Negotiating with Jing Hongchen

Lin Yun narrowed his eyes upon hearing Jing Hongchen's words, then replied to him:

"The Seed Project members will be stepping in? Now that makes things truly interesting."

Jing Hongchen looked at Lin Yun and said:

"That is precisely why I have come to discuss this with you. You should also be aware that my grandson, Xiao Hongchen, is among the team participating this time."

Lin Yun remained casual as he said:

"I know that. Isn't he on the reserve team? It shouldn't matter; if they can step in for the seeds this year, they likely won't be forced to do so again next year."

Jing Hongchen sighed and said:

"If it were just an ordinary reserve team, I naturally wouldn't be worried. The crux of the matter is that my grandson has been spoiled by me; he is usually arrogant and considers himself a genius."

"Now that he is out of my reach, there is no telling... actually, there is no 'no telling' about it. He will certainly rely on his relationship with me and his own strength to force his way into the matches."

"He is not just anyone; the name of our Hongchen Family is far too conspicuous. These seed students, cultivated specifically for the purpose of war, might very well strike to kill."

"Therefore, I want to ask you to keep an eye on him when the time comes. I am not asking you to stop him from participating in a match; I only hope that, as long as it is not an individual event, you can accompany him into the competition."

"Your Martial Soul is very powerful. I believe that even for those seed students, taking you down will not be an easy task."

"This was also verified during the tests, which is why I want to entrust his protection to you."

Lin Yun took a sip of tea and said:

"Hall Master Jing, you overestimate me. When all is said and done, I am even younger than your grandson. I truly cannot make any promises regarding this request of yours."

Jing Hongchen pondered for a moment, then looked into Lin Yun's eyes and said:

"I understand what you mean."

With that, Jing Hongchen produced a golden, gleaming carving knife, placed it gently on the table, and pushed it toward Lin Yun.

Lin Yun immediately revealed a hint of a smile and said to Jing Hongchen:

"Look at you, isn't this being too polite? I really didn't mean it like that; don't do this next time (next time, take it out faster, don't be so stingy)."

As he spoke, Lin Yun picked up the soul carving knife and examined it closely.

Jing Hongchen did not mind Lin Yun's attitude in the slightest; instead, he began to introduce it earnestly.

"This is from my collection, the ninth on the list of carving knives: Star Core Gold. It was forged using meteorite metal from beyond the heavens, combined with the scales of a Night Star Dragon, the saliva of a Demon Dragon, the skull of a Demon Tiger... and other materials, all melted into one furnace to create it."

Lin Yun rolled his eyes and said:

"That furnace back then couldn't have been simple either. If you stuffed that many materials into an ordinary furnace, it would have grown legs and run away on its own."

Jing Hongchen did not catch Lin Yun's joke and simply said earnestly:

"That furnace did run away the next day."

Lin Yun laughed, fiddling with the golden carving knife in his hand as he said:

"Hall Master Jing is investing so much; surely you don't just want to save your grandson's life."

Jing Hongchen replied:

"To be specific, I have three levels of requests."

"The first level is, naturally, to have my grandson and granddaughter return in one piece."

"The second level is for them to have some moments of glory. After all, while they are somewhat famous within the Sun Moon Empire, they are still very insignificant in the grand scheme of this world."

"The third is that, provided the first two requirements are met, it would be best if they could realize that they are still a long way from being true geniuses."

Lin Yun toyed with the carving knife in his hand and said:

"To be fair, this carving knife is enough for the first two requests. But regarding the difficulty of your last request—and assuming it doesn't conflict with the first two—to be honest, this knife isn't quite enough."

"Because if I want them to realize their insignificance, I would have to demonstrate even greater power, which basically means using me as a main team member. I don't do business at a loss."

Jing Hongchen took a deep breath, then added another condition:

"If you can accomplish this, and if you can help the Sun Moon Imperial Soul Engineer Academy win the championship this time, I will allow you to enter Mingde Hall, build an experimental base specifically for you, and provide you with experimental funding at the highest level every year."

Lin Yun picked at his fingernails and said:

"This condition is actually quite interesting, but what guarantee do you have that you can fulfill it? If I work myself to the bone for you, only for you to step down and leave office, and then your successor refuses to honor this debt, what am I supposed to do?"

Classic signs of anger appeared on Jing Hongchen's forehead. He gritted his teeth and said:

"Do I look like the kind of person who breaks his word?"

Lin Yun replied with a straight face:

"It's not a matter of whether you look like it; you look exactly like that kind of person."

Jing Hongchen was so incensed he nearly exploded.

Lin Yun raised his hands with an innocent expression and said:

"If you don't agree, I'll just give the thing back to you. I only touched it twice; you can't pin this on me. Let's talk things over properly; there's no need to get so worked up, is there?"

Jing Hongchen, his forehead covered in black lines, said:

"Who exactly is the one not wanting to talk properly?"

The two stared at each other, eyes locked in a standoff for a while, until Jing Hongchen finally spoke.

"Fine, fine, you win. I'll sign a contract with you and give you a portion of the deposit before we even set off. That should be enough, right?"

Lin Yun clapped his hands and said.

"Then, once we depart, you can start writing."

Jing Hongchen looked at Lin Yun, bewildered, and asked with some confusion.

"Writing? Writing what?"

Lin Yun stretched, and as he walked toward the door, he looked back and said.

"Why, a heartfelt acceptance speech for your Sun Moon Empire's Emperor, detailing your first total victory over Shrek Academy, of course."

The corner of Jing Hongchen's mouth twitched as he said.

"You're that confident?"

Lin Yun narrowed his eyes and said.

"Hall Master Jing, you've already spent the money, so shouldn't I put your mind at ease? Once the payment is in place, consider everything else as good as done."

Jing Hongchen looked at Lin Yun and said.

"I hope you aren't just blowing hot air, or I'll be coming to collect my money back with interest."

Lin Yun nodded and then replied.

"If that's how you want to talk, I'm even more interested. How about we sign an additional gambling agreement? If I lose, I'll pay you back double; if you lose, you pay me extra."

At this moment, Jing Hongchen's response could be summed up in a single word: despite his lack of poetic flair, a simple "get lost" served him well enough.

As Lin Yun walked out the door, he picked at his ear and said.

"Can't handle the stakes, so you resort to this? Why be so unrefined?"

Stepping out of Jing Hongchen's office building, Lin Yun spotted a familiar white-haired figure.

It was none other than the Xiao Hongchen they had just been discussing, who had clearly been waiting there for quite some time.