Horned Gold-devouring Rat?" Lin Qi walked up, closed the side door of the cargo box, and asked in a low voice.

"The market price for a kilogram of Single-Horned Gold-devouring Rat’s meat is 580 bits; I can offer 600 bits." Xia Ling hesitated hardly at all before saying, "Of course, if Mr. Lin can guarantee a long-term supply, I can raise it to 620 bits."

"Miss Xia, you’re indeed straightforward." Lin Qi nodded; Xia Ling’s price was indeed significantly higher than the market, "Fine, I can provide a long-term supply of Single-Horned Gold-devouring Rats, but I can’t guarantee the timing."

Since the Single-Horned Gold-devouring Rat was the weakest monster, its price per kilogram was naturally lower than the richer-energy Crocodile Rhino Beef, but the price of 620 bits was very satisfying for Lin Qi.

"As long as there is a long-term supply." Xia Ling, seeing Lin Qi able to guarantee a long-term supply, couldn’t help but raise her estimation of Lin Qi’s backing, then glanced at the large metal box beside, "And what’s in the metal box?"

"500 kilograms of Blood Essence Rice, market price 400 bits per kilogram, is Miss Xia interested?" Lin Qi directly stated the price.

Blood Essence Rice had always been a hard currency in Chasing Light City, with a huge demand, but the purchase price always had to be lower than the sale price. With a steady income from Single-Horned Gold-devouring Rats now.

Lin Qi thought that this mature Blood Essence Rice could completely be kept for his own consumption.

"No problem, I’ll take them all." Xia Ling didn’t bargain, her lips curved as she looked at Lin Qi, even leaning in a bit, her beautiful eyes no longer viewing Lin Qi as an insignificant figure, "I wonder if Mr. Lin plans to buy anything from our Phosphorus Fire this time?"

"I need ten sets of second-hand A5-level armor and one set of second-hand A6-level armor," Lin Qi thought for a moment before deciding to purchase armor from Xia Ling, and to get a set for himself as well.

Although he could buy it from the Cangjing Weapon Shop, that would draw too much attention; buying from Xia Ling was different, and second-hand was also cheaper.

"No problem, A5-level armor is 60,000 per set, A6-level armor is 150,000 per set." Although Xia Ling was a bit surprised at the items Lin Qi wanted, not understanding the use of buying such low-end goods, since Lin Qi wanted them, she felt it was a deal worth making.

Subsequently, Lin Qi and Xia Ling completed their transaction.

The Single-Horned Gold-devouring Rat weighed 2315.5 kilograms, with a total value of 1,435,610. The total value of Blood-refined Rice was 200,000. After deducting ten sets of A5 level armor and one set of A6 level armor, Lin Qi received 885,610 bits, instantly making his cash flow more abundant, which was more than enough to purchase materials to repair the entire Martial Arts Hall.

As Lin Qi waited for Xia Ling’s subordinates to deliver the goods, he noticed that many apprentice-level vagabonds from various races were coming to join the Phosphorus Fire Trading Market.

"Miss Xia, why are there so many apprentices coming to join today? Is your gang expanding?" Lin Qi looked at the numerous apprentice-level vagabonds participating in the Phosphorus Fire Gang’s recruitment and was quite surprised.

The Half-Scale Race had increased their influence in Chasing Light City due to the emergence of several genius martial artists, but it was impossible for them to have attracted hundreds of apprentice-level experts.

"That’s not the case." Xia Ling glanced at the long queue and explained, "Recently, hasn’t the White Feather Gang’s wilderness farming base been attacked? The White Feather Gang took action against several suspicious wilderness factions, and those factions were a bit unlucky."

"Originally, the White Feather Gang had been coveting the resources of those ordinary wilderness factions, but without any excuse to act, they feared combined resistance from the factions. Now that the farming base is gone, the White Feather Gang immediately had an excuse. Those factions, unsatisfied with the White Feather Gang’s conditions, were either completely wiped out or had some members join the White Feather Gang."

"The people here include many members from those factions, trying to avoid trouble from the White Feather Gang, so they came to partake in the assessment."

"Is the White Feather Gang that strong? Wiping out several factions in one go?" Lin Qi was somewhat astonished.

The White Feather Gang was just among the top hundred in the wilderness rankings, so he could believe they could counter several ordinary wilderness factions, but wiping them all out in one sweep was quite surprising.

"Recently, the White Feather Gang has indeed added a few experts, growing significantly." Xia Ling said indifferently, "Especially their gang leader and three deputy leaders, who have quietly ascended to the quasi-martial artist level. Such strength is quite normal."

"While quasi-martial artists and extreme apprentices may not differ much in strength, there is a fundamental distinction between the two."

"Once one becomes a quasi-martial artist, it means blood qi has filled the entire body, starting to affect the five organs. Although this influence is minor, the enhancement in the five organs leads to more nutrients for the brain."

"Because of that, even if a quasi-martial artist is only slightly better in strength and speed than an extreme apprentice, their perception and reflexes are far superior."

"This makes it completely feasible for a quasi-martial artist to face three to five extreme apprentices at once. In normal circumstances, apprentices can only suppress or counter quasi-martial artists through the auxiliary effects provided by battle armor."

"I see." Listening to this, Lin Qi finally grasped a new understanding of quasi-martial artists.

He didn’t anticipate that after becoming a quasi-martial artist, the brain would undergo growth, which was far more formidable compared to muscle growth. After all, battles between experts tend to be decided in an instant.

In the case of faster neural responses, the victory balance is obvious.

System: Detection reveals that a player has created a martial artist level martial art, Overlapping Waves Saber.

System: Congratulations to the host for completing the hidden task ’Born with Talent,’ increasing the invite limit by 40 slots.

System: Congratulations to the host for triggering hidden task two ’Geniuses Never Stand Alone,’ allowing players to create ten martial artist level martial arts or training techniques, currently three, reward: invite limit increase by 100 slots, reward: skill fusion, allowing fusion of three same-type martial arts created by players into a new martial art, which the host can directly master to the Realm of Perfection.

"Fusion skills?" Lin Qi was stunned by the system’s generosity when he saw the new hidden task below his field of view.

Inviting extra slots was one thing, but being able to reward fusion skills was beyond expectation. The baseline for player-created martial arts is martial artist level, so the fusion of three same-type martial arts levels this skill to unimaginable heights.

And starting directly at the Realm of Perfection, if this doesn’t drive players to create, it would be a waste of such a reward.

Afterward, Lin Qi purchased forty alloy shovels from Xia Ling, plus synthetic food and water for forty people for a month.

After completing this transaction, Lin Qi hurriedly drove a medium transport vehicle back to the Black Obsidian Martial Arts Hall, without any intention of lingering.

Forty slots, that’s a huge influx, a proper arrangement is a must.

As Lin Qi drove away, a young feather race with a broken arm followed on a small electric motorbike, quickly disappearing from the Phosphorus Fire Trading Market.

"Miss, it seems like someone from the White Feather Gang is tracking them." A half-scale race guard with a battle saber hurried into the room, reporting in a low voice, "Do you need me to handle it?"

"No need, it’s just the White Feather Gang." Xia Ling chuckled, flicking her tail, "If they can’t even handle the White Feather Gang, they won’t qualify for future cooperation."

"Understood!" The half-scale race guard with a battle saber bowed and left, no longer disturbing Xia Ling’s cultivation.

As the sun set, Lin Qi finally returned to the Black Obsidian Martial Arts Hall before sundown. Almost instantly upon returning, he asked the system to open up the new forty slots.

"Captain Mans, I’ve found the base of that faction." The young feather race with a broken arm looked at the majestic martial arts hall in the distance, certain that it must be the base of Lin Qi and his group, as no other faction base outdoors was more than a dilapidated building, the existence of such a sophisticated martial arts hall couldn’t possibly serve any other purpose.

"Okay! Send me the location, and I’ll ask the gang leader for instructions. Once confirmed it’s them, a reward is assured for you." The man named Mans nodded, ending the communication after seeing the location the youth sent.

"The Black Obsidian Martial Arts Hall in the human races’ vagabond gathering area?"

Mans looked at the specific location and left his room, slowly heading upstairs to the White Feather Gang’s gang leader’s residence on the top floor.