Chapter 232: Terms of the Deal

"Xiao Lin?" Xun'er was first puzzled, stunned for a moment, before her pupils constricted. She lightly covered her mouth with a small hand, her voice trembling slightly as she said:

"You... no... are you Xiao Yan's grandfather, that old Clan Leader of the Xiao Clan, Xiao Lin?"

"That's right." Seemingly very satisfied with Xun'er's reaction, Xiao Lin said with a mischievous sense of humor.

"But weren't you supposed to have passed away?" Xun'er was shocked beyond measure.

Xiao Lin had passed away a long time ago, and the entire Xiao Clan from top to bottom believed this to be the case. The fact that this suddenly happened left even the clever and quick-witted Xun'er somewhat bewildered.

"This is merely a bit of a trick of the eye," Xiao Lin said calmly. "Don't you Ancient Race people often play these games too?"

For many old seniors of various forces, if they want to withdraw and shift to protecting from the shadows, they either gradually weaken their own presence or arrange a fake death to disappear quickly; it is an old tactic.

It is precisely because of this that in some forces with long-standing inheritances, old monsters are all bunched together, and no one can figure out their true background.

Xun'er also gradually came back to her senses and recovered her usual composure. She shifted the topic somewhat nervously: "I wonder what business Xiao Grandfather has with Xun'er?"

This was, after all, an elder of Xiao Yan, so she absolutely could not lose her manners.

However, the next moment, Xiao Lin's words caused Xun'er's expression to change abruptly.

"Little girl, the Ancient Clan arranged for you to come here, it should be to have you find that piece of Tuoshe Ancient God Jade of our Xiao Clan, right?"

Xun'er's small hand suddenly clenched. This shouldn't be; she didn't seem to have shown any obvious inclination, did she?

Xun'er's thoughts were in turmoil, but more than that, she was worried. Since the Xiao Clan already knew her arrival had ulterior motives, what would they think of her?

Seeing Xun'er's nervousness, Xiao Lin chuckled, "Rest assured, since I have said it out loud, it proves that our Xiao Clan does not care about this matter."

Xiao Lin's words seemed to have magic, causing Xun'er's mood to calm down rapidly. She asked suspiciously: "Then I wonder, Xiao Grandfather..."

Before Xun'er could finish her sentence, Xiao Lin interrupted: "Little girl, can you represent the Ancient Clan and make a deal with my Xiao Clan?"

"A deal?" Xun'er was puzzled.

"Yes!" Xiao Lin nodded, "A deal regarding my Xiao Clan's Tuoshe Ancient God Jade."

"Tuoshe Ancient God Jade?!"

Xun'er's voice suddenly increased. She did not believe that the Xiao Clan knew of the Tuoshe Ancient God Jade but did not understand the meaning of this ancient jade. A piece of jade related to the Ancient Emperor Cave Mansion, even if it were just a fragment, was enough to drive countless people mad.

Now, the other party was actually saying they wanted to trade it!

However, Xun'er did not care about that at all; she only cared about one thing: "How to trade?"

She asked expectantly.

The Tuoshe Ancient God Jade was a huge bargaining chip; if her father knew, he would certainly not refuse.

"As for that..." Xiao Lin drew out his voice, "My Xiao Clan hopes the Ancient Clan can help us solve some difficult problems."

Xun'er recovered her original intelligence, her eyes flickering. She naturally guessed that the problems in Xiao Lin's mouth were likely not small; otherwise, he wouldn't be dangling such a big piece of fat as the Tuoshe Ancient God Jade in front of the Ancient Clan.

However...

Xun'er took a deep breath. For the sake of the Tuoshe Ancient God Jade, she would risk it!

"I wonder what the problem is?"

"My Xiao Clan hopes the Ancient Clan can hold back the Soul Clan for ten years, so they do not disturb my Xiao Clan's development."

Xun'er had originally thought she was mentally prepared, but... Xiao Lin's words left her completely at a loss.

Xun'er frowned and said: "The Soul Clan has discovered the matter of the Xiao Clan?"

The Soul Clan's intelligence network was actually this powerful, only ten-plus years behind their Ancient Clan, the race most familiar with the Xiao Clan.

But the key now was not this; what was important was...

"Xiao Grandfather, you truly hold our Ancient Clan in too high regard. For this request, I am afraid Xun'er is powerless."

In Xun'er's view, although their Ancient Clan's strength was indeed a bit stronger than the Soul Clan's, it was only by a limited margin. How could they possibly have the ability to hold back all of the Soul Clan's power? That would be no less than directly launching a war between the two races.

If this condition were sent back to the Ancient Clan, it would be better to just go and snatch it!

But Xun'er did not want to let this great opportunity slip away before her eyes, so she took the initiative to propose:

"My Ancient Clan can use resources to exchange with the Xiao Clan for the Tuoshe Ancient God Jade, even Ninth Grade Medicinal Pills are acceptable."

For an Ancient Race like the Ancient Clan, money was the least of their worries. If they could exchange resources for the Tuoshe Ancient God Jade, no one would dare to object.

However...

Xiao Lin shook his head and said, "I fear our Xiao Clan would have the life to take these resources, but not the life to spend them!"

The implication was naturally a refusal.

Xun'er said in a difficult position: "Xiao Grandfather, our Ancient Clan truly cannot agree to this matter. Could we change to another condition?"

Xiao Lin thought for a while and finally sighed: "To what extent can your Ancient Clan manage?"

Now was the time for bargaining, and Xun'er began to lower the price: "My Ancient Clan can only intercept the Soul Clan's Dou Sheng experts of five stars and above; we are powerless regarding the rest."

On the surface, Dou Sheng are much harder to deal with than ordinary small fry, but in fact, only top-tier powerhouses are the easiest targets to block.

The reason is simple: there are few of them!

The Soul Clan has countless descendants and hundreds of thousands of formal clansmen. There is no such thing as an airtight wall in the world; if these people wanted to infiltrate, it would be too easy, and their Ancient Clan could never discover them.

But the Soul Clan's high-level Dou Sheng are different. The Ancient Clan's powerhouses have always been watching this group of people, basically adopting a man-to-man marking tactic. As long as the other party makes a move, the Ancient Clan can immediately discover it.

Such a condition was basically nothing to the Ancient Clan.

Xiao Lin reluctantly offered the final condition: "How about this, my Xiao Clan won't make it difficult for the Ancient Clan. As long as the Ancient Clan can hold back all of the Soul Clan's Dou Sheng powerhouses, for just ten years, my Xiao Clan will hand over the Tuoshe Ancient God Jade with both hands."

"How about it?"

Xun'er frowned and pondered. This condition was indeed much easier than the previous one. The Ancient Clan was already in opposition to the Soul Clan, so this kind of thing was much easier than imagined.

But it was also very troublesome. If not for the Xiao Clan using the Tuoshe Ancient God Jade as a bargaining chip, the Ancient Clan would basically never agree.

Moreover, regarding matters involving Dou Sheng powerhouses, Xun'er did not have such high authority to make decisions right now.

Finally...

Xun'er gritted her teeth, raised her head, and said: "Xun'er needs to contact the clan. Could I ask Xiao Grandfather to wait for a period of time? Seven days later, Xun'er will give Xiao Grandfather an answer, is that alright?"

"No problem!" Xiao Lin found nothing wrong with this. This matter had huge implications; how could a little girl decide it? He was just using her to pass this condition to the Ancient Clan.

Right now, Xiao Lin and even the Xiao Clan can only gamble, gambling that the Ancient Clan, or rather Gu Yuan, is willing to use this method to trade for the Tuoshe Ancient God Jade peacefully.

Otherwise, the Xiao Clan will likely have no choice but to slip away.

"In that case, Xun'er will take her leave first." Today's events had dealt a massive shock to Xun'er; with the serious business concluded, she did not wish to stay any longer, even though the person before her was her future grandfather.

Watching Xun'er's departing figure, Xiao Lin felt heavy-hearted; this feeling of waiting for a verdict was truly agonizing, yet there was nothing he could do—who told the Xiao Clan to be so weak right now!

"Time to go see my grandson!" Xiao Lin suddenly revealed a smile, and his figure vanished.

Feeling slightly excited, he wondered how that kid would react upon seeing him, his grandfather?