Dragon's Origin

“Change the approach?” The two Great Elders exchanged glances, then looked at their respective companions before turning back to Wang Sheng. Elder Shi frowned and asked, “What kind of approach?”

“No matter how much we find, I want forty percent!” Wang Sheng declared without hesitation, his demand shocking everyone.

“Impossible!” The two Great Elders shouted in unison.

This was a joke. The Shi and Gan families had paid such a high price. One of their ten Legendary Peak experts had died, and the remaining nine had spent over a year digging in the core of the Thousand Layered Earth. This didn't even include the costs of transporting supplies, the deaths along the way, or the expenses of those who died searching for the map of the Peerless Treasure. With such a massive investment, Wang Sheng wanted to take forty percent with a single sentence? What a fantasy!

“Then you choose.” Wang Sheng struck a generous pose. “Five hundred million gold coins, or forty percent of what you dig up. Take your pick.”

Both families glared at Wang Sheng, but he acted as if he didn't notice. After a while, when no one spoke, Wang Sheng continued, “It's fine. As I said before, if we can't make a deal, we can still be friends. Then let's just talk about sending things and people in. One million gold coins for a round trip. Not too much, right?”

Just for a trip, doing nothing but guiding, he wanted one million gold coins. It was practically daylight robbery! But no one could bring themselves to say it because everyone knew that Wang Sheng's price wasn't outrageous.

Taking people and goods back and forth, Wang Sheng also had to guarantee the safety of those who listened to him. This was no small matter. Without Wang Sheng, many would die going in. One million gold coins for so many experts and supplies was definitely worth it.

The problem was that the two families wanted more than just to bring people and goods in. If they didn't hurry, and Wang Sheng came back with another family, they would definitely discover their Ice City. Could the two families still have it all to themselves then?

“Duke, let's talk this over!” The Gan family's leader hurriedly tried to smooth things over. He had the most contact with Wang Sheng, and his status was relatively low among those present, making him suitable to speak first.

“You and he still owe me for this time's supply delivery and the compensation for bringing you out!” Before he could finish, Wang Sheng interrupted him unceremoniously, speaking directly to the two leaders. “Settle the old debts before we talk about new cooperation!”

Fine! The two had nothing to say and could only grit their teeth and ask Wang Sheng, “Then, Duke, how much do you think our previous efforts were worth?”

“I'm poor lately, funds are tight. Let's just say five hundred thousand gold coins!” Wang Sheng said casually.

Only five hundred thousand? Compared to his previous demands, it was practically a bargain. The Gan family's Great Elder immediately agreed, “Thank you, Duke! Five hundred thousand gold coins will be sent to your mansion in the capital another day.”

For someone of the Gan family Great Elder's stature to say something and then break his word would be a great joke. Wang Sheng had no reason not to believe him and nodded directly. “Thank you for your business!”

Both families smiled wryly. Wang Sheng was truly unyielding. This was going to be difficult. The problem was that Wang Sheng wasn't in a hurry. He was sitting pretty, while the Gan and Shi families were the ones who were anxious!

“Duke, about the snow rat matter, can we discuss it further?” Wang Sheng could remain passive, but the two families couldn't. They had to take the initiative to find a solution. Elder Shi estimated that he had never been so humble in his life as he smiled at Wang Sheng and said, “Five hundred million gold coins is really too high!”

“Then what do you suggest?” Wang Sheng wasn't completely unwilling to negotiate and asked in return.

Wang Sheng's sudden concession made things difficult for the two Great Elders. They could negotiate, but what amount should they propose?

According to their previous thoughts, it should only be a matter of a few million gold coins, but Wang Sheng had blocked that path from the start. If it were a year ago, when they had just entered, it would have been fifty million gold coins. Could they really propose something lower than fifty million?

This was troublesome. Wang Sheng was willing to negotiate, but the two families suddenly didn't know how to start.

Even fifty million felt expensive to them. They didn't know how much Peerless Treasure there was, and the thought of handing it over was painful! But even so, Wang Sheng would never agree. They could only go higher, not lower!

Whose fault was it? They could only blame their ancestors for drawing such a rudimentary map of the Peerless Treasure. Even though the location was clearly marked, who knew it was all buried under ice and snow? It was already a general area, and now it was even harder to pinpoint.

If it were all on the surface, it would be easy to search and dig. But the problem was that there were twenty or more yards of solid ice on top! Digging down, there was no light at all. Once underground, they lost their sense of direction. How could they find it?

Originally, the two families had planned to take advantage of being able to prepare a year in advance, secretly digging up the Peerless Treasure and taking it for themselves. Who knew that after more than a year, they had only dug two tunnels and hadn't even found a hair of the treasure.

The situation was already critical. If the two families gave up now, the Peerless Treasure would probably become shared by everyone. This was something the Shi and Gan families were unwilling to see.

Wang Sheng had clearly grasped this point and wouldn't budge. The two Great Elders would probably have to give in. In fact, they had been considering this issue for the past month. They basically had a consensus on what price to offer if they really couldn't reach an agreement.

Clearly, now was the time to bring out that consensus.

“Forty percent is really too much, Duke!” The Gan family's Great Elder also struck a negotiating pose and said to Wang Sheng, “If you take forty percent, and we've worked so hard for so long, we'll only get thirty percent each. That doesn't make sense, does it?”

“If you don't give up forty percent, you won't even get thirty percent.” Wang Sheng remained unmoved, stating bluntly the current situation of the two families.

…

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What followed was naturally a war of words, with both sides presenting facts and reasoning, one side desperately trying to push down the price, and the other refusing to lower it, leading to a stalemate.

Finally, thanks to the heavens, after an all-out assault by the two Great Elders and four others providing support, Wang Sheng reluctantly reduced the percentage to thirty percent.

However, thirty percent was probably still an unbearable price for the two families. There was no choice but to continue.

For two whole days, the seven people, except for meals, negotiated in this room. Finally, both sides took a step back. Wang Sheng took twenty-five percent of it, that is, a quarter, and the remaining three-quarters were divided equally between the Shi family and the Gan family.

“When do we leave?” Negotiating with Wang Sheng was even more tiring than fighting a battle. Finally, after reaching an agreement, the Gan family's Great Elder asked, his throat parched.