Chapter 20: Black Crystal

Sun Yong drew a Fine Steel Short Saber from his waist and positioned himself before the corpse of the boar-like Black Beast.

He let out another low growl and circulated his Power. His already burly body swelled once more, and his skin took on a faint red hue.

The short saber, as long as an ordinary man’s forearm, looked like a dagger in his hand.

Holding the saber in a reverse grip, he aimed for the Black Beast’s heart and stabbed down hard.

But the blade struck as if hitting stone, leaving only a shallow white mark!

After the Black Beast’s death, its skin was no longer as tough as before, but it was still incredibly difficult to pierce.

Sun Yong surged his Qi Blood once more. The muscles on his arm knotted, and blue veins bulged.

"Hah!"

With a low cry, he stabbed down again.

This time, he finally made a small incision.

He stabbed the same spot again and again. After a long while, he finally managed to tear open a gash.

Next, he inserted the blade and sawed back and forth, widening the opening.

Finally, the Black Beast’s chest cavity was torn wide open.

A thick, putrid stench immediately washed over them, causing everyone to wrinkle their noses in disgust.

Jiang Che was shocked by what he saw.

’This Black Beast’s hide is so tenacious!’

’It took an Iron Body Martial Artist at the Peak of the Bull Skin Realm this long just to cut it open.’

’An ordinary person would stand no chance of processing this Black Beast.’

Sun Yong reached inside to feel around. Suddenly, his expression filled with shock, and he couldn’t help but glance back at Jiang Che.

Jiang Che was puzzled by the look.

"Escort Sun, what’s wrong?"

"It’s... it’s nothing."

Sun Yong continued to rummage inside.

A moment ago, he had reached for the heart.

What he found, however, was just a pile of rotten flesh, crushed to a pulp!

’He shattered the Black Beast’s heart with a single punch, right through its hide and muscle!’

Sun Yong knew Jiang Che was formidable, but he never imagined he was *this* formidable!

His estimation of Jiang Che’s strength instantly shot up another notch.

Composing himself, Sun Yong continued to feel around inside.

A moment later, his eyes lit up, and he yanked something out with a grunt.

It was a fist-sized organ wrapped in dark red fascia, with a thick blood vessel still attached.

"What is that?"

Jiang Che was curious.

He had a rough understanding of a pig’s internal organs.

Even though this was a Black Beast, it still looked like a wild boar.

This was definitely not any of its vital organs!

Next, Sun Yong used the tip of his saber to pry open the fascia.

But what was revealed inside wasn’t flesh and blood, but a fist-sized, completely black crystal!

"It’s a Black Crystal!"

Sun Yong’s voice was filled with excitement.

"A Black Crystal?"

The other Darts Masters, having never seen one, crowded around for a better look.

"What’s a Black Crystal?" one of them couldn’t help but ask.

"Only Black Beasts at the Stone Skin Realm or higher have Black Crystals in their bodies. It’s perfectly normal that you’ve never seen one."

Sun Yong explained, "I only found out about them by a stroke of luck myself."

"So what are these Black Crystals used for?" Jiang Che asked.

"Brother Jiang, you’ve eaten Exotic Beast Meat before, right?" Sun Yong asked.

Jiang Che nodded.

"Then you should know that Exotic Beast Meat is divided into three grades: Low, Middle, and Top."

"And this Black Crystal can help artificially-bred Black Beasts ascend a realm, allowing them to be crossbred to produce even higher-quality Exotic Beasts!"

Jiang Che was stunned. ’So that’s how Black Beasts ascend realms!’

Recalling the prices of Middle and Top Grade Exotic Beast Meat, he instantly understood the value of this Black Crystal!

’No wonder Escort Sun called it a treasure before!’

Jiang Che thought to himself.

"However," Sun Yong continued,

"This one piece is definitely not enough. For a Bull Skin Realm Black Beast to break through to the Stone Skin Realm, it needs to absorb at least ten Stone Skin Realm Black Crystals!

"And for a Stone Skin Realm Black Beast to break through to the Iron Skin Realm, it needs a minimum of one hundred Stone Skin Realm Black Crystals! Or ten Iron Skin Realm Black Crystals!"

"It’s that difficult!" Jiang Che said, surprised.

Now he understood why high-quality Exotic Beast Meat was so expensive.

And that wasn’t even considering the cost of raising a Black Beast from birth.

The ascension process alone was exceedingly difficult.

"Even so, this Stone Skin Realm Black Crystal is still extremely valuable. It would fetch at least five hundred silver on the market!

"Moreover, these things almost never appear on the open market. They’re all snatched up internally by the Major Gangs and powerful families."

"Five hundred silver!"

Everyone was stunned by the number.

A stir went through the surrounding Darts Masters. They stared at the Black Crystal with burning gazes, their eyes filled with unconcealed desire.

Jiang Che also gulped, his own mouth suddenly dry.

Five hundred silver!

He’d worked himself to the bone and had only earned a few dozen silver.

This single crystal could sell for five hundred!

Sun Yong scanned the crowd, his gaze finally resting on Jiang Che. His tone was incredibly solemn, carrying a veiled warning to the other men:

"Brother Jiang! If not for you, every last one of us from the Escort Agency would have died here today! You killed this Black Beast, so the Black Crystal is rightfully yours!"

Hearing this, the surrounding Darts Masters nodded in agreement. Jiang Che had saved their lives; how could they have the audacity to covet the Black Crystal?

The greedy thoughts that had flickered just a moment before were slowly pushed down.

"However, I have a presumptuous request," Sun Yong said suddenly.

"Oh?" Jiang Che paused.

"You see, our Zhenyuan Escort Agency also raises Black Beasts, so this Black Crystal would be of great use to us.

"How about this? On behalf of the Escort Agency, I’d like to buy this Black Crystal from you for the market price of five hundred silver. What do you say?"

"No problem!"

Jiang Che didn’t hesitate.

Selling the Black Crystal himself would be difficult and risky. He could even get himself killed over it.

Exchanging it for cash directly was the safest option. It couldn’t be better.

Besides, he had gotten a sense of Sun Yong’s character during their journey and found him relatively trustworthy.

"Excellent!" Sun Yong said happily. "However, I’ll have to wait until we’re back at the Escort Agency to have Steward Wang give you the silver. You’ll need to wait a few days."

"Deal!" Jiang Che said.

With that, Sun Yong handed the Black Crystal over. "Then you keep it safe in the meantime!"

Jiang Che took it with great care.

After all, this was five hundred silver!

The Black Crystal was ice-cold to the touch, radiating a frosty chill.

Jiang Che couldn’t discern anything unusual about it, so he carefully tucked it into his satchel.

"By the way, Escort Sun, what about the Black Beast’s hide and teeth?" Jiang Che asked.

’A Stone Skin Realm Black Beast... its hide should be worth something, right?’

Sun Yong shook his head. "Brother Jiang, you may not know this, but Black Beasts are different from ordinary animals. Once they die, their entire body—hide, bones, and all—will decompose into a pool of pus in less than half a day. It’s completely unusable."

"Can any venom be extracted from it, then?" Jiang Che persisted.

’Poisons are so expensive. If this Black Beast’s venom could be extracted, it would sell for a fortune!’

"No. The Black Beast’s venom is very strange; it can’t be extracted. It’s not that people haven’t tried, but they’ve all failed. It’s said that its venom is less of a poison and more like a bizarre type of force!"

"Force?" Jiang Che paused, surprised.

"That’s right, the same kind of Qi Force that a Force Integration Artist cultivates. But this Black Beast’s force is completely different from a human’s. No one knows what it is. In any case, it’s completely unusable," Sun Yong explained.

Jiang Che nodded. ’This world is truly bizarre,’ he thought.

The group set off once more.

Soon, they arrived at Hengsha City.

The gray city walls were taller and thicker than those of Lin Yuan City, and the stream of people passing through the gate was clearly much larger.

The guards wore Refined Iron Armor and wielded Long Spears, their sharp eyes scrutinizing everyone who entered the city.

Their breathing was steady, and their Qi Blood was abundant.

’They’re all Martial Artists who have achieved a Qi Blood breakthrough!’

Jiang Che was astonished.

’Hengsha City seems far more powerful than Lin Yuan City!’

After the escort wagons were inspected, the group entered the city.

The streets were clean and wide.

The pedestrians on the streets were also relatively well-dressed.

Jiang Che saw almost no vagrants or local thugs.

Along the way, vendors hawked their wares from a dizzying variety of stalls, and Jiang Che found it hard to take it all in.

Upon reaching their destination, Sun Yong took the wagons to deliver the cargo.

The remaining Darts Masters were free to do as they pleased for the time being.

After the long journey and the terrifying encounter with the Black Beast, everyone’s frayed nerves finally began to settle.

Some men shouted about going for a drink, while others decided to try their luck at a gambling house.

In the blink of an eye, the Darts Masters had scattered in small groups.

Jiang Che did not join them.

He gazed at the unfamiliar, bustling city.

His expression, however, gradually grew grim.

The true purpose of his trip was only just beginning.

He had to go to Li Yuanwai’s Mansion and investigate the case of his parents’ disappearance!