46: Apology

Inside a private room of a restaurant in Green Bamboo Market, Tian Hao, Yu Qing, and several other Talismans shop owners gathered.

“You all received instructions from the Murong Family, right?”

Tian Hao spoke in a low voice.

“Hmph, the Murong Family is truly going downhill. Wu Daoren is so brazen, yet they remain silent and instead make us deal with it.”

Lai Zhiwen, the owner of the Green Talisman Shop, snorted in dissatisfaction.

“Damn it, even Feng Sha fell into his hands. If we had known he was so strong, how would we have dared to harbor ill intentions!”

Wang Youwei of the Talismans Hall showed a look of fear, trembling all over as he recalled the intelligence he had received.

Wu Daoren not only suppressed and killed Feng Sha but also accurately found the subordinates they had sent out.

Not a single one of their dispatched operatives returned.

What terrified him most was that, apart from the few of them present, all the other Cultivators involved in the matter died mysteriously, turning into mummified corpses when discovered.

Now only these few of them remained, as if Wu Daoren was deliberately keeping them to toy with them!

“What’s the use of saying all this now? Let’s discuss how to resolve it.”

Tian Hao tapped his finger on the table, reminding them.

“Resolve? How to resolve it!”

“If it weren’t for you, this damned fatty, agreeing, how would we have gotten into this mess!”

Wang Youwei was already on the verge of a mental breakdown, and his temper flared up at the words.

Tian Hao’s face darkened as Wang Youwei pointed and cursed at him.

They were all of equal status; no one was nobler than the other.

But then he remembered that he was indeed the first to agree to this matter, which led to a series of troubles.

He looked at Yu Qing, who was silent beside him, seemingly finding an outlet for his frustration.

“Manager Yu, your Talisman Cultivator Alliance isn’t planning to just watch, are you? You know Feng Sha was invited by you.”

Yu Qing, who had been trying to be inconspicuous, couldn’t help but show a bitter expression at the mention.

He was the most wronged; this matter originally had nothing to do with him, it was all Ding Yu’s idea.

As a result, that scoundrel never woke up, and now he had to clean up the mess.

But what could he clean up? He already wanted to pack his bags and run away.

“Gentlemen, since the matter has already happened, it’s best to resolve it. Now we are all grasshoppers on the same rope; blaming each other is meaningless.”

Among them, only Lai Zhiwen remained relatively calm. It wasn’t that he wasn’t afraid of Wu Daoren; he just thought more deeply.

Since Wu Daoren hadn’t killed them immediately, it meant there was still room for negotiation.

Moreover, this might even be an opportunity to connect with Wu Daoren.

As for Wu Daoren being a Demonic Cultivator?

Sorry, he was a businessman; he didn’t care about Demonic Path or Righteous Path.

Seeing that their emotions had stabilized, Lai Zhiwen paused and continued.

“Wu Daoren is also a Cultivator and definitely needs resources; otherwise, he wouldn’t be thinking of selling Talismans.

So our best solution is to pay for our mistakes, give enough resources or Spirit Stones, resolve this misunderstanding, and perhaps we can even cooperate in the future.”

Tian Hao and the others’ eyes lit up at first, then showed reluctance.

Despite their outward splendor, the foundations they owned were all built by their ancestors.

By the time it reached their hands, they could only barely maintain a balance between income and expenditure.

Making them take out Spirit Stones for Wu Daoren was like cutting flesh from their bodies; how could they bear to part with it?

Otherwise, they wouldn’t have targeted Wu Daoren for a small profit.

While there were other reasons, it ultimately came down to the word ‘profit’.

Seeing them still fretting over Spirit Stones even now, Lai Zhiwen’s veins throbbed on his forehead.

He couldn’t understand why he had conspired with such people against Wu Daoren at the time; he must have been utterly deluded.

“Gentlemen, what’s more important, life or Spirit Stones? This is not the time to be stingy with Spirit Stones!”

Lai Zhiwen spoke in a deep voice; he couldn’t stand these idiots anymore.

“Old Lai, how much do you say?”

“Don’t call me Old Lai!”

“Brother Lai, how much do you think is appropriate to give Wu Daoren?”

Tian Hao asked.

“A thousand Spirit Stones each, that’s not much for us.”

Lai Zhiwen thought for a moment and stated the figure.

This amount of Spirit Stones was indeed not much; accumulated over several generations, it was several times this amount.

However, it would indeed cause them pain for a long time, as could be seen from the expressions on Tian Hao and Wang Youwei’s faces.

After a while, Tian Hao was the first to agree.

“Alright, then it’s as you say. But how do we give it to Wu Daoren? We can’t find him! And aren’t you worried he’ll take the Spirit Stones and turn hostile?”

Lai Zhiwen showed a confident smile.

“We don’t need to deliberately look for Wu Daoren; we just need to spread the word.

And we not only need to give it, but we need to give it generously. It’s best if everyone in the entire market knows that we are apologizing to Wu Daoren.”

Tian Hao’s eyes lit up.

“Excellent! This way, we stand on the side of righteousness, and Wu Daoren won’t act against us either.”

Lai Zhiwen shook his head.

“We are just ensuring our survival, not trying to coerce Wu Daoren with righteousness. As long as he accepts the Spirit Stones, we might even be able to cooperate in the future.”

Lai Zhiwen saw things more clearly.

The few of them discussed further, and eventually, everyone agreed to each take out a thousand Spirit Stones to apologize to Wu Daoren.

It was at this moment that a weak voice came from the side, breaking the harmonious atmosphere.

“Everyone…”

Yu Qing spoke with great difficulty.

“The Talisman Cultivator Alliance’s Spirit Stones are all with Alliance Leader Li Yu; I… I can’t make the decision.”

“What, your Talisman Cultivator Alliance isn’t planning to pay this money?”

Tian Hao frowned, and his Spiritual Pressure pressed down on Yu Qing. Despite his portly appearance, he was a genuine Qi Refining seventh-layer Cultivator.

The other two also looked displeased; this incident was instigated by the Talisman Cultivator Alliance, otherwise, there wouldn’t have been so much trouble.

Yu Qing felt the pressure from the others, cold sweat breaking out on his forehead, but he still gritted his teeth and said.

“Gentlemen, you misunderstand. Our Alliance Leader hasn’t shown his face for several months, and I can’t contact him either…”

He was also very aggrieved; now everyone in the association was spreading rumors that Li Yu had absconded with the funds.

Which Alliance Leader would go into seclusion for several months without showing his face right after taking office!

However, Yu Qing dared not say these words lightly.

Now the Talisman Cultivator Alliance was already a nominal entity; everyone just wanted to maintain the last shred of dignity, so not many rumors had spread outside.

Lai Zhiwen listened to Yu Qing’s words and thought for a moment, concluding that whether the Talisman Cultivator Alliance existed or not was unimportant; clarifying their relationship was actually a good thing.

As for whether Wu Daoren would eventually trouble the Talisman Cultivator Alliance, what did that have to do with them? They were never on the same side as the Talisman Cultivator Alliance.

Moreover, they could even use this matter to their advantage and divert Wu Daoren’s hatred.

Having understood this, Lai Zhiwen casually brushed Yu Qing off with a few words and sent him away.

Afterward, he explained his idea to the other two, and the three exchanged glances, all letting out strange, cackling laughs.