53: Chapter 53 That Shadow Crystal Core might have been obtained through some kind of swindle or deception.

The next day.

Near noon, Gu Changming left the inn where he was staying and headed toward the camp where Qin Lie was located.

Before he even reached the spot, he heard a bustling clamor coming from ahead. The noise was chaotic, sounding like a large crowd gathering and gossiping.

Gu Changming subconsciously frowned. "This doesn't feel right."

He continued forward and soon saw Qin Lie's small shop, constructed from old metal plates and waterproof tarps.

The shop was surrounded by people, crowded several layers deep.

Gu Changming paused for a moment but still walked over.

Before he could get close to the crowd, a figure approached him from the side.

Gu Changming turned his head to look; it was the middle-aged stall owner who had come up to solicit business after he left Qin Lie's shop the other day.

Upon seeing him, the disgust in Gu Changming's eyes reappeared.

The man wore an "I told you so" expression, and his first words were mocking:

"See? What did I tell you? That kid is too green to be reliable. You insisted on giving the stuff to him, and now something's gone wrong, hasn't it?"

"If you had come to me earlier, you'd have your weapon by now. Why wait so long? You even had to go into the Mystic Realm yourself to find the materials."

Gu Changming glanced at him but didn't respond.

However, the commotion here had already attracted the crowd's attention. Hearing their conversation, the people more or less understood that Gu Changming was the client and spontaneously made way, forming a narrow path.

Gu Changming looked through the passage.

Inside the shop, Qin Lie sat on a low stool with his head down, hands propped on his knees. His hair was messy, his eyes were sunken, and he looked like he hadn't slept all night.

Perhaps hearing the noise, Qin Lie slowly raised his head.

When he saw Gu Changming, he froze for a moment, then stood up as if he had been scalded.

He took a small step forward, a forced smile flickering on his face as his lips trembled.

"I'm sorry... I failed the refinement."

Not only had the shadow crystal core Gu Changming given him shattered, but the crystal cores he had previously bought with his own points had also broken. Even so, Gu Changming's Tang sword was still not fully refined...

Gu Changming said nothing. He stepped into the shop, walked straight to the wooden table, and reached out to pick up the Tang sword.

The blade was slightly heavier than before, and the texture felt different; it seemed to be just one step away from completion.

Seeing this, Qin Lie quickly explained, "The sword is fine. It's just that during the final fusion, I lost control, and the crystal core shattered."

"Give me a little more time. Once I've saved up enough points to buy a new crystal core, I'll definitely..."

Gu Changming placed the Tang sword back on the table and then looked at Qin Lie.

He had to admit, the status of sub-classes like Blacksmiths was truly low at this stage.

In his previous life, once he had developed himself—that is, the stage where all of humanity had completely adapted to entering this Assessment...

These Apothecaries, Blacksmiths, and the like were all highly sought-after individuals.

If you wanted someone to custom-build a suitable weapon for you, you had to wait in line, and sometimes even a large sum of money wouldn't guarantee a spot.

Furthermore, even if you got a spot, you had to bear the cost of material loss during the refinement process. If you prepared three sets of materials and they were all ruined, that was just your bad luck; at most, they wouldn't charge you for the labor.

It was nothing like now, where Qin Lie had to pay out of his own pocket to try refining it again after a failure.

"With your skills, you want to try again? Even ten more would be a waste!" The middle-aged stall owner nearby sneered, interrupting Qin Lie, before looking at Gu Changming again. "I told you to come to me. Even if not me, anyone else here would be much better than this kid."

Gu Changming ignored the stall owner, his gaze falling on Qin Lie's face as he asked directly, "How many points do you have now?"

Qin Lie was taken aback and subconsciously replied, "For... forty-three."

"Forty-three. How long would it take to save up enough?" Gu Changming remarked.

Qin Lie felt ashamed and was about to speak.

A voice chimed in from the side, tinged with playfulness: "It should be twenty-three, right?"

Gu Changming turned to look.

The speaker was Zhang Zhenhai. He had squeezed into the crowd at some point and was now standing with his arms crossed, grinning as he looked over.

Seeing Gu Changming look at him, Zhang Zhenhai's smile deepened, and he said unhurriedly:

"What, did you forget about yesterday? After coming out, it was agreed that you'd give us another twenty points. Boss Qin, your memory isn't very good."

After coming out, he hadn't had a chance to do anything to Gu Changming and the others. Now that he had the opportunity, why wouldn't he kick them while they were down?

Hearing this, Qin Lie snapped his head up, anger flaring in his eyes. He looked at Zhang Zhenhai and opened his mouth to reveal what had happened inside the Mystic Realm.

But Zhang Zhenhai beat him to it, his voice suddenly rising.

"Everyone, judge for yourselves! Our team always values our reputation when taking on jobs! We originally agreed on one hundred and fifty points to enter the Mystic Realm and escort Boss Qin to find materials. But right before we left, this Boss Qin said..."

He pointed at Gu Changming. "He said this friend of his was incredibly strong, having personally killed a Shadow Devourer, and could help us fend off those mechanical beasts in the Mystic Realm, so he asked for a twenty-point discount."

He paused, his face showing the indignation of being deceived. "I thought, it's just twenty points, I'll take it as making a friend, so I believed Boss Qin. But once we entered the Mystic Realm? This 'expert' stood by and watched from start to finish. Let alone helping to fend off danger, he wouldn't even lift a finger!"

Zhang Zhenhai became more and more agitated as he spoke. "Later, we ran into a Prowling Hunter Cutter. My brother accidentally left an opening and was sent flying by that thing, creating a gap in our formation. At a time like that, anyone with a shred of conscience would know to help out."

"But guess what this 'expert' did? He turned tail and ran! He ran faster than anyone! Because of him, my brothers almost got disemboweled trying to fill the gap!"

"Is this it? This is what you call strong? Shouldn't we take back those twenty points?"

His words were a mix of truth and lies, highly inflammatory. The surrounding crowd began to buzz with discussion, their pointing gazes falling on Gu Changming and Qin Lie.

The murmurs grew louder, and the scene began to spiral out of control. Public opinion shifted almost entirely against Gu Changming and his companion.

Qin Lie's face turned pale with anger. He looked at Gu Changming, wanting to explain that he had never said Gu Changming would help with the defense.

Seeing that he had the upper hand, Zhang Zhenhai's expression became even more triumphant. He struck while the iron was hot, adding with blatant mockery:

"If you ask me, failing the refinement serves him right! Who knows where he got that shadow crystal core? It might have been obtained through some sort of deception."

Qin Lie trembled with rage, his fists clenched tight. He suddenly took a step forward, intending to charge at Zhang Zhenhai and fight him to the death.

A man can be killed but not insulted. It was their fault to begin with, and while he could tolerate them targeting him, he couldn't stand them slandering Gu Changming like this.

But just as he was about to rush forward, Gu Changming reached out and gently pressed down on his shoulder.

"Do you have any materials left?"