Chapter 82

"Fengmen Village?"

Su Xiaofan found it somewhat familiar. "I remember now, I know this place. The environment there seems quite harsh."

Su Xiaofan had a junior high school classmate who moved to Jiaocheng Miyang with his family during high school.

It was just last year that this classmate, who was still in college, organized a few friends to go on an outdoor adventure during the winter break.

The place they explored was called "Fengmen Village."

At the time, the classmate was live-streaming in the group chat and took many photos of the mountain paths.

But after entering the mountains for about two hours, he suddenly called for help in the group chat. Before he could explain what happened, he lost contact.

The classmates in the group immediately called the police in Miyang.

It wasn't until two days later that the classmate reappeared in the group and recounted what had happened that day.

According to the classmate, they got lost in the mountains.

Then a heavy snowfall began, and they couldn't find the road out of the mountains, so they were trapped in Fengmen Village.

Fortunately, the rescue team found them the next day; otherwise, they might have starved or frozen to death in the mountains.

It seemed as if he had been warned, and Su Xiaofan felt that the classmate wasn't entirely honest, as if he was holding back some information.

However, since they were just junior high school classmates and hadn't been in touch for many years, everyone in the group just expressed their concern and didn't press for more details.

Now, hearing Tong Dongjie mention the name "Fengmen Village," Su Xiaofan immediately recalled the incident.

"It's not just a harsh environment; there's a spatial rift."

Tong Dongjie sighed and said, "I was blinded by greed and didn't investigate thoroughly before signing the investment contract. After the funds were invested, I couldn't withdraw them even if I wanted to."

Thinking about it, Tong Dongjie was really frustrated.

Actually, the residents of Fengmen Village had started moving out about 15 years ago.

At the time, the official reason given was that the environment in the mountains was too harsh, necessitating the relocation of the entire village.

But when Tong Dongjie invested, he didn't think about it: how could the environment be worse than it was hundreds of years ago?

In those conditions, Fengmen Village had existed and thrived for centuries. How could it suddenly become unsustainable in modern times?

Later, Tong Dongjie realized he might have been scammed because the road he built wasn't just to Fengmen Village but also part of a highway.

However, he couldn't publicize this, so Tong Dongjie had to find a way to help himself, hoping to resolve the spatial rift and continue his development plans.

"Can we help with this?" Su Xiaofan looked at his master.

Although he was now a cultivator who had unblocked the Grand Circulation, Su Xiaofan felt that besides being stronger, he didn't have any other special abilities.

"At least you're stronger than those who practice ancient martial arts." Jing Shizhen smiled.

"Uncle Jing, don't tease me. I admit you're all powerful."

Tong Dongjie chuckled and said to Su Xiaofan, "You have true qi and can use magical artifacts, but we can't."

"How do you use magical artifacts? Aren't they passive?" Su Xiaofan was surprised; it was the first time he had heard this.

"Uncle Jing, what do you mean?" Tong Dongjie turned to look at Jing Shizhen, feeling that Su Xiaofan seemed like a complete novice.

"Cough, I've only had him as a disciple for a short time and haven't had the chance to teach him yet."

Jing Shizhen's face turned red, and he waved his hand. "Xiaofan, you can definitely help, but you shouldn't do it for free. Continue the discussion."

"I don't even know how I can help, how can we discuss it?"

Su Xiaofan muttered, looking at his master with a pained expression.

"Well, according to my standards, give him one-third." Jing Shizhen felt a bit embarrassed under Su Xiaofan's gaze.

"Master, what are your standards?" Su Xiaofan asked.

"One hundred million!"

Tong Dongjie said, "That's the price we offered Uncle Jing. Brother Xiaofan, how about thirty million?"

"One hundred million, thirty million?"

Su Xiaofan was stunned by the numbers Tong Dongjie mentioned. He felt a bit uneasy, not knowing what kind of work could command such a high price.

"Yes, this is called a consultation fee."

Jing Shizhen nodded and looked at Tong Dongjie. "But it's not easy to earn. You get the money only if the problem is solved. If not, you get one million as a token of appreciation."

Hearing this, Tong Dongjie quickly said, "Uncle Jing, you will definitely solve it."

As a businessman, Tong Dongjie's money wasn't easy to come by. He would only get paid if the deal was successful. If Jing Shizhen failed, he wouldn't get the one hundred million.

Of course, Tong Dongjie hoped Jing Shizhen would complete the task.

The initial investment was too large, and if the project failed, his listed company would suffer significant losses, far more than the initial investment.

"Master, is it dangerous? I'm only twenty this year."

Su Xiaofan looked at Jing Shizhen with pleading eyes. He was tempted by the thirty million, but his life was more important.

Besides, with the repair system, earning money wasn't that difficult for Su Xiaofan. After the autumn auction, he might have thirty million in his account.

"Look at you, aren't you afraid of ghosts?"

Feeling that his disciple was embarrassing him, Jing Shizhen glared at Su Xiaofan.

"I'm not afraid of ghosts. What's there to be afraid of?" Su Xiaofan said confidently. "But I'm afraid of dying. Who knows what that spatial rift is about."

"It's not that dangerous. Dongjie won't be in trouble there. It mostly affects ordinary people."

Jing Shizhen reassured Su Xiaofan. He wasn't a novice and had some confidence in handling the situation.

"Alright, I'll go with Master."

Su Xiaofan nodded and said to Tong Dongjie, "Brother Dong, money isn't the most important thing. I know you're a collector. I want to collect something. Do you have it?"

"Hmm? What kind of antique does Brother Xiaofan want? Tell me."

Tong Dongjie was surprised; he didn't expect Su Xiaofan to refuse the money.

"Meteorites!"

Su Xiaofan said, "I want rare meteorites, like lunar meteorites or volcanic meteorites. Do you have any in your collection?"

For Su Xiaofan, money wasn't the most important thing; what mattered was how to increase his repair points.

Su Xiaofan's repair points were down to 46, not enough for one Grand Circulation, which made him feel uneasy.

"Meteorites? There aren't many collectors of meteorites in China, right?"

Tong Dongjie frowned. "I don't collect them, but I remember Uncle Jing once bought a meteorite abroad."

The incident of Su Xiaofan buying the meteorite happened after Tong Dongjie left, so he didn't know that Jing Shizhen's meteorite had already been bought by Su Xiaofan.

"Don't think about mine. I already sold it to him."

Jing Shizhen said, glancing at Su Xiaofan. He couldn't understand why Su Xiaofan was so interested in meteorites.

"I really don't have any." Tong Dongjie shrugged. "Xiaofan, can you change your request? Bronze artifacts? Paintings? Or porcelain?"

"Never mind. I collect meteorites because there are few collectors in China, and it's easier to speculate in the future."

Su Xiaofan shook his head, disappointed.

"There are more meteorites abroad, but it's not impossible. We just need to seize the opportunity."

Tong Dongjie said, "Foreign auction houses send me catalogs before auctions. I've seen meteorites in the catalogs before. I can help you keep an eye out."

"Then just give the money."

Jing Shizhen interjected, "I have those catalogs too. You don't need to worry about it, Dongjie. I have more comprehensive information."

Tong Dongjie was just a personal collector, while Jing Shizhen was both a collector and an insider in the industry, with much broader channels.

"Alright, I'll follow Master's advice."

Su Xiaofan nodded, agreeing. This was a chance for his master to help him get rich, and he had no reason to refuse.

"Good, Uncle Jing, Brother Xiaofan, rest for a while. I'll call you for dinner later."

Tong Dongjie felt relieved. Previously, Uncle Jing had said he would bring an assistant, and if Su Xiaofan refused, there might have been more complications.

"Master, I don't know anything. Won't I be a burden?"

After Tong Dongjie left, Su Xiaofan looked at his master. He wanted to make it clear that he might not be much help and didn't want to be seen as taking money for nothing.

"How can you be a burden? Just by unblocking the Grand Circulation, you're worth this much. I would have asked for less."

Jing Shizhen had thought Su Xiaofan had only unblocked the Small Circulation, but he was pleasantly surprised to find that the boy had unblocked the Grand Circulation.

"Memorize this. After unblocking the Grand Circulation, unblocking these meridians shouldn't be a problem."

Jing Shizhen took out a piece of paper with images and text.

"Master, why not just send it to me? Who uses paper these days?" Su Xiaofan found it troublesome.

"Xiaofan, remember, cultivation techniques should not be easily shared."

Jing Shizhen's smile faded. "In our lineage, the techniques are memorized, not written down. Modern electronic devices are unreliable."

Jing Shizhen wasn't out of touch; he simply didn't trust the internet. Their lineage had been passed down for thousands of years without issues, and he wouldn't change that.

"Alright, I'll follow Master's advice."

Su Xiaofan agreed. The internet indeed had security issues, and cloud data and computing had eroded personal privacy.

Taking the paper with the cultivation technique, Su Xiaofan carefully read it.

"Palm Thunder?!"

Seeing the name at the top of the technique, Su Xiaofan couldn't help but smile. The name alone sounded impressive.