Chapter 650: I Want to Complain About You

A group entered the Duojin Shanghang.

Xin Gugu felt an overwhelming wave of admiration welling up inside him, desperate to burst out.

But when the words reached his lips, they all turned out to be things he couldn't say aloud, condensing into just four words.

"Xu Xiaoshou... awesome!"

Mu Zixi had a hundred questions she wanted answered, but after opening her mouth, she realized each one was inappropriate for this setting.

Things like:

"Xu Xiaoshou, do you really have a Half-Sage family backing you?"

"Xu Xiaoshou, are you hiding something from me?"

"Xu Xiaoshou, what's your real background? Do you have someone in your mind, and is it a woman?"

"Definitely!"

And so on—all of it turned into silent grumbling in her head.

Xu Xiaoshou remained expressionless, not showing a hint of emotion.

Using his "Perception," he surveyed the entire interior of the Duojin Shanghang from all angles. He could tell that the fight at the entrance had definitely been noticed by the merchant house.

But he never expected them to be so bold about it.

A dispute involving what seemed like heirs from two Half-Sage families, and yet no one came out to stop it—not even a mediator showed up.

As he pondered, a graceful woman in a high-slit qipao that reached her thigh, adorned with gold powder, approached with a smile. Her eyes curved like crescent moons as she said charmingly:

"My name is Xiao Lian. Xu Xiaoshou, whatever you need, you can tell me."

Hearing "Xu Xiaoshou," he immediately understood.

These people had indeed heard about the fight outside but had chosen to stay out of it...

They were truly fearless!

But now, things were different.

Once they entered the Duojin Shanghang, he was a customer, and they couldn't ignore him anymore.

With someone suspected to be from a Half-Sage family in their midst, their hospitality would have to be top-notch.

"Xiao Lian, huh..."

Xu Xiaoshou nodded and gave her a quick once-over, getting straight to the point:

"Do you have high enough authority?"

"High enough."

"How high?"

"High enough for whatever Xu Xiaoshou wants to do."

Xiao Lian held her hands at her waist, subtly arching her chest, her figure accentuated perfectly by the qipao.

Xu Xiaoshou nodded in satisfaction, then turned to Xin Gugu, who was trying to look serious, and said:

"You go pick a location—somewhere with the densest foot traffic, high floors, and gold-themed decor that screams ultimate extravagance. Make it something people will never forget at first glance."

"Then, make a signboard."

"The signboard has to be huge! Go all out on size and luxury, use up every bit of your imagination, and spend it all."

With that, Xu Xiaoshou pulled out a gold card and handed it to Xin Gugu.

"There's roughly a few dozens of billions in there—I forget the exact amount."

"Your task today is to spend it all. I want to see a magnificent... Tian Shang First Tower!"

The others nearby were stunned by his words.

"Passive value from suspicion: 4."

Xu Xiaoshou's voice wasn't loud.

But in the Duojin Shanghang's main hall, the passersby had already been paying attention to him.

After his speech, the whole place fell silent.

Even those who had been pretending to stroll forward while keeping their eyes on him stopped mid-step.

"Holy crap, this is the Xu Xiaoshou who dared to ignore the Half-Sage families?"

"Damn, a few dozens of billions to spend in one day... Let me do it!"

"Fuck, I can't stand guys like this. Xu Xiaoshou, right? Let me have your babies—"

"Ahhh, girls, I'm going crazy—he's so handsome!"

"Is this the aura of a tycoon?"

"Passive value from disgust: 33."

"Passive value from affection: 264."

"Passive value from admiration: 311."

"Passive value from awe: 86."

The system notifications popped up faster than ever.

Even Xiao Lian's eyes showed a touch of surprise.

"Do you need my help?"

She turned to Xin Gugu and said, "I can take him to handle it and make sure Xu Xiaoshou is satisfied."

"No need."

Xu Xiaoshou waved his hand and told Xin Gugu, "Take those two with you to get it done."

He gestured toward Mo Mo and Mu Zixi, then looked back at Xiao Lian.

"You, come with me!"

"I have bigger matters to handle, and I need someone with your level of authority to join me." He lifted his chin slightly.

"Oh, I see..."

Xiao Lian's eyebrows formed crescent shapes as she smiled sweetly: "Then I'll have someone escort Xu Xiaoshou's people to handle their tasks. I'll go with you?"

"Fine."

Xu Xiaoshou clasped his hands behind his back, his eyes full of determination.

Mu Zixi, listening from behind, was fuming and almost jumped up to give her senior brother a good whack!

"Xu Xiaoshou!"

"Passive value from scolding: 1."

Xu Xiaoshou turned back: "Go with Xiao Xin. I have serious business to attend to."

He paused, then looked at Mo Mo.

"You too."

Mo Mo: "..."

"Passive value from suspicion: 1."

Without a word, she followed behind Xin Gugu.

But Mu Zixi refused: "I want to go with you."

"I'm handling serious business, and you're too young—don't get involved!" Xu Xiaoshou frowned.

Mu Zixi: ???

She tried to puff out her chest.

But catching a glimpse of Xiao Lian out of the corner of her eye, she deflated like a punctured ball.

"Go on!" Xu Xiaoshou waved his hand.

Xin Gugu took the gold card, still in a daze, and it took him a while to snap out of it.

"You're not coming with me?"

Though he said that, his eyes darted toward Xiao Lian.

"Why would you come with me? To just stand there shining?" Xu Xiaoshou rolled his eyes and shoved him forward, right next to another female attendant Xiao Lian had called over.

"Get going!"

Xin Gugu: ???

He glanced back and forth, comparing the two, before reacting.

"Passive value from cursing: 1."

"Passive value from contempt: 1."

In the room.

"Are the doors and windows shut?" Xu Xiaoshou lounged on the soft sofa.

"They are shut..."

Now alone with him, Xiao Lian started to feel uneasy, her cheeks flushing as she fidgeted.

"No surveillance, right?" Xu Xiaoshou tilted his head up and scanned around.

"None..."

Xiao Lian was getting nervous.

Is this for real?

Does he actually dare?

She had thought Xu Xiaoshou was just talking big.

"Um..."

"No bed?" Xu Xiaoshou picked the plumpest grape from a plate on the jade tea table, slowly peeling it as he looked at Xiao Lian.

"Passive value from rejection: 1."

Xiao Lian was completely flustered, crossing her arms over her chest and stepping back half a pace.

"There's no bed. If Xu Xiaoshou really needs that kind of... service, we might have to go somewhere else and discuss it with someone else."

"What service? Where did your mind go?"

Xu Xiaoshou popped the grape into his mouth and wiped his hands with a clean handkerchief. "I'm just tired and want to lie down for a bit. What dirty thoughts are in that little head of yours!"

Xiao Lian: "..."

She still didn't dare approach, keeping a distance close enough to the door handle to grab it if needed, and said seriously: "Xu Xiaoshou, why did you call me here alone? What 'serious business' do you want to discuss?"

"Sit down and relax. No need to be so tense."

Xu Xiaoshou patted the spot next to him on the sofa.

Xiao Lian hesitated for a long time before succumbing to the pressure, stepping lightly over and sitting on the other end.

"Passive value from wariness: 1."

"Come closer. Why sit so far away? I'm not going to eat you." Xu Xiaoshou chuckled and patted the spot beside him again.

Xiao Lian furrowed her brows slightly, reminding herself it was her territory, and shifted her hips closer.

"I'm only eating grapes..." Xu Xiaoshou grinned, peeling another grape and tossing it into his mouth.

At that, Xiao Lian's whole body stiffened.

She shot up, clenching her fists: "Xu Xiaoshou, if you have serious business to talk about, get to it. If it's just pointless fooling around, I don't have the time!"

"Passive value from wariness: 1."

"Tsk, tsk, your professional skills are lacking. I might have to file a complaint against you."

Xu Xiaoshou's eyes crinkled with a smile as he stopped teasing and got to the point:

"I've been around Dongtian Wangcheng, and it seems most of the refiners here are at the Houtian or Xiantian levels."

"Grandmasters are rare, and anything above that, like Wangzuo, is even harder to find. Is that the situation?"

Xiao Lian was taken aback.

This opening was so straightforward—it didn't seem like something Xu Xiaoshou would say.

"That's correct."

She finally regained her normal heartbeat and replied, "Even though Wangcheng is the center for refining, refiners at Grandmaster level and above aren't that common."

"The largest group is still at the Houtian and Xiantian levels."

"Recently, because of the Wangcheng trials, there are more Xiantian peak refiners around. Normally, you'd see more at Yuanting or Juwu realms."

"Xu Xiaoshou... what are you getting at?"

She was a bit puzzled.

Based on the earlier fight outside, this "Xu Xiaoshou" seemed like a playboy from some family.

But he was fundamentally different from those brainless rich kids.

At the very least, he had his own thoughts.

After all, he had already dealt with Jiang Xian from the Duojin Shanghang.

Being able to handle someone as poised as Jiang Xian was enough to make the higher-ups here take "Xu Xiaoshou" seriously.

And precisely because of his deliberate playboy act, she was the one sent to deal with him.

—Easy to manage!

—If anything went wrong, there'd be a good excuse to slip away under the Half-Sage families' watch!

Beyond those two reasons, there was nothing else.

Now, it seemed like he really wanted to discuss something serious?

"Take a look at this first."

Xu Xiaoshou didn't say more and placed a jar of honey on the table.

This was the first result of his "Boiling Soup Refining Technique" invented in Tiansang Linggong—the Chijin Liquid!

Back then, when he accidentally created it, he had realized its commercial value.

But at the time, in Linggong, he didn't lack money and had nowhere to spend it, so he set it aside.

Now that he was in Dongtian Wangcheng, if he wanted to make big moves, he needed a stable source of funds.

A mere few dozens of billions could be gone in a flash, like today.

For future plans, like dealings with "Night Cat," without money, he couldn't pull anything off.

So, he needed a steady asset supply chain to eliminate all his worries.

And, as a bonus, experience the thrill of sudden wealth...

Xiao Lian looked at Xu Xiaoshou, who sat sprawled on the sofa with his hands dangling at his sides, full of confidence. She hesitated before picking up the jar.

A spirit array?

At first glance, she saw the complex array patterns on the crudely made jade box.

A completely unfamiliar array...

"Does Xu Xiaoshou want to sell the box? Or... uh, sell this array?"

Xiao Lian chuckled inwardly, but then caught a faint medicinal scent.

A very familiar smell!

Xu Xiaoshou was amused by her.

Sell the box?

Am I that broke?

"Open it."

"Oh."

With his permission, Xiao Lian lifted the lid.

The array on the box didn't seem to be for sealing; it was more for preserving the medicinal properties.

As soon as it opened, the rushing medicinal aroma confirmed her judgment.

And this familiar scent...

"Chijin Dan?"

She exclaimed in surprise.

This paste-like substance emitted the exact same fragrance as Chijin Dan.

In fact, it was even stronger!

"It's not Chijin Dan; it's 'Chijin Liquid!'" Xu Xiaoshou corrected her mistake.

"Chijin Liquid?" Xiao Lian was slightly stunned. "What's its effect?"

"The same as Chijin Dan, but with 30 to 50 percent better efficacy. If I'm in a good mood, it could even double."

"Double?" Xiao Lian blurted out in shock.

Chijin Dan was already hailed as the best among the ten-grade healing medicines, even after market culling.

Yet Xu Xiaoshou claimed his "Chijin Liquid" could double the effects!

If that were true...

Xiao Lian's heart started racing.

Just thinking about it, the commercial value was immeasurable.

"Sorry."

She picked up a wine glass from the table, taking a sip as self-punishment for her outburst, then asked based on the details she'd caught: "Did you develop this yourself?"

"Surprised? I'm also a refiner!"

Xu Xiaoshou chuckled and began searching for his refiner's badge. "Hmm, where's my badge?"

Xiao Lian was quite shocked.

To improve Chijin Dan at such a young age and achieve this level of effectiveness—what kind of refiner was he?

As expected, those raised in major family forces, even if they seemed like playboys...

Their abilities were undeniable!

She leaned forward to pour another glass, waiting while filling his, then raised her own.

"This glass is for my earlier misjudgment of Xu Xiaoshou!"

With that, she drank it all in one go.

Xiao Lian looked delicate, but she drank with real gusto, emptying her glass twice.

But this time, as the wine entered her mouth, Xu Xiaoshou had already dug his refiner's badge out from the pile of junk in his ring and proudly waved it in front of her.

Xiao Lian's cheeks bulged.

The wine hadn't even gone down her throat before she was startled by the "ten clouds supporting one cauldron" on the purple badge.

"A... ten-grade refiner?"

She spat out the wine unceremoniously, creating a mist in the air.

Are you kidding me?

A ten-grade refiner, and you tell me you developed a Chijin Liquid with double the effects?

The wine droplets slid down her face and onto her clothes.

From that accidental drop that entered his mouth, Xu Xiaoshou could taste many, many flavors...

"Xuanjin Zibao, a seven-grade spiritual herb, warm in nature, dispels cold, resolves stagnation, invigorates tendons, and promotes blood flow; non-toxic, can be used in wine or stewed with Four-Clawed Huanglong meat to make Zibao Long Soup—tender, chewy meat with a sweet and fresh taste."

"Ziyang Fruit, a seven-grade spiritual herb, hot in nature with a slight fire toxin, mildly spicy; the flesh can be eaten after peeling, and the seeds can be dried as a seasoning."

"Saliva, for external application; relieves mental pain and stress, but doesn't accelerate wound healing."

The room fell silent for a moment.

Xiao Lian's eyes widened in shock, realizing her blunder might have caused a huge issue.

Her chest heaved rapidly as she sensed a storm brewing.

As for Xu Xiaoshou...

He was fine with the earlier messages, but when "saliva" appeared, his face dropped completely.

He sprang up with a bang, sending the sofa flying.

Pointing at her, he shouted:

"Where are the others? Is there anyone in charge? Get them here! I want to complain about you!"

"Not only are your professional skills lacking and your service poor, but you also sprayed water all over me—and with saliva in it!"

"Absolutely shameless!"