Breakthrough to the 6th Level of Qi Refining

Xiao Chen almost laughed when he heard that. For this kind of shady business, it had to be cash in one hand, goods in the other.

If he actually took Chen Guangyu's IOU, wouldn't that be no different from taking a blank sheet of paper?

If Chen Guangyu reneged, Xiao Chen couldn't exactly take the IOU to the Chen Family to collect the debt, could he?

If things blew up and the sect High-Level asked, "How did he come to owe you money?"

What could Xiao Chen say?

If he told the truth, it would probably count as turning himself in. He might even receive a deluxe suite in the Back Mountain Confinement Room, with food and lodging covered for the next ten years.

"That won't be necessary. Since Senior Brother only brought fifty Points' worth of Spirit Stones, we'll count it as fifty Points."

Chen Guangyu immediately and cheerfully pulled out one hundred and fifty Spirit Stones from his robes. "Junior Brother Xiao, come, come, count them."

After Xiao Chen confirmed the amount, he took back the Jade Tokens worth twenty-two Points and cupped his hands in farewell.

After leaving, he found an empty corner, put his cloak back on, and circled around to return.

He believed Chen Guangyu definitely was not the only one collecting Jade Tokens.

So, carrying two Jade Tokens, he deliberately tested the stalls whose owners were richly dressed and whose locations were secluded.

He especially sought stall owners at the Mid-stage Qi Refining Realm. They were most likely disciples who had taken the Trial together.

To his surprise, he gradually sold another forty-six Points' worth individually.

These actions soon drew Song Zhongming's attention.

As the eldest son of the Song Family Eleventh Branch, Song Zhongming had also been terribly unlucky this time, harvesting only a mere twenty Points.

He had come to the Stall intending to purchase some Jade Tokens, but after seeing that no one was openly selling them, he became hesitant.

Since he had made no preparations beforehand, he did not know where to begin.

At a time like this, relying on his family's power would clearly be rather humiliating.

But if he failed to submit enough Points and fell out of the top ten, that would be even more humiliating.

If he became the only one among Branch 2's current seven disciples at the 6th level of Qi Refining who failed to enter the top ten, he would lose face beyond measure.

Just as Song Zhongming was burning with anxiety, he happened to spot a mysterious cloaked figure in the southwest corner, holding Jade Tokens and peddling them.

As if possessed, he followed behind the man. Watching token after token being sold, he too began to entertain the idea.

Xiao Chen had just finished making a round of sales and was preparing to try outside when he noticed a richly dressed young master taking the initiative to approach him.

"Senior Brother, do you still have Points?"

"Yes. How many do you want?"

"I want a lot. A great many. Senior Brother, let's speak somewhere private."

Song Zhongming glanced around and gestured for Xiao Chen to leave with him.

Xiao Chen had already recognized the newcomer, so he was not worried about a trap. He followed him out and found an unoccupied grove.

"Senior Brother, you may not know me. I am Song Zhongming of the Song Family. I need a great many Points right now. However many Points Jade Tokens you have left, I'll take them all."

So you're very rich, then?

Xiao Chen was not entirely convinced by his financial means.

He lifted the bundle in his hand and gave it a shake. "Junior Brother Song, I have Points in abundance. Tell me the number you need. Three Spirit Stones per Point, and I guarantee I can supply enough."

Hearing the clatter of countless Jade Tokens, Song Zhongming was struck with awe. What strength!

Then he came to his senses. So it was you people who had killed all the Spirit Beasts, leaving him with only twenty Points.

He immediately concluded that Xiao Chen was merely an agent in charge of selling, and that there had to be others helping behind him.

But now was not the time to discuss that. Points were what mattered.

"Then I won't stand on ceremony. I want one hundred Points. Here are three Mid-Grade Spirit Stones."

Now it was Xiao Chen's turn to be struck with awe.

Everyone knew that one Mid-Grade Spirit Stone was equal to one hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones.

Yet in practice, one often needed one hundred and three, or even one hundred and five, Low-grade Spirit Stones to exchange for a Mid-Grade Spirit Stone.

Setting other factors aside, convenience of carrying them alone was crucial.

The reason Xiao Chen had readily given Su Wanqing a discounted exchange earlier was also partly because she had brought out Mid-Grade Spirit Stones.

Xiao Chen immediately counted out one hundred Points. Since it was inconvenient to make the amount exact, he even added two extra Points as loose change. "Junior Brother Song is forthright. Here are the Points you wanted. Consider the extra a gift."

Once the transaction was complete, Xiao Chen watched Song Zhongming leave and could not help sighing. This was what a rich man looked like.

He now had only seventy-four Points left, neither too many nor too few.

To be safe, Xiao Chen first went to the Camp to ask how many Points the disciples currently ranked in the top ten had.

After slipping two Spirit Stones to the Inner Sect senior brother responsible for registering the records, he successfully viewed the current rankings.

First place was unexpectedly Jiang Sixuan, with one hundred and thirteen Points.

Eighth place had only fifty-six Points, while tenth place had merely thirty-nine.

In truth, taking eighth place seemed sufficient for him. Once Chen Guangyu and Song Zhongming submitted their Points, he would happen to be squeezed down to tenth place.

But that seemed somewhat risky. It would be best to leave room for error by one ranking.

No, no, one was not enough. It would be safer to leave room for error by two rankings.

Xiao Chen looked upward, toward sixth place, which had sixty-two Points.

As long as he submitted sixty-five Points, he could secure that rank and still retain nine Points to sell.

After leaving the Camp, he deliberately waited until the third quarter of the hour of the Monkey, half an hour before Branch 2's deadline, to make sure no unexpected developments occurred.

Only then did he turn and go inside to submit sixty-five Points.

Then, on the following morning, he donned his cloak and sold off the final nine Points individually as well.

For Xiao Chen, this round of the Trial had now come to an end.

This time, through the Hextech Enhancement, he had obtained a full four Mid-Grade Spirit Stones and three hundred and thirty Low-grade Spirit Stones in one go.

An ordinary Mid-stage Qi Refining Realm disciple would have needed twenty years without food or drink to save up that many Spirit Stones.

And now, this enormous fortune was all packed inside Xiao Chen's fox-fur bundle.

When selling the spiritual materials afterward, a Rogue Cultivator had offered one Spirit Stone for the bundle, yet Xiao Chen had refused to sell it.

Although the materials alone eventually sold for the high price of twenty-four Spirit Stones, he had already grown indifferent to it.

After calmly finishing the transactions and returning to the Camp, the matter on Xiao Chen's mind had shifted to his own cultivation.

He had worried that the mountain range was unsafe before, but now that he had returned to the Camp, it was the perfect opportunity.

To improve his odds of success, Xiao Chen took out the Harmony Origin Pill and swallowed it directly.

It had to be said that the Harmony Origin Pill truly deserved its reputation as a Top-Grade First-Order Pill.

The moment it entered his stomach, it transformed into an exceptionally pure mass of spiritual energy. Xiao Chen even felt his Dantian beginning to swell.

As he circulated his cultivation technique, after only three Great Heavenly Cycles, he naturally stepped into the 6th level of Qi Refining.

Moreover, after his breakthrough, the Harmony Origin Pill's effects continued for more than half a day, helping him completely stabilize his new realm.

Over the following days, Xiao Chen devoted himself to cultivation until the Trial fully ended and the day came to announce the rankings.

After more than half a month, Manager Chen once again gathered the disciples of Branch 2 and also brought the rewards for this Trial.

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