Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Although Lin Li was not really familiar with Queen Halleleah and Prince Cleve, and did not have much of a good impression of them, he did not have a bad impression of them, either. Hence, Lin Li stood to invite Prince Cleve to have a seat in the room. “Why, of course,” he replied smilingly.
Lin Li had been observing the situation at the auction, and was clear of Prince Cleve’s intentions. Grina’s sudden move had definitely forced the Sirens to delay the bidding. It was obvious that the latter were having problems with their funds.
Although Lin Li did not have many interactions with the Sirens, and had only exchanged a simple greeting with the Siren couple, he knew that he would need to have a partnership with the forces here if he wanted the Tower of Dusk to expand towards the Endless Ocean. While it was not Lin Li’s personality to suck up to those forces, he wouldn’t outrightly reject people who reached out to him willingly.
“Now is a key moment to bid for the Heart of All Evil. I suppose something urgent brought you here,” Lin Li said after he invited Prince Cleve to sit. There was no need to beat around the bush.
While the Sirens were trying to stall for time, everyone knew that the tactic was not the safest option. Moreover, Prince Cleve was also uncertain that President Felic would be willing to help. Hence, he naturally did not dare to spend too much time here.
Therefore, Prince Cleve did not care to conceal his true intentions when he heard Lin Li’s inquiry. “I bet you know why I am here, President Felic. We were initially confident that our funds would be able to let us obtain the Heart of All Evil through bidding, and did not expect the Giant Shark Clan to seek external funding. We can’t predict the amount of funds they obtained, so I hope to make a deal with you,” said Cleve with a helpless smile.
“Oh, what kind of deal? Feel free to let me know,” encouraged Lin Li. After all, he had been wanting to establish a partnership with the Sirens. As he had yet to have many interactions or a good relationship with them, Lin Li believed that a fair deal would be the first step to their relationship. If he were to present himself too eagerly, not only might the Sirens not appreciate his goodwill, they might also look down on his Tower.
Lin Li’s words immediately sparked hope in Cleve’s heart. Of course, he did not try to show too many emotions on his face or in his tone. “Although the sea region that is under the control of the Sirens is not the most fertile as compared to the other parts of the sea, it is a region that is rich in minerals and other resources. We can give you the mining rights in exchange for financial support,” Cleve continued calmly.
Prince Cleve proposed the same benefits as Grina when the latter tried to work with Falth. After all, one could take all his time to harvest resources from the sea, but not during an auction. Their offers were like advanced payments of profits partners could obtain from their territories.
However, Lin Li was not a fan of Prince Cleve’s proposal. After all, he had attained mastery in mineral surveying, and knew that the combined territories claimed by the seven overlords were not the whole of the Endless Ocean. Hence, he could very well use his own means to look for resources he needed in the other parts of the vast sea.
Therefore, Lin Li smiled and shook his head after he heard Prince Cleve’s proposal.
Prince Cleve could tell that Lin Li was not interested in his offer. Fortunately, that was not his only proposal. “Furthermore, I have heard of your tension with Grina from the Giant Shark Clan, and I suppose that they will create trouble for you in the future. I believe that with our escort, your merchant fleets will be able to travel unimpeded in the Endless Sea in the future,” said Cleve.
This promise made by Prince Cleve definitely was of irresistible allure to people who needed to make a living at sea. Although the Giant Shark Clan was ranked first in strength among the seven overlords, the three overlords—the Thunder Eel Clan, Siren Clan, and Octopus Clan—were not too far off in strength. In the Endless Sea, the protection from the Siren Clan would definitely trump any blessing from the sea god. Not to mention pirates, the Siren Clan was definitely not a force anyone with similar capabilities would want to offend.
Lin Li shook his head smilingly despite the great benefit. “I appreciate your goodwill, but I can deal with the Giant Shark Clan myself,” responded Lin Li.
Although the Giant Shark Clan was extremely powerful in the Endless Sea, it was far from being intimidating to Lin Li. If he had been fearful of them, he would not have dared to offend Grina so greatly in front of the embassy of the Tower of Dusk.
Lin Li’s lack of interest in the mining rights and the Sirens’ protection troubled Prince Cleve. He did not know what to offer Lin Li anymore, and Vidi’s voice wasn’t helping. “Then, President Felic, I wonder what you need from the Sirens?” asked Cleve as he shook his head helplessly.
Cleve thought that it would be easier to ask Felic directly. After all, they were in the midst of an auction. There was no time to lose. While Queen Halleleah was still adding to the bidding, the auction would end if she couldn’t answer Grina’s question about the Sirens’ eligibility to partake in it. Then, the Heart of All Evil would fall into the hands of the Giant Shark Clan immediately.
Lin Li did not intend to make things difficult for Prince Cleve. After all, he did not have any tension with the Sirens. “You don’t need to be anxious. In fact, what I need is very simple, and won’t trouble you much,” assured Lin Li smilingly.
“Oh, what is it?” asked Prince Cleve curiously. He couldn’t quite believe it, and even started making mental preparations to pay for a hefty price. After all, they were the ones who were in need of help. Anyone would not want to miss the opportunity to take advantage of the Sirens.
“I want the Siren’s Tears,” responded Lin Li slowly.
The Siren’s Tears were considered a specialty of the Sirens, but they were not a special product that the Sirens were known for. This was because the latter did not deliberately produce them. The Siren’s Tear was telling in its name; it was literally a tear that belonged to the Sirens.
Of course, to be more specific, the tears belonged to female Sirens. Tears were a product of emotions, and emotions were not something that could be controlled or deliberately produced. Something good about the Siren’s Tears was their composition. Their insoluble nature made it easy for people to collect them. This was because no one would remember to collect their tears when they were sad, or be a joker by going around to collect people’s tears when they cried.
The female Sirens were born to be masters of Spiritual Spells, and their mental strength would peak when they cried. Hence, their tears contained the purest mental strength. Through the means of pharmacy, Lin Li would be able to use their tears to prepare a potion that could help to rapidly raise and recover mental strength.
Recovering mental strength was not a big deal, as there were other ingredients apart from the Siren’s Tears that could help to do the same. However, the boosting of mental strength was a different story. That was a defiance of natural order, and the Siren’s Tears were an essential ingredient for that to happen.
For any person, the amount of mental strength was basically fixed at birth, and was also known as their magical talent or potential. Therefore, someone’s talent might stop at the level of an Archmage, for instance. No matter how hard he tried, he wouldn’t ever be able to step into the Legendary-realm. There were also people who were deemed unfit to learn magic.
Expanding one’s mental strength was akin to raising one’s innate talent in magic, and there had not been a way for anyone to do so for the longest time. Potions that were created to help people overcome their bottlenecks were only crafted to stimulate their undiscovered potential. They were not there to increase their mental strength out of nowhere.
This was what made the magical crystal of the Evil Eye Tyrant one of the three relics of Geresco alongside the Book of Eternity and the key to the upside-down tower. Things with the power of raising mental strength were definitely a defiance of natural order in Anril.
As a Pharmaceutical Master, Lin Li happened to have the recipe of a potion that could help to enhance mental strength. It was called the Divine Revelation Potion, and the Siren’s Tears were a key ingredient. Although the effects of the potion would not be comparable to the Evil Eye Tyrant’s, Lin Li was confident that he could produce enough potions if he had enough ingredients. It wouldn’t be as limited as the Evil Eye Tyrant.
As long as Lin Li could create the potion that could raise mental strength, he would be able to nurture magic talents in the Tower of Dusk. The mages there were originally chosen for their strong magical potential. If they could consume the Divine Revelation Potion to expand their mental strength, their future would really be unlimited. Not to mention the future, a lot of them were now stuck at the Legendary-realm, and Lin Li was confident that the Divine Revelation Potion would help many of them step into the Sanctuary-realm.
Hence, the mining rights and sea protection were not as important as the Siren’s Tears. There was a saying that one would need to be strong to shape a metal. As long as the Tower of Dusk was strong enough, no one at the Endless Ocean would be able to stop them.
Prince Cleve couldn’t help but freeze when he heard Lin Li’s request. The Siren’s Tears were considered a rare product given how they were produced. Yet, they had not been sold to the others before. It was not that the Sirens were not concerned about their earnings, but the fact was that the item did not have much use for the others.
No warrior or mage would be able to withstand the vigorous mental storm if they were to consume the tears directly due to the pure mental strength within them. There was even a chance that they would damage their original mental strength and become a cripple. Hence, no matter how rare a Siren’s Tear was, there was no demand for it.
The reason why the Siren’s stored the tears was because of their ability to help female Sirens recover their mental strength rapidly. The Siren’s Tears were considered a reserve resource during battles.
“President Felic, I’m not sure if you know this, but the Siren’s Tears are not something that outsiders could consume. They wouldn’t be able to withstand the mental storm,” explained Prince Cleve patiently despite the urgent need for funds.
His goodwill multiplied Lin Li’s positive impression of him. Lin Li was very clear that while the tears were a rare product, they weren’t very valued among the Sirens. Anyone would have readily agreed or fiercely marketed them in exchange for his funds. No one would be concerned enough to expose their dangers and downsides at such a time.
“Thank you for your reminder, Prince, but I have my uses for them, and do not intend to consume them directly. So, if you are agreeable, should we discuss the price of the Siren’s Tears?” replied Lin Li. Although now he had good feelings towards the prince, Lin Li did not expose any of his plans about the Divine Revelation Potion to the other party. After all, the effect of the potion was a defiance of natural order. He was absolutely positive that the knowledge of it would hike up the price of the tears.
Seeing that Lin Li was not concerned about the repercussions of the Siren’s Tears, and knowing that he himself was in urgent need of funding, Prince Cleve naturally stopped resisting. “President Felic, we have never sold the Siren’s Tears, so there is no way I could give you an accurate estimation of the price. However, since they are considered rare and also a strategic reserve of our clan, I hope to price each drop at 50,000 gold coins. Do you think that is appropriate?”
