569: Chapter 570 The Cunning Goddess's Thousand Layers of Schemes! Step One: First, boil some water!

At dusk, the flying boat landed steadily at the berth outside Yunyuan City.

Looking from afar, a massive black city, standing like a primordial Vicious Beast, loomed at the junction of the primitive jungle and the continuous mountain ranges.

The city walls towered into the clouds, built entirely from unknown massive black stones, appearing rugged and heavy.

The stones were pitted and scarred, with dark red dried bloodstains and marks of blades and axes intertwined, telling the tale of this frontier town's ferocity and chaos.

A tide of people surged at the city gates, with various spiritual lights flickering.

The style was exactly like Peng City, perhaps even a few degrees more savage.

It was incredibly rough.

The air was thick with the bloody scent of Immortal Beasts, the pungent dust of Ores, and the charred smell of grilled meat from roadside vendors, mixing into a wild atmosphere unique to West Qingyou Continent.

Su Chen, dressed in white, slowly disembarked from the flying boat. He casually brushed off non-existent dust from his robes, his lazy gaze scanning the black city.

“Boss!”

Qian Duoduo’s pudgy body squeezed through the crowded throng like a slippery loach, moving with practiced ease.

His small eyes, already mere slits, were now flickering with a sharp, thieving golden light. It was the instinctive reaction etched into a top-tier merchant's DNA upon sniffing out a massive amount of money.

“Mm,” Su Chen responded casually.

“We’re here, we’re here! Boss, this is Yunyuan City! It’s the largest and also the shadiest transit hub in West Qingyou Continent!” Qian Duoduo led the way with a hunched back, his short legs moving rapidly while his mouth rattled on like a machine gun.

“Even though it looks rough and messy as a kennel, the hidden channels here are numerous and the waters are deep! The Lingbao Trading Firm opened its largest branch in West Qingyou Continent here, and the Wanbao Pavilion has secret outposts as well. Desperadoes, mercenaries, Loose Cultivator hunters, and those shady demonic cultivators all converge here. You could say that as long as you have Immortal Stones, you can even buy the toilet seat of an Eternal Orthodoxy here! It’s the largest distribution center for immortal materials in all of West Qingyou Continent!”

Su Chen glanced indifferently at the ferocious guards at the city gate, lacking interest. “Mm, and? With that money-grubbing look of yours, don't tell me you're just acting as my tour guide.”

Qian Duoduo’s voice immediately dropped an octave.

He leaned into Su Chen’s ear like a thief, his small eyes darting around seven or eight times to ensure none of the rough men nearby were paying attention before speaking cautiously, “Boss, I spent a fortune to find out some top-secret information!”

Su Chen arched an eyebrow, finally showing a bit of spirit. “Speak.”

Qian Duoduo swallowed hard, the golden light in his eyes intensifying and his breathing quickening. “Tonight! In the lowest level of Yunyuan City’s underground black market, a batch of top-tier hard goods is going up for sale!”

“What kind of goods?”

“immortal marrow!” Qian Duoduo held up two thick, carrot-like fingers, emphasizing the number. “Top-tier Rank One and Rank Two immortal marrow! Twelve portions in total! Word is the source is extremely shady—bloody spoils that leaked out after an ancient Secret Realm collapsed in North Frost Cold Continent last month. Several top hunting groups fought to the death on the ice plains, losing half their men to snatch it. Now they’re desperate to fence the goods. The price is a full thirty percent lower than official channels like the Lingbao Trading Firm!”

Su Chen’s footsteps paused.

Now, that was good stuff.

He turned to look at his team behind him; several of his capable subordinates didn't have Immortal Bodies yet.

If he didn't upgrade their hardware, these Great Emperors and Quasi-Emperors wouldn't even be qualified to be cannon fodder in the high-end games to come.

If he could get his hands on some immortal marrow, their combat power would at least double.

Su Chen’s eyes narrowed slightly, his lips curling into a habitual arc. “What are the rules of the black market?”

At the mention of this, the fat on Qian Duoduo’s face sagged, a hint of difficulty flashing through his expression.

“Boss, that’s the problem. Because the Yunyuan City underground black market sells stolen goods and Peerless Grade items, the threshold is ridiculously high. To enter, one must meet one of two conditions: either have a Golden Immortal level big shot act as a guarantor, or undergo an on-site asset verification of over ten million high-grade immortal stones to prove you have the strength to buy the goods.”

Qian Duoduo pulled a long face, counting on his fingers. “We definitely don't have a Golden Immortal guarantor. As for the ten million asset verification—I just checked our books. If we pool all our liquid capital plus the sum left over from the last auction, we can barely scrape together ten million. But verification means showing our entire fortune to those desperadoes... In this city where one shouldn't reveal their wealth, it's too flashy. We'd easily be targeted as fat sheep.”

Su Chen remained silent, stroking his chin.

He was indeed thinking of a way; it wasn't that he feared being robbed, he just found it troublesome.

Two steps behind him, the “distressed” deputy manager of the Lingbao Trading Firm, “Shen Que,” dressed in coarse grey-blue worker’s clothes, stood with her head bowed. She held a purple clay teapot with both hands, seemingly oblivious to the conversation.

In reality, her fox-like eyes hidden behind the dark jade lenses were already spinning wildly.

A brilliant plan for the “oppressed slave to rise and sing” was rapidly taking shape in Xie Jinghong’s clever brain!

【Black market? Asset threshold? Golden Immortal guarantor?】

Xie Jinghong almost burst out laughing.

She was all too familiar with this routine!

The Lingbao Trading Firm was one of the largest controlling stakeholders behind the entire Yunyuan City underground black market!

Not only was she familiar with it, she held the highest-level Supreme privilege within it!

If she were to just slap down her personal Goddess Token, forget a mere Golden Immortal guarantor—even the highest manager of the black market would have to crawl out immediately to personally roll out a ten-thousand-mile red carpet and welcome her in on bended knees!

【Great! Isn't this the perfect opportunity?!】

Xie Jinghong was excited.

She schemed inwardly: In a moment, I'll secretly use my privilege to send a message and forcibly raise the entry threshold for tonight's black market!

For instance, raise the asset verification from ten million straight to thirty million! Or simply cancel asset verification and require a personal guarantee from someone at the Golden Immortal level or above!

That way, a pauper in the Great Saint Realm like Su Chen won't even be able to touch the threshold of the black market!

If he can't get into the black market, he won't get those twelve portions of immortal marrow.

Without the immortal marrow, this guy—who is extremely protective of his people and wants to boost his subordinates' strength—will definitely be as anxious as an ant on a hot pan!

When that time comes, who else could he turn to besides the well-traveled “Shopkeeper Shen” in his team?

When he's looking miserable, this Goddess will pretend to be extremely conflicted and distressed, pull out an old token from the Lingbao Trading Firm's upper management, and say airily: “Ah, Young Master Su, although I was cruelly fired by that hateful guild, I fortunately kept an old token. Perhaps... I can be of some small help to the Young Master...”

Wow!

Xie Jinghong mentally gave herself a standing ovation.

Su Chen would surely be moved to tears of gratitude and might even look at her in a new light!

And she could use this god-given opportunity to overturn her humiliating status of being treated like a maid for the past few days in one fell swoop!

From a general laborer who pours tea, fetches water, and gets criticized by Wang Baobao for her weak shoulder-massaging strength, she would transform into Su Chen's indispensable, core-resource-controlling senior advisor!

By then, what trump cards couldn't she squeeze out of him? She could manipulate this bastard however she wanted!

Perfect! It was an absolutely seamless, perfect open scheme!

The corners of Xie Jinghong’s mouth, hidden by the dark jade lenses, were already curling up uncontrollably, almost reaching her ears.

However, her micro-expression changes, which she thought were seamless, all fell into the corner of Su Chen's eye as he slightly turned his head.

Su Chen's internal monologue instantly filled the screen.

【Oho? This woman's shoulders are shaking like a sieve, and her eyes are spinning so fast they're about to spark.】

【Her mouth is practically grinning to the back of her head; she's definitely cooking up some bad water again.】

【Reacting like this upon hearing the black market threshold... Oh, I get it. The Yunyuan City black market probably has hidden shares from the Lingbao Trading Firm. This broad is likely planning to trip me up and then swoop in to play the savior?】

【Want to scheme against me? Want to rise up and be the master? Keep dreaming your spring and autumn dreams.】

【Since you like playing the low-level working girl so much, then be professional for me!】

Su Chen withdrew his gaze, the expression on his face not changing in the slightest, his tone as casual as if it were only natural.

“Shopkeeper Shen?”

Su Chen’s voice suddenly drifted over from the front, neither heavy nor light.

Xie Jinghong, who was immersed in the beautiful fantasy of “making Su Chen kneel and sing conquest,” jerked violently. She stood up straight reflexively, her voice crisp and loud: “Present! What are Young Master Su’s orders? Is it regarding the black market entry? Actually, I...”

She was just about to seize the chance to dangle the bait.

But Su Chen didn't even turn his head, directly interrupting her casting. He pointed at the teapot in her hands, his tone carrying a few hints of a capitalist's unique disdain: “The tea is cold. Go, find a place to start a fire and change it for a hot pot.”

“...”

Xie Jinghong’s smile froze.

A brief silence descended.

A cold wind blew through the gates of Yunyuan City, swirling two withered leaves that slapped against Xie Jinghong’s face, which was now written all over with grievance.

“...Yes. I shall go boil water now.” She squeezed the words through her gritted teeth. On the back of the hand holding the teapot, veins bulged, nearly crushing the purple clay pot to pieces.