Chương 890: Liu Shu's First Offer.

Sarlos believed that there was little, if anything, that could truly surprise him. He had been in the central region of the Galaxy in the past, and his horizons widened tremendously back then. He also brought back some specialties from over there to sell as his merchant wares. Therefore, he came with little expectation at first. When Liu Shu showed herself as a divine being, Sarlos's view of Liu Shu changed, but not in regard of what she could trade, but what she could become.

Therefore, he remained equally unexpectant as before about Liu Shu's potential items. He even considered filling the technology's value with promises or other, more abstract contracts. And yet…

'Delicious Berry… Ascension Berry… Lignified Seeds… Eternal Tea… C to S Tier World Tree Sap… C to S Tier World Tree bark… Eternity Healing Potion… Eternity Aether Mana Potion… Eternity Anima Energy Potion…' The variety was not high when you put it in perspective with a true merchant business. They didn't have more than 200 items in the list, whereas merchants had tens of thousands.

Nevertheless, within these 200 or so items Liu Shu presented, there were several dozen he could instantly recognize as world-shattering. Just one of these could create a new franchise focused on them, let alone all of them at once.

'What incredible potential.' If guided properly and sold to appropriate customers, the value that was gathered in this small booklet was enough to build a merchant empire that could rival his own. What surprised him the most was not only the specialness, but the sheer variety in tiers for each item. What was usually the most difficult part of selling something? If it were too powerful, you would need to create artificial scarcity so it could be classified as a luxury item and sold at a high price.

The problem was that much of the selling potential would be lost since you would be limited by supply and demand. Yet, Liu Shu's items could almost all be provided from C+ Tier to S- Tier. With this, there was no need for artificial scarcity. Even if there were plenty of S- Tier items, the existence of C+ Tier items could create the benchmark needed to sell them at a premium. Take vehicles, for example.

If you had a standard vehicle with a C Tier engine selling at 10, 000, and you placed the B Tier one at 100, 000, you could easily scale up the S Tier one at several tens of millions. As long as the jump from B to A was large enough, the jump from A to S would naturally need to be higher. As for price-value balance, S Tier items themselves already had the System Approval in that regard. There were ways of inflating the Tier of an item, but it wasn't that beneficial in terms of cost-benefit for the seller.

Therefore, it was rare to buy scammy A or S Tier items. As for those below, you needed to be careful. Take a bow, for example. The bow could be classified as a B Tier bow because the string was A- Tier. Nevertheless, if the body of the bow was C Tier, the string's strength mattered nothing. You would be buying a single string whose body can easily crack if you put too much force into it. But to balance A or S Tier items, you needed much higher-level pieces, and these were almost impossible to get.

And, if you got them, it was much more profitable to create a proper high-tier item and sell it at a high price. All of this to say that Liu Shu's items were not just fancy or expensive, but also flexible and able to dominate markets and suppress competition just by existing. No need for deceitful marketing. No need for over-the-top advertisement. Just show their effects, and you're set. Sarlos finally looked up from the booklet and, to his dismay, he realized that he had been far too engrossed for a long time.

In a negotiation, he had shown deep interest in the opponent's merchandise due to the shock he had received! That was one of the worst taboos when engaging in an exchange. When he glanced at Liu Shu, he noticed the smirk at the corner of Liu Shu's eyes. A groan almost escaped him.

'What a blunder. Sigh.' There was no good way to escape this situation; even if he spouted nonsense, the opponent was a World Tree who could see his actions in deep detail. Rambling here and trying to make excuses would be counterproductive.

"Incredible merchandise." In the end, he could only admit it straightforwardly and try to veer the conversation toward a more frank and honest direction. Liu Shu, naturally, would not let the prey that had bitten escape that easily. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

"Indeed. They are resources particular to my Golden Sap Empire. I doubt there is something better for what they fulfill anywhere else in this area." These words were not arrogant, but fact-proven. Liu Shu was no longer ignorant of other empires. Therefore, she knew the value of herself and her items deeply. There was a reason she self-combusted, even at the cost of berry production, while fighting the Nexus during the first few years. Therefore, Sarlos didn't try to deny her words.

He was a merchant, not a swindler. While similar, the difference between them was that a true merchant would try to make a profit without outright scamming the business partner. Otherwise, they would be losing long-term profit through repeated interactions. A repeating client was the best type of customer for a merchant, while a single-buy big spender was the best type of customer for swindlers. Now, as for who had to give the first offer, the arrow would point with certainty toward Liu Shu.

No matter if it was Sarlos who came with the technology and called Liu Shu, it was Liu Shu who was doing the buying. What Liu Shu achieved with all their previous interactions is the ability to throw a low price at first and slowly reach a middle point. Without the foundation she had built during the conversation, throwing a low price would come across as rude and ignorant And so, Liu Shu threw the lowest offer they had prepared back in the Golden Sap Empire.

"Since we've both seen what each other wants. Let's move toward a more practical conversation. Our Golden Sap Empire promises to supply 300 individuals of your choosing with the same supply of berries the elites in our Empire receive. This means they will have enough <Delicious Berries> and the rest to reach the limit of usefulness for them." Sarlos listened attentively. 300 was enough to create a small elite group, but for a territory of his size, it fell somewhat short.

If anything, it would reinforce the already reinforced center further. It was not bad, but not nearly enough to exchange for interstellar teleportation technology. Liu Shu knew it as well.

"Beyond supplying the 300 individuals for free. We will sell our berries at a 30% discount for 3, 000 extra individuals. We will also give you the ability to change the targets for both the free and discounted berries every 30 years. Naturally, if we ever get to know that they are overbuying to sell to other people, not only that person, but the slot itself will be lost forever. That's all in terms of berry supply." The 3, 000 extra was more to Sarlos's liking.

Also, the condition of not banning the individual but straight up losing the slot was witty from Liu Shu's side. That way, Sarlos couldn't cry wolf or do any tricks without taking more risk than it was worth. As for the 30-year cycle, it was also good enough. You could easily raise people every 30 years and accumulate them. In just 300 years, Sarlos would have 33, 000 elites with Liu Shu's berries. That number of super elites was not small enough to disregard even in a war involving millions.

Even then, it was not enough. Sarlos spoke.

"Hm. I've heard the offer regarding the berries. Let's speak about the other items now." Liu Shu nodded, not finding his words strange. If he had accepted, Liu Shu would consider herself a scammer. Interstellar teleportation was something even the Covenant and Nexus had yet to fully implement. It was that valuable.

"Beyond what we've offered. We will give you a permanent 7% discount on all of our inventory. If we ever discover reselling, we will naturally tackle it with appropriate measures." It was a good extra condition. Liu Shu's wares were varied and valuable. Before Sarlos had seen the booklet, he would've scoffed at this condition. Now, it sounded quite sweet.

"That's not a bad offer. What about discounted items from your shop?" Liu Shu smiled.

"We will add your discount in an additive manner. If we had a 50% discount on something, those with your card will have a 57% discount instead." Sarlos nodded, showing a satisfied expression. If they gave a 7% discount and then applied an artificial 10% discount to the important items, they would essentially invalidate the entire benefit with a very simple tactic. After Liu Shu's last comment, though, Sarlos became more comfortable accepting it as it was.

"As for World Tree materials, we will supply them with priority to your merchant group. Priority doesn't mean we will only accept your pricing. We plan to sell it to someone else if they offer a better buying price. Nevertheless, in case of prices being within a 5% difference, we will choose your merchant group instead." Once more, it was an effective 5% discount. As long as they knew how much the others were paying, they could offer exactly 5% less and save the difference. Another sweet offer.

"Finally, we will allow one of your Capital Worlds to be affected by my <Temples>. We will also build a residential area with <Lignified Trees> and maintain it from our side as long as you can promise the <Lignified Trees> will be treated with respect." Sarlos hummed at this last offer. In his eyes, the previous offers were better than this one. Affecting a single world and building one large residential area didn't feel too attractive. Still, he trusted Liu Shu's mind, so he didn't rush.

"How big are we speaking when you say a large residential area?" Liu Shu clarified.

"An area where, if we average 4. 5 individuals per house, you will be able to house at least 70 to 100 million individuals. The houses will also be, at the very least, 150 square meters. We can expand vastly, though. Hence, the aforementioned difference. Of course, you can create a luxurious residential area and sharply reduce the population. We will continuously offer building renovations to accommodate demand."

150 square meters could comfortably accommodate 3 bedrooms, 1 kitchen, 1 living room, 1 bathroom, and 1 storage room, with a wide hallway. If you squeezed the space, 2 bathrooms were also possible. For a family of 4, it was more than enough. Sarlos leaned back, pondering. He had his own ideas about what she offered and what he was dissatisfied with.

'I need to ask a bit more deeply about what Liu Shu proposed last.'