There were two people from the military—in addition to the burly man, there was also a somewhat shorter, unassuming man in his middle ages. The latter laughed upon hearing the complaint. “If we don’t wait for him, do you think he’d wait for us instead?”
The burly man was still unresigned. “That’s that, but he’s too overbearing! Who does he think he is to have us wait like this?”
“Heh heh, who do you think we are then?”
“Our ranks might not be high, but we’re also people in charge of great responsibilities. His actions feel like he doesn’t have the military in his eyes at all.”
The middle-aged man sighed. “I say, Lil’ Fang, we’re in the neutral lands, not the Empire. You had best tone down your usual habits. We’re not just small officers from the military, we came here with orders to get things done, even if we have to beg him. Do you look like you’re begging?”
The burly man was stubborn. “But I just don’t like that kind of attitude!”
The middle-aged man took a sip from his fading tea and said, “He just wants us to understand that him agreeing to see us is already a big favor.”
The burly man’s tone softened. “But we still represent the military…”
“You shouldn’t forget that Li Fengshui was also from the military.” The middle-aged man cut in. He then shook his head, saying, “Lil’ Fang, you’re not bad both in terms of background and strength, but you’re only in charge of an unimportant operation team. Have you never thought about why?”
The man surnamed Fang replied, “Sire Lan, do you mean I’ve offended some people?”
“Not just a few.”
“How can that be? I’ve always been careful.” The burly man felt wronged.
The middle-aged man said, “The military belongs to the Empire and the emperor, but you can also say it belongs to the Longevity Monarch. It’s neither yours nor mine, we only work for the military.”
The burly man was stunned. Clearly, he did not understand the reasoning.
The middle-aged man laughed self-deprecatingly. “We only have this authority and glory because of our positions. If we lose our positions one day, we’ll return to our previous backgrounds. Do you think we’ll have an inkling of relationship to the military at that point? Lil’ Fang, you can start taking action if we get this business done well. If not for this, I wouldn’t be explaining so many things.”
The burly man started sweating. “Many thanks, Sire!”
General Lan didn’t go further with this topic. He merely said, “This business is important for you, me, and that person. You have to understand that many people want this deal to succeed, and I don’t think I need to tell you the reason.”
“They want revenge for Li Fengshui?” the burly man asked.
General Lan shook his head. “That’s not important. That Li Fengshui person was no idiot, but he was unlucky enough to kick a steel plate. I’m worried that some people don’t want the monarch to extend his life.”
The burly man was surprised. “What? T-Those who talked to me aren’t like that.”
General Lan said indifferently, “I have no idea what kind of people they are, but I do know that a failure in this deal will lead to such an outcome. Everyone else will think that’s your intention.”
The burly man was drenched in cold sweat.
At this moment, the parlor doors opened and Qianye walked in. Just a brief glance from Qianye and the two men couldn’t open their eyes at all. It was as though a flash of lightning had filled the room.
The strong burst of light faded so quickly that they couldn’t tell whether it was real.
Qianye took his seat calmly. “Please sit.”
The middle-aged man bowed. “I’m Lan Xincheng, deputy commander of the armaments division. This is Fang Zhan, chief officer of the third distribution center.”
“General Lan, General Fang.” Qianye nodded. This was his reciprocation to the salutation.
Fang Zhan’s expression darkened, but he still refused to act out.
Lan Xincheng said, “Sire Qianye, we came to the neutral lands with a request, one that involves great benefits for you.”
“Pray tell.” Qianye was just as indifferent.
Lan Xincheng got down to the point and started explaining his intentions. It turned out that the situation inside the Great Maelstrom inflicted great losses on the Empire. More than half of the aristocratic scions who had entered were dead, especially the two groups following Qianye into the passage. Their paths seemed to have deviated as a result, landing them in the high-gravity region. Naturally, there was no news from these people, who probably wouldn’t even survive their first frigid night.
Those that did survive gained great benefits, almost equal to three decades worth of harvest. The appearance of life-extending treasures like the white-fruit wine shook the entire upper echelon of the Empire. Not to mention the white fruits, just the white-fruit wines were immediately grabbed up, and the rewards offered for them were extremely generous. There was no shortage of land and titles being handed out.
The true good-stuff was in Qianye’s hands. To true experts, the two top-grade origin crystals were even more important. In the eyes of the Imperial clan, the two crystals were equal to two powerful divine champions who could claim a couple of provinces for the Empire.
These people had come for the treasures Qianye had harvested in the neutral lands.
The armaments division had stepped in because the value of the items was simply too high and Qianye was extremely powerful. The supplies department wanted this job, but the armaments department won the role and dispatched Fang Zhan.
Only a gigantic entity like the military would be able to devour Qianye’s entire harvest. Any other high-ranking aristocratic family would not be able to cough up that much money.
Qianye smiled faintly. “Why would the military need to spend so much effort? They should just send a divine champion to either kill or capture me. Won’t the things I have be yours then?”
Fang Zhan looked down awkwardly because he had indeed thought of this. The man had come from a good background and enjoyed a smooth career in the army. He was used to not hiding his thoughts.
Lan Xincheng said with a laugh, “Sire Qianye is an extraordinary person with friends and comrades throughout the world. How can we do something like that? Even if someone did want to do this, it would be hard to truly execute such a plan. The Empire does have its rules.”
Qianye found this quite funny. Those so-called rules of the Empire only applied to certain people. The rules would be brought up only when the other party was worthy of them bringing them up.
However, he felt that Lan Xincheng had other hidden implications. Qianye asked with a nod, “General Lan, where do these rules you speak of come from?”
Lan Xincheng pointed upward. “Naturally, from above.”
Qianye understood somewhat. He had no relationship with the Emperor, so this protection had to have come from Empress Li.
After figuring this out, Qianye felt even more relaxed. “Since that’s the case, what do you want and what can you give me?”
Lan Xincheng lowered his voice. “Those from above want intact white fruits and not wine. Of course, they’ll also take as much wine as you have in store. Also, are you willing to sell the two top-grade origin crystals in your hands? We will also buy any other resources you’ve harvested in the Great Maelstrom.”
Qianye broke into a laugh. “Reaping everything in one go? What can you give me?”
Lan Xincheng shot Fang Zhan a glance, whereupon the latter produced a booklet for Qianye to peruse. “Everything the Empire can provide is listed here.”
Qianye flipped through the pages and found most of them filled with common resources and high-grade equipment in bulk. There were origin guns for instance, which, despite only going up to grade-seven, would be supplied in bulk. Qianye’s Thunderbolt was also on the list, and there were a hundred of them being offered. Even if he did ask for such weapons, Qianye didn’t have that many expert subordinates to use them.
Seeing Qianye’s indifference, Lan Xincheng gestured for Fang Zhan to pass over yet another booklet. “Sire Qianye, this is a gesture of the Empire’s sincerity. I was supposed to show you this only after we get the white fruits, but it’s fine for you to look through it first.”
Fang Zhan used to be quite arrogant, but a single glare from Qianye made him rather obedient—this might wasn’t something he could stand up to. All of the burly man’s posturing and pride disappeared quickly after witnessing that terrifying strength, and his tone almost changed into one of flattery.
Lan Xincheng seemed rather disdainful. He had seen too many of such aristocratic descendants—those who would bully the weak but were fearful of the strong.
Qianye picked up the booklet. It was much thinner than the previous one but exquisitely crafted. He flipped to the first page and found an engine blueprint before his eyes, the caption of which read: ridge-grade warship engine, designed for destroyer-grade warships of the Imperial fleet. Developed in year 30 of the Martial Calendar.
This type of engine was developed during the end of the previous emperor’s reign, less than thirty years ago. Usually, it would take around two decades to design a new engine, which meant that this ridge-grade engine was the Empire’s main engine model. There was only one newer generation of engines.
To start the first page with a ridge-grade engine, the Empire’s sincerity wasn’t too bad.
The next page listed various origin arrays that went with the ridge-grade engine. Their primary use was to isolate the chamber from the void origin power in the environment, giving the engine a clean space to operate in. At a glance, it seemed all they would actually do was add weight and energy consumption.
However, Qianye realized that these arrays were designed for the neutral lands. The environment here was harsh and chaotic, with void origin power causing havoc everywhere. All machinery would wear down quickly, and a ridge-grade engine would be practically unusable. Under such circumstances, one would have to either design a new engine or use this type of method to minimize the effects. Although the installed arrays would add weight and energy requirements, they would also afford a new engine-option for the ship.
