Chapter Fifteen: Two Parts Profit

Hearing Da Ming's words, Er Ming's expression shifted slightly, his fists clenching involuntarily, though he slowly relaxed them a moment later.

He took a deep breath and nodded earnestly.

"I understand, Big Brother."

Da Ming did not respond; his gaze remained calm as he looked out of the carriage, saying nothing more.

There were some things he had not told Er Ming.

Since there existed some power here capable of shielding them from Tang San's perception, if he could find the source of this power, perhaps...

He could run away.

Directly borrowing this power to mask his own existence and then leaving the Douluo Continent—this land of trouble—to achieve true liberation, that was certainly a viable path!

Of course... for now, it was just a thought. After all, he wasn't certain what kind of entity was the source of a power that could even shield one from a God King.

He would take it one step at a time.

The carriage moved slowly, and the caravan naturally drifted into Shrek City along with the deepening night.

A few days later, at Ping'an Pharmacy, the sun was high.

Sunlight slanted through the carved wooden windows into Jiang Ci'an's room, and the faint clamor from the streets outside signaled that it was already late.

Jiang Ci'an sat upright on his bed, eyes closed, seemingly in meditation.

Suddenly, at one moment, the door was tapped lightly.

"Knock, knock, knock."

Three sounds, neither heavy nor light, and then Xiao Xiao poked her head in.

Her long, ink-green hair cascaded through the door gap, and her emerald eyes blinked. Her small face held the concern of someone who hadn't seen him all night, mixed with the slight grogginess of having just woken up.

"Ci'an?"

Her voice was soft and sweet, pulling Jiang Ci'an back to reality.

He rubbed his forehead as if gathering his thoughts, and a moment later, he looked at Xiao Xiao with a smile.

"Sorry, I got lost in meditation."

As he spoke, he rose slowly under Xiao Xiao's gaze and stretched his somewhat stiff shoulders.

He had spent another night in the virtual world chiseling away at Xiao Wu... or rather, her spirit rings, forcing Xiao Wu to sacrifice herself all night long.

Unfortunately, he still hadn't gained much today.

Although he had observed Tang Hao detonating his rings many times—seeing every detail from the Title Douluo-level detonation technique to the fluctuations of spirit power—it was an entirely different matter when he tried it himself.

His brain understood it, but his hands did not.

However, he wasn't too discouraged. When he first constructed the "Body Tempering Method," he had failed every day, yet he succeeded in the end, didn't he?

His martial soul was not some special conceptual "energy" type, so for such high-difficulty maneuvers, he had to take his time.

The good news was that while his consciousness was active in the virtual world, his physical body in reality would meditate on its own, so his cultivation did not fall behind.

Moreover, this state could replace sleep, so he didn't suffer from mental fatigue—a silver lining in a dark cloud.

As for Xiao Wu, she had sacrificed herself countless times throughout the night...

After changing his clothes and walking over to Xiao Xiao, Jiang Ci'an took a moment to look over his childhood sweetheart.

Today, Xiao Xiao wore a light cyan short shirt; the fabric was soft and form-fitting, cinched at the waist to perfectly outline her slender figure.

Below, she wore a knee-length light-colored skirt, revealing a section of slender calves wrapped in white silk. She looked like a stalk of green bamboo washed by morning dew, her aura clean and crisp.

Jiang Ci'an felt a sense of relief.

He had to look at flesh and bone all night, but fortunately, his childhood sweetheart changed into beautiful, unique outfits every day to wake him up.

Every time he opened his eyes, he could be purified by her, which significantly lowered his psychological pressure.

However, he couldn't rely on her forever; he still needed to find his own outlet.

Of course, he could still hold on for now.

Putting aside the stray thoughts in his mind, Jiang Ci'an naturally took his childhood sweetheart's hand.

They walked through the corridor to the main hall, where breakfast was already laid out.

Today's breakfast was still a special medicinal meal; it tasted good while aiding his cultivation and providing the energy required for his "Martial Way" practice. Aside from being quite expensive, it had no flaws.

The two sat opposite each other, chatting about their cultivation while they ate.

"...I practiced until ten last night, woke up at seven this morning, then spent an hour on the 'Body Tempering Method,' then showered and changed..."

Xiao Xiao answered obediently. Regarding cultivation, she remained as earnest as ever, refusing to waste a single moment.

"This level of training is just about your limit. Any more and it won't do. Remember the supplements I prepared for you; you must finish them every day..."

Jiang Ci'an meticulously planned out the details for Xiao Xiao, taking the opportunity to go over the training schedule for the next few days.

Xiao Xiao noted everything down, nodding, her small face showing the same level of seriousness she displayed during training.

A moment later, breakfast was finished.

A servant cleared away the empty bowls and plates, mentioning to Jiang Ci'an that a guest had arrived and was waiting in the reception room.

Jiang Ci'an understood. He led Xiao Xiao across the courtyard and saw the door to the reception room ahead standing half-ajar.

Through the gap in the door, he could see a middle-aged man with a kind face and the shrewd yet amiable air typical of a merchant sitting inside, holding a teacup and sipping it unhurriedly.

Jiang Ci'an pushed the door open and stepped in, smiling as he approached. "Mr. Ning."

Ning Zhicheng immediately set down his teacup, his face full of smiles as he rose to meet him with a few steps. "Boss Jiang, it has been a long time."

"It hasn't been that long, only three months." Jiang Ci'an smiled and gestured for him to sit, taking a seat opposite him and sliding the teapot on the table toward the other man.

"I apologize for keeping you waiting, Mr. Ning. Shall we get straight to it so as not to waste your time?"

"Boss Jiang is as straightforward as ever."

Ning Zhicheng nodded with a smile, reaching into the storage soul tool at his waist to produce stacks of booklets, which he arranged neatly on the table.

These were the account books.

Jiang Ci'an understood. He took them and began the routine audit.

After his parents passed away, to avoid trouble, he had sold off most of their assets in exchange for heavy bags of gold soul coins.

However, he had kept businesses like herb cultivation and Soft Bone Rabbit farming, which were located right near Shrek City.

Furthermore, he maintained a long-term partnership with the Nine Treasures Chamber of Commerce under the Nine Treasures Glazed Tile Sect, selling a portion of his herbs and meat through their channels to various regions.

The middle-aged man before him, named Ning Zhicheng, was the branch manager of the Nine Treasures Chamber of Commerce in Shrek City.

He had been a business partner of Jiang Ci'an's parents; while they weren't particularly close, he had provided a great deal of care after Jiang Ci'an's parents were gone.

When Jiang Ci'an sold certain assets, he hadn't driven the price down, offering a very fair valuation instead.

To this day, the two sides maintained their partnership, auditing the accounts every three months, just as they always had, without fail.

Jiang Ci'an opened the account books and began to read page by page.

His pace was neither fast nor slow. He paused for a moment on every page, his gaze wandering between the numbers, occasionally flipping back to check something again.

Xiao Xiao sat by his side, watching quietly, her emerald eyes reflecting the dense ink characters on the pages as she silently learned.

Time passed bit by bit.

Soon, Jiang Ci'an closed the final ledger and set it aside.

"The accounts are fine."

He looked up at Ning Zhicheng, his tone puzzled. "But... why did you calculate an extra twenty percent profit for me, Mr. Ning?"