Eat, Eat, Eat

"Okay, I'll transfer the money to you right now..."

"Wait."

Lin Fan interrupted him, then continued,

"I don't want the money transferred."

Manager Wang had been about to bring out his finest cigars to entertain this major client. At those words, he paused, a hint of surprise on his face.

"You don't want a transfer?"

He looked at Lin Fan in confusion. In this day and age, was someone really going to carry off three hundred million in cash?

"I need the HR Alliance to help me purchase a batch of metal."

Lin Fan didn't let Manager Wang keep guessing and stated his request directly.

"Metal?"

Manager Wang was taken aback, then immediately understood.

"Do you need alloy War Blades or combat suits? We have top-of-the-line custom-made equipment from renowned masters. I guarantee you'll be satisfied."

As far as he was concerned, it was only natural for a martial artist to upgrade his gear as soon as he had money.

A good War Blade and a top-grade combat suit could mean an extra life in the Wilderness Zone.

"No, I want raw materials."

But Lin Fan's answer left Manager Wang a little bewildered.

"I want high-density alloy materials of the fifth tier, or scraps and dismantled parts made from sixth-tier materials. The fewer impurities, the better."

"I want the best value for money, and I want a large quantity. I want to spend all three hundred million on metal."

Manager Wang's mouth fell open. For a long moment, he couldn't close it.

He'd been in business for many years. He'd seen people buy sports cars, villas, beautiful women, even private jets, but he'd never seen anyone spend three hundred million on a pile of raw materials.

Unless he planned to open an arms factory?

But seeing Lin Fan's serious expression, Manager Wang wisely didn't ask any more questions.

At his level, he knew exactly what he should and shouldn't ask.

Perhaps behind this young spiritual mind master stood a family in need of vast resources, or perhaps some mysterious research institution.

Either way, it wasn't something a small-time manager like him could afford to investigate.

"No problem, Mr. Lin."

"The HR Alliance's network spans the globe. You're asking for a large quantity, but we can definitely gather everything within two hours."

Manager Wang thumped his chest as he made the guarantee, then immediately began calling the various storage centers.

Soon, he hung up and said with a smile,

"Mr. Lin, someone will bring your order over shortly. Just give us an address."

"Good."

Yangzhou City, Bright Moon Residential Quarter.

Lin Fan had barely returned to his villa and rested for a little while when the doorbell rang.

"Ding-dong—"

The clear chime broke the quiet inside the villa.

Lin Fan walked over to the video intercom screen. Outside the gate, a heavy black armored transport truck was parked, its body emblazoned with the conspicuous HR Alliance logo.

"They're pretty quick."

Lin Fan's lips curled into a slight smile. He pressed the button to open the gate, then walked out of the hall and into the courtyard.

The armored truck's rear doors were already open. Two fully armed security guards stood watchfully on either side.

A middle-aged deliveryman in an HR Alliance uniform and white gloves was laboriously pushing a hydraulic hand truck down from the vehicle.

On the hand truck sat a huge, futuristic-looking silver metal case. Its surface had no visible seams, only a biometric verification panel.

When the deliveryman saw Lin Fan, he stopped at once and bowed respectfully.

"Hello, are you Mr. Lin Fan?"

"That's me."

Lin Fan nodded, his gaze settling on the case.

The deliveryman wiped the sweat from his forehead, looking thoroughly professional.

"Mr. Lin, this case is very heavy. Where would you like it? I can bring it inside for you."

"Follow me. Take it to the Martial Arts Hall on the first floor."

The deliveryman pressed the hydraulic assist button on the hand truck. With a faint motorized hum, he pushed the heavy metal case behind Lin Fan, through the spacious living room, and straight to the Martial Arts Hall on one side of the villa.

"Just put it here."

Lin Fan pointed to an empty spot in the center of the Martial Arts Hall.

"Sure thing."

The deliveryman carefully maneuvered the hand truck to a stop, then released the hydraulic pressure. With a soft hiss, the heavy metal case settled firmly onto the floor.

Only after completing the delivery did the deliveryman straighten up and offer Lin Fan an electronic scanner with both hands.

"Alliance regulations require fingerprint and iris verification for the handover of valuable items. Please cooperate."

"Mm."

Lin Fan pressed his right thumb against the scanner and looked into the camera.

"Beep!"

"Fingerprint verification successful."

"Iris scan locked... Identity confirmed."

As the electronic voice sounded, the silver metal case gave a soft click. The red lock light on top turned green, indicating that the security lock had been disengaged.

"Verification complete. The contents of this case are yours."

The deliveryman bowed respectfully again.

"Thanks for your efforts."

Lin Fan nodded calmly.

After the deliveryman and security guards left, the villa's front door closed again.

Standing in the center of the Martial Arts Hall, Lin Fan looked down at the heavy case and lifted the lid.

Inside, twenty long, dark-gray metal ingots were arranged in neat rows.

"The metal I bought with three hundred million should be enough to help Calamity and Sky Splitter advance further."

With a thought, Calamity appeared in Lin Fan's hand.

Buzz!

As Lin Fan activated it, an invisible wave instantly spread outward from Calamity, enveloping the twenty metal ingots.

[Devouring fifth-tier high-density alloy]

[Conversion efficiency: Extremely high]

Right before his eyes, the incredibly hard metal ingots began to soften and disintegrate, as if ice had met a branding iron.

Ripples spread across their dark-gray surfaces. In the next instant, the ingots turned into wisps of gray mist.

The gray mist swirled in the air, gathered together, and formed a series of gray whirlwinds.

Then, as if alive, the whirlwinds surged into Calamity's blade.

Calamity was like a bottomless pit, greedily devouring the mist.

As Calamity consumed the metal, a warm current even more concentrated than the one he'd felt in the Wilderness Zone flowed back through the hilt and into Lin Fan's body.

At first, it was only a trickle. But as Calamity devoured more and more metal, the current became a surging river.

"This feels amazing."