Free Web NovelChapter 2128: Chapter 2165: Not a Problem
"Come on, stop it!"
After Ding Fan heard Mu Gaosou saying he’d leave after fifteen breakthroughs in a year, he immediately replied, "Once a year, we definitely can’t afford you. You better look elsewhere, Second Elder, see him out."
After finishing, Ding Fan shook his head and turned to leave. Seeing this, Mu Gaosou stopped him again and said, "Don’t be like this. Look, I’ve come with enthusiasm and sincerity. How about I take a step back, and make it once every two years, is that okay?"
"Alright, I’m not going to haggle with you. I’ll give you once every three years, and it can only be ten times. If you agree, stay. If not, leave early, and we’ll pretend we never met. Oh, and one more condition: if you succeed in advancing, you can’t leave immediately. You need to guard the Skeleton Sect for 150 years. After that, you can go wherever you want, and we won’t stop you."
Ding Fan’s tone was indisputable. He wasn’t negotiating with Mu Gaosou at all and made the decision outright.
"You’re bullying an old man like me too much..."
Seeing Mu Gaosou’s expression, the Second Elder and others were overjoyed, thinking he was about to leave. Unexpectedly, even looking as if about to explode with anger, Mu Gaosou changed his tune and said to Ding Fan, "Alright, since this old man finds Island Master Ding agreeable, I’ll accept. But Island Master Ding, as the master of the island, you must keep your word!"
"Hmph, a gentleman’s word is unbreakable. Do you think I’d lie to an old man like you?"
Seeing him agree, Ding Fan muttered a response and turned to leave.
"Island Master, this really isn’t feasible!"
The Second Elder, Fourth Elder, and Wu Qingxia, after hearing that he had kept Mu Gaosou, were very anxious and immediately followed him out. Three years could squeeze out nearly four million Black Obsidian. Even if they were to break their bones, they couldn’t come up with it.
"You don’t need to worry, it’s not that difficult. I’ll figure out the Black Obsidian. If things turn out well, forget three million in four years; even eight million a year would be no problem, easily sorted."
"Eight million a year?!"
The Second Elder and the other two were a bit stunned by Ding Fan’s words. If they could have eight million Black Obsidian in a year, then what did it matter if two more experts like Mu Gaosou joined? They seemed to see Black Obsidian dropping from the sky in large quantities.
"Whoosh..."
Mu Gaosou inside also heard Ding Fan’s words. As a Third Level Peak expert of the Divine Realm, his hearing was naturally sharp. He immediately turned into a phantom, dashed out, and came to Ding Fan’s side, saying, "Island Master Ding, if you can make eight million Black Obsidian in a year, it won’t even take four million for me to advance. Why not agree to let me advance once a year? At worst, after advancing, I’ll guard your house for another two hundred years."
"Get lost, then! So you don’t want to stay here anymore? Fine, then off you go, we won’t see you off."
Ding Fan’s eyes shot a cold light, giving Mu Gaosou no face at all, he said directly.
"No, no! I was just joking with you, Island Master, don’t take it seriously. You are a busy person, go ahead, don’t worry about me. I’ll just patrol the island, and I promise not even a fly can come in without my permission."
Hearing his words, the Second Elder, Fourth Elder, and Wu Qingxia all looked at him with contempt. Was this a Third Level Peak expert of the Divine Realm? Where did all the dignity of a master go? He seemed more like a cowardly person.
In fact, Ding Fan understood Mu Gaosou very well. Because he understood, he could treat him this way.
Perhaps over a hundred years ago, Mu Gaosou was indeed a person of note, with his name on the list of powerful ones, full of spirit and arrogance. Anyone who dared treat him like Ding Fan did would likely have met a grim fate. But that was over a hundred years ago.
In the past century, Mu Gaosou has nearly a hundred attempts to break through to the Fourth Level of the Divine Realm, Elementary Stage. This only means one thing: he is afraid of death. He wants to live and not die. Once he successfully advances, he would have 600 more years of life, and he would not die. For this purpose, he has long put aside his dignity and pride, casting them in Zhua Qi Country.
Now, his only thought is to succeed in advancing to the Fourth Level of the Divine Realm. In such circumstances, as long as someone provides resources, not to mention guarding the house, he would even be willing to be a godson without complaints.
The Fourth Level Peak of the Divine Realm is remarkable. In the eyes of ordinary people, it is a very terrifying master, a powerful presence. But relying solely on himself, it would be impossible to gather four million Black Obsidian in a year.
Moreover, Mu Gaosou doesn’t dare to go outside; the world outside is too vast, and he can no longer roam it. But in the Tianmu Sea, he has no way to gather so much Black Obsidian by himself.
The Tianmu Sea is only so large, and of course, the best places belong to the Daozhen family, which is the Herr family, while other good places have been divided among the other eight fourth grade forces. Where could he go to find a place?
These fourth grade forces all have fourth level Divine Realm masters. Mu Gaosou is inherently afraid of dying, so how could he dare provoke them?
Perhaps he could go rob some third grade forces, but in the Tianmu Sea, third grade forces rely on fourth grade forces. He could rob once or twice, but if he wants to enhance his Realm, he would have to keep robbing, and then those fourth grade families would definitely crush him.
Those fourth grade families wouldn’t possibly accept someone who burns Black Obsidian, and third grade families might want to accept him but lack the strength to do so. So, Mu Gaosou’s situation is quite awkward now, and this can be seen from him constantly changing allegiances over the past hundred years. freeweɓnovel.cøm
From the above, Ding Fan is certainly set on dealing with this old fellow. Not to mention, with the reputation of Crimson Flame, Mu Gaosou simply wouldn’t dare act against Ding Fan. To be honest, over the past hundred years, Mu Gaosou no longer has his previous temperament; he is now simply a servant who bullies the weak and fears the strong. When encountering someone stronger than him, he shows his servile nature.
Ding Fan didn’t take him in because he has extra money to burn either. The Skeleton Sect has just begun to rise and hasn’t yet stabilized. The entire Skull Island doesn’t have any masters beyond the fourth level of the Divine Realm. Such a large island would need a powerful guardian to become a fourth grade force. freeweɓnovēl.coɱ
Ding Fan doesn’t know how long the reputation of Crimson Flame can last. At this point, it can temporarily work, but after a year or two, if nearby forces see that Crimson Flame hasn’t appeared, they might develop ambitious thoughts.
Now Ding Fan doesn’t want to overly rely on the reputation of Crimson Flame. Even now, he cannot be sure if Crimson Flame truly wants to repay Sirius Elder or if he covets the legacy of Sirius Elder, intending to forcibly seize that inheritance. In any case, he cannot overly depend on Crimson Flame’s reputation, lest everything falls apart if Crimson Flame turns against them.
Skeleton Island will start to develop very rapidly. With Black Obsidian there, it’s inevitable that some will covet it. Tigertooth Ape is strong, but they are merely controlled, spiritless servants, and solely relying on them wouldn’t be much of a deterrent. In such circumstances, Skeleton Island needs a super mighty figure to sit in command.
Under these circumstances, Mu Gaosou’s arrival just happens to resolve Ding Fan’s worry. This person is undoubtedly the best choice; he has no ambition. As long as resources are provided to him, he is very compliant.
Also, Ding Fan actually isn’t worried about the lack of Black Obsidian. Although Crimson Flame Bodhi’s market is only so large, he cannot expand planting since there would be too much unsold. But he has other ideas.
Crimson Flame Bodhi cannot be planted extensively, but Spiritual Materials aren’t limited to Crimson Flame Bodhi. Many Spiritual Materials can be planted. At the Daozhen Trade Firm, he inquired about Red Cistanche and Blood Thorn Sprout, which could be cultivated.
These are two very rare and precious Spiritual Materials, with prices far exceeding those of Crimson Flame Bodhi. Previously, Ding Fan lacked the strength and time to research these two materials, given their high production costs and the need for High Level Spiritual Beast blood. Previously, Xinkai Island didn’t have the conditions for this.
Now that Skeleton Sect has the conditions and strength, and considering Madam Yan previously expressed a desire to cooperate with him, Ding Fan feels that the time is ripe to start cultivating these two materials.
However, he would first like to test the cultivation of Red Cistanche and Fire Thorn Buds on Dice Skull Island to evaluate the quality.
As long as the experiment is successful and he can cultivate high-quality Spiritual Medicine, Skeleton Sect will essentially possess its own gold mine, as Ding Fan puts it, bringing in seven or eight million Black Obsidian yearly, which is no issue!
With such income, wouldn’t it be easy to support Mu Gaosou? By then, perhaps even if two more such masters arrive, Skeleton Sect could afford them.
Of course, Ding Fan hasn’t told anyone about this. Skeleton Island is still in its initial phase, with potential infiltrators among newcomers. Stabilizing for two or three months before action wouldn’t be late.
At this time, Ding Fan had returned to Jingshan Castle to cultivate. Skeleton Island’s affairs were naturally handed to the Second Elder, Fourth Elder, and Wu Qingxia. His immediate concern is cultivation, advancing quickly beyond the fourth level of the Divine Realm, which is his goal. He hasn’t forgotten Xia Mengqing despite the current improvement in circumstances.
Mu Gaosou has become the High Level Steward of Skeleton Sect’s Battle Hall. His task is to protect all of Skeleton Island. After the Second Elder discussed with him, they decided to provide him 40,000 Black Obsidian monthly, and after three years, the remaining Black Obsidian will be handed over to him in a lump sum, leaving him to procure the Spiritual Materials needed for his Realm advancement.
Mu Gaosou is quite pleased with this arrangement. He isn’t worried about Skeleton Sect cheating him later. Nowadays, it seems he has become the hired muscle of Skeleton Sect, resolute in dealing with any troublemakers.
Mu Gaosou’s current Realm doesn’t need further cultivation; he’s just waiting to gather enough Black Obsidian for his advancement. Approaching two hundred years old, three years is no concern for him.
Under Mu Gaosou’s command, Skeleton Sect purchased numerous talismans and arranged many Prohibitions on the island, enhancing Skeleton Island’s defenses. Regular scout cavalry from third or fourth grade forces couldn’t infiltrate, and if a third level Divine Realm master came, Mu Gaosou would handle them.
Time passed swiftly; within seven or eight days, all arrangements on Skull Island were completed. Now Mu Gaosou is quite leisurely, often wandering east or west, occasionally drinking some wine, enjoying a very comfortable life.
Time flies, and more than twenty days later, it was the birthday of Moon Mist Island’s Island Master, Xu Guotao. Wu Qingxia invited Ding Fan down from Jingshan early in the morning, as Ding Fan is the Island Master and should handle such matters personally.
Ding Fan knew well that, as an affiliated force of Moon Mist Island, he, being the Island Master of a subordinate island, must attend personally for their Island Master’s birthday.
