Chapter 126: Compensation and Mine Slaves!

Min Yingtang, accompanied by two warriors, paddled a wooden raft to the side of the seagoing vessel and loudly requested to negotiate.

Hearing this from the deck, Wang Hu immediately ran into the captain’s quarters and reported to Ye Mo with excitement, "Brother Ye, City Lord Min can no longer hold out. He has sent people to negotiate—one cultivator and two warriors. Should we let them up?"

Many were gathered there, including Gao Jian and Lin Zhi, all assessing how much longer the opposition could hold the island.

Ye Mo did not want to land on the island to engage in a magical duel with the Min Village cultivators, fearing injuries to his own people and the prospect of a pyrrhic victory. After all, the Min Village had no shortage of cultivators, and the Ye Village side held no advantage in a land battle.

"Negotiate? What a stubborn tongue. It’s clearly a surrender, yet they call it a negotiation," Mo Ling said with disdain.

"City Lord Min likely wants to save face by calling it a negotiation rather than a surrender. But I think we should just let him have it; face is not something worth fretting over. The sooner we settle the ownership of Red Fire Ore Island, the sooner we can begin mining. We cannot delay the development of our immortal village," Gao Jian remarked with a mocking curl of his lip.

Ye Mo nodded and said to Gao Jian, "Gao Jian, you go and talk to that Min Village cultivator. Your cultivation is higher; if they try any tricks, you will be able to handle them."

"Very well. Since City Lord Min hasn't come himself, Brother Ye need not show his face. Let me go and meet this Min clan cultivator," Gao Jian said, rising to his feet.

Gao Jian boarded a small boat and, guided by the sailors, approached Min Yingtang’s raft. He looked coldly at Min Yingtang and asked, "Were you the one who first landed on our Ye Village’s Red Fire Ore Island and instigated this conflict?"

"I... when I landed, you hadn't officially occupied the island yet. How can you say I started the conflict?" Under Gao Jian’s icy gaze, Min Yingtang recoiled, but feeling the shame, he steeled himself and met Gao Jian’s eyes.

"Hmph. If you had encountered me back then, this conflict would never have happened," Gao Jian shook his head, sounding somewhat regretful.

Min Yingtang’s face twitched; he understood the implication clearly—it was a naked show of intimidation.

"Why didn't City Lord Ye come himself?" Min Yingtang asked, glancing at the large ship.

"With your status, you are qualified to see City Lord Ye? Even if City Lord Min himself came, he wouldn't be granted an audience just because he wished it," Gao Jian replied with a sneer.

Min Yingtang was rendered speechless.

"Enough, let us dispense with the chatter and negotiate," Gao Jian continued. "I am Gao Jian, and I have been ordered by City Lord Ye to relay a message to City Lord Min. Out of respect for our shared membership in the Immortal Alliance, our City Lord is willing to show mercy and let you return. However, there are conditions. You must compensate our Ye Immortal Village with 20,000 spirit stones for the damage to our ship and the injuries to our men. You must acknowledge that Red Fire Ore Island belongs to Ye Village, and sign a covenant never to offend our village again. Agree to these terms, and our City Lord will allow you to leave the island and return to your village, and will release all captives."

Gao Jian stood in the camp and spoke loudly, ensuring everyone could hear him clearly.

"20,000 spirit stones? That is absurd! Min Village has lost, and we accept our defeat—conceding the island to you should be enough. Why must we pay 20,000 spirit stones?" Min Yingtang’s veins throbbed as he glared at Gao Jian.

"Red Fire Ore Island has always belonged to Ye Village. This sum is compensation for your defeat. Given the Min clan’s prominent family background, this shouldn't be difficult for you. Our Ye Village is being very sincere," Gao Jian said with a faint, mocking smile.

Min Yingtang was so angry he nearly choked. Demanding 20,000 spirit stones in one breath and calling it sincerity? This was effectively a noose around the neck of the Min Immortal Village.

"20,000 is too much. Even if we pool all the assets of our village, we cannot scrape that together. Can you grant us some leeway?" Faced with the current situation, Min Yingtang had no choice but to swallow his pride and plead.

"A bit less? Fine, I will knock off 500," Gao Jian replied calmly, continuing the negotiation.

They haggled for a full hour until dusk. With Min Yingtang anxious to return and report, an agreement was finally reached. Ye Mo’s bottom line had been 15,000, but since the opposition lacked the funds, the Min Immortal Village agreed to pay 10,000 spirit stones, with the remaining balance covered by the service of all the warriors from this battle as indentured laborers for three years. Furthermore, City Lord Min had to personally sign a "negotiation" agreement using his official seal, pledging not to cause trouble for Ye Village in any way.

To save face for City Lord Min, the document was styled as a negotiation agreement rather than a surrender, though the content was identical to an act of capitulation.

When the time came to sign, both City Lords met on the water—Ye Mo on a small, fast vessel and City Lord Min on his raft. They used their respective seals to imprint the agreement. Such formal covenants between city lords were protected by the Immortal City Alliance; if either party violated the terms, the other could petition the Alliance to intervene and punish the offender.

"City Lord Ye Mo, I’ve suffered such a great loss, and yet I only now learn your name," City Lord Min said, staring at Ye Mo with unconcealed resentment after the document was signed.

"Min Cong? Heh, City Lord Min, we can consider this a case of friends made through conflict. Our two villages are only a few hundred miles apart; as the saying goes, a good neighbor is better than a distant relative. Would you be interested in forming a mutual defense alliance to deal with beasts and other threats?" Ye Mo checked the seal on the agreement and, finding it in order, spoke with a smile.

"An alliance? Is City Lord Ye joking?" City Lord Min suppressed the urge to punch Ye Mo in the face and make him vanish. He was in no mood for alliances. He signaled his men to row the raft back to the island, not wishing to speak further. He had yet to pay the ransom, so he could not leave Red Fire Ore Island just yet.

City Lord Min hurried ashore. Min Yingtang and Uncle Zhong rushed to meet him.

"City Lord, was the agreement signed? How much in spirit stones?" Min Yingtang couldn't help but ask cautiously.

"Return to the village. Have them gather 10,000 spirit stones and send them here," City Lord Min replied irritably. He had borrowed 30,000 spirit stones from his family to build the village, and most had already been poured into construction projects, many of which were unfinished. Extracting these 10,000 stones would bring his village's development to a grinding halt.

"As you command," Min Yingtang answered bitterly.

"City Lord, should we take this opportunity to send our remaining ship from Min Village? Perhaps we could turn the tables and crush Ye Village’s ship," Min Yingtang suddenly suggested with a glimmer of excitement.

"You idiot! Our main fighting force is already here. Do you expect the weaklings left behind in the village to protect that ship? If that Ye fellow is ruthless and sinks our last ship on the way, what then?" City Lord Min’s gaze darkened as he snapped. "Do not use the ship. We will build rafts to return ourselves."

He tossed a token to Min Yingtang and ordered him to return to Min Immortal Village with Uncle Zhong. Min Yingtang looked utterly dejected.

"Brother Min, please. I will escort you; my boat is much faster than a raft. If we travel through the night, hopefully, we can get this done before dawn." Gao Jian was already waiting nearby on his fast boat. Though unhappy, Min Yingtang could only board with a dark expression.

City Lord Min looked expressionlessly at the warriors on the island and retreated into his makeshift tent to rest. No one dared to speak or ask questions as they watched him go.

"Uncle Zhong, what is the situation? What did the City Lord discuss with Ye Village?" a cultivator asked the elder who always stayed by the City Lord’s side. The other Min Village cultivators were still unaware of the details of the "negotiation." All eyes turned to Uncle Zhong.

"The City Lord has reached an agreement with City Lord Ye. We are paying a ransom to secure our return. All cultivators can return to the village tomorrow. However, there weren't enough spirit stones, so the warriors must remain on Red Fire Ore Island as laborers for three years," Uncle Zhong said with a heavy sigh. He knew the City Lord did not want to say it himself, so the burden fell on him.

The cultivators breathed a sigh of relief. Regardless of the outcome, they had escaped unscathed. But the warriors were thrown into an uproar.

"We are staying as laborers... how can this be?" The warriors were horrified, their faces turning pale with despair. They knew exactly what the life of a laborer was like. In the Min clan’s territory, such people were true slaves, forced to toil day and night with their lives constantly at risk.

"Do not lose heart. Live well. City Lord Ye has promised to treat you fairly. You have all been loyal to the Min family, and the City Lord will not abandon you. Once we return, the City Lord will find a way to gather the spirit stones and redeem you as soon as possible," Uncle Zhong said loudly.

"Uncle Zhong is right. We have all been loyal to the Min family; the City Lord will not abandon us. As long as we live, there is hope," the captain said, looking dejected.

"Indeed. We are all people with the potential to refine our primordial spirits; the City Lord will certainly not abandon us," another warrior muttered. He was not entirely wrong; the warriors who had come to fight were the cream of the crop in Min Village, and the most likely to advance to become cultivators. But City Lord Min was now penniless, his resources squeezed dry. Who knew if he would have the resolve to spend thousands more spirit stones to redeem them?

"At most, we endure for three years, and then we can return," the warriors prepared themselves for the worst.

Uncle Zhong was helpless and could only shake his head as he tried to comfort them. But the matter was settled; no matter how dissatisfied they were, there was nothing they could do. In the face of the City Lord, these warriors were powerless and had no choice.