Duang!
Qin Xiao kicked the office door open.
He could not stomach such a halfhearted excuse.
"Y-you! How could you be so violent?"
Jing Hongchen jumped in fright.
"I need to see you about something urgent."
"What is it?"
"I need money and materials for making Level 8 Soul Tools..." Qin Xiao thought for a moment, then added, "Lots of them."
Jing Hongchen: "..."
He snorted irritably. "You really do just open your mouth and ask. Do you think money and materials blow in on the wind?"
Qin Xiao shook his head. "Not at all. I just think that killing the White Tiger Duke was a great service to the Sun Moon Empire. Shouldn't I receive a reward?
"Besides, he was my own flesh and blood. You shouldn't just reward me-you should give me double."
Jing Hongchen said, "Then how much do you want...?"
Qin Xiao said, "Two point three billion... Hmm, there's nothing wrong with rounding that up to three billion."
"..." Jing Hongchen fell silent. "You really think money blows in on the wind?"
"You open your mouth and ask for two or three billion..."
"Knock, knock, knock."
A knock came at the laboratory door, and Xuan Ziwen frowned.
No one liked being interrupted while concentrating on something.
Neither did Xuan Ziwen.
He especially hated being interrupted while absorbed in researching Soul Tools.
Still, he set aside his work and went to the door.
When he opened it, the impatience on his face instantly froze.
Outside stood an unsmiling old man.
"T-Teacher, what brings you here?"
The displeasure on his face quickly gave way to a smile.
Indeed.
The man outside was none other than Kong Deming, the Sun Moon Empire's greatest Soul Engineer.
"Why shouldn't I be here?"
Kong Deming snorted softly. "If I don't come,