Chapter 432: Unknown Good News

“Sir, the dishes are here!”
The waiter ran up to the second floor, carrying a tray in one hand and a white cloth in the other. He wiped the already spotless table surface and then placed the dishes from the tray on it, introducing them as he did so.
“Bamboo shoot and ordinary meat—delicious and tender. In Hualang City, it’s definitely one of the top dishes. Green pepper and blood dragon fish—each bite becomes more flavorful, ensuring you’ll want more…”
Six dishes and one soup were quickly placed on the table with the waiter’s introduction.
“Let’s start eating!”
Lin Dong called out, picking up chopsticks first and putting a piece of bamboo shoot in his mouth. Everyone else began eating as well, except Feng Yue and Qiao Tianhao. Each took out a few Tianfeng peppers from their storage rings and started chewing. The spicy aroma spread instantly around them.
Looking at Feng Yue, who was chewing with relish, and then at Qiao Tianhao, who seemed to be chewing poison, Lin Dong smiled and focused on eating.
“Huh, what’s this smell?”
A soft exclamation came from the table next to them, followed by many others.
The restaurant where they were located was called Jade Tower, one of the best restaurants in Hualang City. Its business and dishes truly lived up to its reputation. The entire second floor was packed with guests; not a single seat was empty. Lin Dong was sure that when Lin’s Inn took over Hualang City, Jade Tower would be a formidable rival.
The spreading spicy smell, along with someone’s shocked exclamation, quickly caused chaos throughout the second floor.
“Brother, what’s the name of these peppers you’re eating? I’ve never seen such peppers before.” A middle-aged man in a brocade robe at the neighboring table noticed Feng Yue and Qiao Tianhao eating Tianfeng peppers first.
“Want some?” Qiao Tianhao, sweating profusely with a determined look, opened his mouth, revealing his fierce red teeth. His eyes, once pale green, now showed a hint of red, similar to Feng Yue’s after over a month.
“I’ve always loved spicy food. I’ve tried many strange kinds, even a couple of types made from spiritual materials. But the peppers in your hands…” The middle-aged man shook his head. “I’ve never even seen them before—so bright red, and the spicy smell can be felt from six or seven steps away. It makes one sweat heavily.”
“Not just six or seven steps—almost sixty or seventy steps,” came a voice from the corner.

“Yes! Liu also really likes spicy food. Sirs, I wonder if you could sell me a few to let him try?” Someone shouted. “Don’t worry about the price—go ahead and sell them. I guarantee Liu won’t even frown.”
“Yes! We can even sell them as rare materials. As long as they’re not high-grade, I’ll buy a few to try.”
“That’s right, leave a few for me.”
Soon, everyone was eager to buy them, even those who usually didn’t like spicy food wanted to give it a try.
Those who could reach the second floor of the Jade Building were either rich or noble. Soon, people started bidding. Ten taels, twenty taels, thirty taels… until someone bid a hundred taels per piece, at which point the bidding stopped.
“Whoever wants to try it… come and get it!”
Qiao Tianhao smirked viciously and took out a handful from the mobile cabinet and placed them on the table.
Lin Dong frowned slightly and said calmly, “Put them away!”
Qiao Tianhao was stunned for a moment before reluctantly putting the Tianfeng peppers back into his storage ring.
“Huh? Why put them away again?” The people who had stood up started to complain.
“One hundred thousand taels per piece. Those who can afford it, come forward,” Lin Dong replied coldly after glancing at Qiao Tianhao.
“One hundred thousand taels per piece? Why not go rob a bank?”
“That’s right. Even if these are high-grade rare materials, they probably aren’t worth that much.”
“A hundred taels per piece? If you won’t sell them, just don’t. It’s just a few peppers. If you have silver, why can’t you buy them?”
Immediately, complaints arose everywhere.
Qiao Tianhao cautiously glanced at Lin Dong.
Lin Dong ignored Qiao Tianhao’s pleading gaze. He didn’t intend to blame Qiao Tianhao for causing trouble. After all, Qiao Tianhao was forced to do this—he had to boil dozens of pounds of Tianfeng peppers into soup and use it for baths for hours at a time. The agonized screams could be heard a mile away. Just hearing about it made Lin Dong shudder, let alone Qiao Tianhao who had experienced it firsthand.
It was understandable that he wanted to vent his anger on someone.
Taking a piece of fish into his mouth, Lin Dong called out calmly, “Cheng Bao!”
Cheng Bao put down his chopsticks, stood up abruptly, and scanned the surroundings with a fierce gaze. With his terrifying face, anyone in his line of sight felt intimidated. Almost no one dared to make eye contact with him. Everyone sat back down, not daring to breathe loudly. A few timid ones were even scared into collapsing on the spot by his terrifying gaze.
“Enough, let’s eat,” Lin Dong ordered.

Cheng Bao sat down, picked up the chopsticks on the table, and continued to clear the dishes in front of him. Qiao Tianhao took out a few Tianfeng peppers, grimaced, and stuffed them into his mouth one by one.
The five of them quickly ate most of the dishes on the table. Seeing that Yun Lan had already put down her chopsticks, Lin Dong was about to call a waiter to settle the bill when hurried footsteps and shouts came from the staircase.
“Come down, hurry up! You’re disturbing the guests. Don’t blame me for calling the guards to throw you out.”
A young man in his early twenties with a three-inch-long scar on his face held a blue-purple fruit. Ignoring the waiter’s calls behind him, he rushed up to the second floor.
“Longevity fruit! Selling longevity fruit! Eat one, and ordinary people can live longer by ten years; those on the verge of death can be cured. From the way you look, gentlemen, you all seem destined for a long life. How about one to help you live to 110? Longevity fruit! Selling longevity fruit! Eat one, ordinary people…”
Lin Dong couldn’t help but feel curious. He glanced at the fruit in the young man’s hand, his mind drifting toward it. His initially curious gaze quickly withdrew.
Judging from the spiritual energy contained within, it was just a second-tier spiritual fruit. If it truly had the effect of prolonging life, it wouldn’t be a second-tier spiritual fruit.
Looking at the people the scarred young man passed by, none of them asked questions or spoke; the young man also didn’t say much and moved on to the next table. With Lin Dong’s current insight, he could almost immediately tell that this scarred young man was a swindler who specialized in tricking out-of-town diners. He often came to this restaurant. Local diners, perhaps unwilling to provoke him, didn’t want any of his goods either but didn’t expose him, thus creating this unspoken understanding.
“Hey…” Lin Dong raised his right hand slightly, but Yun Lan beside him stopped him.
“What’s wrong?” Lin Dong asked curiously.
“Wait a bit longer. See how things go. Maybe there’s good news waiting for you,” Yun Lan said softly.
“Good news?” Lin Dong glanced at the scarred young man, puzzled. “What kind of good news?”
“It’s not certain yet. The chances aren’t high. Don’t get your hopes up. I’ll tell you once it’s confirmed,” Yun Lan explained.
Since Yun Lan refused to say more, it must be quite good news. Lin Dong knew the greater the hope, the greater the disappointment. Despite his curiosity, he held back and didn’t ask further.
“Young man, what’s this longevity fruit? Can it really prolong life if eaten?” Finally, after passing by sixteen tables in a row, the scarred young man was stopped by a plump man dressed in furs at the seventeenth table.

“Of course it can prolong life!” The scarred youth was overjoyed. Pointing to the scars on his face, he said with a look of fear, “Sir, take a look at my face. Seven years ago, to get this life-prolonging fruit, I went through countless hardships and barely survived by a narrow margin. These scars were left from escaping dozens of magical beasts back then, and there are many more on my body—it just makes me look ugly. If you’d like to see them, I can show them to you.”
With that, the scarred youth tried to lift up his robe.
The plump man didn’t stop him and just stared at the scarred youth.
The scarred youth smiled awkwardly, “Well, it’s a bit ugly. I’m afraid it might scare you.”
“It’s okay!” The plump man waved his hand nonchalantly.
“Since you want to see…” The scarred youth gritted his teeth and lifted his robe.
Suddenly, there were clattering sounds. The plump man and his companions seemed to have seen something terrifying and fell to the ground in shock.
A look of disdain flashed in the scarred youth’s eyes. He was sure that after seeing the crisscrossing, dark-blue scars on his abdomen, made from various ointments, their initial belief—only about 30%—must now have risen to 80% or 90%.
“Gentlemen, are you alright?” The scarred youth slapped himself in the face. “It’s all my fault. If not for me, you wouldn’t have been scared.”
“N-no, we’re fine…” One of the plump man’s companions quickly asked, “How much silver is this life-prolonging fruit worth?”
“Originally, there were three of these fruits. A few years ago, a alchemist examined them and took one. Another one was eaten by him to save my grandfather. Only this last one remains…” The scarred youth gently stroked the fruit in his hand, somewhat reluctantly. “I originally wanted to keep it for myself. It’s all because I’m too fond of gambling. I lost a large sum of silver recently. If I don’t repay it soon, I might even lose my life. If you really want it, what do you say to 10,000 taels of silver?”
“10,000 taels?”
The men hesitated. 1,800 taels was something they could easily pay right away, but 10,000 taels was no small amount in their eyes.
The scarred youth smiled bitterly. “If you don’t want it, I’ll have to look for someone else. No need to haggle. 10,000 taels is the final price.”
“Is it useful if we eat them separately?” the plump man asked.
“I don’t know!” the scarred youth replied honestly. “I never asked that alchemist back then.”
“Well…”

The plump man hesitated for a moment when a companion beside him suddenly said, “Ten thousand taels of silver—I’ll take it.”
“Boss Niu, I was the one to make the offer first,” the plump man retorted angrily.
With a treasure that could extend life by ten years right before their eyes, the companion paid no heed to friendship and immediately reached into his clothes to pull out a money bag tied to his body.
The plump man panicked and quickly drew out his own money bag. His companions seemed to wake up as well, each reaching into their clothes or the large pockets of their sleeves, fearing they might be too slow.
“If there are two life-prolonging fruits, I’ll pay one hundred thousand taels each,” a melodious voice suddenly rang out, freezing the hands of the plump man and his companions as they reached for their money bags. It also caused the scarred young man, who had been holding back his smile, to fall into utter ecstasy.