Hu Fangyuan shook his head and chuckled. "What do you think friends should be like? Getting to know each other through a fight? Or growing fond of each other over time?"
He rested his elbow on the table and leaned forward slightly, his tone utterly frank. "The strongest bond between friends is mutual interest! All the world's bustle is for profit; all its jostling is for gain. I'm a practical man. If there's something to gain from someone, I draw close and befriend them."
His words were blunt to the point of being nakedly mercenary, even a little crass.
Yet coming from Hu Fangyuan, they carried a frankness, as though he were stating something perfectly natural.
Gu Yue seemed to catch on. She narrowed her eyes, dangerous as a cat entering hunting mode, yet still retaining a young girl's lively charm. She leaned closer and lowered her voice. "Then tell me, what do you think you can gain from me? And what do you have that's worth my pursuing?"
She wanted to hear just what flowery talk this boy could come up with.
Hu Fangyuan laughed heartily and leaned back in his chair. The slightly tense atmosphere vanished without a trace. He laughed for a good while before sitting upright, reaching into his Storage Bag, and taking out a tiny white jade bottle. He set it on the table and gently pushed it toward Gu Yue.
"I possess a Secret Art passed down through my family for thousands of years. It lets me make Secret Medicine that benefits a Soul Master's Spiritual Power, and even physical growth." Hu Fangyuan tapped the little jade bottle on the table. "What's inside is called Moonlight Dew. It's made from a secret family recipe, and it isn't easy to refine. Drinking it quickly restores Spiritual Power and nourishes the soul. Taken over time, it steadily raises the upper limit of your Spiritual Power."
He spoke with great solemnity.
In truth, this was simply the Moonlight Dew produced by the Moonlight Pearl Gu.
Gu Yue's gaze fell on the little jade bottle, a hint of doubt in her eyes.
A potion that increased Spiritual Power?
It wasn't as though there were none on the market, but such things were outrageously expensive, and their effects were mediocre.
In a small place like Eastsea City, good Spiritual Power potions were simply nowhere to be found.
"Just this tiny bottle? How good could it be?"
Gu Yue picked up the jade bottle and pulled out the stopper. A faint fragrance drifted out, refreshing the mind with a single whiff. Her gaze shifted slightly. The scent alone was better than that of the finest Mind-Clearing Potion she had ever seen.
"You can try it."
Hu Fangyuan made an inviting gesture. "Consider it a first-meeting gift."
Gu Yue hesitated for a moment. She wasn't afraid Hu Fangyuan would harm her. After all, there was no grudge between them, and he had no motive to do so. After a moment's thought, she tipped her head back, brought the bottle to her lips, and took a small sip.
The liquid melted in her mouth, and a cool, sweet sensation instantly spread down her throat.
The next moment, that coolness rushed straight into her mind.
Gu Yue shuddered, her eyes flying wide open.
She had done physical training that afternoon, then discussed Elemental Manipulation with Hu Fangyuan, and had just spent quite some time practicing Spiritual Power control. She had long since used up most of her Spiritual Power.
Her head felt slightly swollen and a little foggy.
Yet with that one sip, the fogginess and fatigue instantly receded like the tide.
Her soul was clear, her mind bright, and even the elemental fluctuations in the surrounding air became a little clearer.
The effect was astonishingly good!
Gu Yue's grip on the jade bottle tightened slightly. She could guarantee that even the Spiritual Power potions ordinarily available for purchase could do no better. In fact, when it came to nourishing the soul, they fell slightly short.
Only the special Secret Medicines possessed by major powers such as the Spirit Pagoda could surpass it.
This boy actually had something this good?
She raised her head, and the way she looked at Hu Fangyuan changed completely. Her earlier wariness and distance were gone, replaced by greater seriousness and curiosity.
"Is what you said true? This is your family's Secret Medicine?" Gu Yue asked in a low voice.
"Absolutely genuine. A replacement if it's fake."
Hu Fangyuan shrugged. "Besides Mind-Clearing Liquid, there's also Secret Medicine for body refinement, which tempers the flesh and strengthens the bones. And there's Qi-Gathering Powder, which speeds up Soul Power cultivation. It's just that none of these things are easy to refine, and the ingredients are hard to obtain. Production is low."
His words were half truth, half falsehood.
After all, it wasn't as though the Gu Canon lacked support-type Gu worms like these. He wasn't lying.
Gu Yue took a deep breath, calming the shock in her heart.
She knew what this kind of Secret Medicine meant. Having it meant cultivating far faster than others. Spiritual Power, the body, Soul Power-improvement on every front.
"Then what do you want from me?" Gu Yue stared into Hu Fangyuan's eyes. "Just to make a friend? Surely there's no need. If you put this up for sale, people would scramble for it no matter the price."
Hu Fangyuan smiled. "Money? I'm not short of that little bit."
That was a lie!
He was desperately short of money!
But that was precisely why Hu Fangyuan couldn't show weakness. He leaned back slightly, his fingertips lightly tapping the edge of the stone table, an inscrutable smile on his face, as though he held an earth-shattering trump card.
Hu Fangyuan looked at Gu Yue earnestly. "I acknowledge your talent, and even more than that, I trust Teacher Wu's assessment of you. You're someone who can reach the very end of the Soul Master's path. Likewise, I believe I can do the same."
There was something spellbinding in Hu Fangyuan's words, as though he were bewitching someone, yet they gave the impression of being entirely natural.
"You're really full of yourself."
Gu Yue chuckled, but she did not deny his words. Beyond her identity as a human girl named Gu Yue, her true identity was the Silver Dragon King. How could she not know her own future?
She simply hadn't expected this boy, who was even a little younger than her, to make such grand claims too.
Hu Fangyuan shook his head. "That's not arrogance. It's absolute confidence in myself."
Gu Yue had no desire to keep listening to Hu Fangyuan boast, so she got straight to the point. "Then what do you need me to do?"
Hu Fangyuan grinned. "Simple. Give me one million Federation Coins every month, and I'll give you three bottles of Moonlight Dew. Whether you use them yourself or do something else with them is none of my business."
He had originally intended to test the price. After all, even top-grade Mind-Clearing Potions on the market only cost two or three hundred thousand a bottle. A million for three bottles was already asking for a lion's share. He had been prepared for Gu Yue to haggle.
Gu Yue considered it for a moment. Instead of haggling, she went a step further. "What about the others?"
"What others?" Hu Fangyuan paused, not quite following.
Gu Yue said, "Those Secret Medicines that improve physical strength and Soul Power cultivation. Are they a million too?"
Hiss!
Hu Fangyuan inwardly sucked in a breath of cold air.
Damn it! I underestimated this rich girl!
He had thought a million for three bottles of Moonlight Dew was outrageous enough, but Gu Yue wanted the other Secret Medicines too? And judging by her tone, she didn't care about the price at all?
He let none of it show. Putting on a profound air, Hu Fangyuan leaned forward slightly and tapped the table gently with his finger. "That depends on whether our friendship can grow a little deeper!"
As he spoke, he picked up the serving chopsticks, took a piece of braised beast meat for Gu Yue, and placed it in her bowl. "Let's eat first. The food's gone cold. There's no rush about the Secret Medicine."
Gu Yue glanced at the meat in her bowl, then looked up at Hu Fangyuan, a hint of amusement in her eyes.
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