Rise from a Poor Family: My Martial Arts Counterattack

Chapter 493 Tribulation Cultivator Xiao Yan
Smoke Island.

It is an inconspicuous little island among the many islands in the East China Sea.

"There's so much quenching sand."

Yin Yue looked at the tempering sand that Lin Chen took out, her little face showing surprise. The reason why tempering sand is so precious is that although it is a mineral, it does not grow in large quantities.

A typical quenching sand mine can only produce a dozen or so buckets of quenching sand at most.

“That place is unusual.”

Lin Chen told Yin Yue about the underwater cave, but he omitted the details about the perfect-level sword intent.

"That underwater cave must have hidden secrets, which may be even more valuable than the crystal-quenching sand. We can explore it again."

Yin Yue pondered for a moment before offering her guess.

Hearing Yin Yue's words, Lin Chen's heart skipped a beat. As expected of the Moon Soul Clan princess, she was knowledgeable and had a high level of analytical ability. He had only mentioned that there were Blood Mist Beasts and some passages in the underwater cave, and she had already figured out that the cave was unusual.

Ordinary martial artists, even those at the innate level, wouldn't think so much. After all, such a large amount of tempering sand is already a huge fortune, so why would they think that there are even greater opportunities hidden in the cave?

Shao Chaozong, Zhang Sheng, and Zhu Ru failed to think of these things precisely because of their difference in perspective.

"Having just killed the Lotus Island Lord, I'm afraid the Jiuhua Alliance behind him will come to investigate. It's not safe to go to the underwater cave now."

Lin Chen made up an excuse, but when Yin Yue heard Lin Chen's explanation, she smiled and said, "I was being redundant. It seems you have already obtained the opportunity hidden in the underground cave."

Angry?
For the first time, Lin Chen sensed anger on Yin Yue's face. Did she think he had deceived her?

But how did this little girl guess that?

“Although I am young, it does not mean I am ignorant of the world. That underwater cave was obviously created by man. The Blood Mist Beast would not be so kind as to dig out several passages for me. The fact that the person who built the underwater cave did not take away so much tempering sand means that this tempering sand is not enough to tempt this person. This person is very likely a Myriad Manifestations Realm expert.”

Yin Yue spoke softly, “I can think of these things, and so can you. Those Blood Mist Beasts won’t cause you any real trouble, and you won’t let these tempering sands cloud your judgment. Most importantly, you shouldn’t try to fool me by treating me like Lin Xi.”

Lin Chen: ? ? ?
"Lotus Island is a member of the Jiuhua Alliance, but the Jiuhua Alliance is not a reliable organization based on shared interests. If Lotus Island were attacked by a powerful force, Hu Tingchun would have asked the Jiuhua Alliance for help, and the martial artists of the Jiuhua Alliance would naturally not have stood idly by. But now all the innate martial artists on Lotus Island are dead, and those innate martial artists of the Jiuhua Alliance are busy dividing up Lotus Island's resources and will not bother to hunt down the murderer at all."

After hearing Yin Yue's words, Lin Chen smiled awkwardly. It seemed that the reason he had just made up had displeased Yin Yue, who felt that her intelligence had been insulted, which was why she was so angry.

I am not worried that the Jiuhua Alliance will seek revenge for those who died on Lotus Island!
The so-called alliance is nothing more than a community of interests. If there were still innate martial artists living on Lotus Island, the group of innate martial artists in the Nine Hua Alliance would still put on a show. But Lotus Island no longer has innate martial artists, and no one would offend a mysterious peak expert of the third realm of innate martial arts for the sake of a group of dead people.

Since the mysterious murder of the Lotus Island Master and several of his disciples, rumors have been circulating that the mastermind behind the murder is likely a peak-level Innate Realm cultivator.

"I obtained a perfect-level sword intent in that underwater cave."

In the end, Lin Chen told Yin Yue the truth.

"Perfect-level swordsmanship will?"

Yin Yue blinked her small eyes a few times. She understood why Lin Chen had kept it a secret; she would have done the same if she were in his shoes.

If the news of a perfect sword intent were to leak out, all sword practitioners in the Yan Dynasty would likely be restless, including some experts at the Myriad Manifestations Realm.

Compared to a perfect level of swordsmanship will, these tempering sands are really nothing.

"So, the underwater cave was left behind by a master swordsman, and you've comprehended that will?"

"It's not that easy. Although my Martial Soul Diagram has absorbed a lot of martial will, including some from the sword path, the strongest sword path I have is only at the refined level, not even a single flawless one..."

Lin Chen shook his head with a wry smile. Let alone comprehending it, he didn't even dare to touch its edge. Below the fourth level of the Innate Realm, he would probably die upon contact, unless he was a super sword genius.

Hearing that Lin Chen had not grasped the meaning, Yin Yue breathed a sigh of relief.

"What's with that look on your face? It's like you're even happier that I haven't grasped the essence of swordsmanship."

"It's not that I'm happy. If you can comprehend this sword intent, the entire landscape of the Yan Dynasty will change, which is not a good thing for you."

"What do you mean?"

Lin Chen felt that Yin Yue's words had a hidden meaning.

"You'll know later."

However, Yin Yue did not continue the topic. Some things cannot be said openly, just as there is the reason why the Yan Dynasty royal family could not be asked to help resolve the issue of the demonization of the Emperor-level Divine Seal.

"With these tempering sands and innate stones, you can condense innate crystals in all the hidden acupoints of your body, but you will need a relatively safe place."

"A safe place!"

Lin Chen thought of Canglan Island. With Senior Jiang there, nothing was safer than Canglan Island.

"We cannot return to Canglan Island."

Yin Yue seemed to know what Lin Chen was thinking and directly rejected his idea.

"Can't we go back to Canglan Island?"

Lin Chen gave Yin Yue a deep look, but didn't ask why she couldn't return to Canglan Island: "Where do you think is safe?"

"You can go to the Thousand Machine Domain."

Yin Yue gave the destination and explained, "Qianji Domain is one of the oldest domains in the Yan Dynasty. It is also a center of trade and commerce for the entire Yan Dynasty, where weapon crafting is prevalent. To maintain the flow of trade, many cities in Qianji Domain have formations that allow fighting within the city, and even divine sense is not allowed to spy on them at will."

"Qianji Tower?"

Lin Chen recalled the Thousand Machine Pavilion where he had lived in the Fulong Domain. Although it was expensive, it could block the divine sense of innate experts from probing.

Indeed, if one is seeking a breakthrough through seclusion, the Thousand Machine Domain would be a good place.

"Then let's go to the Thousand Machine Domain."

Lin Chen was a decisive person. Once he decided to go to the Thousand Machine Domain, he stopped talking and, after flying to several islands with Yin Yue, finally chartered a ship to the East China Sea.

He's quite wealthy now. Not to mention the value of the tempering sand, the amount of Flame Coins found in Hu Tingchun's residence and on his disciples alone is over 200,000.

As the master of Lotus Island, Hu Tingchun and his apprentice probably controlled half of the island's wealth, and all of that wealth is now in their hands.

I already have quite a few Hundred Item Boxes, and I can buy one more when I go to the Thousand Machine Domain. Hundred Item Boxes can hold items, but they can't hold other Hundred Item Boxes, not even Thousand Item Boxes. By selling these Hundred Item Boxes and adding some Flame Coins, I can exchange them for a Thousand Item Box.

……

……

Thousand Machine Domain.

Hundred Refinement City.

It is one of the three major cities in the Thousand Machine Domain besides Thousand Machine City, and it is also the largest city for forging weapons besides Thousand Machine City.

Lin Chen led Yin Yue into the city, but instead of looking for a place to stay, he found a shop on the street.

Upon entering the shop, a waiter immediately came to greet him. Although the waiter was only a mid-level martial artist, he did not show much fear in the face of Lin Chen, a master of innate strength.

The seventh-rank official in front of the prime minister's door.

The confidence of a shop assistant who can be neither arrogant nor servile can only come from the employer behind him.

Li's Trading Company!

The fact that the Li family can name their business after a merchant guild suggests that they must be quite powerful in Hundred Refinements City.

Do you have a thousand-item box?

"some."

When the waiter heard that Lin Chen wanted to buy the Thousand-Item Box, his eyes lit up. The Thousand-Item Box was not cheap. Even most innate experts used the Hundred-Item Box.

"You've come to the right place, sir. Our trading company has a master craftsman who specializes in forging storage boxes. He's a true master who has been verified by the Thousand Machine Competition. Our Thousand Storage Boxes are not only small in size, but their internal space is also extremely stable..."

The waiter led Lin Chen and Yin Yue inside, explaining the special features of his Thousand Treasures Box.

Listening to the waiter's explanation, Lin Chen realized that even among the same thousand-item boxes, there were differences in quality. Some thousand-item boxes were said to contain a thousand items, but in reality, they would only hold a little over nine hundred items before they were full.

Some of the Thousand Item Boxes are even more unstable, experiencing lag when storing or retrieving items, and the size of their internal space also varies.

"My lord, these are the Thousand Treasure Boxes in our shop. They are forged from three different materials... The one on the left costs 30,000 Flame Coins, the one on the right costs 35,000, and the one in the middle costs 50,000 Flame Coins."

What are the differences between these three?

"The left side can also store a thousand items, but each storage and retrieval takes ten breaths. The larger the item, the longer it takes. The right side takes five breaths. As for the middle one, the storage box can emit light instantly, and both storage and retrieval are done within one breath."

The waiter, observing Lin Chen's expression, realized that this gentleman was probably not short of money.

"In addition, the inner space of the Thousand Treasure Box in the middle is three times larger than the other two. Don't underestimate these three spaces. If you want to store Flame Coins, the three spaces can hold a million Flame Coins."

"I'll take the one in the middle."

Lin Chen didn't hesitate. In terms of cost-effectiveness, the first two were definitely better, but he didn't lack Flame Coins. Since he had already bought them, he might as well buy the best ones. If he encountered some special circumstances and was just a few cubic meters of space away from being able to take some treasures with him, the loss would be even greater.

Lin Chen took out a box of various items from his pocket, and soon a pile of Flame Coins filled the counter.

When the waiter saw all these Flame Coins, his lips twitched. This lord was truly unique, carrying so many Flame Coins with him. He could easily exchange them for Flame Notes at the bank.

"Please wait a moment, sir. I will get the goods for you after I have finished counting them."

Although counting the Flame Coins would take some time, Xiao Er still had a smile on his face. He would receive a commission of fifty Flame Coins for each Thousand Item Box sold for fifty thousand.

For a mid-level martial artist, fifty Flame Coins is a considerable fortune.

The only downside is that prices in the Thousand Machine Domain are much higher than in other domains, and as a major city in the Thousand Machine Domain, the prices in Hundred Refinement City are even higher than in other cities in the domain. Fifty Flame Coins in Hundred Refinement City can buy supplies at half the price compared to other domains.

After purchasing the Thousand-Item Box, Lin Chen did not leave but continued to ask, "Waiter, do you accept Hundred-Item Boxes here?"

"Is the customer selling the Hundred Treasures Box? Our shop buys them. And since the customer has purchased the Thousand Treasures Box from our shop, according to the rules set by our owner, we buy back each Hundred Treasures Box for three thousand Flame Coins."

Xiao Er smiled broadly, not finding it surprising. After purchasing the Thousand Treasure Box, most adults would pass on the discarded Hundred Treasure Boxes to their juniors, but some adults would choose to sell them directly to the shop.

The market price of the Hundred Things Box is three thousand, and most merchants will only offer two thousand five. Only those who purchase the Thousand Things Box from a store will be offered the original price for buyback.

"Alright, I have a few multi-purpose boxes here, I'll sell them to you as well."

Lin Chen nodded and took out ten boxes of various items from his pocket and placed them on the counter. The waiter was stunned when he saw so many boxes.

This was the first time he had ever seen someone carrying so many multi-purpose boxes.

In an instant, the waiter looked at Lin Chen with fear in his eyes. No innate expert would carry so many treasure boxes. There was only one possibility: the person in front of him was likely a tribulation cultivator, and these treasure boxes were stolen from him through murder and robbery.

"Sir...please wait a moment. I am not qualified to handle so many boxes of various items. I will go and ask the shopkeeper to come out."

The waiter hurriedly walked towards the backyard. Soon after, an old man walked in from the corridor behind the screen. He first looked Lin Chen up and down, and then said with a smile, "May I ask how you are addressed?"

"Xiao Yan."

"So it's Brother Xiao. According to the rules, with so many of Brother Xiao's boxes, only one can be bought back at the original price. However, I've taken the liberty of buying them all back at the original price."

"Thank you very much."

Lin Chen didn't hesitate to take advantage of the opportunity, as it meant he could earn several hundred more Flame Coins.

"Haha, I just feel a connection with Brother Xiao. If you ever have anything to sell in the future, feel free to come to my shop. Our Li Family Trading Company buys back treasures at fair prices and will keep the seller's information confidential."

The old man spoke meaningfully, and Lin Chen smiled knowingly, finally understanding why the other party was willing to give him a few hundred more Flame Coins.

This person has convinced themselves that they are a robber who murdered and stole treasures, and wants to buy the stolen goods from me. Since they are stolen goods, the price will naturally be far below the market price.

It seems that the Li family is indeed powerful, daring to swallow stolen goods and not afraid of the victims' relatives coming to their door. They wouldn't dare to do this kind of business without some strength.

"Okay, if I need to sell anything in the future, I will consider your company first."

Lin Chen left these words and departed with Yin Yue. The old man did not stop them. He knew that these kinds of cultivators were very wary, but he only wanted the treasures that the other party had stolen. He had no interest in the person's background.

(End of this chapter)