"As a Black Iron Beast Tamer, you can't even afford this small amount of money?"
Chen Shu muttered to himself and said, "Master, I'll get off here too."
"Not going to Anju Residential Area anymore?"
"No need."
Chen Shu shook his head, paid the fare, and said, "Your car is too slow."
"Slow? Young man, I'm the God of Cars in Nanjiang!"
The driver's eyes held a hint of reminiscence, and he said, "Back in the day, on Mount Qiū Míng..."
Before he could finish, his eyes widened as if he had witnessed something earth-shattering.
He saw Chen Shu, who was sitting next to him, vanish in an instant. It was utterly bizarre.
"Holy crap, what kind of superpower is that?!"
The driver exclaimed, his eyes filled with shock. In all his years of driving, he had never seen anything so eerie.
...
"The rabbit's divine skill is really useful."
Chen Shu had already returned to his room.
Setting aside the combat power of his divine skill, just this auxiliary ability alone could save so much on car fares each year.
"I'll call this the free version of a low-level legendary potion!"
He quickly washed up, returned to his room, and collapsed into bed.
He had originally thought the high school reunion would be a bragging competition, but everyone turned out to be so refined and amiable?
In reality, with him around, anyone's attempt to show off would have been like a joke. Naturally, no one would embarrass themselves...
...
For several days, Chen Shu and his two companions transformed into Nanjiang idlers, enjoying their leisurely holiday.
They even claimed it was a patrol to prevent any beast attacks on the city.
It wasn't until the fifth day that Xie Sunan received news from the investigation department and needed to return to standby.
At a restaurant near the train station,
"I'm off then!"
After eating his fill, Xie Sunan said, "Chen Shu, are you guys really not going back to the academy?"
"We finally have a holiday, so of course, we need to rest."
Chen Shu shrugged and said, "I'm not part of the investigation department, so I don't need to be on standby."
Xie Sunan shook his head, looking disappointed, as if he wished they would achieve more. He said:
"When will you two be as ambitious as I am?"
"You become a Silver rank first, okay!"
Chen Shu pouted and said, "You're still Black Iron rank yourself."
"Do you think I want this? I have no talent, no resources, just a handsome face. What good is that!"
"???"
Chen Shu and Xu Xingxing exchanged glances.
When you say that, can you at least trim your beard...
Xie Sunan ignored their gazes and said:
"If I can earn merit in the Dragon Abyss incident, I might get a substantial amount of resources, and then there's hope for a breakthrough."
With that, he confidently turned and headed for the train station.
"Bon voyage!"
Chen Shu silently raised his wine glass and poured it onto the ground.
"???"
Xie Sunan glanced back inadvertently and almost stumbled. So, you were literally going to send me off, weren't you?
"Chen Pi, what are we doing?"
Xu Xingxing asked. During this time, the three of them had toured all over Nanjiang City, visiting various middle schools, beast taming dojos, and even the Spirit Suppression Bureau twice.
From then on, everyone in Nanjiang City knew this guy had become a Dragon Guard...
Didn't this transform a rat into a cat?
"Let's head to the black market."
Chen Shu smiled faintly and said, "My shop hasn't been taken care of for a while."
He had once opened a strength potion shop to earn money.
However, because the profit was too low, he decided to have it specialize in acquiring items and stopped selling potions.
The two paid the bill and left the restaurant.
"Don't resist later, I'll let you experience the feeling of teleportation."
Chen Shu summoned the Spatial Rabbit on the street. As a Dragon Guard, he naturally had privileges.
After two teleports, the two arrived directly at the black market's... public restroom.
"Why do you always teleport into a restroom?"
Xiao Xing's mouth twitched. The two were still inside a stall.
"This is called never forgetting my original intention!"
Chen Shu grinned and said, "The first time I concocted medicine was in this very stall."
He recalled the past, when his nickname 'Public Toilet Alchemist' originated from this.
"Concocting medicine in a restroom..."
Xiao Xing clearly remembered the past as well, understanding that this guy had been this outrageous since childhood.
The two emerged from the stall and, under the strange gazes of onlookers, left the public restroom.
...
The black market was as lively as ever, and with Chen Shu's shop, its prosperity was even comparable to that of a medium-sized city.
As soon as he appeared, people turned to look at him.
However, they didn't approach him with fanatical enthusiasm; instead, there was a hint of apprehension.
Chen Shu, as a world champion, naturally had fans everywhere.
But on the first day, he was caught off guard and let the fans surround him, thinking he just needed to sign autographs like other idols.
Unexpectedly, a group of people actually wanted to tear off his clothes...
Now he understood that his fanbase was, to some extent, a bit twisted...
In desperation, he had to 'painfully' use a urea bag to cover a fan, which finally changed the situation.
Now, his fans understood that the "fierce bandit" was someone to be admired from afar, not to be touched.
"Brother Tianba!"
Chen Shu, amidst the gazes of the crowd, walked into his shop.
"Young Master Chen!"
Wang Tianba's expression lit up, his eyes filled with excitement, and he said, "You haven't been here in ages!"
"Can't be helped, too busy with business!"
Chen Shu smiled faintly and said, "How's the shop been doing? Has anyone been causing trouble?"
"You jest, Young Master Chen. Forget Nanjiang City; I doubt many people in the entire world would dare to cause trouble here."
Wang Tianba chuckled. This was the "fierce bandit's" shop, after all. Unless someone was truly tired of living, who would dare to mess around?
"That's good."
Chen Shu nodded and said, "By the way, have you acquired any good items?"
Besides acquiring the medicinal ingredients he needed, the shop also collected a few peculiar items.
Chen Shu, being proficient in materials science, naturally understood that besides conventional treasures, there were also other rare treasures, such as relic keys, special medicinal herbs, and rare beast eggs.
"Yes, a whole lot of them, all of which I don't recognize."
Wang Tianba said excitedly and immediately had someone bring out a large yellow cloth package.
"So many?"
Chen Shu raised an eyebrow and opened the package. Various flowers, grass, and stones, all at once, made his eyes swim.
The most conspicuous item was a large stone, about a foot in size, with an overall strange red hue and intricate patterns. It was clearly not an ordinary object.
"Young Master Chen, this is a good thing!"
Wang Tianba immediately explained, "In all my years, I've never seen such a beautiful stone. It's rumored to be at least a thousand years old!"
"Hmm..."
Chen Shu nodded and said, "It is indeed a bit rare."
But when he saw what was beneath the stone, his expression froze.
His gaze became incredibly peculiar as he looked earnestly at Wang Tianba and said,
"Brother Tianba, I understand the logic, but why is there a... QR code underneath."