Tang San continued.
"Hidden weapons were tools for catching the enemy off guard and overcoming the strong with the weak."
"Hidden weapons fell into two categories. One was mechanical hidden weapons, such as the Godly Zhuge Crossbow Sect Master Ning won at auction."
After hearing how Li Luo addressed Ning Fengzhi, Tang San realized that the man before them was no ordinary person, so he followed Li Luo's lead and changed the way he addressed him.
"Mechanical hidden weapons are powerful, simple to use, and place few demands on the user. They're easy to get the hang of."
"But their flaws are just as obvious. I mean, there's nothing wrong with mechanical hidden weapons themselves. The problem lies in the materials required for their attacks and the cost of the materials used to make them."
"If Sect Master Ning still wants to buy Godly Zhuge Crossbows, well..."
Tang San's words trailed off. He sighed, pretended to rummage through the pockets of his clothes, and found them empty. Then he rubbed his thumb and forefinger together.
The message was clear: "You'll have to pay more!"
Ning Fengzhi was sharp and immediately understood what Tang San meant, but he didn't speak first. Instead, he tossed the question back to Tang San and let him name a price.
This was a common negotiating tactic among merchants: don't make the first offer. Let the other party name a price. If it was higher than expected, haggle it down; if it was lower, haggle anyway, even if it already met your expectations.
That was business, after all! No one complained about making a little extra.
But Ning Fengzhi wasn't in a strong position to negotiate over the price. At the auction, to show Divine Craftsman Lou Gao some consideration, he had raised the price of the Iron Mother Vajra Armor made by Lou Gao's disciple to a staggering one hundred thousand Gold Soul Coins.
Ning Fengzhi wasn't short of money, and spending Gold Soul Coins to earn someone's favor was well worth it to him.
But the item that came after the Iron Mother Vajra Armor—the Godly Zhuge Crossbow—had struck right at Ning Fengzhi's heart. Compared with the impractical Iron Mother Vajra Armor, the crossbow held far greater appeal for him.
If every Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda disciple in the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect could be equipped with a Godly Zhuge Crossbow, their safety while traveling outside the sect would improve enormously.
But the auctioneer hadn't said where the Godly Zhuge Crossbow came from or which master smith had made it.
Ning Fengzhi had bid the staggering price of 128,888 Gold Soul Coins for the Godly Zhuge Crossbow to show goodwill toward its maker.
After getting his hands on it, Ning Fengzhi could tell that the cost of making the crossbow itself was probably not high. What mattered was the skill required to make it.
But after such a high bid of 128,888 Gold Soul Coins, no matter how much he haggled, the price of buying more Godly Zhuge Crossbows wouldn't be low.
So Ning Fengzhi had set his sights on recruiting the crossbow's maker for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.
"I wonder if you could introduce me to the person who made the Godly Zhuge Crossbow, young brother Li Luo? I'll make it well worth your while."
Ning Fengzhi still hadn't given up on poaching the maker. Earlier, he had asked Tang San, but Tang San hadn't answered before Li Luo cut in.
Now Ning Fengzhi tried to tempt Li Luo with a generous reward. Naturally, Li Luo wasn't going to agree.
That was because there was no so-called true maker. Tang San alone had handled the entire process of making the Godly Zhuge Crossbow.
Although Tang San had taught Li Luo about making hidden weapons, Li Luo's response had been:
Brain: I get it!
Hands: Bullshit!
Li Luo simply lacked the energy and talent to learn how to make hidden weapons. He only needed to know how to use them; leaving the crafting to Tang San was enough.
Tang San was deeply moved by this, touched that Li Luo trusted him so much.
But Li Luo wasn't going to tell Ning Fengzhi that Tang San was the real maker of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow.
If Ning Fengzhi got ideas and simply snatched Tang San away, Li Luo wouldn't be able to stop him.
"Whatever you're asking, Sect Master Ning, this puts me in a difficult position!"
"The person who makes the Godly Zhuge Crossbow holds a high position in the Tang Sect. We can't do without him."
Li Luo didn't directly expose Ning Fengzhi's attempt to poach the maker. Instead, he turned him down another way.
"Don't even think about it. I know exactly what you're up to. It's impossible—absolutely impossible!"
That was what Ning Fengzhi understood him to mean.
Seeing that poaching the maker wasn't going to work, Ning Fengzhi could only suggest cooperation. After all, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect truly needed the Godly Zhuge Crossbow.
"Then, young brother, what's your Tang Sect's production capacity for the Godly Zhuge Crossbow? And what's the price?"
"I think Sect Master Ning already has a good idea of what the Godly Zhuge Crossbow should cost."
"After all, Sect Master Ning offered nearly 130,000 Gold Soul Coins at the auction."
Li Luo's meaning was simple: since you'd spent nearly 130,000 on the Godly Zhuge Crossbow at auction, that's the price.
Hearing Li Luo's words, Ning Fengzhi's expression immediately darkened. He hadn't expected to pick up a rock only to drop it on his own foot.
His 130,000 Gold Soul Coins hadn't been meant to buy the Godly Zhuge Crossbow. He had been extending an olive branch to its maker.
But Ning Fengzhi hadn't expected that not only would he fail to find the maker, he'd also been outplayed by Li Luo and Tang San, two children.
Li Luo noticed Ning Fengzhi's expression and felt his heart sink. He knew he was in trouble.
"Is Ning Fengzhi about to turn hostile?"
"Tang Hao! Clear Sky Douluo! Come out for a moment!"
Li Luo screamed inwardly, but Tang Hao wasn't beside Tang San at the moment, and he wasn't going to come help Li Luo throw his weight around.
Li Luo had no choice but to compromise and lower the price himself.
But he didn't name a price outright. Instead, he planned to do some figuring with Ning Fengzhi, working out the Godly Zhuge Crossbow's true value rather than judging it by production costs and profit.
"Shall we work out the numbers, Sect Master Ning?"
"Certainly!"
Ning Fengzhi was curious to hear what Li Luo would say and how he planned to convince him.
"Let me ask you, Sect Master Ning: how much can a Soul Master receive from Spirit Hall each month?"
Ning Fengzhi didn't know why Li Luo had suddenly brought up Spirit Hall, but he answered anyway.
"One Gold Soul Coin. The two empires provide the funds, and Spirit Hall distributes them."
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect stood with the Heaven Dou Empire and opposed Spirit Hall, so Ning Fengzhi made a point of emphasizing that the Gold Soul Coins came from the empires.
Li Luo didn't even bother responding. Of course he knew the money came from the two empires, but without Spirit Hall's demands, would the empires be willing to pay it?
Of course not!
Li Luo continued asking.
"What about a Soul Grandmaster?"
"Ten Gold Soul Coins."
"And a Soul Elder?"
"One hundred."
"Then, by that logic, a Soul Ancestor could receive one thousand Gold Soul Coins each month?"
"Spirit Hall doesn't distribute Gold Soul Coins to Soul Ancestors and above," Ning Fengzhi countered.
"I know. I'm asking you to follow the logic. Besides, once someone becomes a Soul Ancestor, they're qualified to receive the title of viscount."
"Isn't a noble title worth more than one thousand Gold Soul Coins?"