Luo Qian showed a merchant's knack for turning a situation to his advantage. He deliberately made a friendly gesture toward the Snow Eagle King, hoping for a reward richer than Baleful Crystal. But the Snow Eagle King was not one to accept a favor lightly. It stubbornly returned the Baleful Crystal, preserving its dignity as a king.
Luo Qian saw the stubbornness and longing in its eyes and laughed. He picked up the Baleful Crystal and tossed it toward the sea. "If you don't need it either, Brother Eagle, I'll throw it away..." Sure enough, the instant it left his hand, the Snow Eagle King panicked. A streak of white light shot out, and it caught the crystal in its beak.
The Snow Eagle King was furious. It pecked at the boat with its golden beak, making a sharp tok, tok sound, as though scolding Luo Qian for not knowing the treasure's value. Luo Qian laughed and cupped his hands. "Brother Eagle, I know how precious it is. It's just of little use to me, while it would do you a great deal of good. Yet you keep refusing it. Why put yourself through that? We're openhearted and forthright folk. If we need something, we need it; if we don't, we don't. Why put on an act?"
His words rang with such righteousness that the Snow Eagle King lowered its head, plainly ashamed. It looked at the Baleful Crystal and pecked it, splitting it in two. The Snow Eagle King swallowed the smaller half. Red light flashed, and its injured wing healed completely. The golden light around its body shone brighter than before; it was probably even stronger than it had been before the injury.
Then it returned the remaining half of the Baleful Crystal to Luo Qian. Seeing that