Light Fortress
Chapter 92 - 85: Extortion (Seeking Subscriptions, Seeking Monthly Votes)_3

Chapter 92: Chapter 85: Extortion (Seeking Subscriptions, Seeking Monthly Votes)_3

Zhou Jiren should be elated to change into his most formal attire upon hearing this news, then, seizing this rare opportunity, stride into the Huazhi Building with head held high and full of righteousness, to "demand" justice for his student.

Old fellows are only more troublesome than the young ones.

Cui Zhongcheng fixed his gaze on Gu Shen, "I can give you a sealed artifact, and as for breathing techniques... you shouldn’t be lacking, right?"

Seeing Mr. Xiao Cui react this way... Gu Shen felt a profound sense of emotion; he had just witnessed the sole heir of the Zhao Family being refused when he sent someone to collect money.

Once the teacher was mentioned, Cui Zhongcheng backed down; it seemed the teacher’s "reputation" was quite notorious out there.

Therefore, Gu Shen replied with utmost seriousness, "Lacking, lacking, I’m lacking everything."

"Don’t think I don’t know... Your senior sister is the only one in the Judgement Institute who has replicated ’Jingzhe’, and she taught you the technique before the examination process began, didn’t she?"

Cui Zhongcheng braced his hands on the table, almost standing up, as he lowered his voice and said angrily, "Gu Shen, having just awakened to the Extraordinary, isn’t one Jingzhe enough for your cultivation? Do you think you’re Gu Changzhi, capable of cultivating several breathing techniques at once?"

"Mr. Xiao Cui... you’re losing your composure."

"I’ve also done my bit for the Zhao Family once before. The Zhao Family is rich and powerful; it isn’t too much to ask for a breathing technique as compensation, is it?" Gu Shen gently reminded, then said earnestly, "Moreover, having more skills won’t be a burden. We all share the surname Gu; what if I can do what Gu Changzhi can do?"

Cui Zhongcheng and Gu Shen locked eyes.

He calmed down and let out a soft laugh, "Fine... I agree to your terms."

The conversation at the Huazhi Building was their second encounter since the lakeside dialogue, where both revealed their "true colors" to each other, and both understood... neither of them was easy to dismiss.

...

...

The Huazhi Building had a dedicated elevator that went straight down ten floors underground.

Cui Zhongcheng pressed the button for the seventh subterranean floor.

When the elevator opened, Gu Shen was struck by a scene that amazed and staggered him—

The underground seventh floor of Huazhi, with woven dim white lighting, was tranquil yet solemn, majestic yet sacred. It resembled a well-stocked museum; at intervals of about five meters, there were bronze altars designed to display artifacts. Above the altars, a transparent cover layered with a thin coating under the gleam of the dim white light, refracted a dark red, diamond-like brilliance.

"Are all these... sealed artifacts?"

Having already encountered the Strong Logic Material when Hu Danian was storing the solemn stone sculptures, Gu Shen knew that red silver could greatly resist the erosion of Extraordinary Powers, specifically used for containing sealed artifacts, and these altars were all smeared with red silver...

"Yes."

Cui Zhongcheng uttered two calm words.

Gu Shen rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn’t seeing things, and his expression turned odd.

Looking around, this expansive "Collection Hall" underground was staggered with bronze altars... How many were there? A hundred? Two hundred?

"Red silver is the most common and widely used secret coating," Cui Zhongcheng said. "All these sealed artifacts are of the same level as the solemn stone sculptures... with strength ratings ranging from C to E grade. Pick one."

Gu Shen slowly recovered from his shock... The sealed artifacts here were at most C-grade.

But that made sense.

The sheer number of these artifacts was astonishing, and that any could be of the same strength as the solemn stone sculptures was already a marvel... He marveled once more at the wealth of the Zhao Family.

And this was only the seventh floor beneath Huazhi Building; there were the eighth, ninth, and tenth floors still.

"Thank you, Mr. Xiao Cui, for your generous gift... I won’t hold back!"

Gu Shen maintained a calm demeanor, walking straight forward, weaving between the altars.

Each bronze altar here had an electronic tag, and with a touch in the air, detailed information about the sealed artifact would pop up.

He began selecting his own "sealed artifact."