Transmigrated into a Grandpa, Embracing the Laid-Back Life-Chapter 262: Three Things You Shouldn’t Accept

"Who cares who he stole it from." Lin Yu floated in mid-air, looking at the pile of bottles and jars arranged in front of Su Ming. "As long as the money is enough, we're professional lockpickers. However, this Mystic Iron is extremely hard. If we try to smash it, the commotion definitely won't be small."

"So we can't use brute force."

Su Ming took out a ceramic jar from his storage pouch. Inside was a dark green, viscous liquid.

This was the essence he had refined using the "Water Refining Method" from a poisonous plant called "Bone-Erosion Grass." It possessed extremely strong corrosive properties.

"Mystic Iron belongs to the metal element, hard but brittle. If we can destroy its internal crystal structure..."

Su Ming muttered to himself as he added a few drops of fire poison liquid separated from the "Thunder Fire Sand" into the ceramic jar.

"Sizzle..."

A pungent white smoke rose from the jar. The dark green liquid began to boil, its color gradually shifting to a strange, deep brown.

"Not enough yet."

Lin Yu instructed from the side, "Pure strong acid corrosion is too slow, and the smell is too strong. You need to add a 'catalyst.' Modify the structure of the 'Burst' character rune. Don't let it release energy instantly. Instead, make it act like a woodworm, slowly and continuously releasing shockwaves inside the metal."

Su Ming's eyes lit up.

Physical vibration plus chemical corrosion!

He immediately picked up an engraving knife and began carving a mutated, miniature rune onto a jade piece the size of a fingernail.

This rune was extremely twisted, its lines broken and intermittent, as if it might disintegrate at any moment.

"This is called the 'Metal-Devouring Pattern'," Su Ming said solemnly. "Spiritual energy is locked inside it. Once it contacts metal, it will generate high-frequency vibrations at the microscopic level. Combined with the corrosive liquid, it can make Mystic Iron as soft and crumbly as shortbread."

Half an hour later.

A tube of gel-like substance, sealed inside a specially made jade cylinder, was born.

It appeared semi-transparent and amber-colored, looking completely harmless, even somewhat like a certain kind of healing ointment.

"Let's call this 'Iron-Corroding Glue'."

Su Ming handed the jade cylinder to Wang Defa, who had been waiting for a long time. "Tell the client the usage is simple: apply this glue to the door lock or hinge, then wait for the time it takes an incense stick to burn. Do not touch it during this period. After the incense stick burns down, give a gentle push, and that piece of Mystic Iron will crumble into sand on its own."

"Remember, the fee is two hundred spirit stones. No bargaining."

Wang Defa held the tube of jade, his hands trembling slightly. "T-two... two hundred? How much is our cost?"

Bone-Erosion Grass is worthless, the fire poison liquid is refined from waste material, and the jade piece is just a few broken spirit stones. The total cost doesn't exceed ten spirit stones.

This is practically robbery!

"This is the value of technology." Su Ming patted his shoulder. "Go on. Tell him this is a proprietary formula, the only one of its kind in the entire sect."

...

Three days later, the black market.

Still that same dark corner.

The gray-robed steward appeared again. This time, his hood was pulled even lower, but Wang Defa could sense that the chilling murderous aura around the other man had dissipated considerably, replaced by a barely concealed... awe.

"The item works very well."

The gray-robed man didn't waste words. He directly threw a heavy cloth pouch onto the table. "That's two hundred spirit stones. Also..."

He took out another, slightly smaller bag and pushed it towards Wang Defa. "This is twenty spirit stones, consider it tea money for the Master. In the future, if there are similar troubles..."

"We are always at your service."

Wang Defa collected the spirit stones, standing up straight with his back ramrod. He had never felt as important as he did today.

Even a steward from the Enforcement Hall had to be polite to him. This feeling was damn good!

"However, the Master has a few rules that need to be made clear to you."

Wang Defa cleared his throat and extended three fingers.

This was the "Three Iron Laws of the Black Market" that Su Ming had specifically instructed him to convey before coming.

"First, we do not interact with end clients. For any future jobs, you can only contact me. You must not inquire about the Master's identity, and you absolutely must not attempt to trace the source of the goods. Otherwise, the transaction is terminated immediately."

The gray-robed man nodded. "Reasonable."

Anyone in this line of work doesn't want their identity exposed. The more mysterious the other party, the more it puts him at ease.

"Second, we do not deal in standard products."

Wang Defa continued, "We don't sell finished goods, we only accept commissions. You present the problem, we provide the solution. Each item is custom-made, destroyed after use, no returns or exchanges."

"Third..."

Wang Defa paused, his gaze sharpening a bit. "We do not accept urgent orders of unknown origin. All commissions must be scheduled at least three days in advance, and we will assess the risks. If a job involves the sect's core forbidden areas, or could potentially cause major chaos, we won't take it no matter how much money is offered."

The gray-robed man was silent for a moment, then let out a low chuckle.

"Fine 'Three No-Accepts.' Cautious, with rules."

He stood up and gave Wang Defa a deep look. "It seems the Master behind you is not only highly skilled, but also a smart person who understands the way of survival. This business, we can do it long-term."

...

Clear Stream Valley.

Su Ming looked at the pile of glittering spirit stones on the table and let out a long sigh.

Two hundred and thirty spirit stones.

After deducting Wang Defa's commission, his net profit was one hundred and sixty.

This was far more profitable than toiling away watering the Spiritual Plant Garden for two months, and the efficiency was extremely high.

"Although the risk is a bit higher, this profit margin is truly tempting."

Su Ming put the spirit stones into his storage pouch, feeling that he had taken another small step closer to that "three hundred thousand" goal.

"That's right."

Lin Yu floated around nearby, like a military advisor pointing out strategies. "The essence of the black market is monetizing 'risk.' What we're doing now is building a single-plank bridge over the cliff edge of that risk, a bridge that only we can walk."

"However, we still need to keep an eye on Old Wang's side."

Su Ming calmed down. "This time we were lucky, meeting someone who understands the rules. In the future, if we encounter someone who doesn't understand the rules and tries to rob us..."

"Then we have to let them know that we not only know how to fix doors, but also how to 'close them' for good." Lin Yu chuckled darkly. "It's also about time to test the power of Bumper Harvest No. 1 on some fools with no sense of self-preservation."