Soon, Ling Ruoxue received the detailed price list.
"Qin Xiao, the items they selected this time total over two hundred pieces, coming to a grand total of twenty-seven million three hundred thousand. I've taken it upon myself to waive the three hundred thousand remainder. After all, you are a valued holder of our Membership Card."
Upon hearing the report from her subordinate, Ling Ruoxue felt utterly delighted inside. Over twenty-seven million was no small figure, so she took the liberty of cutting off three hundred thousand.
Normally, three hundred thousand Spirit Stones would not be a trivial amount, yet today she waved it away without a second thought. Mentioning the Membership Card was merely an excuse since she had provided the card herself; her real goal was to curry favor with Qin Xiao, especially since such a massive cargo of goods involved Spirit Liquid and High Grade Spirit Stones.
"You only waived the remainder? Very well, it seems you know how to do business."
Qin Xiao was not exactly dissatisfied. She had already offered an extra thank-you gift for saving her life, and now she had knocked off three hundred thousand Spirit Stones. Even so, he felt he might still be getting the short end of the stick; they must have calculated based on the upper limit with a hefty profit margin just to afford that three hundred thousand discount.
"Young Master Qin, a three-hundred-thousand remainder? That is not three hundred or three thousand; we naturally have to make a profit. Of course, if you pay with Spirit Liquid or higher-grade Spirit Stones, I can offer you an additional ten percent discount. How does that sound?"
Ling Ruoxue had simply been waiting for Qin Xiao to take the bait so she could steer the conversation. Their Immortal Dao Merchant Association was never short on Low Grade Spirit Stones, but Spirit Liquid, Middle Grade Spirit Stones, and High Grade Spirit Stones were somewhat in short supply.
As a merchant association, they could not dictate what currency customers used-people simply paid whatever they wished-and she did not wish to expose her true intentions.
"I knew it, you were waiting right here for me. Paying with other goods is not out of the question. Since we are old acquaintances, I will naturally accommodate you."
In truth, Qin Xiao did not carry many Spirit Stones anyway and had intended to trade using Spirit Liquid. Finding out the other party wanted the exact same thing suited him perfectly. A ten-percent discount was quite substantial; combined with the previous three-hundred-thousand markdown, it totaled a reduction of three million.
"May I ask what Young Master Qin plans to use for the exchange?"
Ling Ruoxue asked with eager anticipation.
"Spirit Liquid, the same as last time. Thirty thousand per drop. Does that satisfy Miss Ling?"
Qin Xiao made a quick mental calculation. It was not many-just over eight hundred drops, which was entirely acceptable.
At his current production rate of two drops per minute, that amounted to less than seven hours of output.
"No problem at all. Let me calculate: twenty-seven million, minus ten percent, leaves twenty-four million three hundred thousand. That translates to eight hundred and ten drops of Spirit Liquid. Does Young Master Qin have any objections?"
Although she failed to obtain High Grade Spirit Stones, Ling Ruoxue felt a tiny twinge of disappointment, yet Spirit Liquid was also an exceptional trade item. She immediately began tallying the numbers.
"Your calculation is correct."
Qin Xiao had already worked it out himself and naturally raised no objection to the quantity Ling Ruoxue stated.
With that said, Qin Xiao took two large bottles out of System Space, each capable of holding up to five hundred drops.
"Here are two bottles of Spirit Liquid. One holds five hundred drops, and the other holds three hundred and ten. Miss Ling, please inspect them."
Without lingering, Qin Xiao settled the bill directly.
"Spot on. Doing business with Young Master Qin is always such a refreshing pleasure."
After inspecting the contents and finding everything in order, Ling Ruoxue beamed with satisfaction.
"I wonder if Young Master Qin happens to have any more Middle Grade Spirit Stones or High Grade Spirit Stones? Could you exchange some with us?"
Qin Xiao had just opened his mouth to ask about Body Refinement when Ling Ruoxue spoke first.
"Oh? An exchange? How does this exchange work?"
Seeing that Ling Ruoxue beat him to it, Qin Xiao stopped and instead countered with a question.
"On the open market, a single Middle Grade Spirit Stone costs roughly twelve to fifteen hundred Low Grade Spirit Stones, while trading Middle Grade Spirit Stones for High Grade ones generally starts above fifteen hundred to one. Which type does Young Master Qin possess, and how many are there?"
Without trying to take advantage of him, Ling Ruoxue faithfully quoted the market exchange rates; she simply wanted to know the scale of Qin Xiao's reserves.
"I have as many as you need. It only depends on how many you wish to trade. As for the exchange rate, for Middle Grade Spirit Stones I will give you the lowest market rate: twelve hundred to one. For High Grade Spirit Stones, also the lowest rate: fifteen hundred to one. How many are you looking to acquire?"
Seeing how generous Ling Ruoxue had been, Qin Xiao refused to be stingy and offered the absolute minimum market rates. In any case, his conversions incurred no transaction fees, and since standard market rates existed, he had no intention of deliberately shortchanging her.
"Is Young Master Qin's word true? You have as many as I want?"
Even though Ling Ruoxue suspected Qin Xiao still held a stash of Middle Grade and High Grade Spirit Stones, hearing him claim he had as many as she wanted still gave her a profound shock.
She felt she could see through Qin Xiao less and less. To treat such precious treasures as limitless and exchange them without the slightest hint of reluctance-had he perhaps hollowed out the treasury of some supreme sect?
In truth, Ling Ruoxue was not the only one startled; Ye Qiuyue and Lin Shimeng both stared at Qin Xiao in disbelief, wondering if their ears were deceiving them.
Yun Man, on the other hand, had already grown accustomed to it. Whatever Qin Xiao produced now felt entirely normal to her, given the countless times he had already astonished her.
"Why would I lie to you? Just name the amount you want to swap."
Qin Xiao could not be bothered to explain further. If they wanted to trade, they traded; why ask so many questions?
He was naturally glad to earn some extra pocket change, and as for keeping his wealth concealed, he felt no particular anxiety.
None of the people present posed any substantial threat to him. Yun Man was his loyal disciple with abundant resources and no reason to betray him; Lin Shimeng was no fool either, and having taken him as her master, she surely understood that turning against him brought no benefit.
As for his Martial Aunt, Ye Qiuyue, Qin Xiao worried even less, for whatever she desired, he would simply provide. After all, she had rushed all the way to Tianyuan Sect on his account; if she needed resources, she only had to ask.
The sole variable was the Immortal Dao Merchant Association. Yet an organization of such magnitude would hardly harbor malicious designs against a major client; a power that vast would surely disdain petty plots over his modest sum of wealth.
"Go and tally how many Low Grade Spirit Stones we have left. Bring them all here-every single one."
Recovering from her shock, Ling Ruoxue hastily instructed her subordinate to audit the spirit stone reserves.
Naturally, the guards stationed right beside her were trusted confidants. Fearing no leaks of confidential information, she ordered them straightaway to check the reserves.
Before long, her attendants marched in carrying twenty storage bags, accompanied by five Soul Formation late-stage supervisors-virtually the entire hidden strength of the branch.
"Miss, why the sudden need for so many spirit stones? We are required to submit accounts to the main branch soon. If you take them all, how are we to answer to the venerable elders?"
The leading elderly man asked in bewilderment, terrified that Ling Ruoxue might be acting rashly.
Tianyuan City functioned as one of the primary regional hubs, responsible for consolidating all surrounding financial revenues before submission to the sect. Every transaction required strict bookkeeping. For Ling Ruoxue to suddenly withdraw all Low Grade Spirit Stones, how could they not follow?
This represented half a year's total revenue. If it vanished, they would all bear the blame, yet because Ling Ruoxue was the young mistress and they could do nothing to stop her, they had rushed over to dissuade her.
"Elder Wen, I am not acting recklessly. The only reason I requested all the spirit stones is for an exchange. I forgot to introduce you-Elder Wen, this is Young Master Qin, a distinguished guest of our Immortal Dao Merchant Association. He is willing to exchange Middle Grade and High Grade Spirit Stones with us."
Not wanting Qin Xiao to misunderstand, Ling Ruoxue hurried to explain.
"Young Master Qin, allow me to introduce them. These five veterans maintain order for our Immortal Dao Merchant Association here in Tianyuan City. This is Head Supervisor Wu Wen; Elder Wen, this is Wu Liang, Supervisor Liang; this is Wu Gong, Supervisor Gong; this is Wu Jian, Supervisor Jian; and the last one needs no introduction from me-Wu Li, Supervisor Li."
Fearing Qin Xiao might take offense, Ling Ruoxue quickly rattled off the names of the old men. When only a single elder appeared, they were generally addressed simply as Manager Wu, but with all five present, she had to use their given names to avoid confusion.
"Wen, Liang, Gong, Jian, Li? Wait a moment... does that not technique out 'gentle, good, respectful, frugal, and yielding' in proper order?"
Gathering the cues from Ling Ruoxue's introductions, Qin Xiao seemed to realize something and muttered under his breath. All five men shared the surname Wu, and their given names formed a sequential phrase. They must have been brothers, but why did the final character end in Li?