Martial Arts: I Have a Wilderness World

Chapter 607: Chapter 314: Striking a Deal (Part 2)

Zhao Lide picked up the agreement and read it carefully.

He was quite surprised by what he read.

Simply for agreeing to cooperate and signing the agreement, he would receive an upfront payment in Spirit Stones. Subsequently, each corpse would fetch ten Spirit Stones, but a body deceased for less than an hour was worth thirty. Anything over an hour was a flat ten Spirit Stones.

He was conflicted. On one hand, he craved the Spirit Stones. On the other, he worried this agreement would bring him trouble. After all, if this private trade of Cultivator corpses were discovered, the consequences would be unimaginable.

Ma Yue could see Zhao Lide’s hesitation. "Brother Zhao, you needn’t worry," he said. "This agreement is merely to protect both our interests; it won’t bring you any danger. Besides, as long as we’re careful and use a Universal Storage Pouch for every transfer, no one will find out."

Zhao Lide was silent for a moment before saying, "Younger Brother Ma, I need more Spirit Stones."

Ma Yue felt a sense of relief, though his expression remained unchanged. ’He’s negotiating. Good.’ "Brother Zhao, the three hundred Spirit Stones in the agreement are our show of good faith. The amount is non-negotiable."

Zhao Lide held up five fingers. "Five hundred Spirit Stones."

Ma Yue immediately shook his head; that price was far higher than he had anticipated. Still, he knew he couldn’t just refuse Zhao Lide outright, or the whole deal might fall through.

"Brother Zhao, that’s too high. The most we can offer is three hundred Spirit Stones," Ma Yue said. "And don’t just focus on the upfront fee. If you do your part, bringing in ten to twenty bodies per transaction will earn you over a hundred Spirit Stones. If they’re fresh—within an hour of death—you’ll earn even more."

Zhao Lide shook his head. "No. I won’t sign this agreement for anything less than five hundred Spirit Stones."

Ma Yue sank into thought. He knew he had to make a decision quickly. If he couldn’t secure a deal with Zhao Lide, his master’s plan would be jeopardized.

After some consideration, Ma Yue finally made his move. "Brother Zhao, the agreement stays at three hundred Spirit Stones. We’re not changing that. If you don’t agree, we’ll just have to find a manager in another department to work with. The chance to earn Spirit Stones that others break their backs for and never see, just by handling the disposal of unclaimed Loose Cultivator corpses... I’m sure they’d be more than willing."

As he spoke, he stood up and added, "Consider tonight’s expenses my treat for the pleasure of meeting you, Brother Zhao. A night like this only runs about a hundred Spirit Stones. It’s nothing."

Seeing Ma Yue actually preparing to leave, Zhao Lide panicked. "Alright, fine! Three hundred Spirit Stones it is," he said hastily. "But the heads of the other departments cannot find out about this. Otherwise, I will not continue our cooperation."

Ma Yue let out a sigh of relief and said with a smile, "Of course, that’s not a problem. It’s stipulated in the agreement. Payment upon delivery of the corpses, a rule that must be followed. As long as you cooperate, Brother Zhao, everything else is negotiable down the line."

Without further hesitation, Zhao Lide signed his name on the confidentiality agreement and pressed his thumbprint onto it.

Ma Yue watched the signature and thumbprint on the agreement. When they didn’t vanish, he was overjoyed.

He knew the deal was a success.

How Zhao Lide would manage his people in the Burial Department was his own business. Ma Yue took the opportunity to add, "Get me a position in the Burial Department. You can say I’m a cousin from your hometown, making me your trusted subordinate. It will make our future transactions much more convenient."

After a moment’s thought, Zhao Lide agreed that Ma Yue’s suggestion was a good one.

’In the future, I can just use the pretext of sending Ma Yue on an errand to move the corpses. That’ll make the transactions simple, won’t it?’

And so, they began to discuss the specifics.

Ma Yue told Zhao Lide to have the first batch of bodies ready within three days. As long as they were the undecomposed corpses of unclaimed Loose Cultivators, it didn’t matter—even if they had to be dug out of the ground.

Zhao Lide agreed. There were far too many graves of unclaimed Loose Cultivators.

The bodies of Cultivators didn’t decompose easily; even after three months buried, they would remain largely intact. The higher their Cultivation, the slower the decay.

For Zhao Lide, this was a massive windfall of Spirit Stones practically delivered to his doorstep.

Zhao Lide also understood that to prevent any leaks about the Burial Department selling off Cultivator corpses, he would have to get everyone involved and create a shared stake in the profits.

The people recruited into the Burial Department were all Loose Cultivators at the First and Second Levels of Qi Cultivation who were struggling to earn Spirit Stones. With the promise of extra income, combined with the authority of his position, forging an alliance based on mutual profit would be easy.

Once everything was settled, Ma Yue paid for the night’s food, drinks, and entertainment at the brothel, and gave Zhao Lide the three hundred Spirit Stones. Then, he took the signed contract and departed.

He took a long, circuitous route before cautiously returning to the Cheng Mansion. His main goal was to prevent Zhao Lide from discovering where he lived, which could in turn affect his master.

He also planned to rent a place near the Corpse Collection Manor after giving his report. It was best to keep his operations separate from the Cheng Mansion, lest any future trouble implicate them.

「Inside the Cheng Mansion.」

After listening to Ma Yue’s report, Cheng Zongyang smiled. "You didn’t disappoint me. Proceed as you’ve planned. Also, you can’t open a Universal Storage Pouch, so have Zhao Lide transfer the bodies during each transaction. A single Storage Pouch can hold dozens, even hundreds of corpses."

Ma Yue replied, "Yes, I understand. As for the housing, I will find a place myself."

Cheng Zongyang nodded. "Fine. Handle it as you see fit. Also, if you run low on Spirit Stones, get more from Shopkeeper Li; I’ve already cleared it with him. And one more thing—if you run into danger, don’t worry about maintaining secrecy. Your only priority is to escape. Find Shopkeeper Li immediately, and he’ll arrange for you to be teleported back to the Immortal City."