“Wait. Answer my question! How long does it take to gather three taels of fur?” Shang Xia asked once again. Of course, while they were still stuck at an impasse on what to do with the fur, it was decided that it would remain in Yan Ni’er’s possession.
Everyone in the room looked at each other and didn’t know what the answer was. Eventually, Shang Quan coughed awkwardly and sighed, “If the amount of fur here was gathered from the flock slowly and only obtained after they raided the nest, it might take an extremely long time.”
Shang Ke shook his head and added, “Wait a minute… This ball of fur should contain those purposefully gathered up by the birds. What about those that were blown away in the wind?”
“Fifth Uncle, you mean…” Shang Quan muttered.
Shang Ke turned to Shang Xia and spoke, “If we manage to gain more control over the flock of Rain Swallows, we will not only hold the fate of the Wind Swallow Race in our hand. We will also gather enough fur to make a huge amount of spatial artifacts!”
The fire in Shang Ke’s eyes burned bright as he looked at Shang Sia.
Even though Shang Xia felt a little uncomfortable in his heart, he had to say that the idea was tempting. Shang Ke definitely had the Shang Clan’s interest at heart.
As such, he chose to remain silent.
All of a sudden, Shang Xi yelled, “Fifth Uncle, we cannot do this!”
Frowning, Shang Ke looked over at Shang Xi to be met with an exasperated sigh. “There’s too much riding on this. If we try something like that, our Shang Clan will become public enemy number 1!”
Shang Ke was no fool. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be able to sit comfortably as the second person in charge of the Shang Clan.
He was blinded by the gains they could obtain with the flock of Mutated Rain Swallow under Shang Xia’s control. He completely forgot the risks associated with it.
When Shang Xia displayed his control over the flock of Mutated Rain Swallow to the Wind Swallow Race, Shang Ke knew that the only reason Yan Su’er didn’t risk it all and fight them to the death for it was due to the support of the Tongyou Institution! If not for the tyrannical Tongyou Institution standing behind him, the Shang Clan would have long been flattened to the ground!
Since the Rain Swallow Fur was something crucial to the creation of spatial artifacts, they would only be targeted by many other factions. Holding the fate of the Wind Swallow Race was nothing in comparison!
Shang Ke understood that if the Shang Clan wanted to obtain the greatest amount of benefits, the best method would be to split the profits with the other powers. With the Tongyou Institution at its core, they could stand against any threat that came knocking.
Shang Ke felt his heart aching like never before when he thought about how he would have to give up so much. Never in his wildest imagination would he expect Shang Xia to be against using the flock of Mutated Rain Swallows to fight for gains.
The reason Shang Xia was able to gain the birds’ trust was because he had always seen them as equals! As friends, they wouldn’t scheme against each other!
Shang Xia sighed and made his decision. Regardless of whether it was the Wind Swallow Race, Tongyou Institution, or the Shang Clan, none of them would be allowed to harm the Rain Swallows! If they wanted to obtain anything from the flock of birds, they would have to promise to put the wellbeing of the birds first!
When Shang Ke saw the absent-minded look on Shang Xia’s face, he muttered, “Brat, what are you thinking about? You seem to have a lot of treasures on you… What else are you hiding? Bring it all out. Otherwise, you’re not going to know what to do with them.”
Shang Xia thought about it for a moment and he frowned. “I actually have two more… I’m not sure what they are. Since all of you are here, help me look at it.”
He brought out a case filled with sand-like objects inside and Shang Xi sneered in response, “Blue Clay. It’s a rank two treasure, and it’s mostly used for laying down formations. It would sometimes be used to create graded weapons, and on the rare occasion, it would be used to create medicine for cultivations trying to enter the peak of the Martial Realm.”
Shang Xi had been learning from Shang Quan in the past, and with her current position as the caretaker of the Shang Clan in Shang Bo’s absence, she was extremely knowledgeable about such things.
Shang Xia nodded and retrieved a clear crystal bottle that housed a drop of blood.
“This…” Shang Xi seemed to recognize it, but she didn’t dare to confirm her guess.
As for Shang Quan, he seemed to have thought of something when he saw the drop of blood. His expression changed greatly as he turned to look at Shang Ke.
Shang Xi wanted to grab the bottle to get a closer look, but someone snatched it away before she could come close.
“Fifth Uncle…” Shang Xi raised an eyebrow in surprise.
Shang Ke’s expression turned deadly serious and he looked at Shang Xia with a trace of hesitation. He didn’t know how to phrase his words. Only after some time did he gather his thoughts.
“This is blood essence… Sometimes, cultivators of the Azure Spiritual World would call it Blood Essence Crystals. It’s used to strengthen the bloodlines of those from the Azure Spiritual World.”
Shang Ke eventually explained.
“Blood Essence Crystal?! Is this what the Wind Swallow Race is relying on to improve their bloodline?” Shang Xia gasped.
Shang Ke shook his head and laughed, “The success rate isn’t set in stone. Moreover, it’s impossible for them to stop the weakening of their bloodline…”
Shang Xia continued, “How did this come about?! Is this what they are after from the Mutated Rain Swallows?”
“Of course not. This Blood Essence Crystal can only form after pure blooded members of the Azure Spiritual World die. Those who are capable of something like that are experts in the Martial Intent Realm or higher. Also, the success rate of creating it can’t be confirmed.” Shang Ke sighed.
“So that’s the case…” Shang Xia grinned. “This treasure might sound valuable, but it doesn’t seem too useful to us! In the future, we can trade with the Wind Swallow Race for some good stuff!”
Shang Xia barely completed his sentence when he saw the serious look on Shang Ke’s face.
“Xia’er, I’m afraid we’ll have to take this treasure away from you. Our Shang Clan will keep it safe.”
“Alright! However, I don’t know what you plan to use it for. Fifth Grandpa, why don’t you tell me what it can do?” Shang Xia chuckled in amusement.
Shang Ke smacked Shang Xia’s head playfully and chided. “You’re full of shit. Do you really think that I’ll steal your treasures? Anyway, your Grandpa Bo told all of us to keep it a secret. I can’t exactly reveal what this drop of blood can be used for. Whatever the case, the treasure belongs to you and our clan will have to give you suitable compensation if we take it away. However, you can only wait for the battle to end. The resources we have at our command now are channeled into the war, and I’m unable to take anything out.”
A mischievous smile formed on Shang Xia’s face and he tutted, “There’s no need to rush! As long as Fifth Grandpa doesn’t forget about it, that’ll be great!”
“Shoo! Damn brat! I’m leaving!” Shang Ke muttered before rushing off.
However, he seemed to have recalled something and his voice echoed in their ears even after he had left. “Right, don’t tell anyone about Xi’er’s appearance here. It’s absolutely forbidden to tell anyone of her whereabouts!”
Shang Quan, Yan Qi, and Shang Xia nodded like chickens pecking on rice. Now that the great clans had sent their core members over, Shang Xia knew that the Tongyou Peak’s plot was about to succeed.
After making sure that the Rose Party’s objective wasn’t the Tongyou Peak or Tongyou City, the institution started to send their experts over secretly to the Tongyou Peak.
Not too long after Shang Ke left, Shang Xia’s voice rang in the room, “Uncle Quan, I have no use for the Blue Clay. You can deal with it for me.”
“A rank two treasure. Ordinary ones would cost thirty silver essence per portion. The expensive ones will reach up to eighty silver essence a portion. Blue Clay is pretty rare, and you have an entire case of it. It’s slightly more than a portion and a conservative estimate will be fifty pieces of silver essence.”
“Alright. Why don’t you give me fifty silver essences and you can keep the case?” Shang Xia grinned.
“What the hell? Are you lacking cash right now?”
As Shang Ke heard the commotion coming from the Shang Pavilion, he felt as though something was amiss but he couldn’t put his finger on it.
After Shang Xia handed the case over to Shang Quan, everyone left the room. Shang Xia was left alone with Yan Ni’er who returned to her nest.
“Huh? Why do I feel like I lost big… Wait a second… All my treasures are gone! They even have their eyes on those I’m left with! No, no, no… I can’t keep this up. So what if I manage to gain a bunch of favors? In the end, I’m still a pauper. I have to get something in return!” Shang Xia cried after checking up on the treasures he owned.
“Chirp, chirp!” Yan Ni’er’s voice rang softly beside him. When he turned to look at her, he saw the egg sitting peacefully under her butt and he chuckled to himself, “We’re the only ones left… Haha all of them were busy arguing with each other and they didn’t notice the fourth egg! These are spiritual creatures that can be tamed the moment they hatch! One of them could even be a Lightning Bird the moment it emerges from the shell…”