Chapter 207 206: Making an Offer

Mu Lin sent out his spiritual sense, scanning the area quickly, but he didn't find any suspicious individuals.

They were all ordinary people with no cultivation whatsoever.

It wasn't impossible for the lookout to be an ordinary person.

Luo Wanqing sighed. If there was a spy watching them from the outside, then not answering the phone would only further enrage Master Ning.

People of his stature didn't think like ordinary folk. Not picking up could be seen as a sign of disrespect, a blow to his pride.

Mu Lin decided there was no point in playing hardball over this. He spoke into the phone.

"Are you Master Ning?"

"I am. How is Sun Tiandang now?"

Mu Lin said, "Not great. And if you don't listen to me, I'll make him suffer even more."

"Kid, you're playing with fire. Don't you know the consequences of provoking the Ning Family?"

"Sun Tiandang kept saying that, but now I've crippled him. Your men must have seen it, right? I won't lie to you—even if you take him back, he's destined to be nothing but a cripple."

"Are you sure you still want me to release him?" Mu Lin asked calmly.

"A young man must learn his place. You might be stronger than him alone, but against the full might of the Ning Family, you'll be crushed into nothing. I'm warning you, don't challenge the Ning Family. Send him out now."

Mu Lin chuckled. "Since you've got money to burn, I don't mind. Name your price. We'll see if it's acceptable."

"One billion."

"Too little. It's almost an insult. A Grandmaster's life is worth a billion to me, and this guy is a Divine Realm expert. Don't you think you could show a little more sincerity?"

"Then one and a half billion. He's already crippled, but he is my adopted son. I can't just watch him die!"

"Is that all your son is worth to you?" Mu Lin continued to press. "If you're going to be like that, I'd be more than happy to help you save some money."

The implication of "saving some money" was almost explicit.

"Two billion..."

Mu Lin sighed. "Look at you, pinching every penny. I'll give you a price: five billion, plus two Spirit Medicines of my choosing."

Master Ning flew into a rage. The sound of something smashing came through the phone.

"Do you take me for a fool? Why would I give you that much money!"

Mu Lin raised his foot and stomped on Sun Tiandang's chest. Sun Tiandang let out a blood-curdling scream of pain.

"Don't touch him! I'll give you the money and the Spirit Medicines!"

Mu Lin had nothing more to say. He had achieved his goal, so what else was there to talk about?

"Fire Spirit Fruit and Celestial Dragon Incense. I want top-grade, don't try to fool me with common junk."

"I hope you keep your word. A cripple like him is useless to me, but he's clearly very important to you."

Master Ning's breathing grew ragged. "Hmph!"

The call ended. Mu Lin casually tossed the phone aside.

Jiang Lan, who had witnessed the entire negotiation, thought to herself, 'This guy would make a great auctioneer.'

He had so easily extorted such a fortune from Master Ning.

Luo Wanqing's expression shifted repeatedly as she watched Mu Lin's brutal negotiation.

She wasn't asking for much anymore—she just hoped Mu Lin would stay alive long enough to cure her illness.

It went without saying that once Master Ning rescued his adopted son, he would surely come after Mu Lin with everything he had.

"Mr. Mu, do you realize what kind of trouble you're in?"

Mu Lin smiled. "Of course I do. But what can be done? The Ning Family wasn't going to spare me anyway."

"He sent Sun Tiandang to kill me, didn't he?"

That... Luo Wanqing was speechless. He was right. From the very beginning, the goal was to kill Mu Lin. No matter what he did, there was no chance of reconciliation with Master Ning.

So he might as well push his luck and enjoy the satisfaction while he could.

When targeted by someone like that, you really could only enjoy it for as long as it lasted. There was nothing else to hope for.

In that moment, she completely understood Mu Lin's logic.

One could only say that the Ning Family's tyranny had led them to reap what they sowed; there was no room for de-escalation now.

Mu Lin set Sun Tiandang aside.

Then he picked up Zhao Ling'Er and walked toward a treatment room.

The others followed. Luo Wanqing paid close attention—she needed to constantly monitor Mu Lin's skill level!

Mu Lin laid Zhao Ling'Er flat on a treatment bed and carefully took her pulse again.

Zhao Ling'Er's Qi and Blood were a little weak; the impact from earlier had been too severe.

Mu Lin placed his hand on her lower abdomen and began to continuously channel his True Qi into her body.

He slowly rebuilt the circulation of her Qi and Blood.

Divine Doctor Zhao watched with a nervous expression. He knew, of course, that there was nothing wrong with Mu Lin's skill.

But he couldn't help but worry.

The color slowly returned to Zhao Ling'Er's face.

Divine Doctor Zhao finally let out a sigh of relief, his tension easing.

But he didn't dare to relax completely and continued to wait as Mu Lin treated Zhao Ling'Er.

After a good while, Luo Wanqing grew impatient and went outside to wait. Only then did Zhao Ling'Er slowly regain consciousness.

"Ling'Er!" Divine Doctor Zhao called out excitedly.

"Grandpa! Brother Mu!" Zhao Ling'Er was very weak. She only managed a faint whisper, but a smile touched her lips.

But then she felt a stinging pain on her face.

"Ah! Brother Mu, why does my face hurt so much!"

Mu Lin said gently, "Don't worry, you were just scratched by some broken glass."

"What?!" Zhao Ling'Er's eyes widened in fright. "It's over, it's over! It won't leave a scar, will it?"

Mu Lin laughed. "Of course not! Don't worry, I'll fix it for you. Wait a moment."

He turned and left, returning with a mortar. Inside the transparent bowl was a grayish-black paste.

Zhao Ling'Er asked hurriedly, "Brother Mu, what is that? It looks so dirty!"

Mu Lin said cheerfully, "Didn't you scratch your face? I'll apply this for you, and the scar will be gone in no time."

Zhao Ling'Er was filled with doubt. 'Really? Can it work that perfectly?'

"It can work that perfectly!"

Mu Lin started applying the paste to Zhao Ling'Er's face. "Don't move, I need to spread it evenly!"

When he was done, Mu Lin stood up. "Rest for a bit. I'll help you take the paste off later."

Zhao Ling'Er could already feel that this paste was something special.

The moment it touched her face, she felt a wave of warmth, accompanied by a slight tingling itch.

She wondered, 'Just how much good will this do for me?'

'It's Brother Mu, after all. It has to be something amazing, right?'

Zhao Ling'Er was full of anticipation.

After walking out, Mu Lin crossed his legs and waited for Master Ning to deliver the money.

A short while later, a luxury car pulled up in front of the Holy Medicine Hall.

A bodyguard got out of the front passenger seat, walked to the back, and opened the rear door.

Mu Lin glanced over and noticed that the bodyguard was actually a Grandmaster.

'Well, well. How about that.'

To put it bluntly, something like this would never happen in a small place like Anhua.

In Anhua, the Yang Family had to spend a billion just to hire Chen Zhengyang for a single job.

This bodyguard couldn't possibly be making a billion a day, could he?

Even if the Ning Family was raking in cash, that would drive them to bankruptcy.

Therefore, for an expert like this, there must be something more attractive being offered.

'Like what, for instance?'

Mu Lin thought of cultivation opportunities and Spirit Medicines. Many Spirit Medicines were monopolized by powerful families as soon as they were harvested; they weren't just casually put up for auction.

Therefore, if many experts wanted to advance further, they had to pledge their service to these powerful families.

This was how the power of these families grew, bit by bit.

The Grandmaster bodyguard held the door open as a middle-aged man stepped out of the car.

He was dressed like a tycoon and carried himself with a dignified air, looking like someone who normally managed a company of tens of thousands.

Divine Doctor Zhao gasped and quickly covered his mouth.

Mu Lin glanced at Divine Doctor Zhao. "Is there a problem, Divine Doctor Zhao?"

Divine Doctor Zhao said with a grave expression, "Do you know who that is?"

'Are you trying to keep me in suspense?' Mu Lin thought. He shook his head. "I don't! How long have I been off the mountain? I don't know anything about these matters."

Divine Doctor Zhao said, "That's Wang Zuguang, the richest man in Anhua! The real deal, not one of those on the Forbes list with inflated numbers!"

The ones on the Forbes list were mostly inflated figures, nothing to make a fuss about.

But an uninflated, pure-wealth tycoon like him was truly formidable.

Mu Lin just said, "Oh," not feeling that this Wang Zuguang would change anything.

As the old saying goes, you meet soldiers with generals and water with dams. The personal arrival of this tycoon put no additional pressure on Mu Lin.

After all, the Ning Family was already dead set on killing him. There was no room left for things to change.