Chapter 91 - 85: Shocked! Am I a Genius?

"At that point, you could choose to make a loyalty donation to the King. If you donate enough wealth, and with the help of your friends, you might obtain a fief and a title. That would make you a nobleman. From there, you could patiently take your time to slowly trade for Gold Ropes or anything else you need."

Fang Zhen’s lips twitched slightly at his words.

’Alright, this Matthew guy knows his stuff.’

’This whole process sounds pretty solid. It’s using wealth to buy prestige, using prestige to gain connections and access to power, then using wealth to buy a position of power, and finally, it all comes back to wealth.’

’The problem is, as solid as it is, the process would take far too long.’

’Matthew even slipped in a plug for donating to the church, and he did it so logically that you couldn’t find any fault with it.’

’From a practical standpoint, this plan would be viable if this "dungeon" were to become a permanent base and if I didn’t mind a political marriage.’

But Fang Zhen didn’t even know how long he could stay in this "dungeon," or if he could ever come back.

Fang Zhen was here to run a dungeon, not to settle down. Besides, this approach would tie him down too much, changing his entire operational logic.

"Let’s forget this route. Change of topic."

"Tell me how to trade for Extraordinary Items," he said.

Seeing that Fang Zhen had rejected his proposal, Matthew let out a soft sigh, looking slightly regretful.

"Sir, if you wish to acquire Extraordinary Items, that is relatively simpler."

"As I just mentioned, most nobles are in a precarious financial situation. But they are nobles, after all, with ancient bloodlines, which means they more or less possess some family heirlooms."

"Among these are some Extraordinary Items."

"As long as you are willing to pay enough Silver, there will always be some nobles willing to sell you some Extraordinary Items. The price and quality, however, will depend on your own judgment."

"As for the price, it’s hard for me to say, but you can expect them to cost anywhere from several dozen to over a hundred Gold Ropes," Matthew said.

Fang Zhen chuckled and looked at Matthew. "So, you’re saying you have a channel, Priest?"

"Well... as it happens, I know an impoverished noble," Matthew said.

"Viscount Ashton?" Fang Zhen asked directly.

After a moment of silence, Matthew replied, "It’s Viscountess Ashton."

"Oh?" Fang Zhen raised an eyebrow, looking at Matthew with amusement.

’Matthew is being so proactive, yet a bit secretive. Something’s not right.’

’Why do I get the feeling there’s a story here?’

Matthew gave a slightly awkward cough and said, "Viscount Ashton’s personality is such that he will certainly fight to the death for his domain, but his wife may need to seek refuge in the near future."

"The southern road is blocked by Viscount Montagu. Viscountess Ashton can only go north, which means taking the road through Redstone Town."

"In the near future, you might see her in Redstone Town."

"At that time, I will help you persuade the lady to sell you one, or at most two, Extraordinary Items."

A faint smile played on Fang Zhen’s lips as he watched Matthew without saying a word.

Matthew seemed to grow very awkward under his gaze, as if his secret had been discovered. His face even began to turn red.

The Priest couldn’t take it anymore and shot to his feet.

"Sir, didn’t you just say you wanted to critique Magic?"

"I see it’s a bright and sunny day outside, perfect weather for a critique of Magic. Why don’t we go out and have an academic discussion right now?"

Seeing that Matthew, who was usually so particular about his grammar and rhetoric, was now speaking nonsense—describing the pitch-black night as "bright and sunny"—Fang Zhen knew Matthew was flustered.

’He’s panicking. He’s panicking.’

Fang Zhen was considerate enough not to keep pressing Matthew’s sore spot. He nodded and said, "Alright."

Matthew, his face still flushed, finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Fang Zhen stood up, picking up the two bags containing the Cheetah Hunting Crossbow and his loot. "Then let’s go critique some Magic right now," he said.

「A dozen or so minutes later.」

Fang Zhen carried his bags while Matthew held a torch. The two of them walked into the woods in the direction of the Redstone Town Mine.

The area wasn’t especially suitable for casting Magic, but since Redstone Town was surrounded by forest terrain, it would have to do.

Fang Zhen put the two bags down.

After learning about the true state of wealth in this "dungeon world’s" Kingdom from Matthew, he hadn’t let these two bags out of his sight.

The Gold Ropes and Dog Head Gold in his loot bag were valuable enough for a Viscount to dispatch an army to rob him. He really wouldn’t feel safe if he didn’t keep them on his person.

As for the Cheetah Hunting Crossbow, it was Fang Zhen’s greatest source of confidence for protecting himself and his property at the moment.

"This spot will do."

Fang Zhen stopped walking.

He didn’t know what time it was. The woods were silent and dark, with a cold wind rustling through, much colder than during the day.

Matthew had an average constitution. Feeling the cold, he hugged one arm to his chest and hunched over slightly, the warmth from the torch unable to reach him.

Fang Zhen was much better off.

A layer of asbestos clothing, a layer of riot gear, and a set of casual clothes underneath. It had been a hassle to put on, but now it didn’t feel like too much at all.

Fang Zhen took out the Clover Ruby Pendant from his person.

"Priest, how do I use this?" Fang Zhen asked.

After looking at it for a moment, Matthew nodded. "This is an Extraordinary Item, no doubt. I can feel its power even from this distance."

"The method for using this kind of Extraordinary Item is very simple. You just use a guidance technique to focus your Spiritual Power, and then channel that Spiritual Power into the item."

"Guidance techniques aren’t mysterious to us clergy or the nobility. They’re very simple. The key is that not everyone has sufficient Spiritual Power."

"Put on the Extraordinary Item and just follow my lead."

Matthew said.

Fang Zhen opened the clasp of the Ruby Three-leaf Clover Pendant and hung it around his neck.

Instantly, that feeling of a faint electric current returned.

This time, it wasn’t just a tingling sensation in his hand. He felt a surging power coursing through his entire body, an undercurrent ready to erupt at any moment.

Matthew wedged the torch into a crack in a large, split rock on the ground, then turned his head and said to Fang Zhen:

"Let me teach you the basic guidance technique of the Tade Church."

"Free your hands, take a deep breath, and then place your hands in front of your chest."

"Touch your thumbs together horizontally in front of your chest. Angle your other fingers upward, forming a peak with the tips of your index, middle, and ring fingers aligned."

"This way, you’ll see an equilateral triangle, like the emblem of the Tade Church."

"Keep breathing deeply, and then focus all of your Spirit into this equilateral triangle."

"At this point, you must silently chant a mantra. The clergy of the Tade Church all chant the words ’Light of Tad’."

Fang Zhen followed the instructions and found it was quite simple.

The hand sign was a bit like Tien Shinhan’s for the Qi Gong Cannon—almost identical, in fact.

He did it with ease and had no trouble focusing his Spirit into the equilateral triangle.

However, he didn’t silently chant the ’Light of Tad’ mantra.

’Fang Zhen didn’t know if this world had any actual gods, but devils existed, so what if there was a True God?’

’He was a pseudo-believer. Using the church’s name to cast Magic felt weird, and it might attract the attention of some deity.’

To be on the safe side, he thought for a moment and chose a neutral mantra, one with a bit of room for interpretation, to replace ’Light of Tad’.

’Source Power!’ Fang Zhen silently chanted his custom mantra.

Suddenly!

Fang Zhen felt all the power in his body—both physical and spiritual—surge uncontrollably, rapidly gathering toward the Qi Gong Cannon-like hand gesture.

The equilateral triangle formed by his hands acted like a black hole, sucking in and devouring all of Fang Zhen’s energy.

And between his hands, a dazzling radiance burst forth, as brilliant as a miniature sun.

’Holy shit!’ Fang Zhen was horrified.