Los Angeles Legendary Sleuth

The final auction price was 650,000 US Dollars.

Money is coming in, money is coming in.

The efficiency of the auction house was very high.

They transferred the money to Luke the next afternoon.

After deducting commissions and after taxes, it was nearly 450,000 US Dollars.

Luke's total assets now reached 1.28 million US Dollars, which included over 30,000 US Dollars in stocks.

The Detective System had been liquidated and it was an excess liquidation.

Luke felt that this should have something to do with his own abilities.

Based on his understanding of the Detective System, the vintage vinyl record he accidentally received would not exceed the system's reserve funds; it could only be less, not more.

But why would it sell for the high price of 650,000 US Dollars?

Luke believed that the part of the price that exceeded the value of the record should be attributed to the premium of his own abilities.

The buyer was Jim, the owner of Strange House Antiques Store, who purchased the record at a high price not just because he liked it but also as a means to curry favor with Luke.

To put it bluntly, it was out of respect for Luke's 'silver influence'.

Of course, since the transaction was through a third-party auction house and taxes were paid, everything was legal and proper.

America is different from China.

Here, if something is legal and proper, then it isn't a problem.

For example, if you want to get on good terms with a politician.

What do you do?

Invite him to your company for a speech, hand over tens or hundreds of thousands of US Dollars for a speaking fee, you just give whatever, remember to pay taxes.

Or say, a politician establishes a personal charity foundation, 'generous' wealthy folks can legitimately give donations to the charity fund, legal and proper.

Isn't this how Clinton and Au Guanhai became so wealthy?

How to spend this more than a million US Dollars?

It's a pleasant trouble.

Luke had not yet thought of a good investment project, and buying a house seemed like a safe method.

Deep down, he was still influenced by traditional thinking, feeling incomplete without buying a house when you have money.

Only with a house can you have a home, that's when he'd truly take root in Los Angeles.

Moreover, he had always dreamed of living in a villa since he was a child.

A two-story detached house with a large yard around it to grow flowers and plants, and a swimming pool in the backyard for a bath or swim in leisure.

As a child, he always felt this dream was not far off, always believing that he could live such a life after growing up and working hard.

After growing up, he realized how distant this dream was.

As he aged, he had forgotten about this dream, and when he occasionally remembered, he would just smile.

After being reborn in Los Angeles, Luke had been on a winning streak and now had some money; he could try to fulfill his childhood dream.

Luke listed his requirements for buying a house.

The first point, no mortgage.

Even though mortgage interest rates in America aren't considered high, he still didn't want to get a mortgage – live within his means when buying a house.

To live more comfortably.

The second point, upscale community.

Upscale communities usually have better amenities, ensuring safety, greenery, and environment.

Luke began looking online, and there were indeed many good houses that were also very beautiful.

But the prices were also really high.

With a little over a million US Dollars, he could only afford houses in middle-class neighborhoods, which although not bad, didn't give him the special urge to buy.

Similar to the one he was currently renting; if that was the case, there was no need to buy another similar one, might as well continue renting.

Real luxury homes started at a least four to five million US Dollars.

Luke's 1.28 million US Dollars was honestly not enough and he didn't want to carry millions of dollars in debt, so he could only reluctantly give up and continue to make money.

But leaving the money in the bank made him feel like a fool.

After much consideration, Luke decided to invest most of his money in the stock market.

Some time ago, Luke had bought 35,000 US Dollars' worth of stocks, which were now worth 36,000 US Dollars. It wasn't a big profit, but it was better than just keeping it in the bank, and he was quite content.

Subsequently, he kept 30,000 US Dollars as pocket money and invested 1.25 million US Dollars in the stock market, buying twenty stocks he was optimistic about. He didn't expect to make a fortune from these stocks; a few thousand US Dollars in profit each month would be enough for his expenses.

In a sense, it was also the most basic form of financial freedom.

...

Soon, the time entered August.

These past few days, without any cases, Luke had some rare leisure time.

He hadn't practiced boxing for a while and still had two boxing cards left, planning to go to Pomos Boxing Gym to train.

Considering the preciousness of the boxing cards, Luke directly scheduled one-on-one private training with Coach Hall.

It was still 100 US Dollars per hour.

Seeing Hall again, he was much more enthusiastic than before.

During the college shooting incident last time, not only did Luke save a student, but he also caught the perpetrator, and Hall's son was a student at that high school.

Therefore, Luke also earned Hall's respect.

After exchanging pleasantries, they began their official sparring session, and Luke used one of his boxing cards.

With the help of the boxing card, Luke's boxing skills improved rapidly, but there was still a significant gap compared to Hall, a former top-level fighter, and with Hall's height nearing 190 cm and a much more robust build than Luke, it was hard to lay a hand on him.

However, there was one advantage to fighting him - Luke could let loose.

At twelve o'clock noon, both stopped the sparring.

Luke's progress was significant, shocking Hall once again, "Luke, your technique is now close to that of a professional boxer."

"You really have talent, and if you're willing to practice with me long-term, you might actually be able to enter professional boxing matches."

Luke took off his gloves but didn't answer, just smiling instead.

It seemed that Hall wasn't ready to give up, he continued, "A new restaurant opened nearby and it's pretty good, I'll take you there to try it."

"Okay."

The two chatted while walking.

"Luke, I'm serious, you should consider it."

Luke was aware that his rapid improvement was due to the boxing card assistance, but Luke wasn't clear on his own limits.

If the boxing card could keep making Luke stronger, with its help, he might become a top professional fighter.

If that was the case, he wouldn't mind making a bit of gold out of it.

"Coach Hall, if I enter a competition now, what place do you think I could get?"

Hall shook his head, "Don't think about places on your first competition, go in with a learning attitude. You might be able to hold your own against a regular professional boxer, but there's still a big gap between you and the top fighters.

"You can't even beat an old retired man like me, and you're thinking about placing?"

Luke was silent.

"I'm not trying to discourage you, you just lack systematic training. I see potential in you.

"If your learning potential continues to be this strong, I believe that with serious training for a year or two, you might reach the level of top fighters and then you'll have a chance at competing for places, even the championship belt," Hall began to paint a big picture.

"I'll consider it," Luke responded, acknowledging that long-term systematic training and progress would also require him to have that many boxing cards.

After walking for a few minutes, they entered a steakhouse.

A black female waitress came over and asked, "Coach Hall, what would you like to eat today?"

Luke glanced at the black waitress with some surprise, it was actually Julian, Clint's ex-girlfriend.

Julian seemed to recognize Luke as well, nodding slightly.

Luke smiled and gestured, saying nothing.

Coach Hall, oblivious to the strangeness, began ordering.

This restaurant specialized in steaks with generous portions.

Just one main steak dish was enough for the two of them.

There were corn dogs, reindeer sausages, apple pies, and clam chowder.

Julian asked, "Do you need anything else?"

"Just these for now."

"Alright, please wait a moment," Julian left with the menu.

Watching Julian's retreating figure, Luke felt she was acting oddly, seemingly evasive about meeting his gaze.

But with Hall there, Luke didn't say much.

After the meal, Julian didn't come to settle the bill, which was handled by another waitress instead.

Luke pushed his doubts to the back of his mind and followed Hall back to the gym.

After resting for an hour, they began training again.

Luke used his second boxing card.

He focused intensely, treasuring the sparring opportunity with Hall.

He actively asked about things he didn't understand, and Hall corrected some of his improper moves.

Time flew, and three hours passed in the blink of an eye.

Hall could see Luke's improvement right before his eyes. Luke's ability to learn was strong, nearly learning by leaps and bounds, and he was hopeful that Luke would stay at the gym, curious to see just how great his potential could be.

Just as the second boxing card's time limit expired, a voice rang in Luke's head, "Congratulations host, under the assistance of the boxing card, you've tapped into all your boxing talent, reaching the standard of an ordinary professional boxer.

"Reward: Ten lottery draws."

Luke discovered that the boxing card option had disappeared from the system.

This indicated that the system might not offer boxing cards anymore.

From the recent prompt, it seemed that Luke's boxing potential had been fully unearthed, which is to say, the boxing card could only help him learn quickly and unlock potential, but there was a limit.

This limit was his innate talent.

And once that innate talent was reached, the card's effect would become invalid.

In other words, his talent ceiling was that of an ordinary professional boxer, and he would never be able to reach Tyson's level.

However, for a policeman, this was enough.

After receiving the system's notification, Luke declined Coach Hall's offer to stay at the gym for extended training.

Because Luke knew that he had maximized his potential, any further training would be futile.

And since he still couldn't beat Hall, the retired boxing champion, truthfully, even if Luke went professional in boxing, he'd lose more than he'd win, earning nothing but beatings.

Better to stick to being a cop.

He felt that was where his true talent lay.

After saying goodbye to Hall, Luke didn't head straight home, but drove and parked near the restaurant where he had lunch.

He had a nagging feeling that Julian was hiding something.

At the time, it wasn't peak dinner hours yet.

Julian was chatting with another waitress in the shop.

During lunchtime, Julian's figure was concealed by the apron of the restaurant, but now dressed normally, she looked much fuller than before, standing stiffly, knocking on her lower back.

Luke suddenly realized that Julian's stomach was slightly bulging.

This didn't look like fat.

Could it be Clint...?

A voice rang out in his mind, "An adventure experience completed, the adventure card was activated and has been used."