Qian Duoduo felt as if he had suddenly stepped on a venomous snake, wanting only to turn and flee, not wishing to enter the Mission Hall at all.
However, Huang Guiren's debt had to be repaid. This debt was like a poisonous fangs deeply embedded in the flesh, and it needed to be pulled out early.
Hardening his resolve, Qian Duoduo and Huang Guiren followed Jin Buque into the Mission Hall.
He didn't realize it until he entered the hall, but once inside, he saw that it was packed with people, not quite shoulder to shoulder, but close enough. Looking around, there were at least a thousand people.
It was normal when he thought about it; everyone needed to undertake missions.
With nearly a million Disciples and Elders, averaged out per day, this many people were to be expected. Moreover, undertaking missions also involved choosing and selecting.
Tasks like Huang Guiren's, which seemed to fall from the sky, were probably very rare.
And this heaven-sent mission was inextricably linked to Jin Buque, who stood before them.
If he were a stranger, there would be no doubt that Jin Buque would be considered an excellent young man.
—Outstanding in appearance, with good Cultivation, and diligent in treating others, he was definitely a rising star within the Sect.
However, only Jin Buhuan and Qian Duoduo knew how truly wicked this seemingly respectable man was.
“This way,” Jin Buque led the way with a smile, arriving at a counter that read “Mission Delivery.”
Huang Guiren placed his token into the slot on the counter.
The counter immediately emitted a low hum, and at the same time, red light flickered on the desktop, displaying the large characters: “Owes 1.88 million.”
This scene attracted the attention of many people in the hall.
However, once they recognized Huang Guiren, they quickly turned away.
“The unluckiest man in the Sect, right? Owing money, no matter how much, is normal for him.”
“This is probably a new Realm of bad luck. What could he have done to owe this much?”
“An Outer Sect Disciple, even if he became a ghost, probably couldn't repay this money.”
Such undisguised discussions, hot and stinging, reached the ears of Qian Duoduo and Huang Guiren.
Huang Guiren's head was lowered, almost shrinking into his neck.
Qian Duoduo took out Qian Duoduo's token, “I'll pay for him.”
Jin Buque laughed heartily, “As expected, I didn't misjudge you; you're loyal.”
Qian Duoduo placed his token into another slot and clicked “Pay Debt for Another.”
Another burst of red light flickered, and Huang Guiren's token finally showed a zero balance.
Huang Guiren wiped the sweat from his forehead, his hand trembling as he retrieved his token.
Jin Buque returned Qian Duoduo's token with both hands, smiling as he said, “Thank you, little brother, for coming up with such a brilliant idea for a lending business while I was in closed-door Cultivation, and for earning so much money. Thank you, thank you very much!”
His face glowed with a brilliant light. His eyes were filled with a triumphant smile.
“Even a python that had just swallowed an entire cow wouldn't be as happy as he is,” Qian Duoduo thought.
“At first, I even thought our little brother was the chosen one, fresh out of Jail, stirring up such a big fuss in a dilapidated Gold Vault, accumulating enough gold coins to Cultivate to the Ninth Level of Qi Condensation.”
“I was truly impressed and especially happy! I thought I'd soon be shaking hands with my little brother in the Inner Sect. But, however, but, however, there was still a slight deviation—”
Jin Buque's dirty hand rested on Qian Duoduo's shoulder, and his saliva sprayed onto Qian Duoduo's face.
“What a pity. Now your token balance is less than ten thousand, and you're a pauper again. Reaching the Ninth Level is a bit difficult now. Many opportunities, you won't be able to catch up. I feel a bit worried for you. Alas, what do you say we do?”
His voice was low, audible only to the three of them, yet it was filled with an uncontrollable excitement.
“You and I, we still have a small difference. You always only think about yourself.”
“Whereas I, I think more about the Sect, about the Jin family. You always want to earn money for yourself and improve your Cultivation. But I, not only do I toil for the Sect in the Mission Hall, but I always think about making the Sect bigger and stronger. A lending business, such a great thing, naturally belongs to the Sect. Right?”
Jin Buque chuckled smugly a few times, his eyes shining as he looked down at Qian Duoduo.
“Does this count as a difference in perspective? It should. This kind of perspective means you will never catch up to me. No matter how much you struggle, you will still be an ant under my feet.”
“No, that's not right. Now it's two ants, two unlucky people, a perfect double-unlucky combination.” He turned his head and looked at Huang Guiren, giving a thumbs-up with both hands.
Qian Duoduo and Huang Guiren huddled together, unable to utter a single word, like two lambs who had given up resistance under the claws of a hungry wolf.
Jin Buque bowed deeply to Qian Duoduo and Huang Guiren, then loudly sang, “Welcome back, Cultivation child prodigy Jin Buhuan, whenever you have time to visit the Mission Hall again. Farewell, I won't see you off far.”
Qian Duoduo and Huang Guiren stumbled out of the Mission Hall, staggering towards Mengyuan Mountain on the opposite side.
Before going to the Mission Hall, Qian Duoduo had expected the gold coins in his token to be emptied, but he hadn't expected to encounter Jin Buque.
In fact, it wasn't an encounter; he had been waiting for Qian Duoduo all along.
Huang Guiren was merely bait; Qian Duoduo was the fat sheep he intended to slaughter.
Qian Duoduo exhaled slowly, expelling the dark clouds from his heart bit by bit.
When they reached the archway at the Outer Sect of Mengyuan Mountain, Qian Duoduo called out to Huang Guiren. “Look at me carefully, am I dead or not?”
Huang Guiren didn't know what Qian Duoduo wanted to ask and quickly shook his head.
“Look again, am I missing a piece of flesh?”
“No,” Huang Guiren said after a careful look.
“Then it's fine!” Qian Duoduo said loudly, “That idiot wants us to surrender, but we won't. He wants us to give up, no way!”
Huang Guiren whispered, “I'm not convinced either. Even though I'm scared.”
“If they won't let us do the lending business, then we won't. From now on, I'm going to do the most profitable thing.”
Qian Duoduo turned around and shouted towards the hillside below, as if thousands of people were standing there.
“Yes, let's do the most profitable thing!” Huang Guiren grinned in agreement.
“Artifact Refining, I want to be an Artifact Refiner!” Qian Duoduo took a deep breath, “Starting today, I will be the greatest Artifact Refiner.”
The moment the words left his mouth, Qian Duoduo's heart told him that his choice was not wrong.
The skill of Artifact Refining, no one could take it away.
Whatever Magic Treasure he wanted, he wouldn't need to ask others; he could refine it himself. His destiny would be maximally in his own hands.
Huang Guiren was startled and stepped forward to touch Qian Duoduo's head, relieved when he found no fever.
“The greatest, how great is that?” he mumbled softly, not really asking Qian Duoduo, just not understanding.
“I—” Qian Duoduo thought for a moment, “I want to refine this heaven and this earth.”
Huang Guiren's face scrunched up, clearly unable to comprehend Qian Duoduo's words, “If this heaven and earth are refined, where will we hide?”
“There's a heaven beyond heaven, don't you know?” Qian Duoduo retorted.
“What if there's no heaven beyond heaven? You've never been beyond heaven, how do you know there's a heaven beyond heaven?”
“If we didn't know there was a heaven beyond heaven, then where did the saying 'heaven beyond heaven' come from? It must have been said by someone who had been beyond heaven, or someone who knew there was a heaven beyond heaven.”
Qian Duoduo had learned a bit of the art of arguing from Senior Brother Bai Machi.
Huang Guiren was stunned, “What you said makes some sense. I'm starting to hope you become an Artifact Refiner quickly. When that happens, you can refine the Magic Treasure I want most for me.”
“Oh, what Magic Treasure do you want?” Qian Duoduo asked curiously.