"I've got four left," Song Miaozhu said. "If you want them, I'll sell them all to you. The ones for the SEIU app, I'll just make more."
In truth, back when she first learned how to craft the Bowl-Holding Paper Servants and Spirit Kites, she had already made over a hundred of them. They were all stored in her Yin-wood Box.
As soon as she returned to Xiaozhu Mountain, Song Miaozhu sent a Spirit Kite carrying a Spirit-Gathering Jade Orb to deliver the Bowl-Holding Paper Servants to the buyers.
It usually only took a few minutes for the Spirit Kite to make a round trip between Yuanshan Town and the Golden Rose Villa, given its speed.
But fifteen minutes passed, and even after Song Miaozhu had finished infusing her paper soldier guards with spirit energy, the Spirit Kite still hadn't returned.
Just as she was about to pick up the phone her little paper servant had brought over to make a call, it rang on its own.
She picked up and heard Zhao Huoyan's voice.
"Hello? Master Song, are you free this afternoon? I'd like to discuss a potential collaboration with you on behalf of the SEIU."
Song Miaozhu straightened up immediately.
That line sounded all too familiar. The last time she heard it, the SEIU had tried to rope her into using her Grade-Four Paper Clothes to manipulate ghosts and dig into the secrets of the underworld.
Zhao Huoyan seemed to realize how ominous his words sounded too. He quickly added, "Don't worry, this time it's a sincere offer. It'll be a good deal for you, I promise."
"Alright then, I'm home. You can come over," Song Miaozhu replied flatly.
She wasn't about to agree to anything without seeing the goods. No way they were tricking her again. Besides, she now had 149 fearless, fully loyal paper soldiers guarding her.
After hanging up, she had her little paper servants hide away. Then she tucked all the paper soldiers back into the Yin-wood storage chest in her ghost shop warehouse, making sure she could retrieve them at a moment's notice.
Just to be safe, she brought out several more Bowl-Holding Paper Servants, swapped in a low-grade spirit stone, and filled their bowls with released spirit energy. She arranged them neatly beneath the old locust tree.
Then, she pulled out some paper-making materials and sat beneath the tree, pretending to be focused on crafting a new set of paper clothes. She figured this setup would help demonstrate her so-called "daily cultivation routine," and give her a buffer in case anyone questioned her cultivation speed.
Zhao Huoyan arrived with Zhao Mumu in tow. He had brought her along partly to ease the tension of the negotiation, and partly because he needed her Heavenly Eye to verify the goods.
As they followed Song Miaozhu into the courtyard, the scene before them confirmed what they had suspected. No wonder she insisted on cultivating alone. With so many Bowl-Holding Paper Servants working for her, she didn't need the SEIU's traveling vans to help her gather spiritual energy. She could handle it all on her own.
In fact, it seemed like her cultivation progress might even be faster than most. Both Zhao Laoyezi and Zhao Mumu had noticed that the glow between her brows was on par with their own. That alone suggested her cultivation was likely higher.
If someone's spiritual glow appeared about the same as your own, it usually meant they had already surpassed you.
The SEIU had clearly caught on to this as well.
Zhao Huoyan kept those thoughts to himself, keeping a calm expression. Compared to her cultivation, the real focus was the Bowl-Holding Paper Servant she had crafted.
"Master Song! As soon as your Bowl-Holding Paper Servant was registered, the SEIU headquarters immediately designated it a 'key spirit item' with a high rating.
For such items, the SEIU has a special transaction system.
If you're willing to cooperate by only listing your Bowl-Holding Paper Servants in our internal Key Spirit Item Vault, even without joining the SEIU, you'll still be designated as an Elite Master.
Elite Masters are only required to sell their key items in the Vault, refrain from doing anything harmful to the state or public, and follow the Cultivator Laws and Regulations. In return, the SEIU will protect your rights and interests.
You'll gain access to the SEIU's latest research findings, receive updates faster than anyone else, and have equal purchasing privileges with regional SEIU teams when it comes to key spirit items.
Even better, Elite Masters won't be charged any handling fees for their transactions—whether it's on the Contribution Store or in the Key Spirit Item Vault. Full platform protections apply."
Zhao Huoyan finished and anxiously watched her face, worried she might turn him down. After all, none of their past collaborations had ended well. Song Miaozhu thought for a moment, then asked three questions:
"How are the sales figures in the Key Spirit Item Vault? Will working with you restrict me from selling Bowl-Holding Paper Servants to friends privately? And will the SEIU interfere with my pricing?"
"The sales are very strong. All key item transactions are handled through SEIU logistics. Once your item goes live, even if there's no eligible buyer, the SEIU will buy it first.
When someone finally qualifies and makes a purchase, we'll send their Spirit-Gathering Jade Orb to you so you can complete the transfer.
As for private sales, because the Bowl-Holding Paper Servant is a safe item, small-scale personal trades won't be restricted, as long as you're not selling through any public channels.
Regarding pricing, unless it's completely unreasonable, we won't interfere. In general, only items priced above ten thousand contribution points require a formal appraisal."
Hearing this, Song Miaozhu nodded. "Alright, I agree."
This time, the terms weren't half bad. In fact, they were quite generous. All they were asking was for her to list the item in a different place. Whether it was the Contribution Store or the Key Spirit Item Vault, it made no difference to her—they both earned her contribution points just the same.
And the benefits for Elite Masters really were tempting.
She'd get access to SEIU's internal findings and have the privilege to buy high-grade spirit items.
"Key spirit item," "Key Spirit Item Vault," "safe item," "Elite Master"—none of these terms had ever come up when she had her little paper servants browsing the SEIU app.
Clearly, not everything the SEIU knew was made public.
Song Miaozhu had been badly in need of access to their internal information. Now, she had no reason to refuse. And judging from what Zhao Huoyan said, these key spirit items weren't available to regular members. They were probably reserved for a very select group.
She suspected the spirit items listed in the Contribution Store were just the ones that hadn't made the cut. The truly powerful ones had likely been flagged as key spirit items from the moment they were registered—just like her Bowl-Holding Paper Servant—and rerouted into another sales channel.
Now she was genuinely curious: what were the other key spirit items?
"You really agree?" Zhao Huoyan hadn't expected such a smooth outcome. Even though he had come prepared with sincerity, he hadn't been confident. Worried she might change her mind, he immediately pulled out a contract.
"Then please sign here."