“Chromium Alloy? I can get it. I know a regional manager for the HR Alliance here in Yi’an District. He has an allocation,” said Howard Zhou.

He followed up with a question. “What grade are you looking for? And how much do you need?”

Rowan thought for a moment. “I need Grade-3 Chromium Alloy for now about ten kilograms. But I might start buying in bulk across all grades soon. If you’ve got the connections, I’d appreciate an introduction.”

“Ten kilograms of Grade-3? That’s easy. Forty thousand credits. I can have it delivered right away.”

“Forty thousand? That’s fine. Thanks, Howard. I’ll need it immediately.”

Rowan nodded. The price didn’t seem unreasonable.

He remembered when Luo Feng first browsed the Limit Mall. The A3 model of the Bloodshadow Saber cost a whopping 1.2 million credits. The B3-grade shield was half that 600,000.

Now, ten kilos of Grade-3 Chromium Alloy for just 400,000 credits? That was a bargain.

Howard waved his hand casually. “No trouble at all.”

He pulled out his phone and made the call.

After the call, the two chatted about future business plans. Around twenty minutes later, a steady, composed middle-aged man knocked and entered the private room. Without saying much, he placed a silver briefcase on the coffee table.

He opened it without a word.

Inside lay a block of gray-black metal, about the size of two bricks, resting neatly in the center.

A label on top read: A3, 10kg.

“Check the goods. If everything’s in order, sign here,” the man finally said.

Rowan looked over at Howard.

Howard stepped forward, examined the alloy closely, ran his fingers across the surface, then nodded.

“It’s good.”

He signed the delivery slip without hesitation.

The man took the signed form and silently exited the room.

“It’s all there, Rowan. No problems with the goods,” Howard said.

Rowan nodded.

He couldn’t rule out the possibility of being scammed.

But he didn’t think it likely.

If Howard was foolish enough to cross him, he’d definitely be cut out of the rice business.

“All right. Here’s the forty grand. I’ve got other things to do, so I’ll head out. See you tomorrow.”

Rowan pulled out forty thousand credits from his travel bag, handed it to Howard, then closed the silver briefcase and stood.

“Sounds good. See you then!” Howard stood as well, smiling broadly.

Rowan walked out of Golden Ocean KTV, one hand carrying the silver case, the other gripping his black duffel.

Checking the time, he saw it was almost 5:00 PM.

He headed toward the Limit Martial Arts Hall.

Ten minutes later, an enormous, awe-inspiring building came into view.

The compound was larger than a high school campus. The front gate was wide enough for ten cars to pass through side-by-side. Inside stood three massive silver-white buildings, shaped like futuristic spacecraft.

There was no mistaking it this was the Limit Martial Arts Hall.

At the gate, Rowan noticed that everyone entered by scanning their trainee IDs.

He didn’t have one yet, so he approached the security booth.

“Excuse me, sir. I’m here to register as a trainee. May I enter?”

The guard gave him a quick once-over tall, sharp features, youthful, handsome.

“Sure. Let me see your ID.”

Rowan handed over the new ID Howard had given him.

The guard compared the photo, checked the birthdate 2039. That meant Rowan was sixteen this year.

“No problem.”

With no fuss, the guard tapped his own access card and opened the gate.

The Limit Martial Arts Hall was free for citizens aged sixteen to thirty, so every year, plenty of teens signed up as new trainees. To the guard, Rowan was just another hopeful student.

Rowan walked into the facility smoothly.

On the paths and lawns, trainees were scattered throughout.

They all wore visible trainee ID badges. Some were marked as Basic, others Intermediate, while Advanced badges were quite rare.

After a few steps, Rowan saw the three towering buildings.

He knew what they were one for each level: Basic, Intermediate, and Advanced.

Rowan took a moment, then headed toward the center building the Intermediate Hall.

As he reached the entrance, a uniformed woman with refined features stepped forward to stop him.

“Hello, may I see your trainee badge?”

She was polite, offering a slight bow and a sweet smile.

Rowan smiled back. “I don’t have one yet. I’m here to register today.”

“Is this your first visit to the Limit Martial Arts Hall?” she asked, still smiling.

“Yes, it is.”

“Then you’ll want the Basic Trainee Hall, which is the one on the left. You can register there.”

“Actually,” Rowan said, “I’d like to register directly as an Intermediate Trainee.”

“Ah?” The receptionist blinked in surprise.

But after taking another look at Rowan his upright posture, striking face, and Western-tinted features she seemed to understand.

He was probably from a wealthy or elite background, with his strength already evaluated privately.

“Very well. Please follow me. I’ll take you to someone who can handle the testing.”

“Thank you.”

Rowan nodded and followed her inside.

After storing his briefcase in a locker, she led him up to the third floor via escalator.

Rowan looked around with curiosity. The first and second floors housed massive lecture halls, each capable of seating thousands.

The third floor, however, was a vast martial arts arena over a hundred meters wide and long. Dozens of trainees were practicing while several instructors offered guidance.

The woman brought Rowan to a tall, long-haired instructor with a sharp, intense aura. He stood around six feet tall and bore three claw-like scars beneath his right eye a man who had clearly seen real battle.

“Instructor Wu, this trainee is here to register for the Intermediate level. Could you assist him with the evaluation?”

“First time here?” Instructor Wu asked, glancing at Rowan’s chest. No Basic badge.

“Yes, Instructor Wu. I just turned sixteen. This is my first time at the hall,” Rowan replied.

“You confident you’ll pass?”

Wu didn’t waste time.

Rowan nodded.

Wu’s gaze lingered on him, intrigued.

Very few students registered straight into the Intermediate tier.

In the past three years, only Luo Feng had done it.

Luo Feng was exceptionally gifted and had already moved up to the Advanced Hall a month ago.

Wu himself had helped train him.

Now here was another sixteen-year-old. If he could pass this test, his talent might be on par with Luo Feng’s.

“Come on then. I’ll take you to the testing area.”

Wu led Rowan to a corner of the martial arena, where a punch-force testing machine stood waiting.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep