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When Dai Xun was about six or seven meters away from the fox's hiding place, he accelerated the Iron Arm Mantis and rushed to the fox's side, startling the fox who exclaimed, "Oh my!" and jumped up. As he landed, Dai's Soft Sword was already poised at the fox's throat.
The person called Fox raised his hands high: "Spare me, good sir, spare me."
"Come with me; my master wants to see you," Dai said as he pressed the fox forward to Liu Guanfeng.
"Tie him up; we'll deal with it once we get to the city," Liu Guanfeng instructed and then fell silent.
A group of people followed Leo into Stone Lion City and stopped in front of a larger gate, where four golden characters read: Golden Lion Chamber.
Leo entered the Merchant Guild and instructed the staff to unload the goods from the three carts he had brought back, find someone to bandage his injured guards, and after properly arranging Liu Guanfeng's group’s vehicles, he took Liu Guanfeng and others to a reception hall. He also arranged accommodations for Liu Guanfeng's group and led Platinum Wen to their quarters, assigning several maidservants to attend to them.
After arriving at the reception hall, Liu Guanfeng ordered Dai to bring in the fox they had just captured. In a short while, the fox was brought in, escorted by several Guardians, looking battered and bruised, clearly having been dealt with by the Guardians. This was expected; out of a guard team of forty or fifty people, only five had returned alive, and they were still in rough shape. Anyone they encountered would have received a few symbolic kicks. Fortunately, Leo had instructed that they should be brought back alive. That was why he was still alive to meet Liu Guanfeng and the others.
Seeing a crowd surrounding him, the fox immediately knelt down in the center and repeatedly bowed his head in plea for mercy.
Since it was Liu Guanfeng who had captured him, Leo did not conduct the interrogation himself. Liu Guanfeng looked at the fox and asked, "Why did you bloodily attack the Golden Lion Chamber?"
"I don't know; it was Boss who arranged this. We were just following orders."
"Think carefully; has anyone come to see your Boss recently?"
The fox thought for a moment and shook his head, saying, "No one has come to see our master lately."
Liu Guanfeng glanced at the fox and said, "If you don't know anything I ask, then keeping you around is of no use. I'll leave this person to you; their fate is up to your discretion."
"Alright, Master, you can rest assured," replied Dai with a chuckle as he approached the fox. The fox was immediately drenched in cold sweat and quickly changed his tune, saying, "Young Master, spare my life! Let me think it over again."
"I'll give you another minute to think it through. Remember, this is your last chance," Liu Guanfeng's words sounded like a lifeline.
The fox hurriedly nodded in agreement and after a moment of thought, spoke up, "I remember now! Just a couple of days ago, it seems that someone from the Rain Lion Chamber of Commerce came to our stronghold. I believe it was their President."
"How can you be sure it was their President?"
"Because I saw that all the people protecting him were Intermediate Knights. Moreover, they looked like seasoned warriors."
Liu Guanfeng nodded: "Go on."
"The person stayed inside for quite a while before coming out, and when he did, he was escorted by the Second-in-Command and the Third Leader. That's how today's bloodbath at the Golden Lion Chamber happened."
Liu Guanfeng turned to Leo: "It seems this matter was indeed orchestrated by someone from the Rain Lion Chamber of Commerce."
Leo bowed slightly: "Thank you for your great kindness, Young Master Liu."
Liu Guanfeng smiled faintly: "No need for such formalities. Since we have met, it's fate. As for the Rain Lion Chamber of Commerce, President Leo, you should be cautious moving forward."
"Thank you for the reminder, Young Master Liu. I will be careful in the future."
Liu Guanfeng turned his head to look at the fox again and asked, "Does your band rely on robbery for a living?"
In fact, Liu Guanfeng was just asking casually; he knew that as bandits, robbery was indeed their main means of survival. However, after he asked this question, he received exciting news.
He noticed that the fox lowered its head and did not dare to look at Liu Guanfeng, so it directly replied, "We originally survived by robbery, but a few months ago, some of our brothers discovered two veins of ore. So in the past few months, we have rarely robbed unless we encounter something valuable. Otherwise, we wouldn't even come down from the mountain."
Upon hearing this news, Liu Guanfeng immediately sat up straight. What he needed most right now was ore. Where would he get armor and weapons for five thousand people? He already had the blacksmiths; he had found almost all the best blacksmiths in the entire continent. What he needed most now was various ores.
"What kind of ore have you discovered?"
"Replying to Young Master, one vein is a Fire Copper Mine, and the other is a Goldstone Mine. Moreover, I heard from a few brothers who understand mining that they are currently looking for a third vein, which seems to be called the Five Elements Gathering Stone Mine."
Hearing this, Liu Guanfeng's eyes lit up. Several others reacted similarly: Qifeng Ge, Dragon Ring, Long Huan, Jiao Yang, and Leo. The Five Elements Gathering Stone Mine produces five types of ores in five directions: Goldstone, Water Gathering Stone, Fire Stone, Wood Gathering Stone, and Earthstone. These stones have the ability to gather the five elements. Just a small piece can automatically gather elemental power into equipment when worn daily; when used by a person, the stones within the equipment automatically release energy.
Moreover, this type of stone has a very low yield; only the divine craftsman Qifeng Ge can embed three of these stones at once. Most other blacksmiths can only embed one or two. However, for a knight, possessing a weapon embedded with such gathering stones is something rare and valuable.
What truly excited Liu Guanfeng was not just the gathering stones but that each Five Elements Gathering Stone Mine produces something called Raw Stone at its center. This Raw Stone varies in size and quality depending on how long it has been mined. This Raw Stone shares Liu Guanfeng's attribute of chaos. Therefore, Liu Guanfeng had always suspected whether the black card he selected from the Starfall Kingdom palace was made from this Raw Stone.
Raw Stone is an attribute-less stone that perfectly aligns with Liu Guanfeng's Five Elements Balance attribute. However, for others, it is something insignificant. Liu Guanfeng recognized this point and placed even more importance on what the fox said.
Liu Guanfeng looked up at the fox still kneeling on the ground and asked, "Is what you said true?"
The fox continued to lower its head and nodded, "I dare not tell a single lie."
Liu Guanfeng turned to his subordinate and said, "Take him away; remember not to let him get hurt again."
"Yes." Dai led the fox outside, and Liu Guanfeng exchanged a glance with Bao Rui and the others, who then followed him out. The people following Qifeng Ge, including Dragon Ring, also left the room at Qifeng Ge's suggestion.
At this moment, only Qifeng Ge, Leo, and Liu Guanfeng remained in the living room. Liu Guanfeng looked at Leo and said, "President Leo, I have something I would like to discuss with you. Is that alright?"
Leo composed himself and replied, "Please speak freely, Young Master Liu."
"President Leo, as you heard earlier, there are currently two mined veins on Black Wolf Mountain, with another one still being explored. I would like to take over these two veins. I wonder if you could assist me?"
Leo hesitated for a moment; from a business perspective, it was impossible to engage in a losing deal, even if the other party was his benefactor.
"Could you elaborate a bit more on that, Young Master Liu?"
Liu Guanfeng nodded. "President Leo, you know I'm not from around here. If I were to acquire these two veins, there would be too many complications involved. Therefore, I plan to eliminate the bandits on Black Wolf Mountain and have you manage the mining operations. We would split the mined ore fifty-fifty."
Leo looked at Liu Guanfeng in shock: Could it be that there really is such an easy opportunity?
"Young Master Liu, that seems a bit much. How about this: you take seventy percent and I take thirty?"
Liu Guanfeng shook his head. "I have an additional condition. I'm referring to the ore produced from the two currently mined veins being split fifty-fifty. However, if we do find the Five Elements Gathering Stone Mine, I would like a nineteen-to-one split. Would you be able to accept that, President Leo?"
Without even thinking it over, Leo nodded in agreement: "No problem." From the very beginning, he had noticed Liu Guanfeng's keen interest in the Five Elements Gathering Stone Mine. If Liu had not offered any conditions and proposed a fifty-fifty split for all ores, Leo would have hesitated to agree. But with this condition in place, Leo felt reassured. He calculated clearly that he could simply hire some miners and receive half of the income—what a great deal! Moreover, Leo's business primarily revolved around ores and weaponry; thus, he couldn't possibly refuse such an offer. The reason his Golden Lion Chamber had fallen out with the Rain Lion Chamber of Commerce was due to a dispute over a single vein of ore. Now someone was offering him a vein for free—who wouldn't be pleased?
However, after thinking for a moment longer, Leo fell into deep contemplation.
Liu Guanfeng looked at Leo and asked, "President Leo, do you have any concerns?"
Leo nodded, "There are still some issues. Our Merchant Guild currently has three mines under our banner. This is already the limit of what we can handle. If we add two more mines, not only will mining become a problem, but protecting the mines will also be a significant challenge."
Seeing Leo's troubled expression, Liu Guanfeng felt amused. He knew that Leo was not primarily worried about the issues he mentioned, but rather concerned about the Rain Lion Chamber of Commerce causing trouble: "Since President Leo is in a difficult position, how about I help you find a backer?"
"A backer? I wonder what kind of backer Young Master Liu can provide?" Upon hearing about a potential backer, Leo perked up.
Liu Guanfeng glanced at Qifeng Ge beside him, who cleared his throat.
"I will contact the Blacksmith Guild of the Little Lion Kingdom for you, so they can be your backer. Additionally, you can sell all the ores you collect to the Blacksmith Guild, and they will provide weapons and equipment for you to sell on their behalf. How does that sound?"
At that moment, Leo was almost overwhelmed with happiness. Being able to connect with the Blacksmith Guild and selling his mined ores directly to them while also selling their produced equipment would allow him to crush the Rain Lion Chamber of Commerce in no time.
Leo looked at Qifeng Ge: Who is this person, and why is he speaking on behalf of the Blacksmith Guild?
"If this can really happen, then I will accept all of Young Master Liu's conditions. I guarantee that I will only take four-tenths of the ores produced from the two mines, and just half-tenth from the Five Elements Gathering Stone Mine."
Liu Guanfeng was very pleased with Leo's response and secretly admired him: Leo truly is a businessman; he calculates everything so clearly. Although it seems like he is at a disadvantage on the surface, a closer look reveals otherwise. With Qifeng Ge guaranteeing that his Golden Lion Chamber can connect with the Blacksmith Guild, all weapons and equipment in the entire Little Lion Kingdom will have to be sold through their Merchant Guild, making the potential profits immeasurable.
Liu Guanfeng nodded and said without hesitation, "In that case, let's discuss the specifics in more detail."
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