21st Century Necromancer

Chen Yu's Necromantic Space naturally had no living people; the maids serving tea, just like those in the previous meeting room, were all Ghost Maids.

The maids in the previous meeting had been lent by Yu Chen to Kyuuzai Ryousen for the purpose of maintaining secrecy. After all, information about Transcendents should be known to those who need to know, but better kept from those who don't. Even though Yu Chen wasn't afraid of trouble, he preferred to avoid it.

Furthermore, after the construction of the Necromantic Space was completed and the Spirit Gathering Tower was established, common Undead Servants like the Ghost Maids, who are composed only of souls, could be summoned in batches. Therefore, Yu Chen was not lacking manpower in this regard.

However, to the people from the Tsuchimikado Family, this had a different significance.

As Onmyoji, they could, of course, tell whether these maids were human or spirits, but even the Tsuchimikado Family, which masters the arts of Yin-Yang Dao, doesn't have the luxury to employ so many ghost maids as servants. Especially since, despite their name, Ghost Maids' strength was already on par with that of a Formal Rank Transcendent.

Though Formal Rank Transcendents seemed rather average to Yu Chen, they were the backbone of the Transcendent community, already bearing the strength to stand on their own. So even in its heyday, only the Main Family of the Tsuchimikado could afford to use apprentices as servants, not Formal Rank Transcendents.

Spiritual Bodies like Ghost Maids, already possessing the strength of Formal Rank, were considered powerful Shikigami to the people of the Tsuchimikado Family. With a little cultivation, they could become a substantial aid to a Formal Rank Onmyoji.

Yet, what seemed like formidable Shikigami in the eyes of these Tsuchimikado people were mere maids, insignificant in Yu Chen's hands. This forced the Tsuchimikado people to reassess their own worth and reconsider if their previous calculations could achieve their goals.

Although they had given up hope on their prior schemes, the eldest among them, an old man from Tsuchimikado, took the lead and said, "Thank you for the hospitality, Professor Chen. Although I'm not much for black tea, I can tell this is a fine cup."

"It's merely tea grown on my property, but it has absorbed quite a bit of Yin Force. For a Transcendent, it should be considered a decent drink," replied Yu Chen, well aware that the old man's purpose wasn't to discuss tea with him.

Negotiation was a process of measuring each other's psychological endurance; whoever rushed to speak first lost an advantage – the greater the control, the more composed you could afford to be.
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Of course, if you have every advantage on your side and go all-in from the start, that's fine too. But that process can no longer be called negotiation.

"Professor Chen is indeed no ordinary person. Such fine tea would be a privilege only for the Main Family of Tsuchimikado to enjoy, yet you use it to treat your guests. This alone speaks volumes about your extraordinary status," said the elder, picking up the teacup from the table once again.

Tsuchimikado Family naturally had such Yin Force-infused tea leaves, but he, a member of a branch family, couldn't afford to enjoy them often; he was allocated only a few ounces each year from the Main Family.

Hearing what the elder said, Chen Yu smiled, gestured with his hand, and a Ghost Maid standing behind him bowed and withdrew, "Since the elder enjoys it, take two pounds with you when you leave later. It's not worth much; consider it a welcoming gift."

Yu Chen's words made the people from Tsuchimikado rather tempted. The tea leaves were enticing enough to shed their dignity, and Yu Chen's generosity sparked other ideas in their minds.

"Then I thank Professor Chen! I feel ashamed as an old man to still indulge in sensory pleasures, making you witness such embarrassment," the elder replied politely. Upon seeing that a Ghost Maid brought him tea leaves and placed them in front of him, he graciously accepted without refusal.

Accepting the tea leaves, though seemingly innocuous, signified that the Tsuchimikado people had chosen submission rather than the cooperation they initially sought.

The act of serving tea and gifting tea leaves displayed Yu Chen's strength and generosity, and the elder from the Tsuchimikado Family saw all this. His acceptance was a gesture of deference and submission.

If this were a partnership, it would be the Tsuchimikado's time to present a reciprocal gift to showcase strength, at least to show they were no less capable than their counterparts. But the elder didn't, clearly signaling his choice to submit.

Even if it wasn't submission, the elder's actions still mean he had lost ground in terms of momentum.

The negotiation hadn't started, yet the outcome was almost predetermined.

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In the end, the Tsuchimikado group chose to submit: one Master Rank, seven at Expert Level, and twenty-seven Formal Rank Transcendents would join the Mingyue Society, significantly expanding its manpower and strength, as well as bringing along some of the connections and heritage of the Tsuchimikado family.

Of course, this also made the structure of the Mingyue Society more complex. As of now, more than half of the Transcendents in the Mingyue Society belonged to the Tsuchimikado Family, and two of the four Master Rank combatants were also from Tsuchimikado. If they were intent on it, they could have infiltrated more thoroughly, turning the Mingyue Society into something of the Tsuchimikado.

But Chen Yu was unfazed by this. Indeed, he had no reason to worry. Once these individuals began to study the heritage he provided, they would lose any qualification to betray him. As for rejecting the legacy Chen Yu offered? If they could do that, why bother showing submission to Yu Chen in the first place? Isn't pride priceless?

After resolving the matters with the Tsuchimikado Family, Yu Chen and Hiromi Jounouchi returned to the meeting room, and the Tsuchimikado people were discreetly sent away by him.

"Professor Chen, I couldn't find you just now; I wanted to have a drink with you!" Director Kamikura hurried over to greet Yu Chen and Hiromi Jounouchi as they reappeared.

"I was chatting with a friend just now. Director Kamikura, has your evening been going smoothly? Please feel free to ask if you need any help," Yu Chen was in a good mood, noticing the traces of worry on Director Kamikura's face, he took the initiative to offer his assistance.

"I was hoping to get to know some presidents of big enterprises or political figures tonight, to draw some sponsorships and support for UDI, but it seems that nobody is interested in such matters," Director Kamikura shook his head in resignation, not concealing anything from Chen Yu.

Clearly, his activities for the evening hadn't gone well; after all, everyone here was after the Transcendents, who has the patience to hear you talk about the dead?

Hearing this, Chen Yu couldn't help but smile. He looked up to find Kyuuzai Ryousen and decided to give Director Kamikura a hand.