With energy crystals being both a profitable resource and highly useful to him, William's attitude toward the Yautja improved significantly.
After verbally agreeing to a preliminary trade of 100 healing talismans and energy crystals with the Yautja leader, they chatted about the upcoming interplanetary competition. William probed, "Shall we finish dealing with the Xenomorphs and the pyramid first, then take a look at the other planets?"
"If you want a planet suitable for human habitation, I'll sell it to you for ten thousand talismans," the Yautja leader said with a laugh, walking with William toward the pyramid. "In the galaxy, we've discovered plenty of planets suitable for human survival. Some planets, which lack unique minerals or lifeforms, are of no value to us. Selling one to you isn't a problem.
But there's a catch: once you start developing the planet, without any protective force, you'll likely become a target for space pirates."
Being called out so directly didn't bother William. Anyone would feel suspicious if a stranger suddenly asked for a ride to their vacation villa.
"Another ten thousand? You're practically asking me to dedicate the next ten years of my life to being your talisman craftsman," William quipped. Though he sounded reluctant, in his mind he was calculating. Working eight and a half hours a day, he could produce 500 talismans daily. Ten thousand talismans would take only 20 days. Should he buy it?
But the thought quickly passed, and he dismissed it. For now, a habitable alien planet wasn't something he urgently needed.
There was no reason to devalue his prized talismans for something of temporary insignificance.
"Ten thousand is too expensive. If I craft 20 talismans a day, my magic power will drop to just 20%. That's too dangerous for me," William said.
The Yautja leader shot him a skeptical look. He wasn't old or senile enough to believe that story.
Fortunately, this act wasn't entirely useless—it at least led the leader to estimate that William could produce no more than 50 talismans a day. "How about we schedule the competition for a month from now?"
"That's way too long," William shook his head firmly. The weapons and equipment he had on hand might not guarantee victory against the Xenomorphs, but his detection devices were definitely superior to the Yautja's purely instinct-driven hunting methods.
Spiders, probe orbs, and Black Blade drones already mapped out all the Xenomorphs in the pyramid.
The Xenomorphs' real danger lay in their rapid reproduction, ability to form large groups, exceptional stealth, ambush tactics, and highly corrosive blood. But with intelligence superiority, even ordinary humans with sniper rifles could eliminate them.
Indeed, a live feed from Sunday showed mercenaries in the pyramid gunning down a Xenomorph with concentrated rifle fire.
With this in mind, William said, "Let's hold the competition three days from now. For the talismans, I'll pay over fifty days. Does that work?"
"Fine. Win or lose, you owe me 1,000 talismans," the Yautja leader agreed with a smile. "In that case, let's start with an initial trade of 100 energy crystals and 100 talismans. No problem?"
Trading 100 talismans every four days was clearly a way for the leader to test whether William's claim of making only 20 talismans a day held any truth.
Feigning helplessness, William said, "Looks like I won't have much of a break these next few days."
He rubbed his temples, pretending to think deeply, then shook his head. "You don't understand magic. If my magic power is drained, it feels like recovering from a severe illness, and it also damages a mage's mental strength. Energy crystals, while important, aren't worth harming my body over."
This left the Yautja leader uncertain whether William was bluffing or truthful. After some thought, the leader suggested, "How about we trade every ten days at first, until we complete the exchange of 1,200 talismans? After that, we'll go by demand. Sound good?"
"That's fine. With 200 energy crystals, I'll have enough for now," William replied.
He knew that the Yautja leader intended to wait two months before launching an attack against the genetically modified Yautja.
For William, a conflict between them would be a boon.
Without war, how could arms dealers make big money? Moreover, the hints dropped earlier made it clear that the Yautja leader himself didn't believe the genetically modified faction could be defeated in one battle. This intra-species war, taking place in the vast expanse of space, was highly likely to turn into a guerrilla conflict, which would benefit William even more.
"However, if you want a steady supply of talismans, it would be best to help me find suitable jade stones. You probably don't know this, but on Earth, high-purity jade is becoming increasingly scarce. Without appropriate materials for talismans, I'm sure you wouldn't want to see a decline in their quality."
"Hm?"
The leader recalled the earlier tests, where some talismans had performed poorly, and grew concerned. He activated his wrist communicator to contact the spaceship in orbit. After a brief conversation, his expression brightened.
William quickly understood. For the Yautja, who controlled several Earth-like planets, finding jade-like minerals wasn't difficult. Furthermore, the leader hadn't forgotten that William's direct healing magic worked within seconds, while talismans made from mutton fat jade took about ten seconds.
"I've ordered my subordinates to gather all the jade-like minerals they can find from various planets, test them for safety, and deliver a ton of each for you to experiment with. Maybe you'll discover materials even better than mutton fat jade."
"No problem," William immediately agreed.
This was a pleasant surprise. There might be treasures among extraterrestrial minerals.
Even if the jade they brought lacked special properties, as someone who had grown up in China, William couldn't help but have a fondness for jade. If there were pieces of exceptional quality, he'd commission a master craftsman to carve something exquisite to carry around.
As they spoke, the group arrived at the entrance to the Xenomorph pyramid.
Barney and Trench had stacked ten crates of Gatling gun ammunition a few meters from the entrance. Standing by the crates, they wielded dual-shoulder-mounted Gatling guns and held rapid-fire pistols in their hands, keeping watch.
When Barney saw William approaching with the Yautja warriors, he merely glanced curiously but didn't overreact.
Trench, on the other hand, who had previously fought the Yautja to the death, managed to hide his emotions well, but William, with his heightened mental acuity, noticed the tension in his muscles and the underlying hostility.
Removing his helmet, William approached Trench and patted him on the shoulder. "Interested in a match? The prize for winning is one ton of gold."
"One ton of gold? That's nearly 20 million dollars!"
Staring in shock at William, who casually offered such a massive reward, Trench's excitement quickly turned to suspicion. Before he could ask about the nature of the competition or potential dangers, Barney caught his eye, signaling to stay quiet.
Trench immediately understood.
This wasn't just any employer—it was someone who dared to fight aliens and not only survived but seemingly earned their respect. The protective stance of the Yautja surrounding William made that clear.
With that realization, Trench couldn't help but feel exhilarated. What kind of boss could be better than one who was not only obscenely wealthy but also powerful enough to gain influence over aliens?
"No problem, boss. Count me in."
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