Chapter 746: Brotherly Greetings

Yan Buji said lightly, "We need your sect to help us sell some Precious Light Ore."

"Precious Light Ore?!" Xiao Minghai's pupils narrowed. "How much?"

"Estimated… five hundred thousand jin."

"F… five hundred thousand?!"

Xiao Minghai stared so hard his eyeballs seemed about to pop out, his face full of disbelief. He opened his mouth wide, as if an egg could fit inside. After a while he came to his senses, his throat involuntarily rolling, and he struggled to swallow a mouthful of saliva.

Immediately after, as if he suddenly remembered something, he fumbled and grabbed the water cup on the table, gulping down several large mouthfuls with a "glug glug" sound. The icy water slid down his throat, calming his shock‑heated heart a bit, yet he could still feel his heart pounding "thump thump thump" in his chest.

"You… Precious Light Ore… No, Precious Light Ore can't form a vein. Could Luohuang Zhou be special?"

"Senior, you don't need to know that, right?" Yan Buji smiled. "If your sect can't take it all, we can split off a portion for you to sell; the profit can be fifteen per thousand."

"Fifteen per thousand is too little… But if you let us handle the consignment of five hundred thousand jin of Precious Light Ore, I can agree outright!" Xiao Minghai said calmly.

Yan Buji smiled, then whispered, "Senior, this can serve as a simple friendly proof between us. As long as you accept our goodwill, consigning the five hundred thousand jin of Precious Light Ore to you for sale isn't impossible."

"Oh?" Xiao Minghai looked at Yan Buji's smile and instantly understood.

Yan Buji's meaning was simple: if Xiao Minghai handles this himself, using their Heavy Mountain Sect's channels to sell the Precious Light Ore, it secures the safety of Yan Buji and his companions.

On the other hand, Xiao Minghai would have to bear some risk, since he's using sect channels for personal gain, which counts as abusing authority.

Moreover, of the five hundred thousand jin of Precious Light Ore, five jin per thousand belong to him, which is pure profit with no cost!

Xiao Minghai was silent for a moment, shook his head: "I can't do this alone…"

"One per hundred is also fine, as long as you agree," Yan Buji said with a smile, raising the price again.

"Alright, in this life I only enjoy talking with someone as straightforward as you. Consider me, Xiao Minghai, having accepted you as a brother!"

"Hahaha, Senior Xiao, you're too courteous."

Xiao Minghai waved his hand: "Hey, still call me Senior? We feel like old friends at first sight; just call me 'brother' is fine."

"Then I shall respectfully obey, Brother Xiao." Yan Buji clasped his fists and smiled.

The two Transformation Gods beside them watched Yan Buji and Xiao Minghai shoulder to shoulder discussing details, their expressions also odd.

Hall Master Yan's skill in dealing with people is truly no joke; he can even address a senior two realms higher than himself as brother.

Soon after, Yan Buji began probing Xiao Minghai about the Great Business Association.

"Great Business Association? Those people had a rough time recently; the hard‑won supplies they were sending to the stationed royal city as gifts for the City Lord were ambushed by demon beasts halfway, killing many." Xiao Minghai laughed heartily.

Yan Buji's face turned strange: "Brother, do you have a conflict with the Great Business Association?"

"Then what else?" Xiao Minghai snorted coldly. "The Great Business Association's unscrupulous merchants always depress our sect's ore prices; if the price drops, we Elders earn even less."

Oh.

No wonder Xiao Minghai readily agreed to trade with them.

Yan Buji pressed his chin: "Who is in charge at the Great Business Association's base?"

"There are two senior members at the Harmony Dao Stage, several peers at the Refining Void Stage, and over ten Transformation God guards. However, I heard a Nascent Soul Steward handles external affairs, named Zhang Wang," Xiao Minghai said.

"So when they were attacked earlier, was that also Zhang Wang's responsibility?"

"More or less, why ask?"

Yan Buji smiled: "I know a few people over at the Great Business Association; I'm afraid they might also be in danger."

"I see."

Since Xiao Minghai has heard of this and confirmed it's true, it's no longer a pretense.

After learning this, Yan Buji chatted with Xiao Minghai for several days, and after confirming their private deal, Yan Buji left.

Before departing, Xiao Minghai even promised to deliver the Sea Heart Stone Yan Buji needs within half a month.

This is the profit hub.

After a few days, Yan Buji visited each nearby cultivator outpost; some were mining, others planting spiritual herbs and medicines.

Overall, cooperation isn't impossible; each faction has marketable goods, and upon learning that the Great Sinful Sect can trade directly with the Demon Tribe, they became increasingly enthusiastic.

"Following Hall Master Yan is great," the nearby Transformation God cultivator sighed.

"Indeed, we did nothing but collect gifts; in these few days we've gathered hundreds of thousands of Spiritual Stones."

"Hehe," Yan Buji smiled, "Elders, human relations and exchanges are just that; none of it is my merit."

"Hey, without Hall Master Yan establishing good relations with the Demon Tribe cultivators beforehand, our Great Sinful Sect couldn't have been ahead in trading with the Demon Tribe."

"Indeed, though I don't understand commerce, I know the principle of taking the first step ahead of others."

Yan Buji smiled happily; this shows that most Elders in the sect now have profit ties with him, making future internal affairs much more convenient.

At present, the constraints on Yan Buji within the sect aren't due to lack of ability or anything else, just simply insufficient cultivation.

Given that Yan Buji is now at the Transformation God stage, even if he can't sit on the throne of a hall, becoming an Elder is at least feasible.

Thus, Yan Buji has done his utmost in managing his network.

Not to mention those mortal enemies, as long as Yan Buji has a platform, he knows how to leverage nearby resources to lift himself up.

"Speaking of which, the Demon Tribe tribes are gradually migrating here; sooner or later Luohuang Zhou will open a market trade between humans and demons. Hall Master Yan, what are your plans?"

"Elder asks what our sect should focus on in the future?"

"That's basically the principle."

"I think since we intend to do business with the Demon Tribe, watching others is pointless; we should unite various forces to trade together with the demons. Conversely, if we can spark a wave for our goods within the Demon Tribe, suppressing their internal merchandise, our goods will profit even more," Yan Buji said with a smile.

"Oh, I see."

Yan Buji intended to share his future thoughts, but suddenly felt a whiff of killing intent approaching!

The two Transformation God Elders beside him narrowed their pupils: "Bad, an ambush!"