I am dying of old age, and I have awakened to the character of longevity.

In these chaotic times, many are plagued by financial woes.

As the saying goes, 'A penny can stump a hero,' and many heroes are brought down by financial difficulties.

This is no exaggeration.

Xie An clearly possessed the strength to easily crush early-stage Copper Skin Realm martial artists, yet he still had to run around seeking help for a mere hundred taels of silver.

What I lack most is still money…

"Thank you, Hall Master Zhang."

"Hahaha, we're all on the same side, no need to be polite. Just call me Lao Zhang." Zhang Lin was in a great mood and immediately instructed Zhou Xing, "A Xing, go to my room and get 120 taels of silver."

Zhou Xing nodded in agreement, trotted to the room, and returned with a cloth bag in his hand.

Zhang Lin took the bag and presented it to Xie An with both hands, "Old Brother, please accept it. No interest. You can repay it later when Old Brother is financially comfortable."

Xie An didn't expect Zhang Lin to give him the money so readily, without even mentioning an IOU or interest.

In this day and age, it was normal to borrow money with "nine out, thirteen back."

Zhang Lin was trying to make Xie An owe him a favor.

But Xie An felt that Zhang Lin was doing this more as an exchange of benefits, an investment in him.

"Thank you, Brother Zhang."

Xie An didn't decline and accepted the money bag.

Zhang Lin smiled warmly, "We'll be colleagues from now on, we should help each other. By the way, Hall Master Wei Xiang has gone home to visit relatives for a few days and will be back later. I'll write a letter to Hall Master Wei later, explaining Old Brother's situation. Once we receive a reply, Old Brother can complete the procedures and take office."

Xie An keenly focused on the core issue, "Procedures?"

Zhang Lin explained, "The Tiger Wolf Gate will send someone down to test Old Brother's strength. You only need to reach the combat power comparable to the Copper Skin Realm. With Old Brother's abilities, it's naturally a piece of cake."

Xie An felt relieved and thought it was reasonable, so he cupped his fist and said, "Thank you, Brother Zhang."

"Between colleagues, no need to thank me. We'll get a reply in two days. Old Brother, come back then. Don't worry, with me smoothing things over, the so-called test will just be a formality."

"Okay."

Xie An readily agreed. After exchanging a few pleasantries with Zhang Lin, he got up to leave.

"Old Brother, I'll see you off."

Zhang Lin, along with Zhou Xing, personally escorted Xie An out of the Black Market canyon. Only after Xie An had walked a long way did Zhang Lin return.

On the way back, Zhou Xing was still puzzled, "Boss, this old man agreed to join our White Feather Hall, and you're even happier than during the New Year."

Zhang Lin said with a chuckle, "Over the years, I've been working with Zhang Biao to manage this Black Market, and I've been constantly schemed against and excluded by him. Not only has he cut off my path to advancement, but he also makes me feel like I'm walking on thin ice day and night. Now that I can find someone easy to get along with, I can finally have a few days of peace, and I'll have something to look forward to in the future."

While Zhou Xing was happy for his boss, he also asked, "But this old man is about to take office, and he's still covering his face. Didn't you even ask about his identity and background?"

Zhang Lin chuckled, "This person is naturally cautious. Since he doesn't intend to reveal his identity today, why should I force him? If that causes resentment, it would be a loss. Besides, our White Feather Hall never asks about a person's background when recruiting talent."

…

Clutching the large sum of money, Xie An hurried back to town.

Today's trip to Blood Ridge was unexpectedly smooth.

Xie An roughly guessed that Zhang Lin had the intention of winning him over, which was a good thing for Xie An at the moment.

Back at the small house in the backyard of the pawnshop, Xie An wasn't in a hurry to take the money to find Master Li to redeem himself.

He planned to wait until he had secured his position as a deacon in the Tiger Wolf Gate, ensuring that he had a way out, before paying the money to redeem himself. At that time, with the position of deacon in the Tiger Wolf Gate, if Master Li wanted to go back on his word or make things difficult… Xie An only needed to say a word, and the Li family would be finished.

With this in mind, Xie An returned to the storage room inside and began to frantically practice the Longevity Cultivation Technique, preparing for the Tiger Wolf Gate's test in two days.

His next stop would be to take office in the Tiger Wolf Gate.

This made Xie An feel a little apprehensive.

After all, he had been living in the Li family pawnshop for the past thirty years. Now, for the first time, he was "changing jobs," and Xie An took it very seriously, not wanting any mishaps.

Although Zhang Lin had said that the test was just a formality, Xie An still felt that he needed to have solid strength, otherwise, he would have no ability to respond to any unexpected events.

During this period, Xie An had Chen He carefully explain the strength requirements of Copper Skin Realm martial artists. He had a clear understanding in his mind.

Only Copper Skin Realm martial artists who had reached the Great Success stage could lift six hundred pounds with one arm.

And Xie An exceeded this standard.

"This test should be foolproof."

After making up his mind, Xie An greeted his two disciples and hurried out to the Blood Ridge Black Market.

Two days passed quickly. On the afternoon of the third day, Xie An, who had been practicing the Longevity Cultivation Technique for half a day, stopped to rest and pulled up the panel.

【Five Animal Frolics: Strengthening the Five Organs (7/100)】

【Fetal Breathing Technique: Yin-Yang Intersection (1/100)】

【Remaining Lifespan: 30 Years】

"The improvement isn't significant, but I feel that my strength has increased slightly."

Xie An found a five-hundred-pound stone lock and easily lifted it over his head with one arm, waving it for five or six breaths before feeling tired.

After putting down the stone lock, Xie An threw a punch with a bang.

The extremely fast punch violently compressed the air, making a loud "pop" sound.

"My single-arm lift should be around six hundred and fifty pounds. In addition, with long-term practice of the Five Animal Frolics, my hands and feet are agile, and my muscles and bones are strong. The power of a punch… should be very abnormal."

"Zhang Lin said that a single-arm lift of four hundred pounds is the strength of an early-stage Copper Skin Realm martial artist. Although I haven't practiced martial arts, my lift exceeds the standard by more than fifty percent. Even if I fight barehanded, I should be able to easily crush ordinary early-stage Copper Skin Realm martial artists."

During this period, Xie An had Chen He carefully explained the strength requirements of Copper Skin Realm martial artists. He had a clear understanding in his mind.

Only Copper Skin Realm martial artists who had reached the Great Success stage could lift six hundred pounds with one arm.

And Xie An exceeded this standard.

"This test should be foolproof."

After making up his mind, Xie An greeted his two disciples and hurried out to the Blood Ridge Black Market.