Upon hearing the offer, Zhao Xuan didn't answer Lian Jie right away. Instead, he fell into quick, focused thought.
He had learned about relics in his high school culture classes and had done his own research online afterward, so he wasn't completely ignorant of how they worked—especially regarding relic trials and the mysterious Heart of the Relic.
After a short pause, Zhao Xuan finally spoke.
"Why me, Guildmaster? I'm only a Tier 3 ability user, while you yourself are a Tier 4. Why not go in personally?"
Lian Jie smiled and explained patiently,
"It's like this, young friend Zhao. That relic is only a small-scale site, which means only Tier 1 to Tier 3—the low-tier ability users—can enter. Anyone above Tier 3 will be rejected by the relic's dimensional space."
"I see," Zhao Xuan nodded thoughtfully. Then he recalled something he had read online and asked again,
"I've also heard that this relic produces Spirit-Nourishing Fruits worth five million yuan a day. Is that true?"
Lian Jie nodded. "That's correct."
Then, noticing Zhao Xuan's subtle expression, the Guildmaster chuckled.
"Let me guess—you must be thinking that our guild is being stingy, right? That a relic capable of generating five million yuan daily is only offering you a ten-million reward?"
Zhao Xuan was about to respond when Lian Jie continued, smiling faintly.
"The truth is, half of that five million—two and a half million—has to be turned over to the Ability Users' Association Headquarters. After all, the temporary gate we're currently using to access the relic was opened by a high-tier ability user dispatched from headquarters. That's their compensation."
Two and a half million per day…
That meant seventy-five million per month!
Zhao Xuan couldn't help but swear internally.
"Damn, this is faster than robbing a bank!"
His desire to become stronger flared even more intensely.
But Lian Jie wasn't done.
"As for the remaining two and a half million," he went on, "one million has to be paid to the Tongcheng city government. That leaves one and a half million."
"Of that, about one million goes to the ability users working inside the relic."
"In the end," Lian Jie said with a helpless sigh, "out of five million in total revenue, our guild actually earns just five hundred thousand a day."
"Money aside, Zhao Xuan, the true value lies elsewhere—inside the relic, the concentration of spiritual energy is far denser than in the outside world. Training within a relic and training outside are two completely different experiences."
"I understand."
Zhao Xuan nodded, then looked up and said calmly, "Guildmaster Lian, I'll accept your request—but I have two conditions."
"Go on," Lian Jie replied, raising an eyebrow.
"First," Zhao Xuan said, "I want the ten-million reward to be paid entirely in cultivation resources, not cash."
"No problem," Lian Jie agreed without hesitation. "That's perfectly reasonable."
"The second condition," Zhao Xuan continued, "is that I want to fight you, Guildmaster."
Both Lian Jie and Liu Huan froze on the spot.
Then, after a brief silence, Lian Jie suddenly burst into laughter.
"Hahaha! Are you serious, Zhao Xuan? I'm a Tier 4 ability user—you do realize that there's a massive gap between Tier 3 and Tier 4, don't you?"
"I know," Zhao Xuan said with a confident grin. "I'm not trying to win. I just want to experience firsthand what it's like to face a Tier 4. To get used to that kind of pressure in advance. After all, every year during the National Exam, there are always a few monstrous Tier 4s among the competitors."
Inwardly, Zhao Xuan added another reason—
"And I also want to see how much proficiency the system will grant me for fighting someone way above my level."
Lian Jie chuckled knowingly.
"It seems young friend Zhao is determined to make a name for himself in the National Exam, huh?"
"Hehe." Zhao Xuan didn't deny it. He simply smiled with quiet confidence.
"Very well," Lian Jie said. "Then tell me—do you want to test yourself against me now, or after a few days?"
"After a few days," Zhao Xuan replied. "Let's wait until I retrieve the Heart of the Relic for you first."
"Agreed."
With that settled, the three of them immediately set out for the Wutong Mountain Range, located just outside the city.
"By the way, Guildmaster," Zhao Xuan asked as they traveled, "what exactly are the trials inside the relic like?"
"There are eight stages in total," Lian Jie explained. "So far, our people have only managed to clear up to the fifth stage, and were stopped at the sixth."
"The first trial," he continued, "requires defeating a single Tier 1 Xuanbird.
The second—defeating nine Tier 1 Xuanbirds.
The third—one Tier 2 Xuanbird.
The fourth—nine Tier 2 Xuanbirds.
The fifth—one Tier 3 Xuanbird.
The sixth—three Tier 3 Xuanbirds.
"As for the seventh and eighth stages," Lian Jie added, "no one's made it that far yet. But based on the progression, I suspect they'll involve six and nine Xuanbirds respectively."
After he finished, he looked expectantly at Zhao Xuan.
"So, how about it? Do you think you can do it?"
Zhao Xuan smiled confidently, the faint glimmer of draconic might flickering in his emerald eyes as he thought of his Azure Dragon Transformation.
"With my dragon's aura… I'll make sure every single one of those birds bows before me."
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