Urban Most Awesome Dad

Chapter 415: Chapter 415: Give an Inch, Take a Mile_1

Xu Fan did not know how Li Fuqiang regarded him, nor did he care much. With a curl of his lips, he said, “Chief Steward Li’s goal is for those Six Superior Martial Skills, isn’t it?”

“Yes.” Li Fuqiang’s gaze sharpened, and his breathing became slightly erratic. Even with his composure and discipline, he couldn’t maintain his usual calm in the face of this.

After all, the skill that had made him famous was merely a sixth-tier fire attribute martial arts technique.

If Xu Fan indeed possessed six sets of Superior Martial Skills to hand over to the organization, not only would the Flame Dragon Organization gain a massive boost, akin to a tiger growing wings, its top-tier combat power would be greatly enhanced, thereby crushing the Black Blade Organization in terms of power dynamics in one fell swoop. Even Li Fuqiang himself would scale new heights, breaking his bottleneck to reach a new level of strength.

In this respect, Li Fuqiang’s desire, or rather ambition, was far stronger than Qian Zongsheng’s.

Undoubtedly, his higher position meant his understanding and appreciation of Superior Martial Skills were much more profound.

Especially in terms of top-tier combat power, not to mention how terrifying the Sect Hierarch of the Black Blade Organization was, the two protectors and three patrons within the Sect alone added up to five Heavenly Venerable warriors or pseudo-Heavenly Venerable warriors. Together with the Four Jin Gang and Five Envoys, there were nine individuals of legitimate Martial King strength.

In comparison, the Flame Dragon Organization’s “Perception” was somewhat lacking.

The “Dragon Group Leader” could barely hold his own in a fight against the Black Blade Sect Hierarch, but was definitely at a disadvantage.

The four Elders were of the Heavenly Venerable Realm’s caliber.

The eight Chief Stewards were of Martial King caliber, yet more than half of the stewards hadn’t cultivated Superior Martial Skills.

After all, martial arts techniques have no universality; just because it is a Superior Martial Skill doesn’t mean it’s suitable for all Chief Stewards to cultivate.

Therefore, at the steward level of combat power, the Black Blade Organization had the upper hand thanks to the Evil Spirit Possession.

Three years ago at the great battle in Sichuan, Li Fuqiang, together with a peer from the Ancient Martial World, had barely triumphed over one of the Black Blade Organization’s Four Jin Gang. Yet, the opponent was only narrowly defeated and was not in danger of losing their life.

If it were one-on-one, Li Fuqiang would only get a thrashing.

Recalling how that Jin Gang, under the state of Evil Spirit Possession, had his combat power multiplied by several times his own, if he and that peer from the Ancient Martial World hadn’t been well-acquainted and coordinated, they probably wouldn’t have stood a chance even together.

After all, the victory was based on a stroke of luck.

Therefore, with such a profound experience as his foundation, Li Fuqiang was so focused on the deal for the Six Superior Martial Skills proposed by Xu Fan. He had put all his other business aside, making the meeting with Xu Fan his top priority.

In fact, in terms of strategic significance, his actions were not exaggerated at all, and probably even the “Dragon Group Leader” could hardly help but be excited.

After all, this was about reversing the situation, a crucial factor in overcoming the Black Blade Organization.

Xu Fan nodded and said, “Since you represent the Flame Dragon Organization’s headquarters for this negotiation, do you think you can accept my terms?”

Li Fuqiang was momentarily startled, genuinely surprised by Xu Fan’s purposeful and direct approach, without any delay.

He scrutinized Xu Fan carefully, but unfortunately, what he saw was Xu Fan’s unchanging calm from beginning to end.

Thinking it over, Li Fuqiang tried to play on emotions; age-wise, he could be considered an old fox, but Xu Fan seemed like a young fledgling.

“Protector Xu, you are now a colleague in the organization, so…”

“Chief Steward Li, I think we can dispense with such words,” Xu Fan shook his head, sighing with a hint of disappointment, “Ah, even if it were only one Superior Martial Skill, rather than six, I believe it would cause a sensation throughout the Ancient Martial World, even prompting countless powers to negotiate with me. Therefore, my sincerity is already ample. I trust that Chief Steward Li will know when to seize the opportunity, and not dither further, as it would be unseemly…”

“Hmm… never mind, further talk is pointless; I don’t want to waste too much time, my daughter is waiting for me to bring back some snacks.” Xu Fan took a subtle step back without changing his expression.

If the other party is agonizing over such a massively profitable deal, then there really isn’t anything left to say; it would only diminish Xu Fan in their estimation.

Of course, he preferred to believe that the other party was sincere; otherwise, they wouldn’t have dispatched a Chief Steward posthaste to Zhonghai to negotiate face to face, clearly indicating an urgent need.

So, to borrow a phrase from the realm of love, the one who loves more is indeed the more humble.

In this transaction, the party that is more desperate, the one in greater need, is the one that is in a weaker position in negotiations.

Upon hearing Xu Fan seriously talk about buying snacks for his daughter on such a significant and solemn occasion, Li Fuqiang couldn’t help but laugh silently, indeed, as the intelligence had described, Xu Fan was quite doting on his daughter.

Now that he understood Xu Fan’s stance, Li Fuqiang could no longer employ any negotiation tricks and could only say, “Protector Xu is truly a straightforward man, so I’ll just speak frankly as well.”

“Your conditions are truly astonishing, too tempting, no one could resist, and the organization can’t be exempt, even if it means doing everything we can to help you smooth over the adverse impact of this incident. However, there has been an unexpected complication.”

“The Jonin that you killed was a member of the Oda clan of the Island Country, a family that, although one of the three major families, is now quietly assuming the position of the number one family. Many members of the family hold important positions within the Island Country’s political landscape…”

Li Fuqiang didn’t say more; he trusted that Xu Fan was smart enough to understand the implications of his words.

Xu Fan couldn’t help but frown slightly; it was unexpected for the Island Country to pull this move.

It wasn’t his fault really, given that he always saw himself as a Cultivator, and in the Cultivation World, the presence of nations was very inconspicuous, barely catching the eye of high-level Cultivators, with the countries of the Secular World often appearing trivial, essentially lacking sovereign power. Only by affiliating with a powerful Sect could a nation survive, grow, and flourish. But should a Sect become displeased, it could easily obliterate a nation.

Xu Fan’s time on Sea Blue Star hadn’t been long, so naturally, he hadn’t completely switched his perspective.

However, he did understand what this situation meant; he could compare a nation to a Sect of the Cultivation World. If a disciple died on another Sect’s territory, and there was clear evidence that another disciple was responsible, they certainly wouldn’t turn a blind eye and ignore it.

Whether for the sake of face and reputation or to assuage their disciples, they would have to seek justice one way or another.

Suddenly, Xu Fan smiled. Far from worrying about this sort of thing, he instead exuded a domineering arrogance as he said emphatically, “Isn’t this just like an egg crashing against a rock? A mere insignificant nation daring to quibble with my Celestial Dynasty, Yan Country—it’s their problem if they’re upset. And if they really insist on an explanation, just giving them a good beating should suffice.”

Xu Fan couldn’t help but feel a bit annoyed; this really was a sly old fox, dancing around a thousand points, all just to squeeze some more benefits out of him.

No wonder he managed to secure the position of Chief Steward, and no wonder he was tasked with conversing directly with Xu Fan on behalf of the Dragon Group.

Xu Fan fell silent for a moment before saying coldly, “What are you hoping to gain from me?”

He really didn’t want to ruin his peaceful days for some petty troubles, so he was likely to agree.

Of course, should the other side dare to be excessive, then there wouldn’t be anything left to discuss.

Actually, there was a second consideration: in his previous life before entering the Cultivation World, he had been a bona fide citizen of Yan Country and felt a strong sense of national identity. Therefore, he was also willing to contribute his strength for the country’s great revival and prosperity.

“Protector Xu, please don’t take offense; our request really isn’t excessive,” Li Fuqiang chose his words carefully, aware that Xu Fan was growing displeased and thus tried to keep his tone and manner as soothing as possible to avoid angering him.

“I’ve heard that Protector Xu not only serves as the instructor for the War Wolf Squad but has also recruited a group of Langya Special Forces, intending to set up a security company.”

“Therefore, I have a bold guess: Protector Xu, you must have mastered some special method of training Ancient Martial Artists.”

Li Fuqiang fixed his gaze tightly on Xu Fan, his goal nearly manifest.

“I understand, just state your terms,” Xu Fan sighed, having a rough idea of what the other side wanted.