Dugu Bo naturally understood Ning Fengzhi's concerns and accepted his explanation. After a brief moment of contemplation, he made a proposal of his own.
"Since that's the case," he said, "why don't we return to Boss Li's shop and have him witness our alliance?"
So you're afraid I'll play dirty tricks… but I'm afraid you'll stab me in the back.
Ning Fengzhi nodded readily. "That's fine. But if there's a witness fee, would Brother Dugu mind covering it?"
Dugu Bo was momentarily speechless.
How many sacrificial coins could a witness fee possibly cost? You're really arguing with me over this?
Seeing through his thoughts, Ning Fengzhi sighed and produced his crystal card. "Most of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School's thousand-year accumulation has already been spent. I even took out over thirty ten-thousand-year Spirit Bones—strategic reserves—and countless rare herbs collected across generations, just to barely exchange for three Qingming Longevity Pills. I only have seventy thousand sacrificial coins left."
So poor?!
Dugu Yan was stunned. Only by comparison did she truly realize how extravagant her grandfather was. She had never imagined that the strange medicinal herbs he casually tended every day were worth such terrifying sums.
Dugu Bo didn't want to argue over trivial matters and agreed outright. Grabbing Dugu Yan, he soared into the air. Chen Xin followed suit, carrying Ning Fengzhi as they rapidly returned to the Sacrificial Shop.
They landed once more outside the shop. This time, however, Ning Fengzhi did not immediately enter. Instead, he waved to a subordinate who had been standing guard nearby.
"I've already received Emperor Xue Ye's request for intelligence sharing," Ning Fengzhi said calmly. "I assume Brother Dugu has also received a commission from Prince Xue Xing. Why not have my subordinate inform Xue Xing now? We can all gather at the Imperial Palace and speak publicly. With both of us present, our words will carry more weight—and no one will dare disrespect Boss Li."
Dugu Bo found no issue with this and nodded. He entered the shop directly.
"Did you hear everything?" Ning Fengzhi said to his subordinate. "Go."
…
After listening to the two recount their agreement, Li Rong nodded lightly. "One hundred thousand sacrificial coins per year."
Dugu Bo didn't hesitate. He swiped his card.
Ding.
The moment the transaction completed, both Dugu Bo and Ning Fengzhi felt something change.
An invisible, transparent thread—subtle yet unmistakable—seemed to connect them. Through this thread, any breach of the alliance would be instantly perceived by the other party. Moreover, the violator would automatically have sacrificial coins equivalent to the lost medicinal materials deducted. If the balance proved insufficient…
Annihilation.
The witnessing effect was unexpectedly powerful.
Yet both men secretly breathed a sigh of relief. A strict contract was good—neither of them had ever planned to break it anyway.
"Boss Li," Ning Fengzhi said, visibly reassured, "does your shop accept custom orders? I'd like to purchase medicinal herb seeds."
"For custom orders, there are no discounts," Li Rong replied evenly. "Prices increase by fifty percent."
"…Fifty percent?"
Ning Fengzhi and Dugu Bo were both dumbfounded.
"That's not expensive," Li Rong said matter-of-factly. "The main store isn't located on this continent. Intercontinental transport alone is something few can accomplish. Transportation costs, time delays—fifty percent is reasonable."
Only when ordering is expensive will you truly cherish discounted items during event refreshes. Because next time… there may not be a next time.
"Hm." Li Rong glanced at Dugu Bo. "Mr. Dugu is a major customer, so I'll give you a private suggestion. If you're cultivating medicinal herbs for sacrificial coins, mass-produce fourth-grade herbs."
He continued calmly, "Sixth-grade herbs take far too long to mature. Without a Spirit Gathering Array and specialized Spirit liquid, a single sixth-grade herb may take ten thousand years to mature. If planted in bulk, Spirit energy disperses, and maturation time could extend to twenty thousand, thirty thousand—or even a hundred thousand years."
"Even with arrays and Spirit liquid, a sixth-grade herb still takes over a hundred years. And for every additional plant in a Spirit field, the maturation time doubles."
"Fifth-grade herbs are similar—hundreds or thousands of years."
"Fourth-grade herbs are different. Array costs are far lower, and with Mr. Dugu's treasure land, even without a Spirit Gathering Array, a fourth-grade herb can be harvested in roughly ten years. With an array, mass cultivation barely affects growth speed. As long as the planting quantity is sufficient, the total sacrificial coins earned will far exceed sixth-grade herbs."
He paused.
"And the longer the maturation period, the higher the risk."
Ning Fengzhi and Dugu Bo both nodded in agreement.
"What if we set up a Spirit Gathering Array and plant in large quantities?" Ning Fengzhi asked.
"Approximately twelve years per harvest."
Encouraged, Ning Fengzhi continued, "Boss Li, which fourth-grade herbs would be most suitable? How many medicinal fields can be opened? How should they be distributed? And what exactly is a Spirit Gathering Array?"
Li Rong raised a hand. A crystal screen lit up behind him, displaying dense information.
"This question costs one thousand sacrificial coins."
Ning Fengzhi smiled bitterly. His attempt to freeload had failed completely.
With a decisive swipe, another portion of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School's millennium reserves vanished.
"Mr. Dugu's medicinal field has unique terrain," Li Rong explained. "Since you're planting fourth-grade herbs, there's no need to divide the land into separate fields. Instead, open circular plots around the Ice and Fire Yin-Yang Well."
"To minimize interference and maximize efficiency, one hundred plants per plot is optimal."
He then looked at Dugu Bo. "There's a ganoderma spore I recommend. In water-aspected Spirit energy, it becomes Ice Spirit Ganoderma, useful for strength-enhancing pills or water-aspect auxiliaries. In fire-aspected regions, it becomes Fire Spirit Ganoderma, suitable for amplification pills or fire-aspect auxiliaries."
"In regions rich in both water and fire Spirit energy, it mutates into Water Fire Ganoderma—a rare fourth-grade herb capable of refining spirit-power enhancement pills."
Ning Fengzhi turned to Dugu Bo. He knew nothing about medicinal fields and deferred completely.
Seeing Dugu Bo nod in approval, Ning Fengzhi asked, "What's the total cost for pre-ordering the Spirit Gathering Array and purchasing the ganoderma spores?"
"A fourth-grade Spirit Gathering Array requires fifty main flags and sixty-four auxiliary flags, refined with rare materials and arranged using Great Evolution numerology," Li Rong replied. "It aligns with the sun, moon, and stars, gathering天地 Spirit energy. Cultivating within it also greatly increases cultivation speed."
"For fourth-grade: 1,200,000 sacrificial coins."
"As for the spores—one hundred portions cost 50,000 sacrificial coins."
Ning Fengzhi nearly choked.
1.2 million? With ordering fees, that would be 1.8 million?!
Even if he sold the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile School outright, it might not be enough.
"Exchange this ten-thousand-year Spirit Bone and the second-grade herbs," he said immediately.
"…Total: 6,300 sacrificial coins."
"I'll pre-order one hundred portions of ganoderma spores."
His balance dropped to a miserable three hundred.
"As for the Spirit Gathering Array," he turned to Dugu Bo, "let's wait until we harvest a few batches first."
Dugu Bo pondered briefly, then asked, "Boss Li, could you elaborate on the cultivation boost provided by the array?"
"It varies by individual," Li Rong replied. "For Chen Xin, roughly twenty percent. For you—given your Green Snake Principle and solid control—around forty percent. Your granddaughter, with weaker strength but a cultivation technique, would gain nearly one hundred percent."
Dugu Bo's eyes lit up.
Without hesitation, he produced four medicinal materials, causing Ning Fengzhi to once again gasp at his wealth.
"Black Jade Divine Bamboo—570,000."
"Ten-thousand-year Polygonum Multiflorum—530,000."
"Nine-thousand-year Ginseng—430,000."
"Eight-thousand-year Purple Ganoderma—360,000."
"Total: 1,890,000 sacrificial coins. Would you like to pre-order the fourth-grade Spirit Gathering Array?"
Just as Dugu Bo was about to agree, Ning Fengzhi interrupted.
"What about fifth- and sixth-grade Spirit Gathering Arrays?"
"2,400,000 and 4,800,000 sacrificial coins," Li Rong replied.
Ning Fengzhi immediately looked at Dugu Bo.
Better to exchange once than waste coins later.
Dugu Bo rolled his eyes. "Didn't you see I even took out fifth-grade materials?"
"Brother Dugu already has sixth-grade ones. A few more fifth-grade won't be hard."
"Do you think fifth-grade herbs grow like cabbage?!"
"Brother Dugu, calm down. Since we'll exchange eventually, isn't it better to do so now?"
"Then why don't you exchange?"
Ning Fengzhi silently showed his empty balance.
…Trying to freeload again?
"This array is a shared expense," Ning Fengzhi said seriously. "Split evenly—1.8 million each. I'll repay at least 300,000 per exchange. Additionally, the Sect has a 30,000-year Tai Tan Giant Python left arm bone, which I'll gift to you now as interest."
Dugu Bo's heart stirred.
Perfect for Yan'er.
"Speaking of Spirit Bones," Li Rong interjected, "the more Spirit Bones one has, the lower their ultimate physical and control potential. High quantity and age drastically reduce the chance of independently breaking through to Rank 100."
"That's why our shop's acquisition price for Spirit Bones is low."
Silence fell.
The most coveted treasures… were actually obstacles?
Dugu Bo's expression stiffened. "Boss… what about the Spirit Bones on me?"
"The arm bone can be severed and regenerated. But you possess a skull bone. Your options are: seventh-grade body-reshaping pills, special breakthrough pills, faith power, or divine empowerment."
Dugu Bo's face darkened. "What seventh-grade pills?"
"Heavenly Bone Fusion Blood Pill. Exchange price: 5,600,000 sacrificial coins."
Dugu Bo nearly fainted.
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