Age of Evolution#

Chapter 834: Chapter 837 Xiaogua_1

After Lin Zhen had exchanged his money, the first thing he thought of was to find a place to open an Elixir Store. With his skills as a Saint-Level Alchemist, he would surely become famous in Tianfang City in no time.

Just then, he suddenly heard a woman’s scolding voice from the side.

“You little beast! How dare you bite me!”

Lin Zhen turned around and saw the little fox, its white fur standing on end, making low warning calls at the woman at the window.

The woman’s finger, somehow, had been bitten by the little fox and was bloody.

Lin Zhen was stunned. The little fox had always been very well-behaved since he took it in. It had never hurt anyone, and in Lin Zhen’s eyes, it didn’t even have the capability to do so.

How could this woman, who was a Longevity-Stage Warrior, have been bitten by the little fox?

When did the little fox become so deadly?

Either way, the little fox had bitten someone, and Lin Zhen couldn’t ignore it. He hurried over to grab the little fox.

The little fox, in Lin Zhen’s arms, continued to hiss fiercely at the woman, as if facing a mortal enemy.

The woman initially wanted to kill the little fox, but her strikes missed several times. Now, with Lin Zhen taking the little fox away, her face turned even uglier. She said to Lin Zhen, “Your pet injured me, and I am a One Star Warrior. As the owner, you are responsible for such offensive behavior. Now, compensate me.”

Lin Zhen didn’t shirk responsibility: “Okay, how should I compensate you?”

“One million! Not a penny less. It’s against the law for commoners like you in Tianfang City to offend Star-Level Warriors. Those are the rules!”

Lin Zhen took a deep breath. This woman was trying to swindle him, but he couldn’t refuse at this point. He was new here and not familiar with everything, so it wasn’t a good time to get into trouble.

He could simply exchange another million for starting capital, as he wasn’t short of money.

After transferring the one million to the woman’s account, she seemed to be busy communicating with someone in the Dimensional Universe, and the little fox didn’t stop hissing at her.

After receiving the money, the woman ignored Lin Zhen completely.

Lin Zhen planned to exchange another million to open his store, but the person who exchanged the currency informed him that he was now a criminal and could no longer exchange money.

“I regret to inform you, Mr. Lin Zhen, that you are currently implicated in allowing your pet to assault someone, and you are temporarily barred from exchanging money.”

“When can I exchange again?” Lin Zhen asked.

“Only when you achieve a Star level, will these restrictions be lifted,” the staff replied mechanically.

With a sense of helplessness, Lin Zhen walked out with the little fox.

“You really know how to cause trouble. I never knew you had such ability that you could actually hurt a Longevity Warrior without being harmed by their attacks. Why did you bite someone?”

The little fox was huddling in Lin Zhen’s arms, whimpering as if it had been wronged.

“Sigh, now that I don’t have a single penny, the plan to open the store will have to be put on hold.”

Walking the streets of Tianfang City, Lin Zhen was momentarily uncertain of where to go.

You can’t get by anywhere without money, something Lin Zhen hadn’t felt for a long time.

Just as he was thinking of finding a place where he could sell some medicinal materials, a group of people suddenly appeared.

There was a White Tiger emblem on their chests, and at a glance, Lin Zhen knew they were from the White Tiger Hall, one of the three major powers in Tianfang City.

The leader, a bald man, had a white tiger tattoo running from the top of his head to his neck, covering half of his face. It made him look extremely fierce.

This man was a God World Transformation level super master!

The bald man stood in front of Lin Zhen, an intense aura emitted from him. He asked in a nonchalant tone, “Are you Lin Zhen?”

“Yes, what can I do for you?” Lin Zhen instantly thought of the woman who had just been bitten by the little fox. Without a doubt, these men from the White Tiger Hall were summoned by her.

One million in compensation wasn’t enough, and now she wanted revenge?

The bald man continued, “I heard you are a Saint-Level Alchemist. Our White Tiger Hall currently lacks a Saint-Level Alchemist. Come to White Tiger Hall. We can pay you one million every month. You just need to help us refine Saint-Level Elixirs.”

Lin Zhen shook his head, “I don’t intend to join White Tiger Hall.”

“Just as I thought, a greenhorn who’s new to Tianfang City, totally unaware of the rules. Perhaps if you live here for some time, you’ll understand that when the White Tiger Hall insists, you don’t have the right to refuse.”

Facing such a formidable opponent, Lin Zhen remained vigilant but kept an impassive expression on his face, “If White Tiger Hall lacks elixirs, then when my elixirs are ready, White Tiger Hall can have priority in purchasing.”

“Hehe. It seems you still don’t understand what I, Bald Warrior, am saying. Here’s a contract – take a look, and if you agree, we can continue the conversation.”

Having said that, the bald warrior tossed a paper to Lin Zhen, on which were written some rules.

Lin Zhen picked up the paper and began to read it.

The requirements were simple. Lin Zhen was to become a lifelong alchemist for White Tiger Hall, which would in turn provide for all his needs. He would be a formal member of the White Tiger Hall. He must create one Saint-Level Elixir daily, and the hall would give him one million per month. The term of the contract was… one hundred years!

Lin Zhen immediately tore the paper into shreds and threw it away. He could never agree to such a contract.

The bald man scoffed, looking at Lin Zhen, “Very well, looks like you need to get familiarised with the rules of Tianfang City.”

He turned his gaze behind him, “Captain Ma, what are our rules in Tianfang City for such people?”

A Martial Artist emerged from behind him who was at the peak of the Divine Transformation stage, even in uniform, seemingly the captain of the city defense forces of Tianfang City.

“Lin Zhen’s background is unknown, and he’s involved in pet-related violence, constituting a threat to stability. While inside Tianfang city, he will be prohibited from opening stores, working, buying or selling, and leaving the city is also forbidden until further investigation is complete,” he stated.

The bald man then looked at Lin Zhen: “Did you hear? You don’t have a penny now, right? As a civilian under suspicion, you can’t run a store. Even with your mastery of Alchemy, you won’t make money. Whatever treasures you have can’t be sold. No one will conduct business with you, your Dimensional Universe has been registered. All these prohibitions will remain until you can increase your star ranking.”

The bald man paused and then continued: “But to increase your star ranking, you must leave the city and fight the Endless Species. You don’t have permission to leave the city, so… you can only beg for food here in the city, hahaha! A Saint-Level Alchemist begging, I wonder how long you can hold out!”

Hearing the bald man’s words, Lin Zhen’s rage began to burn; these bastards knew no bounds.

The bald man continued, “To change this situation is simple. Do you see that contract you tore up on the ground? Whenever you’re ready, just pick up the pieces, put them back together, sign it and bring it to me. Then perhaps all the bans against you will be lifted.”

After finishing speaking, the bald man turned and walked away: “Remember, I’m at White Tiger Hall. Ask for Brother Sanhu there.”

After the bald man and his group left, Lin Zhen got a message from Chris in his Dimensional Universe.

“Master, my privileges are restricted. You are now considered an unstable element in Tianfang City, and there are many things you can’t do, you are forbidden to leave,” she stated.

“How can they keep me from leaving? Can’t I teleport out?” he asked.

“That won’t work, Tianfang City has a city defense system. Teleportation is not allowed unless you’re a god,” she informed.

Lin Zhen sighed: “I won’t believe that they can really hamper me. Dream on if they think I’ll join White Tiger Hall and refine elixirs for them, not even in the next life.”

*********

However, Lin Zhen soon realized just how malicious their scheme was.

In the Dimensional Universe, Lin could do nothing but view messages.

He couldn’t exchange money, he was unable to open shops, he couldn’t sell anything. Whenever he tried to trade with people, his Dimensional Universe system would block the transaction.

Later, Lin thought of working at another Elixir Store. Despite mentioning his Saint-Level Alchemist status, as soon as they added his Dimensional Universe, they quickly backed off.

Even when he wanted to find a place to stay, his Dimensional Universe couldn’t register.

“Damn! Am I really being hindered by such a vulgar trick?”

After spending three days in Tianfang City, Lin Zhen finally abandoned some unrealistic fantasies. He couldn’t even collect a single coin now.

“Do I need to do something illegal?”

Lin Zhen quickly dismissed this thought. It was not like the Original World here, there were too many strong individuals, and acting recklessly would definitely lead to trouble.

“Hey, little guy, what should we do now?”

A little fox was squatting at Lin Zhen’s feet. Lin gently stroked the fox’s head. After a few days of companionship, he increasingly felt that Xiaogua was no ordinary fox, it was rather intelligent.

Looking back, when Xiaogua bit that woman, it was exactly when the woman was communicating with people from the White Tiger Hall and leaking his information. Otherwise, the White Tiger Hall couldn’t have arrived so quickly.

But how did Xiaogua sense it? Lin found it miraculous.

“Squeak, squeak, squeak!”

Xiaogua raised its head and yelped a few times.

“Let’s give you a name.”

While considering this, Lin wrote a few words on the ground to try and give Xiaogua a name.

“Xiaoxue?” Xiaogua walked over and erased the name with one paw.

“Xiaobai?” Xiaogua cried a few times and erased it with a paw again.

“Snowy Flying Fox?” Lin tentatively wrote this name, but it was immediately erased with a paw.

Lin was unsure about what to call the fox after several rejected names. He then casually wrote “Xiaogua” on the ground.

“Should I just call you Xiaogua?”

Xiaogua moved its paws in a circling motion, seemingly not wanting Lin Zhen to name it at all.

Lin Zhen looked down, ready to give up, but suddenly noticed that the last two strokes Xiaogua made rubbed out the character for “fox,” leaving only “Xiaogua.”

Two characters remained on the ground, “Xiaogua.”

Lin Zhen’s eyes lit up: “Great! This is your own choice, this name is intimate, haha! Xiaogua, silly Xiaogua, stupid Xiaogua! That’s it.”

He picked up Xiaogua in a fit of excitement.

On the other hand, Xiaogua, who had just been named, looked stunned. After some time, it covered its face with its paws, displaying a look of utter despair.

The sight of Xiaogua’s depressed demeanor made Lin Zhen feel much better after the recent oppressions.

He looked up and saw a tall building in the distance.

A sign there depicted the clashing of a sword and dagger indicating it to be a duel arena!