Planet Pulverizer: A Mortal's Ascent

Chapter 57: Peace Talk (Part 2)

The peace talk was to be held in a teahouse decorated in a traditional and elegant style. While this teahouse could not be said to be the most luxurious, it was far from shabby. Most importantly... the owner of the teahouse was Lady Wu, one of Baron Zhu Di's lovers.

Out of respect for Baron Zhu Di's status, nobody in Zanglong City dared not give her face.[1]

***

As soon as Li Pin and Qi Dongyuan arrived at the teahouse, Zhao Yuan approached them eagerly, his face beaming with a smile. "Master Li, it's thanks to you that the Five Elements Sect was able to resolve the crisis smoothly this time. We deeply appreciate your help and will never forget this favor."

"I consider myself a member of the Five Elements Sect ever since signing the agreement. When the sect faces difficulties, I am committed to giving it my full support," Li Pin expressed in a compassionate tone.

After exchanging pleasantries, the two quickly entered a private room on the second floor. There were already several people waiting there.

Upon seeing Li Pin, they all greeted him in unison, "Master Li!"

Several people from the Five Elements Sect chimed in.

"Master Li! We are truly indebted to you!"

"As expected of a hero like Master Li! With him around, the Five Elements Sect can rest easy!"

Li Pin greeted them one by one.

He recognized a few familiar faces from the last gathering he had attended. They were all experts second only to Cao Tianyou, Zhao Yuan, and Cao Zuoqiu within the Five Elements Sect. Some of them were also capable of striking out Core Force just like Qi Dongyuan.

They stayed in the private room for a while before Zhao Yuan received some news and went back down again.

Before long, Cao Tianyou, who had been tirelessly managing the affairs of the Five Elements Sect during this period, walked in with a group of people.

Li Pin was able to immediately recognize Xiang Yi, the Aura Force expert of Peregrine Team. This was because he had already looked through Xiang Yi's information prior to coming here.

Among the others, there was another middle-aged man who had clearly also cultivated Aura Force. That person was none other than Baron Zhu Di's most capable subordinate and nephew, Zhu Congwu.

The Taibai Kingdom had been established three hundred years ago. During the tumultuous period decades ago, many people had been stripped of their titles. As a result, the number of nobles had drastically reduced. The people who had managed to preserve their titles till this day were all, without exception, people with profound backgrounds.

Baron Zhu Di was one of them. He had been able to preserve his title due to two factors. The first was that he had managed to nurture several top-notch experts due to his wealth. As for the second reason, it was because he had an Astral Cultivator for a son.

His son was the reason that the baron's position was unshakable. As a result, the baron held immense influence in Zanglong City and was on equal footing with any of its top figures.

As soon as the group entered the room, their eyes fell on Li Pin before they greeted anyone in the room. Xiang Yi had the most aggressive gaze of them all.

However, upon taking a closer look, Xiang Yi noticed that Li Pin's face was rosy, his breathing was normal, and he showed no sign of injury at all. Seeing that, Xiang Yi's pupils dilated noticeably in anger.

There was a particular point that caught his attention. It seemed that, when Li Pin perceived that Xiang Yi was antagonistic, Li Pin's eyes turned... excited? His gaze was blazing with... a hint of fiery determination?!

The way Li Pin looked at Xiang Yi stirred up a strange yet familiar feeling in him.

As if recalling something, Xiang Yi quickly averted his aggressive gaze.

Having spent years navigating the treacherous world of bounty hunters, they had an acute understanding of who they could and couldn't mess with.

The phrase "don't underestimate the poor and young" was definitely not empty talk. If you wanted to bully someone, it would be best to kill them outright. In the situation that you had no confidence in finishing off your target, it was best not to even show your hostility.

Li Pin could single-handedly defeat both Demonic Sand and the Core Force member without sustaining a shred of injury. It meant he was powerful enough for Xiang Yi to classify him as unkillable. Moreover, Xiang Yi had gotten that strange feeling from looking at Li Pin earlier.... That was why Xiang Yi, the well-known captain of Peregrine Team, ended up not only swiftly averting his gaze but even nodding to Li Pin to express a hint of good-will.

At this moment, Zhu Congwu raised his voice and exclaimed with admiration, "If I'm not mistaken, you must be Master Li Pin, the newly appointed flag-bearer of Zanglong City for the Five Elements Sect?"

He went on with enthusiasm, "Truly a hero of this era! Originally, I thought that with the sudden return of the Solar Vermillion Sect, it would be very difficult for Zanglong City to stand out in the Jiang Province Martial Competition.

"But now, with you around, the martial artists from Zanglong City might just shine after all."

"You are too kind, " Li Pin responded.

Meanwhile, Cao Tianyou was also looking at Li Pin. His expression seemed somewhat complex. It contained a mix of surprise, relief, regret, and disappointment.

Cao Tianyou's surprise and relief stemmed from the fighting prowess Li Pin had displayed, ensuring Zanglong City's safety. His regret and disappointment arose from the fact that Li Pin was not a direct disciple of the Five Elements Sect. If he could have such a gifted martial prodigy as his disciple, he'd laugh himself awake.

After some polite exchanges, Zhu Congwu took the lead, and the negotiations began quickly.

Xiang Yi took a quick glance at Li Pin and then turned his gaze to Cao Tianyou, whose age was evident but whose fighting spirit remained undimmed.

Then, Xiang Yi finally spoke. "We understand the difficulty the Five Elements Sect has been facing lately. We also acknowledge that our previous remarks were a bit harsh. Sect Master Cao, we sincerely apologize to you and hope that you can understand our feelings at that time."

His tone grew heavier as he continued, "After all, Wang Daoyi was a comrade-in-arms who went through life and death with us."

"I understand, I understand." Cao Tianyou nodded in agreement. "Captain Xiang, we also acknowledge that our disregard for your feelings played a part in the escalation of this situation. We share some responsibility for this matter."

Li Pin was a bit speechless with these opening statements.

Peace talk? You guys were serious?! You're seriously having peaceful discussions!?

Demonic Sand's corpse is barely cold, and here you are sitting together feigning harmony and friendship. Is this even okay?

Shouldn't Xiang Yi have been more assertive in expressing his stance? Wouldn't it be better to engage in a battle to showcase his strength? Isn't he concerned that inaction will demoralize his men and make it harder for him to impose his words on them?

"Captain Xiang has traveled far and is our honored guest. Over the years, he has ventured into the deep mountains and marshes to hunt down fierce beasts and demonic creatures, contributing greatly to the peace and prosperity of our Taibai Kingdom. For this, I, Cao Tianyou, am deeply grateful and hold him in high esteem," Cao Tianyou said to the room, maintaining a courteous demeanor.

He then announced, "The Five Elements Sect would like to offer three million yuan to treat everyone to a feast as a token of our appreciation for Captain Xiang's efforts in eliminating fierce beasts and demonic creatures over the years."

Three million yuan! Xiang Yi exclaimed inwardly in anger.

This was far from the amount that Xiang Yi had expected. In fact, he found the proposed amount to be an insult to his team. However, looking at Li Pin, who had been staring at him like a tiger this whole time, Xiang Yi suppressed his dissatisfaction and anger.

He went on to say, "Thank you, Sect Master Cao, for your generosity.

"We appreciate your kindness. It's truly a pity that such an unnecessary conflict arose between us. After finishing this mission, Demonic Sand had originally planned to purchase a Star Source Water for his adopted son to see if he could meditate on the Astral God and become an Astral Cultivator. However, it seems that we will not be able to afford that 30 million for the Star Source Water for him still...."

Li Pin was quickly able to interpret what Xiang Yi was insinuating.

He is still trying to negotiate! It's just that he reduced the amount from the original desired amount of 300 million yuan to 30 million yuan!

There is still no way that Cao Tianyou would willingly take out this amount of money!

A spark of hope ignited in Li Pin's eyes.

1. A common Chinese expression used to describe the act of showing someone respect. ☜

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