Gao Wu: You have science, and I have magic!

Chapter 177 The Golden Belt of Murder and Arson
There are more than a hundred people attending tonight's banquet, and the entire fourth floor of the hotel has been booked by people from the Linjiang Chamber of Commerce.

There was a great deal of drinking and chatting at the scene, with all the common people coming and going, and great scholars chatting and laughing. Billionaires, who are rarely seen in normal days, appeared here in large numbers.

Moreover, when they faced Ye Qingzhou, even if they were not servile, they were also full of flattery. From time to time, someone came over to toast: "Mr. Ye, I'll drink this glass, you can do whatever you want."

Then, I just said a few polite words, briefly introduced myself, and handed over my business card. The whole process was very smooth.

Ye Qingzhou doesn't like drinking. He was an expert swordsman in his previous life. After drinking, he can't hold the sword steadily.

And this habit naturally carried over into this life.

When faced with toasts from others, he would pick up the glass, take a sip out of politeness and then put it down. No one was so blind as to dare to bring this up. Instead, everyone was smiling and felt proud of it, having a lot of face.

The so-called drinking table culture is essentially a test of obedience from top to bottom.

As long as you are stronger than the other party, this set of tricks will not fall on you, otherwise you will be seeking death.

Soon, Wan Shengjun brought Wan Jinglong to Ye Qingzhou.

Zheng Zhiguang quickly introduced Ye Qingzhou: "Mr. Ye, this is Mr. Wan from Junsheng Group. He is extraordinary. He is the first entrepreneur in our Linjiang Chamber of Commerce to go beyond Hunan Province and enter the national market. He has a huge business."

Hearing that it was a rich man, Ye Qingzhou perked up: "Hello, Mr. Wan."

"Mr. Ye, you are too polite. Although I have made a little money, I am not as successful as Mr. Ye at a young age. I will have to rely on your care in the future."

Wan Shengjun is very humble. It is true that he is a rich man, but in today's era, geopolitical conflicts are intensifying, the world situation is becoming more and more turbulent, and business is becoming more and more difficult.

Therefore, no matter how much money you have, you must have military force as a backing and support, otherwise you will just be a piece of fat meat in the eyes of others.

Afterwards, Wan Jinglong, who was five or six years older than Ye Qingzhou, had to show courtesy to Ye Qingzhou as a junior. He felt more and more regretful that he had been busy playing and not practicing martial arts well when he was in high school.

"Mr. Ye, this is a meeting gift. It's just a small token of my respect, but I hope you will accept it."

Wan Shengjun took a gift box from the bodyguard behind him and presented it to Ye Qingzhou with both hands.

"This is?"

Ye Qingzhou opened the box and discovered that the gift box contained three pieces of refined metal. The material was very strange and was translucent like glass.

When the people around saw this, they all gasped and exclaimed in surprise.

"Tianchen Steel!"

"Boss Wan is really generous!"

"I heard that Tianchen steel is a rare and precious top grade steel, and one gram costs three hundred thousand. These three pieces, combined, probably weigh four kilograms, right? Isn't that worth six hundred million?"

"Sigh~"

Many people were breathing rapidly. You know, in the Linjiang Chamber of Commerce, not everyone is worth over 100 million, let alone 600 million in cash.

The box of Tianchen Steel in front of him weighs about two kilograms, and its value has already exceeded the personal assets of most members of the Chamber of Commerce.

Ye Qingzhou naturally recognized the Tianchen steel in the box. After all, the martial artists in Dongji Country also have to take cultural courses. They are not just mindless reckless men who only know how to fight and kill.

"Boss Wan, as the saying goes, no merit, no reward. Your gift is too precious."

"Mr. Ye, as the saying goes, a sword is bestowed upon a hero. These Tianchen steels would be a waste if they were left in my hands. Only a martial artist like you, Mr. Ye, can bring out their true effectiveness."

Obviously, Wan Shengjun had done his homework before coming. He knew that Ye Qingzhou was not only a martial artist with a promising future, but also a sword-making expert.

Therefore, he did not directly spend money to buy a famous sword as a gift, but instead used his connections to buy three pieces of Tianchen steel.

Over the years, Wan Shengjun, who has been able to expand his real estate business, has understood a truth from a very early stage, that is, when asking others to do something, one must not be stingy with gifts, but must give them all at once!
Now, he spent 600 million just to get Ye Qingzhou in one go!
Ye Qingzhou was also a straightforward person, so he smiled and said to Wan Shengjun: "When you show courtesy to others, you must ask for something. What do you want, Mr. Wan?"

If he could afford it, Ye Qingzhou wouldn't mind accepting Wan Shengjun's "bribery".

After all, materials like Tianchen Steel are indeed extremely rare and more precious than divine gold.

Wan Shengjun was overjoyed when he heard this: "I hope Mr. Ye can accept my son as his disciple. He has loved martial arts since he was a child, but unfortunately he has never met a famous teacher..."

Ye Qingzhou listened to Wan Shengjun's words and glanced at Wan Jinglong casually. How could he not see that Wan Shengjun was talking nonsense?
Saying you like martial arts is just an excuse.

If you really like martial arts, how is it possible that you are twenty-four or twenty-five years old and haven't even reached the professional level?

You know, the Wan family is a wealthy family and it is impossible for them to lack resources for cultivation.

To put it bluntly, he still can't bear the hardship of practicing martial arts. Even if he likes it, it's just a fake liking like Ye Gong who loves dragons so much.

After thinking for a while, Ye Qingzhou said to Wan Shengjun: "Forget about being a true disciple. He can't practice my skills, but being a registered disciple is still possible. Do you want to consider it?"

There is no way Wan Jinglong could become Ye Qingzhou's true disciple. After all, he is too incompetent and Ye Qingzhou cannot afford to lose him.

But there is no problem in being a registered disciple. It is equivalent to Wan Shengjun paying Ye Qingzhou to be Wan Jinglong's umbrella. If anyone wants to touch Wan Jinglong, they have to think carefully.

Wan Shengjun agreed without hesitation: "Thank you, Mr. Ye, I will just be your registered disciple."

Everyone around was stunned by this scene. Wan Shengjun spent 600 million to buy his son the status of a "registered disciple"?

It’s so easy for martial artists to make money!
In fact, not only they were moved, but Ye Qingzhou was also deeply touched.

For a professional martial artist in Dongji Country, it is not difficult to earn tens of millions with hard work, but if one wants to have a net worth of over 100 million, he or she will have to work hard for more than ten years.

Don’t think that it’s easy for professional martial artists to make money and that they can save money. In fact, the training expenses of a martial artist are very high, which means that the more they earn, the more they spend.

But once you reach the master level, the situation will be completely different. Similar to the head effect in the industry, many people will rush to give you money.

For example, tonight, Ye Qingzhou did nothing, but received so many gifts.

The Ye Mansion is a luxurious residence, and the entire mansion is quite quiet.

In the master bedroom on the third floor, the lighting was soft and the room was spacious. Ye Qingzhou was sitting cross-legged with three translucent metal blocks placed between his legs.

"The Tianchen steel sent by Wanshengjun is indeed of extraordinary quality."

Ye Qingzhou placed his right hand gently on the metal block. When he touched it, the Tianchen steel felt icy cold, a coldness that penetrated deep into the bone marrow, as if there was not a trace of heat at all.

At tonight's year-end party, after Wan Shengjun arrived, many more people came one after another. In the end, more than 50% of the wealthy business families in the entire Linjiang City sent people to attend.

As for the martial arts families, except for Xu Yunxi and Xu Yuebing who came to congratulate, the rest did not come.

Obviously, because of Li Yaoping's death, they all had some opinions about Ye Qingzhou, or they simply did not want to offend Junshan Society, so they did not send anyone over.

But it doesn't matter if they don't come, because almost all the people from Linjiang Chamber of Commerce have come, and when people come, they naturally can't come empty-handed. Dongji Country has always emphasized reciprocity, so giving gifts is a must.

Ye Qingzhou received over 100 million yuan in gifts from dozens of wealthy families, as well as many precious jewels, antiques, calligraphy and paintings.

But no matter from the perspective of value or practicality, the Tianchen Steel given by Wan Shengjun is Ye Qingzhou's favorite among all the gifts.

According to other people present at the time, the value of these three pieces of Tianchen steel exceeded 600 million. Even such top-grade treasures might not be available even if one had money. They were often firmly controlled by powerful forces. Only a very small number would flow into the black market and be sold at sky-high prices.

"This is really a good thing. It can be used to make a top-quality sword."

Ye Qingzhou stroked the surface of the Tianchen Steel, and couldn't help but sigh in his mind: "I received 100 million in gifts, the Tianchen Steel given by Wan Shengjun, and the mansion given to me by Lao Zheng. Since I killed Li Yaoping, I didn't do anything, but I got almost 1 billion in assets for nothing. It's really the gold belt of murder and arson."

One billion in assets is an astronomical sum of money for ordinary people. Many martial artists may not be able to accumulate wealth to this level after working hard throughout their lives.

As for the business tycoons, there are only more than 2,000 business families with assets exceeding 10 billion in the entire Dongji country.

It only took Ye Qingzhou two days to become one of them, which shows how great the influence of a master-level martial artist is.

"I don't know how much my assets will expand if I kill the Grandmaster next time."

All kinds of dangerous thoughts began to emerge in Ye Qingzhou's mind.

…………

On the second day, the sun rose in the east. At the gate of Ye's mansion, housekeeper Liang Bo led people to sweep.

"Yingyue, Youruo, you don't have to see me off."

Ye Qingzhou was wearing a plain white suit at this time, looking handsome and suave, so handsome that the young maids in the mansion couldn't help but sneak a peek at his handsome face.

He had nothing to worry about with Yingyue and Youruo, but he still patiently told them, "I'm going to be away for a month to guard Jiuli Cave Heaven. You guys stay at home and don't cause any trouble."

"Don't worry, my dear. We all know that we should not cause trouble. If you encounter any trouble, go to Linjiang Chamber of Commerce and ask Zheng Zhiguang to come forward. If you encounter a big problem that he cannot solve, go to Gu Minghui."

Yingyue's eyes curved as she held Ye Qingzhou's hand, her face full of reluctance: "My dear, you must come back soon."

"Well, I will."

Ye Qingzhou smiled and said, "In terms of cultivation, you should also pay attention to yourself. Don't just watch TV series and pair up with other couples all day and waste your time on practicing."

Afterwards, Ye Qingzhou gave Liang Bo a few more instructions, asking him to look after the house.

After dealing with these things, Ye Qingzhou did not delay any longer. He strode out of the door and walked towards the street.

On the road outside the Ye Mansion, a black all-electric luxury car has been waiting for a long time.

"Ye Qianlong."

A big man in a martial arts association uniform stepped forward and said with a smile: "I am Zhang Hong. The martial arts association sent me here to pick up Ye Qianlong and take him to Jiuli Cave Heaven to take charge."

"Good work."

After confirming his identity, Ye Qingzhou got into the car.

"Yingyue, Youruo, I'm leaving."

Ye Qingzhou and the others waved goodbye.

Then, under the gaze of everyone, the black car that Ye Qingzhou was riding in quickly disappeared at the end of the road.

…………

The pure electric car drove very smoothly. Ye Qingzhou started from Linjiang, headed west, and soon entered the Xiangxi region.

The national highway in Xiangxi is different from the one Ye Qingzhou took when he came from the east.

The roads here are wider, but there are very few pedestrians. Looking around, you can see a large number of infantry soldiers and armored tanks stationed nearby, conducting daily training.

Just from what Ye Qingzhou saw, there were thousands of people, a full brigade, and a huge momentum. If the news had not shown that the whole country was still at peace, Ye Qingzhou would have thought that a war was about to break out.

"Haha, Ye Qianlong is surprised?"

The big man Zhang Hong in the co-pilot seat smiled and explained, "It's close to the end of the year, so the Southwest Military Region is conducting daily internal training. On the fifth day of the New Year, the army will gather together, and 100,000 people will exercise together. The smoke and dust raised will cover the sky and the sun. The scale is magnificent."

Ye Qingzhou nodded repeatedly after hearing this. In today's Blue Star, the Dongji Kingdom's army is undoubtedly the number one.

The Southwest Military Region alone has nearly one million troops stationed there.

Basically, cities with secret caves and heavens will have a group of regular garrisons stationed there. In addition to large-scale combat missions with high-tech weapons, the proportion of warriors in the army is also astonishing. The military has its own professional-level martial artists and master-level martial artists.

The reason why Dongji Kingdom can still maintain stability and harmony after the emergence of the cave heaven is because of these people who are carrying the burden forward.

Ye Qingzhou and his group soon turned north along a road on the side of the national highway and went deep into western Hunan.

The further north you go, the higher the terrain becomes and the surrounding terrain becomes more rugged.

Finally, the car drove through a winding road surrounding a valley, and the continuous mountain range shrouded in clouds and mist finally appeared in front of Ye Qingzhou.

"Wulong Mountain Grand Canyon."

Ye Qingzhou looked into the distance, gazing at the undulating terrain before him.

The Wulongshan Grand Canyon is 15 kilometers long and has more than 200 caves on both sides of the canyon. It is known as the "World Cave Museum".

It is located at the junction of Hunan, Hubei and Chongqing provinces, with a total area of ​​41 square kilometers.

The terrain in western Hunan is complex and the population is not dense, but the concentration of vital energy is extremely high. This is probably because it is close to Jiuli Cave Heaven. Many areas have become "secret realms" and have undergone various changes.

In Ye Qingzhou's sight, more than ten miles away, the most majestic peaks in the continuous mountain range were almost all covered by clouds and mist, revealing only part of their true appearance.

Between these peaks, clouds and mist are lingering, and rare birds and animals can be vaguely seen flying out from time to time, making it look like a holy land of immortals.

"These mountains are all secret realms. We usually arrange for some martial artists who have just entered the professional level to enter for training. On the one hand, it is to hone their abilities. On the other hand, it is also to allow them to regularly harvest the rare treasures in the secret realms to prevent some dangerous rare birds and animals from escaping and harming the surrounding human cities."

Zhang Hong explained to Ye Qingzhou.

Caves and secret realms can bring various benefits, but they are also extremely dangerous, especially for ordinary people. When they encounter rare birds and beasts, they often have no power to resist.

Therefore, regular hunting can effectively control the population of rare birds and animals in the secret realm and confine them here.

Ye Qingzhou finally understood how the various rare and precious items he used to receive regularly were "produced".

To put it bluntly, the professional martial artists of Dongji Country are a group of high-level "industrial workers" whose main job is to "produce" all kinds of rare treasures.

Because of their powerful strength, the master level is equivalent to the security team leader + contractor + general manager, who takes turns to stay in a cave and maintain the stability of "production".

The system of Dongji Country is now running more and more smoothly, and the procedures have become extremely formal.

The only problem is the number of master-level martial artists.

Although the martial arts world in Dongji Country has flourished in the past decade and a large number of young civilian martial arts talents have emerged, the number of masters is still growing slowly.

Coupled with the casualties caused by various explorations into the secret realms of the caves, the gap has become even bigger.

That's why after the death of Song Yanhai and Li Yaoping, Junshan took the opportunity to resign, and Zhao Zhiyi was in a dilemma. In the end, he had no choice but to let Ye Qingzhou replace Li Yaoping and guard Jiuli Dongtian.

The car quickly traveled for more than ten miles, passed a huge stone tablet at the mountain gate with the two big characters "Jiuli" inscribed on it, and also passed the identity verification of the guards at the sentry post.

Ye Qingzhou finally arrived at the destination of this trip.

"Ye Qianlong, follow this road and you will reach the headquarters of our Wushu Association. Governor Wang should be waiting for us. Please follow me up the mountain."

Zhang Hong was full of smiles and spoke in a flattering tone.

No matter how unhappy Zhao Zhiyi and Wang Anyuan were with Ye Qingzhou, it was an indisputable fact that Ye Qingzhou had a bright future, so none of the people under him would go back to offend Ye Qingzhou.

After all, Zhao Zhiyi still has five years left in his term as president, and Ye Qingzhou's strength will only grow stronger, so the wisest thing to do is not to offend anyone.

"Okay, please lead the way."

Ye Qingzhou looked up at the towering mountains, but his heart was calm.

"Go up this road and reach the main hall at the top. That's the observation post built by the Martial Arts Association. It has all the necessary living facilities, so you don't have to worry about your daily life."

Zhang Hong walked in front and introduced everything. Ye Qingzhou listened casually and followed behind him, constantly glancing at the surrounding environment from the corner of his eyes.

The road up the mountain is wide but very steep. Of course, for Ye Qingzhou and Zhang Hong, two martial artists with great skills, this steepness is not much different from that of a flat ground.

Gradually, through the keen perception of the cicada sense, Ye Qingzhou noticed the changes in the surrounding environment.

"The vitality of heaven and earth on this mountain is several times richer than that at the foot of the mountain."

Ye Qingzhou said with a little surprise.

"Haha, Ye Qianlong felt it?"

(End of this chapter)