Chapter 1461 - Carrot and Stick

The palace lord's lips twitched when he saw Liu Wuxie rub his hands together. He could already tell this youngster planned to use the situation as leverage to force the Nine Dragon Palace into signing a contract.

If the Nine Dragon Palace were to refuse, their decision would completely ruin every spiritual herb here. Even if he tracked down the source of the problem, the herbs wouldn't recover for several hundred years.

Many spiritual herbs needed a hundred years to reach maturity, so even if cultivators planted a new batch now, the herbs would still need another century to mature.

For a sect of this size, the spiritual herbs had long formed a complete ecosystem, with herbs ranging from one-year-old to ten-thousand-year-old.

The Nine Dragon Palace's losses were not just a single batch, as a massive zone full of herbs had been affected.

The withering spread like a plague. Starting from the hundred-year-old spiritual herbs, the rest were eventually infected. Even the ten-year-old herbs suffered the same fate.

It was equivalent to destroying the Nine Dragon Palace's very foundation.

"You three back down," the palace lord said, waving his hand to dismiss the three elders. He needed to speak with Liu Wuxie alone.

The three elders cast a long, measuring look at Liu Wuxie before turning away and leaving the garden.

"Go on. What are your conditions to save the spiritual herbs here?" the palace lord asked. He didn't bother with pleasantries. If outsiders learned that this youth led a Quasi-Immortal like him by the nose, he would become a laughingstock. That was also why he had sent the three elders away.

"I have never seen someone so black-hearted like you. Drop your act and state your terms," the palace lord said casually. After everything that had happened today, he already regarded Liu Wuxie as a friend across generations, and he spoke with an easy familiarity.

Liu Wuxie coughed lightly at being called "black-hearted," using it to cover his brief moment of awkwardness.

"Since that's the case, I'll go ahead then. I want this stone rune, and the Nine Dragon Palace has to sell a hundred fifty thousand spiritual herbs to the Heavenly Dao Society annually," Liu Wuxie said, laying out an outrageous demand.

In addition to the stone rune, he also wanted the Nine Dragon Palace to supply an enormous yearly quota of spiritual herbs to the Heavenly Dao Society.

Though the palace lord had anticipated an excessive request, he hadn't expected something on this scale. Liu Wuxie's condition meant that the Heavenly Dao Society intended to seize half of the alchemy market.

The Divine Alchemy Sect had been operating for hundreds of thousands of years and only managed to control thirty percent of the market. Yet the Heavenly Dao Society now aimed to take half, and anyone who heard that would be stunned.

"That's too much. Seventy thousand is the best we can do," the palace lord said, shaking his head. If they sold a hundred fifty thousand spiritual herbs to the Heavenly Dao Society, what would happen to the other sects they were supplying? They still had existing contracts with those forces.

"Palace Lord, don't be in such a hurry to refuse. A hundred fifty thousand spiritual herbs aren't an issue as long as you cut the Divine Alchemy Sect's supply.

"If you do that, you can even provide two hundred thousand spiritual herbs, not to mention a hundred fifty thousand," Liu Wuxie said. He knew the palace lord faced a difficult decision, as selling so many spiritual herbs to him meant offending other sects.

"I knew that you didn't come with good intentions. You didn't just come to buy spiritual herbs; cutting the Divine Alchemy Sect's supply of spiritual sects is your primary objective," the palace lord said, rolling his eyes at Liu Wuxie.

Liu Wuxie had finally revealed his fox's tail.

"We're both smart people, and I won't hide anything from you. I did come with the intention to make the Nine Dragon Sect cut off the Divine Alchemy Sect's supply of spiritual herbs," Liu Wuxie replied, openly admitting his goal now that the palace lord had already seen through him.

If the Divine Alchemy Sect lost its supply of spiritual herbs, it would soon regress to its original state. They had their own herbal field, but it was nowhere near enough to meet their consumption needs.

"Just helping us to restore the spiritual herbs isn't enough for us to tear our contract with the Divine Dragon Palace. We will also suffer huge losses as well," the palace lord said, shaking his head. He appreciated Liu Wuxie's straightforwardness in laying everything bare, which also showed that Liu Wuxie did not treat him as an outsider.

Liu Wuxie naturally understood the Nine Dragon Palace's predicament. If they broke their contract, they would also suffer immense losses.

"I understand your difficulty, but do think about it. With the Heavenly Dao Society's ability, it won't take long for us to monopolize the alchemy market. By then, the Divine Alchemy Sect wouldn't be able to sell their pills, and it would also affect the Nine Dragon Palace.

"Who are you going to sell your spiritual herbs to by then? Once we're done with our plans, do you really think we'll still need the Nine Dragon Palace's spiritual herbs?" Liu Wuxie asked, issuing a blunt threat.

He had already shown the palace lord enough respect by negotiating with him directly. If the Heavenly Dao Society found another supplier and crushed the Divine Alchemy Sect, the Nine Dragon Palace would inevitably suffer.

If they lost the Heavenly Dao Society as a client, they wouldn't be able to sell their spiritual herbs at all. Only the Heavenly Dao Society could digest such a massive output.

If, at that time, the Heavenly Dao Society refused to purchase from the Nine Dragon Palace, the palace would undoubtedly slide into decline.

The palace lord understood perfectly that Liu Wuxie was threatening him, yet he still fell into deep silence. He knew Liu Wuxie wasn't boasting. Once the Heavenly Dao Society resolved its current crisis, it would rapidly expand. As for spiritual herbs, they could buy from other astral domains.

At present, the Heavenly Dao Society only lacked time. As long as they survived this month, no one could stop their rise.

In the worst-case scenario, Liu Wuxie could pay higher prices than the market to buy from other sects. Those sects couldn't match the Nine Dragon Palace in total volume, but it would still be enough to ease the current crisis.

Moreover, Liu Wuxie already stood in an undefeated position, with the Heavenly Dragon Sect backing him.

Relying on the Heavenly Dragon Sect's reputation, it wouldn't be difficult for Liu Wuxie to obtain a ten-day or half-month extension on the delivery date.

Liu Wuxie didn't rush him and waited for the palace lord to think it through. This matter truly concerned the life and death of the Nine Dragon Palace, after all.

The palace lord had already guessed Liu Wuxie's intentions, but he hadn't considered all the ramifications in depth.

"What exactly goes on in that head of yours? Aren't you tired of scheming all day?" the palace lord asked after taking a deep breath. He had to admit that Liu Wuxie's mind had outsmarted him entirely. Liu Wuxie had already persuaded him, whether he wanted to admit it or not.

If he agreed to Liu Wuxie's conditions, he would offend the Divine Alchemy Sect. If he refused, he would then offend the Heavenly Dao Society. It put him squarely in a dilemma.

"I can't help it. My cultivation is lacking, and I can only make it up with my brains," Liu Wuxie said, rubbing his nose. If he had already reached the Quasi-Immortal Realm, he could charge into the Grand Unity Sect and Divine Alchemy Sect to annihilate them instead of playing such games.

The palace lord felt an urge to knock Liu Wuxie's forehead. Liu Wuxie claimed his cultivation was lacking, yet had he forgotten how many experts at the pinnacle of the Earth Immortal Realm he had slain in Nightmare City?

Who else in the Indigo Bamboo Astral Domain could claim such a feat?

The palace lord also secretly rejoiced that the Nine Dragon Palace did not have any enmity with Liu Wuxie. If he had offended someone like that, he would never sleep soundly again.

"If we stop working with the Divine Alchemy Sect, we will have to take a huge loss. You should know about that; how will you make up for our losses?" the palace lord asked. His words signaled that he had already compromised, and they were now haggling over terms.

After all, it made little difference to the Nine Dragon Palace whether they cooperated with the Divine Alchemy Sect or the Heavenly Dao Society. What he cared about now was interests—interests came first in the cultivation world.

What the palace lord valued most was not the Heavenly Dao Society's potential, but Liu Wuxie's. Without Liu Wuxie, the Heavenly Dao Society would have collapsed long ago.

If events were to unfold as Liu Wuxie had predicted and the Heavenly Dao Society overcame this crisis, where would the Nine Dragon Palace stand at that time?

For a brief moment, the palace lord silently mourned for the Divine Alchemy Sect.

"As long as you agree to my condition, I can let the Nine Dragon Palace have the distribution rights to the Golden Cicada Pills. You can determine the length of it, and I can also help you find out who the traitor is in the Nine Dragon Palace," Liu Wuxie said.

He understood that a true partnership couldn't be one-sided; both parties had to profit.

Giving the Golden Cicada Pills' distribution rights to the Nine Dragon Palace was equivalent to tying them firmly to the Heavenly Dao Society.

If the Golden Cicada Pills sold well, the Nine Dragon Palace's spiritual herbs would move in large quantities as well.

If the Golden Cicada Pills couldn't sell, their herbs wouldn't sell either. In other words, the Nine Dragon Palace would act as both producer and distributor of the pill.

The reason Liu Wuxie wanted to dominate the alchemy market was primarily to target the Divine Alchemy Sect. In his heart, the actual core product of the Heavenly Dao Society had always been the Martial Soul Art.

If they branched into too many industries now, it would split their focus, especially when the Heavenly Dao Society was already short-handed. They could continually expand again after stabilizing their foundation.

"You little rascal." The palace lord laughed. He had thoroughly seen through Liu Wuxie's plans, but the terms he had offered were so tempting that the palace lord couldn't bring himself to refuse.

At the moment, they were earning only one cut by selling spiritual herbs, but if they also became distributors of the Golden Cicada Pills, they would gain a second share of the profits.

Compared to that, the Divine Alchemy Sect had never provided the Nine Dragon Palace with such favorable treatment.

"We can sign the contract now if you have no objections," Liu Wuxie said. Time was tight, and he still had to arrange deals with other sects beyond the Nine Dragon Palace.

His actual target wasn't just the Divine Alchemy Sect; he was targeting the Grand Unity Sect as well.

"Let's sign it right now," the palace lord said as he lifted his hand and began inscribing runes in mid-air.

Both parties then signed the contract, with their souls imprinted on it. Just like that, the Nine Dragon Palace obtained the distribution rights for the Golden Cicada Pills for the next hundred thousand years.

In other words, they were the only ones who could sell it for the next hundred thousand years.

Liu Wuxie merely smiled when he saw the completed contract. He knew that, with their current scale, the Heavenly Dao Society couldn't distribute Golden Cicada Pills throughout the entire Indigo Bamboo Astral Domain.

However, the Nine Dragon Palace was a different story.

"To a successful partnership between us," Liu Wuxie said and extended his hand.

The palace lord reached out as well and shook hands with him. No one would have imagined that the agreement for the Golden Cicada Pill, which would dominate the alchemy market for the next hundred thousand years, was signed in such a place.

"Wuxie, you're not going to tell me that Shi An is a traitor, right?" the palace lord asked. He knew they had to uncover the traitor in the Nine Dragon Palace before the traitor caused more damage.

"No," Liu Wuxie replied, shaking his head. Although Shi An had questioned him earlier and had been the one to bring the Cloud Stone here, he was not the traitor.

"Chang Wu?" the palace lord asked. Judging by the way Chang Wu had been jumping around and repeatedly trying to silence Liu Wuxie, he seemed the most suspicious.

"Don't make random guesses. You can send someone to take control of Chang Wu's family, and you'll understand everything. But make sure that you don't startle him beforehand," Liu Wuxie said. He didn't elaborate any further.

He began drawing in mid-air, and a seal slowly took form. Dense lines of text appeared on it.

"Use this formula of liquified spiritual energy. Water the spiritual herbs with it for three days, and the medicinal properties will slowly recover," Liu Wuxie said. It was a top-tier prescription, and he handed it directly to the palace lord.

The spiritual herbs were only withered, not truly dead. They had merely lost their medicinal properties. Once they restored those properties, the herbs would naturally return to their original state.

"Wuxie, thank you," the palace lord said, shock flashing in his eyes as he studied the formula. Such an exquisite prescription might not exist anywhere else in the Indigo Bamboo Astral Domain.

"Palace Lord, remember to deliver a hundred fifty thousand spiritual herbs to the Heavenly Dao Society within five days," Liu Wuxie said. Having accomplished his main objective, he was in an excellent mood.

He couldn't help but look forward to the Heavenly Dao Society's reaction once they received the news. Just imagining their faces made him feel a little excited.