Make a quick profit and leave, without any hesitation.

Qi Yun nodded: "Hmm, no problem, quit while you're ahead."

Liu Guangxin took a sip of tea and continued, "What did Zhang Xing say? Do you think we should continue?"

By continuing, he naturally meant intensifying the offensive.

"There's no need. Since they're willing to show some attitude, I reckon someone will soon step in to mediate." Qi Yun sighed.

Zhang Xing has connections at the top as well.

Moreover, although the Ugly Group is like a vampire, there are countless people without a choice who rely on this platform to barely make a living, so the upper management wouldn't just watch it suddenly collapse.

Liu Guangxin nodded slightly, also agreeing with this view.

"But... if they want us to stop, they can't just rely on empty words. They have to pay some price, right?" Qi Yun said leisurely.

"Hehe, how much do you think is appropriate?" Liu Guangxin understood.

Qi Yun thought for a moment, and stretched out his right hand: "Five hundred million, to cover our costs."

Hearing the word "reimbursement," Liu Guangxin was initially taken aback, then laughed: "Five hundred million... hmm, not too much, not too little, just enough to make Zhang Xing feel the pinch without pushing him over the edge."

The resources from the American side didn't come from nowhere. As the winning side, asking Zhang Xing for some compensation isn't unreasonable.

Indeed, as Qi Yun predicted, half an hour later, both of their phones started ringing one after another.

Liu Guangxin directly turned off his phone, leaving the negotiation to Qi Yun.

Qi Yun didn't answer some unfamiliar numbers until Xiao Hanguang's name appeared on the screen, and he slowly picked up the phone.

"You little rascal, you've caused enough ruckus, haven't you? They can't reach you, so they're calling me." Xiao Hanguang didn't sound reproachful.

Facing Xiao Hanguang, Qi Yun didn't choose to play dumb, responding sincerely, "Hehe, leader, look at what you're saying, I'm always the victim here, forced to fight back."

"We were just peacefully making cars, who did we provoke? He was digging out our shareholders and trying to take over..."

"Alright, alright, stop pretending you're wronged in front of me." Xiao Hanguang let out a light laugh on the phone, unclear whether he believed it or not, "Someone has come begging me, can you give me some face and end it here?"

With the conversation at this point, Qi Yun immediately took the opportunity to agree: "Hehe, since you're asking, of course I have to give you face, no matter how big the issue, it ends here."

Between the lines, he showed ample respect to Xiao Hanguang.

But then, he switched the topic, with a tone of difficulty, he continued, "But leader, because of their little tricks, our car development progress was severely impacted, and for internal stability, I borrowed a large sum of money, you see..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but how could Xiao Hanguang not understand, he was asking for compensation.

"How much do you intend to ask for?"

"Five hundred million."

"Five... alright, I'll talk to them." Xiao Hanguang hung up the phone.

.....

On the other side, when Zhang Xing received the news, he turned green with anger.

Today's stock price crash alone had already shrunk his holdings by billions, and now he has to pay the other side five hundred million more, how could he not be angry?

But anger aside, he could only force himself to pay the money.

"Alright, I agree!"

A soft "hmm" came from the other end of the phone, with a warning: "This matter is settled now, you better not have any thoughts of revenge afterwards, understood?"

Zhang Xing gritted his teeth, replying in a deep voice, "Understood."

"I hope you truly understand, otherwise, I won't be able to save you next time..."

....

After both parties reached an agreement, Qi Yun immediately contacted associates overseas, and all major TV stations and media outlets suddenly ceased coverage of the Ugly Group incident, as if an invisible hand had simultaneously pressed the pause button.

With so many issues at home in America, without anyone pushing it from behind, the online fervor cooled down visibly.

Domestically, there was no need to say much, that force got directly involved, quickly calming the incident.

Instead of focusing on this matter anymore, Qi Yun was already on a plane heading to Rongcheng.

They had found a critical clue from the bronze mask at the museum over there.

In the afternoon, Qi Yun arrived at the Sanxingdui Museum and met with Ignacio and Hua Weiguo in a lab.

The two were carefully studying a pattern on a large screen.

The pattern was composed of many rough, simple lines, looking like nine mountain peaks.

"This pattern, extracted from the two stones using special optical techniques, only appears when fully integrated on the bronze mask."

"Fascinating, isn't it? I can't believe this is actually a work of ancient people over four thousand years ago..." Hua Weiguo introduced to Qi Yun with amazement on his face.

"Based on our analysis, our preliminary guess is that this pattern depicts what's known today as Jiufeng Mountain."

"Jiufeng Mountain?" Qi Yun frowned slightly, as if he had never heard of this name before.

"Yes, Jiufeng Mountain." Hua Weiguo pointed to the nine prominent lines on the diagram on the screen, "It's west of Rongcheng, not too far from the Sanxingdui Ruins. It's a relatively unknown scenic spot now."

"But in ancient times, especially during the active years of the Sanxingdui civilization, it held very special significance."

Qi Yun, not familiar with this part of history, curiously asked, "What kind of significance?"

Hua Weiguo explained slowly, "Some ancient documents record that Jiufeng Mountain is the birthplace of the Ancient Shu Kingdom, where legendary figures like King Yu Fu and King Du Yu were active."

"In the Jin dynasty's 'Chronicles of Huayang,' Jiufeng Mountain was also referred to as the 'Fortress of the Emperor,' highlighting its sacred place in ancient Shu culture, akin to later East and West capitals."

"So it's like a royal city?"

"It can be understood that way." Hua Weiguo nodded and continued, "However, I prefer to think of it as a sacred place for worship."

"People back then valued worship greatly, believing that the stability of kingship, the rise and fall of tribes, and even weather, depended on whether the worship pleased the gods or ancestors."

He paused, looking at the pattern on the screen, "I think....what we're searching for might very well be a place of worship."

"Worship?" Qi Yun raised an eyebrow, glancing around, and in a lowered voice said, "But the inscription on that stela says it's where the Ancient Shu King Can Cong buried his treasures, right?"

Hua Weiguo, hearing this, gave a wry smile.

With a complex tone, he said, "The concept of treasure to people of that time might be different from what we think today."

"They revered gods and the awe-inspiring forces of nature, seeking not gold or jade, but the ability to communicate with deities... do you get what I mean?"

Qi Yun gave a wry smile, "So, even if we do find the place, what awaits us might just be a few ritual bones, huh?"

Hua Weiguo also laughed helplessly, "Or possibly other artifacts."

"But I have a feeling that, given how the clues were so deeply hidden, that place must be extraordinary. Even if it's a place of worship, it would be of the highest level in the Ancient Shu Kingdom!"

"And such discoveries often hold immense academic value, helping us understand the culture, religious beliefs of the Ancient Shu Kingdom in more detail, possibly even unraveling the mystery of the sudden decline of the Sanxingdui civilization!"

Perhaps fearing that Qi Yun might lose interest and not pursue it, Hua Weiguo's tone became eager.

Qi Yun could easily see through the other's concern and reassuringly patted his shoulder with a smile, "Rest assured, since I'm here, whether it's got heaps of treasure or just some bones, I'll go take a look."

"You've been researching for so long, there has to be some resolution."