“That move just now wasn’t clever enough, and certainly not subtle enough!”
Outside the carriage, the coachman chewed on a blade of grass, commenting nonchalantly.
“You didn’t restrain your spiritual energy. If his cultivation had been any higher, we would have been in trouble the moment he broke free!”
The bead curtain on the carriage window swayed, tinkling like small bells. The woman inside spoke again, though this time in a normal tone.
“Oh, please! Elder Qin, you were right there. Even if I had slipped up, wouldn’t you have been there to back me up?”
“Hahahaha!” The coachman laughed heartily. “You certainly have a way with words, girl. But if you want to stay secure in your position as Saintess, you can’t rely on your mouth alone!”
“Elder Qin is right to lecture me! I shall keep it in mind!” Shen Miaoyu laughed, her voice as clear and pleasant as silver bells.
Once the carriage turned onto a small path and the crowds thinned, the coachman’s tone turned serious.
“In our Shenyuan Sect, strength is everything. Although you have excellent talent and stepped into the Golden Core Stage at such a young age, you are still inexperienced in the ways of the world. you need more training!”
“The Sect Master arranged for you to lead this operation specifically to help you establish prestige within the sect, so you can gain a firm footing!”
Shenyuan Sect.
It was one of the three great demonic sects of Great Qian. Its members specialized in Primordial Spirit techniques, possessing extreme proficiency in the realm of the soul and divine sense.
Originally, the Shenyuan Sect was not a demonic sect but a second-grade orthodox sect. However, ever since a disciple created a vicious technique that could pollute the Primordial Spirits of others, the sect had wandered down the path of no return.
Ordinary Primordial Spirit attacks were merely meant to intimidate or cause a brief loss of consciousness. But the Shenyuan Sect’s technique could pollute and absorb another person’s Primordial Spirit, turning it into nourishment for one’s own cultivation. The victim, having lost their Primordial Spirit, would become a mindless walking corpse, a puppet to be commanded at will.
Shen Miaoyu nodded. “I will not fail the Sect Master’s expectations!”
The first task the Sect Master had given her as the Saintess was to proselytize and expand the influence of the Shenyuan Sect.
The carriage contained the key to this mission. It was said to be a miraculous substance refined by the Sect Master using his unique techniques.
Compared to the traditional, complicated method of requiring disciples to use techniques to pollute newcomers, this item only needed to be consumed to achieve the effect of controlling others.
It was safe, free of hidden dangers, and most importantly, legal and compliant!
Although she had told the guard it was an “evil item,” she had only been teasing him.
If a forced inspection had actually occurred, it would have passed easily. The Sect Master had considered that factor long before the plan was even put into motion.
The Sect Master had gone to great lengths to research a spiritual food that was edible yet could pass the inspections of Wu City.
Wu City was a bustling commercial hub with a rapid flow of goods, making it the perfect soil for this substance to flourish.
Shen Miaoyu’s mission was to open a shop to sell this item and then expand those shops throughout all of Wu City. In this way, every Primordial Spirit in the city would fall into the palm of the Shenyuan Sect.
The Sect Master had also told her that many senior members of the Shenyuan Sect were already lurking in Wu City.
Once she grew the business and made the shops famous throughout the city, those hidden members would follow her commands as the Saintess.
This was a precaution to prevent the sect from being uprooted by Great Qian if the plan were exposed.
The Sect Master was so cautious that he hadn’t even sent Shen Miaoyu’s portrait to the hidden followers in advance.
She either had to produce results to prove herself as the Saintess or die in obscurity.
Shen Miaoyu knew very well that if she lacked value, she was nothing more than a pawn that could be discarded at any moment.
She looked at the buildings around her and then at the towering spires, lost in thought.
Another reason for choosing Wu City was Jiang Chenyin’s scheduled journey south.
In 6 months, Wu City would be filled with suffering, and it would happen right under the nose of the Empress’s confidante, the Great State Preceptor Jiang…
‘There are still 6 months until the Great State Preceptor heads south… I’m really looking forward to it…’
—
Meanwhile, at the Wu City branch of Qingluan Peak.
Lin Shu, Lu Zhiyun, and Chang Jiujiu were eating hotpot, enjoying themselves immensely.
Inside the mental space, the Sanqing Fairy was unable to show herself because Chang Jiujiu was present. She could only drool in envy, telling Lu Zhiyun to eat more on her behalf.
When Lin Shu heard Chang Jiujiu mention that the Great State Preceptor would not arrive in Wu City for another 6 months, he was stunned.
“Six months?”
He pulled out the envelope and checked it carefully. He discovered that the letter hadn’t been sent recently; it had been sent several years ago.
The date in the small corner was clearly not from this year, but from 5 years ago.
Lin Shu knew about the Great State Preceptor’s southern journey, but he had never paid much attention to it. After all, their Heaven’s Gate Sect had only recently been promoted to a Transcendent Grade Immortal Sect, and this was their first time handling reception duties.
Looking at this 5-year-old letter, Lin Shu felt a complicated mix of emotions.
‘Scheming! It’s all full of schemes!’
‘She intentionally left this for me 5 years later!’
‘And there’s actually a lunatic who could leave this letter unopened for 5 years, keeping the seal on the envelope completely intact!!!’
“Speaking of which, Senior Sister, didn’t you run away to avoid trouble? Why are you in Wu City?” Lin Shu asked curiously.
Chang Jiujiu chewed on a fish ball and said, “That was my original plan. I even built a cave to hide in, intending to sleep for 10 years before coming out.”
“But Master found me and told me to come to Wu City to manage the shops.”
Lin Shu gasped. She really dared!
It was common knowledge in the cultivation world that Jiang Cha’s thought process was somewhat erratic, but Lin Shu hadn’t expected her to entrust the business to a Senior Sister who had never done business in her life.
“Master said that once I manage the shops well and each one earns a stable monthly profit of 100,000 spirit stones, she’ll let me go back!”
“At the time, I saw that each shop was already earning a stable profit of 95,000 a month. I thought I could leave in less than 6 months!”
Lin Shu raised an eyebrow. “And now?”
Chang Jiujiu laughed softly. “Oh, Junior Brother! You’re asking even though you already know!”
If she had succeeded, Lin Shu wouldn’t be seeing her here.
Currently, each shop was losing a stable 100,000 spirit stones every month. She had achieved her goal in reverse.
However, Master had told her that she could do whatever she wanted and that it didn’t matter if she lost or made money. She had a way to fill the hole.
When Chang Jiujiu had asked what the method was, Jiang Cha simply gave a mysterious smile and whispered something in her ear to put her at ease.
‘It’s fine if you lose money. I secretly rented your Junior Brother out to Junior Sister Yingxue as a dish tester! As long as it doesn’t kill him, she can feed him as much as she wants. His rental fee is quite expensive! You can run the business however you like!’
Chang Jiujiu smiled knowingly at the memory.
“What are you laughing at, Senior Sister?” Lin Shu asked, confused.
“Nothing! I just remembered something happy!” Chang Jiujiu smiled and placed a piece of tofu into the bowls of Lin Shu and Lu Zhiyun.
“Thank you, Senior Sister!” Lu Zhiyun said politely, though her expression was worried. “Senior Brother, how are we going to restart the business this time?”
The shop’s losses weren’t something that happened overnight; a fixed negative impression had already formed.
The Heaven’s Gate Sect brand had almost no reputation left in Wu City, and other competitors were likely fueling the fire behind the losses.
Lin Shu rubbed his chin, thinking carefully. After a moment, he had an idea.
“That Spirit Gathering Array… can I see how you’ve been promoting it?”
Upon hearing this, Chang Jiujiu immediately pulled out a recording stone. It displayed the promotional slogans for the Spirit Gathering Array.
They were just the standard lines: “Heaven’s Gate Sect produced Spirit Gathering Array, buy one get ten free,” “Better than your average Spirit Gathering Array,” “Helps you cultivate faster than others,” and so on.
It was very ordinary, with almost no unique features.
However, changing the loss-making situation just through promotion was clearly going to be difficult.
Lu Zhiyun was curious about what Lin Shu would do.
Lin Shu smiled and spoke. “Promoting it like this definitely won’t work! Besides, the biggest feature of our Spirit Gathering Array is its high efficiency and massive intake, but the downside is that cultivators can easily faint because they can’t handle it!”
Chang Jiujiu thought for a moment and guessed, “Then, do you plan to promote it as having a sleep-inducing effect instead?”
‘Sleep-inducing… that actually might work if we change our perspective! It’s just a bit sinister!’
‘If someone asks why they slept so soundly? It’s because the Spirit Gathering Array knocked them out!’
Lu Zhiyun sighed inwardly. ‘As expected of Senior Sister!’
“No!” Lin Shu shook his head. “From now on, the main focus will be on it being a gift!”
“What does this have to do with giving gifts?” Lu Zhiyun asked curiously.
No one was buying it to begin with; would anyone want it as a gift?
“They definitely will, but we have to change the wording!”
Lin Shu gave a wicked, mischievous smile. “For example, give it to your rivals, enemies, competitors, or even friends and family. It can help them rest earlier and stop them from overworking themselves in the rat race of cultivation…”
‘It’s just cultivation. Why does everyone have to be so competitive?’
‘Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone just lay down and had a good sleep?’
‘As for giving it to the opponent so they fall into a deep sleep… wouldn’t that let us secretly cultivate and surpass them?’
‘Stop the rat race, starting with you!’
Chang Jiujiu squinted and pointed at Lin Shu, laughing along with him. She had a “I get you” expression on her face.
“As expected of my Junior Brother! Truly brilliant!”
“You flatter me, you flatter me!”
Lu Zhiyun looked at the two of them, feeling deeply powerless.
‘They’re beyond help!’
‘How can demonic cultivators even be this sinister when it comes to doing business?’