Let Me Explain, Fairy
Chapter 754 - 473 I’ll Take Charge

Chapter 754: Chapter 473 I’ll Take Charge

Xu Yuan remained silent, still offering no words.

He understood why his father had left the matter of Xu Xinyao to him to solve.

Their father was well aware that although the path Xu Xinyao had found was feasible, it was also a dead end.

Because it was too late.

The current situation was like an arrow on the bowstring, unable to be held back any longer.

If the Imperial Court were dominated solely by the Prime Minister’s Mansion’s edicts, then there might have been a sliver of possibility, but the Imperial Court also consisted of the Imperial Family, including the dying Emperor.

Li Yaoxuan would never agree.

From the start, the policy set by the old father and the Emperor was to conclude with war, and the power they wielded over the decades was exercised to strive toward this end.

Even if the father informed him of this plan, the result would likely just be a falling out.

At this juncture in Li Yaoxuan’s life, revealing this scheme to him would only feel like a betrayal, a complete and utter betrayal.

Because even if all of Xu Xinyao’s current research material was presented to Li Yaoxuan, it would not be enough to prove the viability of the Soul Nourishing Ring, nor could it ascertain how long it would take for the technology to mature.

Li Yaoxuan couldn’t wait.

After his death, under the helm of Xu Yinhè, no one in the Prime Minister’s Mansion would be able to restrain him.

The prestige Xu Yinhè had built up over the decades was too high. With Li Yaoxuan’s restraint gone and approving this plan, throughout the lengthy development process of the Soul Nourishing Ring, everything on the court would gradually be consumed by him.

Therefore, this matter fundamentally could not be disclosed to the current sole ally of the Prime Minister’s Mansion.

And this point was unsolvable.

The current situation was already very clear; the Emperor named Li Yaoxuan wanted to do something before his death to maintain the rule of the Imperial Family.

Otherwise, he would not be so eager to annihilate the Barbarian Tribes, nor would he be so hasty in taking action against the Northern Border Sects.

For over the past year, it was Emperor Li Yaoxuan who took the initiative to make his moves, while the old father simply followed up cooperatively.

But every move made by Li Yaoxuan was a dangerous gambit.

A single misstep, and it would all be beyond redemption.

If it were not for the supplies brought to the Barbarian Tribes’ war through the Sumeru Ring provided from inside the Qionghua Secret Realm, if it weren’t for the information gained from the "Cangyuan Chronicles," then under the leadership of the Barbarian King Chi Feng, the Barbarian Tribes would have already breached the massive fortress, Northern Border City, lying between the Extreme Black Lands and the Three Prefectures of the Northern Frontier.

The battle to annihilate the Northern Border Sects was a perilous fuse; if the Sect Alliance did not appease and were unwilling to give up the Northern Border Sects, then the entire world would instantly be engulfed in warfare.

At this critical time, asking him to stop was simply an impossibility.

Thinking this, Xu Yuan wanted to tell his younger sister all these things, but the words choked in his throat.

It seemed too cruel.

This younger sister had gone to great lengths to finally find the right path, yet to be told it was a dead end would undoubtedly be too severe a blow for her.

Looking at her cautious and hopeful eyes, Xu Yuan took a deep breath and asked softly,

"With the full support of the Geometry Institute, Xinyao, how long do you think it will take to make a prototype?"

Xu Xinyao’s eyes brightened slightly:

"I have yet to come into contact with Senior Luo’s Soul Ring, so I cannot be sure of the time required."

Xu Yuan pondered for a moment before continuing to inquire:

"Just give me an approximation."

Hearing Xu Yuan’s relaxed tone, the sparkle in Xu Xinyao’s eyes lessened considerably, and her strained voice regained its steadiness as she quickly replied,

"At the shortest, one year, or at the longest... perhaps a decade or more."

"Clap."

Xu Yuan clapped his hands together and straightened up, his tone becoming serious,

"That’s far too long.

"Setting aside whether it’s possible to succeed, just the idea that a single prototype in your conception requires such a lengthy period, doubling the time to reduce costs for mass production would not be unreasonable. By such calculations, it would be decades.

"Moreover, even if mass production were achievable, preparing the complementary facilities would present the greatest challenge."

Hearing these words, Xu Xinyao’s bright eyes suddenly dimmed.

As a top-tier Formation Master, she was, of course, well aware of these issues but had chosen to overlook them.

All advanced facilities, all Formation Patterns, all apparatuses operated on Origin Qi, and the energy source for the Soul Nourishing Ring came from the Yin Source produced by specters.

These were two utterly different energies; to say the interoperability was poor would be an understatement; there was none.

To implement this plan would necessitate a large-scale and cumbersome renovation project.

To modify the city’s protective formation for energy extraction, the energy supply method of apparatuses, and to retrofit those devices to be charged with Yin Source.

And more importantly, a substantial number of Yin Ghosts would be needed as the energy source.

All these tasks were part of an extensive process.

"Sigh..."

Xu Yuan sighed softly, murmuring,

"Xinyao, all the resources within the Prime Minister’s Mansion are being marshaled in anticipation of a potential war, leaving no spare capacity to support your grand project. That’s probably why father refused you."

Xu Xinyao’s head drooped powerlessly, like a wounded little animal, her delicate body trembling slightly.

Seeing this, Xu Yuan raised his hand and gently touched the soft hair of the young girl, saying softly,

"If father cannot give you what you need, then let me give it to you instead."

Xu Xinyao sprang to her feet at once, with brilliance returning to her eyes:

"Brother, are you willing to help me persuade father?"

Xu Yuan averted his gaze, speaking low,

"I’ve already told you, father will never agree, and it’s impossible even if I try to persuade him."

The girl’s exquisitely beautiful face froze in surprise, she pursed her lips and cautiously said:

"But... but Xinyao remembers that you have no money now..."

"Thump."

Xu Yuan raised his hand and delivered a chop to the girl’s head.

In pain, Xu Xinyao stepped back half a step, clutching her head, and stared at him waiting for what Xu Yuan would say next.

Xu Yuan huffed lightly and glanced towards the direction of the door, then directly controlled the black will-spirit in his Sea of Consciousness to envelop the entire compartment.

In an instant, the compartment, brightly illuminated by the Inscription Lamp, was shrouded in a black fog impenetrable by the will-spirit.

The following words needed to be isolated from everything.

Even his father must not be informed.

Caught off guard by this sudden change and submerged into darkness, Xu Xinyao involuntarily cried out:

"Ah..."

"This is my spellcraft," Xu Yuan softly comforted.

Hearing his voice, Xu Xinyao instinctively reached out in the darkness and grabbed the hem of the man’s clothes in front of her:

"Why.. why is this?"

"Don’t be afraid."

Xu Yuan didn’t answer the question and softly said:

"Once father returns to the mansion, I will ask him to assign three top-tier Formation Masters and two top-tier Artifact Refiners for you, and for research personnel below the top grade, you should have your own connections within the Geometry Institute. Will this human resource allocation be okay?"

Xinyao was slightly hesitant upon hearing this.

Top-tier Formation Masters and Artifact Refiners were treasures of the Prime Minister’s Mansion, with profound knowledge such that each could almost lead a research project on their own.

Although for the entire vast project, it still seemed somewhat insufficient, this must be the limit of what her third brother could do.

Thinking this, Xu Xinyao gently nodded and then immediately realized it was pitch black around them, and her brother might not be able to see. She was about to speak when she heard his voice:

"If that is enough, then we’re on to funds and materials."

That’s right, this was her brother’s spellcraft; he definitely could see.

With this thought, Xu Xinyao asked:

"Third Brother, all your money was taken by Lou Ji..."

"Money is just a number, don’t worry about it too much."

"......" Xu Xinyao.

"All right, all right."

Xu Yuan sighed and continued in a low voice: "I know you might think that without father’s help, I have no financial source, but actually, I have other channels."

Xu Xinyao blinked and asked softly, "Extortion?"

"....." Xu Yuan.

To be honest, he had considered this idea.

But not extortion, rather a loan.

Li Junqing was quite wealthy, and seemed unlikely to refuse a loan request from his life-or-death friend.

Moreover, after that night’s long talk with the Crown Prince, he knew that the Crown Prince might be heading to Japan, and considering his temperament, revealing his identity was probably within an acceptable range for him.

However, being seen in such a light by his own sister still somehow irked Xu Yuan.

It was as if he was someone known for extorting money from others.

Taking a deep breath, Xu Yuan raised his hand and pinched the girl’s soft cheek, causing a flush to spread:

"Don’t worry about where my money comes from, as long as I can provide it to you, is an initial provision of a million taels of silver enough for the preparations?"

"Not enough," Xu Xinyao replied immediately without hesitation.

"A million taels is not enough?!" Xu Yuan was stunned.

Converted into currency from his previous life, a million Patterned Silver amounted to a huge sum of 1.5 billion, yet it was still not enough even for the preliminary preparations.

With a face slightly flushed, Xu Xinyao explained in a low voice:

"The Sky-Peering Instrument needs repairs, the costs for Formation Masters can be saved thanks to my involvement, but purchasing various materials and repairing the site even at internal prices from Grandpa Hua Hong, a million Patterned Silver is indeed not enough."

The Geometry Institute and Tian’an Commerce Assembly were two separate entities under the jurisdiction of the Prime Minister’s Mansion.

If there were a direct order from that old father, Tian’an Commerce Assembly could indeed provide all kinds of materials for free, but if it were to be arranged privately, it would require money to purchase.

Conducting research is truly damn expensive, oh no, it’s burning Source Crystals.

Sighing to himself, Xu Yuan raised his hand and massaged his temples, asking:

"So roughly how much silver do you need?"

"About... five million taels," Xu Xinyao, not seeing Xu Yuan’s expression, tentatively ventured: "If that’s not possible, three million taels should also be barely enough."

"Five million taels... you really are a gold-eating beast."

Xu Yuan forcefully pinched his younger sister’s cheek: "I know, just wait, I’ll figure it out."

Xu Xinyao flinched in pain, but her beautiful eyes shone with laughter in the darkness:

"Okay... sure."

After responding, Xu Xinyao suddenly remembered something and became hesitant, whispering:

"Brother, without father’s command, Senior Luo probably won’t hand the Soul Ring over to me for research..."

Xu Yuan laughed upon hearing this:

"You go and call him over tomorrow. I haven’t seen that old friend for a while, and I do miss him."