Chapter 217: Chapter 202: A New Change in the Harvest Progress of the Magical Little Fruit

Hearing Liu Lan call her name, Zhang Yuxi, who was lost in self-doubt, snapped out of it and responded with a smile, "Ms. Liu, you’re here!"

"What were you spacing out about? You seemed so lost in thought," Liu Lan asked.

"Oh, nothing..." Zhang Yuxi shook her head with a smile. She was too embarrassed to tell Ms. Liu that she had been like that because she’d invited Lin Li to dinner, only to be flatly rejected, which had sent her into a spiral of self-doubt.

Liu Lan didn’t think much of it and turned to look at the large bamboo baskets in the office, each one filled with flawless white pearls.

"Ms. Liu, we’ve been having such a headache over our supply source being snatched away, and now, I can’t believe the problem was solved so quickly," Zhang Yuxi said with a beaming smile as she looked at the baskets of pearls before them.

"I know! They paid a premium to steal our supplier, hoping to cut off our inventory and drive our shop out of business.

But now, these two batches of pearls are enough to last us for a very long time.

Besides, the quality of the pearls from this Mr. Lin is exceptionally high. If we compete with them at the same price point, they’ll be in for a world of hurt," Liu Lan said with a chuckle.

"An eye for an eye... Since they were so ruthless and tried to drive us into a corner, they can’t blame us for fighting back with everything we’ve got," Zhang Yuxi said, the smile vanishing from her face as her expression turned cold.

Business was a battlefield. Since their competitors had declared war, she had to strike back forcefully. This was one of the many lessons Zhang Yuxi had learned in her years of running the jewelry store.

"Once the first batch of pearls is fully processed into finished products, we can begin our counterattack," Liu Lan said, mentally calculating the progress of the craftsmen at the factory on that first batch.

"It will take about another seven days to finish processing the entire first batch."

Although Zhang Yuxi was eager to strike back at the competitors who were trying to wipe them out, she knew she couldn’t rush things. Launching their counterattack only after everything was properly prepared would make it foolproof.

"Ms. Liu, give the craftsmen at the factory some extra time to process the first batch. We have to ensure there are no issues with the quality of our finished pearl products."

"Alright." Liu Lan nodded, then bent down and took a flawless white pearl from a large basket. She examined it in her hand and said, full of curiosity,

"After that Mr. Lin sold us the first batch of pearls, I thought it would be a long time before he could provide us with another batch of the same quality.

I never expected him to bring us another batch of the same quality after only a single day."

Zhang Yuxi also took a pearl from a basket, examining it in her delicate palm. She smiled and said, "I had the same thought as you at first, Ms. Liu.

Now that he’s brought us another batch like this, and from our conversation just now, I get the feeling he has a much larger stockpile. He just doesn’t seem willing to sell them all at once."

"Price is determined by supply and demand. I suppose Mr. Lin is worried that selling us a huge batch of pearls all at once would cause the market price to drop.

That must be why he’s reluctant to sell his entire stock at once," the experienced Liu Lan speculated after a moment of thought.

If Lin Li had been there to hear Liu Lan’s speculation, he would have certainly exclaimed, ’Impressive. The older the ginger, the spicier the flavor.’

"Our supply line is cut off right now, so when it comes to inventory, the more the better. The next time Mr. Lin comes to sell pearls, I’ll be direct with him and offer to buy his entire stock," Zhang Yuxi said.

"Go ahead and ask. The store has more than enough funds on the books," Liu Lan said.

......

Noon. The sun’s rays were at their most intense, and the day was at its most unbearably hot.

The scorching sun hanging in the sky baked the earth without restraint.

Brilliant golden sunlight spilled onto the stream, its clear surface reflecting a dazzling glare that forced anyone who looked at it to avert their eyes.

In the treacherous wilderness, a figure in camouflage gear was running at high speed, hunting down a Jackal Dog Beast that was fleeing for its life up ahead.

AWOOO... The Tier One Peak Jackal Dog Beast let out desperate howls as it fled for its life.

It had originally come out to hunt for food. When it spotted a tender-looking human, it thought it was about to have a fine lunch.

But it never expected that the roles of hunter and prey would be instantly reversed the moment it appeared before the human.

SWISH.

A faint golden Spiritual Light flashed across Lin Li’s left hand. With a wave, he immediately sent a crescent-shaped Cyan Wind Blade flying out.

SCHLICK.

The speeding crescent-shaped Cyan Wind Blade struck one of the Jackal Dog Beast’s legs.

After breaking through to the Second Order Middle Stage, Lin Li’s strength had increased immensely, and the power of his Superpower attacks had grown as well.

The leg of the Jackal Dog Beast that was hit by the Cyan Wind Blade was severed on the spot.

THUD.

Having lost a leg, the Jackal Dog Beast instantly lost its balance and fell heavily to the ground.

AWOOO...

Dazed and disoriented from the fall, the Jackal Dog Beast let out a continuous, mournful howl.

SCHLICK.

Lin Li closed the distance, arriving in front of the Jackal Dog Beast and decisively plunging the Spiritual Longsword, which was glowing with a faint golden Spiritual Light, into its head.

Awooo... ooo...

The Longsword pierced its brain, killing the Tier One Peak Jackal Dog Beast in an instant.

Lin Li used his Perception and felt the Spiritual Energy Wave from the Jackal Dog Beast in front of him dissipate. Still, to be safe, he twisted his wrist, scrambling the beast’s brains before finally pulling the Spiritual Longsword out.

"The ninth one."

After pulling out the Spiritual Longsword, Lin Li flicked it to shake off the bits of red and white matter, muttering a number under his breath.

Several hours had passed since Lin Li had sold the pearls, left the jewelry store, and come to the wilderness to hunt Mutant Beasts.

In a single morning, he had hunted a total of nine Tier One Mutant Beasts. He wasn’t particularly satisfied with this efficiency.

He crouched down, placed his hand on the dead Jackal Dog Beast, and with a mere thought, both he and the beast’s corpse vanished.

......

"Current progress: three percent."

On the Mysterious Small Island, surrounded by a vast white mist, Lin Li stood before the Magical Little Tree. He looked at the information that had materialized in his mind and muttered to himself with a resigned expression.

’Hunting nine Mutant Beasts only gets me three percent progress. Before, I only had to hunt two hundred Tier One Mutant Beasts to get one Magical Little Fruit. This time, I’ll have to hunt three hundred to get one.

That’s a hundred more than last time. If this trend continues, the number of Mutant Beasts I’ll need to hunt to get a Magical Little Fruit will only keep increasing.’

Lin Li scratched his head, took a deep breath, and adjusted his slightly frustrated mood.

’Hunting Mutant Beasts, harvesting Magical Little Fruits, gaining Superpowers, and making rapid progress in my cultivation... this is already an opportunity beyond what ordinary people can imagine.

The fact that I need to hunt more Mutant Beasts to get a Magical Little Fruit is just a small increase in difficulty relative to the rewards. All in all, I’m still winning by a landslide.

Besides, the more Mutant Beast flesh and blood required, the more Spiritual Energy the resulting Magical Little Fruit will contain, and the more it will benefit my cultivation. That’s a good thing!’

After some thought, Lin Li looked at the progress information that had appeared in his mind, and his frustration completely vanished.

......