After selling all the pills he had brought, Ryan felt his purse bulging with Origin Stones, and his mood immediately brightened.
He turned to Elena and smiled. "Good. The amount is correct. Thank you. Goodbye."
With that, Ryan stood up and prepared to leave. However, before he could take another step...
"Wait." Elena also stood up, stopping him.
Ryan’s expression immediately changed. He halted his raised foot and turned around, staring at Elena with a mixture of vigilance and confusion.
"Is there anything else?"
The reason Ryan had chosen Winters Tower in the first place was because he had occasionally heard of the Winters Family’s excellent reputation.
Moreover, among the various Treasure Towers in Ashfall City, Winters Tower was clearly one of the largest and most luxurious.
It seemed that the Winters Family had managed its business quite well.
It was common knowledge that powerful families placed great importance on their reputation, especially when conducting business.
As long as a transaction was completed within a reputable establishment, the customer’s treasures would generally be safe from being forcibly seized.
But Elena’s sudden attempt to stop him caused Ryan’s vigilance to rise.
Could she be planning to go back on the deal? Or worse... Was she planning to kill him and seize his treasures?
"Sir Ryan, please don’t misunderstand. I have no ill intentions."
Seeing Ryan looking at her as though he were facing a formidable enemy, Elena couldn’t help covering her mouth with a soft laugh.
She then took a jade token from her waist and gently handed it toward him.
"Our Winters Family greatly values its reputation. A mere few dozen Low-Grade Origin Stones are hardly worth us breaking our own rules over. Please rest assured."
She smiled sweetly. "As for this Winters Token, I hope Sir Ryan will accept it."
The moment Elena took out the Winters Token, Reed, who had remained expressionless until now, suddenly changed color.
He instinctively opened his mouth as if he wanted to stop her.
But then, as though he had suddenly remembered something, his expression became complicated.
After a brief hesitation, he frowned deeply and ultimately said nothing.
Ryan naturally had no idea what Reed was thinking.
Hearing Elena’s explanation, however, his expression gradually softened.
She didn’t seem to be lying. Still, he didn’t immediately accept the token.
Instead, his gaze fell upon it, carefully examining it.
The Winters Token was square with slightly rounded edges, roughly half a palm in size.
It looked like jade, yet seemed somewhat different from ordinary jade.
Its milky-white surface was warm and crystal clear, clearly made from an extraordinary material.
The word "Winters" had been elegantly carved into its surface in graceful, flowing characters, giving the token an exquisite appearance.
It was clearly a valuable item. Even so, Ryan didn’t immediately reach out to take it.
He looked at Elena with suspicion. "Why do you want to give me this Winters Token?"
He genuinely couldn’t understand her intentions. After Elena’s explanation on the second floor, Ryan already had a general understanding of the token’s purpose.
The Winters Token was essentially a symbol of VIP status within the Winters Family.
With it, one could freely access the VIP areas of the various industries and businesses under the Winters Family.
More importantly, such tokens were strictly controlled and issued only in limited quantities.
It was undoubtedly a valuable status symbol. Yet Elena was actually willing to give one to him.
Ryan found this difficult to understand.
"Sir Ryan, it’s quite simple." Elena looked at him with a gentle smile. "First, this token will allow you to pass through the VIP areas of all businesses under our Winters Trading Company without obstruction."
She paused briefly before continuing. "That way, you won’t have to worry about being stopped by someone who judges people by their appearance again. Consider it a token of apology for what happened earlier."
"Second, and more importantly..." Her smile became slightly more sincere. "I hope to get to know Sir Ryan."
Elena’s eyes flickered with a hint of anticipation. "Top Grade pills are extremely scarce, even for our Winters Family. If you happen to obtain such treasures again in the future, I hope Sir Ryan will consider giving Winters Tower priority when selling them."
Everything Elena had said was true. However, there was one thing she hadn’t mentioned.
The real reason she was willing to give away such a precious, internally restricted Winters Token was because she valued what might be standing behind Ryan.
Perhaps he came from a powerful family. Perhaps he was connected to a formidable alchemist.
Or perhaps... There was an even greater force behind him.
Regardless of which possibility was true, Elena wanted to establish a connection with Ryan.
She had spent many years working on the front lines of the family’s commercial operations, and she trusted her intuition.
Although Ryan’s appearance and cultivation seemed completely ordinary, there was an indescribable sense of incongruity about him.
He looked ordinary in every respect.
Yet somehow, everything about him seemed to conceal a mystery.
Elena couldn’t explain why, but she firmly believed that Ryan had powerful support behind him.
After all, who would believe that someone with no backing could casually produce three Masterpiece-grade pills at once?
Therefore, she absolutely didn’t want to lose such a potentially important client.
If giving away a single Winters Token could allow her to establish a connection with someone of significant influence, then it was undoubtedly worth the price.
Moreover... She actually had an even greater consideration.
But she hadn’t revealed it yet.
...
At this moment, Ryan was completely unaware of what Elena had been thinking.
Only after hearing her full explanation did he finally understand.
So she simply wanted to establish a long-term business relationship with him.
Although he was somewhat surprised by her generosity, Ryan gradually relaxed.
He casually accepted the Winters Token and toyed with it in his palm before smiling in relief.
"So that’s how it is. I understand." He nodded. "Since Miss Elena is so sincere, if I obtain any more treasures in the future, I’ll try to give Winters Tower priority when selling them."
Since the other party was being so generous and straightforward, Ryan didn’t mind going with the flow and returning the favor.
After all, as long as he could exchange his Top Grade pills for enough Origin Stones, it didn’t really matter where he sold them.
He would get roughly the same result anywhere.
And compared to going to an unfamiliar Treasure Tower, working with someone he had already met was naturally more convenient.
As long as Elena had no ulterior motives, this arrangement was beneficial to both sides.