I Can Control Resources

This was an ocean of attribute materials. And they weren’t low-rank or mid-rank, but high-rank. There were even some top-grade attribute materials.

Yi Qinglian had studied attribute materials in great depth.

In a sense, she could already be considered a decent Alchemist.

So, she knew the value of these attribute materials very well.

Two to three thousand high-rank attribute materials, with some top-grade ones mixed in. If you were to put a price on them, they would be worth at least several trillion.

And that wasn’t even including the premium.

After all, attribute materials, especially high-rank and above, were not something money could simply buy.

Yi Qinglian was dumbfounded.

She had imagined there would be some attribute materials piled up in the laboratory, but she had never, ever thought there would be this many.

’This is terrifying!’

’This is horrifying!’

’This is absurd!’

She was certain that not a single major family or great sect in the Alliance could possibly possess such a vast quantity of high-rank and top-grade attribute materials.

"How did you get in here?" Just as Yi Qinglian was gaping in astonishment, Gao Neng finally heard the noise and turned around, just in time to see her standing outside the glass room.

"I... I came... I came to... It was Governor Yutian, he said... for me to come and help you with... with your research..." Yi Qinglian snapped back to reality, her face instantly flushing red.

Two to three thousand attribute materials.

This was a terrifying amount of wealth. Her West Alliance Yi Family had never even seen such a collection, let alone owned one. This kind of power made her cast aside her usual arrogance.

Yi Qinglian agonized over how to state her purpose for coming.

But soon, a more serious problem occurred to her.

’Does Gao Neng forbid people from entering because of all these attribute materials? Does he not want anyone to know?’

"I’m sorry, Gao Neng, I shouldn’t have barged in. I didn’t know you were busy... I can swear, on the hundred-year honor of my West Alliance Yi Family, I will never tell anyone what I’ve seen today, not even my brother!" Yi Qinglian pointed at the pile of attribute materials in front of Gao Neng.

"You mean these? Oh, it’s fine. I’m about to take them out anyway." Gao Neng smiled. Since he had taken all these attribute materials out at once, he had no intention of hiding them again.

"What? You’re going to take all of these out?! There are so many... Are you going to give all of these attribute materials to the Alchemists from outside?!" Yi Qinglian was stunned once again.

"Of course. For the development of the Alliance, I’m willing to contribute all of my attribute materials. The only condition is that they must go to the best Alchemists!" Gao Neng said with a grin, his smile widening.

"Contribute all of your attribute materials?" Yi Qinglian’s eyes widened. It was as if she could see a holy light emanating from Gao Neng’s very soul.

’So noble, so bright!’

’That’s the very tenet of the Bright Sect!’

As for his latter phrase about "the best Alchemists," she successfully ignored it.

Because, in her heart, the best Alchemists in the Alliance were definitely from the sects and prominent families. This was what she had been taught since she was a child.

"Alright, I’ve said what I needed to say. If there’s nothing else, I have to get back to work," Gao Neng said with a wave of his hand.

"No, there is something!" Yi Qinglian said immediately.

"Oh? What is it?" Gao Neng knew perfectly well, of course, but he put on a surprised expression.

"I want to join your laboratory and be your... assistant!" Yi Qinglian said, gritting her teeth.

"Be my assistant? But..."

"I can identify all attribute materials. If you don’t believe me, I can prove it to you right now. Not only can I identify them, I can also state their properties. I can be a qualified assistant!" Yi Qinglian didn’t wait for Gao Neng to finish and quickly continued.

"A qualified assistant, you say? From what I know, Wei Ya’s grandfather is a very skilled Alchemist. Besides him, Zhou Jin is also quite good..." Gao Neng said thoughtfully.

"I... I’m the future Saintess of the Bright Sect! I know more things, like... the recipes for some of our Bright Sect’s secret pills!"

"Oh? But what does that have to do with me?"

"I’m willing to contribute them! Just like... just like how you’re contributing these attribute materials. Your selflessness has shown me that for the Human Alliance to win, there must be unity! There must be sharing! I... I want to learn from you!" Yi Qinglian clenched her fists, her heart pounding with nervousness.

"Is that so?" Gao Neng smiled, then glanced up at the time.

Three days had already passed.

In another two hours, the Alchemist conference would officially begin, and he had successfully spent all of his two hundred billion.

So, according to the script, it was about time for him to make his entrance.

In a sense, Yi Qinglian’s sudden appearance was something of a surprise.

Gao Neng had never actually considered that Yi Qinglian would come looking for him in such a hurry. In fact, he had been spending more time thinking about how he could trick her into joining him.

After all, Yi Qinglian’s resume was quite impressive.

Gao Neng had set his sights on her from the very beginning.

More importantly, there were two men standing behind Yi Qinglian: one was Shaximo, the other was Lin Ying.

’If Yi Qinglian becomes my assistant?’

’Then what would those two men become to me?’

"I... I don’t need a salary! Also, I... I’m willing to work overtime, really! I’ll do whatever you say, I just hope I can join the lab!" Seeing that Gao Neng was still hesitating, Yi Qinglian grew anxious again. She had already thrown all her bargaining chips on the table.

So, now, the only thing she had left was herself...

If that could even be considered a chip, of course.

"You seem very sincere," Gao Neng nodded, then continued, "But just saying it doesn’t mean much, does it?"

"Then... what do you want?" Yi Qinglian bit her lip.

"You have to do something." Gao Neng’s gaze traveled down from Yi Qinglian’s face, accidentally landing on a few places it shouldn’t have.

"You’re... shameless!" Yi Qinglian’s face instantly turned red. She never imagined Gao Neng would make such an outrageous demand.

’What kind of person does he take me for?’

’Does he think I’m that easy?!’

"Huh? I’m shameless for asking you to do a little work? You assistants are really... Ugh, forget it. I’ll just move them myself." Gao Neng waved his hand dismissively and, with a speechless expression, started picking up the attribute materials from the floor.

"Move them yourself? Wait, you were talking about moving these things?" Yi Qinglian’s jaw dropped open again as she watched Gao Neng pick them up.

"Yeah, I have to move these attribute materials to the exhibition hall, piece by piece," Gao Neng nodded, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"I’ll do it!" Yi Qinglian shouted immediately, then, as if realizing something was off, added, "I mean, I’m willing to move these materials. If... if you trust me, I can use my Space Storage Device to move them. My device is large enough to hold all of this!"

After she finished speaking, she immediately shook her head.

She had suddenly thought of another problem. Gao Neng surely had a Space Storage Device as well, yet he was moving things by hand.

’What does that mean?’

’It means he’s actually testing me.’

And in a sense, if Gao Neng really let her use a Space Storage Device to carry these attribute materials, it would be quite a risk.

So, thinking of this, Yi Qinglian’s face turned red again.

"I definitely won’t steal..."

"I trust you. I’ll leave these in your hands, then." Gao Neng waved his hand, cutting Yi Qinglian off. Then he stretched. "I’ve been busy for three days and three nights. I’m exhausted. I’m going to grab a bite to eat. Let’s meet in the exhibition hall in an hour!"

With that, Gao Neng left.

’Would Yi Qinglian steal?’

’Not a chance!’

Setting aside her family background, her personality alone made it impossible for her to steal.

Because Yi Qinglian was far too proud.

A proud person would never resort to theft. So, Gao Neng didn’t have to worry at all that Yi Qinglian would try anything with these attribute materials.

But what he didn’t know was...

As he strode past her and left, Yi Qinglian’s body trembled, and a glimmer of tears even appeared in her eyes.

’I’ve been trusted!’

’And with such complete trust!’

Yi Qinglian stood frozen in place. She recalled the scene from a few days ago in the Underground Swamp, the scene of Gao Neng’s battle with the Dark Ghost Vine.

’Gao Neng, thank you!’ Yi Qinglian didn’t say the words out loud, but she repeated them over and over in her heart.

...

「Underground City.」

「In the laboratory’s exhibition hall.」

Those who could enter the Underground City were the cream of the crop in the Human Alliance.

Normally, these elites all went about their own business, entering to either trade or go on adventures. They rarely had a chance to all gather together.

But today, over ninety percent of the elites in the entire Underground City had gathered here, filling the exhibition hall with a clamorous din.

Fortunately, the exhibition hall was large enough.

Coupled with the fact that those with weaker abilities were barred from entry, the exhibition hall still felt rather spacious and not too crowded.

Wu Qingjing had been very meticulous in organizing this event.

He had divided the space into three different areas: Sects, Families, and Others. Each area had different display signs. Whenever an Alchemist from a sect entered their designated area, the sign would display the sect’s name to make seating easier.

The same went for the Families and Others areas!

「Time: 10:00 AM sharp.」

Basically, all the sects and families had arrived.

Furthermore, more than half of the attendees were the Sect Leaders of sects and the Patriarchs of families. Even if the Sect Leader or Patriarch themselves weren’t present, they were represented by their eldest sons or future successors.

Therefore, this was without a doubt a top-tier gala.