South Mountain Street.
This was the trading street closest to Ji Zhixing.
Shops lined both sides of the street, their signs packed tightly together. Gene Equipment, Gene Potions, ores and materials-they sold everything imaginable.
People streamed along the street, most dressed in fitted combat clothes with weapons at their waists. One look told him they were Gene Cultivators who had spent years making a living outside the city.
Ji Zhixing walked down the street, curiously surveying both sides. This was his first visit to South Mountain Street; previously, he had only heard his classmates talk about it.
He did not immediately try to sell his hematite. Instead, he first bought a phone and opened a bank account.
After walking for another ten minutes or so, he stopped in front of a fairly large shop. Its sign read "Tianle Equipment Shop."
Ji Zhixing looked it over, then stepped inside.
The shop was spacious, with assorted items displayed in several rows of glass cases. Upon seeing him enter, an employee immediately approached with a professional smile.
"What would you like to buy, young man?"
"I have a piece of ore here. I'd like to get a price for it," Ji Zhixing said, getting straight to the point.
"What kind of ore?" the employee asked curiously. "Take it out and let me have a look."
"It's about two meters across. Sorry for the trouble, but could you find me somewhere to put it?" Ji Zhixing glanced around. The floor here was clearly unsuitable for setting down the hematite.
"That big?"
The employee looked surprised. "Please follow me to the storeroom. Chen, go get the boss!"
Another employee nearby answered and hurried off to find the owner.
The first employee led Ji Zhixing toward the back of the shop.
They passed through a glass door into a small storeroom containing several shelves.
"Here will do. Go ahead, please." The employee stepped aside.
Ji Zhixing nodded. With a thought, he moved the hematite ore out of his gene furnace, making it appear out of thin air in the open space.
With a muffled thud, even the floor shook.
The fiery-red ore, more than two meters across, stood in the storeroom. Its surface gleamed dark red, particularly striking beneath the lights.
The employee sucked in a breath and leaned closer to examine it. Then he took out a scanner and checked the hematite, bringing up a string of readings on its screen.
Just then, footsteps sounded at the storeroom entrance, and a man in his forties walked in. His eyes lit up at the sight of the ore on the floor, and he hurried over.
"Boss." The employee straightened and handed him the scanner. "Medium quality, very large."
"Medium quality." He nodded and looked at Ji Zhixing. "I'll give you 1.2 million for this piece."
Ji Zhixing shook his head.
He had checked the prices before coming. Besides, according to the information he had found online, his hematite ore should have been of upper-medium quality.
"That's too low," he said. "My hematite is better than medium quality. I checked the prices too. A piece of hematite ore this size should fetch at least 1.5 million."
The owner frowned. "Medium quality is medium quality. There's no such thing as upper-medium. You look pretty young, so I'll add a little for you. 1.3 million. I can't go any higher."
"1.5 million." Ji Zhixing held firm. "You're a businessman, boss. You know perfectly well what this ore is worth. If you won't buy it, I'll ask somewhere else."
With a thought, he put away the hematite ore on the floor.
The owner quickly raised a hand. "Wait, young man. Don't be so hasty." He gritted his teeth. "1.4 million. That's my final offer. If that works for you, we have a deal."
Ji Zhixing looked at him and shook his head. "1.5 million. No bargaining."
The owner stared at him for a long while, then sighed. "Fine, fine. 1.5 million it is. You're young, but you certainly know how to do business."
Ji Zhixing smiled and took the ore out again. The owner pulled out his phone, tapped through a few screens, and transferred the money to him.
Ji Zhixing left the Tianle Equipment Shop with a much lighter step.
1.5 million Gene Coins.
That was enough to buy more than ten bottles of Gigantification Gene Potion.
He walked a short distance along the street, then turned into a potion shop he had already picked out.
This potion shop was huge, even larger than the Tianle Equipment Shop. Various Gene Potions filled its display cases, and several Gene Cultivators were browsing inside.
A female employee with a ponytail approached him. "Hello. What can I help you with?"
"Do you have Gigantification Gene Potions?" Ji Zhixing asked.
"Yes. Please follow me."
She turned and led him to a cabinet. "How many bottles would you like? The standard market price is one hundred thousand Gene Coins per bottle of Gigantification Gene Potion. If you need a large quantity, we can arrange additional stock for you."
I used thirteen bottles to develop my stone skin ability. I probably won't need any fewer this time, Ji Zhixing thought. If I buy too many, I can sell whatever I don't use. I won't lose much.
"I'll take thirteen bottles," he said.
"Certainly. Please wait a moment." The employee glanced at him, opened the cabinet, and took out thirteen bottles of Gigantification Gene Potion, packing them into a bag.
Ji Zhixing paid by card.
Of the 1.5 million Gene Coins he had just received, 1.3 million vanished at once.
But those thirteen bottles of Gigantification Gene Potion set his heart ablaze.
Is that him?
Yet the moment Ji Zhixing stepped out of the potion shop, he spotted a familiar figure in the distance.
That guy's name was Chen Wenjie, wasn't it?
Ji Zhixing's gaze flickered.
That figure was the man in Gu Zheng's team who wielded the Elf Longbow.
I need to leave first.
After a brief pause, Ji Zhixing quickly left South Mountain Street.
He wanted revenge, but he was not strong enough yet. He could only steer clear.
After leaving South Mountain Street, he hailed a taxi and gave the address of the Rain-Listening Garden.
Sitting in the car, Ji Zhixing stared out the window, his gaze brooding.
I'll stop by the market.
By the time he returned to the Rain-Listening Garden, Ji Zhixing had composed himself again.
Rather than going straight home, he first visited the market, bought some fruit, chose a few vegetables his younger sister liked, and picked up a fish and some meat.
My sister is too thin, he thought as he carried the groceries home. I need to make sure she gets some proper nourishment.
"Zhixing!"
Back at the Rain-Listening Garden, he had barely stepped through the residential complex's gate when he heard a familiar voice.
Ji Zhixing looked up and saw Liu Qifan.
Liu Qifan jogged over and greeted him with a punch.
"Come on, tell me everything! How did you get by all those days out there?" Liu Qifan asked. Ji Zhixing had messaged him after returning yesterday.
Ji Zhixing felt helpless.
He could only recount once again the story he had already told so many times.
"What about you? What have you been busy with lately?"
After finishing his own story, Ji Zhixing looked at Liu Qifan curiously.
"Me? I've been training with my uncle's team. We're planning to head outside the city to hunt Gene Beasts in a little while."
"Zhixing, want to come along?" Liu Qifan asked. "My uncle's team isn't particularly strong, but they're experienced. They've been working outside the city for years. If you're interested, I can ask him."
Ji Zhixing shook his head. "No, thanks. I only just got back. I'm planning to rest for a while first."
"True. You must've been through hell out there this time. You ought to get some rest." Liu Qifan nodded.
They chatted a little longer and agreed to invite Zhang Haocheng and the others out for a meal another day, then went their separate ways.
Ji Zhixing carried the groceries upstairs and opened his front door.
The apartment was quiet. His parents were both at work, and his sister was at school. He put the groceries in the kitchen, returned to his room, and shut the door.
He sat on the edge of the bed and took a bottle of Gigantification Gene Potion out of his gene furnace.
Let's give it a try! I need to develop the gigantification gene ability as soon as possible.
Since Rain City University offers a self-recommendation route, I have to give it a shot.
(Guys, yesterday I kept saying no, but you still pelted me with fifty votes. There are four updates today, so please, please send more monthly tickets my way. This time I want them-as many as you've got (?????))
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