In the halls where Elders of a sect debated administrative decisions, two men were discussing the division of assets of the same sect.

“I am taking the Dragon Blood Saber.”

Lord Zhen asserted with confidence, setting the tone for their negotiation. He chose a valuable and symbolic object to show he would be taking a lion’s share.

“I want this location of the Monstrous Flame Sect.”

Instead of symbolic trophies, Ikasa chose material gains. From the moment Ikasa had arrived in the Sect he had fallen in love with its ambiance and rich density of energy.

Nonetheless, he would not choose to waste a bargaining chip just to satisfy his vanity. He had considered the practical aspects of his decision.

While the dormitories in the Herb Garden had 200 rooms, they served as excellent barracks for soldiers but not as warm houses for families. Thus the large area of the Sect with readymade houses for more than a few hundred families deserved his consideration.

He also considered Elder Yi Gan’s attachment to the Sect and decided to earn some more brownie points with him and his disciples. And judging from the joyous smile on the Elder’s face, it seemed he had succeeded in his objective.

The City Lord took his time weighing the decision. He finally relented and gave Ikasa the vast swathes of land and the buildings of the Sect.

“You have to give up the Hu Clan’s Compound in return.”

Just as Ikasa was about to add the title of Monstrous Flame Peak to his assets, Lord Zhen put forth a condition. Ikasa’s quill paused as he became conflicted.

‘Damn I completely forgot about the Hu Clan!’

He remembered the structure of the Hu Clan’s compound. It had numerous courtyards spread over a large area. Still, there were more places to train than live.

He already had dormitories to serve as barracks, he needed a place for ordinary people to live in and procreate. After all, troops are only happy if their families are taken care of.

‘It would not suit my needs.’ Ikasa grudgingly admitted and chose the Sect’s land over the Hu Clan.

‘It’s not like there are no good training facilities in the Sect.’

Ikasa consoled himself as City Lord added the Hu Clan to his list.

Next, they started to divide the gold and silver coins found in the vault.

“Should we do a 50 – 50 split?”

“Sure.”

Neither Ikasa nor City Guard haggled about the number. At this point, those Gold and Silver coins were just a number for Ikasa, who had no suitable place to spend them. In his eyes, their value was much lower than City Lord’s goodwill.

Even if he needed more, he had a steady income of around 5000 gold per month from selling his manuals and herbs in Sal City and Birch City.

As for City Lord, he was negotiating on behalf of the City. The entirety of the coins would go to the City’s treasury to make up for the deficit caused due to this battle.

If he had not known about his father’s decision, he would’ve fought tooth and nail to get a 70% share of the coins. However, he was slowly disengaging himself from his role as a City Lord and trying to fit his role as the successor of the Zhen Family.

To build a stronger relationship with Ikasa, he was willing to let go of this small sum and let Birch City suffer a loss.

Their amiable understanding did not last long. When the spirit coins were to be divided, their attitudes changed.

“Brother Ikasa, give me 80 coins, and you can keep the Energy Gathering array and the other 20 coins.”

“That is completely unfair, Lord Zhen.”

They traded offers back and forth, neither willing to compromise.

As a precious cultivation resource used as currency, their market price was much higher than their value. It was quite difficult to exchange spirit coins with one or more bright stars for gold coins.

They could only be used to exchange goods and services between Empires. Hence, neither Ikasa nor the City Lord was willing to relent.

As the City Lord, he could submit the spirit coins to the County Governor and pay him back for his help. If Governor sent them to the Imperial Court, even a meager sum of 100 One-Star coins would earn him significant merits.

Alternatively, the spirit coins were also useful for his family members in the Chakra Sensing Realm and above for cultivation. Their uses were endless, but their supply was low.

The City Lord thus tried every trick to claim more coins.

“Brother Ikasa, we wouldn’t have won if my City Guards did not arrive in time. Shouldn’t you acknowledge their contributions and give up 80 percent of the share?”

Ikasa was not fooled.

He also coveted the spirit coins. He did not care as much about the Cultivation aspect as no one in his group was yet eligible to use them. Nevertheless, he was interested in their worth as international currency.

Access to Spirit coins would open up trade channels with the Furnace Fire Empire. That way he could buy weapon-grade ore directly from the Empire!

Also, he can export the herbs and pills if the scale of herb production can be increased.

With contacts created from these two trades, he will have a much easier time when he starts selling his manuals in the Empire!

Keeping this in mind, Ikasa was reluctant to give up the fortunes before him. He proposed a brilliant plan that provided him a righteous reason to claim the majority share.

“How can that be, City Lord? We should divide the coins according to contribution. Every Sense Trainer who participated in the battle gets 10 Spirit Coins. And rest go to the one who played a crucial role in ending the conflict.”

Ikasa fielded four Sense Trainers in this operation while the City Lord brought only two. By his method, 40 Spirit Coins would go to his side immediately, and the City Lord would get 20.

As for the crucial role, Ikasa was the most dazzling nominee for the MVP. He killed Clan Master Qing and persuaded the First Elder. Even without the former two, the feat of killing a Path Finder Zhi alone was enough to award him the rest of the coins.

In a convoluted way, Ikasa would still be winning 80 coins, and the City Lord would have just 20. His plan also reminded the City Lord of his contributions, leaving him with no counter.

Outplayed at his own game, the City Lord sat in his spot, brooding. His mood had plummeted by his failure to secure benefits.

Ikasa noticed this. He found a chance to strike and get Zhen Family’s help in dealing with the He Family.

“City Lord, it is not entirely impossible to give you 40 more coins.”

Zhen Wu’s ears perked up and he leaned forward on the table, listening intently to Ikasa’s proposal.

“I need Zhen Family’s protection. Insurance that my safety will be guaranteed by the Zhen Family in the future. In writing. As long as you agree to this condition, I can let go of 30 Coins.”

Lord Zhen took a few moments to ponder. He proceeded with a follow-up question.

“Who are you worried about?”

City Lord Zhen asked, intently staring into Ikasa’s grayish eyes to catch any lies.

“The Maple City’s He Family. It is a Business conflict. I am working to resolve it. With the Zhen family as my support, it can be resolved in no time.”

Hearing the opposite party, Lord Zhen became engrossed in thought. He did not have sufficient information to make a decision. He was going to buy some time but Zhen Ya impatiently interjected.

“Agree to his demand, Brother.”

The City Lord threw her a look of annoyance but did as she asked. Ikasa pushed the 30 spirit coins from his pile towards the City Lord.

“For the next 10 Spirit Coins, I want to take over all of Monstrous Flame Sect’s leftover assets, including the cultivation manuals, their businesses, and their people. Also, a copy of all techniques found in the Hu Clan.”

The City Lord did not think for even a second and agreed. He smiled from ear to ear after earning 10 Spirit coins for practically nothing.

However, Ikasa had made a huge gain. Firstly, his words had touched every remnant of the Monstrous Flame Sect.

In a way, he had fulfilled the promise he made to Elder Yi. He had secured the legacy of the Sect in his hands. This further erased the residual resentment Elder Yi might have for him.

Still, this was an immaterial gain. Ikasa had also made a profit in terms of material gain.

The most precious asset of the Monstrous Flame Sect was its Energy Gathering Array. It would usually cost around 70 One-Star spirit coins.

By playing with words, Ikasa obtained it for just 10 Spirit Coins!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep