Cave Refuge

Perhaps because the two families were already so familiar with each other, after the Thompson family of three stepped onto the deck, Mr. Thompson was entertained by Master Ye, while Mrs. Thompson was pulled away by Master Ye's wife. The two of them ignored everyone else and headed straight into the cabins.

Watching his parents naturally part ways without a word, Dong Tianyu first gave a wry smile before asking Ye Liuyun with some confusion, "Where's your brother?"

Hearing Dong Tianyu's question, Ye Liuyun replied with an exaggerated expression, "Well, isn't it enough that I'm here to greet you myself? You still want my brother to come over too? You really expect a lot."

Dong Tianyu knew that Ye Liuyun was joking with him, so he scolded back laughingly, "Get lost, get lost, get lost. I'm just concerned about your brother, look at you. When I see your brother later, I'm going to have a serious talk with him about your attitude."

Realizing what Dong Tianyu meant, Ye Liuyun instantly thought of Robinson William's personality, and immediately started to beg for mercy, "No, no, no, I was wrong, is that not enough for you? Look at you, can't I even joke with you without you making a big deal out of it?"

Seeing Ye Liuyun still speaking lightheartedly at this time, Dong Tianyu knew nothing unfortunate must have happened to Robinson William; otherwise, given the close relationship between Ye Liuyun and his brother, there's no way Ye Liuyun would be in the mood for fooling around with Dong Tianyu.

"When the natural disaster struck, my brother was out hunting with the Hunting Team. Since he joined a team of experts, they always go to very distant places each time they go on a hunt. The sudden onset of this natural disaster took everyone by surprise. After learning what was happening at the base, my brother's Hunting Team set off on a journey back home overnight. It's just that this time they went pretty far away, so it will still be some time before they can return here."

After learning Robinson William wasn't in any danger, Dong Tianyu felt at ease enough to ask about Ye Liuyun's business, "The natural disaster has just ended; I'm even planning to rest for a while. How come I feel that the ingredients I sold you seem to sell even better in your hands?"

Regarding this question, despite the various coincidences, Ye Liuyun could still proudly respond, "Of course they sell better. Who do you think is selling them? Let's cut the chatter. As per the usual practice, I'll give you seventy percent as a deposit to take the goods, and after I receive the final payment, I'll give you the remaining thirty percent."

Clear and simple accounts make for good brothers. Having done business together so many times, their transactions were very straightforward and swift, based on the mutual understanding and tacit agreement between them.

It didn't matter whether the goods Dong Tianyu sold were of high or low value; they always had a fixed price and were sold outright. As for Ye Liuyun, after buying things from Dong Tianyu at a fixed price, whether he marked up the prices for more profit or set lower prices to dominate the market, that had nothing to do with Dong Tianyu at all.

Their transactions always adhered to the principle of fixed pricing, and they never engaged in any revenue-sharing schemes or the like.

Watching Ye Liuyun directly take out so many Mysterious Cores all at once, Dong Tianyu couldn't help but ask as he put the last bag of Mysterious Cores into his Storage Space, "You must have made a pretty penny at the base recently, kid. Even at a time like this, you can still come up with so many Mysterious Cores in one go. That's not simple! Although you've given me quite a lot of Mysterious Cores this time, I still want to advise you: money can't be earned and spent forever. You should know well that money is an external possession, especially at a time like this. Having money doesn't necessarily mean living longer, but having strength definitely makes life more comfortable."

Ye Liuyun understood that if not for their good relationship, Dong Tianyu would never have given him such cautionary advice. After all, if Ye Liuyun decided to intensify his cultivation, it would inevitably affect the frequency of their transactions due to various reasons. If his business suffered, their deals would naturally be impacted as well.

Hence, the saying goes: it's only when relationships are harmonious that someone is willing to forgo their own interest to help a stranger.

Appreciating Dong Tianyu's kind warning, Ye Liuyun wouldn't be dismissive, so he quickly explained, "These Mysterious Cores aren't from me skimping on my cultivation. They're actually advance payments from others who want to reserve the ingredients you're bringing out. If I had that many Mysterious Cores, I wouldn't need you to tell me – I'd have already fed a portion of them to my Companion Spiritual Treasure."

"The prepayment given upfront? From which board and which wealthies did you get so much trust, to give you that much as a prepayment during such times?"

Upon hearing Dong Tianyu say this, Ye Liuyun quickly waved his hands in denial, fearing a misunderstanding, "No, no, you've got it wrong. Those Mysterious Cores didn't come from one person; many people pooled together to come up with that amount of prepayment.

But there's one thing you are right about, I have indeed made acquaintances with quite a number of wealthies. Are you interested in them? Do you want me to send you their contact information?"

Seeing Ye Liuyun willing to share his contacts with him, Dong Tianyu's face immediately revealed a look of surprise, followed by confusion as he questioned, "Aren't you afraid that if you introduce me to your contacts, I will no longer cooperate with you?"

Perhaps Ye Liuyun had anticipated this question from Dong Tianyu, so instead of rebutting when he heard it, he started talking about something else.

"Do you know how much prepayment I collected for those Mysterious Cores I gave you? Although we can't be sure how many people will end up buying, if we look at the current order forms, despite your ingredients being so highly sought after by many,

the seeming craze of the transaction is actually quite calculated by each seller. Their majority approach of buying a variety of small quantities shows they are taking this opportunity to conduct tests.

Firstly, they want to test whether the quality of the ingredients you're selling now matches the quality sold when the base was still operational. If consistent, they will feel completely at ease purchasing such ingredients in the future, and their buying volume will then gradually increase.

Their purchase this time, aside from being a quality test of the ingredients, is more importantly a test to confirm if they really can receive their goods within the province on the same day, as I have advertised.

Besides these two issues, let me tell you something else. The Mysterious Cores I just gave you are actually the prepayments from over two hundred sellers. You know, next I..."

Before Ye Liuyun could finish, Dong Tianyu interrupted, "Enough, enough, you know I hate hassle. The initial deal with you was all about convenience, and it's the same now. I'm not going to let trifles interfere with my main business."

"What main business do you have? Enough about business matters, let's talk about the most important thing right now,"

Seeing the increasingly serious expression on Ye Liuyun's face, Dong Tianyu could not help but ask, "Enough already, it's just us two, stop beating around the bush. If you've got something to say, just say it."

Seeing Dong Tianyu becoming impatient, Ye Liuyun cut to the chase, "The base is now completely destroyed due to the corrosive winds, and the only thing capable of freely navigating the seas now is the Companion Spiritual Treasure."

Hearing Ye Liuyun pause intentionally, Dong Tianyu, out of curiosity, asked, "So what? It doesn't affect us much."

Seeing Dong Tianyu's indifferent attitude, Ye Liuyun, a little frustrated, said, "If today a corrosive wind could appear that destroys metal goods, then who's to say that someday there won't be a natural disaster that can directly destroy Companion Spiritual Treasures?

What should we do then?"

Looking at Ye Liuyun's wild imagination, Dong Tianyu didn't take it too seriously, after all, there was a huge gap between ideas and their practical application.