Watching Isabella leave, Chen Rui didn’t think much. He walked straight toward the hall.
Whether she was a woman with a story or not, it had nothing to do with him. From the beginning, the 2 people were only pretending to be courteous without sincerity, but Chen Rui acted more “sincerely”.
However, it was just an act after all. No matter how engrossed he was, it was only acting.
For him, the value of Isabella was to cause further conflicts between Obsidian and the elder families as well as Roman’s Breeze Shadow Boots. The former goal had been basically achieved. He would slowly find a way for the latter. As for the mysterious force behind her, Chen Rui’s current power was not enough yet. Plus the plan was at a critical moment, so he didn’t want to create extra troubles.
“Royal Highness Obsidian, please forgive me for the trouble caused to you at the meeting today.” In the hall, Chen Rui’s first sentence when he saw Obsidian was an apology.
“It’s me who should apologize.” Obsidian shook his head, “But Sir Charles should have noticed that the elder families have a strong background of power. There are many things that even I can’t… go beyond the rule. This has made sir be wronged.”
“I believe that as long as our cooperation is successful, then the so-called rules… will be set by Your Highness.”
Chen Rui smiled lightly.
Obsidian’s eyes lit up, “So, sir agreed to cooperate?”
The human who showed the black potion took the initiative in the meeting last night. He deliberately showed a little bit of resentment. He had been reluctant to agree to cooperate, so Obsidian decided to suppress the elder families publicly. Now that he heard the human voluntarily mentioned about the cooperation, he felt that these actions were not in vain after all.
“I have seen Your Highness’ sincerity.” Chen Rui was actually very eager to cooperate immediately, but he showed a thoughtful look. “I have said that the Fallen Angel Empire and Royal Highness Obsidian are my only partners. As Your Highness said, this is true for the past, present, and future. The title of Your Highness… I believe I should call you Your Majesty soon.”
The last sentence intrigued Obsidian’s heart. He revealed a smile on his face.
“The production of black potions is quite complicated. Moreover, my teacher is a top grand master. The black potions produced are close to or even 100% pure super black potions. The cost is quite high. Your Highness must be mentally prepared.” Chen Rui pondered for a moment. He took out a bottle of red healing potion, “Your Highness can find someone to try this bottle of super healing potion that is also 100% pure. The effect is far from the ordinary ones.”
100% purity? It really can be called super! Obsidian was taken aback. He took the red potion and pondered for a moment before summoning a guard. He conducted a minor injury experiment. The effect and speed of recovery were really much higher than the high grade red potion of the master level. Obsidian felt very convinced.
The higher the quality of the medicine, the greater the value. Moreover, this kind of thing was targeted for high-end customers, plus there was absolutely no worry about the source of customers.
In consideration of the huge economic and political value brought by this precious resource, any huge amount of money was worth it.
“So, how much investment amount is needed?”
“Our cooperation is long-term, plus the initial investment will definitely be huge.” Chen Rui gave an approximate number which changed Obsidian’s facial expression. Although he was mentally prepared, the amount was still too much. It was extremely huge.
“I also know that this amount is too large, but this is already the most streamlined budget.” Chen Rui noticed Obsidian’s expression. He smiled bitterly and said, “For me, it is the stage of preparing power. The most important secret weapon in the hand can not be exposed before the time is right. Moreover, the funds of the Kemplot Family can not be mobilized on a large scale or it will arouse the suspicion of the second prince, so the main source of funds in the early stage can only be from Your Highness. With enough start-up funds, as long as a sufficient amount of black potion is produced, the money gained by then is many times more than the cost, let alone our gains from other aspects.”
Obsidian nodded, but he shook his head again, “Charles, I have absolute trust in you, but… to be honest, according to the Three Kingdoms Peace Agreement 400 years ago, the Fallen Angel Empire needs to provide a considerable amount of “funding” to the Dark Shadow Empire and Bloody Empire every year. The treasury is actually not ample. In addition to the potioneer competition to be held soon, the funds I can mobilize may not meet this requirement. ”
This kind of “funding” was actually paying tribute, but it was the best result for the Fallen Angel Empire, which was the weakest in combat, to be able to use this method in exchange for peace.
Chen Rui pondered for a while and said, “I have a way, I don’t know if it will work.”
“Tell me.”
“Our Kemplot Family has a ‘fundraising’ business method. When doing a large business, we will use the name of the family to collect funds from big and small alliance families in the chamber of commerce. It is called equity participation. Then, we distribute the profits to each family’s equity participation. Generally speaking, it is profitable. This kind of fundraising can provide considerable liquidity for the family and reduce its own investment risk. It is actually equivalent to a kind of welfare because the amount of return is much higher than the investment amount.”
“Fundraising?” Obsidian seemed thoughtful. This “business” will surely be profitable. By then, those who are looking for black potions will definitely be rushing to buy it. We can also learn from the Dark Moon’s “auction house” to inflate the potions to a sky-high price.
“So, I gather the funds from the capital’s major families now and just distribute the return by then?”
Chen Rui smiled knowingly and shook his head slightly, “No, Kemplot is just a family, but Your Highness controls an empire. Why not further expand this scope?”
Obsidian reacted immediately, “Estate?”
Chen Rui nodded, “Up to now, I have a certain understanding of the situation in the Fallen Angel Empire. For Your Highness, this may be a good opportunity for Your Highness to strengthen your control from another aspect. Use profit to control it. Sometimes it is much more effective than pure force or system.”
“You mean…” Obsidian’s eyes shone brightly as he slowly stood up.
Chen Rui said confidently, “Your Highness is a very clever king. I don’t need to explain the stakes too much as I’m just an outsider. Only Your Highness knows the details of the various estates of the empire. At that time, Your Highness can regulate them based on reality. For instance, the amount of equity participation, the actual percentage of returns, and so on are all under your control. I believe that some of the problems that have been bothering Your Highness will also become easier because of this.”
This hint made Obsidian’s feel more joyful. “Charles” is right. Using profit to control them is sometimes more effective than using force. Maybe this time it can really change the structure of the entire empire. At that time, even if I am not recognized by the Sword of Fallen Angel, I can also become a real emperor.
“But there is one thing Your Highness must pay attention to. Our purpose is not just wealth alone, so we cannot disclose the true purpose of this fundraising to anyone for the time being. The secret weapon of black potion will only appear at the most appropriate time in order to have the greatest impact. In order to avoid alerting the enemy, it’s not appropriate for me to show up. If some kind of guarantee is needed, only Your Highness can deal with it yourself.”
Chen Rui looked at Obsidian who was still thinking. A strange light appeared in his hand, “If Your Highness has this courage, then I can safely sign an equality contract with Your Highness.”
His tone was as if he had just taken a big risk, and he was worried about Obsidian. No doubt, if the story of “Charles” was real, then this was indeed a desperate move.
After Obsidian carefully looked at the content of the equality contract, he put aside the last trace of scruples in his heart. Unless he reaches the realm of God, the contract is irreversible. According to my intel, Charles and Red Spirit Lord Josh signed the equality contract when they first cooperated. Later, he returned the profit by many times more as agreed. This fulfilled the contract successfully.
If we sign this contract now, it is equivalent to the formal establishment of a cooperative relationship. It is nearly 100 years before the battle between the Demon Realm and the human world, so there is no need to have any scruples and doubts. There are at least 2 others who have the capability to work with Charles. Charles doesn’t have to choose me, but for me, it is the best opportunity to completely control the empire and even establish my reputation in the Demon Realm. It must not be missed.
The following matters went smoothly. The two sides successfully signed the equality contract and became a true alliance. Although Chen Rui’s power was far weaker than Obsidian, Chen Rui was the real leader in terms of the cooperation. In addition to the identity of the real prince, Obsidian did not put on his Demon Overlord’s pride. His tone became much more friendly.
“Let’s not delay further. Your Highness, please hold a meeting of lords to raise funds as soon as possible. I will return to the human world today to arrange related matters. Half a month… at most 1 month later, I will come to the capital to take the funds. Another good news is that the most important achievement of my teacher’s painstaking research in recent years is coming to an end. I will bring a new gift to Your Highness by then, so that Your Highness will rejuvenate for the second time.”
Rejuvenate? Obsidian was surprised. Could it be the longevity potion?
I didn’t expect that apart from the resurrection potion, Grand Master Sun Simiao is about to develop a longevity potion!
The last supreme black potion!
Although the lifespan of demons was longer than that of humans, especially powerhouses, they would eventually age and die.
High-ranking demons would always complain that their lives were not long, but since ancient times, apart from the legendary gods, no life could be truly immortal. Therefore, anything that could increase lifespan had become extremely precious. Longevity potion was the outstanding one of such treasures. It did not increase a specific number of years, but the proportion of the entire lifespan. In other words, the longer the lifespan, the better the effect of taking it. Coupled with the extraordinary skills of the grand master, the efficacy of the potion would definitely be far beyond imagination for the Obsidian of the Demon Overlord.
Obsidian was currently close to old age. If he could take the high-purity longevity potion produced by the grand master, then as “Charles” said, it was equal to the second youth!
Life (my own) cannot be measured by any wealth! If this potion appears in the Demon Realm in the future, it will definitely be more powerful than all the other black potions combined!
Besides that, “Charles” said something that moved his heart even more.
“My teacher has a close friend who is a mechanics grand master. When I return this time, I will ask the teacher to talk about it. Then maybe I can help Your Highness to solve the problem of a certain artifact…”
Artifact…Sword of Fallen Angel!
Obsidian’s eyes flickered. The excitement that had just subsided due to the resurrection potion began surging in his heart again. This royal family’s highest artifact was his biggest scruple of all the time. It was also the biggest obstacle which prevented him from becoming the official Fallen Angel Emperor.
By right, one was eligible to be recognized by the artifact as long as he was from the royal family bloodline. Either the Lord of Midnight Sun left some kind of seal in the end, or Obsidian was really “scorned” by the artifact. He had used all sorts of methods all these years, but he had never been recognized by the artifact.
Due to that, he was more afraid of letting the Sword of Fallen Angel and Midnight Sun bloodline come into contact with each other. Even the former Crown Prince Grimm’s younger brother who was also one of his nephews, Ivan Sen, was secretly imprisoned by him.
The Demon Realm did not have a grand master-level mechanic, even if the top mechanic, Nate, and the trio-specialized genius, Arthur who had disappeared, were still quite far from the real grand master level. The teacher of “Charles” who could create a full set of super black potions was truly a top grand master indeed. If he could become his close friend, that mechanic grand master must be extraordinary as well. Maybe he could really solve this problem which had troubled Obsidian for many years.
Chen Rui actually wanted to steal the Sword of Fallen Angel this time, but haste would not bring success. The Sword of Fallen Angel could be the last straw to break the camel’s back, but it would not be the most critical thing to reverse the situation. Even if Shea really owned the Sword of Fallen Angel, Obsidian would not bow down. Compared with the more symbolic artifact, the plan to fundamentally destroy the enemy’s power was more important.
After sending Charles away personally, Obsidian couldn’t hold the ecstasy in his heart anymore, and he laughed out loud. For a while, he felt complacent. He began to imagine how he would shock the Demon Realm with great success in the future..
Chen Rui also wanted to burst into laughter because the most important part of the plan was finally completed. The next step was to see how Obsidian did his best to help take risks and raise funds on behalf of Chen Rui. Anyway, it was just a matter of betraying a friend for the sake of benefits.
Obsidian could suppress the Grimm Crown Prince and his supporters, as well as dominate the Fallen Angel Empire for hundreds of years. He was by no means mediocre. Chen Rui just caught his weak points. Under these tempting conditions, he finally fell into the trap. He was even doing a favor for the person who set the trap now.
As for Isabella, Chen Rui only gave her a bottle of Eternal Power instead of the highest grade black potion previously. Later, he took out the resurrection potion directly in front of Obsidian.
However, Isabella knew about the existence of the black potion. That secret organization might also be involved. Of course, the black potion was a bait. It shouldn’t be too difficult to cheat a secret organization, but Chen Rui’s current goal was Obsidian, so he didn’t want to attract more attention.
After all, his ultimate goal was not to destroy the Fallen Angel Empire but to let Shea take over. The contest with that mysterious force should be just in case. He needed to meet Isabella again to uncover her background. It seemed that some kind of romantic drama still had to go on.
I’m afraid by the time Chen Rui couldn’t “return” the Sword of Fallen Angel after he stole it…
