Chapter 846: Upgrade

The Hutian Priest left full of worry, and the Human side was also deeply shaken, though they had yet to keep pace with the rhythm. When they reached a secluded spot, several Sword Saints surrounded Tang Zhao, asking one after another about what he had seen and heard, and what he meant by his words to Hutian.

Compared to the Heavenly Demons, the Sword Saints were naturally his own people, yet they were not so close that Tang Zhao could disclose everything, including the Master Sword. However, he recounted everything else truthfully: that he had seen the Evil God's true form was some kind of tentacle, that he had discovered the five-colored material at the Heavenly Demon Holy Land resembled that Evil God, and that he had gained inspiration from hearing about Zhangle's experience in the outer Void. Ultimately, he was eighty percent certain that the Evil God was of the same origin as the powerful world about to descend.

Hearing this, the Emperors were struck speechless, looking at one another in silence. Finally, one sighed, "Truly, these are troubled times."

Originally, because Zhangle's plan was gradually becoming feasible and there was hope for the world's safety, the overall situation was looking up. The Sword Saints all felt they held a trump card and their pressure had eased; they even found the Heavenly Demons, who were jumping about over the Great Ship, to be as amusing as clowns. Who would have expected the situation to take a sharp turn for the worse, with new waves rising from calm waters? The addition of an Evil God of unknown origin, who seemed poised to destroy the world from within, turned the once-clearing situation murky again.

The Kun Sword finally spoke, and the moment he opened his mouth, he was cursing: "These Heavenly Demons are simply stupid! They fell for the Evil God's trap from the very beginning!"

"It is precisely from the beginning," the Zhen Sword said calmly. "The Heavenly Demons never had a future from the start. I have always found them ridiculous; their highest power is actually held in the hands of a god, and all the power of the High Priest is merely borrowed. This means the Heavenly Demons have never mastered their own destiny. That all the Heavenly Demons would be packaged and sold by a god together—wasn't that bound to happen sooner or later? I just don't know if this Evil God came here to forage for its own selfish reasons, or if it is truly a spy for another world? If it is the latter, that is a real disaster."

The Kun Sword said listlessly at this moment, "It is not that troublesome. Compared to that world, we were already far behind. Whether there is a spy or not, it won't stop them from invading us like crushing dry weeds and smashing rotten wood. Conversely, if Zhangle's methods can succeed, it won't be hindered by one or two spies."

Everyone fell silent, because what he said was the truth, and the truth was unpleasant to hear.

"Actually, Hutian was right about one thing," the Qian Sword brought the topic back. "With a great enemy before us and less than a month left, we truly have no time or energy to openly fall out with this powerful enemy. We can only gather our Spirit to muddle through this crisis. Once this is over, if the Evil God does not leave, then it will be a heart-and-gut affliction. But then again, at that time, it would just be one more enemy; in all these years, have we ever lacked enemies? After this crisis passes, whether the Heavenly Demons are friend or foe is hard to predict. If they become mortal enemies again, their own internal troubles might not be a bad thing. Only for the present, Jingxing has already proven that the Evil God truly exists and is very dangerous. Therefore, we must abandon this Great Ship project. If Hutian keeps his promise and helps us withdraw, that is best; otherwise, we must withdraw even if it means a falling out. Losing promising young people is one thing, but I fear he has some other trick, using the young to implicate the entire world, leaving endless future troubles."

"At tomorrow's meeting, we will mainly be setting conditions. Zhangle's Changjie Sword Technique must begin preparations as soon as possible. Is the list ready?"

The Changjie Sword Technique requires many preparations. Ideally, one would begin the process a month or even longer in advance to step onto the first tier, but there are too many things happening now, and it has been delayed again and again. It is no longer so ideal, so we must at least preserve half a month and spend resources to make up for the lack of time.

This list was, of course, prepared long ago. Zhangle had already drawn up the list of required materials, all of which had been agreed upon previously, including which parts the Heavenly Demons would bear. Had it not been for the unexpected complications, it should have been proposed at yesterday's meeting, but it was postponed for two days; today is just for final confirmation. The Zhen Sword said, "The Heavenly Demons are pushing their luck; we can raise our conditions."

Everyone agreed. The Qian Sword pondered for a moment and said, "Good. Although the overall situation is paramount, we cannot be the only ones thinking of the big picture, retreating again and again, only to make them think we are weak and easy to bully. They know they are in the wrong, so this price can certainly be raised. Let's raise it by thirty percent. Of course, to save time, this list will be our bottom line; it cannot be lower than this."

Tang Zhao suddenly said, "We can double it."

Everyone was stunned. The Zhen Sword actually liked Tang Zhao quite a bit and recognized that he should not be treated as a child because he felt Tang Zhao had a clear mind and courage, even surpassing some Sword Saints. Therefore, he did not treat him with jest, but patiently said, "Theoretically, to save the world, we could ask for anything, and they are not incapable of producing it, but we are not actually lacking in these things. We are not relying on this to make money. Although this is a one-off deal, the Changjie Sword Technique will certainly be performed publicly, and everyone knows how much is needed in the end. Falsely inflating the price too high would only make us lose face. Furthermore, negotiation time is limited; there is no need to increase the risk of the talks collapsing for the sake of a fake price."

Tang Zhao shook his head and said, "It is not a fake price, but that we truly need this much. I will upgrade Zhangle's sword. It will make his sword technique more powerful, the chances of success will be greater, and the corresponding resources consumed will also be greater."

The Sword Saints heard this with varying expressions, but most looked disapproving. The Zhen Sword shook his head: "I have heard you are a premier Sword Smith, and I believe you have the ability to upgrade Zhangle's sword to be more powerful, but now is not the time. Not to mention that upgrading carries risks, even if it succeeds, Zhangle is used to his current sword, and he would need time to adapt to a changed one. Isn't time exactly what we lack most right now?"

Tang Zhao smiled: "Do you remember when I was disguised as Zhangle, and Emperor Qian Sword asked me what my chances of success were? I said ninety percent, and that was no empty boast. But if you asked Zhangle now, he would say sixty percent, and that is also no empty boast. Although he is a humble person, some things do not allow for humility; it is what it is. But I have discussed it with him, and upgrading in certain aspects can indeed raise it to ninety percent."

The Zhen Sword confirmed, "You discussed it with him? He agrees?"

Tang Zhao nodded: "Exactly. This is not a sudden thought of mine. It has actually been my plan all along, or rather, a part of the plan. This matter is too significant. Sixty percent is already high for a general plan, but this concerns the entire world; even ninety-nine percent feels low. I want to do my best to achieve the best result. For this, I have discussed and studied with Zhangle several times, and the plan was also developed by us together. My trip out this time also had the intention of collecting materials for him. Now, I am fully prepared."

Among them, the Kun Sword knew the relationship between Tang Zhao and Zhangle best, thinking: That child Zhangle listens to you completely. Even if you thought of the plan yesterday, if you told him to cooperate and say it was planned ten years ago, he would agree. Whether it was studied long ago, only you know.

However, he truly trusted Tang Zhao the most, and their personal friendship was particularly good, so he hesitated and said nothing.

Thus, the others believed him. In fact, the operation of upgrading a sword is not uncommon. The old swords passed down are fine, but many new swords have many flaws during casting because the level of Sword Smiths varies and wealth is uneven. If one is just a Sword Guest, it is fine, but the stronger one becomes, the more likely the sword is to fall behind. At this time, it is necessary to hire better and more powerful Sword Smiths at a high price to upgrade it. Those present had upgraded their swords, some even multiple times, and knew that if a sword is upgraded well, it can truly be reborn. At most, the Xun Sword asked, "Upgrading a sword takes quite a bit of time, right? I'm afraid there isn't enough time now."

Tang Zhao said, "One day is enough. I will do it as soon as I go back."

The Qian Sword, who knew a little about Rune Formula, found it even more incredible and confirmed, "One day is enough?"

Tang Zhao said proudly, "Of course, I have been prepared for a long time."

If it were Rune Formula, it would certainly not work, but using the Master's method to click "One-Click Upgrade" was no problem. Even upgrading such a large Evil God's hand would not take an hour.

This time, even the Qian Sword was stunned. He thought for a moment and said, "If you are truly certain... well, so doubling the materials is something you have calculated?"

Tang Zhao said, "Yes, there is no padding in this at all."

The Qian Sword smiled and said, "Then double it, and add another thirty percent."

Everyone chuckled. This could not be considered a last-minute price hike; the Heavenly Demons hadn't even seen the first quote, so how could it be considered a price hike?

In the end, Tang Zhao received the support of most of the Sword Saints, so he stopped worrying about the negotiations—it wasn't his place to manage them anyway. When it came to the final pricing, he didn't even have a chance to interject. His mission was almost complete, so he set off directly back to the Sun Domain to race against time and study the upgrade of Wei Zhangle's sword.

Actually, the Kun Sword might have been taking too extreme a view of Tang Zhao. With such a big matter as upgrading a sword, how could he not have discussed it with Zhangle? Although Zhangle trusted him, Tang Zhao could not wantonly squander others' trust. Zhangle believed Tang Zhao could help his sword achieve a leap in improvement and also gave Tang Zhao many suggestions. Although the time they spent discussing it was indeed short—it was only yesterday.

He returned to the Sun Court, and Zhangle was waiting for him. Tang Zhao gave him a brief account of the situation. Zhangle was greatly shocked to hear that the Evil God who attempted to harm him was of the same origin as the giant monster in the Void. But it was not yet Tang Zhao's turn to think about that, and naturally, it was not Zhangle's turn either. Now he only needed to think about the Changjie Sword Technique a month later; for the moment, he just needed to cooperate with Tang Zhao to upgrade the sword first.

There was nothing to say about this upgrade; it didn't even have any technical content. With the power of the Glasses, plus Tang Zhao grasping the general direction, upgrading a Sword Hero's sword was truly effortless. If he didn't have to put on a show, he could have finished in five minutes.

To avoid suspicion, he still endured for a full day and night. When he emerged from his seclusion, he happened to hear the good news that the Humans had won a complete victory in the final negotiation, not only obtaining the desired resources but also effectively withdrawing from the Relic Project.