I revived the Demonic Sect in North America

Li Ang carried Emily all the way to her apartment in the Tribeca neighborhood of Manhattan.

Tribeca was originally an industrial area in Manhattan, New York, consisting mainly of warehouses and factories.

After being transformed by many well-known American artists in the 1960s and 70s, it gradually became a residential area known for its luxury apartments.

By 2010, this transformation had been largely completed.

The community retains the historical charm of industrial buildings while adding more fashion and sophistication.

Although it is not yet one of the world's most luxurious wealthy communities as it will become in later years, it is still worlds apart from the South Bronx.

Along the way, Li Ang naturally molded Emily into his own shape in every way.

When they arrived at Emily's house, Emily had already completely forgotten the Catholic discipline she had undergone for more than a decade, and only regretted not having met this blond-haired boy, Li Ang, sooner.

Even after arriving home, Emily told Li Ang not to leave yet, and went home first to say hello. Then she lied and said she was going out for a run, and the two spent a long time being intimate in the hallway.

It wasn't until Emily's parents called three times to urge her on that Emily reluctantly said goodbye to Li Ang and limped home.

Li Ang stretched, feeling refreshed, as if all the stress he had been feeling lately from worrying about Fiona had been released.

Stepping out of the apartment building, the night air in the Tribeca community felt so free and sweet.

Even the mist drifting from the Hudson River smells of money.

As Li Ang walked back, he quietly took out the hard object given to him by the system from his pants pocket.

This is a piece of gold.

It is rectangular in shape, slightly smaller than a matchbox, about half a centimeter thick, and the edges are polished very smoothly.

The color is a deep, dark yellow, not glaring, and it gleams with a low-key, restrained golden luster under the pale light of the streetlights.

Li Ang held it in his hand and weighed it in his hand. It felt very solid and slightly heavy.

The system says it's one liang (a traditional Chinese unit of weight), which translates to 37.5 grams.

If you take it to a pawn shop in the Bronx, you can probably get around $1500.

For a high school student, this is already a considerable windfall.

This would be just the right solution to Li Ang's immediate crisis of facing the rat hole.

This is why Li Ang was willing to risk being prosecuted and charged with extortion to support Emily.

Li Ang didn't waste any more time.

He had been keeping a close eye on things when he carried Emily home earlier.

There are three jewelry stores in the two blocks between the subway station and Emily's apartment, all within a ten-minute walk, so you don't have to go out of your way.

Li Ang planned to go to these three stores and ask whoever offered the highest price would sell to him.

The closest store to Emily's apartment is called Big Gold.

The storefront is decorated in a rather flashy way.

A neon sign for Big Gold Shop hangs at the entrance.

The glass door was covered with stickers that read "Instant Cash" and "High Price for Gold".

I pushed open the door and the doorbell rang.

The air smelled of dust and cheap cleaning agents.

Behind the counter was a bald, elderly white man, looking down at a newspaper.

Hearing the sound, the old man quickly looked up and saw that Li Ang was a simply dressed Chinese high school student. He immediately turned his gaze back to the newspaper with disappointment and said in a perfunctory tone:

"What do you need?"

Li Ang walked to the counter, took out a gold ingot from his pocket, and placed it on the glass counter:

"Selling things."

The old man's gaze swept casually over the piece of gold, then his eyes widened in surprise.

He suddenly looked up and carefully examined Li Ang, then said in surprise:

"Where did it come from?"

Li Ang spoke calmly, his tone as usual:

"Given to me by my family."

The old man raised an eyebrow, slowly picked up the gold nugget, took out a magnifying glass from the drawer, and examined the nugget against the light for a long time.

He held it in his hand and weighed it in his hand.

Then he picked up a small electronic scale and put the gold nugget on it.

The number jumped a few times and then stopped at 21.6 grams.

When Li Ang saw this number, his brows furrowed slightly.

"The quality is so-so."

The old man put down the magnifying glass, pushed the gold nugget back to Li Ang, and said in a deliberately profound tone:

"I can only offer eight hundred."

Li Ang smiled, put the gold nugget back in his pocket, and said:

"Okay, then I'll go check out other places."

"etc."

The old man was startled and quickly called out to Li Ang:

"Young man, don't rush off. We have our rules in this industry. Someone like you, with no certificates and no background, will fetch the same price everywhere. I'll add fifty, eight hundred and fifty is the most I can offer."

"Thank you, but no need."

Upon hearing this, the old man immediately became anxious and hurriedly ran out from behind the counter to pull Li Ang away:

"Hey! Young man, don't be in such a hurry, let's discuss it again! Nine hundred? Nine hundred! That's the most we can go!"

Li Ang ignored him completely, shook off the old man, and turned to leave.

The old man clung to Li Ang like a mangy dog ​​the whole way.

Li Ang stopped cursing as he entered the second gold shop.

This jewelry store is located on a street corner, and it's a bit more crowded than the previous one.

The glass display case was crammed with all sorts of jewelry, and a tacky quartz clock hung on the wall.

An Indian girl stood respectfully behind the counter.

Although the light pink shirt she was wearing looked a bit dowdy, it was ironed perfectly and spotless.

(As usual, here's another candid photo. All the female characters have had their candid photos updated. Readers who haven't read them yet can go back and take a look.)

Upon seeing Li Ang enter the store, the Indian girl politely said:

"Hello sir, how can I help you?"

Li Ang walked to the counter, took out a gold ingot, and said:

"Make an offer."

The Indian girl's eyes lit up, and she didn't even ask where Li Ang's things came from.

He hurriedly took out a black velvet tray and placed it in front of Li Ang, gesturing for him to proceed, and respectfully said:

"Okay, sir, please put the items on the tray."

Li Ang placed the gold on the table, and the Indian girl methodically put on a pair of white gloves, picked up the gold nugget with tweezers, and placed it on an electronic scale.

The displayed weight is 37.48 grams.

Li Ang thought to himself that the weight was finally right this time.

The Indian girl's smile widened as she looked at the number.

After putting the gold back on the tray, she picked up the tray again and examined it repeatedly under the light from different angles.

After examining it for a long time, he said to Li Ang:

"Sir, your item has no markings, no purity stamp, and no brand label. However, judging from its density, feel, and luster, it should be pure gold. But I cannot determine its exact purity unless you agree to let me perform a burn test with a spray gun."

"Can."

Li Ang nodded in approval of the Indian girl's service, saying:

"But you have to do it in front of me."

"Of course, sir, please wait a moment."

The Indian girl's face lit up with joy, and she deftly retrieved a small spray gun, a ceramic crucible, and a black touchstone from under the counter.

She first used a blowtorch to scorch the inside of the crucible to clean it, and then gestured for Li Ang to put the gold nugget in.

The gold nugget was in the crucible, licked by the eerie blue flame of the blowtorch.

A few seconds later, the gold nugget began to glow red and soften, eventually melting into a pool of yellowish-orange liquid metal.

The Indian girl turned off the spray gun and waited a few seconds.

Before the molten gold had cooled slightly and solidified, she quickly picked up a small drop with tweezers and made a mark on the touchstone.

The scratches are a pure, rich reddish-yellow.

The Indian girl's eyes lit up, and she couldn't help but exclaim in amazement.

Then he took several small bottles from the shelf, which contained nitric acid of different concentrations.

She carefully dripped acid onto different spots on the scratch.

Even a drop of low-concentration acid leaves no mark on the scratch;

Even when a medium concentration of acid is applied, the scratch remains firmly in place.

Only after a drop of highly concentrated nitric acid was applied did the scratch begin to dissolve and fade very slightly.

The Indian girl straightened up, took off her gloves, and made no attempt to hide the surprise on her face:

"Sir, this is truly unexpected!"

She said incredulously:

"The scratches only show a slight reaction under high-concentration acid; this isn't ordinary 18K or 22K jewelry gold. The purity… I estimate it's above 23.5K, close to 24K, almost pure gold. Oh my God, I've never seen such pure privately owned gold!"