Chapter Twenty-Six: Flame Pattern Talisman

“I do have an idea.” At that moment, a sharp glint flashed in Xu Lei’s eyes as he spoke coldly, “I wonder how much stock the rest of you still hold in your hands?”

“You mean inscribed magical weapons?”

“Exactly!” Xu Lei nodded, his voice icy. “It’s just a market—what matters is price and inventory. A thousand Thunder Stones per piece won’t make us lose money. Are the six of us really no match for him alone?!”

The atmosphere instantly cooled.

Dongfang Xiao and the others fell silent.

They were not fools. This idea had crossed their minds as well. With their influence and resources in Divine Wind City, reclaiming the market would not be difficult. The problem lay in what followed...

If Divine Wind City fell, and they had to start over in new territory, all their efforts would be wasted, and their remaining inventory gone—a total loss. Even if the city was defended, selling at a thousand Thunder Stones now, how would they restore prices afterward? They couldn’t possibly keep this price forever.

In weighing gains and losses, the plan was far from ideal.

“I still have twenty-two inscribed magical weapons, but I can only afford to sell ten at most,” Shang Xingzong finally spoke after a long hesitation.

At the same time, Dongfang Xiao and Tu Long gave their responses.

“I, too, can sell up to ten pieces.”

“I don’t have as many as you, but I can sell five.”

Xu Lei cursed the old foxes inwardly, but he was no fool either. He couldn’t sell off everything; “I have fifteen. With the contributions of Zhao Qiang and Qian Duo, we can certainly gather fifty or sixty pieces. Selling them all at a thousand Thunder Stones, our clientele will surely return!”

“Agreed!” Dongfang Xiao and the others exchanged glances and nodded.

They were somewhat helpless, but with no other option, this was their only recourse for now.

…

On the other side.

After selling all seventeen of his inscribed magical weapons, Tu Lu’s cache of grade-four Thunder Stones finally reached twenty pieces—a total of twenty thousand Thunder Stones!

In addition, he had a set of Meridian Swords, two mid-grade magical weapons, and two sets of enchanted armor.

He hesitated for a moment.

The situation outside was growing increasingly tense, so much so that even staying inside the inscription shop all day, he could sense the unrest. Many had already been forcibly conscripted by the City Lord’s Mansion. If not for his special circumstances, he would not have been spared.

But this was not a solution. If Divine Wind City fell, no matter who he was, he would be nothing in the eyes of the demonic beasts. With this in mind, he made up his mind.

Before acquiring new magical weapons, he planned to deal with the ones he already had.

First, he would inscribe runes onto the two mid-grade magical weapons. After all, he had yet to try this with mid-grade pieces, and it was his first time working with Fire Pattern Runes—he would have to experiment.

Once familiar, he would move on to inscribing the original Meridian Swords!

As for the two sets of enchanted armor, he had no immediate plans. He was severely lacking in runes; aside from the Heavy Water Rune, which barely counted as defensive, none of the others were suitable for armor.

After all, one couldn’t very well add a thousand pounds of gravity or a fire attribute to armor, could one?

As for the Heavy Water Rune, it was the most basic of runes, and unless absolutely necessary, he was reluctant to waste it on the armor.

“Bad news, Master, something big has happened!”

“What is it, Xiao Dong?” Tu Lu frowned.

Xiao Dong was the shop assistant he had hired these past two days, and there was another assistant, Xiao Ci. The pair were siblings—ordinary people, but reliable enough to watch the shop for him.

“Master, news just came from the trading market. To deal with the beast tide, the six inscription masters have joined forces and decided to lower all their inscribed magical weapons to a price of one thousand Thunder Stones. Many cultivators who were waiting here for your inscriptions have gone to the trading market!”

Tu Lu was surprised, but then chuckled lightly.

“Isn’t this a good thing? Think about it: they’re selling at one thousand Thunder Stones, so am I. With demand far exceeding supply, customers won’t only buy from them and not from us. If anything, this strengthens Divine Wind City’s defenses, helping us resist the beast tide. Isn’t that right?”

Xiao Dong blinked, momentarily stunned by Tu Lu’s words. But when he thought about it carefully… it did make sense!

As long as it didn’t affect their own business, there was nothing to worry about. After all, with so many customers, they could hardly keep up with demand themselves.

His expression relaxed as he was about to speak, but then another call came from outside.

“Bad news, Master! Truly terrible news!”

“Xiao Ci? What is it this time?”

“It’s like this.” Xiao Ci swallowed nervously. “There’s new word from the trading market. The six masters decided even a thousand Thunder Stones was too expensive, so they cut the price again—down to eight hundred. All the cultivators who were waiting outside for you have left!”

“Oh?”

A flash of cold light appeared in Tu Lu’s eyes and his expression darkened.

In truth, the difference between one thousand and three thousand Thunder Stones wasn’t so great—not so high that most cultivators couldn’t afford it. Even if the trading market sold at eight hundred, he could still make sales.

He could even lower his prices further, since his costs were so low he could undercut the competition until they bled, yet still not suffer a loss. But… there was no need. He had a better way.

“I understand. Don’t worry, I have a plan. But for now, I will be closing myself off for a while. Unless something urgent happens, don’t disturb me. Oh, Xiao Ci—keep an eye on Xiao Cai.”

Xiao Cai was the name he’d given the little girl.

“Yes, understood.” Xiao Dong and Xiao Ci exchanged glances and nodded.

Tu Lu smiled faintly, then withdrew to study the Fire Pattern Rune.

He hadn’t expected that the more he delved into it, the more astonishing it became.

Though the Fire Pattern Rune was a basic rune composed of just nine strokes, it could actually form a set of inscription techniques!

It was simply unbelievable.

Generally, runes of less than ten strokes were considered basic; up to a hundred, intermediate; up to a thousand, advanced. Inscription techniques usually only appeared in advanced runes, and were rarely seen even in the intermediate class. Yet this low-level Fire Pattern Rune actually contained an inscription technique?

“Zhao Yuyang truly deserves his reputation as Divine Wind City’s foremost inscription master. His character may be questionable, but his skill is superb—to think he developed this Fire Pattern Rune himself!”

Tu Lu drew a long breath. Knowing it contained an inscription technique made him all the more enthusiastic.

A basic rune with an inscription technique could be worth as much as an ordinary intermediate rune!

One more day passed. He finally completed the inscription of two mid-grade magical weapons and allowed himself a brief rest.

“I never imagined inscribing mid-grade magical weapons would be such a hassle. If not for the Small Zhou Celestial Imprint Technique, my spiritual power would have failed me. The Fire Pattern Rune, on the other hand, was much simpler than I thought.”

With this, his opinion of Zhao Yuyang improved; his initial dislike had faded considerably.

Just then—

“Master! Do you have a moment? Master Zhao is here!”

Xiao Dong’s voice came from outside. Tu Lu’s expression turned odd… Speak of the devil, and he arrives!