Chapter 4275 — Drawing Them In
The Blossom Guardian · Page 1 of 2
"Still, you might call it a kind of heaven's will. Star Ink Milk is plainly far more useful to you humans, yet it appears only in the territory of the spirit beasts. Otherwise, were it on human soil, I'd wager it would long since have been a storm of blood and a river of gore." The ghost-thing cackled with a strange, grating laugh.
"Uh, maybe..." Wei Zhao was caught between laughter and tears. The remark was made in jest, but given the temperament of human cultivators—who would scheme and betray one another over the merest crumb of profit—faced with a temptation like Star Ink Milk, and especially a Star Ink Milk that could be produced again and again, a slaughter that darkened the heavens and soaked the earth was not merely possible.
While Wei Zhao communed with the ghost-thing through his primordial spirit, he kept a constant watch on the world outside. To the eyes of the others, he showed not the slightest sign of anything unusual.
"That is hardly strange. Word has it the stuff is of no use at all to the spirit beasts." Brother Chang's answer, though less detailed than the ghost-thing's, was cut from the same cloth.
"Ah..." Wei Zhao put on a look of sudden understanding, then sighed in admiration. "I have often heard it said that the spirit beasts hold the Southern Isle yet seldom deal with the outside world. To think that you, sir, actually know a steward of the spirit beasts and could learn such vital intelligence from his own lips—most people would never have the chance."
"Heh heh, for others, forming a connection with a steward of the spirit beasts would be difficult indeed, but for me it was simplicity itself." Brother Chang smiled with a touch of pride. "My father is the branch manager of the Myriad Trade Gathering here in the Wei Arc Sea. The spirit beasts keep to themselves, but they still must trade with the outside world for goods, and our merchant guild is where they most often come."
The Myriad Trade Gathering? At the name, Wei Zhao's eyelid gave a faint twitch. Was this not one of the merchant giants that had joined hands to bring down the Hong Merchant Guild? One of the five largest such powers, no less.
"The spirit beast steward I mentioned is the very one charged with liaising with our guild. After dealings back and forth, we grew well acquainted, and only then did he grant me this opportunity." Here Brother Chang made his offer once more. "Well, young brother? A chance like this is exceedingly rare, and that you and I should meet here—is that not a kind of fate? Shall we go together?"
At these words Wei Zhao fell into hesitation. To speak truthfully, he did have designs on the Star Ink Milk, but this Brother Chang before him was curiously eager, and something about it struck him as off. After all, the case of Chu Bubai was fresh before his eyes; he could not afford to drop his guard.
Shrewd as Wei Zhao was, had everything the man said been a pack of lies, he would surely have found the seams. But if it was like Chu Bubai—truth and falsehood woven together—then there was no guarding against it.
As Wei Zhao hesitated, the ghost-thing's voice sounded once more in his mind. "Everything he said is true. I have never set foot in the Lu Feng Forest myself, but I have heard tell that the Odor Cultivation City ruins produce Star Ink Milk. That much should not be false. This is the sort of thing one encounters but cannot seek out. You may as well go along and try."
With the ghost-thing—an elder of the spirit beasts—standing surety, Wei Zhao's heart eased at once, and he gave a slight, thoughtful nod.
"Have you thought it over, young brother? That you should meet me here may well count as a stroke of fate. Let this chance slip by, and you may lose the Star Ink Milk forever—a regret you might carry the rest of your days!" Brother Chang, seeing Wei Zhao waver, pressed his advantage.