26 Deal!

In the end, after much deliberation, about half of the apprentices decided to back out from Kael's proposal. To the half that decided to pledge their fealty to Fledgling City, it was because the allure of learning such a mystical and powerful forging technique was enough to make them go crazy. In their opinion, they never would've the chance to learn such technique elsewhere.

That was true to some extent; at least in their world which they were exposed to, they would never come into contact with teachings from an ancient script like how Kael got access to.

Furthermore, they believed that learning this forging technique would bring them fame, bringing all the customers and prestige into Fledgling City; they no longer needed to go out and fight for honor and glory, instead they could focus on their blacksmithing in the city.

For the other half that decided to back out, it was because they were setting their sights higher; they didn't want to be constrained by Fledgling City. This place was just a stepping stone to them. As much as they wanted to learn the forging technique, it was pointless if they couldn't bring this technique to other parts of the world and make a name for themselves.

Now that the camps were divided, Kael instructed the blacksmiths to let the apprentices who backed out to leave the tavern. As they left, there was none who didn't show a face of reluctance.

The blacksmiths then got the innkeeper to provide parchments of scrolls for the blood contract. The parchments were placed on a wooden table, in between the blacksmiths and Kael.

Everyone knew the effects of the blood contract. If anyone reneges or breached the terms of the blood contract, their blood will churn violently within their bodies and ultimately the blood will burst out from all the orifices and skin pores, dying a ghastly death.

It was a cruel fate that no one wanted to go through nor endure. The intense pain from having the blood churning within the body was likely the most sufferable form of torment for any cultivator.

Hence when they decided to form a blood contract with Kael, it went to show how much importance they placed in learning this forging technique.

"Now that the parchments are here. Before we sign the blood contract, I just want to clarify first. This forging technique is only useful for crafting Common Rank and Uncommon Rank Items. The Spirit Arrays that I have with is insufficient to craft items ranked Rare or above. Maybe there are similar forging techniques out there that apply to these items, however, I don't have it with me. Hence please consider carefully before signing this blood contract."

The experienced blacksmiths looked at each other and gave a wry smile. Rare Rank Items?

They would never get in touch with items of this level in their whole lives, so why not learn something useful that was applicable to their daily lives instead?

Most of the apprentices also didn't have much conflict in their hearts. If they could learn this forging art, and it's only applicable to Common and Uncommon Rank Items, then it didn't matter to them if they stepped out of Fledgling City and maybe even the Myriad Domain. If they were able to do so, they would surely come into contact with items ranked Rare or above, making this blood contract redundant to them. Having thought and discussed till here, none of them decided to leave despite Kael's forewarning.

Seeing the crowd's response, Kael nodded his head. To him, it didn't really matter if they spread this technique to other parts of the Myriad Domain or even other realms of the Hundred Realms. It was inconsequential to him, who set his sights beyond the normal levels that people could perceive.

He was the Invoker of the past. The only reason why he wanted them to sign a blood contract was so that they would contribute to Fledgling City's growth. Their contributions would thus be seen as his own contribution indirectly. This would thus help propel Kael into the Myriad Fledgling Institute, where his gut feelings and instincts were prompting him to head towards.

He could've monopolized this skill, flaunting it so that people would flock to him to make requests to forge items for them. Kael had thought of this point before. However, he didn't have much time to do such a thing. He had to cultivate and break through the ranks as quickly as possible, eventually finding him in the Defense of the Ancients once again.

As such, he could only pass the skills on, forming a city-wide monopoly on the trade, affecting the nearby regions, the cities bordering the Black Heart Forest and maybe even further than that.

Kael then proceeded to imbue his fingers with spiritual energy, forming words which were the terms of the contract on the parchment. He then let the crowd come one by one to imprint their blood on the parchments. When their blood on the finger touched the parchment, there was a sizzling sound. The bright fresh blood darkened, turning into a dark red hue.

There were 24 blood prints in total on the parchment, meaning there were 24 blacksmiths and apprentices willing to learn the forging technique in exchange for their fealty to Fledgling City.

"Thank you for your cooperation. Now I have to make a trip to the City Lord to propose my business plan to him. Be here tomorrow morning at the same time and I will begin imparting the forging technique to you all."

With that, the crowd left. Kael also made his way to the City Lord residence.

In the City Lord residence, with Richard Duran and Patten Eagle. Kael explained everything that happened yesterday after he left the residence and what transpired earlier today.

"There's actually such a wondrous technique? If this goes well… The traffic volume will increase significantly and powerful people will grace their presence in this city. Subsidiary businesses will benefit from the spill-over effects. It really will be a great contribution to Fledgling City." Richard Duran said in wonderment.

"I was waiting for you to say that City Lord." Kael grinned. "Just wait for my good news. As mentioned, I require your manpower to do the sales and marketing of the first batch of items and armor after the production is up and running."

"That's a deal. The City Lord faction will reap the profits from the blacksmiths directly. Your profit remains untouched."

"Deal!" Kael shook Richard Duran's hand firmly.