48: These women's eyes will eat you up

Gao Hongyu covered his face, his cheek burning with pain.

He stared blankly at his father, his eyes filled with confusion.

Gao Jun took a deep breath, suppressing the intense pain throughout his body, and pulled a black card from his chest pocket, holding it with both hands as he presented it to Su Chen.

The card was made of some unknown beast hide, with silver threads inlaid along the edges and a simplified tripod logo printed on it.

"Mr. Su, this is the black gold VIP card of the Nine Tripods Consortium." Gao Jun's voice trembled, not just from the pain, but even more so from fear. "Please take it; from now on, you will receive a 50% discount on all purchases across all industries under our consortium."

He paused and bowed even lower. "This is just a small token of our sincerity. I beg you, sir, to be magnanimous and not hold this against us, father and son."

Hearing this, there was a flurry of whispers from the surrounding crowd. "That's a black gold card!"

"I reckon that with Gao Jun's rank, he only has one quota to issue such a card."

"I'm so envious. This card is worth at least ten Spirit Sea Realm Yao Beasts, if not more."

Su Chen glanced at the card, feeling a sense of emotion in his heart.

The Nine Tripods Consortium was a behemoth that spanned the entire Huaxia nation, and in the Late Stage, it even monopolized the trading of Materials for those who Cultivate.

In his past life, he had gone to great lengths and done plenty of dirty work for the Nine Tripods Consortium just to get a 10% discount silver card.

Yet now, a top-tier 50% discount card was laid out right before him.

Gao Jun's hand froze in mid-air. Seeing that Su Chen was slow to accept it, the expression on his face grew even uglier.

He looked toward Nan Mingde for help.

Nan Mingde sighed softly; he, too, envied this black gold card. With it, there would be more hope for his daughter's illness to be cured. At this moment, he took the card and tucked it into Su Chen's pocket.

"Su Chen, I think Gao Jun is very sincere. Why don't we let this matter end here?"

Su Chen nodded.

Gao Jun felt a huge sense of relief. Without looking back, he dragged Gao Hongyu, who looked like he had lost his soul, out of the banquet hall.

...

This farce was like a switch, pushing the atmosphere of the banquet to a new climax.

Everyone's eyes were fixed on Su Chen, filled with awe, curiosity, and undisguised greed.

Several well-dressed middle-aged men gathered in a corner, talking in low voices.

"This Su Chen, he's so young, yet his methods are so ruthless."

"To be able to wipe out the Ruiners, his strength must be unfathomable."

"The Nan Family has placed a winning bet this time."

"We must find a way to establish a connection with him."

They were the leaders of various organizations for those who Cultivate in Jiangcheng, each harboring their own agendas. Su Chen's appearance was like a giant boulder thrown into a calm lake, causing the once-stable landscape to begin to shift.

At this moment, an old man with the demeanor of a Daoist immortal led a pale-faced middle-aged man over.

Nan Yafu was the first to react. "Chairman Meng, Hall Master Feng."

It was none other than Meng Cang, the Chairman of the Dao Hall Alliance, and Feng Yun, the Hall Master of the Yunshu Taoist Temple and He Xing Tian's master.

"Mr. Su, please forgive us for the previous offense." The Chairman of the Dao Hall Alliance bowed with clasped hands, his attitude very respectful. "It was our failure in discipline that allowed that brat He Xing Tian to offend you."

Feng Yun's face was gaunt, with stubble on his chin, clearly having been in a bad state for the past two days. He said with a hint of trepidation, "Mr. Su, it was my failure to teach my Disciple properly. Please accept my apology."

He handed over an exquisite wooden box. "This is a small token of our Dao Hall's sincerity."

Su Chen didn't even glance at the wooden box.

"My grudge with him is already over." Su Chen said, "The price was his life."

"Just focus on running your Dao Hall and teaching your Disciple well."

Feng Yun, the Hall Master of the Yunshu Taoist Temple, was stunned for a moment; he hadn't expected Su Chen to be so direct.

He had prepared a bellyful of apologies and explanations, but they were all stuck in his throat.

Meng Cang, the Chairman of the Dao Hall Alliance, held this young man in even higher regard. To be able to maintain his principles and refuse the gift while in such a position of absolute dominance.

This level of composure was rare among the restless crowd of those who Cultivate today.

He laughed it off. "Mr. Su is truly a man of principle. In that case, you are welcome to come to our association for guidance and exchange at any time."

After speaking, he pulled the still-stunned Hall Master of the Yunshu Taoist Temple and left quickly.

After the two left, Su Chen's table remained bustling with activity.

The young women at the banquet couldn't take their eyes off Su Chen. They gathered in twos and threes, pretending to chat, but their eyes kept darting toward Su Chen's table.

A few bold ones tried to come over with wine glasses to toast him, but they were all quietly blocked by Tie Shan.

Tie Shan stood behind Su Chen, watching the scene before him with deep emotion. Only a short while ago, when he met Su Chen on the highway, he only thought this youth was a bit special.

Yet in just two days, Su Chen had become the most sought-after figure in all of Jiangcheng.

Dragon Xuexue and Nan Yafu sat beside Su Chen; seeing the frequent gazes from those girls, they both felt a bit awkward.

"Look, these women's eyes are about to eat you up," Dragon Xuexue said with annoyance.

Nan Yafu also nodded. "Exactly, they're all like hungry wolves."

Dragon Xuexue muttered to herself: I don't even like Su Chen, so why do I feel so uncomfortable with these women's gazes?

Nan Yafu was also thinking: Su Chen is powerful, but surely not enough to make them this obsessed, right?

On the other side, several young Geniuses gathered together, their expressions looking unpleasant.

"Isn't it just luck that he wiped out a Ruiner? What's so great about that?" A young man in a white suit said sourly. He was a Core Disciple of another Dao Hall in Jiangcheng, and he used to always have many girls around him, but now their attention had all been drawn away by Su Chen.

"I bet he must have a background; otherwise, how could he rise so quickly?" Another person chimed in.

They watched the girls who used to revolve around them, now gazing longingly in Su Chen's direction, and the jealousy in their hearts grew wildly like weeds.

Someone saw Zhang Qiang, Lin Yan, and Shen Zhou nearby and walked over to provoke them.

"Didn't you have a grudge against him before? Are you just going to let it go like this?"

Zhang Qiang glared at the man. "What do you know? Mr. Su's strength is not something we can compare to."

Lin Yan also said coldly, "Don't go looking for trouble. We have no grudge against Mr. Su."

Shen Zhou didn't speak, but the awe in his eyes said it all. After the previous lesson, the three of them were thoroughly subdued by Su Chen, knowing that this person was unfathomable and not someone they could afford to provoke.

Ji Sisi stood in the crowd, watching Su Chen, who was the center of everyone's attention, and took a deep breath. For the first time, she felt that she completely couldn't see through a man.

Just then, Nan Mingde walked onto the small stage in the center of the banquet hall.

He cleared his throat and picked up the microphone.

"Quiet down, everyone."

The noisy banquet hall gradually quieted down, and everyone's eyes were fixed on him.

Nan Mingde looked around and said slowly, "Hosting this banquet today, besides celebrating the eradication of the Ruiners, there are two more important matters to announce."

He paused deliberately, whetting everyone's appetite.

"These two matters are closely related to the future of all of us who Cultivate."