Chapter 212: Chapter 112: The Business Alliance’s Purpose

In the twenty-fourth year since coming to the Yan Kingdom, through personal experience and insight, often deducing backwards from small matters, Li Jizhou has now mostly discerned the core purpose of the business alliance.

They do not seek to conquer or claim kingship, merely because the power of the Profound Celestial Sect and the Carefree Palace is formidable yet restrained and self-imposing; in terms of strength and strategy, they may not be inferior to the alliance, hence they are compelled to settle for the next best thing — employing commerce as a means to gradually control the commercial lifeline, news information, and cultivation resources of the Yan Kingdom.

Previously, Li Jizhou, like everyone else, believed that the series of turmoil caused by the alliance in the Yan Kingdom was rooted in the merchants’ profit-seeking nature.

But now, knowing the alliance’s association with the Golden Corpse, the Wei Kingdom, and the Demon Sect, it suddenly became clear.

Those were perhaps just a diversion.

The purpose of the business alliance’s actions in the Yan Kingdom is manifest — to monopolize the economy and resources, plunging the Yan Kingdom into internal competition and strife,

and through forms such as installment payments for spirit veins and resource leasing, making most sect families and cultivators weary in their cultivation pursuits.

The core aim is to distract Yan Kingdom cultivators from what the alliance truly intends to do.

“After centuries of isolation, the Wei Kingdom may have already succumbed to the Demon Dao’s paradise!”

Now that the Wuxiang Sect and Ye Jingyu have touched upon their plans in the Southern Domain, disturbing the fundamentals, hence the sudden declaration of war.

And looking at the call for support from the Wei Kingdom, internally it may already be stable.

“I fear the alliance’s modus operandi will see some changes henceforth.”

Untangling the series of cause and effect, Li Jizhou finds it easier to comprehend the subsequent actions of Situ Yan on stage.

First, Situ Yan elaborated on the evil of the Wuxiang Sect and its harm to the Yan Kingdom’s business community.

He then fiercely criticized the Profound Celestial Sect and Carefree Palace for their inaction,

and unsurprisingly, he explained the difficulties in the alliance’s eradication of the Evil Cult, appealing to donations, with influential fellow merchants setting an example.

Nonetheless, Situ Yan, arrogant and blunt as ever, did not mention any post-event revenue sharing situation.

If the old City Lord were still here, Li Jizhou would absolutely believe he would bring up a full refund of contributions with some fair compensation thereafter.

After all, though influential fellow merchants have money, their number is exceedingly small.

Whereas, the rest of Liuyun City’s merchants number over a hundred thousand, and their contributions are the main bulk.

However, regarding what Situ Yan said, the merchants in attendance all agreed with both hands, with some even displaying righteous indignation, united against a common foe.

Li Jizhou’s expression was neither exaggerated nor passive.

Seeing his proposal flowing smoothly, Situ Yan grew even more proud.

Yet, Li Jizhou knew he celebrated rather prematurely.

The owners in attendance, are they not all astute individuals?

Moreover, unlike Li Jizhou, who is less concerned with wealth, each one must support a family of cultivators or an entire sect.

The eventual outcome will certainly embarrass Situ Yan.

However, Li Jizhou already senses changes within the alliance,

The alliance likely will not act as before, whereby every matter was addressed through commercial means.

No longer will they maintain the whole Immortal City’s business environment by communicating or even compromising with businesses.

Thus, ultimately, among these owners, some will definitely face severe misfortune.

Situ Yan, newly arrived in Liuyun Immortal City, successfully completed the first meeting overseeing the ten cities in the southern part of the Yan Kingdom.

After the meeting, influential owners gathered in groups; although Li Jizhou’s assets were the least, he received plenty of invitations, which he declined, deeming now a pivotal moment in his cultivation technique practice, returning alone to his estate.

“If the alliance changes, the overall business environment of the Yan Kingdom is bound for major upheaval!” Thoughtfully for a moment, Li Jizhou immediately informed Xiaoguo.

From this day forth, settlements in Taobao Pavilion will be made instantly.

As soon as a client’s consigned item is sold, settle the account immediately.

This decision will empty Li Jizhou’s working capital.

Nonetheless, Li Jizhou is already indifferent towards it.

Over these nine years, as Taobao Pavilion collaborated with merchants, promotional expenses rose steadily. Apart from the Fetus Nourishing Pill consumed yearly and the materials for various skills over ten years, nowadays Li Jizhou personally holds nearly fifty thousand middle-grade spirit stones.

Excluding personnel and operating expenses for ten stores, the actual yearly profit is around five thousand middle-grade spirit stones.

This suffices to sustain Li Jizhou’s basic resources for Fetus Nourishing,

yet the Lifespan Extension Pill and Quasi-Fourth Tier divine medicine haven’t been procured with spirit stones, not even at double the market price, illustrating their rarity.

As for the decision not to retain working capital,

Firstly, concern over the alliance’s envy.

If it were the previous alliance, a monthly flow of over a hundred thousand middle-grade spirit stones might not matter.

But now, with the alliance incurring huge war losses and possibly altering operational principles, it’s unpredictable.

Should Situ Yan want a loan, or have Li Jizhou invest using working capital, he would be very passive.

Secondly, movements from the Wei Kingdom compel Li Jizhou to guard against major changes in the Yan Kingdom, while he dislikes taking advantage of others, Taobao Pavilion earns what it should, settling immediately can prevent unforeseen incidents.

Taking minor advantage could lead to major loss, sometimes even resulting in inexplicable death.

With immense daily transactions across ten division halls, corresponding client volumes are vast; should chaos erupt one day, and if a division hall gets attacked, the internal loss would be astronomical, something Li Jizhou cannot afford.

However, those clients would surely hold Taobao Pavilion’s owner Li Jizhou accountable for the loss.

There could be others adept in restraint, knowing currently they might not be a match for Li Jizhou, then wait patiently until one day, under unexpected circumstance, exact a lethal revenge on Li Jizhou.

Even loss of spirit stones, crucial for a client’s next pivotal step, might ultimately lead to impeded progress due to Taobao Pavilion’s robberies preventing payout.

That would equate to Li Jizhou unwittingly forming a grudge that obstructs one’s path!

On a steady cultivation path, such occurrences are intolerable.

After organizing strategies to counter potential disturbances, further instructing Xiaoguo to intensify efforts in acquiring or gathering information on Lifespan Extension Pills and divine medicine,

afterwards, Li Jizhou’s eyes gazed deep and far eastward toward the Wei Kingdom.

With turbulence prevalent now, especially the unclear situation in the Wei Kingdom, staying in Liuyun City is the safest choice for Li Jizhou.

However, should this continue, the hopes for Lifespan Extension Fruit and divine medicine remain bleak.

And regarding the Wei Kingdom,

everything remains conjecture now.

Without personally verifying, much inference may be marginally correct or significantly erroneous.

Particularly regarding the Demon Sect’s true motives, the potential disaster it could cause, is all hearsay.

After brief contemplation, Li Jizhou’s resolve was firm.

“Swoosh~” A stream of light flashed, producing a “person” identical to Li Jizhou in the secret chamber.

This was the substitute puppet left by Alchemist Xue years ago.

Through over a decade of research, Li Jizhou has essentially deciphered it.

At least Tier-Four Puppet Secret Skill, augmented by late-stage Core Formation powerful divine sense, at the cost of lifespan, using essence blood and divine soul as lead, establishes a Heaven-Deceiving Secret Contract, indistinguishable beneath Nascent Soul level.

It shares aura, magical power, divine soul with the original body, capable of exerting ten percent of its power.

Without encountering Nascent Soul, it truly can pass off the false as the genuine!

Previously there was no place to use it, and since Li Jizhou currently cannot craft Tier-Four puppets, this substitute puppet is unique.

Now, however, a decision has been made.

To uncover the truth regarding the Wei Kingdom, abandoning this substitute puppet is a small price to pay.

After these considerations, without further delay, Li Jizhou released the aura, essence blood, and divine soul of the mid-stage Core Formation cultivator slain by Ye Jingyu a year earlier from his memory within the annual rings.

Through memory fragments in consciousness, Li Jizhou has repetitively examined, discovering only some directives from the vice president of the alliance’s Black Water Commerce Association regarding encountering Demon Dao and activating forehead markings.

But about the Wei Kingdom, there’s barely anything.

Upon Li Jizhou transforming into Master Wu Jiu, the substitute puppet followed suit.

Then, Li Jizhou transformed into Master Han’s guise, the substitute puppet transformed again.

Once the accuracy was ensured, Li Jizhou handed a storage bag to the puppet, primarily filled with talismans, supplemented by poisons and chessboard arrays.

Finally pondering, Li Jizhou still packed the quasi-fourth-tier Celestial Thunder Talisman imbued with Celestial Thunder.

That night, Master Han quietly left Liuyun City, heading east towards the Wei Kingdom.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep