7: Chapter 7

He said nothing more, merely nodded slightly, then turned and pushed the door open to leave.

The light from outside surged in all at once, somewhat blinding.

Just as he stepped down the stairs, the curtain at the back of the shop was lifted, and a middle-aged man in a dark silk shirt stepped out, gazing at the door that was still swaying slightly. "The person just now?"

The shop assistant hurried forward and reported what had happened in a low voice.

After listening, the man stroked his neatly trimmed short beard: "Hmm, you did the right thing. Unclear items are nothing but trouble once you get your hands on them."

The market was noisy, and the flow of people was like a weave.

Jiang Haojie blended into the crowd, his fingertips unconsciously rubbing the cold surface of his storage ring.

The path through the Treasure Pavilion was broken, and the only remaining choice seemed to be setting up a street stall in those chaotic corners of the market, but that way, the price would likely be driven down severely, and it would easily attract attention.

As he was pondering, a round figure blocked his path.

The person who approached was a stout, middle-aged man, with a smile piled onto his dough-like face, his eyes squeezed into two thin slits. "This young brother,"

His voice carried a sense of familiar warmth, "I just saw you come out of the Treasure Pavilion empty-handed. Did you not find what you were looking for? I happen to know a place where the goods are good and the prices are fair."

"I'm not buying, I'm selling." Jiang Haojie didn't stop walking, his voice still hoarse.

"Selling?" The fat man moved nimbly to block his path from the side again, his smile deepening, and he lowered his voice, "To be honest, young brother, I've been watching you for a while. That place, the Treasure Pavilion, has big rules; if you're missing a single piece of paper, you can't get anything done, right?"

Jiang Haojie finally stopped, his gaze from behind the mask falling on the other man's face. "So what if it is?"

"Don't misunderstand, don't misunderstand." The fat man rubbed his hands together and pulled a small wooden plaque from his bosom, flashing it quickly before Jiang Haojie's eyes. It seemed to have a complex emblem carved on it. "I am Huang Xingshan, and I make my living by acting as a go-between. I know a place that can take the 'goods' in your hands; they don't ask about the origin, they only look at the quality."

He deliberately emphasized the word "goods."

Jiang Haojie didn't look at the wooden plaque, just stood there quietly. The noise of the market seemed to be separated by a layer. "No proof required?"

"Not a single penny." Huang Xingshan answered crisply, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his squinted eyes.

"Lead the way." Jiang Haojie said briefly, his shoulders relaxing almost imperceptibly.

He wanted to see where this "path" that had suddenly appeared would actually lead.

Huang Xingshan chuckled, stepped aside to lead the way, and asked seemingly casually: "Are the 'goods'... on you, young brother?"

Jiang Haojie didn't answer, just stepped forward to follow, his shadow stretching long on the bluestone path.

If you say you want to sell weapons, you have to let me see the goods first, right? Coming empty-handed, how can we discuss this trade?

Jiang Haojie's expression was calm: "When we reach the place, it will naturally become clear."

Huang Xingshan didn't ask any more questions and turned to lead the way.

The two passed through the bustling main hall of the Awakened trading center. Jiang Haojie had originally thought the shop was deep inside this building, but unexpectedly, Huang Xingshan led him through several turns, and they actually exited through a side door and slipped into a narrow alleyway.

The end of the alley opened up into a different world—another market was hidden here. Although its scale was not as large as the hall just now, it was crowded with all kinds of vendors, and the items on display were mostly strange in shape, exuding a secretive aura.

"This is the place," Huang Xingshan lifted his chin, "Trading here, the prices are fair, and the items are reliable. If you want to sell weapons, I'll take you there now."

Jiang Haojie nodded slightly.

Huang Xingshan led him familiarly to an inconspicuous wooden door and pushed it open, shouting: "Boss Li, we have a guest!"

A thin old man walked out slowly from the inner room. Upon seeing Huang Xingshan, a smile appeared on his face: "It's Old Huang."

"I'm bringing you a distinguished guest. This brother here has some weapons he wants to sell." Huang Xingshan stepped aside to introduce him, then turned to Jiang Haojie, "By the way, how should I address you?"

"X." Jiang Haojie answered briefly.

Huang Xingshan and Boss Li exchanged a glance and didn't ask about the origin of the name; the businessman's attention quickly returned to the main topic.

"What kind of goods do you intend to offload?" Boss Li asked.

Jiang Haojie waved his hand—Huang Xingshan and Boss Li were stunned simultaneously—five weapons appeared in mid-air without warning and then landed gently on the tabletop.

Crow feather fan, Wolf King's claws, thorny vine whip... each piece shimmered with a faint light.

"All F-grade..." Boss Li muttered, not yet recovered from the shock of the items appearing out of thin air, his breath caught by the quality of this batch of weapons.

Huang Xingshan also gasped inwardly; had he known the other party could take out five F-grade weapons at once, he might not have easily led him to this private market.

"Are you buying?" Jiang Haojie asked.

"Buying, naturally we are buying." Boss Li steadied himself and stepped forward to examine them one by one.

The more closely he looked, the more he was secretly shocked: although these were F-grade, the texture was of superior quality, and the energy flowing at the edges was stable and full.

"Mr. X, I have seen all your weapons; the quality is indeed good." Boss Li put down the last piece and mused, "The market price is about between twelve thousand and fifteen thousand crystal coinss. But since Old Huang introduced you, and this is our first cooperation—I will settle at fourteen thousand per piece; I will only keep a thin profit of one thousand crystal coinss per piece. What do you think?"

Jiang Haojie nodded. This price was not far from his estimation and was acceptable.

"Then it's a deal." Boss Li took out his communicator, noted down the account provided by Jiang Haojie, and transferred seventy thousand crystal coinss.

Subsequently, he took out a silver-patterned card from the counter drawer and handed it over with both hands, "This is our shop's silver-level voucher. When you come again in the future, you can find me directly with this card."

The silver card shimmered with a cold luster under the lights, and the attendant respectfully handed it to Mr. X. "With this card, you can enjoy a twenty percent discount on purchases at all associated shops of this chamber of commerce."

Jiang Haojie toyed with the card, the unique chill of the metal transmitting to his fingertips.

He suddenly realized at this moment that this hidden place was the legendary Black Market—it was actually just one wall away from the Awakened trading center.

The operation method of the Black Market was obviously more flexible; no wonder it could take root and grow under the nose of official institutions.

While passing through the corridor, Huang Xingshan hurried to catch up. "Mr. X, was this transaction satisfactory today?"

"Passable." Jiang Haojie nodded slightly.

If not for this channel, he would probably only be able to set up a stall on the street to peddle those weapons right now.

Huang Xingshan took out his communicator, the faint light of the screen illuminating his eager smiling face: "If you have any more goods to sell in the future, just find me anytime."

Although he couldn't fathom the background of this mysterious person, just based on that ability to take things out of thin air, it was worth cultivating a relationship.

He had been crawling in this business for many years, and what he was best at was identifying which people were worth investing in.

Jiang Haojie saved the number. He had long seen that Huang Xingshan was a middleman in the Black Market, slick and worldly but not annoying.

He would inevitably come here often in the future; having a familiar guide could always save a lot of trouble.

"Mr. Huang," Jiang Haojie suddenly spoke, "In your opinion, what other ways are there right now to make money fast and earn a lot?"

Huang Xingshan was stunned for a moment—was the seventy thousand crystal coinss just received not enough? But he didn't show any strange expression on his face, only mused: "The most profitable is naturally being a Bounty Hunter. Register at the guild, take a high-risk mission, and you can get hundreds of thousands. However..."

His voice paused slightly, lowering his tone, "If you are in a hurry for money, there is another place, but you have to take some risks."

"Tell me."

Huang Xingshan scanned the surroundings vigilantly and moved half a step closer: "Have you heard of the 'Black Arena'?"

Seeing Jiang Haojie shake his head, a flash of surprise swept across his eyes, then he explained: "That is an underground arena privately set up by powerful families, specifically inviting Awakened to fight on stage. The winner gets a generous bounty, and it is highly sought after by those nobles."

"What about the rules?"

"There are no rules." Huang Xingshan shrugged, "It determines the winner, and it also decides life and death. Once you stand on that stage, no one knows what they will encounter."

Jiang Haojie's brows tightened. Determining a winner was one thing, but having to decide life and death made his heart heavy, as if a stone were pressing on it.

After speaking a few more words with Huang Xingshan, he turned and left.

Finding a quiet corner, he took off the mask covering his face. Just as he was about to head home, the phone in his pocket vibrated.

He took it out and looked; the three characters "Xiao Yufen" were flashing on the screen.

Before he could speak, his mother's panicked, tearful voice came through the receiver: "Xiao Hao, come to the hospital quickly! Your dad... your dad was beaten and injured by someone!"

Jiang Haojie's heart plunged sharply.

After asking for the address, he rushed to the street, hailed a taxi, and urged the driver to speed towards the hospital.

The corridor outside the emergency room had ghastly white lights.

Xiao Yufen sat alone on a plastic chair, clutching a thick stack of payment slips in her hand. Her face, which had no color to begin with, was now terrifyingly ashen.

"Mom," Jiang Haojie stepped forward quickly, his voice kept very low, "What happened? How could Dad suddenly get injured?"

Xiao Yufen looked up, tears falling down: "Today, your father and I went to work as usual. The manager at the factory kicked us out without a word, saying they didn't need us anymore. Your father was furious and wanted to find their boss to reason with them. Before he could say two words, he was beaten by the thugs around that person... beaten like this..."

Jiang Haojie's fists clenched instantly, his knuckles turning white, and he turned to rush out.

"Xiao Hao!" Xiao Yufen grabbed his arm tightly, her voice trembling, "Don't be foolish! Your dad is already lying there; if something happens to you, this family... this family will really fall apart!"

Jiang Haojie closed his eyes, took a deep breath of cold air smelling of disinfectant, and steadied himself.

He understood that there was definitely something more to this, and being reckless now would only make the situation worse.

"Mom, the medical expenses... haven't been paid in full yet, right?" When he spoke again, his tone was much calmer, "I will handle it."

Mentioning money, Xiao Yufen's tears flowed even more heavily: "I scraped together a little, but it's still far from enough... The doctor said that the initial phase requires three hundred thousand crystal coinss. I... I called your uncle, but he couldn't come up with that much either."

Three hundred thousand. This number was like an ice pick, stabbing into Jiang Haojie's heart. His entire net worth, fully calculated, was only one hundred and forty thousand.

He gently patted his mother's cold hand: "Don't worry, I'll find a way regarding the money."

Walking to the payment window, Jiang Haojie explained the situation and pushed all the one hundred and forty thousand crystal coinss he had on him over.

The hospital reluctantly made an exception and gave him a three-day deadline to pay the remaining balance.

After settling his mother, Jiang Haojie walked out of the hospital gate. Night had already fallen.

He took out his phone and dialed Huang Xingshan's number.

Half an hour later, at a quiet cafe in the west of the city.

Jiang Haojie put on his mask again, ignored the strange gazes from those around him, ordered two cups of black coffee, and sat down in the corner.

Huang Xingshan soon pushed the door open and entered, scanned the area, and walked straight to sit opposite him.

"Sir, have you thought it over?"

Jiang Haojie nodded, his voice behind the mask somewhat low: "Tell me about the 'Black Arena' again, carefully. Especially... the part about how to make money."

Huang Xingshan picked up the coffee and took a sip, leaning forward slightly, a glint of shrewdness flashing in his eyes: "The rules are basically what I mentioned last time. As for the ways to make money, it's simple, mainly two types..."

Jiang Haojie picked up the coffee cup, his fingertips rubbing against the warm porcelain wall.

The first option proposed by the other party was silently rejected by him—attaching himself to some powerful family to act as a thug, although the daily wage was high, it was not what he sought.

What he needed was quick money, a sum that must be obtained within seventy-two hours, no less than one hundred and fifty thousand crystal coinss.

"As for the second path," the introducer's voice continued steadily, "we call it the 'Ladder Challenge'. The prerequisite is that you need an agent with guarantor qualifications."

"The rules are simple: the first victory earns ten thousand crystal coinss. Starting from the second match, for every match won, the prize money doubles. If you can win ten consecutive matches, you can accumulate a total of one hundred and ninety thousand crystal coinss."

The man paused and added, "But there are three ironclad rules: first, once the challenge begins, it cannot be paused halfway; second, you must win all ten matches, any single loss means all previous efforts are wasted, and you get nothing; third, if you achieve ten consecutive victories, you must accept the challenge from the previous ten-consecutive-victory winner."