Finding Connections Wasn't So Easy

Luo Jun closed the door behind him and turned around. He saw a huge table in the cubicle, and sitting opposite him was an old man with glasses and a small mustache.

"Teacher Qi?"

Luo Jun recognized the old man; he was a senior lecturer at the academy and also its chief Refining Masters. His main research area was the creation of magical artifacts, so having him appraise magical artifacts was naturally a piece of cake.

"Hmm..." Old Qi nodded. "What do you want to hand over? Take it out."

"This... might be a bit much," Luo Jun chuckled, "But most of it is just worthless junk."

"It's alright, don't be embarrassed," Old Qi chuckled. Just as Luo Jun thought this weapon-refining instructor was quite gentle, he heard the old man say, "What you students brought are all junk in my eyes."

All right...

Luo Jun shook his head and began taking out one magical artifact after another from the Hundred Treasure Box.

He collected these mostly from the Savage Wilderness. Back then, he wasn't strong enough and didn't have many treasures. He bought them on a large scale mainly because he valued the functionality of these Blue Sky White Clouds, and green grass. Most of them were consumables, and some even had different numbers of uses.

However, now that his strength has increased, Luo Jun no longer needs many of the functions. For example, shields that increase defense are, compared to his Gathering Origin Protective Qi, at best equivalent to a layer of paper pasted on top of iron armor, making little difference. As for invisibility and stealth, the Assassin's Cloak is useless for them. Consumables such as antidotes, cures, and healing items are also largely unnecessary for Luo Jun. He collected too many in the past, so it's better to sell them now and keep only a small amount for emergencies.

In short, Luo Jun brought out a large amount of "junk" and piled it up on the table in front of Old Qi.

"Wow, there really are some good stuff." To Luo Jun's surprise, Old Qi showed a delighted expression when he saw the junk.

It makes sense. Among students, the Foundation Establishment Realm is the mainstream, and among freshmen, there are even quite a few at the Body Refinement Realm. The treasures they can obtain are mostly of Common-level and Fine-level, with Rare-level items considered good. However, the items Luo Jun brought out were mostly of Fine-level, with a few Rare-level mixed in. Considering the quantity, compared to most students, calling him a tycoon wouldn't be an exaggeration.

Elder Qi examined and evaluated each item one by one, constantly calculating Luo Jun's merits. When he received a belt, he asked with some surprise, "You don't want this either? For someone of your level, it's a very useful treasure, isn't it?"

What Old Qi held in his hand was Body Protecting Belt, a reward Luo Jun received from the Wildlands Hunter Guild after the Ants Attack City in the Savage Wilderness.

Although this thing is tied to the identity of "Night", as a Rare-level Noble Phantasm and a standard-issue piece of equipment, there should be quite a few of these things in existence. Besides Night, other people could very well have them as well.

"Oh, I have a better protective artifact now, this one is obsolete," Luo Jun replied casually.

"Good lad, you've got quite a bit of wealth." Old Qi assessed the situation and awarded Luo Jun two Tier B Merit Points just for this one treasure.

"That valuable?" Luo Jun blurted out. Old Qi chuckled upon hearing this, "What, you think you've sold it for too much? How about I deduct a little from your price?"

"No, no, no..." Luo Jun hurriedly waved his hands, "I'm just curious, what are the teacher's criteria for judging prices?"

"Well... grade is only one aspect; function and market demand are also factors I need to consider." Elder Qi replied while inspecting the other treasures, "Non-consumable shield-type items are essentially an extra layer of protective energy. Whether in Chaos Mission or otherworldly adventures, they greatly enhance survivability and are highly sought-after treasures, naturally more expensive than similar items. Correspondingly, attack items with the ability to penetrate shields and protective energy are also quite pricey."

"Oh..." Luo Jun nodded, resisting the urge to sell the Crime Hunter as well.

With the Duelist's Glory and Violence already established, the Crime Hunter, a Rare-level weapon, is no longer quite as impressive. Moreover, judging from Teacher Qi's words, this weapon with penetrating properties should fetch a good price.

However, the Crime Hunter isn't considered standard equipment, so its availability is likely less than that of the Body Protecting Belt. Moreover, both of these were obtained from the Wildlands Hunter Guild. Selling one is fine, but selling both together could easily lead someone with ulterior motives to associate them with Night's identity.

After appraising these treasures, Elder Qi recorded four Tier B, nine Grade C, and sixteen Tier D Merit Points for Luo Jun.

"Goodness, it's been a long time since I've taken on such a big job..." Old Qi rubbed his eyes. "You've got quite a lot of tricks up your Hundred Treasure Box."

"Luckily, I got an expansion slot," Luo Jun laughed. "Now that's settled, let's take a look at the main course."

"What?" Old Qi was taken aback. "There's more?"

"Of course," Luo Jun chuckled. "We've come all this way, how could we just bring a bunch of junk to fool Teacher Qi..."

As he spoke, Luo Jun touched his wristwatch and took out two more magical artifacts.

With a curious gaze, Elder Qi swept his energy over the area and immediately revealed a surprised expression.

"An epic...?!"

That's right, the two items Luo Jun took out this time were two Epic Treasure Item. One of them was the Qi Breaking Cone, which was given to him by Hou Song in [Martial World]. It was with this thing that Luo Jun absorbed a large amount of Yuan Qi from Long Hui and broke through the Shackles of the Body Refinement Realm Eighth Layer.

What others didn't know was that because he absorbed too much vital energy that time, the Qi Breaking Cone was damaged. Although it still had the function of breaking energy, it could no longer absorb vital energy.

Even so, this is still a genuine Epic Treasure Item. After examining it, Elder Qi shook his head with some regret. "Its function is very specific, but its versatility is not very strong, and it is somewhat damaged. I can only give it two Tier B..."

A damaged epic item and an excellent rare item have the same price... that's reasonable.

"Sold it." Luo Jun nodded in agreement, and Elder Qi then looked at another treasure.

This was an unremarkable piece of red rope, but its effect surprised the old Refining Masters greatly.

The Calamity Blocking Red Thread was a treasure given to Luo Jun by Old Yuan in [Utopia]. Although Luo Jun was still under the identity of Ye when he received it, no one else was present, so no one had ever seen the red thread before. As for its origin, Luo Jun could easily make up a lie, and Old Yuan and the Dean could cover it up for him.

"This is a really good thing..." Old Qi nodded, holding the red rope. "While its ability to improve luck is somewhat mystical, it often has unexpected benefits. Most importantly, it can protect against fatal damage. Although it only works once, this kind of life-saving ability is highly sought after..."

At this point, Old Qi hesitated for a moment. "I can give you two Grade A items!"

Luo Jun's pupils dilated slightly upon hearing this. This price was quite high, considering that the Calamity Blocking Red Thread was practically a consumable item. It was indeed rare to find someone willing to pay such a high price.

However, after considering it for a moment, Luo Jun put the Calamity Blocking Red Rope.

"I think I'll pass on this. I'm sorry, Teacher Qi, thank you for your trouble."

Old Qi nodded. "It's nothing. I don't recommend you make a move on such a good item. Your students' cultivation level and experience are not high yet, so the ability to protect themselves is very important."

Luo Jun nodded, thanked Teacher Qi again, tidied up his things, and left the cubicle.

Luo Jun still hadn't used the Calamity Blocking Red Thread. Although his Limit Underpants already had the ability to withstand fatal damage, there was still a seven-day Cooldown Time. If he really encountered an invincible enemy, the Limit Underwear combined with the Calamity Blocking Red Thread could save his life twice in a row.

Luo Jun is just giving the Calamity Blocking Red Thread a rough estimate first, keeping it for now, and then considering selling it to recoup his losses if he encounters something he needs but can't afford it later.

"How was it? How many merits did you get?" Tie Jingang and Chen Ran were still waiting for him outside, especially Chen Ran, who was particularly curious.

Luo Jun smiled slightly, "It's a secret. Anyway, I have a lot of merit points now! When the selection for the Exchange Meeting, I'll exchange them for some powerful Noble Phantasms, and I'll definitely beat you to a pulp!"

"Hey!" Chen Ran immediately retorted, "You wait, I'll go borrow the treasure from my dad right now!"

"We can't use a treasure from an illegitimate source, can we?" Luo Jun reminded him.

"Who said I was going to use it!" Chen Ran retorted angrily. "Can't I use it to exchange for merit points, and then use those merit points to redeem it back?"

"This is allowed?" Luo Jun was stunned, then turned to Tie Jingang: "Is this considered money laundering... no, laundering magical artifacts?"

"Don't listen to his nonsense..." Tie Jingang and said, "The price handed over is usually lower than the exchange rate, so it's not appropriate to do this."

"Furthermore, the treasures you hand over aren't immediately uploaded to the Exchange Platform. They usually require a period of registration and scanning, which typically results in a delay of one or two days. And there are people monitoring the Exchange Platform 24/7, ready to snap up any good treasures they find. So whether you can buy back the treasures you hand over is really another matter."

"Then he can take a bunch of useless treasures from his Lineage, exchange them for a bunch of merit points, and directly exchange them for high-level treasures, right?" Luo Jun pointed at Chen Ran: "Isn't that a privilege of the Great Family?"

Tie Jingang laughed and said, "Have you forgotten that merit points can't be exchanged for higher-level ones? If he wants to exchange for Epic Treasure Item, he can only use Tier A Merit Points. No matter how many low-level treasures he sells or how many low-level merit points he earns, he still can't exchange them for an epic treasure. And even if he goes all out and uses epic treasures to exchange for merit points, and then Exchange Platform, he might not be able to hide it from the inspection."

"The Exchange Meeting examine the reported Noble Phantasms, and it's not just a simple matter of checking their origin. After all, nobody knows or can prove what you obtained during the Chaos Mission. So, in addition to explaining the source, you'll also undergo a lie detector test; only those with a clear conscience will pass..."

As he spoke, Tie Jingang looked at Chen Ran and said, "Your little tricks are useless..."

"Tch!" Chen Ran scoffed. "I wouldn't stoop to using Young Master. I'll earn my spot through my own abilities!"

"Stop pretending." Luo Jun pointed to his watch. "You have class this afternoon, right?"

"Ouch!" Chen Ran slapped his forehead. "It's Teacher Zheng's PE class! That Tiger Zheng is really something, if you're late you have to run laps!" After saying goodbye to the two, he dashed out of the Experiment Building.

"It's great to have a holiday!" Luo Jun said with a hint of schadenfreude, watching Chen Ran's retreating figure.

"Then you shouldn't neglect your cultivation," Tie Jingang reminded him. "These few days are for you to rest, adjust your state, and recharge. Everything will be back on track next week, so you need to seize the opportunity to improve your cultivation level!"

"Don't worry, Teacher Tie, I'll definitely live up to your expectations." Luo Jun patted his chest, then suddenly lowered his voice. "But relying solely on cultivation level definitely won't be enough; we also need to work on our Noble Phantasms..."

"Didn't you redeem an epic item?" Tie Jingang looked at him. "It'll arrive in a couple of days."

"One isn't enough..." Luo Jun said with a grin, "So I'm thinking of finding some other ways, like the Teacher Tie mentioned before..."

Hearing this, Tie Jingang narrowed his eyes. "Oh... you want to go to the black market?"

"Hehehe..." Luo Jun laughed, "It's just that I don't know the way, I don't know which way to open the door, I hope Teacher Tie can help me..."

"What a load of rubbish!" Tie Jingang slapped Luo Jun on the head. "I'm warning you so you don't take the wrong path! You're so young, only at the Foundation Establishment Realm, and you dare to go into the black market all by yourself? You'd be sold off without even realizing it!"

"As long as I am your teacher, I will not allow you to go to that kind of place!"

After saying that, Tie Jingang his hands behind his back and left angrily.

Luo Jun scratched his head and muttered, "Alone... then I just need to not be alone?"

Luo Jun was certain that Tie Jingang had mentioned the black market to him before, as a hint. His current refusal to provide information was likely due to fear that Luo Jun might encounter danger there, and as his teacher, he had to uphold his principles and couldn't take him there...

In other words, if Luo Jun could find a powerful enough partner, Tie Jingang might agree.

However, the items Luo Jun wanted to sell on the black market were things that couldn't be conveniently made available on official platforms, and he didn't want to go with anyone.

Should we have Ailongtan impersonate Lu Fei or someone else to try and extract information from Tie Jingang? No way, it would be troublesome if he were exposed later... It seems we have to give up on the Teacher Tie line. Ningdong is such a big place, surely many people have been to the black market, he refuses to believe we can't get intelligence!

Just then, a door to a cubicle opened, and a girl with a high ponytail walked out, coming face to face with Luo Jun. Their eyes met.

"Ling Xin?" Luo Jun didn't expect it to be her and greeted her instinctively, "You're here to exchange merit points too?"

Ling Xin was also somewhat surprised. She nodded, looked away, and turned to leave.

Wait... Ling Xin has been in Ningdong for three years now, could she...?

Thinking of this, Luo Jun suddenly called out to her, "Wait..."

Ling Xin was slightly taken aback, turned around, and looked at Luo Jun with some confusion. "What is it?"

Luo Jun looked around, then leaned forward and pulled Ling Xin up. "Let's go outside and find a secluded place to talk..."

"Huh? A deserted... place?!"

Startled by Luo Jun's sudden grab, Ling Xin blushed slightly, but instinctively didn't resist and simply followed him outside...