Da Xuan Martial Saint

"Does the old man know where the nearest ship gang is and how to pay a visit?"

Chen Mu retracted his gaze and asked the old man.

According to the intelligence, the Iron Hand group was unlike ordinary forces and did not have a fixed territory. Their territory was the Usha River basin. They were either scattered and untraceable or aboard their ships.

For Chen Mu, finding them was not difficult; it was simply a matter of following the trail from the ship gang and working his way up.

"Ship gang... Ah, Boss Liu's ship gang is located downstream along this stretch of the river. If the guest wishes to go, I can take you there directly," the old man thought for a moment and said.

"Then I'll trouble you, old man."

Chen Mu cupped his hands towards the old man in thanks.

The old man nodded in reply, took up the boat pole, and changed the boat's direction to begin sailing downstream.

Before long,

the dock appeared downstream along the river. The dock was not large, but more than ten boats of various sizes were moored there, and shadows of people could be faintly seen busily moving about on the boats and the dock.

"Guest, we've arrived... Eh?"

The old man turned his head back to explain to Chen Mu, but to his surprise, he found that Chen Mu, who had previously been sitting in the boat, had vanished without a trace, leaving only his granddaughter sitting there, still somewhat dazed.

"Where is he? Oh no, he didn't fall into the water, did he?"

The old man immediately became flustered, hurriedly looking into the river below the boat, but he saw only the gently flowing water, with no sign of a person.

Just then, the little girl sitting in the boat spoke up in a still somewhat shocked tone:

"Grandpa, look at this."

While speaking, she lifted her small hand to the old man, clutching a silver bean tightly.

The old man was taken aback, walked over, and took it from her, slightly dazed he said, "Is this from that guest? It's too much. Where did he go?"

Such a silver bean was worth several taels, an amount he would struggle to earn in a year of boating.

"That brother just now, he disappeared all of a sudden."

A look of incredulity lingered in the little girl's eyes.

After hearing this, the old man realized he had encountered an expert. Clutching the silver bean he said, "Eh, eh, Jin'er, you're blessed indeed. Today you've stumbled upon good fortune. Quick, thank our benefactor."

After carefully storing the silver bean away, he repeatedly bowed towards the empty river in gratitude.

...

On the side of the dock,

Chen Mu's figure appeared silently.

At his current realm, concealing his presence and appearance was quite simple. Even a martial artist in the Bone Tempering Realm could easily use their muscles and bones to alter their physical appearance, not to mention him, a figure of the Six Viscera Realm.

For martial artists of high realms, appearances could change at will. What was more difficult to disguise were one's momentum and styles.

Chen Mu stepped onto the dock, and saw some bare-chested men moving goods and working, while a few commoners in coarse clothes from the ship gang watched over them.

"Who's there? What do you want?"

As Chen Mu drew closer, he immediately drew the attention of a few gang members. The closest one approached, and seeing Chen Mu dressed in a cloak and long robe, guessed he was not a vagrant from the riverside and asked with a frown.

Chen Mu replied in a calm tone, "I've come to purchase some Usha. Where's your boss Liu?"

On hearing he was there to buy Usha, the nearby gang members relaxed a little. Someone sized Chen Mu up and then said, "Our boss Liu isn't here, he's gone to a birthday celebration. If you want to buy Usha, just find Liu, the manager. He can make decisions on his behalf."

"Good."

Chen Mu responded indifferently and followed a gang member who led the way into the dock, soon boarding a medium-sized cargo ship and meeting Liu, the manager, in one of the cabins.

Liu, the manager, was a portly fat man who at a glance, seemed not to be skilled in martial arts. Given his position within the ship gang and sharing the surname Liu, he likely had some relation to the gang's boss Liu. His plump body squeezed into a rattan chair, creaking under his weight. Upon seeing Chen Mu enter, he asked with a beaming smile:

"Guest, how much Usha would you like to purchase?"

"What's the price for Usha?"

"Um... the harvest this year hasn't been so good, ten jin of Usha for one tael of silver,"

Liu, the manager, said after sipping his tea.

"Then for ten million jin of Usha, can you make a decision?"

Chen Mu asked flatly.

Spurt.

Liu, the manager, nearly sprayed out his tea but then looked at Chen Mu with a slightly taken aback expression, saying, "Are you joking with me?"

Ten million jin of Usha was a quantity their ship gang might struggle to gather in ten years, and one million taels of silver was an unfathomable sum for the average person, a sum that Chen Mu, with his appearance and aura, did not seem capable of offering.

However,

at the next moment, Chen Mu casually tossed a gold note onto the table.

Liu, the manager, picked it up and immediately bulged his eyes, momentarily doubting his own vision—a gold note worth one hundred thousand taels!

Although the authenticity of such an item couldn't be verified immediately, anyone capable of presenting such a note was very likely genuine. After all, Usha transactions were typically cash on delivery, concluding with real gold and silver.

"Sir, I didn't realize your station; please don't be offended. But such a large amount of Usha, ten million jin, indeed I cannot decide on my own. We have to wait for my elder brother to return and discuss..." Discover exclusive content at My Virtual Library Empire

Liu, the manager's bulky figure suddenly became quite sprightly, as he squeezed out of the rattan chair, carefully handed back the gold note to Chen Mu, then mustered up a smile.

Chen Mu said indifferently, "Had you said earlier you couldn't make decisions, I wouldn't have come to you. Since your ship gang cannot take on this business, I'll have to look elsewhere."