"Who?! Who dares cause trouble at my Treasure Pavilion?!"
Less than half a minute later, a furious roar echoed from upstairs.
Immediately afterward, a series of heavy footsteps thundered down the stairs.
Seven or eight burly men in black rushed down, led by a middle-aged man in a silk robe with a distinctive mustache shaped like the Chinese character 八 (bā).
This was Zhao Decai, the manager of the Treasure Pavilion's Azurewave Branch.
Zhao Decai's face was dark as thunder, his eyes burning with rage.
Having operated in Azurewave Base for over half a year, with connections to both legitimate and criminal circles, this was the first time anyone had dared to assault someone on his territory.
"Manager! It's him!"
Seeing her backup arrive, the beaten female clerk burst into tears, pointing at Su Wu and shrieking, "This pauper tried to force his way onto the third floor without a membership! When I stopped him, he not only called our Treasure Pavilion a black market but also struck me! Manager, you must avenge me! Waaah..."
Zhao Decai followed her finger and saw a middle-aged man in casual gray attire standing with his hands behind his back, his expression utterly calm.
"Very well, very well indeed!"
Zhao Decai's anger twisted into a cruel smile, a glint of malice flashing in his eyes. "In Azurewave Base, no one dares touch my people! You old fool, whoever you are, you won't leave this place without losing a hand!"
"Get him! Cripple him!" Zhao Decai roared, waving his hand dismissively.
The seven or eight security guards behind him grinned savagely as they closed in. These guards were all experts at the great perfection of the Qi Blood Realm, and their leader was a retired mercenary who had recently broken through to the Innate Realm.
"Kid, better choose your next life wisely..." The leader raised his iron baton, swinging it viciously toward Su Wu's head.
Yet Su Wu didn't even blink.
Boom!
An invisible yet terrifying aura erupted from Su Wu's body, centered around him.
No movement, no technique.
Just the release of his aura.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
The seven or eight menacing guards were slammed backward as if struck by an unseen giant hand, flying away even faster than they had charged in.
They crashed violently into walls and pillars, spitting blood as they collapsed onto the ground, unable to even scream before losing consciousness.
"What?!"
Zhao Decai, who had been anticipating a spectacle, froze mid-smirk.
He stared in disbelief at the scene, his legs beginning to tremble uncontrollably.
To instantly send seven or eight skilled fighters flying? This... what kind of power is this? A Grandmaster? No... even City Lord Pan Hong, a Grandmaster himself, couldn't achieve such effortless dominance without even a ripple in his qi and blood!
"How is this possible?" Zhao Decai's voice trembled, his earlier arrogance instantly extinguished by half.
Su Wu slowly raised his head, his violet-gold eyes locking coldly onto Zhao Decai.
In the next instant, Su Wu's figure vanished from its spot.
When he reappeared, he was standing directly in front of Zhao Decai, their noses nearly touching, less than three inches apart.
Zhao Decai's pupils shrank to pinpricks. He hadn't even seen Su Wu move!
Then, before the horrified eyes of everyone present, Su Wu's feet slowly lifted off the ground.
A foot above the earth, he hovered in mid-air!
Gravity seemed to have lost its hold on him. An absolute pressure, born of a higher level of existence, descended upon Zhao Decai like the collapse of heaven and earth.
"Walking... walking on air?!" Zhao Decai shrieked, his soul nearly fleeing his body in terror.
Though merely a merchant, Zhao Decai had traveled far and wide, witnessing countless wonders. He understood all too well what this meant:
To defy gravity, to transcend the physical realm...
It was a Martial King!
Thud!
Zhao Decai's knees buckled, and he crashed to the ground, shattering his kneecaps. Yet he felt no pain, only boundless terror.
Oh heavens!
He had just threatened to cripple a Martial King's hand?
What was the difference between that and suicide?
"M-My lord! Spare me! Spare me, I beg you!"
Zhao Decai frantically kowtowed, his head slamming against the floor with sickening thuds, blood streaming from his forehead. "This lowly one was blind to your true status! I deserve to die! I was blinded by greed!"
As for the arrogant saleswoman who had been so haughty moments ago, her eyes rolled back in terror, and she fainted dead away.
Su Wu hovered in mid-air, gazing down at the trembling insect beneath him.
"Did you establish this membership system?"
"N-No! Not at all!" Zhao Decai stammered, his words tumbling over each other in panic. "It was... it was my own doing! I thought Azurewave Base was remote, far from the emperor's reach, a good place to line my pockets... My lord, I was wrong! I was truly wrong! I'll abolish it immediately! Right now!"
Su Wu extended a hand, and as easily as lifting a chick, he telekinetically seized Zhao Decai by the throat and hoisted him into the air.
"Ugh... ugh..."
Zhao Decai's legs kicked wildly, his face turning a purplish-red as the suffocating grip tightened. The sensation of choking brought the specter of death looming near.
"Trying to swindle me?" Su Wu asked coldly, his gaze piercing. "If I had the temper of my younger days, you'd already be a corpse."
"But today, I'm here to buy things for my son. I don't want to see blood—it's bad luck."
Thud.
With a casual flick of his wrist, Su Wu tossed Zhao Decai into a corner like a piece of trash.
"You're spared death, but not punishment."
Su Wu landed gracefully on the ground, clapped his hands, and said casually, "I'm going to spend some money at the Treasure Pavilion today. You'd better make it worth my while."
Zhao Decai, having narrowly escaped death, gasped for air. Hearing these words, he didn't dare hesitate for a moment.
He scrambled to Su Wu's feet, groveling like a lapdog.
"My lord! Your presence in my humble shop is an honor that makes our ancestors' graves smoke with good fortune! Forget about spending money—take whatever catches your eye! It's all free! Absolutely free!"
"Oh? Free?" Su Wu raised an eyebrow. "Remember, you said that yourself. I didn't force you."
"No force at all! It's my humble offering to you!" Zhao Decai shook his head frantically, terrified that the Martial King might crush him into paste with a single displeased gesture. The source of this chapter is novelping(.)com.
"Fine, since you're so sincere."
A "benevolent" smile curled the corner of Su Wu's lips.
"Lead the way to the third floor. Bring out your best Qi and Blood Potions, body tempering pills, and any other rare treasures you have."
Ten minutes later.
The third floor of the Treasure Pavilion, once brimming with dazzling merchandise, now stood completely bare, cleaner than a dog's licked bowl.
Zhao Decai stared at the empty storeroom, his heart bleeding, yet he forced a smile. "Sir, this... this is all the inventory we have left. Three bottles of B-grade Dragon Blood Grass Extract and ten Violet Gold Body Tempering Pills."
Combined, these items were worth over two hundred million federal credits—three years' profit for this branch!
But compared to his own life, what was a mere sum of money?
Su Wu surveyed the mountain of resources before him and nodded in satisfaction.
This should keep that brat Su Yu's Chaos Body fed for a while.
"Not bad," Su Wu remarked.
Just as he was about to find a bag to pack everything up, his gaze landed on the antique silver ring on Zhao Decai's left index finger.
Su Wu's eyes lit up.
A space ring!
In this world, storage devices existed, but due to the extreme rarity of space crystals, they were exorbitantly priced and nearly impossible to find. Even a one-cubic-meter space ring could fetch a villa in District A!
Who would have thought this lowly manager was hoarding such a treasure?
Sensing Su Wu's predatory gaze, Zhao Decai froze, instinctively shrinking his hand behind his back.
"That... I must say, that's quite a distinctive ring you have there," Su Wu said with a smile.
Zhao Decai nearly burst into tears.
This was the life-saving treasure he had spent half his life's savings to acquire through black market connections!
But could he refuse?
Seeing Su Wu's ambiguous smile, Zhao Decai gritted his teeth and swallowed his pride. Trembling, he removed the ring and offered it with both hands.
"My lord... if you like it, this storage ring... is yours as a tribute!"
Su Wu took the ring without hesitation. A quick mental scan revealed a small storage space, only about one cubic meter, but sufficient for the potions and pills.
"Good choice."
Su Wu swept all the supplies on the ground into the ring, then slipped it onto his finger, his mood brightening considerably.
"Alright. I don't want a third person to know my identity today," Su Wu warned, patting Zhao Decai's greasy cheek.
"Understood! This humble one understands! You're just a passing customer!" Zhao Decai nodded frantically.
Su Wu turned and strode out of the Treasure Pavilion.
Sunlight streamed down on him as he touched the space ring on his finger. Thinking of his son, that insatiable "gold-devouring beast" waiting at home, Su Wu felt like he was truly fulfilling his duty as a father.
Behind him, the Treasure Pavilion lay in ruins. Zhao Decai slumped on the floor, staring at his ransacked shop, too devastated to cry. He could only kick the unconscious female clerk in frustration.
"You spendthrift bitch! You almost got me killed!"