Pretending To Be A Boss

Ke Ye fell into a brief silence.

Tang Xian, on the other hand, became quite talkative, "Giving discounts to acquaintances is not something one should compromise on lightly. Businesspeople conduct business not just to keep regulars, but fundamentally, to have customers recognize the quality of their goods, not to let them cut the price because of personal relations.

In such cases, one must decisively talk about their advantages or feign hardship, tacitly yet firmly informing the customer that haggling is forbidden, in order to keep the business and reputation intact."

Ke Ye asked, "Are you really Tang Xian? How can you prove it?"

"If you really need proof, it's not impossible. I'm quite curious, back when you were surrounded by Li Xiaoyu's bodyguards, if they had turned violent, would you have chosen to be a '1' or a '0'? Or perhaps..."

"Stop, stop, I believe you," Ke Ye stopped him with an awkward embarrassment.

The sentimental mood that had been brewing was no longer necessary after hearing the two words, 'Tang Xian'; it had quickly subsided.

This was good; Tang Xian did not want the two of them to converse with a sentimental, nostalgic mindset full of longing for the past.

Such a mindset was highly inefficient, often leading the conversation to pointless reminiscing.

"I thought you were dead," Ke Ye said slowly.

"That introduction almost had the vibe of my past reputation as a conversation terminator," Tang Xian laughed.

"I'm not joking with you. After you returned to the lower levels, it wasn't long before I went straight to Fortress Fifty-One. Later, I made some achievements, but when I used my contacts to investigate your file, all the information I found pointed to your non-existence. So, I thought you probably had an accident.

I know it's chaotic in the lower levels, and although the newbie zone in the mining area doesn't have powerful creatures, spending a year or half there without dying would still leave you with a peeled skin," Ke Ye spoke earnestly, with a hint of confusion.

Tang Xian frowned slightly.

He could understand why Ke had not identified him immediately by his voice.

If someone believes another person has been in an incident for several years, even if they suddenly hear someone with a very similar voice, they would not make the connection easily.

He then pondered the reason he himself had considered this matter,

There weren't many people capable of completely sealing off his external data from Fortress Thirty-Nine, and not many would be willing to spend such resources on a minor figure like him.

Realizing this and thinking about the ever-present spies over the past six years, he probably understood why Ke couldn't find any information about him.

Given all this, Tang Xian said:

"It was Li Xiaoyu. Don't mention that matter anymore; I can guess why she did it, probably to prevent the spread of my cheating. Anyway, I'm still alive, living rather well. I didn't contact you to reminisce, but you're welcome to visit the Tree Sea when you're free. You need to make that kitchen knife for me first."

After pondering for a moment and understanding the situation, Ke Ye said,

"I thought this was your way of letting me know you were still alive. Did you actually want me to make a kitchen knife?"

"Of course. I had someone exchange my Weapon Ore for points, which I'll transfer to your account. That's for the material costs. The alloy formula can be considered as rental for equipment. Also, regarding weapon construction, if you have any questions, you can ask me. Consider this as your personal craftsmanship fee.

Doing business with me, whether you give me a discount or not, I won't let you suffer a loss."

Tang Xian's tone remained calm.

Ke Ye, feeling a bit offended, said, "You're being quite formal."

"If I were really being formal, I wouldn't have approached you for business. Not just any Tom, Dick, or Harry can do business with me."

"That tone is still as proud as back in the day. But why do you want a kitchen knife? Are you sure you just want a kitchen knife? This material you've provided is enough to make a set of knives."

Tang Xian's eyes lit up; he had forgotten about that.

"You've reminded me. If possible, I'd like you to make some tableware as well—cutlery, bowls, and chopsticks. Plus a set of knives. I've heard that ancient barbers, doctors, chefs, they all had their own set of professional tools. You can make me a set of chef's tools. I'll send you the reference materials and design sketches through the phone."

Ke Ye couldn't help but chuckle.

"You now have the opportunity to command Huaxia's future top weapon designer, and yet you're asking him to make tableware and cutlery for you?"

Tang Xian didn't see anything amiss with his request and said, "Do it with care, after all, I have helped all the hunters quite a lot."

Ke Ye was stifled once more.

After a moment of thought, he said,

"You're not planning on disappearing once this batch of equipment is completed, are you?"

"I generally won't come to you guys proactively, but you can come and find me in the Tree Sea. I've built a house there."

Ke Ye decided not to wonder why Tang Xian would go to the Red Zone to build a house. He raised an eyebrow and said,

"Us? So, I'm not the only one who knows you're still alive and kicking?"

"Before you, there were Li Xiaoyu, Shang Lu, and Yu Xiaozhe."

"...Alright then," Ke Ye's voice carried a slightly unconvinced tone.

Tang Xian probably understood why Li Xiaoyu had troubles with Ke back in the day; he laughed and said:

"Yeah, the aforementioned arrangement doesn't imply any ranking, only that there are priorities in need. Each of you has your own life, and I'm sure you'll get by just fine, so there's no need for me to disturb you. Now, let's get down to business."

After going over the weapon design schematics, Tang Xian knew that Ke Ye definitely had some technical questions to ask him.

As expected, as soon as Tang Xian shifted the topic, Ke Ye also became serious.

"I'm planning to publish this alloy formula and start mass production as soon as possible."

"If you think it's useful, then go ahead and use it. Aside from that, if there's anything you want to ask, preferably academic questions, you should ask me now." Tang Xian was clearly not a stingy person.

Ke Ye said:

"The abilities of top human talents are getting stronger and stronger. Needless to say, equipment's importance for mid-level and lower-level hunters. However, for top-tier hunters, the advantage of equipment seems to be weakening, especially with the excessively high maintenance costs, which has made many question the value of top-level gear."

Tang Xian said, "I remember that the thermal weapons are quite powerful."

"The power of these weapons is decent, but the wear and tear is too great. The thermal energy can give weaponry made from ore an incredibly strong attribute for a short duration, but after a few uses, the weapons are practically wrecked and need repairs.

The top-tier hunter, Jink Armor, ranked fourth in the world for hunting, has already started advocating for hand-to-hand combat against creatures in the mines. Ideas like 'The Conqueror's Way' and 'The Strong Stand Alone Without Reliance on Weapons' are becoming popular." Ke Ye sounded somewhat helpless.

"Are you worried that your profession in weapon design and manufacturing will become a sunset industry?" Tang Xian asked.

"I'm a bit worried."

"That concern is entirely unnecessary. After all, without their gear outside the mines, they'd just be ordinary people. Equipment is still important, and as you said, there's a big need for it among the mid to low-level hunters.

As for the level of Akasi and Jink Armor, they do find it a hassle to use these disposable or semi-disposable weapons, especially considering they have to face elite monsters at the very least."

Ke Ye was naturally aware of this. He wasn't genuinely worried about losing his livelihood; he was just a bit unwilling to accept it.

"I want to design weapons that surpass the capabilities of thermal series and also considerably reduce the wear on weapons when they deploy thermal power."

Tang Xian seemed to have understood the implications of Ke's words.

"Hmm, take your time thinking about it. Just make sure you get my kitchen knife ready soon, along with all sorts of dining and kitchen wares. I'll sketch out the designs for you later."

"Wait, you're not planning to help me?" Ke Ye was somewhat surprised.

"I can design a new material formula for you that can withstand the huge load of the thermal series, and even larger loads if necessary."

Ke Ye was shocked.

"Xian, my brother Tang Xian, my real brother, if you really have a way, just spill it. I'm facing a real bottleneck here."

Tang Xian didn't beat around the bush and said directly:

"This is your professional fee, so I'll tell you. Thermal weapons, due to their conversion to heat, subject the weapons to high temperatures and hence wear them out. However, creatures starting from elite boss levels have Soul Crystals that can withstand high temperatures without even a scratch."

Ke Ye was bewildered. Soul Crystals? And ones from elite boss-level creatures, no less.

To use such rare and expensive material in weapons?

"I'll send you the Soul Crystal mixture ratio later. Generally, embedding just one crystal into a weapon would allow it to bear any wear from thermal exploits."

As someone who witnessed first-hand that even foxfire couldn't scorch a Soul Crystal, Tang Xian wasn't just making empty promises. He added:

"So, the weapon industry is far from becoming a sunset industry. On the contrary, these monster hunters will strive to hunt various formidable creatures for more powerful gear with almost infinite durability."

"Even due to the extreme cost, a world of artifacts that can't be mass-produced will rapidly emerge in the mining zones."

"And in your profession, those with higher metallurgical skills will enjoy better treatment. The creators of these artifacts will completely enter a new era of custom-made weapons, which will likely be the third equipment revolution."

Tang Xian spoke in a calm tone, but Ke Ye was seething with excitement.

"These six years you've had... indeed, not a moment wasted. They say 'to each his own,' but just like during school days, although I've been immersed in this field for so long... I'm still not on par with you."

Ke Ye's tone was a mix of happiness and resignation.

This was a healthy competitive mindset. Tang Xian didn't mind it and said sympathetically:

"I like a leisurely life and won't formally pursue any career. In the future, you and Shang Lu in your respective fields will achieve heights that I can't reach. Take it slow."

This statement sounded somewhat insincere; Ke Ye gave a wry smile. Unless Tang would be informationally isolated or stay put like a napping rabbit, it's unlikely the rabbit would lose the race against the tortoise. Find your adventure at empire

In this era of the chosen, Ke Ye thought to himself, the only talent he acknowledged was Tang Xian.

"It truly makes me happy that you're still alive. I'll finish your weapons as soon as I can. And hey, let's chat more when you're free."

"You're welcome to visit the forest sea anytime," Tang Xian said before hanging up the phone.

It was mainly because he was worried about the phone bill. No idea how much Yu Xiaozhe had charged up.