89: Money isn't everything

Sabado continued, "On Bluestar, Martial Commanders are basically the strongest individuals openly known in each country. The comparison of national strength between countries is essentially a comparison of the number of Martial Commanders. The Great Ming openly has eighteen Martial Commanders, five of whom are concentrated within the Great Ming Imperial Family, making them the strongest among all Martial Arts Home forces in the country!"

Prince Fu nodded slightly. This was all public information in the Great Ming, known to almost every Xuan Practitioner.

"Excluding Prince An, there are four other princely residences that possess Martial Commanders. All of them could potentially participate in the succession struggle. The Prince Fus Mansion is like a piece of fat meat in their eyes, and anyone could try to take a bite. So, for the Prince Fus Mansion to protect itself, it must either form an alliance with one of those princely residences or have the strength to protect itself. Besides these, there is unlikely to be a third path," Sabado said.

"Alliance? That seems like a path too..." Prince Fu's eyes lit up upon hearing this.

Sabado shook his head and said, "Your Highness is thinking too much! A so-called alliance refers to an agreement formed when both parties are fundamentally equal in strength. Such an alliance is effective, beneficial to both sides, and also imposes constraints. However, if one party is strong and the other is weak, then for the weaker party, it's not an alliance but a dependence. The fate of a dependent is generally not good. Not only will they gain no benefits from the alliance, but they might also be forced to contribute money and effort for the stronger party, acting as cannon fodder, ultimately being squeezed dry..."

"Makes sense!!!" Prince Fu suddenly understood.

"Therefore, with the strength of the Prince Fus Mansion, an alliance is not a good way out. Yet, being unable to protect itself, it must introduce Martial Commander level combat power to protect itself. But the Great Ming only has eighteen Martial Commanders. The Imperial Family occupies five, and the remaining thirteen are scattered among various other Martial Arts Home forces. They are the pillars of the country, highly esteemed and noble. Why would they be willing to be driven and work for Your Highness? Moreover, if they were to become enemies with other princes for Your Highness, it would surely bring disaster to their own forces. Think about it, would they do such a thing?" Sabado analyzed.

"Indeed, it's impossible! Then what should this Prince do?!" Prince Fu asked anxiously.

"There's still another way!"

"What way?!"

"Introduce Martial Commander experts from abroad!"

"This... would they come?" Prince Fu was startled.

"With Your Highness's financial resources, if you are willing to pay a high price, I believe I can still help Your Highness find such experts. Not to mention, someone in Fusang Country recently had a Breakthrough to Martial Commander. Given Fusang Country's barren resources, he will certainly find it difficult to maintain his Cultivation with sufficient resources. If this opportunity arises, I believe, with the persuasion of our Xuanji Tower, he would be very willing to help Your Highness. But... can Your Highness trust an expert from Fusang Country?" Sabado said mockingly.

Prince Fu shook his head upon hearing this, sighing, "It is said that Fusang People are historically insidious and cunning, with fickle temperaments, and have long coveted the Great Ming's resources and land. Seeking their protection is tantamount to inviting a wolf into the house..."

"Your Highness speaks wisely! Didn't the incident where Fusang People assassinated a Great Ming Genius youth happen recently? Although it was later determined to be a conspiracy between the Dark Night Assassin Organization, Snow Eagle Country, and Fusang Country, there are still hidden truths unknown to outsiders..."

"What hidden truths?!" Prince Fu asked in surprise.

"Does Your Highness not know?"

"Indeed, I don't! This Prince has been having nightmares recently... and no one below has reported anything..."

Sabado sighed inwardly. The intelligence work of the Prince Fus Mansion was not just paralyzed, it was practically non-existent!

He said, "Your Highness, this matter involves the succession struggle behind the scenes, so I cannot say too much. But if Your Highness has capable people to investigate this matter, I believe you will quickly find the answer!"

"Then how about this Prince buys this information from you?" Prince Fu said directly.

"Alright! One supreme-grade mysterious stone!" Sabado said straightforwardly.

"No problem!" Prince Fu took out a jade box and handed it to Sabado, taking a thick letter from him.

Due to the abundance of information, he didn't have time to examine it and casually tossed it into his sleeve pocket...

After some thought, Prince Fu added, "Tower Master, besides Fusang Country, is it possible to find experts from other countries?"

Sabado pondered, "Martial Commander experts from other countries are far overseas. In their home countries, they are influential figures whose every stomp can shake the world. The amount of money makes little difference to them. To get such individuals to help, one can only appeal to their emotions. If there isn't a deep friendship and they aren't willing to come to the Great Ming to work for Your Highness, I'm afraid Your Highness wouldn't be able to trust them, because they might have other motives. But Your Highness would be unable to control them. If they turn hostile, Your Highness would only be fish on their chopping block, at their mercy... Of course, it's not impossible that Your Highness is incredibly blessed and I truly find a Martial Commander willing to genuinely help you, but please believe me, the probability of that is simply too small!"

"This... It seems this matter isn't something that can be achieved with money alone..." Prince Fu sighed deeply, realizing that he had truly been too focused on money in the past, believing that power and wealth were all that mattered in this world. Only now did he discover that some matters also require strength! Emotion! Friendship!

In other words, money is not omnipotent. There are still many things in this world that cannot be accomplished with money, or even with power. And these things are often the most meaningful in life!

"Tower Master, what else can this Prince do?!" Prince Fu lamented.

"Your Highness, don't worry. Please return first. I will diligently help Your Highness search for a Martial Commander expert willing to genuinely help you. If one is found, I will notify Your Highness immediately! As for the price, there's no need to say much; I believe more is always better! Your Highness may have to shed a lot of blood! Additionally, I believe Your Highness should still find the fated person mentioned in the divination, because he is definitely the best candidate!" Sabado said.

"Thank you, Tower Master! It seems I can only do this for now..." Prince Fu nodded, letting out a long sigh.

It could be said that his visit to Sabado this time brought considerable gains, because if Sabado hadn't advised him, he might not have realized that danger was already imminent!

Others' axes were already hanging over his head, yet he was still indulging in lavish pleasures, night after night. Perhaps one day, while he was enjoying himself, the axe would suddenly fall, and he wouldn't even know how he died...

Prince Fu left. Countless hidden individuals near Xuanji Tower immediately took action. Some re-entered Xuanji Tower, some followed him, and others busied themselves sending messages...

After a flurry of activity, the area near Xuanji Tower finally returned to its usual appearance. But everyone knew that Prince Fu's personal visit to Xuanji Tower was of great significance, and so the news spread rapidly across the Martial Arts Home forums in various regions...

Qi Huaiyi walked over from the teahouse across the street, looked at the three large characters of Xuanji Tower, took a deep breath, and stepped inside...

At the same time, outside a laboratory in Section C of the Luo Family Hospital in Fengyang, many people gathered, about to collectively witness an unprecedented miracle!

......