Chapter 523: Section 310: One’s Own Counsel Fails
As it turned out, the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps had already been guarding against the invasion of assassins.
Previously, when the Dragon-man youth accepted the City Lord’s warm invitation, he learned of Hua Tang’s existence and the secretive connection between Saber Gang Leader Teng Donglang and Hua Tang.
The Dragon-man youth immediately committed this critical piece of intelligence to memory and promptly began gathering information about Hua Tang.
Once the survivors had understood the information concerning Hua Tang, they began preparing for the worst.
Zong Ge withdrew his gaze from the intelligence in his hands and looked towards Zi Di, “Clearly, Hua Tang is not an ordinary Golden Level thief. Judging by such accomplishments, his bloodline must be extraordinary. Golden Level is certainly not his limit.”
“It would be quite difficult for a warrior like me to guard against him.”
“I think magic and alchemy might be more likely successful.”
Zi Di revealed a bitter smile, “I am only a Bronze Level Mage. Relying on setting Magic Traps to guard against a legendary figure like Hua Tang is basically impossible.”
“As for other alchemy methods… Currently, we even have difficulty in creating Silver Level alchemy equipment. Before, because we acquired the Magan bath, our potion making capability greatly improved. I could try crafting some targeted potions for defense.”
“But you all need to understand: against such an opponent, Golden Level potions are the ones that might be effective. Golden Level… that exceeds our current upper limit for crafting potions. We are not short of recipes, but there will certainly be a shortfall in Alchemy Materials. How much time we would need to gather all the required materials in a short period, I cannot estimate.”
Having said that, Zi Di shifted the topic.
“Compared to this Hua Tang, I am more concerned about the attitude of the Snowbird Port City Lord.”
“According to our intelligence, since this City Lord assumed his position, he has never had a conflict with the Saber Gang.”
“Is he really aiming to confront the Saber Gang?”
“Is there a possibility that he had already established a secret profit connection with the Saber Gang? Could he be the greatest ally of the Saber Gang within Snowbird Port?”
“By the policy of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom, the position of City Lord is rotational. Snowbird Port is one of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom’s eight major ports; it is a very important city. Considering the time, the City Lord’s tenure is not long now. Is he truly willing to risk confronting a local tyrant like the Saber Gang?”
The Dragon-man youth nodded seriously, “If that’s the case, then the City Lord’s invitation to me is a prelude to the Saber Gang’s move against us, a trap they have set.”
Zi Di continued, “If the Snowbird Port City Lord truly intends to confront the Saber Gang, we can’t be careless either.”
“Since he has been able to endure for so many years, it is clear he is a deeply strategic person.”
“What could his plans be for outsiders like us?”
“After we’ve put in so much effort and paid such a price, and achieved a final victory, could he turn against us?”
“Is his attitude towards confronting the Saber Gang truly determined?”
“If the situation changes, might he stab us in the back and abandon us? Use us to curry favor with the Saber Gang?”
Although Zi Di was young, she was very experienced.
Especially recently, she had learned some secrets about her father and the difficult times that the Purple Vine Chamber of Commerce had faced.
She had gained a deeper understanding and caution towards the deceitfulness of human nature.
The Dragon-man youth highly respected Zi Di’s analysis.
It was also his secret concern.
The youth, though a believer in righteousness, did not mean he would trust outsiders unconditionally. Especially as he had only just met the Snowbird Port City Lord for the first time.
The Dragon-man youth looked to the surrounding survivors, seeking their opinions, “Let’s hear your thoughts.”
After exchanging glances for a moment, Sanda was the first to speak.
“Everyone knows that I used to be a squad leader of a Mercenary Group.”
“From my prior status, this is a very rare opportunity.”
“It is very difficult for a Mercenary Group to establish roots in a city. Especially for outsiders like us, to come to such a city.”
“Snowbird Port has been developed for a long time now, and every trade is saturated with people.”
“Even if the squad leader and Teng Donglang’s heroic duel was spectacular, it only won a foothold for the Dragon Lion Mercenary Corps.”
“If it were me, I would take the risk and give it a try!”
“Such an opportunity, for a normal Mercenary Group, might not come once in a lifetime.”
“Moreover, according to our previous discussion, we are likely to stay in the Ice Sculpture Kingdom for some time.”
“Even if the ransom note is sent out, it will take time to negotiate and for the exchange of hostages.”
“The Ice Sculpture Kingdom is a Neutral Country. Even if our secrets on Mysterious Monster Island are discovered, the Empire’s pursuit team would have to consider the feelings of the Ice Sculpture Kingdom if they want to apprehend us here.”
“Regardless of the final outcome of the atonement plan, we need to race against time to convert our gains along the way into our own strength. It is only in a place like the Ice Sculpture Kingdom that we have ample resources to help us make this transformation.”
The Dragon-man youth nodded, agreeing with Sanda’s words.
Giant sea islands like the Ice Sculpture Kingdom are rare.
It’s not that giant sea islands are rare, but the Ice Sculpture Kingdom has developed for thousands of years, and it has abundant resources.
It is an independent kingdom in the vast sea area, able to be self-sufficient, and many of the alchemy products it refines are widely sold around the world.
After Sanda had finished speaking, Lan Zao said, “Whatever the attitude and intent of the Snowbird Port City Lord, the fact that he offered us a large amount of resources is a tangible benefit.”
“We can completely drag it out. Through his channels, we can purchase a large amount of alchemy materials and Golden Level equipment.”
When the conversation reached this point, Zi Di interjected, “There’s one thing I need to remind everyone. No matter what you buy, there’s a risk.”
“Golden Equipment is no exception.”
“The market is full of incidents where Golden Level equipment is counterfeited and sold at high prices for illegal profit.”
“We need a way to check this equipment, which, unfortunately, we don’t have at the moment. We desperately need a qualified alchemist.”
“Ending up with counterfeit goods is actually somewhat acceptable. If the equipment we buy is tampered with, or a surveillance device is installed, our position will be very passive.”
Zi Di paused, then continued, “For now, purchasing alchemy materials is relatively safe.”
“Because we are buying a very large amount of alchemy materials. It’s difficult for those with ulterior motives to tamper with things and select the right target.”
“Inspecting alchemy materials is much less demanding than inspecting equipment.”
“The consequences of tampering with alchemy materials are also minor. Even if we didn’t detect it, at most we would fail when refining potions or equipment. Since the other party doesn’t know exactly what we want to refine, they can’t target us specifically.”
“But Golden Equipment is a different matter.”
“Our purchase of Golden Equipment is obviously targeted at Teng Donglang. If the City Lord is in cahoots with them, they may tamper with this equipment in the end.”
“Should the squad leader face any issues with the Golden Equipment during the duel with Teng Donglang, one can imagine the situation.”
“So even if we have acquired a large amount of Golden Equipment, we need to be extra careful in its use.”
After Zi Di finished, there was a brief silence among the group.
Bai Ya gathered up his courage to offer an opinion, “Since that’s the case, I, I have an idea.”
“We have both Deception and Disguise Skill and Anti-Intelligence Prophecy Skill, which we can definitely make use of. We can add these spells to our surveillance alchemy puppets.”
“And also to those trigger-type Magic Traps.”
“If someone comes to infiltrate, they certainly won’t detect them. On the contrary, they’ll be discovered by us or trigger the traps, setting off an alarm.”
“That way, we’ll be able to detect any invaders.”
Bai Ya is a Hunter by origin, and building traps is one of his ingrained ways of thinking.
He spoke with his head down, and only when he finished did he tentatively raise his head to gauge the reactions of the others.
Then, he saw both the Dragon-man youth and Zi Di smiling at him.
Their smiles were full of encouragement.