Thousand Mechanism Needle Box

The middle-aged man was snapped at a few times before he slowly got up and narrowed his eyes at the two of them for several seconds.

"You're such a pretty little girl. What a shame you've got that mouth."

"So what?"

Xiao Wu planted her hands on her hips. "You scam people and won't even let them say it?"

"At your age, instead of running your business properly, you spend all day thinking about how to cheat people. No wonder your shop is such a wreck."

"You deserve it. This is karma for scamming people!"

The middle-aged man was rendered speechless by her retorts. He wanted to argue, but then realized that this little girl seemed to have a point.

Could everything happening today really be karma for cheating people?

Seeing that he could not outargue her, the middle-aged man could not keep his face either. He coughed dryly. "I may like... occasionally cheat people, but this item is definitely worth one hundred Gold Soul Coins."

"I don't believe you."

Xiao Wu turned her little face away. "Every scammer says they aren't scamming anyone when they're scamming people."

"..."

His face alternated between green and red as she choked him speechless. In the end, he simply lay back down in his rocking chair and closed his eyes, pretending to sleep.

"Buy it or don't. If you think it's too expensive, turn left when you leave."

Jiang Chen, standing nearby, was also stunned by Xiao Wu's powerful combat ability.

When had this girl become so sharp-tongued? She had actually left the sly and cunning Flender speechless.

Had she been going easy on him whenever they bickered?

"You..."

Jiang Chen hurriedly held back the puffed-up Xiao Wu and smiled at the middle-aged man. "Boss, one hundred it is. I'll take it."

"Are you stupid?!" Xiao Wu's eyes widened. "How is this broken box worth a hundred Gold Soul—"

Before she could finish, Jiang Chen had already taken out a bag of Gold Soul Coins and tossed it onto the counter.

During his time in Notting City, Jiang Chen had occasionally taken on bounty missions. Combined with the monthly subsidy from Spirit Hall, he was not particularly short on money.

Bang.

The crisp sound of collision made the middle-aged man's eyelids twitch. He secretly glanced over, and only after confirming that it was genuine gold did he slowly sit up, forcing a faint, ambiguous smile onto his face.

"Young brother, you're straightforward."

He had originally intended to raise the price on the spot, but seeing how readily Jiang Chen paid, he gave up on the idea.

Jiang Chen did not respond. He picked up the wooden box and casually weighed it in his hand. Several fine cracks split open across its dusty surface, faintly revealing a dull golden-red color beneath.

It really was the Plate Crystal Tang San needed.

After putting it away, Jiang Chen asked again, "Boss, do you sell Whale Rubber here?"

"Whale Rubber?"

Flender stroked his chin, his gaze landing on Jiang Chen with a surprised expression.

He had not expected this excessively handsome youth to need such an aphrodisiac at such a young age.

Then again, it made sense. If he had possessed that face back then, getting sick would probably have been the least of his problems.

After thinking it over, Flender answered honestly, "Whale Rubber isn't particularly valuable, but its production is scarce, so it's basically all bought up by the major merchant associations in Suotuo City. A little shop like mine can't compete for it."

"Is that so?"

Jiang Chen nodded without much disappointment. Whale Rubber really was something that could only be found by chance.

He casually tucked the Plate Crystal into his clothes, grabbed Xiao Wu's hand, and headed outside.

"Wait!"

Flender suddenly called out to them. A crafty gleam flashed through his eyes. "Young brother, I find you quite agreeable... If you really want Whale Rubber, come to the Old Blacksmith Shop in West City tomorrow. You might be in for a surprise."

"You might even be able to buy what you want at the original price."

Jiang Chen paused and glanced back at him with a half-smile.

This old fox probably had some in stock and wanted to whet his appetite before raising the price.

"Fine. I'll take a look then." He waved his hand and stepped out of the shop without looking back.

Even as Xiao Wu was dragged away, she did not forget to turn around and make a face at Flender.

"Bleh, bleh, bleh! Crooked merchant!"

Flender: "..."

He rubbed his nose and lay back down in the rocking chair. As it rocked, he suddenly muttered, "Those two kids... are interesting."

"I wonder how their talents are. Forget it, thinking so much is worse than getting some more sleep."

On the way back, Xiao Wu finally could not hold it in any longer. Tugging at Jiang Chen's sleeve, she pressed him, "Why did you spend a hundred Gold Soul Coins on that broken box? Do you have money burning a hole in your pocket?"

"A broken box?"

Jiang Chen took out the wooden box from his clothes and casually wiped away the dust on its surface. "This is called Plate Crystal. The Hair Crystal inside is material for making top-grade hidden weapons."

Since the system could even return storage Soul Tools, Hair Crystal should work too.

"Hidden weapons?" Xiao Wu narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "For Tang San?"

"Who else? Would it be useful if I gave it to you?" Jiang Chen rolled his eyes at her.

"I..."

Xiao Wu was choked speechless by his words. Unable to think of a reason to refute him, she could only angrily turn her head away and refuse to look at him.

"Childish."

Jiang Chen shook his head and silently quickened his pace.

"Hey, wait for me..."

When the two returned to the Rose Hotel, Tang San was still cultivating.

"Tang San, Brother Chen found you something good."

Jiang Chen placed the Plate Crystal on the table with a dull thud.

Tang San opened his eyes, and his gaze fell upon the wooden box. Purple Demon Eyes activated instinctively, and he immediately sucked in a sharp breath.

"This... this is Plate Crystal Hair Gold?!"

"Is it? I just bought it from a street stall. It wasn't expensive."

Jiang Chen flopped onto the sofa and said casually, "If you like it, it's yours."

Hearing this, Xiao Wu, who knew the truth, rolled her eyes.

This guy was always so good to Tang San. Anyone who did not know better would think they were biological brothers.

Tang San held the box in his hands, which trembled slightly.

This was a rare material for crafting the Tang Sect's top-grade hidden weapons!

With this piece of Plate Crystal, he could forge the Dragon Beard Needle, ranked eighth among the hidden weapons in the Mysterious Heaven Treasure Record.

"Thank you, Brother Chen," Tang San said sincerely.

Jiang Chen waved his hand. "We're brothers. Why are you thanking me?"

[ Ding! Detected that the host has gifted a bound item: Plate Crystal (containing Hair Gold). Quality assessment: Rare.]

[Triple Return activated. Host obtained: Divine Crystal (automatically converted into the form of the "Thousand Mechanism Needle Box").]

[Thousand Mechanism Needle Box: Dark gold all over, palm-sized, containing three thousand six hundred "Shadowless Needles." The needle bodies are compressed from Divine Crystal, as thin as cow hair. When infused with Soul Power, they can become invisible, pierce armor, and carry poison. After being recovered, they automatically recharge and can be used repeatedly.]

Jiang Chen raised an eyebrow.

He had not held much hope for this return. After all, Hair Crystal was merely raw material and far from something usable.

He had thought the return would also be material, but it had unexpectedly given him a completed hidden weapon instead.

He casually reached into his clothes. When he pulled his hand back out, an exquisite, palm-sized needle box of dark gold rested in his palm.

The box had smooth lines, and its surface was engraved with extremely fine cloud patterns. Without looking closely, one might have mistaken it for an unusually shaped metal plaque.

"What's this now?" Xiao Wu leaned over and curiously poked the needle box. "When did you buy it? How come I didn't see it?"

Tang San's attention was also drawn over. Purple Demon Eyes flickered faintly, yet he could not see through the material of the dark-gold box. He only sensed a subtle fluctuation of Soul Power contained within.

"I picked it up just now. Thought it looked quite unique."

Jiang Chen's face did not redden as his thumb lightly pressed a spot on the side of the box.