The Human Emperor
The Human Emperor - Chapter 400: News on the Hyderabad Ore!

Translated by: Hypersheep325

Edited by: Michyrr

"Hehe, this is only the initial level of the Halo of Dusk Stallion. It's still not that powerful. Once I reach True Martial Tier 5, I should be able to cultivate the second level of the Halo of Dusk Stallion!"

Wang Chong had no idea of the complicated thoughts going through Huang Qian-er's mind as he faintly smiled and spoke from atop his horse.

The first layer of the Halo of Dusk Stallion only required reaching the True Martial realm, but Wang Chong's current cultivation level could not satisfy the requirements for advancing to the second layer.

Instructor Zhao had been right when he had said that this supreme technique was very difficult to cultivate.

Whoosh!

As he was speaking, a howl of wind came from over his head. This sudden sound attracted the attention of both Wang Chong and Huang Qian-er.

The two raised their heads and saw a white carrier pigeon descending from the sky, flying toward Wang Chong.

"This is…"

Wang Chong's eyes widened as he subconsciously stretched out a hand, letting the carrier pigeon land on his hand. Untying the letter wrapped around the carrier pigeon's leg, Wang Chong glanced over, unable to suppress a smile.

"Good news really does come in waves."

Wang Chong's lips had curved into a joyful smile.

The letter had been written by Ablonodan and Arloja, but the news was about the distant Hyderabad mountains in Sindhu. With the gold sent over, their exchange had been completed.

After several months and an increase in production, the High Priest in Sindhu had prepared the one thousand jun of Hyderabad ore that Wang Chong required, and he had even sent them out as quickly as possible on their journey to the capital of the Great Tang.

There was a time difference between Hyderabad in Sindhu and the capital of the Great Tang.

From the date on the latter, this letter had been written more than a month ago. In other words, the convoy transporting the Hyderabad ore had set off twenty-some days ago.

It seemed like he would only have to wait about a month to receive the Hyderabad ore from Sindhu, even though it seemed like it wasn't a great amount.

But Wang Chong knew that this was probably the largest transaction for Hyderabad ore in the entire world at present.

Even the Abbasid Caliphate and Charax Spasinu, which were closer to the source, had probably not gotten as much as he had.

The production of this ore was far too low.

"…Everything is on the right track. As long as the Hyderabad ores arrive, I can forge at least one thousand Wootz Steel swords! This many swords is enough to equip an army and allow them to be used in actual combat!"

At this moment, Wang Chong was seated on the back of his horse, his hand tightly gripping the letter while his mind was in a state of utter satisfaction.

It had only been a short time since the Hyderabad ores had appeared.

In such a short time, he would be able to construct probably the highest number of Wootz Steel swords in all the country, even the world.

Before that powerful Mameluke army from his previous life had appeared, he had already taken the initiative. He already had the ability to create a small-scale Wootz Steel army of one thousand soldiers.

If these one thousand soldiers were put in an army of tens of thousands, a hundred thousand, or hundreds of thousands, they would not pose much of a threat.

But Wang Chong knew that if he gave these one thousand Wootz Steel weapons to an elite unit of cavalry, they could fully utilize the power of the Wootz Steel weapons and even alter the course of a battle.

All the hard work he had put in since meeting Ablonodan and Arloja was finally about to bear fruit.

"What's wrong?" Huang Qian-er asked Wang Chong.

"It's nothing."

Wang Chong gave a brilliant smile as he crumpled the letter in his hand. Yes, the Wang Clan and the Huang Clan's relationship was not the same as it was before. They were no longer so hostile, and the Huang Clan had even expressed its servitude.

But there were still a few matters that Wang Chong did not want to tell Huang Qian-er. Until she truly gained his trust or she began to trust him, Wang Chong would still keep some secrets from her.

Huang Qian-er's expression chilled. She snorted and unhappily turned around with a sweep of her sleeve, continuing her cultivation.

Wang Chong had set aside a special area in the spirit vein for her to cultivate. By following Wang Chong, Huang Qian-er had also invisibly gained an extremely large benefit.

Wang Chong smiled as he watched Huang Qian-er slowly vanish into the mists. He then turned around and went to another cultivation area.

For Wang Chong, cultivating to Tier 1 of the True Martial realm was only the beginning. Now, borrowing the dense spiritual energy of the spirit vein, he could begin his other plan for the True Martial realm.

Wang Chong's figure quickly vanished into the surging mists of the spirit vein.

……

Flapflap!

While Wang Chong was heading back to his cultivation in the spirit vein, in the capital, a black falcon was flapping its wings, shooting like an arrow into the Yao Residence.

After a short while, an experienced steward dressed in black and carrying a letter hurried deep into the Yao Residence.

There, the head of the Yao Clan, Yao Guangyi, was sitting still and upright. At his side sat a small and haughty old man with a goatee. He appeared to be some sort of strategist.

When the steward walked in, Yao Guangyi was accompanying this old man in drinking tea.

The steward froze for a moment before quickly lowering his head and walking up to Yao Guangyi's side. He whispered a few words in his ear and passed over the letter.

Yao Guangyi took the letter. Just a glance was enough to cause his expression to instantly change.

"What's wrong?"

The elder had raised his head, an unhurried expression on his face.

"Sir, there's news from the west. Apparently, that boy from the Wang Clan is having something transported!"

Yao Guangyi quickly calmed himself down and promptly passed the letter over. When he spoke, his attitude was very respectful and he viewed this goateed old man with extreme reverence.

As the head of the Yao Clan with the backing of Old Master Yao, Yao Guangyi's position could be described as extremely stable. In the capital, the number of people he treated with such respect was extremely small.

Only the people from King Qi's side could make him show such respect.

This was exactly the case here.

This petite and ordinary-looking elder was precisely someone sent over by King Qi.

In this period of time, whether in the Bureau of Military Personnel, the Bureau of Punishments, or the Imperial Court, King Qi's side had been suppressed by King Song and the Wang Clan. The people on his side had been banished from court or crowded out, and he was losing out in every area.

King Qi was also beginning to wantonly recruit soldiers, snatching up talented individuals in preparation for a counterattack. And this goateed old man was an expert in King Qi's network, and one of the most important ones.

Although the Yao Clan had an illustrious talent, Yao Guangyi knew that King Qi's ambitions had no limit. His ambition could never be satisfied with only the Yao Clan.

And King Qi's personality would never allow him to treat the Yao Clan any differently.

His grandfather had told him once that when dealing with King Qi, one could not feel the slightest bit arrogant. No matter what King Qi decided, who he sent, or what he suggested, the Yao Clan only needed to follow.

Or else they would be heading on the path to disaster!

Yao Guangyi had engraved these words into his mind.

"Hyderabad ore?!!"

The elder had only glanced at this letter before his calm expression vanished into smoke, a hint of shock appearing in his cold and sinister eyes.

In the capital, King Song and King Qi were sworn enemies, and the Wang Clan was naturally involved in this fight.

Wang Chong's Wootz Steel swords had been a secret at the start, and no one knew what they had been made from.

But more than half a year had passed since then, and King Qi and the Yao Clan had spent a great deal of energy and money. Wang Chong's Wootz Steel weapons had long since ceased to be a secret.

One Wootz Steel weapon could be sold for seventy to eighty thousand taels of gold, perhaps even a hundred thousand or two hundred thousand. This sort of enormous wealth was a terrible temptation, even to an Imperial Prince like King Qi, who had never cared much about money.

The sudden revival of the Wang Clan was an enormous threat to King Qi, and the contributions from the Wootz Steel weapons and the enormous wealth they brought could not go unnoticed.

Right now, practically everyone in the Imperial Army, from top to bottom, had a good opinion of the Wang Clan. Even hostile factions did not dare to offend the Wang Clan.

The reason was those Wootz Steel weapons.

"It's not that simple. This time, more than a thousand jun of Hyderabad ore is being transported!" Yao Guangyi sternly said.

Although he had only glanced at the letter, Yao Guangyi had already seen with absolute clarity the critical information in the letter. This was practically an instinct that all strategic experts and powerful generals possessed.

The goateed elder said nothing, but his heart was fiercely beating. After a long while, he gave a long sigh.

"What a great fortune!"

"Yes! A great fortune!" Yao Guangyi agreed.

The two people in the room fell into a sudden silence. More than a thousand jun of ore… If one supposed that one jun could be exchanged for more than a hundred thousand taels of gold, this was an absolutely enormous sum.

Let alone the elder, even Yao Guangyi was almost scared out of his wits when he saw the news.

This was a hundred million taels of gold! This business being carried out by that boy from the Wang Clan deeply shocked even an experienced official of the Imperial Court like him.

The Yao Clan was no poor, humble family, but they were truly inferior to this boy.

After a long time, the elder broke the silence and said with an emotional expression, "We cannot miss out on such a great fortune!" It would go against the laws of heaven if they just let this fortune go.

And besides, the Wang Clan was a sworn enemy of King Qi.

"Yes!"

Yao Guangyi gave a rare echo of support.

The current Wang Clan was already hard enough to deal with, but if they received this massive fortune, even the Yao Clan would find it hard to compete.

No matter what, they had to sabotage this venture of the Wang Clan's. They could not allow the ore to reach them.

"We should quickly inform His Highness King Qi…"

Yao Guangyi gave a sideways look at the elder as he probed.

Without even thinking, the goateed elder said, "There's no need. His Highness has numerous matters to deal with every day, and he is currently deeply vexed. We should not bother him with this matter. Otherwise, he might doubt our ability as subordinates. What say you, Lord Yao?"

When receiving money from someone else, one had to help them take care of disasters. As subordinates, they had not currently achieved anything of merit. If they did not grasp this excellent opportunity, it would be too late to feel regret once it slipped away.