Reaching Cooperation

"Three hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones! I can take three hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones' worth of talismans in one go!"

Cheng Daqi gritted his teeth, a determined look on his face as he stared at Zhao Huaian.

Having scraped by in the Greenwood Sect's Outer Sect for so many years, he naturally had a fair bit of savings on hand.

And these three hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones were merely a portion of his savings, used to test the waters with an investment.

If it worked out, then his days ahead would be much easier—he could specialize as a middleman, pocketing the difference.

If it didn't, then these three hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones' worth of talismans could still serve as a trump card, pulled out and used all at once when danger struck.

"Three hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones?"

Hearing this, the cold expression on Zhao Huaian's face had long vanished, replaced by a warm smile.

"Yes, in the early stage, I can first purchase talismans worth three hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones from you, young friend. If sales go well later, I can take over all the talismans you sell entirely."

Cheng Daqi nodded, looking at Zhao Huaian with anticipation. "But the price definitely needs to be a bit more favorable. After all, if our cooperation succeeds, you won't need to set up a stall in the future—you can focus entirely on cultivation."

"That's possible, but let's discuss this in detail when the sun sets. For now, the priority is handling the business at hand!"

Zhao Huaian nodded. He glanced at the bustling street and didn't immediately haggle prices with Cheng Daqi, instead delaying the matter until sunset when the stall closed.

After all, he'd already paid today's stall fee, and with such a crowd, he naturally wanted to earn as many Spirit Stones as possible first.

"Of course, of course! You go ahead and work, young friend!"

Hearing Zhao Huaian's words, Cheng Daqi wasn't in a rush. He quickly nodded and returned to his own stall.

Zhao Huaian, meanwhile, threw himself into his business with even more vigor and enthusiasm.

And Cheng Daqi, shrewd as an old hand, realizing he might have a long-term partnership with Zhao Huaian, started helping promote Zhao Huaian's wares on the side.

With Cheng Daqi's help, Zhao Huaian's stall grew even more popular, and the talismans he sold increased by the minute.

Time passed quickly. The sun dipped westward, and dusk arrived.

As the flow of people in the market dwindled, many stallholders had already packed up and headed back to their lodgings.

"Young friend, time to close up!"

Having packed up early, Cheng Daqi bustled over to Zhao Huaian with an eager look.

"Yeah, we should talk about the detailed cooperation now."

Zhao Huaian stretched lazily, smiling at the eager Cheng Daqi.

After an afternoon together, his impression of the old man had improved considerably.

In fact, when Zhao Huaian was busy, Cheng Daqi had even set aside his own business to lend a hand.

You could say Cheng Daqi had paved the way well.

"Young friend, let's talk about the pricing. Let's go over it carefully." Cheng Daqi looked at Zhao Huaian with full anticipation.

Zhao Huaian thought for a moment, then said, "How about a 10% discount? I'll sell them to you at a 10% discount off my current price. You know the quality of my talismans—especially the Water Arrow Talismans, they practically sell themselves. And in the future, the quality of other talismans will only get better."

A 10% discount was hardly Zhao Huaian's bottom line.

But when negotiating business, you always leave room to haggle. He wasn't about to reveal his lowest price right off the bat.

"10% off!!!"

Cheng Daqi's eyes went wide, staring at Zhao Huaian in disbelief. "When I bought over thirty Low-grade Spirit Stones' worth of talismans here before, you gave me a 10% discount. Now it's still 10% off? That doesn't seem right."

"But you also know how popular my talismans are. Sell them a few times, and you'll have plenty of repeat customers. That'll even boost sales of the other items at your stall."

Zhao Huaian's tone remained steady as he calmly regarded Cheng Daqi.

"20% off! After all, I'm buying talismans worth three hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones. And if customers want to buy more later, I'll have to give them discounts too. If it's only 10% off, there's not much profit for me."

Cheng Daqi raised his fingers, carefully laying out the ins and outs of running a stall for Zhao Huaian.

Though 20% off was Zhao Huaian's bottom line, he wasn't about to give in easily.

Otherwise, once Cheng Daqi got a taste of the benefits, he'd surely find ways to haggle again on bigger deals later.

The two went back and forth, spit flying, each probing the other's limits.

After a round of bargaining, both were worn out, and they finally settled on a 15% discount for their cooperation.

Zhao Huaian was secretly pleased.

He believed that once Cheng Daqi sold these talismans, he'd come back for wholesale purchases.

Then Zhao Huaian could save a lot of unnecessary time, focusing entirely on cultivation and Drawing Talismans.

And Cheng Daqi was equally delighted.

At his age, advancing further in cultivation was nearly impossible—his time wasn't worth much.

All he could do now was earn more Spirit Stones, hoping to give his grandson, who had Three Spiritual Roots, access to more resources.

The deal was done.

Zhao Huaian sold a large batch of talismans at a 15% discount, pocketing three hundred Low-grade Spirit Stones from Cheng Daqi.

Just as the transaction was complete and they were about to part ways, Cheng Daqi called out from behind, "Young friend, here's my Communication Talisman. If business goes smoothly, next time I'll contact you directly through it, and we can meet for another trade."

As he spoke, Cheng Daqi took out a Communication Talisman radiating faint Spiritual Energy from his Storage Bag.

As a Spirit Talisman Master, Zhao Huaian naturally recognized the Communication Talisman.

Communication Talismans also had their own grade distinctions.

The lowest-grade Communication Talisman, which was the one Cheng Daqi handed over, allowed both users to establish contact with each other across a distance of several hundred li.

As for the highest-grade Communication Talisman, it could even allow both parties to connect across tens of thousands of li.

This Communication Talisman had quite a market, and its price was relatively high; even the lowest grade cost ten Low-grade Spirit Stones.

But even so, plenty of people still bought it, especially those with wide social networks.

Unfortunately, he did not have the Drawing Method for the Communication Talisman; otherwise, he would have long taken it to the market to sell and made a fortune.

"Easy enough! We'll keep in touch via Communication Talisman from now on!"

Zhao Huaian let out a hearty laugh, took the Communication Talisman, and disappeared into the afterglow of the setting sun.

"Did I forget something?"

After leaving Greenwood Market, Zhao Huaian felt like he had overlooked something.

His mind couldn't help but replay the events of the day.

Suddenly, Zhao Huaian slapped his thigh hard.

"Damn it, ever since I learned the Art of Drawing Spirit Talismans, I haven't gone to the Incense Hall to report and collect my salary; it's still stuck at the old two Low-grade Spirit Stones."

Suddenly remembering this, Zhao Huaian couldn't help but feel a pang of regret.

He hadn't gone to the Incense Hall to collect his salary or report his cultivation level for about eleven months now.

That meant his salary at the Incense Hall had remained at two Low-grade Spirit Stones, and during this time, he had lost at least twenty or thirty Low-grade Spirit Stones.

"Even a mosquito's leg is still meat! What a waste!"

Zhao Huaian sighed and shook his head, changed direction, and headed toward the Incense Hall.

By now, he had already taken off the Human Skin Mask, and with the help of a Concealment Talisman, his cultivation was masked at Qi Refining Layer Four.