I can return to the age of mysterious

Chapter 31: 031 1.9_1 Chapter 31: 031 1.9_1 “Not this one…”}
In the second-floor hall, Casio was progressing and touching what appeared to be antiques. Three minutes later, he took his hand off a painting at the corner of the corridor, then turned to look at the study nearby.

His shoes silently stepped on the floor. Casio stood in front of the study room door, where the vague sound of a man’s speech came from inside.

The content seemed to involve the Black Spade and the Sand Dust Organization. There should be two people in the study — one, Matthew, Phil’s father, who was on the phone, and the other, the steward of the villa.

Casio caught a key piece of information.

The Black Spade planned to retaliate against the Sand Dust Organization for its recent actions. One of the locations was Baichuan City. The Sand Dust had collected a batch of mysterious antiques from the outer counties, planning on transporting them to Baichuan City for an antique exhibition and auction this month.

Several of the antiques seemed to carry tragic stories that attracted attention, although it was unclear whether these were created by the Sand Dust or originally present. In any case, these were the headline auction items.

Due to the large quantity of antiques, if they were resold to the wealthy in Baichuan City and several nearby cities, it was estimated that the Sand Dust would make a significant profit. Therefore, the Black Spade decided to mess up this deal, preferably intercepting the antiques during transport.

This would serve as a lesson to the Sand Dust.

“July 25th, after midnight, the warehouse at 118 Beika Street, Baichuan City. A black Fortune Car for transport, with a standard three-person escort, possibly armed…”
Regardless of its potential use, Casio jotted down this information. Perhaps it would serve as a lifesaver at the time?

Life is unpredictable.

“Here, it is.” Casio finally found the source of the bitter scent. It was an antique vase used for decoration at the study door, all white, with a retro cyan hue. A light gold rim adorned the edge, with a series of patterns extending to the bottom.

Casio tentatively pressed his thumb against it, and a familiar sensation rushed into his heart as cold air poured in through the wound.

‘Obsession Energy: 1.1→1.2→1.3→1.4…’
“So cold.” While feeling the rapid increase of Obsession Energy, Casio also endured the icy chill that made his muscles stiff and tremble.

Click…
The vase shook slightly, lightly swaying.

The talking inside abruptly quieted down.

Crack! Suddenly, the study door was opened.

A burly middle-aged man wearing a white shirt and brown waistcoat walked out. He was authoritative, his hair meticulous, his sideburns chestnut-colored, and his eyes sharp. His profound features instantly brought to mind a soaring eagle.

The man glanced left and right in the corridor, noticing nothing. He closed the door again, and the sound of his conversation with the steward came out.

“Get fifty thousand federal coins and put them in a document bag. I will go down later to thank a gentleman named Li Wei.”

“Wait, add another twenty thousand. Seventy thousand federal coins will do…”

The living room on the first floor.

“Apologies, I suddenly had some stomach trouble, and kept you waiting.”

From the side corridor, Casio emerged.

“No problem.” Matthew gave a light smile: “I was just discussing with Phil about the Grey Stamp Martial Arts Hall. He wants to learn some real combat skills to protect himself. Over the next few months, I’m afraid we’ll be troubling Mr. Li Wei.”

Phil also hesitantly looked over at the same time.

“That’s not an issue. As long as you truly want to learn fighting skills, focus, and train with me for a while, you’ll definitely reap the benefits.” Casio took up his cane again and reclined back into his original position on the sofa.

After three minutes, a burly man in a white shirt walked down the stairs to the living room.

“Father.”

Phil and Matthew both rose to their feet.

“Mr. Jason.” Casio also politely stood up.

The man before their eyes was Jason Hudson, the father of Matthew and Phil. He exuded a subtle yet undeniable air of authority, his strong brows and gaze leaving a profound impression.

“Haha, please, no need for formalities, let’s sit and talk.” Jason spoke to Casio with a smile, simultaneously gesturing everyone to sit with a wave of his hand.

Just as Casio sat down, a brown file bag was handed to him, bulging as if it was stuffed with something.

“Mr. Li Wei, thank you for your assistance. Without your help, my Phil would not have been able to see me again.” Jason said from his place on the sofa, casually patting Phil’s head as he spoke.

“Accept this as a small token of gratitude, please do not refuse.” He directly thrust the folder into Casio’s arms, withdrawing his hand decisively.

“Well…I’ll accept then.”

Casio had no reasons for pretense. He left Fengnan City to come to Baichuan City and apply for a coaching position at the Grey Stamp Martial Arts Hall in order to make money. Cultivating the Secret Martial Art of the Wind Elephant required special potions and balms, which all cost a good amount of money.

Apart from that, Casio also had to look for Legendary Antiques and Obsession Antiques as much as possible. Both connections and financial channels were indispensable.

Maybe establishing a relationship with the Hudson family was a good idea.

After more than half an hour had passed, a cool breeze came towards him.

Casio took a deep breath of the night air, turning his head to look back at the brightly lit gray-white villa. He glanced towards the upper right corner, unable to hold back a trace of joy from shining in his eyes.

‘Obsession Energy: 1.9’
Two Obsession Antiques, the purple wood cane provided 1.1 Obsession Energy, and the white vase accounted for 0.8 Obsession Energy.

The energy source for his next retrospection was already prepared. Casio had a hunches, different retrospection nodes required different amounts of Obsession Energy, after all they represented different stages of Li Wei’s strength. The first retrospection, which dealt with the events at the Youth Training Camp, required 1 Obsession Energy. The Sect Destruction War should require more, but it probably wouldn’t exceed 2 energy points.

It seemed rather definite, which reassured Casio. Naturally, he wouldn’t stop looking for Obsession Antiques.

After all, he frequented various antique shops in Baichuan City every other day, hoping to get his hands on both big and small fish.

“There are actually 70,000 bills, quite generous.”

Casio walked down the avenue towards his dwelling place, casually opening the “gratitude” gift from Jason. Inside the brown file bag were seven bundles of thick yellow bills, each bundle comprising of a hundred bills, each bill denoting a hundred Hong Li Federation Coins.

One should know, Hong Li Federation was one of the three most powerful countries in the world. The Federation’s currency was quite valuable, possessing great purchasing power.

“Tomorrow morning I’ll go to the drugstore to buy medicinal materials, mid-morning and lunch I’ll roam around the major antique shops in Baichuan City, then the Grey Stamp Martial Arts Hall in the afternoon…”

Casio muttered to himself, his schedule for tomorrow seemingly already full. He was busy but there was a rare sense of fulfillment.

Having walked a distance along the avenue, there was a rectangular platform beside the sidewalk, with a brass sign standing on it.

“It’s half past seven, the bus is gone, I wonder if there is still any horse carriage available?” He walked onto the platform, a cane resting on his right hand.

In the metropolises of the Hong Li Federation, and even in the first and second-tier cities, horse carriages had basically become extinct. Only in medium and small cities like Fengnan City and Baichuan City could one occasionally see horse carriages.

A decade ago, horse carriages were still a popular means of travel but now they were gradually being replaced by sedans and buses.

A leaf fell from the ornamental tree by the road.

“Jingle jingle.”

Not far away, a black tented horse carriage pulled by two horses came into view.