Chapter 289 - 176: Attribute Breaks 3, This Is My Path

Chapter 289: Chapter 176: Attribute Breaks 3, This Is My Path

PS: Hit my 10k-character goal again today! On my knees begging my patrons for votes—monthly passes and recommendation tickets!

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"In your dreams!" Zhao Henian practically roared.

Wan Ze’s expression didn’t change. He even tilted his head slightly, his tone calm. "Then there’s nothing to discuss?"

Zhao Henian gritted his teeth, the muscles in his jaw clenching and unclenching several times.

He had lived for over forty years, clawing his way up in the Secret Palace for so long. What storm hadn’t he weathered? But never before had he been so thoroughly cornered by a young man like this.

He looked at Wan Ze, and Wan Ze looked back at him.

The two stared at each other from opposite sides of a three-meter-wide stream, the moonlight shimmering on the water’s surface.

Neither was willing to back down.

Seeing this, the group of masked figures behind Zhao Henian grew restless, itching to make a move.

Though their expressions were hidden behind masks, their body language radiated a tension that made them seem like a pack of hounds ready to pounce at any moment.

Wan Ze glanced casually at the men, his gaze sweeping over them without a hint of alarm. In truth, he couldn’t care less.

Still, he turned his gaze back to Zhao Henian, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.

It was a faint smile.

"Old Zhao, my friendliness has its limits. You should... understand my methods."

He understood.

’Of course he understood!’

Zhao Henian thought viciously, Wan Ze’s words causing him to clench his jaw even tighter.

The two confidants he’d brought with him tonight had been killed by Wan Ze in the blink of an eye... right in front of him. How could he not understand?

But Zhao Henian didn’t care about any of that.

He only cared about his mission.

Taking a silent, deep breath, Zhao Henian raised his hand, palm down. He spread his fingers slightly, then slowly closed them into a fist.

With that one simple gesture, he reined in the men behind him. All their restless movements ceased in an instant.

The men were indeed well-trained.

Zhao Henian stared at Wan Ze, his gaze cold. He took another deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. "I need to confirm. This time, will you really give me all the remaining content?"

"Of course." The aura around Wan Ze softened. The formless, oppressive pressure receded like a tide, replaced by the relaxed air of a businessman who had just sealed a deal.

He even smiled, and it looked remarkably sincere. "I can even be more accommodating. If you can’t provide everything at once, I can sell it to you in installments. We’re old acquaintances; there should at least be that much trust between us."

Zhao Henian was extremely displeased by this, but he suppressed his anger and said, "But your asking price is too high!"

"That’s why I’m offering to sell it in installments." Wan Ze spread his hands and added suddenly, "Old Zhao, don’t be foolish. This is the Holy City."

He said that last sentence as if it were a casual remark.

But Zhao Henian clearly read much more into it.

His expression changed slightly.

His gaze involuntarily swept over his surroundings again... the silent, dark-shrouded mountain forest, the deep shadows untouched by moonlight, the trees swaying in the night wind like countless pairs of eyes spying from the darkness.

He couldn’t see what lay fifty meters away, and precisely because he couldn’t see, his imagination began to run wild.

’What if Situ Bai really is here?’

’He’s a true Grandmaster.’

’The pinnacle of combat power in the modern era.’

’Not one of those "Boxers" who teach at martial arts gyms, but someone who has clawed their way through blood and fire to stand at the very top of the Martial Dao pyramid.’

’When someone like that strikes, there are no signs, no preamble. By the time you realize it, it’s already too late.’

’Unless the Palace Master himself were to come, I’m not confident I could leave this place alive.’

’And why would the Palace Master personally make a trip to the Holy City for a mid-level manager like me?’

The implications behind it all... Zhao Henian didn’t even dare to think about it.

"Fine, we can talk." Zhao Henian finally spoke. "High Tier... I don’t have the authority to allocate a High Tier Martial Skill. I’d have to talk to my superiors. One at most. But I can authorize three Middle Tier skills. No more than that."

After he finished speaking, he looked at Wan Ze, his eyes filled with a finality that said, ’This is my bottom line.’

Wan Ze thought for a moment, then shook his head. "Not enough."

Zhao Henian was furious.

’Still not enough?!’

His chest heaved, his lips trembling, and he was on the verge of cursing out loud.

’I’ve already offered everything I can. I’ve made every possible concession, and this kid still says it’s not enough?’

Before he could speak, Wan Ze continued as if he hadn’t seen his anger, "Another million in cash. You should understand how precious the remaining content of that translation is."

"Didn’t you say you hadn’t translated it?" Zhao Henian’s voice jumped an octave, his fingers tightening unconsciously. "How could you know what’s in the rest of it?"

Wan Ze didn’t even blush, his expression saying, ’What’s so strange about that?’ "What, am I not allowed to glance at it just because I haven’t translated it? Does it only count as a translation if I write it down? What, is looking a crime?"

Zhao Henian was speechless.

His mouth opened and closed, then opened and closed again.

He had a thousand things to say, a thousand reasons to rebut, but every argument was shut down by those five words: "What, is looking a crime?"

’Damn it! I can’t win an argument against this kid!’

He gave up on talking and just glared at Wan Ze. Of course, if looks could kill, Wan Ze would have died eight hundred times over.

But Wan Ze acted as if he didn’t even notice the glare, continuing on at a measured pace, "Don’t be upset, Old Zhao. Right now, besides you... I’m playing dumb with everyone else. If this deal is done before they find out, your Secret Palace should be secretly celebrating."