Dual-wielding! 100x proficiency, I'll grind my way to godhood!

In a small courtyard in the east of the city, Chen Mo lay sprawled on a recliner with his eyes closed.

His consciousness swept into the bronze ring, where a neat stack of cultivation manuals was found.

He completely drained Lin'an City's martial arts resources.

There's no point in dragging this out any longer; it's time to change hunting grounds.

He planned to return the unredeemed cultivation techniques on the reservation slip.

I'll go to the shop today and hand this matter over to Fatty Wang to handle. That will put an end to this mess in Lin'an City.

He got up, dusted off his clothes, and strolled leisurely to the back door of the general store. Just as his hand touched the door, he heard a man cursing from inside, acting all high and mighty.

"Where is this shop owner? Tell him to come out here!"

Chen Mo paused, not rushing to push the door open, and listened for a couple more minutes.

There were three male voices inside: one was cursing the loudest, one laughed occasionally, and the last one spoke the least, with a soft, feminine voice.

He pushed open the back door and went inside.

The atmosphere inside the store was so stiff it could freeze you.

Fatty Wang stood behind the counter, sweat dripping from his forehead and down his chin.

Liu Jingting stood to the side, his fingers clenched so tightly they turned white.

In the middle of the shop, there were three chairs, and three young men dressed in silk sat on them.

The one in the middle had his legs crossed, leaning back, with a half-smile on his lips.

It turned out to be Shen Ze, the town garrison commander of Qing Shi Town who had been scared away by him.

The one on the left is wearing a moon-white brocade robe and twirling a folding fan with his fingers.

The person on the right is dressed in dark gray and slowly blowing on the foam from a teacup.

Judging from their clothes, these two were clearly wealthy and powerful, but Chen Mo remained calm and already had a plan in mind.

Since you've come to me of your own accord, then I won't be impolite.

The burly men queuing outside peered inside. One hot-tempered man had just lifted his foot to step inside when someone next to him grabbed him and whispered something.

"Don't be reckless! Didn't you see those three young masters? They're the eldest sons of prominent families from the county town!"

Chen Mo walked in, and the three of them sat there, none of them getting up.

Shen Ze glanced at him, tilted his head, and spoke as if he were calling a servant.

"Are you the owner of this shop?"

"Yes."

Chen Mo spoke in a flat tone.

Do you recognize me?

"I don't know him."

Shen Ze scoffed, his lips curling up even wider.

He had already found out everything in the past few days.

This guy named Zhang Deshuai is a traveling merchant from out of town, backed by two people.

Wang Fucheng, the former garrison commander of Qingshi Town, returned to Lin'an City and took up a sinecure as a registrar, managing files but having no real power.

Another possibility is the magistrate of Lin'an City. He's a figure of importance in a county town, but in the prefecture, he wouldn't even be worthy of carrying the shoes of the Shen family.

He was initially worried that the kid might have some hidden power, but after staking out the place for three days, he confirmed that the kid only had two backers.

However, just to be on the safe side, he still brought along the third son of the Han family and the second son of the He family, and went directly to their door to reap the rewards.

"Shen Ze, the eldest son of the Shen family in the county town."

He raised his chin and gestured to the two people next to him.

"The third young master of the Han family, the second young master of the He family. You can easily find out what kind of influence our three families have in the county town by asking around."

He leaned forward, his tone straightforward.

"We've got our eye on your shop's secret medicine recipe and the formula for that 'Heroic Man's Wine. Hand them over."

Chen Mo remained silent for two seconds before speaking.

"Gentlemen, our shop is a legitimate business, registered with the authorities. Besides..."

He paused, his tone slightly tentative.

"I have a life-or-death friendship with Registrar Wang of the county government, and Registrar Wang has a very close relationship with the county magistrate. Aren't you all doing something against the rules?"

There was a moment of silence in the store after he said that.

This was immediately followed by unrestrained laughter.

He laughed so hard he slapped the armrest of the chair and leaned back.

The three people laughed loudly, and the people queuing outside could hear them clearly.

"Wang Fucheng?"

Shen Ze finished laughing and wiped his eyes.

"You mean that former garrison commander from Qing Shi Town? In our eyes, he was just a peasant? And a county magistrate?"

He leaned forward, raised his voice, and deliberately made sure the person outside the door could hear him clearly.

"Go and call him over right now. Let's see if he dares to fart in front of us when he gets here."

"In the eyes of the Shen family, the county magistrate of Lin'an is nothing more than a menial worker."

Shen Ze stood up and walked step by step to Chen Mo.

"If my father just gives the prefect a word, he'll lose his position that very day. Do you think he'd risk offending all three of our families for a mere out-of-town merchant like you?"

He extended a finger and tapped Chen Mo's chest with considerable force.

"Hey Zhang, be smart. Hand over the recipe, and bring your stock of the secret medicine and wine too. Don't try anything funny. If you dare to run away, I guarantee you won't even be able to leave the city of Lin'an."

"Boss Zhang."

Young Master Han snapped his folding fan shut with a "snap," his tone nonchalant.

"We're not here to discuss anything with you today; we're here to inform you."

"Don't refuse a toast only to suffer the consequences."

Young Master He said calmly, without even lifting his eyelids.

The men queuing outside were in an uproar. Some clenched their fists so tightly that their knuckles turned white, but the people next to them held them down firmly.

Everyone knows that the powerful families of the county town are not to be trifled with.

Someone was cursing in a low voice.

"That's outrageous! Stealing business in broad daylight!"

Some people sighed.

"Boss Zhang is a really good guy, he's really in trouble now."

"I haven't even tried to challenge the 'Flower Girl' yet..."

Chen Mo lowered his head, his shoulders drooping slightly.

After a long while, he finally spoke, his voice trembling just the right amount.

"The recipe and the stock... are hidden outside the city; we can only get them tomorrow."

Shen Ze was satisfied with his cowardly appearance.

He raised his hand and patted Chen Mo's shoulder with considerable force.

"If only you had been this sensible earlier, it would have been fine. We'll be waiting for you here at this time tomorrow."

After saying that, he turned and walked out.

Young Master Han followed behind, and when they reached the door...

"Don't try to be clever, or you'll suffer a terrible fate."

The three then swaggered away.

The three had already gone far away, but the shop remained deathly silent.

Wang Pangzi and Liu Jingting's hands were trembling. The people outside the door hadn't dispersed; they were gathered at the street corner, buzzing with discussion, their voices growing louder and louder.

This matter will spread throughout Lin'an City in no time; he won't even need to publicize it to achieve his goal.

Chen Mo walked to the counter, took out two bottles of secret medicine from his pocket, pushed one bottle in front of Fatty Wang, and the other in front of Liu Jingting.

"Neither of you need to come to the store tomorrow. Go home and stay there."

His voice was very steady, a stark contrast to his trembling earlier.

Fatty Wang gripped the porcelain bottle, his lips moved for a long time, but he could only manage to utter one sentence.

"Young master, that's a powerful family in the prefecture... even the county magistrate can't afford to offend them. You... you really shouldn't come tomorrow. Or you could leave now, and we'll cover for you."

Chen Mo patted him on the shoulder.

"Don't worry, I have a plan."