“About this fixed-price contract with economic price adjustments your company is proposing, will you consider doing something simpler, with just a fixed-price contract instead?” one of the Astro Forge employees inquired.
He was currently in the midst of negotiating with my team regarding the details of our trade agreement. Th...
2024-10-14 11:55:28 +0000 UTC View PostOff in the distance, a small dot rapidly grew larger as it encroached on the area where Li Lang and his attacker were.
They both stared on, awaiting the new arrival for different reasons. For Li Lang, he hoped an expert had seen his signal fire and would rescue him. For the assailant, he was being cautious toward the new party, n...
2024-10-11 22:30:03 +0000 UTC View PostWe didn’t immediately get a reply from Astro Forge after our little show. It was understandable, considering we were the ones who gave them two days to decide. The people I was talking to couldn’t make such important decisions without consulting the actual owners, the Axion family.
Which was why our follow-up plan included sh...
2024-10-11 11:22:07 +0000 UTC View Post“So you guys finally decided to leave the city, huh?” an unfamiliar man’s voice resounded clearly from above the trio. It sent shivers down their spines as the newcomer unleashed their aura at the same time.
Under this pressure, it became a herculean task for Li Lang to just turn around and look up at the intruder standing ...
2024-10-10 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View PostLi Lang woke up early in the morning and immediately started packing. During the previous night, he irresponsibly ignored everything and dove straight into Ruby’s artifact space.
That was because he had fed one of each type of beast core to his artifact, and he got straight to investigating it. As they were items with the main ...
2024-10-09 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View PostLaura Uzbeck - Astro Forge
“What do you mean, you guys are delayed? It’s your job to smooth things over with your station’s harbormaster. How can you let it deteriorate to the point where it can cause a delay?” Laura admonished the man on the other end of the call.
“Ma’am…that’s not easy to ...
2024-10-09 11:16:55 +0000 UTC View Post“Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the next lot that many have been anticipating. A set of peak Mortal-grade beast cores! Unlike the ones you can rarely even buy just one from your organization, we’ve gathered an entire set of ten beast cores from the same species of Qi beasts! That means you can attempt to craft a treasured a...
2024-10-08 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View Post“How much are they?”
In response to the question, the middle-aged store manager gently took out one of the space rings by wrapping it around a piece of cloth and laying it out before Li Lang’s group.
“This one is a rank one space ring. It can hold up to two hundred and fifty shi. This one is twenty red crystals.”<...
2024-10-07 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View Post“Perry!” Polina warmly called out to his former fellow prisoner. “What sort of shit did you get yourself into?”
The mismatch between her kind demeanor and her words made the man give me a questioning look as he awkwardly approached Polina.
“He’s all yours,” I said and headed straight out of the room to let the...
2024-10-07 11:10:44 +0000 UTC View Post“Dear guests, what is your approximate budget?” the saleslady asked as they walked out to the stables, where dozens of Skyrunners were showcased.
The trio let their smallest member with the mask answer.
“A-about twenty red crystals f-for the Skyrunner with a consumption of n-no more than ten Qi stones per hour.”
... 2024-10-04 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View PostKnowing the people at Astro Forge were trying to secure Perry, we rushed to get to him first, before that could happen. Prior to leaving, I made sure to disable all security features in the building and shut down their systems to make it more difficult for them to regain control. Then, for good measure, we blew up the control room as w...
2024-10-04 11:10:06 +0000 UTC View PostInside the inn, Li Lang and his friends sat around a table in the dining hall with Yun Ming. He was the creator of the Tracing Origin Art that Li Lang bought, and they were having an exchange about the technique until the food arrived. It caused Li Lang to be taken aback, pausing mid-sentence.
However, he was the only one who had...
2024-10-03 22:30:02 +0000 UTC View PostThe Tracing Origin Art Li Lang won in the auction was much longer than he expected. From his experience, cultivation manuals were rarely lengthy unless it was a comprehensive technique like his Gliding Coil Spear Art.
This was because the authors of this world liked to gloss over the details with broad terms. It was the reader’...
2024-10-02 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View PostOnce I confirmed my men outside were in position, we started focusing on gaining entry into Astro Forge Aegis branch headquarters. I did a quick scan with the Argus and got a layout of their security systems in the lobby.
“They have some serious sensors around. If we try to use our boosters to jump over anything, they’d detec...
2024-10-02 11:52:20 +0000 UTC View Post“Next item, Swallowtail Tremor. Earth-grade blade with a rating of five. However, don’t let the rating fool you. It is capable of unleashing one of the highest levels of Qi in its grade. It has an affinity with the earth element.”
Even the more stoic auctioneer had to break character and say a few more words about this weap...
2024-10-01 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View PostThe clamor in the auction subsided as quickly as it rose. Everyone was eager to hear the next words Lu Hong had to justify pausing the proceedings. He had declared that someone had broken one of the ten rules of the auction.
“Speak, child. Do not waste our time,” the old auctioneer coldly urged.
The intensity of his wor...
2024-09-30 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View Post“So I guess it’s decided then?” I looked over at my two trusted partners.
Claire shrugged while Thorne continued to stare down at the tablet with a frown. After all our time together, I could read what he was thinking. We’ve had people set traps against us in the past, and he was worried this was the same. Usually, when t...
2024-09-30 11:18:45 +0000 UTC View Post“Current bid, six hundred. Anyone else?” the old man casually asked the crowd.
He didn’t exactly get a response as they were all too busy staring up at the Spirit Grove booth, gossiping about the high price people were willing to pay for a space ring. A rank three space ring was definitely a treasure, but it would normally ...
2024-09-27 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View PostAndrew - Halls Corporation
After a night of progress, Andrew had gotten the hang of how the Legend of the Mythic War worked. He at least learned about how to level up, and the basic skills he started off with as a rogue.
At some point during the night, he began to lose concentration. He had been warned abou...
2024-09-27 11:48:30 +0000 UTC View PostLi Lang’s group got settled in their seats in the auditorium of the auction house. A moment later, the lights dimmed, and an old man took to the stage. He had white unkempt facial hair and would be mistaken for a homeless man if he wasn’t wearing clean clothes.
He gestured for the crowd to quiet down, then glanced over at one...
2024-09-26 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View PostAn hour passed by very quickly and it was soon time for Li Lang and his companions to depart from the auction for techniques so they could attend the artifact auction. However, as Li Lang had made a purchase, he parted with his group in order to redeem his item.
After waving down one of the servants, he was quickly guided to towa...
2024-09-25 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View PostThe next morning, I gathered our team to discuss our upcoming plans. We pretty much had everyone who was up in Aegis at the meeting, minus the security guards outside. As usual, Claire was alarmed when she heard my plan.
“Not this shit again! We haven’t even set up a proper office and you want to go fight with some corporatio...
2024-09-25 11:42:42 +0000 UTC View Post“Sold to guest number one-four-six for sixty-five red crystals!” Xiao Gao Mei, the auctioneer declared. “Going straight into the next lot, we have a technique by the name of Tracing Origin Art.”
At the wave of a hand, the book on the pedestal was swapped out for another one that was in better condition. Without giving the...
2024-09-24 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View PostAfter their meal, the group traveled along the streets of Polarity City in a leisurely manner. They took a stroll down the busy streets, exploring various stalls and shops.
While Li Lang’s party was enjoying the view, he was deep in thought about whether high-quality food could aid in cultivation and why. At the same time, he w...
2024-09-23 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View PostI watched on, flabbergasted at the dramatic reversal of roles between the man who had been chased and his pursuers. He had a gun and knife pointed toward his two assailants, and was making demands for them to hand over their valuables.
At this point, my people were still securing the perimeter with the support of local police. I ...
2024-09-23 11:38:58 +0000 UTC View PostWith the greeting out of the way, the awkwardness between the four young cultivators and the middle-aged woman took hold of them again. Li Lang’s group looked around, with no one wanting to have the first word. The elder just stoically stood there like a statue.
After some time, the elder broke the silence.
“It’s been...
2024-09-20 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View PostI watched on as the tense scene unfolded before my eyes. A gunshot had just rang out from amidst the crowd of dockworkers, who were eager to get home. It caused all the officers manning the checkpoint to turn in their direction with weapons drawn.
No matter what happens, I can only watch. We don’t have a foothold here yet t...
2024-09-20 11:30:09 +0000 UTC View Post“There are regular folks around now?” Li Lang muttered as he watched the lively streets of Polarity City.
It caused his two companions to take a second look at all the people around.
“You’re right,” Long Yi agreed. “There was barely anyone here the last time we were here. I can’t believe it’s changed so much...
2024-09-19 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View PostA shadowy figure sat on a vantage point that overlooked a beautiful landscape. Their eyes were shut as they tightly held onto a talisman. Whatever they were doing was draining stamina as sweat began to build up on their brows as time passed.
They remained completely still even when a sparrow flew onto their shoulder. The bird mad...
2024-09-18 22:30:01 +0000 UTC View PostOutside the window of our private meeting room, there was currently a sizable spaceship parked right by the window. It brandished a robotic arm and a drill for a brief moment before rotating them out for other gadgets.
Next was the return of the robotic arm. It held onto a thick metal slab this time, while another arm had a circu...
2024-09-18 11:10:00 +0000 UTC View Post