The Key to Humanity's Future

Su Yun extended one finger.

Chen Xin raised an eyebrow.

"One thousand Gold Soul Coins?"

For an ordinary shop, that was already an astronomical price.

Su Yun wagged his finger, smiling as he uttered a number.

"The initial technology transfer fee is ten thousand Gold Soul Coins."

"The core ingredient cost is separate."

The lingering diners who hadn't yet dispersed gasped sharply.

Ten thousand Gold Soul Coins?!

Was this kid insane?

Chen Xin was so angry he laughed, letting out a cold snort.

"Ten thousand Gold Soul Coins? For the recipe of one of your shops? Little brat, your appetite is far too big."

"No, no, no."

Su Yun leaned forward, his voice dripping with temptation.

"Old sir, this ten thousand Gold Soul Coins doesn't buy a single shop—it buys an identity: the Regional General Agent."

Chen Xin paused. "What is a Regional General Agent?"

Su Yun pointed at the map on the flyer and spoke with ease.

"Simply put, once you pay this fee, you become the highest authority for our Nezha Burger in your region."

"Not only can you open your own shop, but you can also develop downlines."

"Someone else wants to open a shop? Fine, they must get your approval and pay you a franchise fee. From then on, every burger they sell gives you a cut. As for me, I only supply the core ingredients."

Su Yun looked at Chen Xin, his eyes gleaming.

"Old sir, think about it. How many people are in your region? How many wealthy merchants? As long as you roll out this model, let others open shops for you, let them make money for you."

"This is called—borrowing a chicken to lay eggs, collecting rent while lying down."

After hearing this, Chen Xin's eyes, which had been as calm as an ancient well, now rippled.

He stared deeply at Su Yun.

This child, who looked no more than six years old, faced him without arrogance or fear.

But the most terrifying thing was this speech.

"Regional agent... developing downlines... borrowing a chicken to lay eggs..."

Chen Xin silently savored these words in his mind.

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was the wealthiest under heaven, relying on treasure appraisal and support.

But such an exquisite, layer-by-layer cascading business structure was something he had never heard of!

"This child... is a monster."

Chen Xin looked at Su Yun's eyes, hidden behind the sunglasses, filled with wisdom and calm, and an intense desire to nurture talent surged within him.

If this child could grow up, even if he couldn't cultivate, just with this brain, he could stir up storms across the Douluo Continent!

"Hahahaha! Good! A fine 'borrowing a chicken to lay eggs'!"

Chen Xin suddenly burst into hearty laughter, his earlier aloofness swept away.

"Little brat, I'll take this deal! Not just for Rongrong, but for that mind of yours that has amazed me. Ten thousand Gold Soul Coins for this general agent—worth it!"

With that, Chen Xin casually untied a jade pendant from his waist that looked ancient and warm.

Hum—

A faint stream of light flashed across the pendant. The next second.

Clatter!

A pile of gleaming Gold Soul Coins appeared out of thin air on the counter, instantly forming a dazzling small mountain.

"Here's fifteen thousand Gold Soul Coins."

Chen Xin's tone was bold and generous, as if he were tossing out scrap metal instead of a fortune.

"The extra five thousand counts as an advance on the ingredient fee. Tomorrow at this hour, I want to see the blueprints and the ingredients."

The entire place fell dead silent.

Though Su Yun had mentally prepared himself, seeing this mountain of gold appear out of nowhere still made his heart race.

But at that moment, the most intense reaction came from the Earth Command Center.

"Warning! Warning! Detected an extremely high-level spatial fluctuation!"

The instant the jade pendant flashed, the entire command hall erupted with alarms.

The Chief Physics Expert shot to his feet, his eyes practically glued to the screen, his voice trembling and distorted.

"Impossible... this is absolutely impossible!"

"No large-scale equipment! No high-energy particle collider! Just relying on a jade pendant? To achieve spatial folding and storage of matter?!"

"That's portable space technology! That's genuine cross-dimensional storage!"

Lei Zhan grabbed the microphone, his face flushed with excitement.

"001! No matter what! You have to figure out the principle behind that jade pendant!"

"If we can bring this technology back to Earth, our logistics, military, and aerospace technology will leap forward five hundred years!!"

Su Yun looked at the mountain of gold on the counter, then at the unassuming jade pendant hanging from Chen Xin's waist.

His little heart pounded wildly.

The next morning.

The doors of Nezha Burger were tightly shut.

Inside, Su Yun pushed the franchise package he'd prepared overnight in front of Chen Xin.

It was a stack of the two-hundred-page Standardized Operation SOP Manual, along with dozens of tightly sealed barrels of Core Concentrate, and several crates of Secret Marinade.

"Old sir, these are the blueprints, recipes, and employee training manual."

Su Yun pointed at the manual.

"I've even written down the exact oil temperature for frying the fries. Just have your people follow it step by step."

"I'll send follow-up supplies to you on a regular schedule."

Chen Xin casually flipped through the manual, looking at the precise, second-by-second operating procedures and the detailed store cross-sections. The appreciation in his eyes grew deeper.

"Meticulous mind, clear logic."

Chen Xin closed the book, stored everything in his Storage Pouch, and gave Su Yun a meaningful glance.

"That brain of yours is indeed impressive."

Ning Rongrong was currently clutching a bucket of chicken wings, refusing to let go, and turned back to wave at Su Yun.

"Brother Su Yun, once I open my shop in Heaven Dou City, you have to come visit! Rongrong will treat you to a free meal!"

"Definitely."

Su Yun smiled and waved.

Just before leaving, Chen Xin seemed to think of something.

He stopped, turned back, and looked at Su Yun.

"Seeing how much trouble you had moving things yesterday, I'll give you this little trinket."

With that, Chen Xin casually tossed it.

Su Yun instinctively raised his hand to catch it, and found a silver ring of ancient design in his palm.

"This Storage Ring doesn't have much space, only ten cubic meters, but it's enough for storing Gold Soul Coins."

Chen Xin left the remark lightly, as if he'd just handed out a piece of candy.

Then he took Ning Rongrong's hand, and with a flash, they vanished as a streak of sword light at the end of the street.

Su Yun gripped the ring, still warm from its owner, and took a deep breath.

"Ten cubic meters...?!"

He quickly turned, locked the shop door, and hurried to the blind spot behind the store, directly opening the Dimensional Transmission Channel.

"Catch! Top-priority express delivery!"

Su Yun hurled the ring into the deep blue vortex.

Earth Command Center.

Clink.

A crisp sound of metal striking metal.

The silver ring passed through the void and landed steadily on a special lead-alloy tray.

The communications officer stared at the ring on the screen, then shot up from his chair like a spring, his eyes filled with shock and ecstasy.

He turned and reported to Lei Zhan, who had been standing by, tense and waiting:

"Commander! 001 successfully sent the Storage Ring back!"

Lei Zhan took a deep breath, looking at the unassuming ring, forcing down the violent tremor in his heart.

He grabbed the communicator, his voice hoarse from extreme restraint, yet brimming with boundless pride:

"Well done, 001..."

"With a few buckets of sugar water, you've traded for the key to humanity's future."

Then Lei Zhan spun around, his warmth instantly replaced by the authority of an iron-blooded commander, and issued the highest order to the staff group behind him.

"Lock down the base immediately! Issue the Double Red Summons to all the titans of domestic physics and materials science!"

"Tell them, whether they're in a meeting or asleep, they have thirty minutes to assemble at the P4 High-Energy Physics Lab! This concerns the fate of humanity!"

"Yes!!!"