571: Meeting gift

Thinking of this, he raised his head and looked at Lü Zheng with a calm and serious gaze.

"comrade Lü Zheng, you're being too polite. Being able to gain your trust is my honor."

Thinking of this, Li Yang no longer hesitated and reached out to take the small black box.

He subconsciously took a deep breath, hooked his finger into the latch of the box lid, and pressed it gently.

With the subtle sound of the latch popping open, the lid slowly rose, and a faint, cold fragrance wafted from the gap, resembling the distinctive scent of some Advanced stabilizer.

In the next second, Li Yang's pupils suddenly constricted.

The interior of the box was lined with a layer of black velvet padding, and in the center lay a potion that was pure white and shimmering with a faint glow.

The potion sloshed slightly in its specially made container; the liquid was so pure it had almost no trace of Impurities, looking like a meticulously polished gemstone.

Engraved on the bottle was a line of tiny silver characters: [Flawless Enhancement Potion].

Li Yang felt his brain buzz, and for a moment, he was actually a bit dazed.

Wasn't this... the same Flawless Enhancement Potion they had spent so much effort on at the Auction, forcefully smashing down three billion star coins to snatch away?

He subconsciously looked up at Lü Zheng, then back down at the potion in the box, repeatedly confirming the markings and patterns on the bottle several times before finally being certain he hadn't seen wrong.

Whether it was the potion itself or the markings on it, everything was identical to the one at the Auction.

"This..."

Li Yang opened his mouth, his throat feeling a bit tight.

"This gift is a bit too precious..."

Of course, he was tempted.

As a rapidly rising star, he knew the value of this Flawless Enhancement Potion better than anyone.

It wasn't just the price of three billion; more importantly, this kind of thing was simply unavailable on the market, no matter the price. Even if you had money, you might not be able to buy it.

To put it bluntly, if the news that a Flawless Enhancement Potion would be listed at this Auction had been exposed in advance, the price would likely have been far more than three billion.

But precisely because it was so precious, he knew even more clearly that once he truly accepted it, this favor would not be as simple as a casual exchange of gifts.

"This thing doesn't have much use for us."

Lü Zheng seemed to see through his thoughts, yet his tone was surprisingly relaxed.

"Our Lü Family doesn't lack resources; what we truly lack are people like you."

He paused, a meaningful smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

"As a meeting gift between us, I think it's very appropriate."

Lü Zheng didn't deliberately emphasize anything, nor did he make any specific requests. He just looked at him with an honest and resolute gaze, as if he had said enough and would leave it at that.

Li Yang remained silent for a moment, his gaze moving back and forth between the potion and Lü Zheng.

He knew the other party was throwing out a heavy amount of trust, or rather, an advance investment—it was just that this investment was so large he found it somewhat exaggerated.

He slowly reached out, his fingertips gently sliding across the outside of the potion bottle. The cold sensation calmed his chaotic thoughts slightly.

After a moment, he gently closed the lid. With a 'click,' he locked that temptation—enough to make countless people green with envy—back into the small black box.

"In that case, I'll accept it."

Li Yang raised his head, his gaze becoming firm.

"If you need my help with anything in the future, contact me anytime."

Having said this, he instead felt at ease.

The other party had already gone to such lengths; if he continued to be coy, it would seem like he didn't know how to appreciate kindness.

Moreover, with his current strength and status, it was impossible for him to repay such a grand gift in the short term.

Rather than obsessing over immediate gains and losses, it was better to accept it gracefully, keep this favor in his heart, and return it tenfold or a hundredfold when the opportunity arose in the future.

Seeing him accept it, a flash of imperceptible satisfaction crossed Lü Zheng's eyes, confirming his judgment. He nodded slightly, and his tone relaxed a bit more.

"Then it's settled, haha. Of course..."

Lü Zheng laughed heartily, but his eyes remained serious.

"I believe Comrade Li Yang will surely walk a higher and farther path. The gift has been delivered, so we won't disturb you any longer."

Just as he finished speaking, Lü Xia, who was beside him, also nodded slightly, her tone peaceful yet polite.

"Comrade Li Yang, I look forward to seeing you again."

Just like her cold and aloof temperament, her words were pitifully few. However, Li Yang knew very well that from the moment he took the box, the connection between him and the Lü Family—or more accurately, with these two members of the Lü Family—was no longer just simple 'mutual appreciation,' but had gained an invisible yet real bond of interest and trust.

As the words fell, the figures of the two seemed to be gently brushed by an invisible hand, and their outlines began to blur.

The light and shadows in the air distorted slightly, like ripples on the surface of water after a stone is thrown in.

In the next second, their forms were as if gently wiped away by an eraser, disappearing silently from the room, leaving only a faint fluctuation in the air to prove they had ever existed.

Clearly, this was the normal phenomenon after a Conscious Entity disconnected. In the Consciousness Space, they only appeared in the form of data, and now, they had exited the space, their consciousnesses returning to their original bodies.

Li Yang withdrew his gaze and slowly exhaled, his eyes falling back onto the small black box in his hand.

The box still lay quietly in his palm, the touch feeling real, as if he could feel the weight of the Flawless Enhancement Potion inside.

However, he knew very well that everything before him was just a highly realistic simulation.

In this Virtual Consciousness System of the Empire's strongest Chamber of Commerce, the display, trading, and handover of all items were conducted through Conscious Entity interaction.

The real box, the real potion, and all the items he had won at the Auction were still quietly stored in the Auction's specialized vault, protected by layers of the strictest energy shields and quantum locks.

Only when the Auction was completely over and all transactions were confirmed would the Chamber of Commerce activate a dedicated teleportation device to send these items with the highest priority, point-to-point, to his designated real-world coordinates.

Thinking of this, Li Yang gently stroked the box lid, a faint smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

Although it was only a simulated image, he knew that what this box represented was a real and heavy promise.

Whether it was that Flawless Enhancement Potion worth three billion or the 'friendship' Lü Zheng spoke of, neither would remain only within this virtual space.

"A higher and farther path, huh..."

Li Yang silently repeated Lü Zheng's words in his heart, a sharp glint flashing in his eyes.

"Then let's see."

He tightened his grip on the box in his hand. With a gentle movement of his consciousness, the scene before him was as if the pause button had been pressed, then it quickly faded, shattered, and finally returned to a soft darkness.