"So how shall we conduct this deal? What is it that you need?" Fang Yuan asked pleasantly.
"Fang Yuan, we know you have a large stockpile of immortal materials on hand. The immortal materials you scavenged from the Dregs are all problematic — they're saturated with Heavenly Will inside. We don't want those. But the immortal materials you obtained from the Falling Heaven River are exactly what we need for this transaction. Here's the list — take a look." Mao Liu tossed over an information-type mortal Gu.
Fang Yuan caught it, checked that it was in order, and sent his consciousness into it, browsing through the contents while nodding.
After a moment, he spoke to Mao Liu: "I have most of these immortal materials, but you're a member of the Langya Sect. Couldn't you simply requisition these from Langya's own stores?"
Mao Liu gave a bitter smile. "Things aren't what they used to be. The new Langya Earth Spirit is nothing like the old one. With the establishment of the Langya Sect, sect contributions are the paramount rule. To withdraw anything from the stores, I'd have to spend my own sect contributions. But my contributions fall far short of what Lord Shadow No Evil requires."
"You're not wrong." Fang Yuan nodded, then asked further, "I can pay with these immortal materials, but how exactly do you intend to deliver them to Shadow No Evil? Treasure Yellow Heaven is closed."
Fang Yuan was well aware that Shadow No Evil had been selling Immortal Gu — it had been quite the spectacle.
Mao Liu explained: "Without Treasure Yellow Heaven, things are admittedly more troublesome. But there are still methods to get them to Lord Shadow No Evil. The Zombie Alliance was originally a subsidiary sect of the Shadow Sect. Before the Battle of Yitian Mountain, because Old Ancestor Snow Beard stole an Immortal Zombie corpse, the Zombie Alliance headquarters ordered all remaining branches to deploy grand Gu formations connecting the branches across all Five Regions. In the future, even if someone were to attack a branch, the Immortal Zombie corpses could be transmitted through these grand Gu formations to Zombie Alliance members in other territories."
"I originally thought that was just an excuse for you to sacrifice all the Immortal Zombies. I didn't expect it to actually be true?" Fang Yuan raised an eyebrow in mild surprise.
Mao Liu smiled bitterly. "It is genuinely true. Sacrificing the Zombie Alliance to refine the Sovereign Immortal Fetus Gu was never the Shadow Sect's preferred plan. During the Battle of Yitian Mountain, it was only because we had no other choice that we resorted to such a measure. In truth, preserving the Zombie Alliance held more advantages. If it had been possible, we wouldn't have sacrificed them."
Fang Yuan nodded.
He suddenly thought of his previous life five hundred years ago. In that timeline, the Zombie Alliance of all Five Regions still existed — right up until the chaotic wars across the Five Regions, before Fang Yuan's rebirth. They had still been playing an extremely important role in the world's grand currents of power.
But now things were different.
The Zombie Alliance of the Five Regions had become a hollow shell. The vast majority of Immortal Zombies had been used as immortal materials, refined within the Ten Extinction No Life Grand Formation.
This had thrown the entire Five Regions into upheaval.
After all, while the Zombie Alliance had still been intact, they had controlled a great deal of resources.
Those resources were now masterless. The Gu Immortal powerhouses and grand forces across every region were contending fiercely for them, stirring up bloody storms everywhere.
"It seems that five hundred years ago, the Shadow Sect truly succeeded. The Zombie Alliance's continued existence proves that. And there's also the matter of the Heavenly Court attacking Langya Blessed Land, with Feng Jiu Ge dying inside it — that's suspicious too. The Shadow Sect had moles planted within the Heavenly Court. Perhaps even the Demon Venerable Spectral Soul, upon regaining his life, had long since brought the Heavenly Court under his control and turned it into his own instrument."
Fang Yuan's thoughts drifted slightly. In that instant, countless events from his memory suddenly seemed to hold other possibilities, layer upon layer of hidden truths.
"The waters of this world really do run far too deep. Legendary figures rise one after another. Countless powerhouses jostle and scheme against one another, dazzling as the stars scattered across the night sky. I may be considered a figure of note, but among these paragons, I'm really nothing special. Heh… That's precisely what makes it more interesting, isn't it? Hahaha."
At this thought, Fang Yuan's mood lifted further.
It showed on his face — the corners of his mouth curled upward ever so slightly, releasing a faint trace of amusement.
Mao Liu found this baffling. He thought to himself: "What's he laughing about? And why does that uneasy feeling keep lingering in the depths of my heart…?"
Fang Yuan took a deep breath and fixed Mao Liu with a burning gaze, the smile on his lips growing even more pronounced. "So — I pay the immortal materials. What do I get in return?"
"Immortal Gu," Mao Liu answered, his manner composed.
"How interesting. Very interesting indeed." Fang Yuan clapped his hands lightly and chuckled.
What Immortal Gu could Shadow No Evil possibly be selling? They could only be Fang Yuan's own Immortal Gu.
Selling his own Immortal Gu back to Fang Yuan — Shadow No Evil's calculations were clicking away with perfect precision.
But even Fang Yuan himself had to admit that this idea of Shadow No Evil's was rather clever.
Who in all the world could possibly want these Immortal Gu more than Fang Yuan himself? If anyone did, there would be precious few of them.
For other Gu Immortals, these Immortal Gu were unfamiliar — they would need time to learn them. But Fang Yuan already knew these Gu intimately, with mature methods of wielding them. The value these Immortal Gu held in Fang Yuan's eyes was generally far greater than what anyone else would place on them.
Moreover, many Immortal Gu, even when sold, required the right kind of Gu Immortal buyer. Strength-path Immortal Gu, for instance, held little interest for Gu Immortals of other paths. The incompatibility of paths would not only cause Dao Marks to conflict and reduce effectiveness, but would also make the Gu difficult to maintain — unless they were used as auxiliary Gu for a grand immortal-level technique. But such situations were exceedingly rare.
It could be said that Fang Yuan was almost the most ideal buyer imaginable. Not only did he have a need for every one of these Immortal Gu, but more crucially — he had the capital to acquire them!
As for how to exchange the Immortal Gu, the answer presumably lay in the grand Gu formations at the various Zombie Alliance branches.
Fang Yuan continued with a smile: "How many of my Immortal Gu remain? I don't merely wish to purchase them — I'm also very interested in Black Loulan's My Strength Immortal Gu, and Tai Bai Yun Sheng's 'As Before' and 'As Before, Mountains and Rivers.' I want those three Immortal Gu added to the transaction list as well."
Mao Liu considered for a moment, then nodded. "I can make that call. I agree."
Shadow No Evil's control over Tai Bai Yun Sheng and Black Loulan would absolutely be sufficient to compel them to surrender their Immortal Gu. And what mattered most right now was escaping this peril and breaking free to safety. Everything else could be set aside for the time being.