179: Chapter 179 I thought you were going to pull out a Tang sword.

Further inside the shop, there was an exclusive forging room separated from the front desk by a considerable distance.

After setting down the hammer in his hand, Qin Lie wiped the sweat from his forehead and took a breath.

His condition today wasn't very good; he felt a bit tired after forging just a few rough blanks for items.

But it didn't matter. With his current status, he could stop whenever he wanted. He didn't have to worry that stopping would cause him to lose popularity or face 'hiatus' issues like a web novel author.

On the contrary, during the days he rested, the prices offered outside would only climb higher and higher.

Speaking of which, Qin Lie was truly grateful in his heart for the suggestion Gu Changming had given him back then: to take the high-end boutique route.

Not only was it effective for improving his skills, but it also allowed him to earn more money in less time.

If someone had told him back then that one day he would be called Master Qin, he certainly wouldn't have believed it.

Even now, he still found it a bit hard to believe. Many times when he heard it, he would feel a sense of daze.

Wiping the sweat off his face with a towel, Qin Lie stretched his body and intended to head out through another door to return to his residence on the upper floor.

However, at that moment, a sudden commotion came from the shop's entrance passage below.

He stopped in his tracks and looked over curiously.

A clerk walked in quickly and immediately bowed respectfully upon seeing him. "Master Qin, there's a customer..."

“Hmm?” Qin Lie grunted and asked in confusion, “Didn't I just have someone go down and say that today's quota is finished?”

The clerk hesitated for a moment before speaking, “Uh... someone says they are your friend.”

Qin Lie pursed his lips, his brow furrowing involuntarily, and then he waved his hand impatiently.

“Haven't I told you all? No matter who comes and says they're my friend or relative, you don't need to pay them any mind.”

Ever since he had gained some fame for his forging, these 'friends' and 'relatives' of his had mysteriously increased in number. He didn't even know when he had met so many people.

Why didn't these people come to support his business at the start of the Assessment, when he was still destitute and hadn't even received a single order?

Instead, they all swarmed toward him like ghosts and monsters now that he had achieved a bit of development.

He only had one such friend now.

But... he didn't know where that person was. He hadn't heard any news of him since they parted ways last time.

Hearing Qin Lie's impatient tone, the clerk quickly lowered his head, not daring to say more, and prepared to withdraw.

However, after taking a few steps back, he suddenly remembered the fifty-point tip.

After some thought, he gritted his teeth and spoke up, “Master, I wasn't going to report it to you, but he said he has an item you once crafted and wants you to take a look...”

By mentioning this, he had already done right by the fifty points he had received.

Even if Qin Lie refused, he could go back and give that person an account of his actions; it wouldn't count as taking money without doing the work.

“Hmm?”

Hearing this, Qin Lie looked over with some curiosity.

Something he had crafted?

He thought for a moment, walked forward, and reached out his hand.

“Let me see.”

Seeing this, the clerk immediately reached into his pocket and pulled out the nightwalker gloves.

Before he could even hand them over, he saw Qin Lie's expression change instantly.

First, he was stunned, and then his eyes widened as if he were seeing something unbelievable.

“Ah?” Qin Lie immediately reached out and snatched the gloves.

Looking at the information description of the nightwalker gloves on the panel, he confirmed that he hadn't seen wrongly.

These were the very nightwalker gloves he had given to Gu Changming when they parted ways.

“Who gave these to you?” Qin Lie suddenly looked up and asked.

The clerk was also a bit dazed; he had never seen Qin Lie react like this before.

He spoke blankly, “It's... the customer I mentioned who said he knows you.”

Qin Lie blinked rapidly a few times. “Is he about the same age as me, and quite clean-cut and good-looking?”

The clerk thought for a moment, feeling that this description wasn't very precise.

But that guy did seem to fit that description.

“It seems so,” he replied.

After confirming, a complex look flashed across Qin Lie's face—excitement, surprise, and agitation.

In the next second, he immediately set off, heading toward the passage leading to the front desk.

“He's still at the front desk, right?” Qin Lie walked briskly.

“Yes!” The clerk also immediately followed him.

He finally understood now that the guy really did know Master Qin.

It's over, would he have to return the fifty-point tip he collected?

...

At the shop's front desk.

Gu Changming and the other person were already sitting on the chairs used for receiving guests.

At the same time, the other customers in the shop had not all left.

Some were still planning to struggle for a chance, while others had already started queuing for the second day, intending to wait right there until the next morning.

Bored, Gu Changming produced several threads from the Thousand Silk Shuttle, letting them swim through his hands.

Meanwhile, Chen Yiming was circling around him, staring at him curiously with those eyes of hers.

“Thwack!”

Gu Changming knocked her with a fist. “What are you doing?”

Chen Yiming behaved herself and sat back in her chair, then curled her lip and said:

“I thought just now that you would pull out a Tang Dao.”

“Hmm?” Gu Changming stopped his movements and looked over. “Why would you think that?”

“Because the first weapon Qin Lie forged for his Patron back then was a pitch-black Tang Dao.” Chen Yiming rested her chin on her hand, thinking hard. “So I thought, could you be that rumored Patron? But unfortunately, you don't seem to have that kind of ability.”

Gu Changming was so generous with his money, and he even said he knew Qin Lie.

It was hard for her not to associate him with that rumored Patron Daddy.

Unfortunately, what Gu Changming had just pulled out was not that Tang Dao weapon.

“I'll show you later.” Gu Changming retracted the silk threads into his clothes.

However, Chen Yiming didn't believe his truth. She sighed and patted him on the shoulder.

“Just confess, you don't actually know Master Qin, do you? Go ahead and say it, I won't look down on you. I lie all the time too.”

Hearing this, Gu Changming no longer had the heart to argue or explain; he simply rolled his eyes.

Another few minutes passed.

Chen Yiming kept staring at the passage leading to the inner rooms, but there was still no movement.

She stole a glance at the two burly shop guards not far away.

“How about we slip away?” she whispered. “Otherwise, what if they find out you're lying and throw us out?”

Gu Changming was about to do something, but in the next second, he sensed something and looked up toward the passage.

Chen Yiming noticed his movement and followed his gaze.

Just as her eyes landed, a figure came rushing out from the passage.

Qin Lie.

She recognized him.