Chapter 10: Tenant and Landlord
Although this world is one of Cultivation, based on Lu Xingzhou’s observations and understanding over the years, he felt it was, at most, a low-level mysterious or low-level Immortal world.
With Lu Xingzhou’s current level as a seventh-rank Dao Cultivator, he was still quite far from being able to fly. Healing a mere broken leg was like a life-threatening task… Those who could supposedly move mountains and fill seas were only in legends, let alone exploding stars or planes. The most top-tier Cultivators were all pursuing “Immortal Ascension,” and only after that could they be considered Immortals.
Whether Immortals had Sects and how Sects operated resources was unknown for now. In short, at the current low-level Immortal standard, everyone was still a common person, and gold and silver currency were still very useful most of the time. Every Sect or Gang naturally needed to earn money and resources, and individuals also needed to “work” to accumulate resources for their Cultivation.
If Lu Xingzhou were to describe it, Gangs were similar to various companies, and Sects were similar to various private universities. Disciples who graduated from Sects entered various Gangs or joined various departments of the imperial court. Of course, many also “stayed” to take on a position or continue their advanced studies.
Chambers of commerce also belonged to a type of Gang, with their main business being the circulation of various resources. More high-end ones would involve Heaven And Earth Treasure.
Of course, these were all on the Righteous Path. There were also Demonic Path Sects and Gangs, whose work involved burning, killing, looting, or some grey areas. The principles of the two worlds were still interchangeable.
What Lu Xingzhou had previously helped Yuan Muyu establish was the “Yan Luo Temple,” the most notorious assassin organization in Great Qian today, a typical Demonic Path organization.
The Yan Luo Temple assassin who suddenly came to assassinate him earlier must have been hired by the Danxia Gang. If an adversary within Yan Luo Temple wanted to kill him, they certainly wouldn't send only a low-level assassin. Speaking of which, the Danxia Gang was quite interesting; they kicked their landlord and hired an assassin to kill an elder of their own organization. Their Luck was truly something else.
The Tianxing Sword Sect is a very orthodox Sword Dao Sect. Many of its Disciples choose to join imperial court departments after graduating. Given the Cultivation direction of Sword Cultivators, they primarily concentrate in the Demon Suppression Division and the military. Therefore, the Tianxing Sword Sect has a certain influence within the official system, but on the surface, it appears relatively grassroots.
Shen Tang knew what Lu Xingzhou meant by asking “what kind of business model,” so she said, “The Tianxing Sword Sect was secretly one of the imperial merchants in the past, helping the royal family handle financial goods and manage private treasuries.”
Lu Xingzhou was extremely surprised by this answer, and his heart stirred: “So your so-called offending someone and being wiped out was actually being embroiled in a royal succession dispute? I heard that the Eldest Princess disappeared last month, is it related to this?”
The gentle smile that Shen Tang always wore finally solidified a little: “Your information is quite well-informed. The imperial court has not made this public. How did you know?”
“I have my own channels. That’s not important. What’s important is whether you were involved in the royal succession dispute?”
“The reason is unknown, and the imperial court is also investigating the case. In any case, we dared not openly seek refuge in the capital, fearing that entering the capital would lead to an even more inexplicable death.” Shen Tang sighed, “Currently, only I know the channel for contacting the royal family, so even if they are unwilling, they can only defer to me. Otherwise, how would it be my turn, a cripple?”
“This channel won’t be easy to conceal. The royal family transporting goods to you, and you remitting funds back, that line is too obvious.”
Shen Tang had thought that Lu Xingzhou’s persistent questioning about the succession dispute implied a greater desire to retreat, but unexpectedly, his attitude didn’t seem that way, so she also breathed a sigh of relief: “Not only that, I also don’t want to be targeted by enemies again. So, in the short term, I won’t contact them; I need to open up the situation myself first.”
“At least clear out the internal issues first?”
“Correct.”
“So your so-called chamber of commerce currently has no source of goods… Perhaps with some money, you plan to acquire Medicinal Pills in Xia Province and refine them yourself, starting anew. For this, you specifically hired Bai Chi, an Alchemist from the famous Alchemy Sect Burning Incense Tower, and the next phase of the plan revolves around him. But then the Danxia Gang intercepted him?”
“Yes.” Shen Tang gave a bitter smile: “Bai Chi is from Xia Province, so he was quite suitable. But we didn’t expect him and Liu Yan’er to be childhood sweethearts; he was swayed by a few words…”
Lu Xingzhou gently patted the armrest of the wheelchair, pondering: “The Danxia Gang has its own medicinal mountain, but you need to acquire medicinal materials. The cost of Alchemy for both sides is not on the same level. If you try to compete with them from this angle, you are bound to lose. If you trust me, my suggestion is to abandon the Alchemy plan and find another solution.”
Shen Tang sighed: “How could I not know… But we really don’t have any other viable plans in the short term.”
“Since I brought it up, I naturally have another plan to help you establish yourselves. In fact, there are too many people doing this kind of business in Xia Province. Even if Bai Chi were still here, he would at most make you into a second Danxia Gang, and what good would that do… Your original plan was flawed.”
Shen Tang nodded: “We do understand the reasoning. Originally, we just wanted to settle down first. Since we arrived in Xia Province, our first thought was naturally related to medicinal materials.”
“This is a thinking trap. Who says that a place with abundant medicinal material production must necessarily focus on medicinal materials?”
“But if we were to do something else, why choose Xia Province?”
Lu Xingzhou smiled: “As one of Great Qian’s medicinal material bases, Xia Province has few skilled Alchemists. Do you know why?”
Shen Tang said: “Naturally, it’s because the medicinal materials here are just ordinary crops, suitable for refining only low-grade Medicinal Pills. High-grade Alchemists don’t look favorably upon this place.”
“But correspondingly, low-grade Alchemists like me flock here in large numbers. The quantity of low-grade Medicinal Pills produced here is unmatched in Great Qian, and the price gets lower and lower with competition. Many chambers of commerce purchase Medicinal Pills from here and sell them elsewhere to earn a price difference, and local Cultivators even eat low-grade Medicinal Pills like candy.” Lu Xingzhou blinked: “The problem is, since people in Xia Province consume so many Medicinal Pills, why hasn’t their Cultivation progressed faster than elsewhere?”
Shen Tang blurted out: “Firstly, eating too many similar Medicinal Pills reduces their effectiveness. Secondly, they accumulate too many Medicinal Pill Impurities!”
Every medicine has some toxicity, and Medicinal Pills are naturally the same.
The reason why top-grade and excellent-grade Medicinal Pills are more valuable than ordinary good-grade ones is not primarily because their efficacy is stronger; the real key lies in having fewer Medicinal Pill Impurities. So-called top-grade ones are almost entirely free of Medicinal Pill Impurities, and are extremely rare. However, top-grade ones are scarce, excellent-grade ones are expensive, and most people still consume normal good-grade ones.
Medicinal Pills in other places are much more expensive than in Xia Province, and even good-grade ones are not consumed in excessive amounts, so the Medicinal Pill Impurities can generally be self-expelled, posing no major problem. However, people in Xia Province consume too much, and more or less have accumulated some Medicinal Pill Impurities deep within their bodies. Yet, due to the prevailing atmosphere, few reflect on this point.
In fact, it’s not just people from Xia Province; most Dao Cultivators are extremely reliant on Medicinal Pills, willingly consuming them despite knowing they are toxic. Sword Cultivators, on the other hand, are more resistant to this.
As expected, Lu Xingzhou said: “Sword Sects emphasize purity the most. With a sword bone like jade and a clear sword heart, they often disdain relying on medicine and have more experience than others in expelling these various Impurities. If your Sect uses some special Mind-Cultivation Technique to achieve this, then could this technique be engraved on Talismans or Magical Artifact accessories, allowing people to carry them long-term to purify Medicinal Pill Impurities?”
Shen Tang was stunned, thought it over, and her eyes gradually sparkled.
Medicinal Pill Impurities can, of course, be resolved with detoxification Medicinal Pills. For severe accumulation, using high-grade detoxification Medicinal Pills would suffice; it’s not a difficult problem, but the issue is the cost.
However, creating such purifying sword Talismans is very inexpensive. They only require long-term carrying and are not as immediately effective as detoxification Medicinal Pills, but for the situation in Xia Province, they are perfectly suitable.
This idea sounds simple, and many Sects could do it, not just Sword Sects. But other places don’t have the characteristic of treating low-grade Medicinal Pills like candy, as in Xia Province, so Medicinal Pill Impurities aren’t a major problem, and naturally no one researches these. This is a specific strategy tailored to the local customs of Xia Province, yet the people of Xia Province themselves haven’t had the awareness to do it!
In other words, they would be the first to engage in this business. As long as they could promote it, it would be a highly profitable venture.
Shen Tang took a deep breath and couldn’t help but ask, “Actually, using our resources to refine Medicinal Pills and compete head-on with the Danxia Gang would be more satisfying for you, wouldn’t it? Why do you consistently refuse to do that, and instead give me such a priceless idea?”
Lu Xingzhou smiled: “You haven’t realized that competing in Alchemy isn’t about going head-to-head with the Danxia Gang, but rather getting caught in the vast ocean of Medicinal Pill competition in all of Xia Province. As for the Danxia Gang, at most, it would make them slightly uncomfortable, with no practical significance.”
Shen Tang asked curiously, “Are you really not planning to bother with them?”
“I’ve already gotten the satisfaction I wanted. If they don’t bother me, I’m really too lazy to deal with them.” Lu Xingzhou smiled very gently: “But since they don’t want me to live in Xia Province, then I’ll just have to make sure they can’t live either.”
Shen Tang clearly saw that the man’s face was wreathed in smiles, but his eyes flashed with a chilling murderous intent.
He wants to make the Danxia Gang unable to survive?
His Cultivation isn’t high, and he’s alone with a child. How could he do that?
Shen Tang hesitated for a moment, then whispered, “Given our current situation, it’s difficult for us to engage in armed conflict with other Gangs.”
“When did I say you needed to engage in armed conflict…?” Lu Xingzhou’s murderous intent had already receded, and he still smiled: “If Miss Shen thinks my idea just now is worth something, then perhaps you could help me procure a batch of Han Ying Grass, the more the better.”
Han Ying Grass is quite effective in removing decay and promoting muscle growth. It is often mashed and applied externally to treat skin ulcers, erosion, burns, and so on. Since it is not often used in Alchemy, not many people grow it in Xia Province, and its price is not high.
Shen Tang didn’t know what Lu Xingzhou needed this for in Alchemy, but she said nothing, only nodded: “I will arrange it. Thank you for your guidance, Sir.”
After speaking, she wheeled herself out the door.
Lu Xingzhou watched her slowly move away, remaining silent for a long time.
A Nuo’s voice then sounded beside him: “Master, what are you doing, Master? You actually started teaching…”
Lu Xingzhou came back to his senses and said with a stern face: “That gentle look, those accommodating and understanding words… I’m clearly the landlord, yet it’s as if she’s taken me in. Don’t you think that’s infuriating?”
A Nuo scraped her face: “If the result of being angry is giving the other party an idea worth ten thousand gold, then please, Master, be angry with me.”
Lu Xingzhou reached out and pinched both sides of her cheeks, pulling them horizontally, then suddenly let go, and they bounced back with a ‘thud’, her chubby flesh jiggling.
Under A Nuo’s resentful gaze, Lu Xingzhou remained expressionless: “That’s just to put myself back in a high position. This idea sounds simple, but in reality, they likely can’t implement it on their own, and they’ll still have to beg me later.”
A Nuo sighed: “Why, Master…?”
Lu Xingzhou said coldly: “Because I never want to experience the feeling of being dependent on others again in this life.”
A Nuo said faintly: “Master, since you’re so good at psychological games, you must have many girlfriends, right?”
“Bang!” The Little Daoist was curled into a ball and thrown out the door.