Enemy? No, a Friend

Yi Xuan felt that he had pretty much finished pulling the wool over Young Master Li's eyes. Even the lackey beside him had forgotten to pour the wine after hearing Yi Xuan's grand vision and stood there stupidly, staring at him.

Young Master Li had never lacked Spirit Stones since childhood. With an enforcement elder of the sect in his family, he could be said to have the wind when he wanted wind and the rain when he wanted rain.

But in all his years, Young Master Li had never heard of anyone earning ten thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones a day.

A blazing fire seemed to ignite in Young Master Li's heart, and his gaze was full of excitement as he looked at Yi Xuan.

Young Master Li grabbed Yi Xuan's hand and said excitedly, "Yi Xuan, no, little brother Yi! If you don't have money, your big brother does! Just tell me how much it takes to earn ten thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones a day!"

Seeing how excited he was, Yi Xuan knew his chance had come. He raised his cup, clinked it against Young Master Li's, and said, "Big brother! Since you trust me, your little brother has a good idea. I wonder if you'd like to hear it!"

Yi Xuan knew how to climb a pole when it was offered. After just a few words, the two were already calling each other brothers, with no trace of the drawn swords and cocked crossbows from their earlier encounter at Yi Xuan's gate.

Young Master Li was naturally interested in making money. His eyes had practically turned into gold ingots, and he nodded repeatedly.

Yi Xuan hid the smile in his eyes and said, "The grenade technology I have is too complicated. Even I spent nearly ten years developing it. Although you're exceptionally talented, big brother, I reckon it would take you a year to master it. Then there's the construction of the artifact-refining furnaces, which also takes a great deal of time. Even if we make just twenty furnaces, it would take at least a year to finish them!"

"That's two years gone! At a profit of ten thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones a day, how much would that add up to over two years?"

"Seven million three hundred thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones!" Young Master Li calculated it without the slightest hesitation. The figure startled him too; that income was almost as much as the entire Azure Cloud Sect earned in a year!

Yi Xuan continued to guide him. "What if one of those two years happens to be a leap year?"

"Then that's seven million three hundred and ten thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones!"

Hearing Young Master Li's figure, Yi Xuan shook his head. "Forget it, it's only one day. Let's leave it out and call it seven million three hundred thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones!"

To his surprise, Young Master Li jumped up like a cat whose tail had been stepped on and asked indignantly, "Why leave it out? That's all our money!"

Yi Xuan hadn't expected Young Master Li to react so strongly over a single hair from nine oxen. He could only comfort him. "All right, we'll count it as seven million three hundred and ten thousand! If I sell you the technology now, big brother, you'll lose seven million three hundred and ten thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones for nothing over the next two years!"

"That won't do!"

Before Yi Xuan had even finished speaking, Young Master Li had already objected.

Seeing that Young Master Li was completely under his thumb, Yi Xuan continued, "So, to keep you from losing so much, big brother, I have an idea."

Hearing that Yi Xuan had an idea, Young Master Li hurriedly said, "What idea? Little brother, tell me!"

"Big brother, you can invest Spirit Stones in me and let me expand production. While I'm expanding, I'll use the existing artifact-refining furnaces to make grenades! And you'll never have to worry about production again. You only need to open up sales channels and sell the grenades."

Although Young Master Li didn't quite understand some of the terms Yi Xuan used, he understood the general idea. After thinking it over, he found that Yi Xuan's proposal was indeed a good one. He smiled and patted Yi Xuan on the shoulder. "You do have some skills, little brother!"

Yi Xuan smiled. "It's nothing worth mentioning. I've also thought it over: when you get the goods from me, big brother, you only need to pay me the cost price of one hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones!"

After hearing Yi Xuan, Young Master Li asked worriedly, "Wouldn't that leave you with no profit at all?"

"Oh! Why would I need any profit to work for my own big brother? Isn't that what I should do as your little brother?"

Young Master Li slapped the table, striking it so hard that it broke outright.

The sudden sight left Yi Xuan somewhat dumbfounded. Has this guy realized something's wrong? There shouldn't be any holes in it!

Young Master Li said indignantly, "How could I, as your big brother, make my little brother work for nothing? We'll split it fifty-fifty!"

Yi Xuan shook his head repeatedly. "That wouldn't be right! You're putting up the money to let me expand, big brother, so it wouldn't be proper at all for me to take the same amount as you. How about this? If you don't mind, just let me have five percent of the profit. For every ten thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones you earn a day, I'll earn five hundred Spirit Stones along with you!"

With that, Yi Xuan threw an arm around Young Master Li. "Big brother, it's settled!"

Seeing Yi Xuan like this, Young Master Li was deeply moved. He discussed the investment with Yi Xuan a little more, and in the end decided to invest two hundred thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones, or twenty Mid-Grade Spirit Stones!

Early the next morning, the lackey who had stood behind Young Master Li came to Yi Xuan's little courtyard with a small box.

Looking at the twenty Mid-Grade Spirit Stones arranged in the box, Yi Xuan's heart stirred. But with an outsider still in front of him, he couldn't very well show it, so he asked, "Does my big brother have any instructions?"

The man no longer wore the arrogant expression he had displayed at Yi Xuan's gate the day before. Instead, he replied with a fawning smile, "The young master only said you should go ahead without worrying, and if there isn't enough money, just say the word."

Yi Xuan nodded. "Go back and tell my big brother not to worry. I'll do my best."

After the man left, Yi Xuan opened the small box again. Seeing the light shimmering over the Mid-Grade Spirit Stones inside, he grinned from ear to ear.

He had thought Young Master Li was an enemy!

But how was he an enemy now? Wasn't he Yi Xuan's long-lost friend?

With Young Master Li's funding of twenty Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, Yi Xuan could do more than expand grenade production. He could even buy more materials to research more technological products.

The potential problem of selling the grenades had also been solved. With Young Master Li involved, Yi Xuan no longer had to worry about anyone in Azure Cloud Sect territory harboring ill intentions toward the grenade business.

Whoever wanted a share of the grenade business would have to weigh whether they had the strength to stand against the enforcement elder. Moreover, the enforcement elder was now a Nascent Soul whose status had not been made public.

However Yi Xuan looked at it, his business seemed rock-solid. How was this selling grenades? It was like discovering a Spirit Stone mine in his own home!

Yi Xuan also learned Young Master Li's name: Li Jingming.