Negotiation

Tang San continued.

"Hidden weapons are tools designed to catch others off guard, strike when they are unprepared, and allow the weak to overcome the strong."

"Hidden weapons are divided into two categories: the first is the mechanical type, such as the Godly Zhuge Crossbow that Sect Master Ning purchased."

Upon hearing Li Luo address Ning Fengzhi by his title, Tang San realized that the man before him was no ordinary person, so he followed Li Luo's lead and changed his own form of address accordingly.

"The characteristic of mechanical hidden weapons lies in their immense power, ease of use, and low requirements for the user, making them very easy to master."

"However, the flaws are also quite obvious. I mean, the mechanical hidden weapons themselves are fine; the flaws lie in the material requirements for the attack mechanisms and the production costs of the components."

"If Sect Master Ning still wishes to purchase more Godly Zhuge Crossbows, well!"

Tang San stopped abruptly at this point, let out a soft sigh, and made a show of patting his pockets. They were completely empty, and he then rubbed his thumb against his index finger.

The meaning was clear: "It's going to cost you!"

Ning Fengzhi was shrewd and understood Tang San's meaning immediately, but he did not speak up first, instead tossing the problem back to Tang San to let him name his price.

This was a common tactic in merchant negotiations: do not initiate, let the other party name their price first. If it was too high, he would haggle; if it was low, he would haggle anyway, even if it met his expectations.

Business is business, after all! No one ever complains about making a little extra profit.

However, Ning Fengzhi did not have the advantage in this negotiation because he was currently at an auction. To show respect to the master craftsman Lou Gao, he had driven the price of the Iron Mother Vajra Armor, forged by Lou Gao's disciple, up to the exorbitant price of 100,000 Gold Soul Coins.

Ning Fengzhi was not short on money; spending Gold Soul Coins to buy favor was well worth it to him.

But the item auctioned after the Iron Mother Vajra Armor, the Godly Zhuge Crossbow, had struck a chord in Ning Fengzhi's heart. Compared to the less practical Iron Mother Vajra Armor, the Godly Zhuge Crossbow held much greater appeal for him.

If he could equip every disciple of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect who possessed a Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda with a Godly Zhuge Crossbow, the safety of his disciples when traveling outside would be greatly improved.

Yet, the host had not mentioned the origin of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow or which master blacksmith had forged it.

Ning Fengzhi had bid the high price of 128,888 Gold Soul Coins for the auctioned Godly Zhuge Crossbow specifically to show goodwill to its creator.

After obtaining the Godly Zhuge Crossbow, he could see that the material cost might not have been high; the key was the production technology behind it.

But with the precedent of that 128,888 Gold Soul Coin bid, no matter how much he tried to haggle later, the acquisition price for more Godly Zhuge Crossbows would not be low.

Thus, Ning Fengzhi conceived the idea of poaching the creator of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow for the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect.

"I wonder if little brother Li Luo could introduce me to the creator of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow? I would certainly offer a generous reward."

Ning Fengzhi still had not given up on the idea of poaching. He had asked Tang San earlier, but Tang San hadn't answered, and Li Luo had cut in.

Now, Ning Fengzhi tried to lure Li Luo with the promise of a generous reward, though naturally, Li Luo would not agree.

This was because there was no such thing as a "true creator" other than Tang San himself; the entire production process of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow was carried out by Tang San alone.

Although Tang San had taught Li Luo the relevant knowledge regarding hidden weapon production, Li Luo had to admit:

Brain: I've got it!

Hands: You're full of it!

Li Luo truly lacked the energy and talent to learn the craft of hidden weapons; he only needed to know how to deploy and use them, leaving the production to Tang San was sufficient.

Tang San was deeply moved by this, touched that Li Luo trusted him so completely.

But Li Luo would not tell Ning Fengzhi that the true creator of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow was Tang San.

If Ning Fengzhi developed malicious intent because of this and tried to abduct Tang San, he would be unable to stop him.

"Sect Master Ning, this request of yours is very difficult for me to fulfill!"

"The creator of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow is a high-ranking and influential member of our Tang Sect, and our sect cannot function without him."

Li Luo did not directly expose Ning Fengzhi's intention to poach, but instead refused him with a different explanation.

Don't even think about it. Do you think I don't know what you're trying to do? Impossible, absolutely impossible!

This was the message Ning Fengzhi received.

Seeing that poaching was not an option, Ning Fengzhi had to switch to a collaborative approach; after all, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect was in dire need of the Godly Zhuge Crossbows.

"Then, little brother, what is the production capacity of your Tang Sect's Godly Zhuge Crossbows? And what is the price?"

"I think Sect Master Ning should already have a bottom line in mind regarding the price of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow."

"After all, Sect Master Ning did bid nearly 130,000 Gold Soul Coins at the auction."

Li Luo's meaning was simple: since you spent nearly 130,000 to auction one, that is the price.

Hearing Li Luo's words, Ning Fengzhi's expression immediately turned sour. He hadn't expected to shoot himself in the foot.

His 130,000 Gold Soul Coins weren't meant to buy the crossbow, but to extend an olive branch to its creator.

But Ning Fengzhi hadn't expected that not only would he fail to find the creator, but he would also be played by these two children, Li Luo and Tang San.

Li Luo noticed Ning Fengzhi's unpleasant expression and his heart skipped a beat, thinking, Oh no.

Is Ning Fengzhi going to flip on us?

Tang Hao! Clear Sky Douluo! Come out here!

Li Luo screamed internally, but Tang Hao was not by Tang San's side at the moment and would not come to back him up.

Li Luo had no choice but to compromise and take the initiative to lower the price.

However, he did not state a price directly, intending instead to calculate a ledger with Ning Fengzhi to weigh the true value of the Godly Zhuge Crossbow, rather than evaluating it based on cost and profit margins.

"Sect Master Ning, shall we run some numbers?"

"Very well!"

Ning Fengzhi was quite curious about what kind of argument Li Luo could spin and how he intended to persuade him.

"Sect Master Ning, let me ask you: how much money does a soul master receive from the Martial Soul Hall each month?"

Ning Fengzhi did not know why Li Luo had suddenly brought up the Martial Soul Hall, but he answered the question nonetheless.

"One Gold Soul Coin; this is funded by the two great empires and distributed by the Martial Soul Hall."

The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect stood on the side of the Heaven Dou Empire and was in opposition to the Martial Soul Hall, so Ning Fengzhi specifically emphasized that the Gold Soul Coins came from the empire.

Li Luo ignored him entirely; he certainly knew the money came from the two great empires, but without the demands of the Martial Soul Hall, would the two empires be willing to shell out such funds?

Of course not!

Li Luo continued his line of questioning.

"And what about a Soul Grand Master?"

"Ten Gold Soul Coins."

"And a Soul Elder?"

"One hundred."

"By that logic, does that mean a Soul Ancestor could receive one thousand Gold Soul Coins each month?"

"The Martial Soul Hall stops distributing Gold Soul Coins after one reaches the Soul Ancestor realm."

Ning Fengzhi countered.

"I am aware, but I am asking you to follow the logic. Besides, once one becomes a Soul Ancestor, they are already qualified to obtain the title of Viscount."

"Is a noble title not worth far more than one thousand Gold Soul Coins?"