Negotiation (Part 1)

Brother Xiao, Brother Xiao! Elder Liu! It is Elder Liu! Did you see that?

Jiang Youfu was so excited that he almost jumped up on the spot. Thrilled, he patted Lin Xiao's shoulder and sent him a telepathic message.

Looking at the close-up of the words Liu Chun above, Lin Xiao also nodded with a smile in his eyes and said,

I saw it, I saw it. Let us go. For something this worth celebrating, we need to go back and whip up a feast!

Having seen this satisfying result, the two slung their arms over each other's shoulders and left the Talisman Masters Conference venue under the cover of the night.

Within the Pu Si Kingdom.

In the Imperial Study within the royal city, only four people were currently seated in the small meeting room.

Seated at the head was the host, Emperor Li Zhouxuan. In the guest seats below sat Prime Minister Meng on one side, and Liu Yunan and Qin Jianghe on the other.

Prime Minister Meng looked at the two young immortals seated opposite him, who appeared even younger than his own little grandson, and could not help but feel a bit strange in his heart.

Although immortal cultivators could not be judged by their appearance, in all his years as Prime Minister, none of the various elders or capable disciples from the three major sects he had interacted with were this young...

Thinking this, he stealthily glanced at the two young immortals opposite him again.

They probably are not even sixteen yet, right?

Even though boys over fourteen in the family could be treated entirely as adults, that was just a saying. When push came to shove, no one would truly let a teenage child make the decisions, unless there were no elders or adults left in the family.

At the head of the table, Li Zhouxuan looked at the somewhat unnatural expression of his Prime Minister. He picked up his teacup, took a sip, and gave a light cough behind the cover of the lid, reminding Prime Minister Meng to stop spacing out and quickly continue the topic. He himself was not adept at discussing serious matters with people this young either; it felt quite awkward.

It was better to leave this sort of thing to the capable and hardworking Prime Minister.

Weirdness aside, what needed to be discussed still had to be discussed. Receiving the Emperor's signal, Prime Minister Meng cleared his throat slightly and cupped his hands toward the Emperor at the head and the two young immortals opposite him, saying:

Thank you to the two immortals of the Lingxian Sect for traveling from afar. We are deeply impressed by the Lingxian Sect's strength and righteousness. Not only did you promptly eliminate that evil-doer Wei Hai and rescue the Shangyang Sect from its predicament, but upon receiving the news, you also immediately extended a helping hand to the rural villagers, saving the common people from the abyss of the Huanyou Kingdom.

However, although the captured villagers have now been rescued, and the life-harming things of the Huanyou Kingdom have supposedly been sealed by your esteemed sect, they actually still exist and have not been thoroughly destroyed. Furthermore, the Huanyou Kingdom's actions show a complete disregard for the lives of our kingdom's people, treating them like grass. Given this disaster they have wrought, the imperial court is currently preparing to ally with the Qinghe Faction, the Yunyan Cult, and the Shangyang Sect to launch a crusade against the Huanyou Kingdom's court and the sects colluding with them.

I wonder what advice your esteemed sect might have regarding this crusade against the Huanyou Kingdom?

Qin Jianghe gave Prime Minister Meng a glance.

This man claimed to be asking for their advice, but reading between the lines, he was actually hoping they would also participate and join the other sects and the court in the crusade against the Huanyou Kingdom.

Liu Yunan quietly tugged at Qin Jianghe's sleeve, signaling him to answer, otherwise the two of them might end up speaking at the same time.

After all, this was a formal setting agreed upon by both parties, and they were facing mortals. It would seem impolite to use telepathy to whisper right in front of them. Liu Yunan and Qin Jianghe had grown up with Lin Xiao since childhood, and they were deeply influenced by him regarding basic manners in small matters like this.

Therefore, they had agreed beforehand to use a tug on the sleeve as a signal to take turns speaking depending on the situation.

Feeling his sleeve being tugged, Qin Jianghe spoke calmly:

Thank you for the praise, Lord Meng. I believe the Emperor and Lord Meng also know that our Lingxian Sect is a small and humble establishment. Whether in terms of scale or foundation, we cannot compare to the three major sects. Killing the cultivator Wei Hai previously has already severely drained our vitality. If you want us to contribute manpower and effort to crusade against the Huanyou Kingdom like the three major sects, that is truly beyond our capabilities...

Hearing this, a wave of disappointment surged in the hearts of Li Zhouxuan and Prime Minister Meng, but they managed not to show it too obviously.

However, what this young immortal Qin said indeed made sense. After all, they had killed a Nascent Soul cultivator capable of breaching the Shangyang Sect's mountain gate and usurping their home. Even if the Lingxian Sect eventually killed him, they must have paid a heavy price.

Thinking of this, Prime Minister Meng was just about to say something when Qin Jianghe spoke up first and continued:

However, although our sect falls short in strength regarding the crusade against the Huanyou Kingdom, we do have... well, some channels for obtaining resources related to cultivation and magical battles. If the imperial court and the three major sects have any needs, our sect can provide friendly sponsorship to everyone at the lowest prices.

Hearing his words, Li Zhouxuan and Prime Minister Meng, who were still sighing inwardly that they seemed to be asking too much, were stunned. For a moment, they could not quite process his meaning.

Resources for cultivation and magical battles? Lowest prices? Friendly sponsorship?

However, their shock lasted only a second, and their minds quickly realized what this young immortal Qin meant.

After realizing it, the two of them coincidentally fell silent for a moment.

They were still immersed in the previous issue of joining forces for a crusade, yet the other party had already skipped ahead to discussing a trade.

The two looked at Qin Jianghe opposite them with some suspicion.

This person's true age definitely was not what his appearance suggested, right?

It was Li Zhouxuan who knew a bit more about cultivators. His mind spun, and he immediately spoke in a gentle tone:

If your esteemed sect can truly provide sufficient resources and guarantee a stable channel, the imperial court can act as a middleman to introduce your esteemed sect to the three major sects. Furthermore, my Li royal family will also maintain a stable trade with your esteemed sect.

I just wonder, what are the resources your esteemed sect mentioned, and what grade are they...?

The royal family itself owned a very small spirit stone mine, passed down from their ancestors.

The Li royal family had always used it extremely sparingly. If they could avoid using spirit stones, they would not use them. Their cultivation basically relied entirely on their own gradual comprehension and grueling practice. They absolutely dared not do something as luxurious as absorbing spirit stones to aid their cultivation.

Unless they reached a suffocating bottleneck that was truly difficult to break through, they would only then take out a little bit to carefully absorb and combine with their cultivation to strive for a breakthrough together.

They were just afraid that the expenditures would exceed the income, that more would be used than produced, and then it would gradually be completely depleted.

Because this had been the case for a long time, the Li royal family's small spirit stone mine, due to its limited capacity, could never grow no matter how they nurtured it. Therefore, for many years, the Li royal family would only periodically mine a portion of what it newly produced, not daring to touch the capital at all.

But even if it was just a little bit of interest from the spirit stone mine, digging a little and saving a little every year, coupled with their extremely frugal habits, they still had some inventory.

If they could use inexpensive spirit stones to exchange for some pills or formations that could allow the few cultivators within the royal family to multiply their efforts in improving their cultivation, that would be wonderful.

Moreover, he also knew a bit about the situation of the three major sects.

Although the three great sects were considered the most supreme existences in the mortal realm, in reality, each sect was merely clinging to a single mental cultivation method handed down by their ancestors. Along with a scarce number of spells and cultivation techniques, as well as some incredibly basic knowledge of the Four Arts of Cultivation, these inheritances had only grown increasingly crude and incomplete as they were passed down from generation to generation.