Chapter 352: Goddess, You Cannot Be Simping!
Love Triangle, captain's cabin.
Zi Di gave the dragonman youngster a subtle glare.
How could they negotiate like this?
Who started off by demanding answers?
According to Zi Di's understanding, negotiation could be likened to a war. Verbal language and body language were the main weapons in this war, ultimately achieving the goal of influencing others and obtaining personal gain.
The most important part of the early stages of war was preparation and intelligence gathering.
Therefore, before negotiations, both parties usually started with lighter topics. Like the weather, for example.
During this process, Zi Di would probe and confirm the other party's physical condition, emotions, interests, and even personal values.
These things could all become tools Zi Di could use, or even fatal weaknesses in her opponent.
However, after the dragonman youngster invited Bu Quan to the captain's cabin, he immediately asked for the answer.
That was too reckless!
It was like two armies clashing, with one side launching a full-scale charge from the start, completely bypassing the preliminary intelligence gathering, mid-game tactical shifts, and the back-and-forth exchanges of moves and countermeasures.
"Moreover, directly demanding answers reveals a sense of superiority that can be off-putting. Additionally, the urgency you display will only become your own weakness." Zi Di looked at the dragonman youngster and sighed helplessly.
The dragonman youngster sensed Zi Di's gaze, blinked, and realized he was holding her back.
Zi Di didn't bother with the dragonman youngster and immediately turned to Bu Quan, trying to salvage the situation: "Miss Bu Quan, there's no need to answer immediately. Regarding the invitation to join the mercenary group, it's not just us—even the clan leader is very sincere. Any conditions can be discussed!"
Zhong Yong, standing nearby, heard this and immediately felt envious.
He also wanted such treatment—who wouldn't?
“Unfortunately, I'm not a genius like Miss Bu Quan.”
“And your Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps isn’t qualified to recruit her either.”
“Even if the conditions are good, what use are they?”
“Can you give her endless alchemy knowledge? Can you nurture her so that her talent and abilities can be fully realized?”
“No. Only in the right soil can rare and precious flowers bloom.”
Bu Quan looked at Zi Di, nodded slightly, then shook her head: “Let's not talk about this for now, okay?”
“Let's discuss the reward first.”
"Last night at the ball, I wanted to discuss this important matter with Commander Long Fu. But unexpectedly, I had the honor of receiving the commander's invitation, which disrupted my original plans."
“However, in fact, this matter is very important to me.”
“Before this matter is resolved, can we not discuss anything else?”
“This...” Zi Di's smile grew forced.
Her heart sank.
This situation was not good!
Bu Quan adopted a calculating expression, a gesture that proved she was setting aside the influence of her feelings toward Long Fu and the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.
The dragonman youngster shook his head in refusal: “Bu Quan, you don’t owe me any favors. In fact, I’m the one who owes you.”
“As for the specific reasons, I already mentioned them at last night’s banquet, right?”
“Of course,” Bu Quan smiled, “but that’s your reason, not enough to serve as a standard for action.”
"The Bayonet Gang was annihilated, and Teng Dong Lang was killed by you, the commander, in full view of everyone. Most importantly, you used the spell scroll I gave you to turn the tide in this battle."
“This is the best revenge for me.”
“There is no doubt that you are my benefactor.”
“I must repay you!”
“Repaying you is the prerequisite for everything.”
“Repaying you is the prerequisite for everything.”
“This...” The dragonman youngster was about to refuse.
Zi Di thought to herself, “Commander, please speak less.”
She once again stopped the dragonman youngster with her gaze, then said seriously to Bu Quan, “Let's talk about it properly.”
Bu Quan took out a list and placed it on the desk.
“These are my main assets in Snow Bird Harbor, and also my personal repayment to you, Commander Long Fu.”
Everyone's attention was immediately drawn to the list.
Bu Quan's main assets consisted of four alchemy workshops. Specifically, one large alchemy workshop, two medium-sized ones, and one small one.
Bu Quan then gave a brief introduction.
"The large alchemy workshop is located on the southeast coast of Snow Bird Harbor, equipped with a ventilation system and a cubic furnace, capable of processing silver level materials on a large scale. Its primary function is to supply processed materials to the other three alchemy workshops."
"The two medium-sized alchemy workshops are located in Mercury Cave and Rose Beach. The former utilizes local resources and has a complete production line for crafting alchemy puppets. The latter draws on the geothermal energy beneath the beach, primarily for the production of potions."
"The small workshop is located within the city and is managed by me year-round. It houses alchemy components such as a living fossil workbench, a hollow coral forging anvil, a flame engineering hammer, and a blue crystal future projector."
Zhong Yong listened beside her, his mouth agape, nearly drooling with envy.
His life's dream was to own his own alchemy workshop, to support himself while continuing to explore the field of alchemy.
He never imagined that Bu Quan would give out four of his dream workshops at once!
Zhong Yong, being an expert, quickly assessed the value of these four alchemy workshops in his mind.
"In large alchemy workshops, the ventilation wheel is the core energy source. Such alchemy devices are already renowned for their affordability and quality. The cubic furnace, however, is no ordinary device. It can be folded up for portability, with a volume less than one percent of its operational state. Such portable alchemy tools are typically used for setting up temporary camps. Using them in a fixed location is actually a waste of functionality."
"The two medium-sized alchemy workshops are carefully selected for their locations, clearly designed with specific structures, making them custom-made alchemy workshops. They produce alchemy puppets and potions, with significant production volumes."
"The value of the small workshops is the greatest, and it's quite exaggerated! Every tool mentioned by Bu Quan is made of gold level components!"
"The living fossil workbench effectively maintains the activity of materials. It also has a built-in spell that activates everything, allowing for automated material processing. For example, it can make wood actively jump into flames to burn itself. It can make potions actively crowd together, spin wildly, and complete the mixing process on their own."
"The main material for making coral anvils is rare golden coral. The manufacturing process is extremely labor-intensive, with each hollowed-out section being a miniature compressed space. With such a structure, the coral anvil can store a large amount of materials. It can instantly absorb waste materials during the material forging process. It can also store and retrieve suitable materials, saving a significant amount of materials and preventing waste. The spell it carries significantly increases the success rate of material processing and the quality of the final product."
"The flame engineering hammer is a fully flame-formed alchemy tool that can be scaled to any size. Besides forging, it also functions as a furnace, capable of enveloping and melting various materials for refinement, making it highly convenient and practical."
"The blue crystal future projector is the most precious treasure among them all. It is extremely rare, and alchemists often have no way to purchase it."
"Its function is highly powerful, enabling the prediction of alchemy outcomes and their expression through magic images. In other words, with it, alchemists can foresee the success or failure of an important alchemy endeavor in advance. Furthermore, they can carefully analyze the magic images to identify the specific cause of failure and avoid it beforehand."
"Bu Quan is indeed a talent that the Alchemist Guild values. These precious items must be the rewards she exchanged for completing her tasks using her contribution points."
The more Zhong Yong analyzed, the more he felt a sense of joy.
The reason was simple.
Bu Quan was giving these to the dragonman youngster as a token of gratitude.
So, once Zhong Yong joined the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, wouldn’t he have the opportunity to access and use these alchemy devices?
“I never expected such a good thing!”
“Thank you, Miss Bu Quan. On my first day joining the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps, you’ve already sent such a generous gift to improve our working conditions!”
Although Zhong Yong didn't understand the full story, after eavesdropping, he vaguely understood Bu Quan's attitude toward the dragonman youngster and the motive behind this action.
“These assets are of great value, yet Bu Quan gave them away so easily.”
“I understand!”
“Bu Quan did this to distance herself from the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and reject Long Fu's invitation.”
Zhong Yong felt he had guessed Bu Quan’s intention.
On one hand, he marveled at Bu Quan’s generosity, giving such a heavy gift of gratitude on a whim—truly the personality of a rising star.
On the other hand, he also approved of Bu Quan’s actions.
Why should the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps try to recruit Bu Quan?
How dare they make such an excessive demand?
How thick-skinned can they be?
It could be said that Bu Quan was like a pearl, a rising star in the alchemy circle.
The dragonman youngster recruiting Bu Quan felt like an outsider coming to the kingdom to court the princess.
The key was that this outsider wasn't even a prince; at best, he was just a peddler.
They weren't a match.
The princess's future could not end up like this.
The dragonman youngster couldn't bring the princess happiness!
Zhong Yong was just about to join the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps but hadn't officially joined yet, so his approval of the dragonman youngster and others was very low.
Additionally, he grew up in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, and though he was a fishman, he had been treated kindly due to his bloodline.
Therefore, he always believed himself to be a resident of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, a member of its alchemists.
Bu Quan was his idol!
Young, snow elf, genius, talent, and brilliance—Zhong Yong aspired to become such an alchemist.
Unfortunately, in reality, he was far from Bu Quan's level.
At the same time, he saw many similarities between himself and Bu Quan.
For instance, the hardships of her early years, her relentless personal efforts, her thirst for knowledge, and her dedication to the study of alchemy.
Zhong Yong had been secretly observing Bu Quan for a long time.
Many alchemists paid attention to Bu Quan, and it was quite normal for a genius like her to attract attention.
To put it dramatically, Bu Quan was like Zhong Yong's goddess.
The former had lived out the life the latter most desired.
Therefore, when Zhong Yong discovered that the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had recruited Bu Quan, he felt Bu Quan was undervalued, and his heart was filled with resentment and aversion.
To some extent, this was him protecting his personal ideals, not wanting them to be tarnished.
The dragonman youngster sighed, “This gift is too valuable.”
Bu Quan shook her head and insisted, “Commander Long Fu, please accept it.”
Seeing this, Zi Di's heart sank to the bottom.
Her thoughts were the same as Zhong Yong's.
Bu Quan was using material wealth to repay the gratitude in her heart.
This was precisely what Zi Di did not want to see.
This sense of gratitude was the greatest bargaining chip in the negotiations between the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps and Bu Quan.
Yet Bu Quan was undermining it.
“What should we do?” Zi Di thought urgently.
"We cannot accept this gift hastily; we need to delay and negotiate."
"We need to show our bargaining chips. The database from the War Merchant is a huge temptation for any alchemist!"
“Additionally, perhaps her gratitude toward the commander can also be utilized.”
As Zi Di pondered the negotiation strategy, she heard the dragonman youngster speak again.
“Alright, I accept this token of gratitude.”
Zi Di’s eyes widened in shock, as if struck by lightning.
Then she heard the dragonman youngster ask, “And what is your answer?”
Zi Di was furious, so much so that she wanted to punch the dragonman youngster in the head.
But then she saw Bu Quan flash a dazzling smile and nod, saying, "I accept your invitation, Commander Long Fu!"
Zi Di: ????
The dragonman youngster burst into laughter, unable to resist clapping his hands forcefully.
Thud.
The next moment, the utterly shocked fishman Zhong Yong fell from his chair onto the ground.
He opened his mouth agape as if his world view had collapsed.
He seemed to be screaming—
Goddess, what's happened to you?!
Goddess, you can't be simping!!!