103: Chapter 103 Agreement Signing: A Win-Win Start

When the door to the Council Hall was pushed open, sunlight slanted in, illuminating the corner of the Jade Slip on the stone desk and casting a faint cyan glow.

Chen Wuwang did not look up. He was tracing the runic grooves of the dagger at his waist with his fingertip, tapping in a rhythm of three long and two short—once, and then again.

The sound of footsteps stopped five paces away.

"Head of the Chen Family." The newcomer's voice was steady, yet it carried an almost imperceptible hint of testing. "The joint communication charms from the Zhao, Li, and Royal clans have been delivered. On behalf of the Seven Clans Council, I am here to formally respond to yesterday's invitation."

Only then did Chen Wuwang look up.

The visitor was a middle-aged man wearing a deep-colored robe with cloud patterns, his cuffs embroidered with the overlapping dark insignias of the three clans.

He stood straight, holding a bronze token in his hand with Spiritual Qi still lingering on it—it was a passage permit that had just been activated.

"Sit," Chen Wuwang said. His voice wasn't loud, and he didn't stand up.

The other man gave a slight nod and took a seat in the guest chair. His pupils constricted slightly as his gaze swept over the sealed Jade Slip on the desk.

He knew that was the agreement.

"We have reviewed the terms," he began. "The general direction is acceptable. However, there are two points we would like to renegotiate."

Chen Wuwang let out a small smile, the corner of his mouth twitching half an inch. "There is no need for further discussion. That is the final version."

"But the resource allocation..."

"You can choose not to sign," Chen Wuwang interrupted him, his tone remaining flat as if he were commenting on the weather. "But in three days, the Liu Clan's transport fleet will set sail, carrying three hundred Qi Condensation Pills. They will travel via the Northern Territory Star Path directly to Sky-Spine City. The six Teleportation Arrays along the way are all nodes they cleared themselves."

The man's fingers tightened.

The Liu Clan? That tiny clan that even had to rent their own mountain-protecting array?

"You have an agreement with the Liu Clan?" His voice grew heavy.

"Not just the Liu Clan."

Chen Wuwang leaned back against his chair, his Mechanical Prosthetic Eye adjusting its focus slightly, reflecting the momentary wavering on the other man's face. "The Wen Clan just delivered their third batch of liquid Spiritual Plants the day before yesterday, and the He Clan has also agreed to help us prospect the abandoned southern mineral veins."

"Their channels aren't as wide as yours, but they have the advantage of—not having so many 'additional conditions.'"

He paused, tapping the tabletop lightly with his finger. "If you don't come, someone else will. The market won't wait for anyone."

The air fell silent for a moment.

The envoy's Adam's apple bobbed. He knew the man before him wasn't bluffing.

In the Spiritual Qi fluctuation records of the Eastern Barrens over the last ten days, the activation frequency of the Teleportation Arrays around the Chen Family's Medicinal Fields had quadrupled. Those small clans were indeed lining up.

"What about the technology sharing portion?" he asked, shifting direction. "At least give us a seat in joint research and development. Otherwise... it will be difficult to answer to the clan Elders."

"Research and development?" Chen Wuwang countered. "When was the last time you successfully purified a Nine-Revolution Pill? Three years ago? Or five?"

Without waiting for an answer, he took a Medicinal Pill directly from his Storage Ring and placed it on the desk.

Golden spirals adorned it, its Spiritual Qi restrained within.

"This is from the seventh batch produced yesterday. Purity is 98.7%. Error is controlled within 0.04 microns. What do you have to research with? Having old alchemists spend three months in seclusion trial-and-error? Or using your clan's disciples as test subjects?"

The envoy's expression changed.

This wasn't a provocation; it was a fact.

They had fallen behind. And not just by a single step.

"Therefore," Chen Wuwang put away the pill, his voice lowering slightly, "don't talk about 'sharing.' We provide the finished products, and you handle transportation and distribution. Forty percent of the profit goes to you; that is already the maximum respect for your 'channel value.'"

The envoy remained silent for a long time.

He knew that if this deal fell through, the Council would immediately send a second wave of people upon his return. And by then, the conditions would only be harsher.

"Fine," he finally spoke. "We'll sign."

Chen Wuwang didn't move.

"But I have one request," the envoy added. "For the first shipment, we must inspect the goods in person. Otherwise, we won't be able to convince the conservatives in the clan."

"Very well," Chen Wuwang nodded. "Tomorrow at the Hour of Chen, the Alchemy Workshop will be open for quality inspection. Send your people, bring your detection spirit plates, bring your old alchemists, bring any means you have to distinguish truth from falsehood. As long as you don't touch the equipment cores, there is no limit on the number of people."

The envoy breathed a sigh of relief.

Now, this was the attitude of cooperation.

He took out his own Jade Slip, imprinted it with his spiritual sense, and generated a copy of the contract.

At the same time, Chen Wuwang activated the sealed Jade Slip on the desk.

Two beams of light rose, merging in the air to form a twin runic chain. After circling three times, they sank into their respective Jade Slips.

A slight tremor of Spiritual Qi rippled through the world.

The alliance was established.

The envoy tucked his copy away, stood up, and forced a smile onto his face. "Congratulations to the Chen Family for entering the ranks of the great sects."

"Congratulations to you as well," Chen Wuwang stood up and walked toward the hall entrance. "For not walking yourselves into a dead end at the last moment."

He personally escorted the man three steps out, stopping at the threshold.

The envoy looked back at him, seemingly wanting to say something, but ultimately turned and departed.

The sound of the servant's footsteps leading the way grew distant.

Chen Wuwang stood in place, unmoving.

The sunlight fell on his shoulders, casting a very long shadow.

He looked down at the remaining copy of the agreement on the stone desk, standing there quietly like a newly erected boundary stone.

There were no cheers, no celebrations.

He knew that this paper contract was not the beginning of trust, but the start of a new game of chess.

The great clans signed because they feared falling behind. But they would never be content as mere distributors. The next step would inevitably involve infiltration, probing, and even attempts to incite defection.

As for the small clans, they would only flock to him more eagerly because of today's events.

The balance had only just been broken.

The true storm was yet to come.

He reached out and slowly picked up the agreement, his fingertips brushing over the warm light membrane on the surface of the Jade Slip.

Then, he gently placed it into his Storage Ring.

His movements were steady, without a hint of emotion.

Turning around, he walked toward the side chamber passage without stopping.

Passing a bronze mirror, it reflected half of his face—silver hair tied in a ponytail, a cold mechanical light in his left eye, and three old scars on his right cheek.

He didn't even look, walking straight through.

"Notify the Deacon Group," he said as he walked, his voice not loud but every word clear. "Prepare to receive the first batch of raw materials.

The Cold-Core Crystal Sand must pass through triple purification arrays, and the Thunder-Core Mother Liquid must be inspected and its Seal verified by someone of deputy-envoy rank or higher before entering the warehouse.

Additionally—"

He paused in his tracks.

"Have the twelve newly transferred Patrol Guards rotate on sentry duty outside the Alchemy Workshop starting tonight.

Change shifts every two hours.

Don't let anyone 'conveniently' take things they shouldn't in the middle of the night."

As his words fell, he had already turned into the depths of the passage, his figure vanishing into the play of light and shadow.

The Council Hall returned to silence.

Only the empty guest seat still held a lingering warmth of Spiritual Qi.

The sunlight shifted, shining on a corner of the stone desk.

There was a shallow scratch there.

It was something Chen Wuwang had unconsciously carved just now.

Three long, two short.

The rhythm remained the same.