Chapter 144: 143. Conditions

143. Chapter 143: Conditions

Fan Zhizhou was straightforward, listing conditions ranging from gold and territory to rare treasures, potent elixirs, and finally the Fan family's secret method of blood refinement into the meridians—essentially every resource a martial cultivator could need, save courtesans and concubines; yet from prior observations, even those would likely have no effect, for a man like Li Yi, after seizing Three Yang City, would have no shortage of beauties.

Yet even so, Li Yi still did not agree.

Though Li Yi did not fully grasp the value of these offerings, no one bargains by revealing their bottom line right away.

Fan Zhizhou, seeing this, did not rush. He had patience; as long as Li Yi did not strike, he could wait. After all, all he sought was survival—if he lost his life, nothing else mattered.

After a moment's thought, Li Yi spoke slowly: "I also need a method for refining Gang."

A method for refining Gang?

Fan Zhizhou paused, then shook his head: "I'm sorry, I cannot provide it. Only after I complete blood refinement into the meridians am I eligible to return to the Fan family and learn the method. If I had it, I wouldn't hesitate to give it to you—such techniques are precious to others, but to me, they're not scarce."

"Truly none?" Li Yi asked again.

"I swear, I truly do not have it," Fan Zhizhou said. "If you're interested, perhaps one day you may accompany me back to the Fan family as a guest. You are a cross-realm individual with boundless potential and infinite future—the Fan family's patriarch would be eager to befriend someone like you, for this matter involves cross-realm affairs, of great consequence, and even the Fan family would treat it with caution."

He spoke sincerely; since he could not defeat his opponent, he sought to befriend him.

"Then forget it. Change the condition—I need Yin Horses," Li Yi said immediately.

"Yin Horses? The steeds ridden by Yin soldiers and ghost generals?"

Fan Zhizhou said: "Few living people possess them; only those who frequently enter and exit Ghost Street use them. But since you've asked, I'll gather some for you—give me a few days. Seven days. I'll send them to you by then."

"Good. Your willingness and terms are acceptable. I'll set aside today's matter. If in the future you and the Zhao Martial Hall keep to your own paths and cause no trouble, I won't bother you—you may remain as city lord. But if I find you scheming behind my back, don't blame me for showing no mercy."

Li Yi set aside past grievances while issuing a threat.

"Thank you," Fan Zhizhou said. "But please ensure the Zhao Martial Hall disciplines its disciples—I do not wish to see Three Yang City descend into chaos."

Li Yi understood Fan Zhizhou's concern: he feared that should the Zhao Martial Hall grow unchecked, it would become a bandit gang, turning the city upside down.

"If Zhao Martial Hall disciples commit crimes, they will be punished by our sect's rules," Li Yi said. He did not wish for such chaos either, and made a promise.

"That is well," Fan Zhizhou nodded, his worries finally gone.

"Since matters are settled, I won't disturb you and your servant's reunion. Farewell." Seeing the deal done, Li Yi did not linger, immediately turning away with Rongniang.

"Please," Fan Zhizhou gestured, watching the two depart.

Only when Li Yi and Rongniang had ridden far away did Fan Zhizhou finally relax, exhaling deeply.

"Thankfully, he holds some affection for the Zhao Martial Hall—otherwise, this negotiation would have been far harder," he murmured, then looked at his palm.

The fist imprint was clearly visible, now swollen and oozing bruised blood—evidence of how fierce that single punch had been. A few more, and he would have been beaten to death.

"Forgive me, Young Master. Your old servant failed to subdue him. Cough, cough." The meridian-refining servant's face was pale, his breath weak.

"It's not your fault. Few in the Four Seas and Eight Provinces dare claim they could subdue a man like him—unless a top-tier cultivator intervenes. Even then, I have no confidence. He crossed realms; he must have prepared. He surely still holds hidden cards, but blood refinement into the meridians is beneath him—it couldn't force him to reveal them."

Fan Zhizhou sighed, walked over, lifted the loyal servant, and fed him a potent elixir to stabilize his injuries and restore his qi.

After taking the medicine, the servant's complexion brightened slightly, but he still needed rest to fully recover.

"Young Master, losing one round shouldn't break your spirit," the servant hurriedly said, seeing Fan Zhizhou's gloom.

Fan Zhizhou smiled and shook his head: "Before a man like him, what spirit remains? His punch crushed me—truly suffocating. And his face still carries youth—he's likely only around twenty. Give him a few more years of cultivation, and every martial cultivator in the Four Seas and Eight Provinces will bow before him. What frightens me most is that in his world, he's merely an ordinary cultivator."

"What kind of terrifying world produces such countless figures?"

He gazed at the distant sky, filled with longing: "The Four Seas and Eight Provinces are too small. Above, ghosts and gods rule; below, powerful clans dominate. In such an environment, true dragons cannot be born. Heroes who emerge once every three hundred years may, to them, be as common as carp crossing a river—countless. How I wish I could cross realms too."

At that moment, Fan Zhizhou felt his former ambitions and talents were a joke.

From Li Yi, he had glimpsed true vastness—while he himself was merely a mud eel in a pond, unfit for the ocean.

"Young Master, if you truly desire this, Li Yi is your opportunity," the servant whispered. "If he can cross realms to kill, you can surely cross to leave."

Fan Zhizhou fell silent, his eyes flickering: "You're right. If this mud eel enters the sea, even if I cannot become a true dragon, I may become a dragon-serpent—and still stir the winds and clouds of the Four Seas and Eight Provinces. But I've already angered Li Yi; reconciling won't be easy. And he treats kings and generals as nothing—he dares demand imperial blood. The Fan family cannot control him."

"Yet he showed interest in the method for refining Gang. If I offer great rewards, perhaps he'll take me across realms."

The servant immediately said: "Young Master, you must consider carefully—crossing realms may mean you never return."

Fan Zhizhou laughed: "As a scion of a noble house, my martial path ends at refining Gang. For a thousand years, countless like me have existed—my absence would make no difference. If I can truly cross realms, then not returning is no loss. What's there to fear? If I can glimpse the pinnacle's splendor, even death would be worth it."

As he spoke, his resolve grew stronger.

"To make this happen, you need your father's approval," the servant reminded.

"No rush," Fan Zhizhou shook his head. "The conflict has just settled—this isn't the time to speak of it. Rest well first. I'll arrange for others to deliver the treasures, elixirs, and the blood-refinement method to Li Yi. Once I obtain the Yin Horses, I'll visit him personally."

Meanwhile,

Li Yi, having left the city lord's mansion, now felt considerably better. He had accomplished all major tasks in a single day; the rest were trivial, unworthy of concern.

"Senior Brother, you did the right thing," Rongniang finally spoke on the road.

"What did I do right?" Li Yi asked.

Rongniang said: "Sparing Fan Zhizhou and his servant's lives was right. Killing them brings no benefit, only trouble. Keeping them alive aids the Zhao Martial Hall's rebuilding and grants us treasures, elixirs, and the secret blood-refinement method—all immensely helpful."

"The Zhao Martial Hall's disciples are dead; the enemies are destroyed. We must plan for the future. We cannot let momentary anger ruin a promising situation."

Traveling with Li Yi, she had come to understand many things—some things cannot be done simply because one wishes them.

For example, with the Jin family disciples, they could not exterminate them all—only break their spirit, causing the Jin Martial Hall to collapse and vanish.

Likewise, with the Han family disciples, they could only kill the leaders and spare the followers—she was no god; she could not cleanse every enemy. A martial hall's connections were too vast, tangled in webs of relationships. To exterminate them all would require killing everyone in Three Yang City.

The same applied to Fan Zhizhou, the city lord.

Two lives, exchanged for the Zhao Martial Hall's bright future—worth it.

If they had killed them all in a fit of rage, the Zhao Martial Hall could never rebuild—and future retaliation might cost even more disciples their lives.

"I've done little for my Master," Li Yi said calmly on horseback. "I cannot remain in the Four Seas and Eight Provinces forever. I must return eventually. So, after I leave, the Zhao Martial Hall must stand on its own. Revenge must be measured—there must be no return of the enemy to destroy the hall once I'm gone."

"What? Senior Brother is leaving?"

Rongniang's heart clenched sharply; alarm flashed in her eyes, her grip on the reins tightening.

Li Yi said: "My parents need care at home, and matters await me. Had it not been for Zhao Qian's dream warning me of my Master's danger, I would never have risked crossing realms to come. Once I finish here, I'll likely depart."

"But don't worry—I came once, so I can come again. Perhaps I'll travel back and forth often."

"That's good, that's good," Rongniang breathed out in relief.

She had feared he would leave and never return—but even now, her heart ached with unbearable reluctance.