Aimless Ascension

Gale already knew the Wangs wouldn't be able to afford the fate lock on short notice. And even if they had the thoughts of purchasing the item, all they could hope to do was to pay in instalments.

Well, Gale wasn't short on money, and he wouldn't care if they pay it at once or in instalments. He literally didn't have a count of how much he had with him. A sixth of his void lock was a good estimate. And that was only the spirit coins. He had various other valuable items.

Anyway, he would lose nothing on this deal. Today or tomorrow, they would pay him back. The best thing about this outcome was that it would make him feel good, helping good people.

Grandma Wang seemed to want this fate-lock for her granddaughter, but the granddaughter wasn't so sure after the price got higher.

Honestly, the price of fate locks was never stable and could go both ways depending on people's needs. There weren't even any associations to control the prices of these items.

"Your initial price of thirty thousand," Grandma Wang said eventually. "Does the offer still stand?"

"Sure," Gale answered, gaining a yelp from the guild manager. He ignored Guo Zong and continued. "I'm still open to negotiating on the terms you'd like to purchase the item."

"We can come up with twelve thousand as a down payment," Grandma Wang said after a thought. "The rest of the amount will take three years at the least."

"That seems reasonable."

Grandma narrowed her eyes. "Are you certain about this? You'd be losing out on it compared with what the guild can offer."

"You folks are like family to Linlin," Gale said. "I can handle the loss of a few thousand coins for my disciple's family."

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Grandma Wang nodded. "Since you put it like this," she said, "it'll look bad on Xiaolin if we take advantage of her master. We're going to do it like this. We'll pay twelve thousand as a down payment and pay the rest of the money in the next three years. On top of that, you'll get a third of whatever profit comes from the fate-lock for the next fifteen years."

Gale raised an eyebrow. It seemed the old woman had already had this in her mind from the start, just waiting for a moment to bring it up. Honestly, the advantage of this deal leaned mostly toward the seller. They were ready to pay the total sum in three years, which was already enough and Gale was fine with it.

However, Grandma Wang insisted they should pay one-third of the profit that comes from the fate lock for the next fifteen years. Fifteen years was a long time. With some guidance and resources, Wang Li could advance to Silver in three or four years, and then with the use of the fate-lock, she could easily bring a profit of a few thousand gold marks a year easily.

So in the long run, they would pay more than double the cost if everything went well.

It was a win-win situation for both parties. Gale wasn't that aware of the financial situation of the Wangs. He thought they would probably need half a decade at the very least to make the purchase without risking their wellbeing.

Now that he thought of it, the old woman had lived over a hundred years, she probably invested her wealth in the right place.

"Say something, boy," Grandma Wang said. "Are you fine with this arrangement?"

"I'm fine with it," Gale said, "although I would like to have another condition instead of getting a third of the profit for the next fifteen years."

"Do you have something in mind?"

"I planned on cultivating cocoa next year. It was a superior cocoa, and needed a specialised cultivator to take care of them, to be honest."

"Cocoa in Wayshire?" The woman narrowed her eyes. "You're aware the environment here wasn't suited for growing cocoa?"

"I have ways to solve that," Gale said. "Anyway, my proposal is that for Madam Wang to help in the cultivation of the trees in their growth period. . . ."

They discussed it for a few minutes longer. Wang Li deferred that she was fine with taking care of cocoa trees. And they finally came to a deal.

Instead of one-third, they would pay one-fifth for the next fifteen years, along with all the help Wang Li would provide in cultivating cocoa. Honestly, Gale didn't want a portion of the profit. Cultivating spirit cocoa could be quite taxing to one's spirit, but still, Grandma insisted upon it.

It was more about pride than profit on the old woman's part, to be honest. Gale decided it wasn't something he should try to hurt.

Anyway, the deal was settled. They would just need another day to prepare the papers and complete the deal.

***

Wang Li wasn't sure why the foreigner waited for her even after he settled a deal with Grandma. He came before her with a thoughtful look.

Mister Gale seemed more serious than usual as he deliberated over how to speak to her.

"I came to apologise," he told her with a sigh.

"Apologise?" Wang Li perked her eyebrows. "For what?"

"The other night," Gale said with some awkwardness. "I advised you to try harder with no consideration. I don't know if it had anything to do with how my parents separated, but later I found out it wasn't sound advice to give."

Wang Li just stared at him, completely lost about what to say.

"Honestly, I don't know what to say," Gale told her. "I'm not really someone experienced enough to give advice on this subject. All I want is to make sure my advice doesn't hurt you later.

"You're doing fine."

At last, he brought out a packet and handed it to her.

"These are the chocolates I owed," he said. "I won't be here to make them, so I'm delivering them to you. Consume them with caution. I have a written note about what would be preferable for everyone's rank."