Chapter 42

"Prince Ninth, please follow me, the master of the manor is waiting for you inside."

The Ninth Steward led the way, guiding Zhang Ruochen into the Wu Market Bank.

Ninth Princess and Shan Xiangling remained outside. With their status, they did not yet have the qualifications to meet the master of the Wu Market Bank.

After Zhang Ruochen and the Ninth Steward left, Liu Chengfeng’s eyes narrowed slightly, and he thought to himself, "Damn! Father actually agreed to see him, what makes him so special?"

Then, Liu Chengfeng’s gaze turned to Shan Xiangling and Ninth Princess. He immediately put away his cold expression, revealing a smile that he thought was dashing and charming, and slightly bowed, saying, "Miss Xiangling, I have long heard of your reputation. I wonder if I could invite you to tour the capital city together?"

In his view, with his status, the daughter of a mere Chiyun Sect Sect Master would not dare to refuse him.

As long as he could be alone with her, he wouldn’t have to worry about not having the chance to take her down.

...

Liu Chuanshen was a legendary figure in Yunwu County, controlling all the military and financial power of the Wu Market Bank in Yunwu County, ranking among the top ten figures in Yunwu County.

Unless it was someone of the level of the Yunwu County King, it would be extremely difficult for ordinary martial artists to meet him.

From the moment Zhang Ruochen saw Liu Chuanshen, he could sense that this person’s martial cultivation was unfathomable, exuding a powerful aura.

If it were an ordinary martial artist, they would have been trembling in front of Liu Chuanshen, not daring to look him in the eye.

But Zhang Ruochen was no ordinary person. He said calmly, "I have long heard of the master’s reputation, and indeed, you are a person of extraordinary bearing."

"Prince Ninth is a dragon among men, and I have also heard much about you!" Liu Chuanshen stood above in the living room, deliberately emitting his aura to intimidate Zhang Ruochen.

He observed every move Zhang Ruochen made as he walked in, secretly admiring his composure and calmness. If Liu Chengfeng had half of his temperament, how much better would it be?

Zhang Ruochen sat opposite Liu Chuanshen and said, "Let’s skip the formalities. I have come to the Wu Market Bank to do business with the master. I believe you will not be disappointed after seeing the goods."

As he spoke, Zhang Ruochen took off his spatial ring and placed it on the table, pushing it towards Liu Chuanshen.

"Is it just a jade finger ring?" Liu Chuanshen took the jade finger ring, frowning slightly.

Zhang Ruochen said, "Master, try infusing your true qi into the ring."

Liu Chuanshen immediately infused his true qi into the jade finger ring, activating the six spatial inscriptions inside. A layer of white light emerged from the ring.

Liu Chuanshen extended his finger towards the jade finger ring, and his entire hand immediately disappeared, as if it had been swallowed by the ring.

"This..."

Liu Chuanshen’s eyes immediately became incredibly vivid, with a hint of surprise. He said excitedly, "The ring has its own space! I wonder where Prince Ninth obtained this spatial treasure?"

Zhang Ruochen said, "This... I’m afraid it’s not convenient to say."

Liu Chuanshen retracted his true qi, calming his excitement, and said, "In the entire Kunlun World, there are fewer than ten spatial treasures, each of them extremely precious. However, the spatial treasure you have presented seems to be of a lower grade, with a very small space. It can only be considered a third-grade True Martial Treasure!"

Zhang Ruochen said, "If I sell this spatial treasure to the master, what price can it fetch?"

Liu Chuanshen was very interested in the spatial treasure but kept a calm expression, saying, "The value of a typical third-grade True Martial Treasure ranges from three thousand silver coins to ten thousand silver coins. Since it is a spatial treasure, it should be sold at the highest price, ten thousand silver coins."

"Two hundred thousand silver coins." Zhang Ruochen directly increased the price twentyfold.

Liu Chuanshen smiled slightly, shaking his head, and said, "Prince Ninth, this isn’t doing business! You are simply trying to extort money. Doing business isn’t done this way. If the space inside the spatial treasure were ten times larger, I could offer two hundred thousand silver coins. Your spatial treasure’s internal space is too small! How about this: I will offer twenty thousand silver coins in my personal name to buy your spatial ring."

"Fifteen thousand silver coins!" Zhang Ruochen said.

"Thirty thousand silver coins!" Liu Chuanshen said.

"Twelve thousand silver coins!" Zhang Ruochen said.

"Forty thousand silver coins!" Liu Chuanshen said.

Zhang Ruochen made his final concession, saying, "One hundred thousand silver coins, no less."

"Fine! One hundred thousand silver coins, deal!" Liu Chuanshen laughed heartily, immediately putting the spatial ring on his finger and examining it carefully, saying, "Should I deposit one hundred thousand silver coins into Prince Ninth’s three-star noble card at the Wu Market Bank, or should I exchange it for spirit crystals?"

Zhang Ruochen inwardly cursed the old fox, saying, "Deposit it into the three-star noble card."

He still needed one hundred thousand silver coins to buy a refining furnace.

He had to think of another way!

Zhang Ruochen took the three-star noble card from Liu Chuanshen and suddenly thought, "Since I’m here at the Wu Market Bank, how can I not visit the Wu Market Arena? I should be able to earn the remaining one hundred thousand silver coins there."

The "Wu Market Arena" is a martial arena established by the Wu Market Bank, with a long history, representing the spirit of martial artists, and is a good place to gain fame.

As long as one is confident in their cultivation, most would go to the Wu Market Arena to prove their strength.

If one can win ten consecutive matches in the Wu Market Arena, they can receive a substantial silver coin reward and be ranked on the Wu Market Bank’s ranking list.

Once on the list, one can become famous throughout the world.

If one’s combat strength is strong enough and their ranking is high enough, even other counties and countries would know their name.

The Wu Market Bank has established four major ranking lists: the Yellow List, the Black List, the Earth List, and the Heaven List.

The Wu Market Bank is widespread, with a highly developed intelligence network. They not only analyze the performance of martial artists in the arena but also collect and organize other information about martial artists to create the lists.

Therefore, the accuracy of the Wu Market Bank’s four major ranking lists is extremely high.

Of course, one must participate in the Wu Market Arena to become a member of the list. Otherwise, with the vast world and numerous martial artists, the Wu Market Bank would not be able to keep track of everyone.

Winning ten consecutive matches on the Yellow Stage can place one on the Yellow List. The more consecutive wins, the higher the ranking on the Yellow List.

Winning ten consecutive matches on the Black Stage can place one on the Black List.

Winning ten consecutive matches on the Earth Stage can place one on the Earth List.

Winning ten consecutive matches on the Heaven Stage can place one on the Heaven List.

Due to the rarity of Earth and Heaven Realm martial artists, there are no Earth or Heaven Stages in Yunwu County.

With Zhang Ruochen’s current cultivation, he can only participate in the Yellow Stage.

If he can win ten consecutive matches on the Yellow Stage, he will not only receive a reward of one hundred thousand silver coins but also become a member of the Yellow List.

Currently, there are only twenty-seven Yellow List martial artists in the entire Yunwu County, each of whom is a dominant force in the Yellow Realm, virtually invincible.

The turnover of Yellow List martial artists is actually quite high, as they are already at the peak of the Yellow Realm and can break through to the Black Realm at any time. Once they break through to the Black Realm, they are no longer Yellow List martial artists.

Of course, as old Yellow List martial artists leave, new ones will emerge. In general, the number of Yellow List martial artists in Yunwu County has always been around twenty to thirty.

The Yellow List martial artists of Yunwu County have their own separate list and are not ranked together with those from other counties. Therefore, the Yellow List martial artists of Yunwu County are ranked from first to twenty-seventh.

Liu Chengfeng is a Yellow List martial artist, with a highest consecutive win record of thirteen matches, placing him eleventh on the Yellow List.

Among the young generation in the capital city, he is considered the strongest. The ten people ranked above him are all veteran martial artists who have been cultivating for decades.

These veteran martial artists, unable to break through to the Black Realm, have refined their martial techniques and accumulated extensive combat experience, possessing various unpredictable and mysterious skills. The young generation of martial artists are no match for them.

Zhang Ruochen mentioned his idea to Liu Chuanshen.

"Prince Ninth is going to participate in the Yellow Stage?"

"Given Prince Ninth’s current cultivation... it might still be a bit challenging. If Prince Ninth cultivates for another three to five years and reaches the peak of the Yellow Realm, he will definitely become a powerful Yellow List martial artist." Liu Chuanshen said.

Liu Chuanshen could not see through Zhang Ruochen’s current cultivation, only knowing that during the recent year-end assessment, Zhang Ruochen was at the Lesser Yellow Realm.

Even if his cultivation had improved to the Middle Yellow Realm, it would be impossible for him to become a Yellow List martial artist. Winning three consecutive matches in the Wu Market Arena would be a good achievement!

"Whether I can become a Yellow List martial artist will only be known after the battle. Isn’t that right?" Zhang Ruochen said.

"Since Prince Ninth is so confident, I won’t try to dissuade you! It just so happens that I am going to inspect the Wu Market Arena today, so let’s go together!"

Liu Chuanshen stood up and walked out with Zhang Ruochen.

Just as they reached the entrance of the Wu Market Bank, they heard a commotion outside.

"This gentleman sincerely invited you to tour the capital city, and you dare to refuse me. You are truly ungrateful. Men, seize this wench and clean her up, then send her to my room." Liu Chengfeng said angrily.

After being rejected by Shan Xiangling, Liu Chengfeng immediately became furious and felt that his dignity had been damaged. Therefore, he planned to use force and take her by force.

Two guards immediately approached Shan Xiangling. They were already used to such incidents, as any woman Liu Chengfeng favored, even the daughter of a Sect Master, would not be able to escape.

How could the Chiyun Sect dare to offend the Wu Market Bank?

Once Liu Chengfeng was done with her, they might even have a chance to get a share of the spoils.

Shan Xiangling’s face changed, and she said, "Liu Chengfeng, you are a Yellow List martial artist and the son of the Wu Market Bank’s master. How can your character be so despicable?"

Liu Chengfeng laughed loudly and said, "You will know whether my character is good or not tonight! I advise you not to resist. You should know the consequences of offending the Wu Market Bank. By then, not only you, but the entire Chiyun Sect will be destroyed in a single night."

Shan Xiangling bit her lip, feeling extremely angry, but she indeed dared not offend the Wu Market Bank. The Wu Market Bank’s power was too vast, and they could destroy the Chiyun Sect with just a word.

Just as Liu Chengfeng was laughing wildly, Zhang Ruochen and Liu Chuanshen walked out of the Wu Market Bank’s entrance.