Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure: Marrow Cleansing Flower

Zhang Ming became alert and immediately looked toward the sound.

At some point, a Black-Clad Woman had emerged from the corner of the room.

The Black-Clad Woman wore a veil, concealing her face. Yet judging by her cool, clear voice and her delicate, exquisitely curved figure, she had to be a breathtaking beauty.

"Who are you?"

Facing the woman who had appeared out of nowhere, Zhang Ming forced himself to remain calm. The Vital Energy within him began circulating rapidly and silently as he prepared to strike at any moment.

The woman gave a faint chuckle.

"Don't be impulsive, Zhang Ming. That little trick of circulating your Vital Energy can't fool anyone."

"Oh?"

Though he had been seen through, Zhang Ming did not stop circulating his Vital Energy. Who knew whether she was merely trying to bluff him?

He composed himself again and asked, "You're the Mysterious Buyer?"

The woman did not beat around the bush.

"That's right. It's us. We are the buyers of the Armor and Weapons from your Qingmang Mountain Mine."

Us? Us?

So it really was a major power?

"Who are you? Why do you want to purchase so much Armor and Weapons?"

The woman covered her mouth and laughed, a trace of disappointment appearing in her eyes as she said mischievously, "I originally thought you wouldn't ask. After all, do you think I'd tell you?"

Understanding dawned on Zhang Ming, and his eyes narrowed slightly.

"You appeared because you want me not to stop trading with you?"

"What can I gain? How will you guarantee that those Armor and Weapons won't bring fire upon the Mine—or upon me?"

"You know I'm Zhang Ming, so you should know I'm the eldest son of the Zhang Family. I don't lack money."

"Hehe."

The woman smiled sweetly. Even her black veil could not conceal the charm overflowing from her laughter.

"What do you want? How about..."

With light, graceful steps, the woman moved a little closer. A fragrant breeze washed over him.

Zhang Ming's face turned icy. He immediately sealed his mouth and nose shut, silently retreating several meters.

The woman froze. Looking at Zhang Ming several meters away, she became somewhat annoyed.

"Why are you running? Isn't your big sister beautiful?"

Zhang Ming remained expressionless.

"Pink Skull. Get to the point."

Seeing that Zhang Ming was not pretending, the woman helplessly turned serious.

"I know you don't lack money, but you only recently comprehended Vital Energy and became a Warrior, didn't you?"

"And the Cultivation Method you practice is the Mighty Bull Martial Arts School's [Mighty Bull Strength]!"

"So what if it is?"

"Don't you want to know what the Mighty Bull Martial Arts School's great medicine is? Don't you want to avoid being controlled by others?"

"You can tell me?"

Although Zhang Ming had long known what the great medicine was, he could not reveal that he knew. He could only pretend ignorance.

"Of course. And not only that."

"The Mighty Bull Martial Arts School's three core Cultivation Methods—[Mighty Bull Strength], [Mighty Bull Fist], and [Mighty Bull Body]—were actually split from a single Cultivation Method. If you..."

"I see. The three Cultivation Methods were actually one?"

Zhang Ming pretended to have a sudden realization, then asked, "You have the original Cultivation Method?"

"Of course!" The woman smiled faintly. "Is that enough to earn your cooperation?"

"Hmph."

Zhang Ming snorted coldly. If he agreed to cooperate over just that, wouldn't that mean he had gained nothing at all?

He had long known the great medicine's formula. Though he was curious about combining the three Cultivation Methods into one, now that he had the [Mighty Bull Cultivation Method], he was not in desperate need of it.

After considering it in an instant, Zhang Ming said coldly, "Not enough!"

"I don't know who you are, but after discovering the Mine and confirming its capabilities, you did not touch the Zhang Family, nor did you touch me, Zhang Ming."

"That must mean you believe that I, Zhang Ming, am worth more than the meager Armor and Weapons currently produced by this so-called Mine!"

"So, it isn't enough!"

The woman suddenly bent over and chuckled.

"Zhang Ming, Zhang Ming. No wonder you were hailed as a prodigy since childhood. Though I don't know why you later fell silent and failed to properly study for the imperial examinations, your intelligence has not fluctuated in the slightest as you grew up. You are still just as clever."

After chuckling a few more times, the woman turned serious and took a Jade Box from her waist.

"I wonder whether this, added to the offer, is enough?"

"Hmm?"

"What is that?"

"A Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure!"

"A Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure?"

"Such things truly exist in this world?"

Zhang Ming had read descriptions of Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasures in ancient texts.

The books described them in wildly exaggerated terms: reviving the dead, regrowing white bones, extending one's life by a hundred years, improving martial aptitude, enhancing comprehension and intelligence, and possessing countless other powerful, bizarre effects.

In almost every storybook novel, every "protagonist" would use or consume several Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasures.

The Black-Clad Woman explained, "Of course they exist. Otherwise, how could information about Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasures have been passed down?"

"And the Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure in my hands was prepared specifically for you."

"Prepared specifically for me?"

Zhang Ming gave a mocking laugh.

"It seems my guess was correct. You've been watching me for a long time. You even have a Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure specially prepared for me."

"Let me guess. The managers knowing that I was coming to the Mine—was that also because you tipped them off?"

"Even how I handled them—whether tactfully, decisively, through compromise, or by turning a blind eye—would determine your attitude toward me?"

The woman raised her chin slightly, looking down on him with the superiority of one above another.

"Of course. The uniquely ingenious blast furnace in this Mine, called a steelmaking furnace, and that marvelously crafted water-powered stamping press."

"As long as someone had any brains, they would pay special attention to you, the creator of all this!"

"As for predicting that you would come? That was merely the calculating of the intentional against the unintentional. So long as you still cared about the Mine, we were bound to meet sooner or later."

"..."

"I see."

When he discovered the mineral deposits and established the Mine, Zhang Ming had instinctively compared the mining business to the coal bosses of a certain Jin Province in his previous life, growing rich as though picking up money from the ground.

So, during the Mine's early construction, on a whim, he had built coal and iron technology beyond this era with his bare hands.

But later, he discovered that no one wanted the Mine's output. Combined with the fact that it was too sensitive, he had sealed away much of the technology and issued orders forbidding expansion.

Yet even so, it had still drawn some unnecessary attention.

The woman before him, representing the Mysterious Buyer, was one of them.

The woman continued, "So, is there enough value for cooperation now?"

In a deep voice, Zhang Ming continued asking, "What Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure is this? Can it truly improve my martial aptitude?"

"Marrow Cleansing Flower. The Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure known as the Marrow Cleansing Flower. Consuming it can cleanse one's tendons, bones, flesh, and blood, improving martial aptitude."

"It can turn mediocrity into genius, and make geniuses even more brilliant."

"There is no need to elaborate on the value of the Marrow Cleansing Flower. Even among the powers of today's Martial Saints, it is rarely seen. Every time it appears, it stirs up a bloody storm throughout the martial world."

The woman raised her chin slightly, proud beyond measure.

"Zhang Ming, your martial aptitude is not high. You must envy your younger brother and sister, don't you?"

"Now, I have a Marrow Cleansing Flower in my hands. So long as you agree to cooperate with us, this priceless Marrow Cleansing Flower will be one of the gifts for our cooperation!"

"Marrow Cleansing Flower, cleansing the body, strengthening martial aptitude, priceless beyond measure."

Zhang Ming's breathing quickened, and his wariness toward the power behind the woman deepened by several degrees.

If everything the woman said was true, how could a force capable of producing such a Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure be an ordinary one?

For no reason at all, every major power in Jiangnan Province and the surrounding provinces flashed through Zhang Ming's mind.

But with too little information and too little time, Zhang Ming did not dare determine which major power it truly was.

At least... there are only five or six names on the list of suspects.

The corner of Zhang Ming's mouth lifted, and a strange excitement arose within him.

The feeling of cooperating with a powerful force, where one slight misstep could bring down thunderous destruction, like walking a tightrope—it was simply intoxicating.

(No female lead; there will be no female lead.)