At Chen Lin's words, Zhang Zhenqian shook his head.
"You don't know the full story, Fellow Daoist Chen. I'm actually a rogue cultivator. Years ago, I was badly wounded in a fight and came to Bamian City to recuperate. Because I had some skill in appraisal, I was invited to become an attendant of the trading firm. Later, when they were short-handed, they put me in charge of a region."
He drained the spirit wine in his cup and exhaled a weary breath.
"The trading firm kept trying to make me sign a soul pact, but I turned them down with one excuse after another. That was precisely why they never truly trusted me. Now that they've found someone to replace me, they couldn't wait to strip me of my position."
At this point, he gave a mocking laugh. "That Great Elder wanted me to keep shielding the other Huang Family descendants, treating me like a mere guard. I'd had enough of that damned humiliation, so I gave up the reward I was due this time in exchange for my freedom."
After hearing him out, Chen Lin sympathized with him. His appearance alone suggested that he was a frank, forthright man. He had probably swallowed his pride for so long because he hoped to use the All-Direction Trading Firm's resources to gain a chance at Ascension to Void Refinement. After all, high-grade resources were controlled by major powers, making them difficult for rogue cultivators to obtain.
But why would the Huang Family give such premium resources to an outsider? If he truly achieved Ascension to Void Refinement, how would they deal with him then?
An uncontrollable Void Refinement expert would not be a blessing to the trading firm, but a seed of disaster.
Zhang Zhenqian's view of human nature was