Chapter 1137: The Horn of the Era, the Customs of Daxia

In the conference room.

The negotiations between the Tower of Time and the Ming Shui Chamber of Commerce regarding the new procurement agreement proceeded very smoothly; from morning until noon, in just half a day, they finalized a new agreement involving an amount heading straight for ten million Gold Coins.

The agreement stipulates that the Ming Shui Chamber of Commerce will sell various Magic Items to the Tower of Time at a price 7% higher than the market price on the day the agreement is signed.

In return, the Tower of Time must guarantee that, starting from the date the agreement is signed, it will purchase 1 million Gold Coins' worth of Magic Items from the Ming Shui Chamber of Commerce annually for five years.

At first glance, this agreement seems very unfavorable to the Tower of Time, especially with the procurement price being nearly one-tenth higher than the market price, which is simply intolerable.

But in reality, the Tower of Time is still getting the better end of the deal.

First, large-scale Magic Item sellers are already rare, and it is entirely a seller's market; if one were to encounter someone unscrupulous, it wouldn't be strange for them to charge not just 10% more, but double.

Second, the price of Communication Magic Tools based on Magic Net Background Communication has already begun to trend downward, and affected by this, the prices of other Magic Items will also continue to trend downward.

But this is only the surface; in essence, a price war for Magic Items is about to begin, manufacturing technology will rapidly upgrade, and at the same time, the demand for Magic Items will continue to rise.

Looking at it this way, purchasing at only 7% above the market price on the day the agreement was signed is entirely a bargain for the Tower of Time.

Of course, if the Tower of Time did not constantly launch new products to suppress the prices of Magic Items and force other Mage Towers to upgrade their manufacturing technology, the price of Magic Items might not necessarily increase much in the next five years.

And without large-scale shipments, it would be difficult to achieve an annual procurement volume of one million Gold Coins.

This is actually a chain of interconnected events, and technological upgrading itself signifies innovation and prosperity; it can be said that from the moment this agreement was signed, Xia Duo had already sounded the horn of a new era.

The future will surely be an era of great innovation, great development, and great prosperity!

……

Of course, the new agreement is not just a five-year procurement agreement; it also includes a joint confirmation of strategic cooperation between the Tower of Time and the Ming Shui Chamber of Commerce.

It involves the promotion of New Coins, the consignment of Magic Items, acting in concert on certain issues within the Arcane Union, and even joint combat in certain special circumstances.

The scope is so broad that it can almost be said to cover every aspect.

The only regret is that this agreement was not signed in the form of a Sacred Contract, which means there is a possibility of breach.

Of course, given the current status of Xia Duo and Zhenna, such an agreement does not yet require a Sacred Contract to be signed.

……

At noon, Xia Duo invited Saide to the Territory for a meal. When the two walked out of the Tower of Time, the Code Plaza on the west side was already nearing completion under the overtime work of the various Working Groups of the Daxia Territory Development Department.

Now only a small half of the ground remains to be paved with bricks; if things go quickly, it might be finished by tomorrow, though the Code Sculpture had already been moved over a few days ago before Xia Duo went to the Watchtower.

At this moment, Saide's gaze was captured by the nearly ten-meter-tall Code Sculpture, and he even subconsciously stopped his footsteps.

"Lord Xia Duo, that is—" Saide's voice clearly carried fluctuations, containing both surprise and curiosity.

Xia Duo naturally knew that this was because of the "Pseudo-9th Ring Aura" of the Code Sculpture; setting that aside, the Code Sculpture would only be a slightly larger sculpture in the eyes of a Senior Arcanist.

"Consultant Saide, this is the Code Plaza of Daxia Territory, and that sculpture is naturally the 'Daxia Code'! Let's go over and take a look!"

"Good!"

The luncheon at the Lord's Villa was already prepared, but there was no rush to delay a little longer, so Xia Duo accompanied Saide on foot toward the Code Sculpture.

It was only a hundred meters or so from the Tower of Time to the Code Sculpture. During this distance, Xia Duo could just happen to introduce the legal system of Daxia Territory to Saide. Once they reached the foot of the Code, he instead stopped talking and let Saide observe.

Of course, this could also be considered a small test by Xia Duo of his strategic partner, Saide.

"So that's how it is!" Saide suddenly revealed an expression of sudden realization.

He turned to look at Xia Duo, and Xia Duo returned a polite smile; he knew that Saide must have seen through the details of the "Pseudo-Aura."

This meant that Saide, like him, was also a Senior Arcanist who had come into contact with the Eighth Layer of the Magic Net.

By the same token, through this sculpture, Saide could also clearly know that he, Xia Duo, was not one of those Senior Arcanists who had only come into contact with the Eighth Layer of the Magic Net.

The two did not discuss anything about the "Pseudo-Aura"; at this moment, Saide's attention was firmly attracted by the text of the Code on the base of the Code Sculpture.

However, after watching for a while, Saide stopped, turned to look at Xia Duo expectantly, and asked, "Lord Xia Duo, may I record the content on this?"

"Of course you may!" Xia Duo answered affirmatively.

In fact, he wished he could spread the Daxia Code everywhere; this was conducive to the derivation of order, and of course, what he hoped for most was—that the Daxia Code would be implemented everywhere.

To use the words of the ancients from his hometown, this is "promoting royal civilization."

……

On the other side, having received Xia Duo's permission, Saide immediately took out a pure-colored Crystal Ball and then cast a spell to record the image, while Xia Duo watched quietly.

Observing the spellcasting process of a Senior Arcanist up close is not an opportunity that comes along often. Through observing Saide, Xia Duo also realized the gap between himself and veteran Senior Arcanists in terms of spellcasting techniques.

Although this gap was not enough to make him completely fall into a disadvantage during spell duels, it also meant there was room for improvement.

He leveled up too quickly; in terms of spellcasting techniques, let alone comparing himself to a Senior Arcanist like Saide, even many High Mages might be better than him.

Before the birth of intelligent spellcasting tools, spellcasting techniques always accounted for a significant proportion in spell duels.

"It seems I still need to spend more time on spell practice in the future!"

……

Soon, Saide finished recording the articles of the Code. He put away the Crystal Ball, thanked Xia Duo solemnly, and added, "Coming to Nan Jing this time was truly the right choice! The President will surely be very happy to see this Daxia Code!"

"It is a great honor that the Daxia Code can receive the affirmation of Consultant Saide and President Zhenna. I hope the upcoming Daxia cuisine can also receive the affirmation of Consultant Saide!"

"After seeing the Daxia Code, I am even more looking forward to the Daxia cuisine!"

"Please!"

……

Although the two delayed for a while at the sculpture, they arrived at the Lord's Villa earlier than originally planned because they flew over.

After taking their seats, Xia Duo immediately ordered the banquet to begin.

As dish after dish of Daxia cuisine, rich in color, aroma, and taste, was delivered to Saide, Saide's eyes went a bit straight. He imitated Xia Duo's manner and clumsily used chopsticks to pick up food.

Perhaps driven by the motivation of the delicious food, after trying a few times, Saide was soon able to skillfully use chopsticks to pick up the food he wanted.

"Lord Xia Duo, the design of this tableware with two small sticks is truly quite ingenious, and it matches the delicacy of Daxia cuisine very well!"

"These are chopsticks, a type of tableware most common in my hometown!"