Not Buying Anymore??

Outside Chen San Ye's house, Chen San Ye stood at the door as usual.

"Third Master!"

Chen Xuan called out to Chen San Ye.

"Er Gou, you're here!"

Chen San Ye smiled and looked at Chen Xuan.

But the moment the words left his mouth, hesitation appeared on Chen San Ye's face, and his gaze could not help but settle on the wild boar.

"Third Master, is something wrong?"

Seeing Chen San Ye's expression, Chen Xuan's heart stirred, and he asked instinctively.

"It's like this!"

"Er Gou, you know I've bought quite a few Wild Boars lately. My youngest joined Fierce Mountain Hall and works as a guard for Fu De Restaurant, so I've been sending the Wild Boars there. I wanted to look after the folks from our village too, but there have been a bit too many Wild Boars lately, and Fu De Restaurant is no longer very willing to take them. If Tiger and Leopard are still willing, they can even offer a higher price—perhaps as much as a hundred taels."

Meeting Chen Xuan's gaze, Chen San Ye gave a bitter smile and slowly explained.

"Third Master means..."

"You don't plan to keep buying Wild Boars?"

Chen Xuan froze. He truly had not expected this outcome.

"How about this? I'll still take this wild boar at market price, but after this, I really won't be able to help."

Chen San Ye gave another bitter smile. Then, as though he had finally made up his mind, he spoke solemnly to Chen Xuan.

"Since Third Master isn't buying them anymore, then how about this? Didn't Third Master give me a bow? Take this wild boar, along with these twenty taels, as payment for the bow."

Hearing Chen San Ye's words, Chen Xuan pondered briefly, then took twenty taels of silver from his robe before speaking.

"Er Gou, what are you doing?"

Seeing Chen Xuan's actions, Chen San Ye's face darkened.

"Third Master, I can't let you take a loss. Please accept it. If I hunt a fierce tiger later, I'll still have to come to you!"

Chen Xuan said with a smile.

"Er Gou, if I said I was giving it to you, then I was giving it to you. How could I take it back?"

"How about this? I'll take the wild boar, but you keep the money!"

Chen San Ye shook his head with a smile.

"Third Master, you still need to take this money. We're fellow villagers—I wouldn't feel right taking it for nothing. If I hunt a tiger later, I'd be embarrassed to come looking for you again!"

Chen Xuan shook his head and placed the silver coins in Chen San Ye's hand.

"This..."

"Fine, then!"

"Er Gou, if you hunt any Tiger and Leopard, make sure to come to me."

Chen San Ye looked somewhat troubled, but in the end, he nodded.

"Definitely!"

Chen Xuan said with a smile, then took his leave.

But as Chen Xuan left, his brows gradually furrowed.

Fu De Restaurant, no longer buying Wild Boars—those were probably all smokescreens. What truly mattered were the final words: "Tiger and Leopard are still willing" and "a hundred taels."

The price had doubled, while Wild Boars were no longer being accepted.

Clearly, Chen San Ye was trying to force him into hunting Tiger and Leopard.

He could refuse, but then Wild Boars would no longer be bought. If he wanted enough money, his only option would be to hunt Tiger and Leopard. As for taking Wild Boars to Green Mountain City to sell them—

First, Chen Xuan had no connections. Second, the journey was far too long. Third, Green Mountain City was unfamiliar territory to him. In theory, selling them there was nearly impossible.

That was why he had insisted on paying for the bow.

Once he had bought the bow and arrow with money, the two matters would be cleanly separated. If anything happened afterward, it would no longer be his problem.

He simply did not know why Chen San Ye was in such a hurry to obtain Tiger and Leopard.

"Tiger and Leopard!"

Chen Xuan murmured, and a flash of inspiration suddenly sparked in his mind.

His gaze involuntarily turned toward his Conceptual Ability.

A thought stirred in his heart.

The Conceptual Ability instantly began to flicker.

Target: Enter the Blood Refinement realm within the village (pending confirmation)

Configuration complete

"Loading!"

"Loading successful!"

"Method One: Three days from now, a Blood Refining Manual will be sold at the Black Market in Green Mountain City. Bring one hundred taels of silver to the Black Market in Green Mountain City, purchase it, and return. There are fierce Tiger and Leopard beasts in the back mountain. Hunt one tiger and one leopard every three days. Boil Tiger Gallbladder, Leopard Heart, Thirty-Year Ginseng, Thirty-Year Lingzhi, and three buckets of water down to one bucket. Soak in it once every three days while cultivating with the Blood Refining Manual. The Blood Refinement realm can be achieved in three years."

The data appeared. It was precisely the Blood Refinement method from before.

And at that moment, Chen Xuan's gaze instantly fixed upon Tiger Gallbladder and Leopard Heart.

"Blood Refinement?"

His expression flickered. Looking at these contents again, then recalling that Chen San Ye's youngest son had joined Fierce Mountain Hall, a vague guess formed in his mind.

Of course, it was only a guess.

But for Chen Xuan, a guess was undoubtedly enough.

After all, he possessed the Conceptual Ability.

Target: Discover why Chen San Ye is acquiring Tiger and Leopard (pending confirmation)

Configuration complete

"Loading!"

"Loading successful!"

"Method One: Take the bow and arrow to Chen San Ye and use it to pressure him. Chen San Ye will tell you why he is acquiring Tiger and Leopard."

"Method Two: Go to Green Mountain City. There is a gang in Green Mountain City called Fierce Mountain Hall. Legend has it that a Bone Refinement Martial Artist oversees Fierce Mountain Hall. After joining Fierce Mountain Hall and rendering great service, you can obtain the Blood Refining Manual. Open the Blood Refining Manual, and you can learn why Chen San Ye is acquiring Tiger and Leopard."

"Method Three."

Line after line of text appeared. As Chen Xuan walked onward, a look of understanding finally emerged on his face.

If it had only been a guess before, then now he was certain.

Though the information was still incomplete, he could determine that Chen San Ye was acquiring Tiger and Leopard for his youngest son's Blood Refinement.

Chen Xuan let out a soft sigh and shook his head.

For him, this was not good news.

If he wanted to continue earning silver coins, he had only two options.

One was to hunt Tiger and Leopard. The second was to hunt Wild Boars himself and take them to Green Mountain City to sell.

There was no need to mention the first option—the difficulty would certainly rise. The second was no easier. Although he had the Conceptual Ability and could ensure success, doing so would inevitably offend Chen San Ye. Of course, offending Chen San Ye did not matter much, since he would soon be leaving. But Chen San Ye's son was a member of Fierce Mountain Hall.

After repeatedly using the Conceptual Ability, Chen Xuan had naturally learned something about Fierce Mountain Hall. It was a gang of roughly second-rate strength within Green Mountain City. For the time being, he did not want to offend such an existence, nor did he want any dealings with it.

Even with the Conceptual Ability, that remained true.

It was not that he was timid or afraid of trouble. With the Conceptual Ability, as long as he lay low and developed steadily, he would surely become invincible. Why create so much trouble for himself?

Moreover, Wild Boars were not actually worth much.

One was worth seven or eight taels at most, usually only five or six taels. To gather enough money for his expenses, he would need to sell at least a dozen Wild Boars. Selling over a dozen Wild Boars would take far too much time and attract far too much attention.

That left him with no choice but the first path.

"Tiger and Leopard!"

Chen Xuan murmured as his gaze turned toward the back mountain.

A decision formed in his heart.

At that moment, he turned and headed home.

"Er Gou, are you alright?"

The moment he returned home, Zhang Chunhua hurriedly checked her son over.

"Don't worry, Mother. I'm fine."

Chen Xuan said with a smile.

"I heard that Zhang Shan and the others..."

Only after carefully confirming that Chen Xuan was truly unharmed did Zhang Chunhua let out a breath of relief. But then, as though she remembered something, she hesitantly spoke to him.

Clearly, even though she rarely interacted with others, she had still heard about this matter.

Of course, the main reason was that someone had come to find them.

Their purpose was self-evident.

"Uncle Zhang Shan and the others met with an accident. I brought their remains back from the mountain."

Chen Xuan sighed and slowly explained.

"Really... all of them?"

Zhang Chunhua was shaken. Though she had already known, hearing it from her own son still filled her face with alarm.

"Mm."

Chen Xuan nodded softly, his expression also carrying a trace of sorrow.

With the Conceptual Ability, he knew clearly that this had not been an accident at all.

Nor had anyone survived.

After hearing her son's words, Zhang Chunhua took a long while to recover. Then she looked at him hesitantly.

"Er Gou, how about we stop going up the mountain? We already have enough money to live on. Once the disaster passes, our family will be able to get by."

Zhang Chunhua spoke softly, her face filled with worry.