Chapter 106

"Saluo Zhuo, are you planning to plunder openly?"

Sakavi's voice rolled from his throat, carrying the low rumble of lava about to boil, and the air in the hall seemed to heat up a bit.

"If you weren't still wearing this dazzling gold skin, I would almost suspect that your so-called Dragonborn bloodline was forged by some Goblin merchant with a dye vat!"

The slits in his dragon pupils narrowed like knives, staring fixedly at the direction of the Jin Hui Society representative in the crystal ball in front of him, "This kind of price tag that doesn't even leave bone dregs... how exactly did you figure it out from under your scales? Hmm?"

His leaning body cast an oppressive shadow, word by word, his anger sparking like embers:

"Or is it that in your eyes, on my Sakavi's head... the three words 'sucker' are engraved?"

"A misunderstanding! Your Excellency Grand Duke, you are really overpraising me. As a branch of the Bailong Sect, our 'Jin Hui Society' considers serving and following the great dragons as the cornerstone and supreme glory of our sect. How could we, and how would we dare, to have even half a point of disrespect and deception toward you?"

The voice paused, as if shaking its head and sighing, full of the grievance of being misunderstood.

"There must be a huge misunderstanding here. Please calm your anger, Your Excellency, and allow me to explain it to you slowly... Every single payment has been repeatedly prayed over and strictly calculated, entirely to ensure that the offerings are worthy of your majesty and needs."

"Hmph."

The sulfurous breath puffed from Sakavi's nostrils distorted the air in front of him, the golden light in his dragon pupils as sharp as needles.

"When Aiquilong represented me in negotiations last time, you didn't have this tone." His voice was very low, yet every word seemed to be gritted through teeth. "Opening your mouth was the old debt of the Huoxiongdi Society, closing it was 'risk requires a premium,' and your posture was quite hard."

He tilted his head slightly, as if savoring that unpleasant memory.

"What, now that hardness has been blown away by the wind of the Abyss?" A tremor like a cold laugh rolled from the depths of the dragon throat, "Or did you see that I won this battle at my doorstep, and suddenly remembered... how to talk to an evil Chromatic Dragon?"

"Grand Duke, you don't need to threaten me with such words."

The voice at the other end of the crystal ball restrained its smile, still steady, but revealing a cold, world-weary frankness.

"Our history of dealing with dragons in the Bailong Sect is longer than many kingdoms. We have seen great existences of all temperaments, and we know well—" he dragged out the syllables slightly, "that Chromatic Dragons willing to sit down and reason are rarer than three-legged toads."

The voice paused, regaining a kind of unruffled composure.

"We dare to trade with any existence, so naturally we have corresponding... methods to ensure that contracts are fulfilled. The problem of reneging on debts has never been our concern."

"You should feel fortunate—fortunate that at this moment, it is not just distance that separates you and me."

Sakavi's voice dropped suddenly, like the muffled sound of rock strata grinding deep in the crust, every word soaked in cold violence.

"Otherwise, I would use my claw tips to teach you to remember—what kind of... 'hospitality' you would get for talking to a Black Dragon in this tone."

The molten-gold light in his dragon pupils became dangerously intense, as if magma were churning beneath.

"The price, I fear, is not something you, or the Jin Hui Society behind you, would be willing to pay."

"Grand Duke, these verbal skirmishes are meaningless. According to our earlier agreement and the current situation, the reconstruction of Weilincheng has already started."

The voice paused slightly, clearly stating the requirement:

"Now, it is time for you to fulfill your promise. We of the Bailong Sect need to have a formal foothold in the port. Please prepare the land division documents and sovereignty permits for the corresponding areas according to the agreement."

His tone was calm, but he bit the words "promise" and "fulfill" with extra clarity.

"Black Dragons never go back on their word, nor do they disdain to play word games; those are dirty tricks preferred by Green Dragons."

Sakavi's voice was low and direct, carrying the unique, almost arrogant frankness of the dragon race.

"You can get a piece of land in Weilincheng; this point will not change." He paused slightly, a cold luster flashing in his slit pupils, "But I seem to have never promised that that piece of land would be free."

"We naturally understand this point."

Saluo Zhuo's voice revealed a prepared composure, as if everything was within expectations.

"Our side will pay for the land at a reasonable market price—this is a commercial rule and has nothing to do with what we are talking about today." He shifted the topic, cutting to the truly critical point, "I think your current demand for certain high-purity Holy Light crystals, extracts of the Fountain of Life, and other scarce materials used to purify Abyssal pollution... should be quite large."

His tone added a hint of a subtle sense of advantage in grasping the key.

"But you also understand that with your identity as a Chromatic Dragon, especially a Black Dragon Lord, there is probably no supplier in the conventional market who dares to risk being wanted to conduct such a large and sensitive transaction with you. And this is exactly what we are really going to talk about today."

"Hmph! Stop lumping me in with those guys who are chased all over the sky."

Sakavi's voice was mixed with offended anger and haughtiness.

"I am a legitimate Duke personally sealed by the Emperor of the Luo Sen Empire and registered in the coat of arms! I am not the same as those wanderers who don't even dare to fix their lairs. What I have on my head is a legal title and an orderly contract!"

The golden light in his dragon pupils flashed sharply.

"In this set of rules, even the most pedantic Wood Elves cannot put a knife to the neck of an orderly lord for no reason. As long as I don't cross the line, everyone has to do things according to the rules."

"What you say is naturally reasonable. However, there are only two types of Chromatic Dragons in this world who possess a 'legal identity'—"

Saluo Zhuo's voice slowed down, as if stating a recognized common sense.

"One type is conquered and tamed by more powerful forces, becoming silent decorations or mounts on someone else's coat of arms. The other type..." he paused deliberately, making the following words sharper.

"Is to win a title and rank for oneself through some long-term planning, exquisite contracts, or just-right 'contributions.' These titles are often for the convenience of expanding one's influence, or... conducting some things that are inconvenient to carry out in the sunlight."

His tone turned into a near-sympathetic understanding.

"And coincidentally, all forces that have some understanding of your past almost classify you as the latter. In the assessment report, your danger rating... has always been high."

"It seems... we are unlikely to reach a consensus today."

Sakavi's voice suddenly calmed down, the previous anger seemingly sinking into the ice layer instantly, leaving only cold, realistic considerations.

"However, your urgent desire to establish a branch in Weilincheng... I fear it will have to be put on the back burner." His tone was flat, but every word was precise.

"After all, it is still a ruin that needs to be cleaned up from scratch. And the Bailong Sect... ultimately has to move in the shadows of order, can only mix among ordinary merchants and adventurers, and cannot openly mobilize resources or seize opportunities."

He paused slightly, making the following words even more fatal.

"And the opportunities of the Abyss have always favored the vultures that arrive first. The later you go, the cleaner the bones you can gnaw on..."

"Please forgive my bluntness, Your Excellency Grand Duke. Your words and actions at this moment are no different from a bandit entrenched on a trade route."

Saluo Zhuo's voice was clear and hard, every word like an ice pick polished with care.

"Unilaterally shelving the contract terms that have already reached a consensus and using our disadvantage of being unable to act publicly to threaten us is not a commercial act, but plunder."

He emphasized his tone slightly, posing the core warning:

"The reputation and network of the Bailong Sect spanning several epochs are built on the sanctity of contracts. If you insist on abandoning the agreement today, then have you seriously considered what a long list of troubles you will be added to?

When you are in urgent need of some 'hard-to-obtain' resources in the Astral Plane or other planes in the future, guess which reputable merchant will be willing to sit down and talk in detail with a 'bandit lord'?"

"Our 'returns' have never been just swords."

"Ah! My dear friend, you have completely misunderstood my meaning."

Sakavi's voice suddenly shifted, the previous coldness and threats receding like the tide, replaced by a frank tone with a helpless sigh.

"I mean, those impatient adventurers and other merchants, even if Weilincheng is still a ruin, cannot stop their steps toward the Abyss; at most, the road is harder and supplies are more troublesome."

His tone was light, as if stating an irrelevant fact, "And on my side, I have really emptied the treasury and still can't scrape together the huge funds needed to rebuild the port. This construction progress, I fear, will have to... be delayed for a while."

He paused, his voice full of a "sincere" grievance of being misunderstood:

"But this absolutely, absolutely does not mean 'breach of contract'! It is purely limited by objective conditions. You think, if I were well-off, how would I not hope that the port would be built early to welcome merchants from all sides and earn gold coins?"

"So, this is not a threat, but... a regrettable practical difficulty. We are still the closest partners, aren't we?"

"It seems that although both sides have imminent needs, it is difficult to find a balance point that satisfies both parties for the time being."

The voice in the crystal ball returned to its initial steady and ritualistic distance, carrying a cautious detachment.

"I think continuing to argue at this time is of no benefit. We may both need to pause for a moment and calmly re-examine our respective positions and bargaining chips."

…………

"Klausuna, are you planning to plunder openly?"

"Ah? Liwoge is currently guarding the Suoluo Islands; if he returns, who will be sent there?"

"Let Zelasi go; she has earned enough battle merits in this war and probably has no intention of risking her life, so it's just right to send her there to train. Besides, we just won a defensive battle, and no one dares to look for trouble at this time."