Selling the Old Residence

Lin Chen naturally knew what he was thinking.

He could guess that Lord Qin would monitor him, block him off, and might even assassinate him.

That old bastard was already at the peak of the Body Tempering Realm.

And he had a large number of Body Tempering Realm cultivators under his command.

Lin Chen truly feared that Lord Qin would turn hostile on the spot. Forget killing him—if he were merely locked up, there would be nothing he could do.

Fortunately, the prestige of the Green Mountain Sect had frightened him off.

After leaving the City Lord's Mansion, Lin Chen headed straight home.

The enormous estate held only him.

In order to survive, he had sold everything in the house that could be sold.

Now, the most valuable thing he had was the house deed and land deed to this old residence.

Upon returning home, he took out a shovel and began digging beneath a peach tree in the courtyard.

Only after digging a full three feet deep did he hear a clang.

The shovel had struck something hard.

He hurriedly crouched down and brushed away the loose dirt with his hands, quickly finding an Iron Box engraved with dragon-and-phoenix patterns.

"It's here!"

Lin Chen held the Iron Box and sat on the ground.

He had personally buried it three years ago.

Otherwise, even this old residence would certainly have been lost.

After blowing off the dust, Lin Chen opened the Iron Box.

Inside were a yellowed house deed, a Black Token of unknown material,

and a Sealed Letter.

As he looked at them, Lin Chen's memories came surging back like a tide.

On the night the Lin Family suffered its calamity, he had seen Sword-Flying Cultivators in the sky.

They attacked the Lin Family indiscriminately, leaving no one alive.

In the end, they set the Lin Family ablaze. At the final moment, Lin Chen's father placed this Token and an unfinished letter into his arms, then stuffed him into the cellar.

Before he could even leave behind a single instruction, he exploded into a mist of blood.

The original owner had been frightened to death at that very moment.

After crossing over, Lin Chen had remained hidden in the cellar.

He had only dared to crawl out after the fire had gone out.

From those memories, Lin Chen guessed that the destruction of the Lin Family definitely concealed some hidden truth.

He had once tried to open the letter before him, but unfortunately failed.

There was an invisible seal upon it.

That alone was enough to show that Lin Chen's father had been no ordinary man.

He came to that conclusion because there was also a pouch at the bottom of the Iron Box.

Like the letter, it was sealed and could not be opened.

But Lin Chen was certain that it might be a Storage Pouch.

A Magic Artifact exclusively used by cultivators.

These mysteries could only be unraveled one by one after he became a Qi Condensation cultivator.

He took out the land deed separately and tucked it into his robes, then closed the Iron Box and buried it underground again.

After concealing the traces, Lin Chen left the house.

There was one and only one pawnshop in Clearwind City, called Gold Full Granary.

That was Lin Chen's destination.

"Isn't that the Lin Family's young master? How did he end up looking like a beggar?"

"Hehe! The Lin Family must have committed some monstrous evil and suffered heaven's punishment. The fact that he survived means Heaven has opened its eyes."

"Lin Chen, where are you rushing off to? Going to pawn something again?"

As he walked down the street, passersby pointed at him and whispered.

They were all bullying him because he was young, alone, and without anyone to rely on.

They spoke without the slightest restraint.

"Brat, I'm talking to you. Are you deaf?"

Seeing that Lin Chen ignored him, Big Black stepped directly into his path.

Lin Chen looked up at him and frowned slightly.

He did not want to cause trouble right now, so he sidestepped and continued onward.

But Big Black refused to let the matter go, blocking him again. "You little bastard, I'm talking to you!"

As he spoke, he kicked out.

If it had been before, Lin Chen would certainly have been unable to avoid a vicious beating.

But now, he was already at the Body Tempering Seventh Layer.

His strength and reaction speed had both increased severalfold.

In his eyes, Big Black's movements were painfully slow.

As the foot neared him, he lightly stepped out with his left leg and shifted his body aside.

He easily dodged the blow, then reached out with his right hand, caught Big Black's ankle, and pulled backward.

Big Black instantly lost his balance and performed a full split in the middle of the street.

He sprawled on the ground, clutching his thigh and howling in pain.

"You'd better not provoke me!" Lin Chen snorted coldly before continuing on his way.

After that small incident, everyone gossiping about him shut their mouths.

He soon arrived at the pawnshop, pulled out the house deed, and slapped it onto the counter.

"Shopkeeper, how much is this worth?"

Hearing him, the Shopkeeper inside, who wore gold-rimmed spectacles and was working an abacus, slightly raised his head.

When he saw that it was Lin Chen, he appeared somewhat impatient.

Without even glancing at the house deed, he drove him away irritably. "Get lost, get lost, get lost. Your junk isn't worth a single coin."

"Shopkeeper, look carefully before you speak!" Lin Chen slammed the counter heavily and shouted.

The Shopkeeper set down his abacus and removed his glasses before finally looking at the land deed. His eyes immediately lit up.

His fierce expression instantly changed into a smile.

But when he reached for the land deed, Lin Chen snatched it away first.

"Look carefully. This is the land deed to my family's old residence. How much can you offer?"

The Shopkeeper withdrew his hand and said with a smile, "Your old residence has already been emptied out. It's just an empty shell. What could it possibly be worth?"

Hearing that, Lin Chen turned and left.

"Hey, hey, hey... Don't go!"

The Shopkeeper hurried out from behind the counter, grabbed Lin Chen, and said, "Everything can be negotiated. What are you in such a hurry for?"

He held up three fingers. "I'll offer three hundred Gold Coins. You..."

Lin Chen shook off his arm and continued walking out.

"One thousand!" The Shopkeeper's eyes spun as he hurriedly raised the price.

To be honest, although the Lin Family Old Residence was dilapidated, it had an excellent location.

With just a little fixing up, it could be resold for one hundred thousand Gold Coins without any problem.

Hehe!

Lin Chen stopped and gave a soft laugh. "Shopkeeper, the City Lord has tried many times to buy my family's old residence. He offered one hundred thousand Gold Coins."

The Shopkeeper's face darkened.

Lin Chen continued, **"I didn't sell it to him because I didn't want to take advantage of the City Lord.

"Shopkeeper, you've taken such good care of me these past three years, so I came to repay that favor."**

The Shopkeeper was left utterly bewildered.

He had swindled Lin Chen out of plenty of money over the past three years. How had he taken such good care of him?

Still, everyone liked hearing pleasant words, so he did not refute him.

Seeing his expression soften, Lin Chen walked over and sat in a chair to the side.

With a smack, he slapped the house deed onto the tea table.

**"My family's old residence is right beside the City Lord's Mansion. It is the first choice for expanding the City Lord's Mansion.

"If you acquire it and present it to the City Lord, would your benefits be any fewer?"**

That single remark awakened the dreamer.

The Shopkeeper's eyes grew brighter and brighter. He slapped his thigh hard. "That's right! How did I not think of that?"

Cough, cough...

Realizing he had lost his composure, the Shopkeeper hurriedly coughed twice.

Damn it, how did this little brat fool me? Now it won't be easy to haggle the price down.

Though that was what he thought, his face remained piled with smiles as he personally poured Lin Chen a cup of tea.

Only then did he ask, "Young Master Lin, how much do you want?"

"Fifty thousand!"

Lin Chen answered decisively. "Not a coin less!"

The Shopkeeper sucked in a breath of cold air.

His small eyes rolled about rapidly.

"Shopkeeper, an opportunity lost will never return. If you don't want it, I'll find someone else. Plenty of people want to earn a favor from the City Lord." Lin Chen had considerable experience when it came to selling.

A few words were enough to move the Shopkeeper. "Fifty thousand it is!"

"Shopkeeper, I'll go back and pack my things now. In one hour, you can take it over."

"Deal!"

The two quickly signed and sealed the agreement, finalizing the contract.

Lin Chen returned home carrying a hefty fifty thousand Gold Coins.

In truth, he did not have much to pack. The main thing was the Iron Box.

Had he known the sale would go so smoothly, he would not have buried it.

After returning home, he dug out the Iron Box and began calling for the system.

"Exchange for the peak of the Body Tempering Tenth Layer."

[30 Gold Coins deducted. 30 years of cultivation gained. Tempering begins...]

Lin Chen nearly choked on himself.

The talent of this body was far too terrible.

Ten years before, and now another thirty.

Without the system, it would take him forty years to cultivate to the peak of Body Tempering.

By then, he would already be fifty-six.

He might not even be able to cultivate to the Qi Condensation First Layer before dying.

Fortunately, he had the system.

The next moment, a mighty force erupted within his body.

The previous tempering could be described as broad and rough, a macroscopic tempering.

Now, it had become precise down to his meridians, blood vessels, and even cells—a microscopic tempering.

Body Tempering Eighth Layer!

Body Tempering Ninth Layer!

Peak of the Body Tempering Tenth Layer!

Feeling the changes in his body, Lin Chen smiled.

The strength of his physical body now was at least a thousand jin.

With one punch, he could absolutely send someone flying.

Bang! Bang! Bang...

Before Lin Chen could test it, heavy pounding sounded from outside.

He looked toward the gate and sensed that the visitor meant no good.