The Rise of the Titan

In Muria's view, giving was always in anticipation of receiving. When someone you didn't know tried to give you benefits, it was to gain sufficient returns from you. There were no free lunches; even if there were, they'd be poisoned. Muria wasn't worried about being taken advantage of by this chubby middle-aged man. It was impossible. So, if he was giving benefits, it was an investment, expecting future returns from Muria.

Muria naturally appreciated this type of investment because it showed foresight. So, after figuring it out, he accepted it. He was confident he could provide this merchant with enough returns in the future.

"Your Highness, besides these weapons, do you have anything else to sell?" Andrew asked, smiling after buying all the weapons Muria intended to sell for a total of 100,000 elemental crystals.

"I have a batch of metal golems to sell."

"Metal golems are great. Our Empire's expeditionary forces always need them in unlimited quantities. They are highly sought-after strategic materials. Your Highness, I will buy as many as you are willing to sell. Don't worry, I will not let you suffer a loss."

Hearing that Muria had golems to sell, Andrew became even more excited. This meant he had more reason to give away more money. He had just given away 100,000 elemental crystals, which was too little.

"Take a look first. My golems might be a bit outdated," Muria remarked. Compared to cold weapons, golems, as artificial constructs, had higher technical content.

After all, weapons primarily relied on forging materials and auxiliary rune inscriptions. Regardless of how times changed, there wouldn't be much difference. An artifact from ten thousand years ago would still be an artifact ten thousand years later, no matter how the forging process evolved.

But golems were different. The earliest golems were characterized by sturdy defense but had significant shortcomings: they moved slowly, reacted sluggishly, and couldn't adapt flexibly. With the right methods and terrain, even mortals had a chance to defeat golems.

As time progressed, golem manufacturing technology advanced, and each generation saw fewer weaknesses. Their intelligence increased significantly.

In modern times, it was no longer possible for mortals to defeat golems using terrain or for low-level mages to develop tricks to destroy golems by exploiting their weaknesses.

"Your Highness, I think you might be overestimating the Empire's golem development level." Andrew's eyes sparkled as he looked at the row of silver-white metal golems glistening in the sunlight.

When these metal golems, under Muria's control, fought as flexibly as real flesh and blood creatures, Andrew's face showed even more delight.

"These are the most advanced golems. Your Highness, are you really willing to sell them?"

"The most advanced?" Muria's expression was peculiar. Due to his lie-detection ability, he knew the chubby man wasn't lying. "My golem manufacturing technology comes from a legendary mage who died over ten thousand years ago. How could these golems still be the most advanced after all this time?"

"There's no contradiction, Your Highness. The Empire's legendary mages may possess more advanced golem manufacturing techniques than you, but these golems are not for sale."

"You mean, among the golems available for sale in your Uranos Empire, mine are the most advanced, but they are not the absolute most advanced?"

"Yes, Your Highness. The royal family and the eight great dukes of the Uranos Empire have their own exclusive golem manufacturing technologies, but the golems they produce are not for sale."

"I see." Muria sighed slightly. He had thought his golems were outdated, yet they were still highly coveted by the most elite forces among humans.

This made him marvel at the power and uniqueness of legendary mages. Their creations, even after ten thousand years, could still astonish future generations.

In the world of Erathia, it was the mages who led the progress, development, and expansion of civilization. They used their knowledge to change the world. The most advanced knowledge and technology were in the hands of the most powerful mages.

"So, what else does my mother have?" Muria pondered, thinking about the technologies held by his dragon mother. The floating city transformation technology he had came from her. "If I can get more golem manufacturing techniques from her and convert them over time, it would be a fortune in elemental crystals."

"Your Highness, do you have other types or higher-level golems?" Andrew asked eagerly.

"We currently only have silver and gold-level golems. Soul-level golems are still in the making." The blue-haired, beautiful woman standing behind Muria, Fiona, stepped forward and explained to Andrew,

"Moreover, we can manufacture any type of golem. These four golems before us, called 'Crusaders,' are relatively mediocre. They are mainly for close combat, suitable for land battles, and can be used for defense. They are multifunctional golems."

Seeing Fiona, the elegant and beautiful ancient green dragon, speaking confidently, Muria couldn't help but smile. Having a competent subordinate was always pleasing.

"What price do you intend to pay for the golems we produce?"

"I plan to buy silver-level 'Crusaders' for fifty crystals each, and the price for gold-level ones will be ten times higher. Fiona, how does that sound?"

"Uh," Fiona hesitated. She almost felt embarrassed to continue negotiating the price. She was involved in the manufacturing process of the golems and knew their actual cost clearly; they were not worth this much.

But a chromatic dragon is a chromatic dragon. Greed is rooted in their nature. This graceful woman hesitated only for a moment before speaking again, "It's not enough. This price is too low. It should be at least doubled."

"Fine." Without hesitation, Andrew agreed to the doubled price.

"Fiona, you can negotiate with Andrew. I fully authorize you for this transaction." Seeing that both of them were eager to close the deal, Muria shook his head, opened a portal, and teleported away.

He had already figured out that Andrew, the human merchant, was likely groveling so shamelessly because of his identity. Therefore, he wasn't worried about being cheated.