Chapter 27 – A Different Plan

This time, no one interrupted him though as they looked at Leo in disbelief.

Even Tang Soso thought that was too much. With 10 thousand Golds, they could hire more than 100 independent martial artists whose strength was no weaker than 4 Stars. They didn't know how many people Leo had but it was still too much.

"Agreed." Tang Yao's voice resounded through the hall, "10 thousand Golds is too much even for us. We would rather hire martial artists staying in Qin City. So, I apologize but you are going to have to lower your price."

Leo wasn't offended by his response. He just silently stood up and waved his hand.

"Negotiation failed then. Goodbye."

"Hmm? Wait for me, Leader."

Anya immediately rushed after Leo, leaving half-eaten food on the table as she trailed after him, leaving the other parties in a confused state. They didn't expect this to happen at all.

Negotiation over and they left. They didn't even try to negotiate the price further. They just walked calmly without even care of the gazes showering him with disdain from Tang Clan's guards and martial artists.

"Wait!"

Tang Yao stopped Leo before he reached the gate. A smirk formed on his face. It disappeared as soon as he glanced back, looking at the Tang Clan's second Young Master.

"We can't provide 10 thousand Golds, but we can provide you with other things. Just name it. Material, item, anything."

"Hmm..." Turning around, he stroked his chin, "9,000 Golds and 100 KG of Star Metal."

A negotiation was opened once again. Leo wasn't sure he could do it better than Jessica, but he had his way to play this game as well.

Star Metal was an expensive mineral in Murim for it had a lot of uses. From making a weapon and armor, it was also used to make pills to enhance one's cultivation speed. Only Tang Clan knew where it could be mined, making it more valuable than normal metals or steel distributed in the market.

"That's still too much. 100 KG worth of Star Metal is worth more than that. Let's make it 5,000 Golds and 100 KG Star Metal."

"I know the value of Star Metal pretty well. It's expensive, yes, but not that much. 8,000 Golds and 150 KG Star Metal." Leo countered with a smile as he returned to his seat.

"That's just plain robbery." Tang Yao frowned in frustration while Anya sat down beside him and returned to eating as if nothing happened at all.

"Our price is already very generous for your service. I know that you're a 6 Stars martial artist, and your friend probably has a similar power to yours. But there are only two of you, so I think 5,000 Golds are maximum and I am willing to add 100 KG Star Metal as a friendship gift. Isn't that enough to employ you?"

Indeed, that was more than enough to hire two 6 Stars martial artists. However...

"I never said I am a 6 Stars martial artist. And since when did you assume I only have Anya in my group? I never mentioned that at all." Leo said in a low voice, "7,500 Golds and 150 KG Star Metal as well as three items from Green Forest Group if we manage to destroy them. That's my final offer."

Tang Yao froze upon hearing Leo's words. It was as if his body was held by an unknown power that stopped his movement completely.

'Not 6 Stars martial artists... And there are more than 2 of them?'

A slight glance from Tang Soso was enough to get his mind working again as he made his decision. Forming a relationship with Leo and his group would benefit them better than he previously thought.

'I can invest in this.' He thought while smiling gently as he spoke, "7,500 Golds is acceptable. Green Forest has many rare items stored in their vault that no one knew about. Taking their items isn't a problem either, I won't ask about it if you need something from there."

"Perfect." Leo stood up while chuckling softly before cupping his hands together and giving Tang Yao a bow. "Let us work well together then."

***

Peng Li-Yue was nervous as she sat in the garden. The tournament that would decide her fate would be held tomorrow. She must win in order to avoid the marriage with Tang Jiuyang, but her chance was slim at best.

She found that her opponent was a Tang Clan's core disciple and one of the candidates for the next Dragon Warrior first squad leader, a 5 Stars martial artist. Aside from that, she had heard rumors about how talented he was in controlling poison with her Qi.

'I wonder if the warrior sent by Leo can win. His name is Shui, right?' She looked at the man standing next to her. He was silent and mysterious like most martial artists in Murim. He barely said anything about himself in the conversation between them.

Shui wore a gray robe with a wooden badge on his chest with an insect carved on it, looking like an emblem of some kind of group or organization. Peng Li-Yue guessed it was the mercenary band's emblem.

The woman noticed that Shui always looked at the surroundings with a bored gaze as if he wasn't interested in anything. At this point, they didn't talk a lot even though they had known each other for the last few days. He mostly talked when he needed something or had to inform her about the plan, otherwise he kept silent.

"Are you sure you can win tomorrow?" Peng Li-Yue decided to strike up a conversation due to the awkward atmosphere between them. She had no one else to talk to anyway. The noisy one wasn't on her side anymore.

She saw the young man snapped out of his deep thoughts and shifted his gaze from the sky to her instead. He glanced at Peng Li-Yue silently before looking up again.

"Foolish question." He said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I just need to fight."

'So arrogant.' She thought in annoyance, 'Can't he be polite and proper for once?'

"You don't need to talk to me like that." She retorted in a soft voice that barely reached Shui's ears. But she didn't care about that at all. Peng Li-Yue was bothered by this guy's attitude toward her.

"My apologies. This is how I usually talk." Shui said in a nonchalant manner, "Don't take it personally."

'Jerk.' She frowned in annoyance but didn't say anything more. She decided that she will have a long chat with Leo regarding his attitude toward her because this was not good at all.

Just as she thought about that, a strange sound suddenly rang.

Tiririring~

She wondered where it came from because she was sure she had heard about it before. She managed to find it easily as she saw Shui pulling out a similar metal toy but with the blue color that Anya had. From what her noisy bodyguard told her, it was a device to communicate from a long range.

Shui brought it close to his ear and said, "Yes, Leader?"

"...Understood." He nodded his head before speaking again, "I will protect her safely. Don't worry about that."

After that, he looked at Peng Li-Yue and asked, "Ms. Peng, I need to report the news about the Tang Clan. The situation has changed greatly and there will be another problem in tomorrow's tournament."

"What is it?" She looked at him in surprise. The tournament was an event held by the Qin City's lord every year.

With strict protection from the Tang Clan's warriors as well as various powerful martial artists from all over the continent attending this event, something unexpected like another trouble being added to it was beyond her belief.

"According to him, Nokrim will make trouble. Instead of stopping them, Tang Clan will actually benefit from it."

Shui explained everything Leo had informed him with detail calmly when he talked about Nokrim attacking the tournament, killing civilians and martial artists alike in order to fulfill their goals. He also added the details regarding the possibility that Tang Yao and Tang Soso actually released information about the city's secret entrance to them.

"W-What? Nokrim?" She raised her voice in surprise, but Shui blocked her mouth immediately.

"Lower your voice. Leader has taken the job to take care of them, so it will be fine. I will also stay by your side and protect you. This is all just an internal strife of Tang Clan. You will be fine and I will ensure the job you requested is fulfilled. If you understand, nod slowly."

"...Understood." After he assured her, she managed to calm herself down and nodded her head, "Please make sure that you will keep your promise."

"No worries."

He released his hand from her mouth, allowing her to breathe freely.

Peng Li-Yue didn't expect this. Was Leo mistaken? If what he said was true, then...

'There will be a civil war within the Tang Clan.'