Chapter 497: Chapter 386: Meeting Again?
Before long, Tilian returned, his half-arm completely withered.
"What happened?" Yake looked at Tilian.
"Rongka said that Yaksha is only a spy and sentinel and cannot be employed as a soldier. He refused to provide us with more Yaksha," Tilian replied, a look of pain crossing his face.
"Humph! Stingy old bastard! He must be up to something!" Yake cursed quietly. After a while, he glanced at Tilian’s still withered arm and asked, "How’s your arm?"
"It has been corroded by Rongka’s power of Hell, It will take a few days to heal," Tilian said.
"Alright, you can go now! Come back when you’re healed!"
"Yes, Your Majesty!"
Meanwhile, in the back yard of the super grocery store, Abbas, as usual, was counting his money. Although not as much as the first few days, the substantial cash still made him grin from ear to ear.
"However, lad," he told Long Yi, "I heard that the shop down the street is starting to remodel into something like our shop. What will you do when..."
Abbas had been loitering in the vicinity for the past few days, particularly visiting the grocery store across the street and staring provocatively at the owner.
Making money was something Abbas loved. And what he loved even more was the feeling of becoming a winner. But now, the shop across the street was also preparing for remodeling. If they were all the same, the advantage would be gone.
But Long Yi just laughed. "Don’t worry, they can only be imitators."
When had Long Yi, heavily influenced by modern business behavior, ever worried about such a thing? He would just play it by ear!
Discount sales? That was out of the question! In this world, people might appreciate this kind of thing elsewhere, but not in the Black Dragon Empire.
Long Yi’s strategy was just the opposite. He asked the suppliers to grade the goods, and he only wanted the first and second categories. Then all high-grade items would be marked up twice the price and sold in limited quantities!
And so, the shop across the street ended up doing the same thing.
Next, Long Yi began issuing membership cards. Cardholders could earn points for shopping, and every week, rewards would be issued according to their points. Every month, there would be a grand prize, and every year, the consumer with an astonishing number of points would receive a unique diamond pendant, crafted by Elf artisans!
"Are you out of your mind, boy! That’s a diamond! A diamond!" Abbas almost choked, staring at the diamond pendant displayed in the middle of the grocery store hall, his eyes reddening.
"Haha, old man, you’re overthinking it. We’re just a grocery store. Do you really think anyone will spend so much in a grocery store?" Long Yi laughed.
"You mean..."
"Yes, they can see it, but they can’t have it."
On hearing Long Yi’s words, Abbas burst into hearty laughter.
"Hey! You’ve got a real head for business, kid! If only you weren’t an outsider, I would have loved to have you help me run my business!"
Long Yi gently shook his head with a smile. "You flatter me, old master. I’m content just finding a way to earn my keep in this bustling Imperial City. I deal in small business. If it comes to big business like yours, I’d be out of my depth."
Abbas laughed again at Long Yi’s words, his laughter much more genuine than before.
During his infiltration into the Imperial City of the Black Dragon Empire, Long Yi had two main goals. The first was to convert as many Yaksha into Blood Ravens as possible. It was the simplest and most effective way to strengthen his forces. Although Yaksha weren’t particularly powerful in their original form, once they evolved into human-shaped Blood Ravens, their strength became immense. They could easily become the most effective combat support in the White Dragon Empire.
The second goal was to find an opportunity to destroy vital parts of the Black Dragon Empire.
Compared to Long Yi’s previous stunts, this plan was much more far-reaching. Evidently, the Black Dragon Empire also harbored a war machine far beyond the ordinary, operating at full speed. Any minor sabotage would only be trivial to Yake. Long Yi had graduated from making petty nuisances.
For now, the research on the Golem is still in progress. The armor is continually being manufactured by the Dwarves, and Long Yi temporarily has nothing to do, so why not do what he does best?
Sabotage! And constant, relentless sabotage at that!
A rather exciting prospect!
The first goal had been achieved. More than 300 Blood Ravens had been hidden in remote mountains and forests of the White Dragon Empire, where the Dandi sisters were caring for them, imparting knowledge of the world and sharing combat skills with them.
As for the second goal, they had been staying in the Black Dragon Empire for a month, and not a day was wasted.
According to Suolin’s knowledge, all suspicious points throughout the Imperial City were investigated one by one. But the truly valuable areas around the periphery were few and far between. The Emperor of the Black Dragon Empire loved to keep everything under his watchful eye, meaning anything that would truly hurt Yake was stowed away in the Imperial Palace.
Below the Imperial Palace of the Black Dragon Empire was a complicated mess!
The last time Long Yi blew up the factory, linked to it were many laboratories and a research center in the lower level. The area Long Yi had rescued the blood ravens from was a part of this linked space.
After a month, the income of the super grocery store operated by Long Yi began to stabilize. Abbas didn’t come as often, and that was just how Long Yi hoped it would be.
In the month that Long Yi spent in the Black Dragon Empire, there were several explosions in the Imperial City. Twice in the surveillance towers throughout the city, once in the barracks of the City Defense Army.
A man, alleged to be a spy for the White Dragon Empire, was captured. The outcome remained uncertain.
Only the first incident was genuinely done by a spy from the White Dragon Empire. The second and third incidents were actually carried out by Long Yi. As for the so-called ’spy’ who got caught, he was merely an innocent bystander who happened to reach the scene first.
Originally, Long Yi planned to cause significant chaos, but the only problem was that once he began to sabotage inside the palace, he would very likely have to hastily flee from the Black Dragon Empire. But could he just obediently stay here and do business safely?
But later, he found that such minor disturbances were quite interesting, especially since they accomplished the goal of distracting attention.
The Black Dragon Empire, clearly used to such bombings, just followed standard procedures and then there was no further news about them.
However, as for how they were investigating secretly, that was entirely unknown.
But in the end, it still felt meaningless.
Long Yi sat in the, boss’s seat, looking bored. This didn’t match his previous expectations. Although it involved subterfuge, it was too absurd to be this boring. Why not just make a massive disruption then head back home?
Ai Lin had gone shopping. This was arranged by Long Yi. Sitting around every day was extremely boring. Suspected peace was to be found in tranquility. Besides, it was unusual for a woman not to enjoy shopping.
Just as Long Yi was thinking, suddenly, several men dressed in black walked in through the entrance. The man leading was none other than Tilian!
What the fuck! Why wasn’t this bird-fool staying put in the palace? What was he doing here? Behind Tilian were four burly men, each with a resting Flying Dragon on their shoulders.
After repeatedly ensuring that nothing was amiss, Long Yi hurriedly went over, "Esteemed guest, welcome!"
Seeing Long Yi’s towering figure, Tilian immediately furrowed his brows. Because anyone of this height reminded him of Long Yi. Upon closer inspection, there weren’t many similarities between the chubby guy before him and Long Yi. They were both tall and had honest looks. However, Long Yi would never show this servile expression.
"Are you the boss?"
Tilian asked.
"Yes, it’s me!" Long Yi hurriedly replied.
"I remember that this was Abbas’s shop," Tilian stated.
"Yes, he indeed gave this shop to me," said Long Yi.
"Gave it to you? That old miser would give his shop away? What’s your relationship with Abbas?" Tilian probed further.
"He’s my nephew! Roy! Is Lord Tilian here to investigate?" Old Abbas’s voice echoed from behind Tilian. Turning around, Tilian saw Abbas’s plump body that resembled a ball.
"No, just casually asking," Tilian’s tone softened somewhat.
"That’s good! Lord Tilian should only focus on your core duties. Don’t forget, the Black Dragon Empire’s Emperor’s name is Black! Not your Kandela!"
Tilian nodded, maintaining a calm expression on his face, and didn’t seem to be leaving.
Long Yi noticed that Tilian’s left arm seemed to move only with the sway of his body, and a surge of hellish force was emanating from it. Was Tilian injured?
This could be an opportunity!
Long Yi’s fists itched. He had the urge to punch Tilian to death on the spot. However, if he acted now, he probably wouldn’t have a chance to cause any more destruction within the Imperial City.
Which was more important?
Long Yi thought about it and ultimately decided not to act.
Tilian merely glanced around casually before leaving. However, before leaving, he took a deep look at Long Yi. His gaze seemed full of doubt and it left Long Yi somewhat shaken.
"Little Zi, follow him carefully from afar," Long Yi said. He was worried that Tilian might have noticed something.
"Leave it to me."
After a female demon went invisible, she silently descended underground.
There’s only one reason Abbas would come to such a place, to collect money. After all, besides money, he didn’t care about anything else.
"Thank you very much. Without you, I wouldn’t have known what to say in response to his interrogation," Long Yi thanked Abbas.
"Ha ha ha! You don’t have to thank me! We’re all members of the great Black family. Even if they are outsiders, it’s not his place to point fingers here. He’s just a loser who was chased around by Long Yi. Even if he has the Emperor’s favor, does he think he can do as he likes? This Black Dragon Empire belongs to the Black family! It always will!"
Abbas’s reaction was profound. It indicated that Tilian must have earned himself a bad reputation. However, this actually spared Long Yi from quite a bit of trouble. The heavy bag of money was put into his spatial equipment, filling his heart with joy and satisfaction. After collecting his money, Abbas quickly left without lingering. Looking at the direction he left towards, it seemed he was heading towards the gambling house.
Tilian was about to return to the palace when he suddenly stopped in an unpopulated street and asked a Dragon Rider, "Where is the transport team right now?"
"Sir, the disguised merchant team should have just set off from Sulin City this morning. They should be able to reach the Imperial Palace by tonight."
Tilian nodded, then said, "I still feel uneasy about it. You go over and assist them. The object is very important. It must be transported to the Imperial City without any errors before tonight!"
The Dragon Rider bowed and the pitch-black Flying Dragon shot into the sky. (To be continued. If you like this novel, please come to Qidian.com to vote, your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please go to m.qidian.com to read.)
