Since Lei Ming had spoken, the others naturally followed suit. After all, lowering the price would only benefit them.
These people weren't short-sighted. They knew these materials would be of greater use in the future, so they couldn't give them all away; the more they kept, the better. They secretly cursed Yang Jia for his cunning tactics, wondering if he was just trying to drain them of their resources and hinder their development.
Of course, they have to admit that others have this ability.
But in reality, they had misunderstood Yang Jia's purpose. The materials were native to this continent, and while obtaining them would certainly require effort, it wasn't particularly difficult. To monopolize them and hinder the development of other cities was practically a pipe dream.
Moreover, Phoenix City has indeed gone further than others in research, but the scale cannot be said to be very large, and it does not need so many materials. In fact, they will just be stored in the warehouse.
So although she had some intention of accumulating supplies, her real purpose was not this.
She smiled and said, "Of course, the price can be raised."
She didn't even mention the vague term "negotiate," but directly used the word "increase," which surprised everyone else. After all, no one would admit so readily that their offer was low, right?
Even if the young people from the major factions weren't familiar with each other, they knew each other. So, they glanced at each other and focused their attention on Bai Shu. They all knew that she and Yang Jia must have a private agreement, and since they were closer than the others, they might know something.
Bai Shu shook her head and asked Yang Jia, "What conditions would it take to raise the price?"
Yang Jia said, "Your presence in Phoenix City truly brings honor to our humble abode. Those present are undoubtedly the elites of the entire continent, and it's truly exciting to meet so many heroes at once. However, I think it would be a bit of a letdown if so many people gathered here just to discuss business."
She said this, her eyes sweeping over everyone. "I believe everyone usually pays attention to each other and is interested in comparing themselves. Now that we've finally gathered together, it's a rare occasion. How about holding a competition to celebrate? Then, our Phoenix City's price will be determined based on everyone's ranking. How about that?"
This proposal made some people frown, but others showed excitement.
With so many people gathered in Phoenix, they'd see each other everywhere. It wasn't a close call, but it was pretty close. To say there wasn't any desire for competition would be a lie.
However, they were guests from afar, and they had to cooperate with Phoenix City, so they couldn't break the rules. After all, it was far from the time for war. So they could only suppress these thoughts. But now that their host, Yang Jia, had taken the initiative, they naturally had the opportunity to show their strength.
However, there was no such content in the previous invitation letter, so everyone inevitably had some concerns.
"Will Phoenix City also join the competition? How will the ranking be calculated?" someone asked.
Yang Jia glanced at him. Li Bai had introduced him to her before; he was from the Sheng family. He lived up to his surname, exuding an air of arrogance. No matter who he looked at, he always held his chin slightly raised, as if he didn't take them seriously.
However, according to Li Bai, while he possessed an arrogant disposition, this attitude was likely an act. How could someone who had been groomed as a successor to such a powerful force truly be so clueless? He adopted this attitude simply to confuse his enemies. If anyone truly believed he was arrogant and unpredictable, they were gravely mistaken.
Well, he was the first one to raise the question.
Yang Jia was prepared for this and smiled slightly, "That depends on whether you want us to participate."
As she spoke, she turned to look at Li Bai, and they smiled at each other.
The others' eyes also fell on Li Bai, and then they fell silent.
A martial arts competition is a fight on stage. Everyone present is counted, who can guarantee that they can beat Li Bai? The others in Phoenix City are not a concern, but Li Bai and his men are quite wary of them.
Seeing no one speak, Yang Jia continued, "There are two options. One is for Phoenix City to participate as well. Those ranked higher than us can get different levels of price increases. The second option is for us not to participate, and everyone will be ranked based on wins and losses. The last one will be paid the price written on the list, and those ranked higher will have their prices increased. The decision is in your hands."
Is this even worth considering? Bai Shu was the first to say, "I choose the second option."
"I second the motion." Lei Ming said.
The others hesitated for a moment before also choosing the second option. While Li Bai was alone, they might still win, but why would they give up the guaranteed money for a possible victory?
After all... there are still many scattered cities here that have not been annexed, so there will naturally be people at the bottom.
The rest was to compete with other rivals. Without Li Bai, the outcome was uncertain, and the chances of getting a good price were greater.
"In that case, I look forward to everyone's performance." Yang Jia said.
This choice was within Yang Jia's expectations and the outcome she had hoped for. This opportunity allowed Yang Jia to see what Zhuo Tianyang meant by "different development directions" and whether they could be demonstrated in battle. This was crucial; if the fighting style differed, she would be unprepared and likely suffer a loss in a future encounter.
So being able to get a glimpse of some content in advance is already a good deal.
But more importantly, Yang Jia hoped to make Phoenix City "independent" from other forces. Just like the plan she had originally formulated for herself, she wanted to leverage various advanced scientific and technological achievements to provide supplies and assistance to other cities and forces, and develop herself into a city focused on commerce.
In this way, Phoenix City's location will become special. The war needs supplies, and they cannot do without them. In order to allow them to produce supplies smoothly, the flames of war will not spread here. In this way, they can gain a foothold for themselves.
However, the peace achieved through this method is very fragile. If one's own strength is insufficient, one can only rely on skills to deal with the opponent. Once the opponent becomes tough, one will be put on the defensive.
So Phoenix City still had to develop, but it was using this method to temporarily coexist peacefully with the major forces and buy time for development. Otherwise, the other party might not be happy to see them occupy so many cities and develop peacefully.
A single martial arts competition may not necessarily achieve such an effect, but this is only the first step. Yang Jia will make various efforts in the future to help everyone form such habits and patterns through a long period of subtle influence.
In the short term, as long as this cooperation is facilitated, there is no need to worry about them attacking Phoenix because of the city's secrets.
At the same time, it can also show the capabilities of Phoenix to the cities that have been contacted before, so that they can think more when making a choice and understand that Phoenix is a good choice.
With so many benefits, Yang Jia naturally wanted to do his best to make this happen.
After everyone agreed, the competition was quickly set for tomorrow. The next step was naturally to discuss the format of the competition, ultimately deciding that each faction would send five people, with two of them fighting each other. The loser would withdraw and the winner would advance. The ranking would be determined based on the number of victories.
It's just a friendly match, so there's no need for overly complicated rules.
However, a surprise occurred during the selection process. Needless to say, the major factions united their cities. The smaller cities, however, were scattered and had no advantage compared to them. Finally, the scattered cities in the northwest gritted their teeth and publicly decided to form an alliance, uniting into a single faction and inviting everyone present to witness!
This unexpected change made some of the people look unhappy.
These six northwest cities are all controlled by NPCs. Even today, even if they don't fully understand what's going on, these NPCs can sense the difference between themselves and the players. The familiarity of their kind and the proximity of these cities create the foundation for this collaboration. These are the internal conditions. As for the external factors, the Sheng and Xuan families, sandwiched between these cities, are each seeking an opportunity to annex them, but their fear of the other's presence has held them back.
Therefore, now was undoubtedly the best opportunity for them. Forming an alliance in Phoenix City would allow them to discuss many issues face to face without having to worry about an impending war. Establishing a new faction in front of everyone would also earn their approval, making it difficult for both the Sheng and Xuan families to intervene.
But this was not a good thing for both families, so although they could not refute it under the general trend, they all looked gloomy.
In comparison, the remaining small cities are not so lucky. They are governed by players and NPCs, but there are no other cities around them, so they cannot watch over each other and help each other. Their only choice is to rely on or merge into a large guild.
While they were still hesitating, several cities east of Phoenix were already getting restless.
These cities are indeed connected. They now have two choices: one is to form an alliance on the spot like the Northwest, forming a new power, or to join Phoenix City.
After a brief hesitation, several cities unanimously chose the latter option. At today's gathering, they had witnessed Phoenix City's strength. Yang Jia had previously made it clear when he sent someone to contact them that Phoenix City was not strong at the moment and urgently needed to expand its influence. If they joined, they would not be suppressed and could still occupy an important position. By working together, they could fight against other major forces. Otherwise, they would be defeated one by one.
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