Chapter 170: The Deal

*****

At the International Tower, led by the blonde and blue-eyed Annie, Zhang Yuanqing entered a luxurious and spacious office.

Bill Tarantino had been waiting on the brown leather sofa in the meeting room for some time. He was dressed casually in a black shirt with the sleeves and collar unbuttoned, holding a glass of wine in his hand.

He had a relaxed and comfortable appearance.

"Oh, my friend, it's a pleasure to see you again," Mr. Bill expressed a warmth quite different from the last time. He set down his wine glass, eagerly welcomed Zhang Yuanqing, and embraced him with open arms.

He guided the important client to sit on the couch and asked in a friendly tone, "Would you like something to drink?"

"Coke!" Zhang Yuanqing replied.

Bill Tarantino was taken aback for a moment and quickly turned to his assistant, "Annie, please get some."

Coke didn't need to be purchased, as a foreign-owned company, many of the white employees in the company were accustomed to drinking it. The lounge's fridge was stocked with cases of it.

Annie brought back a box of canned coke, opened it, poured it into a glass, and took out a box of ice cubes from the freezer, adding a few small ice cubes.

"Please enjoy, Mr. Zhang," she placed the drink on the coffee table and deliberately bent over, allowing the young guest to see her fair and enticing cleavage.

Working in the world of desire could be quite troublesome; it was constantly tempting you. Enduring discomfort was tough, but giving in was not an option. It was truly intoxicating. Zhang Yuanqing almost wanted to gouge his eyes out to avoid measuring the depth of the cleavage.

Seeing the young man so infatuated with her body, Annie smiled coquettishly, as if she had regained her confidence.

"Cough, cough!" Mr. Bill coughed, and Annie tactfully abandoned her seductive pose, standing by her boss's side.

"Have you made your decision, Mr. Zhang?" Bill Tarantino straightened his posture, interlacing his fingers with a serious expression. "I can provide you with information about the group using the pills and explain it in detail. This will take about 30 minutes. In addition, I've prepared a document for you to read, offering a more detailed and clear understanding of that group."

"If you have no objections, I'll have Annie prepare the contract as we discussed last time, for one million dollars."

Even though he hadn't confirmed if Chen Shu's son was a spiritual realm practitioner, and even though the organization had rules against revealing the secrets of spiritual realm practitioners to ordinary people, in the face of one million dollars, what were these rules worth?

In the face of a hundred percent profit, capital could do anything, and information about spiritual realm practitioners was not much of a secret to people in the circle.

Trading a substantial amount of cash for relatively low-value information was a temptation that no Void professional could resist.

Zhang Yuanqing leaned back, crossed his legs, and raised the glass, taking a sip of the cold beverage, saying, "I am indeed interested in information about spiritual realm practitioners from abroad. As of now, I only know of Mr. Bill's Void profession and Ms. Annie's desires."

Mr. Bill and Ms. Annie across from him were stunned.

He already knew.
He was indeed a spiritual realm practitioner. Not only was he a spiritual realm practitioner, but he also seemed to have a relatively clear understanding of our profession, not like those shallow wild practitioners.

A few seconds later, Mr. Bill recovered from his surprise and asked cautiously, "So, what is the purpose of your visit today?"

He felt a bit disappointed and regretful because the low-cost, high-reward trade had fallen through.

"I did come to see Mr. Bill for a trade," Zhang Yuanqing carefully replied, "I have a friend who wants to purchase specific items and materials that couldn't be found in the black market. I remembered that Mr. Bill is a Void professional, so I came to visit today."

Upon hearing this, Bill Tarantino became energized and a smile returned to his face.

"What do you need to buy? Our Merchant Guild has a wide variety of items and materials. As long as the price is right, you can get anything from the spiritual realm world."

"I need an item that can conceal one's aura and some high-quality, otherworldly-phase yin materials," Zhang Yuanqing said, opening his phone and showing the list he had prepared in the car.

When he decided to purchase items from Bill Tarantino, he suddenly thought that he could take this opportunity to collect the materials for refining yin corpses.

All in one go!
Bill picked up the phone, carefully examined the materials, breathed a sigh of relief, and smiled, "We have all these materials now, with an approximate total value of four million. Considering your mother's relationship, I can give you a ten percent discount."

He then furrowed his brow and pondered, "As for the aura-concealing item, your request is rather simplistic. Some items have the ability to conceal one's aura, but they are considered secondary effects. Some items cannot hide the aura but can achieve similar effects, and some can conceal the aura for an extended period, while others can only temporarily suppress it."

"Furthermore, you'll need to tell me your acceptable price range and the ideal level of the item. There's a significant price difference between otherworldly-phase and transcendent-phase items."

Zhang Yuanqing contemplated, "I'd like to see the items first before making a decision."

He wanted an item that could conceal the aura of a Dominator-level practitioner, but he couldn't be so direct about it because that might lead the other party to make deductions.

After all, investigating recent information about Song Hai would reveal that the Eye of the Demon King was searching for the Primordial Supreme and the Lord of the Stop Killing Palace.

Not making a commitment and requesting to see the item's properties first was quite an unreasonable demand because the properties of such items were often kept confidential.

However, he believed that Mr. Bill would agree because he was looking at items meant for trade, items stored in the guild's warehouse, and not the items Mr. Bill used personally.

Indeed, after a few seconds of contemplation, Mr. Bill nodded, "No problem. But I have to remind you that if you want to buy items with money, you need to prepare a significant amount of capital. Apart from our Merchant Guild, most spiritual realm practitioner organizations only accept barter and don't deal with cash."

Items are only produced in the spiritual realm, they are rare, and they have high values. Moreover, paper currency is essentially just paper. Considering the serious issue of excessive currency issuance by governments worldwide, many organizations do not accept money.

Even if they do accept money, the prices are often exorbitant.

What, you underestimate me, the Primordial Supreme? Do you think I don't have money? Well, it's true, I don't have much cash. Zhang Yuanqing didn't show any signs of hesitation on the surface and said, "I understand."

Mr. Bill smiled and immediately opened the guild's warehouse, reaching into the void to pull out a bronze intricately carved box.

The box had an antique design, covered in copper rust, with intricate carvings that exuded a strong traditional aesthetic.

Mr. Bill introduced, "This is an item I exchanged from the Taiyi Sect last year. It originates from a paranormal copy and is known as the 'Ghostly Makeup Box.' When you smear the mud inside the box on your face, your aura transforms into a yin aura, making vengeful spirits and yin corpses perceive you as one of their own, thus avoiding attacks."

The box concealed the aura of living beings, making vengeful spirits think you were one of them. However, in the eyes of the Eye of the Demon King, any aura didn't matter as long as you were a spiritual realm practitioner. Zhang Yuanqing shook his head.

Seeing this, Mr. Bill put away the makeup box and took out another item.

It was a tattered hat, covered in dirty marks, with heavily worn leather, making it look inconspicuous.

Mr. Bill enthusiastically introduced, "It's called the 'Scavenger's Hat,' an item for Void professionals. Its functions include treasure hunting, agility, and stealth. The agility and stealth are designed to help the user move faster and hide better after finding treasures."

"Its stealth doesn't conceal your aura but makes you 'unnoticeable,' as if no one pays attention to beggars on the street. Some people have tried wearing it to enter a wealthy person's private room, a women's restroom, or even a military base."

"Some have used it to infringe upon the opposite sex, and those being infringed upon bizarrely ignore the intruder. Of course, this only applies to ordinary people. For spiritual realm practitioners, if you expose any intent to harm them, you will be rapidly noticed."

"Its cost is attracting bad luck."

This item had many shortcomings, as it didn't genuinely hide one's aura, which could easily be detected by the Eye of the Demon King. Moreover, if the Eye of the Demon King saw you, it would ignore you the next second. However, the bad luck aspect was quite severe. You might put it on, turn around, and see the Eye of the Demon King appearing behind you. Zhang Yuanqing contemplated, "I'd like to see more options."

The hat could serve as a backup, and if there were no other choices, buying this item was also an option.

Mr. Bill, acting like an enthusiastic salesperson, patiently dealt with the demanding customer. He then brought out a third item, a thin piece of human skin.

"It's a Perfect Skin. When you put it on, you can change into the appearance of anyone, complete with their personality, habits, way of speaking, and more. It won't reveal any flaws, and even the closest people won't see through it," Mr. Bill said in a hushed tone.

"It has two costs. First, you must take it off within 60 minutes, or you will forever become the target, unable to recover. Second, during the transformation, you will entirely accept the target's experiences. In your terms, it's called 'karma.'"

"Its previous owner experienced the target's karma during the transformation and was brutally killed by the target's enemies. The owner before that, while attempting to get close to a mob boss, turned into a call girl for one night. On that night, she was taken by over a dozen men, but she couldn't refuse because accepting karma is compulsory."

"That poor guy, although he ultimately completed the mission, suffered severe psychological issues as a result."

These items had many flaws. The functions were incredibly twisted and were the dream tools of spies and secret agents. However, the costs were too severe. Leaving aside everything else, if I were to turn into a woman, wouldn't that be a disaster? Zhang Yuanqing said, "Do you have anything else, Mr. Bill? I'm looking for something with a single function and a less severe cost."

"A single function..." Mr. Bill pondered for a moment, his eyes lighting up, "Indeed, I do have an item like that. I've had it for many years, and it's remained unsold."

He reached out and pulled out a jet-black mask imprinted with a white skull.

Mr. Bill said, "This item comes from an evil profession overseas called 'Silencers.' Its function is straightforward: sealing. When you wear the mask, all your abilities are sealed, and you become just like an ordinary person."

"Although it's not invisibility, its effect is stronger than most invisibility functions. It comes with three costs. First, when a spiritual realm practitioner in the Transcendent Phase wears it, they lose all their abilities, but the seal can be removed by taking off the mask."

"Second, you can't speak while wearing the mask."

"Third, you become very sleepy."

Zhang Yuanqing's eyes lit up, and he decided on this item. Even though the mask had three costs, they were all insignificant and entirely manageable. The sealing ability, while troublesome, could be lifted simply by removing the mask, and it was quite flexible.

"Mr. Bill, how much for this item?" he asked.

Bill smiled, delighted, and said, "An item in the Transcendent Phase shouldn't be worth more than ten million. Since its function is relatively simple and falls into the support category, the price ranges from five hundred thousand to seven hundred thousand. Considering your mother, let's go with six million."

"Considering my mother, shouldn't it be five million?"

"No, no. The most our relationship with your mother is worth is a million."

"Alright, I'll tell my mom that Mr. Bill is a tough negotiator." Zhang Yuanqing decided to give up haggling on the price and asked, "Mr. Bill, I plan to trade with items."

"Good, that's the best way." Bill Tarantino happily rubbed his hands together and eagerly said, "Can I see your items?"

Zhang Yuanqing retrieved a bronze incense burner from his inventory. It had a three-legged base and a body shaped like a squatting toad carved from dark wood, with a wide-open mouth.

He intended to sell this incense burner.

The conditions for using the Moon Toad Incense Burner were too strict, and since obtaining it, he had only used it once, leaving it idle in his inventory.

With Zhang Yuanqing's consent, Bill Tarantino carefully and cautiously picked up the incense burner. His expression and posture were like that of an archaeologist handling an ancient artifact.

After carefully reviewing the item information, Bill Tarantino's face lit up with a pleasantly surprised smile.

"What a great item. It has obvious flaws, but its functionality is astonishing. Using it at the right time and in the right place could yield returns far exceeding its value."

Seeing the foreigner fondly inspecting and playing with the item, Zhang Yuanqing had to remind him, "Mr. Bill, it's best not to take it out. It should be kept in your inventory all the time. You wouldn't want your tribe to be wiped out because of it."

"Ten million? Isn't that just enough for me to buy materials and props?" Zhang Yuanqing took a deep breath and continued, "This guy is offering such a price, which means the Moon Toad Incense Burner is worth more than that."

"Oh my, please don't bring up your mother again; I'm just a regular business partner with her," Bill replied.

"In that case, Bill, how about considering my offer?" Zhang Yuanqing pressed.

At this point, Anne, who had remained silent the whole time, smiled and said, "Mr. Zhang, I think ten million is a fair price. If you agree, I will have dinner with you tonight."

Her teasing and flirtatious gaze seemed to suggest that she would be his after dinner.

Faced with the hints and teasing of the erotic profession, Zhang Yuanqing couldn't help but feel tempted. It wasn't that he was lecherous, but the nature of the other party's profession played tricks on him.

In theory, getting the company of a seductress to make up for the price difference would be a good deal, but the erotic profession was tricky. Without mastering the art of getting it for free, dealing with women in this profession would lead to misfortune.

With great effort, Zhang Yuanqing controlled his wandering thoughts and said, "If this deal involves Anne's involvement, you'll need to pay me an additional fee for the loss of innocence. My virginity is worth five million."

Anne's face contorted, remembering an unpleasant incident from the previous day.

After some negotiation, the Moon Toad Incense Burner was finally sold for 12 million, with 9.36 million being used to purchase the "Silencer" and a large quantity of Yin materials.

240,000 in cash was placed in a briefcase and handed over to Zhang Yuanqing. He watched as it was counted with a money detector to ensure there were no counterfeit bills.

Before leaving, Zhang Yuanqing asked, "Bill, how long will you be staying in the mainland?"

Bill replied, "I won't be leaving anytime soon."

The chairman of the organization didn't agree to see him and replied with, "Get lost, calf!" Bill was puzzled by this and sought a translator.

Upon seeing the translation, he covered the word "calf" with his finger. Bill suddenly realized that the chairman wasn't telling him to roll away like a baby calf; he was telling him to leave.

"Alright, I'll find you in the future if there's a suitable opportunity," Zhang Yuanqing said, expressing his satisfaction with the transaction.

Bill smiled and said, "I'll escort you downstairs."

When Bill returned to his office, he found his female assistant Anne sitting on the sofa, looking dazed.

(End of this chapter)

PS. Will upload 171 tomorrow since I don't members in my Patreon Page haha. Two - three chapters a day uploading. Thank you!