Chapter 60 - Forced Sale? No, Begging to Sell!

Heikou (Black Dragon Mouth)

Heicheng (Black Dragon City)

Censorate (Supervisory Court)

Yuling City (Jade City)

Jingui Town (Golden Turtle Town)

...

Lou Zhao's voice was icy: "So, you don't want to make this deal?"

Xuan Tie's legs trembled like a sieve.

*Oh no, am I going to be the first ordinary demon killed by the Demon King?!*

His teeth chattered as he stammered: "W-we don't have... top-grade hides... but we do have some precious fabrics from Qingluan City. I-I wonder if you'd be interested?"

He was on the verge of tears. These were the most valuable items in all of Yuling Spirit City. After being robbed by the Demon King, he wouldn't just be the lowest-ranked city in the Xuanwu Clan's evaluations—he'd also be the poorest city lord.

Fabrics from the Qingluan Clan? His queen would probably like them.

Lou Zhao raised his hand: "Bring the items up. Be gentle."

Xuan Tie's eyes welled up with tears. Was the Demon King going to put on a show while robbing him?

However, when the boxes were brought in and opened, Xuan Tie's eyes were dazzled by the light.

He was standing near the window, and Yuling Spirit City's windows were made of wood. To open them, you had to prop them up with a stick.

At this moment, sunlight streamed through the window and reflected off the glass inside the box. Even though the light hurt his eyes, Xuan Tie couldn't look away.

Wasn't this the crystal that had been causing a sensation throughout the Xuanwu Clan?!

He had been fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of it at an auction. At the time, he had thought it was a rare treasure, something so transparent and exquisite that it seemed otherworldly.

The auction prices had been staggering, but he could have afforded it. However, the final bidders were all from Xuanwu City, and he didn't dare compete with them.

A single word from them could crush him. That was the advantage of being from Xuanwu City.

He stared at the glass and muttered to himself: "How... how can there be so much crystal..."

Lou Zhao was impatient: "What crystal? This is called glass. It's a specialty of Black Dragon City."

"What?! Black Dragon City?!" Xuan Tie had never been so shocked in his life.

Black Dragon City—who in the demon realm hadn't heard of it?

Aside from traveling merchants, no one in their right mind would go to Black Dragon City.

It was said that Black Dragon City didn't even have proper housing. Merchants had to squeeze in with the wandering demons. The stench was unbearable, and the demons' eyes glowed with hunger. If it weren't for the rule that demons couldn't eat their kind, they wouldn't dare fall asleep, fearing they'd wake up missing a limb.

Black Dragon City was a symbol of hunger and poverty. Every year, countless demons starved or froze to death. It was practically hell.

Yet, the Black Dragon Clan was tightly knit. When merchants tried to lure Black Dragon demons away with food, they'd rather starve in their city than leave.

To outsiders, the demons of Black Dragon City were fools.

Lou Zhao was displeased. Why was this guy dragging his feet? Maybe a beating would make him cooperate: "What, are you surprised?"

Xuan Tie quickly clarified: "No, no! It's just that Black Dragon City has always been so low-key. We've never heard of any specialties."

Lou Zhao gave him a malicious smile: "Well, you're welcome to visit Black Dragon City anytime."

He was just messing with the timid city lord.

Xuan Tie was indeed frightened. Was this a threat to visit or not to visit?

Seeing the Demon King growing increasingly impatient, Xuan Tie hurriedly said: "What do you want to trade? We'll give you all the good things we have."

With this batch of glass, Yuling Spirit City would not be at the bottom of this year's evaluations!

Lou Zhao was still unhappy: "I've already said it once. Bring out all your good stuff. Rare materials can also count as part of the payment."

Lou Zhao waved his hand, and another box was opened, revealing neatly stacked paper.

"Ever seen this before?"

Of course, Xuan Tie had seen it. A single sheet of "Frost Paper" sold for the price of three high-grade hides. He had been envious.

If he had just one sheet of Frost Paper, he would have submitted it to Xuanwu City, securing a top-three spot in the year-end evaluations.

Now, right in front of him, was an entire box of Frost Paper, brought by the Demon King himself.

"May I ask where you obtained this Frost Paper?"

Da Gui, following Lou Zhao's cue, answered: "This is also a specialty of Black Dragon City. It's called White Paper."

These people were so strange. They had perfectly good names but insisted on calling glass "crystal" and white paper "Frost Paper."

Xuan Tie, worried they might change their minds, wanted to rush back and gather more items: "Please wait a moment. I need to organize Yuling Spirit City's treasures for your inspection."

Lou Zhao, in a lazy but threatening tone, said: "If I find out you're offering less than the auction price, you'll have to decide whether to lose an arm or a leg."

Xuan Tie broke out in a cold sweat. He had briefly considered substituting materials for items, but the Demon King's words snapped him back to reality.

With the Demon King's speed, trading with him was just a matter of proximity. If he tried any tricks and got caught, it wouldn't be worth it.

Xuan Tie nodded frantically: "I won't disappoint you!"

Lou Zhao took the so-called precious fabrics from Qingluan City. They felt soft and smooth in his hands. After playing with them for a while, he put them away.

"These are worth two sheets of paper."

Xuan Tie was ecstatic. He had thought he might only get half a sheet. The Demon King, despite his terrifying reputation, was surprisingly reasonable.

Noticing the Demon King's interest in fabrics, Xuan Tie racked his brains to find more treasures. He even scoured the entire city, eventually filling a box with precious fabrics in exchange for over twenty sheets of paper.

And this was just the beginning.

However, when it came to materials, the two sides hit a snag.

Xuan Tie repeatedly assured him that these were some of the Xuanwu Clan's most precious materials, but Lou Zhao remained unsatisfied.

He had memorized the materials his queen wanted, and these flashy items weren't it.

Growing impatient, Lou Zhao sent Da Fu and Da Gui to pick out the materials themselves.

After examining the most valuable materials and finding nothing useful, the brothers exchanged uneasy glances. They couldn't return empty-handed.

"Bring out all your materials, good or bad," they said.

Xuan Tie sighed. He had hoped to trade for more glass.

Reluctantly, he had his servants lay out all the materials.

Soon, Da Fu found two types of materials, and Da Gui found three more.

Xuan Tie's mood was complicated. The most valuable materials he had offered were rejected, yet the cheapest ones were picked out. Would they still trade for glass?

The Demon King's sour expression finally softened when Da Fu and Da Gui returned with six different materials.

"Keep one of each material you brought. Pack up all the materials we picked out, and this box of glass is yours."

Xuan Tie had never encountered such a good deal. Cheap materials were plentiful, so he stuffed a few more treasures into the box, feeling much more at ease. This way, he wouldn't owe them any favors.

As Lou Zhao was leaving, he called out to Xuan Tie: "Next time I come, I don't want to hear the word 'crystal.' Call it glass. The same goes for White Paper."

Xuan Tie assured him: "I'll make sure everyone knows the correct names and that these items come from Black Dragon City!"

Satisfied with the answer, Lou Zhao said:

"As long as you do well, I'll come back to trade with you again."

"You can count on me! I'll actively promote Black Dragon City's specialties!"

For Xuan Tie, this was a win-win. Black Dragon City was far from Xuanwu City, but Yuling Spirit City was the closest to Black Dragon City.

If the main city or other cities wanted to buy glass and White Paper, they'd have to go through him. Yuling Spirit City would soon rise to become second only to Golden Turtle Town!