12dz Chapter 28: Discussion
Chapter 28: Discussion
A month later.
Most of the monsters in Chishan were cleared out, leaving only a few.
The red dragon's remains sank into the Heavenly Pool, and Jiang Changqiu built a huge pavilion on top of them.
The six Foundation Establishment cultivators sat in the pavilion, the atmosphere seemingly peaceful, yet undercurrents were surging.
Jiang Changqiu, being the most powerful, naturally sat in the head seat and spoke calmly:
"Now that the battle is over, as previously agreed, the entire southern part of Chishan will be within the territory of our Dayan Sect."
The others nodded slightly, offering no objections.
One of the Taoist priests, who was slightly overweight, spoke up:
"In my opinion, let's divide our territory as agreed. Today's discussion should focus on those Qi-refining forces and rogue cultivators."
A thin, old Taoist priest beside him nodded and said in a deep voice:
"Old Sun is absolutely right. Those Qi-refining forces are easy to deal with; we can just reward them according to their merits. It's just those rogue cultivators..."
He shook his head and sighed, saying:
"Now that Chishan has been completely divided up by us, they will have no means of livelihood in the future. I'm afraid it won't be long before they leave this place. At that time, who will we sell the talismans and pills we produce?"
The reason why Pukou Market can attract so many independent cultivators is not only because they can buy spiritual items such as talismans, pills, and magic tools, but also because of the treasure land of Chishan.
This allows independent cultivators to venture into the mountains to find spiritual objects, which are then collected by shops in the market, refined into finished products, and sold back to the independent cultivators, thus forming a cycle.
As long as Chishan remains this precious land, there will be a steady stream of independent cultivators and traveling merchants coming from other places.
Today, there are nearly a thousand independent practitioners living in Pukoufang.
But if Chishan is gone, the rogue cultivators will have no livelihood and will naturally go elsewhere to find a way to make a living.
Just as everyone closed their eyes to ponder, Zhao Deyang spoke:
"Gentlemen, in this battle of Chishan, many rogue cultivators made outstanding contributions and killed a lot of demonic beasts. In my opinion, why don't we set aside some territory for them to establish sects and recruit other rogue cultivators as disciples?"
"Those rogue cultivators will not leave once they have a place to go."
After all, who would want to be a wandering cultivator all the time?
As soon as Zhao Deyang said this, the others nodded in agreement.
"Brother Zhao is absolutely right. In any case, it would take us decades to fully digest such a large territory, so why not temporarily divide some of it out?"
"Yes, I agree. We can ask them to cultivate spirit fields and plant medicinal herbs and spirit rice. That would be quite good."
Seeing that everyone agreed, Jiang Changqiu, who was in the main seat, nodded slightly and said:
"However, the number of new forces should not be too large, lest they become difficult to manage."
"In addition, we also need to make some other preparations, such as expanding the Pukou market area, to attract independent cultivators and forces from other places to come here."
Danfeng Prefecture has six counties, and the place they are in is one of them, Youyang County.
It is adjacent to Xiazhu County and Guang'an County.
The portly Taoist priest, known as Old Sun, stroked his beard and pondered for a moment:
"It's difficult. Other counties also have their own markets. To get them to come here, the profits would have to be huge, or... their markets wouldn't be peaceful enough."
Upon hearing this, everyone else understood the meaning behind his words, and some shook their heads slightly:
"We should proceed cautiously to avoid causing conflict."
"In my opinion, we should send more traveling merchants to other markets and lure those rogue cultivators here with cheap pills, talismans, and magical artifacts."
"At the same time, lowering the rent for the courtyards in the market area should attract many independent practitioners to stay in Pukou Market."
This statement garnered even more support.
After all, any conflict will inevitably result in casualties.
Apart from the Dayan Sect, this place is full of clan forces, and those who died were all blood relatives and friends.
Who would want their child or grandchild to die?
The chubby fellow Daoist nodded repeatedly:
"That is indeed the case."
Seeing that the discussion was over, Jiang Changqiu spoke up:
"Then, fellow Daoists, I shall take my leave now."
After saying that, he left with his junior sister beside him.
The others also left.
…………
Valley.
Since the Battle of Chishan, Li Wu stayed at the Zhao family home and lived with Lu Sui.
Every day, he would ask Lu Sui about alchemy. With Lu Sui's personal guidance, Li Wu's alchemy skills improved considerably.
He has already been able to refine three or four kinds of pills, with a success rate of 50%.
However, every time he dragged Lu Sui to refine pills, he always felt a prickling sensation behind him, as if someone was constantly watching him.
Suddenly, he heard footsteps behind him, so he turned around and saw a cold face.
Li Wu was taken aback, then forced a smile:
"Haha, so it's Fellow Daoist Zhao."
Lu Sui also saw her, but just scratched his head and laughed.
Zhao Nanxu looked at him coldly, her eyes filled with resentment, and said in a deep voice:
"Qian Yuan wants you to come over. Also, from now on, don't come to see Lu Sui every day."
Upon hearing that it was Zhao Qianyuan who had contacted him, Li Wuyi immediately understood that it concerned the establishment of a sect, and nodded repeatedly, saying:
"No problem, then I will return Brother Lu to Fellow Daoist Zhao."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Nanxu didn't react much, but Lu Sui became anxious:
"What are you talking about? I'm not an object, why should I return it?"
"Haha, Lu Sui, I'll be going now. I'll come see you again another day."
Li Wulang said loudly, then took out a flying shuttle and headed towards Zhao Qianyuan's residence.
…………
Zhao Qianyuan sat in the courtyard, holding a book in his hands.
Among the direct descendants, he was of mediocre talent and lacked knowledge of alchemy, weapon crafting, and other skills, which made his position in the clan rather awkward.
When something called "Beast-Repelling Powder" appeared in the market, Zhao Qianyuan keenly sensed an opportunity.
So he took the initiative to go there, met Li Wu, and bought a dose of beast-repelling powder. After confirming its effectiveness, he decisively ordered a large quantity of beast-repelling powder, which solved the clan's predicament of being besieged by monsters in the mine.
Then, through reasoned arguments, they secured a shop for Li Wu, which also provided the clan with an extra source of income each year.
This allowed Zhao Qianyuan to gradually find his place within the clan.
"Since my cultivation is inadequate and my skills are lacking, then I shall deal with external affairs for the clan and weigh the gains and losses," Zhao Qianyuan thought to himself.
Just then, Zhao Qianyuan heard footsteps approaching from outside. He was immediately delighted, knowing who was coming.
Looking up, I saw Li Wu slowly walking towards me.
Zhao Qianyuan quickly got up to greet him:
"Brother Li, you've finally arrived! I have some incredibly good news to tell you."
Li Wu, who had been somewhat worried along the way, felt a great weight lifted from his heart upon seeing Zhao Qianyuan's appearance, and said loudly:
"Brother Zhao, is this about my intention to establish a sect?"
"Exactly, exactly!"
Zhao Qianyuan took Li Wu's hand and led him into the house to sit down.
As Zhao Qianyuan poured tea, he slowly said:
"Brother Li, my family can give you Qingshi Mountain as your mountain gate to establish a sect, but there are two conditions."