Chapter Sixteen: Further Discounts Possible

“I think our skills as brothers-in-arms are really lacking, and the cultivation world is just too dangerous. Let’s wait until we finish our training and get stronger before we head out!” Wang Changsheng said with a smile. “Survival comes first. Who knows? We might get sold off one day and not even be able to fight back!”

“Exactly! When that pressure descended just now, I thought I was going to die!” Fang Qing echoed, still shaken.

“You two!” Li Fusheng glared at them, his expression smoldering.

Of course, Wang Changsheng didn’t actually intend to cultivate here. The spiritual energy was so thin that even decades of training would yield little result. He said this merely to annoy Li Fusheng. Besides, Li Fusheng was powerful; even without Fang Qing leading the way, he’d find his way out after a bit of exploring.

Wang Changsheng’s intention was simple: to see if he could extort some benefit from Li Fusheng, especially after having just fallen into his trap.

“Out with it—what do you want? As long as it’s not too outrageous, I, Li the Benevolent, will agree!” Li Fusheng said through gritted teeth. “Consider it an act of charity to earn some virtue!”

“Straightforward!” Wang Changsheng immediately grinned. “Li the Benevolent, you’re a man after my own heart. I like dealing with straightforward people!”

“Speak!” Li Fusheng barely suppressed the urge to lash out, his gaze growing more hostile as he looked at the pair.

“One thousand spirit stones!” Wang Changsheng announced.

“What?” Li Fusheng shot to his feet, roaring, “What did you just say? I didn’t quite catch that!”

“Spirit stones!” Wang Changsheng held up one finger. “One thousand!”

“Why don’t you just rob me?” Li Fusheng bellowed. “Do you know what a thousand spirit stones means in the Celestial Realm?”

In the Heavenly Realm, a thousand spirit stones was nothing—Li Fusheng could easily acquire that much. But here in the Celestial Realm, where was he supposed to find that many?

“I know!” Wang Changsheng replied. “I nearly lost my life because of you just now. So why shouldn’t I ask for a thousand spirit stones?”

“That was your own fault for being reckless!” Li Fusheng retorted. “I was just stealing what I needed, and you barged in looking for death—how is that my fault?”

“Do you even know what kind of place that was? Even I, Li the Benevolent, would barely escape with my life if caught!”

“Hm?” Wang Changsheng frowned. There was a lot of information in what Li Fusheng had just let slip.

Realizing he’d said too much, Li Fusheng clammed up.

“Well, since you make a fair point,” Wang Changsheng said, “I’ll lower my demand.”

He held up a finger. “I’ll knock off one for you. Nine hundred and ninety-nine spirit stones will suffice!”

“You… I…” Li Fusheng was speechless; if he was going to hand over nine hundred and ninety-nine, what difference did one stone make?

“Ten!” Li Fusheng countered.

Wang Changsheng shook his head. “That’s not sincere at all. On the Cloud Ark alone, you conned at least a hundred spirit stones that I know of, and I didn’t even call you out. Ten stones from you—does your conscience allow it?”

Wang Changsheng’s words actually made Li Fusheng look a little embarrassed.

But Wang Changsheng paid no attention to his expression. To him, Li Fusheng’s face was like a magician’s mask—he’d never seen anyone change expressions as quickly as this man.

“All right, I won’t extort you. One hundred stones—it’s a deal!” Wang Changsheng said firmly.

“Only one hundred!” he repeated.

Li Fusheng stared at him for a long time, saying nothing.

“Fine, think of it as a loan. When I have spirit stones, I’ll pay you back!” Wang Changsheng promised.

Li Fusheng’s expression softened a little at his words.

“With interest—don’t forget the interest!” Li Fusheng insisted.

Wang Changsheng gave him a dark look. “Fine!”

He realized now just how important spirit stones were. If he could get his hands on them, he certainly wouldn’t let the opportunity slip by. Interest or not, it made no difference.

Wang Changsheng had no intention of actually repaying him. Who knew if he’d ever run into Li Fusheng again? Why worry about it?

And even if they did meet again, so what?

He had borrowed the spirit stones through his own cleverness—why should he have to pay them back? With interest, no less?

“Fine!” Li Fusheng said grimly. “Consider this another charitable deed by Li the Benevolent!”

With a grand gesture, he produced a pile of spirit stones and set them before Wang Changsheng.

After counting carefully, there were exactly one hundred. Although they were all lower-grade stones, Wang Changsheng noticed their quality was much better than the handful he’d stolen before; each one contained enough energy to match two of those previous stones.

“Many thanks!” Wang Changsheng clasped his fists.

“Don’t forget the interest!” Li Fusheng said bitterly. “I’ve worked so hard, earning spirit stones one by one, and now I’ve ended up handing them to the likes of you!” His eyes shone with anguish and resignation.

“You really are quite the performer!” Wang Changsheng replied.

Without any further ado, Wang Changsheng scooped up the stones and said to the still-dazed Fang Qing, “Let’s go, brother—lead the way out!”

Fang Qing snapped out of his stupor. “Is that even possible?”

He was genuinely shocked—one could get spirit stones this way?

He knew the value of spirit stones; he’d managed to reach the peak of Qi Refining only because Wang Changsheng’s second uncle had left some behind. But he’d never seen so many gathered together before.

More puzzling was his inability to understand the relationship between Wang Changsheng and Li Fusheng.

Were they friends?

No.

Enemies?

Definitely not.

What were they, then? A moment ago, they were about to kill each other—swords drawn—yet now they could sit down and settle a loan for so many spirit stones? It was truly baffling.

“Come on, why are you standing there?” Wang Changsheng said proudly. “With these spirit stones, we should have no trouble breaking through!”

He glanced at the dejected Li Fusheng. “Of course, we owe it all to Li the Benevolent! If not for his generosity, we’d be in real trouble…”

“Yes, yes!” Fang Qing quickly offered a bow. “Thank you, Li the Benevolent—Senior Li!”

“Just remember you owe me!” Li Fusheng reminded them yet again. “And don’t forget the interest!”

Wang Changsheng nodded.

Under Fang Qing’s guidance, the three of them twisted and turned through the tunnels, taking quite some time to emerge from the cavern.

“This isn’t the entrance we came in through,” Li Fusheng said, looking around in confusion.

He might be directionally challenged, but he could still recognize a change in scenery.

Wang Changsheng noticed it as well.

“That way was dangerous; this is another route,” Fang Qing explained with a grin. “Much safer this way!”

“Let’s go back and cultivate,” Wang Changsheng said to him. Turning to Li Fusheng, he added, “If you have other matters, you can take your leave. No need to follow us.”

“I won’t!” Li Fusheng immediately burst out. “I’m coming with you!”

Wang Changsheng’s expression changed instantly.

“What for?” he demanded. The thought of Li Fusheng’s endless prattling filled him with dread. He could hardly imagine what would happen if Li Fusheng really did tag along.

Li Fusheng declared, “As your creditor, I have to keep an eye on you! Otherwise, if you two run off, who will I collect from?”

Wang Changsheng and Fang Qing were both taken aback.

Fang Qing didn’t see the problem. In fact, he thought Li Fusheng’s behavior was perfectly reasonable—after all, such a wealth of spirit stones was a fortune in the Celestial Realm!

But Wang Changsheng, feeling the weight of the spirit stones in his pouch, began to wonder if extorting them from Li Fusheng had really been the right thing to do.

“These spirit stones are starting to feel a bit hot to the touch…” Wang Changsheng muttered.

Letting Li Fusheng tag along was simply out of the question! If he did, there’d be no time for cultivation—just endless chatter to endure.

“No way!” Wang Changsheng said firmly. “I refuse!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll pay you back!” he insisted. “But you absolutely cannot come with us!”

“Impossible!” Li Fusheng shouted. “Not unless you return the spirit stones to me!”

Return them?

Out of the question!

Now that he had them in hand, there was no way Wang Changsheng would give them back.

But for the moment, he couldn’t think of a good reason to shake Li Fusheng off.

“What now?” Fang Qing shot Wang Changsheng a look.

Fang Qing couldn’t understand why Wang Changsheng was so opposed to Li Fusheng following them, but he trusted there must be a reason.

“Here’s the thing, Friend Li,” Wang Changsheng said. “If you come with us, it won’t do you any good. We’re headed back to seclude ourselves in training and won’t have time to entertain you. Besides, with your virtue, there must be plenty of good deeds awaiting you out there!”

“The world is waiting for you to save it!”

“Not to mention, Li the Benevolent, you surely have a lot of business to attend to. Following us won’t help you get your spirit stones back any sooner, and it’ll just waste your valuable time.”

“All things considered, Li the Benevolent, it’s really not worth it for you!”

Wang Changsheng laid it all out, and after pondering for a while, Li Fusheng frowned.

“That does make sense,” he admitted. “But at the very least, you must tell me where you’ll be—otherwise, how will I ever collect my debt?”

“That’s easy!” Wang Changsheng said with a laugh. “Imperial Capital, Grand Tavern—just ask for me!”

“And not only that—just mention my name at the Grand Tavern in the capital, and you’ll get a discount on everything!” he added mysteriously.

“Really?”

Hearing the word “discount,” Li Fusheng’s eyes immediately lit up.