The next morning.
A ray of sunlight illuminated the earth, heralding the arrival of a new day. Su Chen woke up early, briefly washed up, and left without even eating breakfast.
Vendors were already setting up their stalls along the street one after another. He found a breakfast stand and made do with a simple meal. Then, he navigated through a series of twists and turns until he arrived at a less populated street.
Pingsan Street.
Here stood a pawnshop named Han’s Pawnshop. Gripping the title deed tucked inside his shirt, Su Chen’s eyes gradually grew resolute. His purpose for this trip was to sell the deed. With his current strength, whether he could keep the house was highly uncertain. It was better to sell it for silver to enhance his own strength.
"Han’s Pawnshop has been rooted here for as long as I can remember. It’s quite prestigious in the nearby area," Su Chen pondered over the information he had gathered while standing in front of the shop. "To remain standing in the Outer City, where gangs are ubiquitous, they obviously have some capabilities. Rumor has it that they have backing from someone higher up."
There was a saying in the streets that while gangs rotated in and out of power, only Han’s Pawnshop remained immovable. Although this might be an exaggeration, it was enough to show that the force behind Han’s Pawnshop was massive and completely unafraid of the Black Water Gang.
After hesitating for a moment, Su Chen stepped into the pawnshop. Even though it was still morning, a line had already formed early at the counter.
"Are they here to pawn their deeds as well?" Su Chen wondered. Standing at the back of the line, he inadvertently caught a glimpse of the title deeds held by the three people ahead of him. It seemed they harbored the same intention as him: to sell their properties. Their attire was also noticeably better than his.
"You want to sell your deed? Let me see your certificate." The shopkeeper, who sported a handlebar mustache, took the certificate and title deed from the first customer. The documents contained all the relevant information about the house.
"Shopkeeper, my house is nestled by the mountains and faces the water. It boasts picturesque scenery and is a wonderful place," the old man stammered, seeing that the shopkeeper hadn’t spoken for a while.
Hearing this, the shopkeeper finally looked up at him and casually asked, "How much do you want to sell it for?"
"At least twenty taels!" the old man immediately replied.
"Twenty taels?" The shopkeeper sneered. "A smelly ditch and a small mound are worth twenty taels?"
"This..." The old man panicked slightly but was quickly cut off by the shopkeeper’s impatient voice.
"Let’s meet in the middle. Ten taels of silver. Take it or leave it."
In the end, with a helpless grit of his teeth, the old man agreed to the transaction, and the two parties signed the contract.
"You want to sell your deed too?" It was soon the second customer’s turn, and the shopkeeper immediately spotted the title deed in his hand.
The burly man nodded, took out his certificate, and handed it to the shopkeeper. "Sir, I’m different from him. My house is far from the hustle and bustle and close to nature. It’s a sacred place to escape the summer heat, perfect for those noble young masters to live in. You can even go hunting outside." Saying this, he held up three fingers. "So it’ll be a bit more expensive. I want thirty taels."
Unexpectedly, the shopkeeper merely sneered again and replied, "The location is remote and deserted. Those noble young masters wouldn’t give it a second glance. Let’s meet in the middle. Fifteen taels, sell or not?"
"Sir, this is a prime location! Twenty taels! I’ll sell it for twenty taels," the burly man immediately urged anxiously.
The shopkeeper said nothing and silently handed the certificate back.
Seeing this, the burly man opened his mouth, but ultimately spat out two words in defeat, "I’ll sell."
"Next."
The transaction between the two was quickly completed, and it was the turn of the customer right in front of Su Chen. He stepped forward and took out his certificate, his hands trembling slightly as they held the document. Clearly, the shopkeeper’s previous two instances of haggling had given him a bad feeling.
"Shopkeeper, my—my house has excellent transportation and extends in all directions. It’s located in the market, making it a great place for business. The shop owners there all make money."
"Oh, then how much are you asking?"
"Thirty... oh no, forty taels!"
Hearing this, the shopkeeper shook his head. "The transportation is indeed convenient, but a rural market on a piece of land the size of an ant isn’t worth that price. I’ll halve it twice over. Ten taels, take it or leave it?"
"Ten taels? No, I’m not selling! That’s too low!" The man immediately blew his beard and glared in anger.
Seeing the shopkeeper always halving the price, he had intentionally raised his asking price by ten taels, but the other party had cut it in half twice over, directly setting the price at ten taels. No matter how much he lacked money, he couldn’t sell it off so cheaply. So, he shook his head, put away the title deed, and turned to leave.
Finally, it was Su Chen’s turn. He took out his certificate and handed it over, not saying a single word. What else was there to say? Phrases like "nestled by mountains and water," "prime location," and "excellent transportation" had all been exhausted by the previous three.
"Hmm? Do you have nothing to say?" The shopkeeper looked at Su Chen in confusion. The previous three had all done their utmost to introduce the benefits of their houses. When it came to Su Chen, he had instead turned mute, which somewhat surprised the shopkeeper.
Hearing this, Su Chen pursed his lips. "My house isn’t anything fancy, but... it’s been targeted by the Black Water Gang!"
"Oh?" The shopkeeper froze for a moment, cast a surprised glance at Su Chen, and then carefully scrutinized the title deed in his hand.
"Pingshi Street is indeed the Black Water Gang’s territory. Tell me, how much do you want to sell it for?"
"Twenty taels."
"A bit high. Will you sell for ten taels?"
"Nineteen taels."
"Eleven taels."
"..."
After a bout of haggling, the two parties settled on a price of thirteen taels, exchanging the money and the deed simultaneously.
By the time he walked out of the pawnshop, Su Chen had thirteen taels of silver tucked inside his shirt. He muttered softly, "Panel, recharge five taels and activate Easy Mode."
Immediately after, he saw the silver inside his shirt suddenly decrease by five taels.
[Easy Mode Activated: Shadowbox for twenty minutes to train the Iron Wire Fist to Great Mastery.]
Su Chen clenched his fist and threw a punch into the empty air.
+1%
It worked.
He found a secluded spot and continued to throw punches.
+1%, +1%...
Twenty minutes later.
As a gentle power washed over him, the panel changed:
[Name: Su Chen]
[Martial Arts: Iron Wire Fist (Great Mastery 1%)]
[Easy Mode: Iron Wire Fist 0 times (10 taels of silver/time)]
"The next time is ten taels?" Su Chen paused, feeling somewhat helpless upon seeing the amount required to activate Easy Mode again. Even combining all the money he had on him with what he got from selling the deed, it was clearly not enough for a recharge.
"Since it’s not enough, I’ll do it next time. I’d better save this money for renting a house later," Su Chen thought, shaking his head as he made up his mind.
He then looked at his arms, which had undergone a massive transformation. Previously, he could only see a tiny bit of muscle. But now, the muscles on his arms were clearly visible even without clenching them. A powerful sense of strength surged through both of his arms, and his comprehension of the fist technique had also deepened profoundly.
"Huh? Why is there a faint red line on my arm?" Su Chen’s gaze suddenly froze. In the moment of contracting and relaxing his muscles, a blood-red line seemed to faintly appear and disappear. "Iron Wire Fist... Iron Wire... Could it be referring to this bloodline? I’ll ask Senior Brother Li Mo when I go to the Martial Arts Hall this afternoon."
Releasing his grip, Su Chen headed towards the housing agency. Next, he planned to rent a house.