Chapter 73 A Successful Transaction, A Fleeting Dream

【Wu Changhe steadily drove the black sedan.】

【Liu Xiyue sat in the back row, her hand tightly clutching the resource list she had prepared long ago.】

【She took a deep breath and handed the tablet in her hand to you, sitting in the passenger seat.】

【"This is a detailed breakdown of all the resources I can currently mobilize, as well as a catalog of all the water-attribute Cultivation Techniques in the Liu Family's library."】

【"Take a look and see if there's anything else that needs to be added."】

【You took the tablet without being polite and began to browse carefully.】

【Wu Changhe glanced through the rearview mirror but said nothing, merely acting as a silent witness.】

【The list was very long, densely packed with various rare Materials.】

【Ranked first was, naturally, that priceless 'kaiyuan stone.'】

【This item was a hard currency on the market with a price but no supply, capable of increasing the chance of a Breakthrough to the Origin Opening Realm by thirty percent.】

【For an ordinary Martial Artist, it was a dream-like treasure.】

【But your gaze only lingered on it for a moment before continuing downward.】

【For someone like you with top-tier Cultivation Techniques and a simulator, while the kaiyuan stone was precious, it was not irreplaceable.】

【In comparison, you cared more about whether you could find something to fill the gaps in your tactical system.】

【Your fingers slid across the screen, your eyes scanning one Cultivation Technique name after another.】

【Surging Waves Crashing Shore Palm, Azure Wave Movement Technique, Water Curtain Sky Brilliance...】

【"All good, but not enough."】

【You shook your head inwardly.】

【Your current fighting style was very distinct.】

【You had abundant blood qi, strong recovery, airtight defense, and terrifying explosive power.】

【In a head-on war of attrition, you were almost invincible.】

【However, as you encountered more and more experts, you realized your shortcomings were also obvious.】

【Your methods were too fierce and lacked variation.】

【"My saber is too 'straight'."】

【"Against opponents with bizarre movement techniques or those skilled in illusion control, I can easily fall into a passive position.】

【I need a method that can control the rhythm, confuse the opponent, or even seize the initiative in a strategic gamble."】

【Just then, your gaze froze on a Martial Skill named Water Moon Mirror Ripples Saber Technique.】

【Water Moon Mirror Ripples Saber Technique】

【Rank: Water-Attribute Yuan Martial Saber Technique】

【Introduction: This is a special water-attribute saber technique that leans toward the bizarre and illusory.】

【Core Essence: Using pure water-attribute yuan power as a guide, it flows through the Meridians to the saber body and the edge's glow.】

【By leveraging the light refraction and soft, illusory characteristics of water, it condenses the phantom forms of "Flowers in a Mirror and the Moon in Water."】

【Combat Effect: It can make the visual length of the saber body suddenly grow or shrink, creating a severe sense of spatial displacement.】

【When practiced to the extreme, it can even condense a complete human-shaped water shadow Clone that is indistinguishable from the real body, making it impossible to defend against.】

【Annotation: The saber momentum is like Heavenly Sea Overlapping Waves; it appears soft and boneless, but in reality, it hides a lethal, sharp force within its softness.】

【Not to be practiced by those without extremely high water-attribute affinity.】

【"This is it!"】

【Your eyes suddenly lit up.】

【This saber technique perfectly fit your tactical vision!】

【"I don't lack explosive power right now; what I lack is this kind of variation."】

【"To put it bluntly, I'm still not underhanded enough!"】

【You quickly constructed future combat scenarios in your mind.】

【When you draw your saber, the enemy thinks you only have one, but in reality, you have countless invisible sabers.】

【The enemy thinks you are going to strike the left, but in reality, that is an illusion caused by light refraction.】

【The true blade is already against their neck.】

【Combined with your Overlapping Waves burst and the stealth of Hiding the Edge...】

【"This is a true killing move."】

【"Let the enemy lose themselves between the virtual and the real, and then, at the moment of deepest despair, deliver a thunderous strike."】

【"If you're not underhanded enough, how can you survive in this dog-eat-dog world?"】

【You nodded with satisfaction and gave this saber technique a big checkmark in your heart.】

【Subsequently, you continued to browse down the resource list.】

【When your gaze fell on the "Cultivation Consumables" column, your pupils shrank slightly.】

【[Water-Attribute Yuan Sand]: One kilogram supplied monthly.】

【"Origin Sand? And it's water-attribute?"】

【You knew full well the value of this item. It was a top-tier auxiliary material used by Origin Opening Realm Martial Artists to nourish acupoints and stabilize the yuan seed.】

【It could significantly increase the speed of opening acupoints!】

【An ordinary Origin Opening Realm might not even get fifty grams in a year, and the market price had long been driven to astronomical heights.】

【And Liu Xiyue actually promised to provide it by the kilogram?】

【"This is a massive investment..."】

【You quickly calculated in your mind.】

【Your Heavenly Sea Vast Waves Body Spirit Seed Origin Art started with 144 acupoints, four times that of an ordinary person.】

【This meant your consumption was also four times or even more than that of an average person.】

【Without this batch of Origin Sand, relying solely on slow grinding, who knows how long it would take to Cultivate.】

【"Just this one item alone is an expenditure of millions of federation coin every month. And even with money, you might not be able to buy it."】

【You looked up and met Liu Xiyue's gaze in the rearview mirror.】

【At this moment, she was looking at you with some unease.】

【Her hands were twisted together, and a trace of nervousness showed in her eyes.】

【"Li Ang, I know... compared to a divine object like the 'mystic ice twin lotus,' these things might still seem a bit meager."】

【Liu Xiyue said in a low voice, her tone carrying an imperceptible tremble.】

【These resources were almost everything she could mobilize in a place like Longnan after setting aside what she needed for her own cultivation.】

【After all, she was no longer the influential Young Miss of the Liu Family she once was.】

【Her father was missing, and the Family was in internal turmoil; although her father's old friends were helping to look after things...】

【They weren't part of the Liu Family after all, and every favor used was one fewer remaining.】

【She was now like a fallen noble guarding a mountain of gold but not daring to spend it recklessly, calculating every bit of resources carefully.】

【But this was not just a transaction; it was also her raising the stakes for her ally.】

【She was terrified that you wouldn't be satisfied, terrified of losing you—her only ally with great potential and whom she knew well.】

【"What if he's not satisfied? What else can I give? My shares? Or..."】

【Just as she was lost in thought, you put down the tablet, a bright smile appearing on your face.】

【"It's enough."】

【You turned around, saw her expression of relief, and couldn't help but tease her.】

【"What? Is my appetite really that big?"】

【"To make you, the grand Young Miss of the Sea City Liu Family, afraid you couldn't satisfy me?"】

【Hearing this long-absent teasing, Liu Xiyue was stunned for a moment, and then her tense body instantly relaxed.】

【She rolled her eyes in annoyance, recovering a bit of her former haughtiness.】

【"It's not like you don't know, I'm not what I used to be. I can only hide in Longnan and can't go anywhere before the Martial Arts College Entrance Examination."】

// "If it were before, this lady wouldn't even spare a glance at these things."】

【Seeing her stubborn attitude while her eyes hid a trace of melancholy, you didn't have the heart to tease her further.】

【"Alright, alright, look at those melancholy little eyes of yours."】

【You waved your hand.】

【"The cult crisis is resolved, and the dimensional secret treasure is in hand."】

【"You even gained a blessing from the disaster and broke through to the ninth stage; what is there to worry about?"】

【"I see your future as bright and clear..."】

【"As for our previous bet..."】

【You paused and looked at her. "We won't be doing the arena match on the twentieth."】

【Liu Xiyue was startled: "Why?"】

【"It's not that I look down on you." You shook your head. "It's that I think you should understand by now the gap between us."】

【"Right now, what you need is accumulation—to transform your skyrocketing power into actual combat ability, rather than coming to me to get beaten up."】

【You pointed at yourself.】

【"Follow me and learn well; if you can even learn ten or twenty percent of my skills, it will be enough to last you a lifetime!"】

【"Pfft, arrogant."】

【Liu Xiyue looked at your confident, almost punchable face.】

【She originally wanted to complain, but the words turned into a light laugh as they reached her lips.】

【She softly agreed.】

【This was the genuine trust she had developed for you after experiencing so many betrayals and crises.】

【If you hadn't stepped in to help, she might have already been replaced by that terrifying Blood Soul Demon.】

【This kind of life-and-death bond was more solid than any contract.】

【Of course, the contract still had to be signed...】

【...】

【You and Liu Xiyue followed Wu Changhe to the Longnan City Police Station.】

【The process was very simple, even a bit perfunctory.】

【Following the 'script' Grandmaster Zhao Zongtian left last night, you briefly recounted a polished version of the events.】

【For instance, that you accidentally discovered an anomaly, and in the end, a 'mysterious Great Grandmaster' descended from the sky to resolve the crisis.】

【As for the specific details?】

【"Everything was done under the instructions of Great Grandmaster Zhao Zongtian."】

【As long as you brought up this great figure, even if the person in charge of the police station had more doubts...】

【They could only swallow their words and even had to politely see you out.】

【After all, that was an existence even the Governor had to show respect to.】

【In the afternoon.】

【You and Liu Xiyue's representative lawyer met in a secluded teahouse.】

【Both parties verified all the details of the resource transfer agreement, and after confirming everything was correct, formally signed and sealed it.】

【As the red ink was pressed onto the paper, that massive amount of resources was officially transferred to your name.】

【"Pleasure doing business with you."】

【You and Liu Xiyue shook hands.】

【"Pleasure doing business with you."】

【With this, the thrilling 'Blood Shadow Life Replacement' incident had officially come to an end on the surface.】

【It didn't matter what shocking conspiracies were still hidden within.】

【At least in this simulation, the threat was temporarily neutralized.】

【There would be plenty of opportunities to investigate the details later.】

【Right now, the most important thing was still to improve your own strength; the Martial Arts Realm was the foundation!】

【In the following days, you returned to a normal student life.】

【Classes during the day, training others in the evening, and bitter cultivation late at night.】

【Although life seemed peaceful, your heart was full of anticipation.】

【One week later.】

【A black transport vehicle stopped downstairs at the Teachers Apartment.】

【Several staff members in uniforms carried tightly sealed metal boxes into your room.】

【The boxes were opened.】

【Lustrous kaiyuan stones, Origin Sand emitting a water-wave sheen, and that rare Secret Manual, the Water Moon Mirror Ripples Saber Technique...】

【Looking at these resources filling the room, you took a deep breath, a look of eagerness flashing in your eyes.】

【"Everything is ready."】