Lord of the Magical Beasts

Even though Renaya had achieved his aim of getting Yang Ling to mobilize his troops, he still felt uncomfortable when he thought about the price he had paid. He wasn’t happy that he had fallen for Yang Ling’s schemes, and he was secretly planning ways to give Yang Ling a taste of his powers after they defeated the Banto forces.

Renaya was depressed, as if he had just swallowed a dead fly, but the people in Wissen Castle were cheering, all of them discussing their gains. According to a preliminary estimate, one Gaul Warhorse cost about a hundred Purple Crystal Coins, so ten thousand of the warhorses was equivalent to a million Purple Crystal Coins. As for the crystal mine with its incredibly reserves, no one was able to estimate its value.

They had earned a lot!

Everyone was smiling after understanding the value of the warhorses and crystal mines, and even the servants pouring tea were no exception. Yang Ling was a generous man, so his followers would definitely benefit now that he had come across such a fortune.

After doing some calculations, Harribell took off her veil and said, “Yang Ling, I do not need the warhorses or the crystal coins, but I want half of the profits of the crystal mine!”

“That’s not possible. The most I can do is a twenty-eighty split. Helping Renaya this time around is risking my life, and furthermore, I have to support so many people!” Yang Ling rejected her on the spot.

“Forty-sixty, that is my limit!” This was too important for Harribell to back down. As someone responsible for a large merchant organization, no one understood the value of the crystal mine more clearly than she did.

“Harribell, look at me! I’m so poor that I cannot even afford to eat. You have a large family and empire, why do you care so much about such a small amount of money!” Yang Ling said, looking incredibly sad. Seeing how tightly Renaya had held onto the mine, Yang Ling knew that it was by far the most valuable item involved in the trade. He would already obtain countless crystal coins with just ten percent of the profits, so how could he bear to back down?

So poor that he can’t even afford meals?

The crowd nearly fainted. An ordinary person could never maintain this massive castle or support thousands of warriors and a few hundred servants. Furthermore, Yang Ling had a rich family behind him. If he could be described as so poor that he could barely afford meals, an average noble couldn’t even be called a beggar.

“Yang Ling, it is a pity that you aren’t a businessman!” Harribell clenched her teeth as she looked at the smiling Yang Ling. “Excavating a mine is not as simple as it might sound. It requires many experienced craftsmen, familiarity with the sales channels of crystal ore, and even a large amount of investment capital to get over the many obstacles. You wouldn’t be able to accomplish much without a wide network of business connections. Yang Ling, forty-sixty is my limit. I’m not even earning much if we add in the costs!”

Intelligent. She sure lives up to her reputation as an experienced businesswoman. Her words are clear and organized, calm and composed!

Looking at the seemingly sincere Harribell, the group nodded in approval of her words. Only Yang Ling thought of them as wind by his ear. No one would agree to an unprofitable business deal. Yang Ling knew that Harribell would earn a massive profit at a forty-sixty split even if he was thinking using his toes. Otherwise, she would not be arguing against him with such obvious calculation.

Tsk tsk, she sure is a powerful woman!

Harribell had removed her veil, and as Yang Ling looked at her supple skin and serious expression, he couldn’t help but stare. There were countless beautiful ladies in the world, but a large portion of them were like vases, only beautiful to the eye. A woman like this was precious in multiple respects.

“So Yang Ling, what are your intentions? If you are willing, I can immediately get someone to begin the preparatory work, such as initial explorations of the mine!” Feeling Yang Ling’s strange gaze, then recalling the thing that suddenly prodded her leg the other night, Harribell’s face turned red. Yang Ling’s heart began to thump.

Coming to his senses, Yang Ling deliberated for a moment before saying, “Alright, forty-sixty it is. But I will have to trouble you to find me two hundred craftsmen, two hundred carpenters, and a hundred alchemists!”

In business, the best outcome was one where both parties won! In his third year of college, an economics professor had told Yang Ling a story.

There was a businessman who set up a VCD factory, and his products occupied an eighty percent market share in the country. He even had large exports to eastern Europe and Southeast Asia. When they were drinking, the businessman revealed that he was proudest of his strict control over the cost of his materials. He claimed that if the supplier’s cost was fifteen cents, he would be able to buy it himself for fifteen cents.

At a banquet, the professor gave that high-spirited businessman a suggestion, saying that the low profits of his suppliers would not bode well for him. It was highly possible that they were mixing in lower quality goods or delaying the delivery of the items, and that would affect the quality of his products or speed of his manufacturing.

The wealthy businessman had immediately disregarded the words of the professor. But just half a year later, the truth had confirmed the old professor’s suggestion.

Quality issues with the supplier’s materials forced the company to issue a large number of refunds. Coupled with the late arrival of critical resources, severely delaying the ability for the businessman to deliver goods, he soon lost a large portion of his clients. Unable to recoup his capital, the businessman was unable to pay the suppliers, which led to the lack of materials once again, creating a vicious cycle.

After just three months, the once successful company toppled. It caused a commotion in the early nineties, attracting widespread attention.

The Boulade Merchant’s Association controlled by Harribell had businesses all over the Tailun Continent, their connections wide. The development of Wissen Town would be tied to these large merchant associations that could do practically anything. In consideration of long term interests, Yang Ling did not mind making an appropriate compromise.

With his many warriors and exquisite weapons, coupled with his Magical Beast army, he believed that defeating Steve and his Black Armor Guards would not be too difficult a task. The more pressing issue would be developing Wissen Town after he established firm control over the area.

Developing Wissen Town would require a large amount of human traffic, and that meant that he would need a large number of houses that could shelter people from the elements. Thus, he would definitely need expert craftsmen. Other than that, Wissen Town had a large amount of precious woods and minerals. He would need expert carpenters and alchemists for that.

Selling resources could only supply the people with manual labor jobs, just like the sweatshops near the coasts in Asia. Resources alone were unable to bring in true fortune and profit.

Yang Ling hoped that he could transform the resources in Terras Forest into actual products and sell them in bulk after he had enough capital and skills. After all, a low level Magical Beast Essence Crystal might only sell for a hundred Purple Crystal Coins, but if it were placed in a staff, it might fetch more than a thousand Purple Crystal Coins, greatly boosting the profit.

A hundred alchemists?

Originally, Harribell had heaved a sigh of relief when Yang Ling agreed to the forty-sixty split. But she couldn’t help but shake her head and let out a bitter laugh when he followed up with the request for a hundred alchemists.

It was rather easy to recruit two hundred craftsmen and carpenters; all she would need to do was offer appropriately enticing wages. But alchemy was a rare occupation within the continent. It would be difficult to recruit even ten alchemists in a short amount of time, much less a hundred.

In the Tailun Continent, the nobles were interested in learning either Battle Energy or Magical Energy; no one was willing to deal with bottles and cans for the entire day like a farmer. The commoners, on the other hand, were unable to learn it even if they wanted to.

Learning alchemy not only required a lot of money, it was also rather ineffective. One might take out a loan to begin learning, then study alchemy for a decade without achieving mastery. To a commoner, being a knight was a safer choice.

“Yang Ling, two hundred craftsmen and carpenters are not a problem, but recruiting a hundred alchemists will be more difficult. I’ll try my best!”

Harribell gave a simple explanation of the difficulties in recruiting alchemists, and after listening to the explanation, Yang Ling did not insist on his request. After all, if even the large Boulade Merchant’s Association was unable to do it, it would be even more impossible for someone like him.

He was satisfied despite being unable to recruit a hundred alchemists. A million Purple Crystal Coins after selling off the Gaul Warhorses, coupled with the profits of the crystal mine, would be enough for the large scale development of Wissen Town, especially if he were to count the crystal coins he found in the Anca family treasury.

To think that he had unintentionally become immensely wealthy!

Thinking back to the time when he had frantically searched for a job after graduating from college, or when he had worked a nine-to-five job as an intern with no job security, Yang Ling was overcome with emotion. This foreign, yet mysterious world was filled with possibility.