Laying out both talismans in front of Longbao, Fu Xian waited.
"Both are good." Longbao commented, unsure which one was better.
"Brother, you wanted both of them, so naturally you can simply take both.
Anyways, both are suitable for ships!
This Ancient Tree Bark Talisman can be put on the bottom of the ship.
With the abundant water power, the bark will quickly grow to cover the whole ship.
From then on, any collision or strong stream will become an easy breeze for the ship to handle. It might not even tremble!
On the other hand, this Minor Lake Shield Talisman also has its own advantage.
It can cover the whole ship without any issue, and with the abundant water around, it can directly absorb it to protect it.
The issue is that this way, it cuts off the ship from the wind energies.
Whether you decide to take a weaker defense that only protects the bottom or a stronger defense that protects everything but slows down the ship is for brother to decide.
My recommendation is naturally to take the Ancient Tree Bark Talisman.
Its defense is great and can definitely protect the body of the ship. At least this way, the cultivators on board don’t have to fear that the ship below them with all the transport would fall down.
On the other hand, while greater protection is great, the lifespan of a talisman can’t be forgotten. If the whole journey takes longer than a year when slowed down, then the talisman cost might double."
"Junior brother’s ideas align with mine.
But neither you nor I have seen the dangers of the river streams.
I only heard that the streams directly next to the county are relatively clear since they hunt regularly. Even those leading to the empire are rather safe.
It’s those streams beyond that go through the territories of weaker kingdoms. Crossing them puts the ship at high risk.
For now, I will take them both.
Junior brother, how much do these cost?"
"If it was a one time favour, senior brother, then I wouldn’t ask for anything.
Anytime you simply need a talisman for your own use, you can just come to me and I will give it to you.
But this time it’s business, so I hope senior brother doesn’t mind if I ask for a price."
"No issues. Haha, junior brother, it’s good you can separate business and favours!
Many people who fail to do so end up with great debt!
Just tell me the price.
Don’t worry, in the end I will also sell them, so I won’t make any losses."
Seeing they were so honest with each other, Fu Xian laid things open, "The material cost for such a talisman is between five to ten thousand.
Senior brother should know that I make my own paper and grind my own ink.
With these two materials used, the material cost for me has lowered to five thousand spirit stones.
Adding a thousand for my work force of doing these, the total material cost is six thousand.
The cost of hiring a talisman master is usually also between five to ten thousand spirit stones.
Then comes the cost of the talisman quality grade and the extra price of exclusivity.
Those cost another one thousand for low quality, three for mid, five for high, and ten thousand for top grade.
I won’t ask for the extra price since we’re close.
The total price range would be 21 thousand to 26 thousand.
Considering our relationship, senior brother, I will simply lower the price to 20 thousand per talisman.
If there is nothing wrong, we can continue with this price for any top-grade talisman I can draw!"
"Junior brother is very generous!" Longbao said when he heard this!
He naturally had guesses over the talisman prices, but not being in the market, he didn’t know the exact calculations.
His guesses still somewhat aligned with that of Fu Xians, but he price he had in mind was 25 thousand to 30 thousand!
’Removing the extra cost and going with the lowest estimates does indeed reduce the cost.
Buying them at 20 thousand will still give my junior brother a profit of at least 10 thousand, removing the material and time cost.
As for me...
If I were to sell them commercially, 30 thousand would be the usual price.
But in that case, I would need to have the commercial agreement of junior brother.
Selling them privately will reduce the price because of relationships.
Especially in this case of selling them to vassals.
This price should be around... 26 thousand. One thousand deducted for the transportation cost from the immortal city to the empire, the total profit should be five thousand per talisman!’
Longbao quickly calculated his benefits and losses.
Naturally this would be beneficial to him, but he had to calculate how much profit he can make.
Considering everything, making 50% of the creator’s profit is very good. Usually the percentage is way lower –
If he had to buy it at original price, he would have to buy it for a price between 25 and 30 thousand. By then, selling it to his vassals would either be at a loss or too high for them to purchase.
Why would the vassals buy at such an expensive price? They might as well just find a different way to upgrade their ships.
Finally, Longbao took out two Spiritual Jade Slips and handed them to Fu Xian, "Junior brother, I will take these for now and give them to my vassals.
We can talk about the exact numbers of talismans they need in the end."
"No problem, senior brother! It’s a pleasure to do business with you!"
Fu Xian was delighted when he saw the spirit stones in his hand.
This was easy! Way easier than doing all the hard work previously!
"Just drawing these ten talismans, I earned myself a hundred thousand spirit stones.
If I dedicated all my time for it, wouldn’t that mean I could earn over a million yearly?"
But just as he thought of it, he shook his head.
For now, he couldn’t do this.
And once he built a larger reservoir of talismans, from low to top, he would sell a lot more.
Who knows?
Selling a few dozen lower talismans might bring more profit and require less time than selling top grade ones.
The exclusivity extra cost is what makes selling these top grade talismans more attractive. In addition to these, you also get fame and various gifts.
In the end, these top-grade talismans are luxury goods not supposed to be used en masse for ships.