Cultivation is just so scientific! Chapter 1502 - 797: Deal (Part 2)

Liu Ziyun edged nearer to the Long-distance Caravan, his face growing ever more strained.

From his senses, the caravan carried the presence of two Great Cultivators, yet neither matched the signatures of Central State Commerce's own Great Cultivators.

This suggested that two Great Cultivators had seized the Long-distance Caravan, despite the escort duty falling to a pair of such experts for the five Long-distance Flying Boats.

Both Great Cultivator Qian Yi and Cultivator Lu boasted fighting prowess that ranked highly among their peers, in no way inferior to Liu Ziyun's own.

Had the destination of those five Long-distance Flying Boats not pointed so obviously toward Dongqi Continent, Liu Ziyun would have spun away in retreat.

With his post on Dongqi Continent, he had to uncover the identities of those who plundered Central State Commerce's caravan once the boats reached there.

He layered up multiple defenses around himself and readied for a swift getaway.

"Mr. Liu, long time no see!" A voice Liu Ziyun recognized rang out from the lead Long-distance Flying Boat.

Spotting Li Shiming on the deck, Liu Ziyun's features twisted in shock.

"Li Shizhen, so it's you!" Liu Ziyun gave a wry shake of his head and responded.

Back in the day, he'd viewed Li Shizhen as a prodigy, but he'd never imagined the man would reappear before him in this way after so many decades.

"Betrayed by the higher-ups at Central State Continent's headquarters, I hid away for decades until I broke through to Great Cultivator and felt safe to show myself!" Li Shiming declared, a trace of bitterness in his tone.

"Central State Commerce spans too much ground, full of cliques; shortsighted folks are bound to pop up!" At a loss for words, Liu Ziyun offered a helpless justification.

He harbored no desire to clash with Li Shiming, especially with the aura of yet another Great Cultivator lingering near the caravan.

The caravan's survival in Li Shiming's grasp without damage showed his power to overpower typical Great Cultivators.

"What are your next moves?" Liu Ziyun pressed on.

He steered clear of the caravan topic on purpose, despite the five Long-distance Flying Boats sitting there, marked with Central State Commerce's emblem.

"I'm heading to the Ten Thousand Beast Sect first, then wandering around for a while!" Li Shiming answered, mixing truth with vagueness.

"Things at Ten Thousand Beast Sect look rough; Luanyang Palace lacks extra hands, and the other three sects, backed by Yuqing Sect and White Emperor Sect, are squeezing Ten Thousand Beast Sect hard!" Liu Ziyun shared the latest developments upon hearing the sect's name.

"Looks like I've dragged the sect down!" Li Shiming remarked casually.

As he uttered those words, a flash of murderous intent gleamed in his gaze.

Staring at Li Shiming, Liu Ziyun shivered from head to toe, like facing some monstrous horror, echoing his initial encounters with Master Wang He and Great Cultivator Yan Gao.

Yet Wang He and Great Cultivator Yan Gao stood at the pinnacle of Great Cultivators, the top warriors of the Nascent Soul Stage.

"Thanks, Mr. Liu. On the return trip, those two Central State Commerce Great Cultivators tried to rob me, so I slew them and claimed these five Long-distance Flying Boats. I figure my actions make sense, and you can pass the word to them, Mr. Liu!" Li Shiming inclined his head to Liu Ziyun in thanks while detailing how he'd come by the flying boats.

Whether Central State Commerce bought the story or not didn't faze him.

He cared little for whatever stance Central State Commerce might take later on.

In the coming stretch of time, he aimed to explore the world through journeys, rather than holing up in a Grotto Heaven for closed-door cultivation.

"I'll relay the details to headquarters; hopefully, they opt for peace with you!" Liu Ziyun replied with a bitter grin.

He realized that was a slim chance; losing two Great Cultivators was a hit Central State Commerce wouldn't brush off lightly.

"Fingers crossed!" Li Shiming gave a subtle smile and said.

"What about handling those five Long-distance Flying Boats?" Liu Ziyun pondered briefly before inquiring.

"I'll offload all the cargo; the boats themselves, I'm mulling over!" Li Shiming answered straightforwardly, holding nothing back.

Liu Ziyun held solid ties on Dongqi Continent, particularly in trade networks—such a huge haul of goods wouldn't slip past him, so bluntness served better.

"Dumping the cargo should go smoothly; plenty of merchants would snap it up. But those Long-distance Flying Boats, with their unmistakable Central State Commerce design—no group would risk buying them!" Liu Ziyun shook his head and pointed out.

"Got any suggestions, Mr. Liu?" Li Shiming eyed Liu Ziyun, catching the hint, and queried with a grin.

"I can take those five Long-distance Flying Boats off your hands!" Liu Ziyun laid out his idea.

Li Shiming felt genuinely surprised; he appraised Liu Ziyun anew, as if seeing him afresh.

These five Long-distance Flying Boats held tremendous worth; as super-sized vessels, even a giant like Central State Commerce owned only a handful.

Crafting such high-level flying boats demanded ages of buildup; building one super-large model alone required more than fifty years, and only elite shipwrights could manage it.

Even with a master shipwright on board and full materials for five, the entire construction would span over two centuries.

"Not me buying personally—my group within the commerce will. Securing these five boats would boost our position inside Central State Commerce a lot, helping both me and the group!" Liu Ziyun elaborated.

Li Shiming got it; during his days at Central State Commerce's core, his rank kept him from elite circles, but rumors of deep internal divisions had reached him.

It wasn't just Central State Commerce; most ancient powers grappled with the same fractures.

"Alright, how do you intend to handle the deal?" Li Shiming consented without much delay.

"What would you want in exchange, Mr. Li? I'll arrange it through commerce channels, so long as it equals the worth of the five flying boats!" Liu Ziyun skipped over Spirit Stones and countered directly.

From past dealings with Li Shiming, Liu Ziyun knew a top-tier alchemist like him rarely wanted for rare Spiritual Objects.

Cultivation supplies were no issue—Spirit Pills an Alchemy Master hoarded covered their needs.

For other Spiritual Objects, each refining session brought payment, with clients sourcing any required ingredients.

Thus, letting Li Shiming name his terms was the smartest play, considering Central State Commerce's reach across the Cultivation World; if it could be found, they could snag it.

Li Shiming paused in thought, surprised to find himself short on nothing major.

Snatching the five Long-distance Flying Boats wasn't about squandering valuables but simply netting a fortune on the fly.

"I'd like as many Late Stage Fourth Grade resources from the Phoenix Clan and Dragon Clan as you can gather; if the five boats fall short, throw in the cargo too!" Li Shiming eventually recalled what he needed and voiced his demand.

Hearing that, Liu Ziyun pieced together the purpose of those resources.

Li Shiming had claimed a Red Gold Phoenix Spirit Pet from Ten Thousand Beast Sect, and apparently kept a dragon-type spirit pet as well. Evidently, he meant to push both Spirit Pets to Late Stage Fourth Grade.

A twinge of jealousy hit Liu Ziyun for those two Spirit Pets; even fellow Great Cultivators with such companions seldom shelled out big for their advancement swaps.

Usually, Great Cultivators scraped by on their own cultivation needs—putting themselves first came naturally.

"That's doable, though it'll take at least eight months, better yet a full year!" Liu Ziyun calculated and responded.

"Let's draw up a contract; you can have the five flying boats and their cargo right away!" Li Shiming proposed, weary of hauling the five flying boats around.