Cultivating for Immorality: I Evolved Martial Arts into the Immortal Path – Chapter 18

Chapter 18: Scammed?

“Treasure Seeking Rat?”

In Chu Liang’s memory, there were three types of demon beasts in this world that were particularly good at detecting treasures.

They were the Treasure Seeking Rat, the Treasure Gathering Toad, and the Lucky Cat.

It was said…

that if one could tame any one of these three demon beasts, they would never have to worry about money again in their lifetime.

“Is it really a Treasure Seeking Rat?”

Chu Liang was skeptical and looked closely.

If it were truly a Treasure Seeking Rat, who would be willing to sell it?

In the cage, the two small rats looked very ordinary, with dull gray fur, no different from ordinary house rats.

Soon, a message came from the Evolutionary Appraisal Mirror.

【Treasure Seeking Rat（Incomplete Bloodline）: Evolvable】

【Offering thirty catties of flesh and blood can evolve the “Treasure Seeking Rat（Incomplete Bloodline）” into a “Treasure Seeking Rat”】

Seeing this prompt, Chu Liang immediately understood.

So it was a defective Treasure Seeking Rat.

In the hands of ordinary people, this defective Treasure Seeking Rat was no different from an ordinary rat.

The lean man in front of him was obviously a swindler, specializing in deceiving those who lacked knowledge or held onto wishful thinking.

“Brother, take a good look!” The lean man shook the rat cage. “The edges of these little rats’ paws are light silver. Do other rats have this characteristic? This is a unique feature of Treasure Seeking Rats!”

“Silver? I’m afraid it’s just dye!” Chu Liang said indifferently.

“Brother, you can’t say that!”

The lean man directly opened the rat cage, took out a rat for Chu Liang, and vowed, “Look closely, look as much as you want! This is a genuine Treasure Seeking Rat! If I’m lying, may my whole family die a violent death!”

Chu Liang took the little rat, and it felt a little slippery in his hand.

The little rat’s dull gray fur had a faint oily sheen, and its small black eyes had a unique, lively look.

The lean man whispered, “Brother, this is the last pair of Treasure Seeking Rats I have left. Many people outside want to buy them but can’t.”

“Many people want to buy them? Then why don’t you sell them openly?” Chu Liang asked.

“I’m afraid of being robbed!” The lean man immediately explained.

“Oh.”

“Brother, how about it? Have you made up your mind? These Treasure Seeking Rats are much better than hunting dogs!”

The lean man said, “I’m selling them as a pair for five taels of silver! Brother, don’t be stingy with your money. With these little rats, you can make as much money as you want in the future… If I weren’t in urgent need of money, I wouldn’t sell them!”

As he spoke, he let out a deep sigh and fabricated an excuse about “urgent need for money” on the spot.

A look of reluctance even appeared on his thin face.

“Five taels of silver? That’s a bit expensive,” Chu Liang pretended to hesitate.

“Five taels is expensive?”

The lean man’s eyes widened, seemingly dissatisfied, and he took back the Treasure Seeking Rat from Chu Liang’s hand, but he was secretly delighted.

Chu Liang’s reaction clearly showed that he was interested.

As long as he was interested, there was a chance of making a deal!

Finally, after some haggling, Chu Liang bought the pair of defective Treasure Seeking Rats for three taels and nine qian.

“Brother, we’ve settled the deal, let’s sign the contract!”

The lean man took out two contracts, which were officially recognized by the county government.

Once signed, neither party could go back on their word.

Chu Liang didn’t hesitate and immediately signed his name.

“Alright, brother, this pair of Treasure Seeking Rats is yours!”

The lean man smiled and handed the rat cage to Chu Liang.

He hefted the silver in his hand, feeling a surge of joy, and thought to himself, “These hillbillies from the mountains are so easy to fool! I’ve tricked another fool!”

But just then, a loud shout came from the entrance of the market not far away.

“Qian Gui, you bastard, how dare you cheat my brother?!”

The person shouting was none other than Shopkeeper Qi Shun of the Yunlai Restaurant.

He had come to the market to discuss a deal.

But as soon as he entered the market, he saw the lean man, Qian Gui, standing in front of Chu Liang with a sly smile on his face.

Qi Shun was furious, and his plump body forcefully pushed through the crowd, shouting as he went, “Brother Chu, that Qian Gui is a swindler, don’t believe his lies! His rats are fake, many people have been fooled by him!”

Just as he finished shouting, he saw the contract in Chu Liang’s hand.

The contract was signed, and there was nothing he could do.

“Shopkeeper Qi, Brother Chu here traded with me willingly, how can you call it cheating?” Qian Gui said with a triumphant smile, waving the contract in his hand.

“You bastard, do you believe that I’ll have someone beat you to death?!”

Qi Shun was furious, pushing his way to the front of the two, raising his fist as if to strike.

◈◈◈

Qian Gui shrank back and hurriedly said, “Shopkeeper Qi, the money I earn here goes to the Green Robe Gang!”

“You…”

Hearing the words “Green Robe Gang,” Qi Shun’s expression changed slightly.

The Green Robe Gang was the largest gang in the county town, with a powerful leader and many skilled martial artists in the gang. They were the local bullies, and ordinary people couldn’t afford to offend them.

“Scram! Get lost!”

Qi Shun had no choice but to curse.

Qian Gui chuckled, picked up his small basket, and ran off with the contract.

After he was gone, Qi Shun looked at the small rat cage in Chu Liang’s hand and couldn’t help but say, “Brother Chu, you’ve been seriously scammed!”

“These little rats do have the characteristics of Treasure Seeking Rats,” Chu Liang said.

“Fake! They’re all fake!”

Qi Shun shook his head and sighed, pulling Chu Liang aside and telling him about the rats.

Not long ago, Qian Gui had somehow obtained a litter of fake Treasure Seeking Rats and had started scamming people in the market.

More than ten people had already been fooled by Qian Gui.

And most of them were hunters from various mountain villages.

“Sigh, forget it, Brother Chu, just consider it a lesson learned!”

Qi Shun explained that since the contract was signed, there was no way to resolve it through the county magistrate. And since Qian Gui had connections with the Green Robe Gang, resolving it privately was also impossible.

Both the legal and illegal paths were blocked.

Chu Liang had no choice but to swallow this bitter pill.

“Brother Chu, listen to me,” Qi Shun suddenly changed the subject. “You’re still young and strong, and now you have money. You can consider coming to the county town to learn martial arts. Although… most people waste their money learning martial arts and can’t enter that threshold, what if you can make it?”

If he could make it, he would become a martial artist!

Qi Shun’s meaning was clear.

Chu Liang nodded seriously and said, “I will consider it.”

“Brother Chu, that Master Hu from your village condensed a strand of Qi and Blood two months ago and became a true martial artist, recognized by the Martial Alliance,”

Qi Shun used Master Hu as an example and said, “If you can succeed, you will be the next master!”

“Huh? Master Hu only succeeded in condensing his blood two months ago?”

Chu Liang was a little surprised.

You know, many years ago, many people in the village thought that Master Hu was a martial artist.

And Master Hu did not explain, implicitly acknowledging his status as a “martial artist.”

“Yes, he succeeded two months ago. He hadn’t succeeded before and wasn’t recognized by the Martial Alliance.”

The “Martial Alliance” that Qi Shun mentioned was originally a “Martial Arts Alliance” established by a group of martial artists in the martial world, but it was later absorbed by the imperial court.

Only martial artists who successfully condensed their blood could be recognized by the Martial Alliance.

From then on, they would have an official status.

“I see.”

Chu Liang understood.

Obviously, Master Hu was also short of money!

He needed a lot of money to buy food supplements and medicinal supplements, which was why he was seizing land in the village and forcing the villagers to farm for him.

You know, Chu Liang had only condensed 40% of his blood so far, but the blood and medicinal supplements he had consumed were worth at least a hundred taels of silver.

Without the Evolutionary Appraisal Mirror, Chu Liang would also have to worry about money.

The old Master Hu, although powerful, was only between the stages of “sensing Qi and blood” and “successfully condensing blood,” just like Chu Liang’s current state. It was only two months ago that he condensed a strand of Qi and blood.

“Big brother, I’m old and can’t endure the hardships of practicing martial arts.”

Qi Shun patted his ample belly.

“Brother, you’re still young, you can give it a try! As long as you have one strand of Qi and blood, you’ll be a master in the village! If you can condense two, three, or even four or five strands of Qi and blood, you can walk sideways in the county town!”

“Okay!”

After a brief exchange, Chu Liang took his leave.

He still had other things to buy.

“Brother Chu, don’t get scammed again. If you’re unsure about anything, you can come directly to the restaurant and ask me,” Qi Shun reminded him. “It’s a pity that I have too many things to do at the restaurant and can’t leave for too long, otherwise I could show you around.”

“Alright, thank you, Shopkeeper Qi!”

Chu Liang turned and left, his figure gradually disappearing into the crowded marketplace.

Qi Shun walked in the other direction, shaking his head and muttering to himself, “Sigh, after all, he’s just a country bumpkin with little experience, so easily fooled.”