Chapter 889 - Peace for Sale!
A World Worth Protecting
While some of his anger had dissipated, Wang Baole was still very upset about Xie Haiyangâs three-way deal. He knew that businessmen only cared about maximizing their profits. Nevertheless, he still felt hurt.
âBrother Haiyang, I treated you like a friend, but you sold me out...â Wang Baole said softly, his words honest and tinged with slight sorrow. Xie Haiyang fell silent when he heard them. After a long moment, he smiled wryly.
âBrother Baole, youâre right. Iâve gone too far... this time. I owe you one.â
âForget it. You mentioned that youâll be giving me some materials. Iâm not going to accept them. How about this... Iâm in a slight fix now. Maybe you can help me with that.â Wang Baole coughed. In his view, he wasnât a petty-minded person. Since Xie Haiyang was truly sorry, it wouldnât be appropriate for him to keep harping on what had passed. Instead, he decided to mention the problem he was having casually.
Wang Baole didnât hide anything from Xie Haiyang and instead told him everything honestly. His identity had been exposed because of what had happened in the imperial cemetery, and he had attracted the attention of the Violet Gold civilization. They had set him up. Even though he had survived and escaped with his life, he was now trapped in the Earth Spirit civilization.
He also highlighted that he didnât have much time left. The right-hand elder of the Violet Gold civilization was going to find him any moment now and try to kill him.
Even though he hadnât hidden any information from Xie Haiyang, he had played up some of the details and made the affair seem irrevocably interlinked with what had happened in the imperial cemetery. While Wang Baole hadnât revealed any anxiety or panic during his narration, Xie Haiyang instantly knew after listening to Wang Baole what was going on. Wang Baole was hinting that the farce in the imperial cemetery had led to new and hidden threats to Wang Baoleâs safety. Basically, if Xie Haiyang was truly apologetic, he would help Wang Baole resolve his current predicament.
Because of Wang Baoleâs subtle hints, there was no way Xie Haiyang could initiate any negotiations and set a price for his assistance. It was difficult to explain the subtleties hidden in Wang Baoleâs words. One had to rely on oneâs guts and heart in order to truly appreciate the beauty of his words.
Xie Haiyang smiled wryly once more. His admiration and respect for Wang Baole grew. This was why he believed that Wang Baole had a great chance of becoming an extremely powerful cultivator.
In fact, this was why he had expressed his apology to Wang Baole after his three-way deal. His guts told him that Wang Baole possessed extraordinary character and means. He might appear to be from an ordinary family, but behind that veil of the ordinary hid a secret that even Xie Haiyang couldnât see through.
Even if he were to disregard Wang Baoleâs secrets, the Flame Patriarchâs desire to have Wang Baole as his disciple was proof that Wang Baole was no ordinary person. What made things more extraordinary was that Wang Baole had refused the Flame Patriarchâs offer. In addition, even though Wang Baole was currently in a dangerous predicament, he appeared unwilling to reach out to the Flame Patriarch and accept him as his master.
That was why... he believed that Wang Baole was being supported by someone extremely powerful and that he possessed some incredible trump cards.
Xie Haiyangâs guesses and the conclusion that he had reached left him silent. After a moment, he spoke.
âSending you back to the Divine Eye civilization is a piece of cake for me. I can activate my access rights and save you the teleportation fees this time. Youâll be teleported to the market that Iâve set up base at. Your journey back to the Divine Eye civilization would be shortened considerably then.
âTeleporting you away might be easy, but... breaking the seal inside the Violet Gold civilizationâs man-made Eternal Star will be a challenge. Their man-made Eternal Star might not be extremely advanced, but it still possesses the power of an Eternal Star... Besides, the Xie family are businessmen. Itâs important that we play by the rules. We canât abuse our power without a legitimate reason.â
Wang Baole raised his eyebrow when he heard what Xie Haiyang had said. He was about to speak when Xie Haiyang interrupted him. The latter seemed to know his thoughts.
âBrother Baole, Iâm not trying to make money off you, but I really need time to break this seal...â Xie Haiyang sat in his pavilion that was located in the market, a thoughtful look appearing in his eyes as he spoke. He was deliberating his next moves and how he should proceed in order to showcase his abilities while regaining Wang Baoleâs trust and earning some measure of respect from Wang Baole.
Xie Haiyang might treat Wang Baole as a friend, but he was still a businessman at heart. Be it his value to Wang Baole or Wang Baoleâs to him, both were concerns he had to first consider regardless of their friendship. Wang Baoleâs value to him was motivation for him to keep Wang Baole as a friend. Similarly, Wang Baole would be more eager to keep him as a friend if he was of value to Wang Baole.
He could easily resolve the predicament that Wang Baole was currently in. What he needed to decide on was the best way to do so.
Something flickered in Xie Haiyangâs eyes as these thoughts flashed across his mind. His lips then twitched upward into a smile, and he sent another voice transmission out.
âBrother Baole, donât worry about the teleportation fees. Iâll do it for free this time. Donât worry about the cost of breaking the seal either. Weâre brothers, after all. Iâll waive the fees for you. Give me two weeks. I promise Iâll help you break that seal!ân/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
Wang Baoleâs eyes narrowed when he heard what Xie Haiyang had said. He had a vague feeling that there was another layer of meaning hidden beneath those words. He couldnât tell what it was right now though, so he kept quiet and waited for Xie Haiyang to continue speaking.
âBut Brother Baole, I think what you need now isnât a way to break the seal or teleport away but... peace!â
Wang Baoleâs eyes flashed, and he spoke coolly.
âBrother Haiyang, what... do you mean by that?â
âBrother Baole, Iâll be honest with you. I sell everything and anything here, including... peace!â Xie Haiyang smiled, his voice filled with confidence as he spoke.
âPeace? How do you sell that?â Wang Baole frowned. He seemed doubtful and wondered if he was going to be persuaded to buy himself a guard.
âBy selling Peace Tokens. You can track the validity period using the Federation calendar. Each token is valid for one year. Basically, no one will dare give you trouble after you buy a Peace Token. When you bump into enemies, just show them the Peace Token. Theyâll retreat a hundred light-years away at the sight of it. Theyâll probably wish they can fall to their knees and beg for mercy.â Xie Haiyang explained the functions of the Peace Token. His sales pitch sounded compelling.
Wang Baole seemed doubtful after hearing what Xie Haiyang had said, then he asked for the price of the token. A strange look settled on his face after Xie Haiyang replied. In his head, there was a stampede of horses thundering across the plains. After a moment, he ended the voice transmission without saying anything.
His voice transmission jade slip vibrated in the next moment. Xie Haiyangâs awkward laughter drifted out from the device.
âBaole, Baole, listen to me...â
âYou can stop talking. I canât afford it!â Wang Baole said coolly.
âWhy are you getting upset again? Iâm not done talking. Weâre brothers, after all. Besides, youâre a very important customer to me. How about this? Iâll let you try the token out for a monthâa monthâs worth of peace for free. If youâre satisfied with the product after the month is up, you can buy the actual product from me then. What do you say to that?â
âXie Haiyang, why do I smell a rat in this? Are you sure that this Peace Token of yours is safe?â Wang Baole frowned. He had a feeling that something wasnât quite right.
âIâm a businessman, so I take responsibility for everything that I sell. Hold on to the token, and show it to your enemy if you bump into any of them. I swear theyâll retreat at least a hundred light-years away. The cowards amongst them may even die of fright on the spot!â The sound of thudding emerged from the jade slip. Xie Haiyang appeared to have hit his palm against his chest as a gesture of assurance.
Wang Baole couldnât be bothered to dwell further on this matter. He didnât have to pay a single cent, after all. Besides, he wasnât concerned with the token. His mind was occupied by Xie Haiyangâs promise to break the seal and teleport him away. He nodded before moving on to discuss the details of breaking the seal with Xie Haiyang. After the voice transmission ended, a bright light erupted from the voice transmission jade slip in his hand. The jade slipâs appearance shifted and finally settled into a white color. It was still a jade slip, but an inscription had appeared on it.
The inscription wasnât written in any known language. However, the word âpeaceâ would appear inside oneâs head whenever one looked at it.
Wang Baole studied the token for some time, then narrowed his eyes. He was extremely alarmed by how Xie Haiyang had been able to transform a voice transmission jade slip into what he had called a Peace Token so effortlessly. At the same time, such capabilities gave him pause.
If he has the power to do this, then breaking the seal shouldnât be a challenge for him. He said that he needed fifteen days, but thatâs probably an excuse... Did Xie Haiyang plan to give me this token all along? Wang Baole stared at the token, and his eyes flashed. After some thought, he put the token away, then looked at the seal before him. Finally, he turned away and left.
There was a great likelihood that Xie Haiyang had intended to give him this token. Wang Baole was going to find out his true intentions for doing so.
Is he trying to sabotage me? Wang Baole vanished and reappeared in another location in the Earth Spirit civilization. He froze in his tracks as that particular thought popped into his head.