Yulou never expected that Wang Xianmao, despite his venerable status as a Foundation Establishment cultivator, would go to such lengths.
He was inspecting the rooms one by one, conversing with the rogue cultivators to gather feedback on their stay, all to find areas for optimization and improvement.
This sort of task was entirely below a Foundation Establishment cultivator. In fact, it would seem absurd even for a Qi Refining cultivator to do it personally.
If Wang Xianmao had previously left Yulou with the impression of a reliable, approachable, and benevolent elder, then at this moment, Yulou saw the patriarch's true sharpness and inner strength.
It was not the fact that a Foundation Establishment cultivator condescended to chat with impoverished rogue cultivators that was formidable; it was the sheer pragmatic logic Wang Xianmao demonstrated behind this behavior. To execute a task flawlessly, he was willing to go to such lengths.
A man like this would achieve monumental success even in the mortal world, let alone the cultivation realm!
"How did your day go?"
Noticing the arrival of Yulou and his brother, Wang Xianmao concluded his conversation with the rogue cultivators and walked over to them.
The corridor of the wooden building was narrow, so Yulou tilted his body slightly to clear a path for the patriarch.
"Master had his daughter pass a message through us," Yulou said. "He wishes to pay respects to True Person Danri alongside you, Senior, and promised a handsome reward in return.""What is your take on this?"
"He is not a simple character."
Yu'an still had no grasp of what was unfolding. He understood nothing of Hongmei's probing, the Wang Clan's response, or Yulou's underlying anxieties.
"Indeed," Wang Xianmao agreed. "Which is exactly why we must bring him along."
Once they went downstairs, Wang Xianmao gestured. Spotting this, Tang Nianqiu quickly jogged over to receive his instructions.
"We are making the following adjustments to Fortune Source Residence. Take note," Wang Xianmao commanded. "Regarding the pricing, they can all understand it. The key focus is to make water usage more convenient, and we also need to set up a place for baggage storage. These rogue cultivators trust our Wang Clan and will deposit their belongings with us. If they return alive to claim them, we can charge a storage fee. If they fail to return, then after a set number of years, those items will belong to us. Though they might not be worth many spirit stones, it is still a steady stream of extra revenue."
"Nianqiu understands!" Tang Nianqiu replied respectfully.
"Good."
Wang Xianmao nodded and left the backyard, with Yulou quickly following behind.
Seeing Bailu enter with a tray, Yu'an still wanted to eat first. This made Bailu so anxious that she used the tray to nudge his lower back, signaling him to hurry up and follow his older brother.
As the oblivious Yu'an walked away, Tang Nianqiu placed his hands behind his back and asked expressionlessly, "You seem to get along quite well with them?"
Unsure of Tang Nianqiu's intent, Bailu instinctively replied, "No! Not at all! Young Master Yulou and Young Master Yu'an only treat me as a shop hand. They are esteemed descendants of the Wang Clan, so naturally, I simply do whatever they command."
"Mm. Watch your words and deeds from now on. Do not act without a sense of propriety like you just did. Am I clear?"
"Yes, Manager. Bailu knows her mistake!"
Back in the room, Wang Xianmao sat on a chair, instructing the two youths.
"Hongmei is no simple figure, but our Wang Clan is equally formidable. True Person Danri is the martial aunt of your Ancestor Jingyi. Both she and Ancestor Jingyi's master, True Person Xuanzhuan, study under the tutelage of True Person Mangxiang. No matter what Hongmei's purpose is in meeting True Person Danri, we have nothing to worry about."
True Person this, True Person that—Yu'an felt his head spinning from all the titles.
"Patriarch, Danri only has a Purple Palace cultivation base, so why do you all call her True Person Danri? And True Person Xuanzhuan, isn't he also at the Purple Palace realm?"
The patriarch laughed and shook his head, pointing a finger at Yu'an. "Silly child, how many Golden Core True Persons actually exist? Which Purple Palace cultivator doesn't wish to attain Golden Core? When no Golden Core master is present, we address a Purple Palace Grand Cultivator as 'True Person.' It is a mark of our deep respect for our seniors!"
Right then, a grey message talisman flew through the air. As it neared the window of Wang Xianmao's room, it was blocked by a rising formation array.
Wang Xianmao raised his hand to catch the talisman. Sweeping it with his divine sense, he reduced it to ash with a flick of his fingers.
Did something else happen?
"Let me test you two again," Wang Xianmao said. "If you were to meet a Golden Core True Person, how should you address them?"
Faced with the patriarch's question, Yulou shook his head, and Yu'an was even more clueless.
"Call them Immortal Venerables, hahaha!" Wang Xianmao laughed. "When you see a Purple Palace cultivator, you call them True Person. But when you cross paths with a Golden Core True Person, you must call them Immortal Venerable. I call this the 'First True Person Law.' You must keep it firmly in mind so you don't make fools of yourselves in the future."
Good grief, the First True Person Law, Yulou thought.
He had just learned another nuance. The path of cultivation was filled with such subtle details everywhere!
"Alright, accompany me to a banquet," Wang Xianmao said. "Jingyi's martial junior, Guo Baichi, has also accompanied True Person Danri this time. I will take you along to broaden your horizons."
Wang Jingyi was the Wang Clan's Foundation Establishment Ancestor who held the rank of Core Disciple within the Red Lantern Illumination Sect.
Yulou had not expected that an endeavor which began as a simple message delivery to score a free meal—one he didn't even mind missing out on—would suddenly escalate into meeting a disciple of a Purple Palace cultivator. It was truly a bit too dramatic.
Inside the Prefecture Cultivator's Manor, Wang Xianmao led the brothers into the banquet hall.
The former top figure of Clear Stream Market, Jiang Baobian, sat in the first seat on the left.
Seated at the head of the room was True Person Danri's disciple, Guo Baichi. In the first seat on the right was Elder Zhuo Chi of Dripdrop Cave.
The second elder of the Gu Clan had managed to snag a seat further back, keeping a low profile and acting thoroughly submissive.
"Daoist Guo, we meet again."
Though the others present belonged to prestigious sects and great factions, Wang Xianmao did not falter in the slightest. He composedly greeted Guo Baichi at the head of the room.
The Wang Clan had been a subordinate to the Red Lantern Illumination Sect for many years. In essence, everyone belonged to the same camp—the relationship was roughly equivalent to a corporate headquarters executive dealing with a branch manager.
"Brother Xianmao, please take your seat. Tonight is merely an informal gathering," Guo Baichi said, raising his hand to invite Wang Xianmao to sit, his words and gestures filled with courtesy.
Guo Baichi was unlike Jiang Baobian; he did not come with a natural blur of distortion or a cloaking effect. Yulou stole a quiet glance and discovered that this Purple Mansion disciple actually possessed three eyes.
As Yulou looked over, Guo Baichi's primary pair of eyes was scanning the tables, but the third eye on his forehead turned dynamically toward Yulou, startling him into quickly lowering his head.
Guo Baichi naturally paid no mind to the gaze of a mere junior in the Qi Drawing realm. He focused entirely on conversing with the Foundation Establishment cultivators around the banquet.
Seated behind the patriarch, Yulou fell into deep thought.
Wang Xianmao, whose entire body was pale-blue to the point of closely resembling a corpse.
Jiang Baobian, who carried a natural distortion and cloaking aura.
Guo Baichi, who grew a third eye on his forehead.
These three Foundation Establishment cultivators were markedly different from Elder Zhuo Chi of Dripdrop Cave and the second elder of the Gu Clan. Each looked less human than the last.
To Yulou's mind, figures like Jiang Baobian and Wang Xianmao ought to be more formidable. After all, Jiang Baobian was a scion of a Purple Palace family and possessed a supernatural power that naturally concealed his presence in stillness. The patriarch was their own ancestor and could interact with Guo Baichi as an equal, so it was only natural to estimate his strength highly.
"Alright, almost everyone is here. Let us discuss the main matter first."
Seeing that everyone who received a message talisman had arrived, Guo Baichi prepared to initiate the core discussion of the evening. The moment he spoke, the room instantly fell silent.
Only the two attendants setting up temporary seats for Yulou and Yu'an were still moving.
Indeed, among all the Foundation Establishment cultivators tonight, only Wang Xianmao had brought his family's younger generation along to gain experience. This was precisely why Yulou believed his patriarch possessed extraordinary strength.
"The matter of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect's Merit Hall establishing itself in the sect's market towns has been ongoing for a few years now, and everyone knows the reason behind it," Guo Baichi announced. "It is simply that Patriarch Mangxiang is preparing to attain Golden Core, and he still lacks a vast amount of resources. You are all veterans of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect, so you understand well how the sect treats everyone. This time, my master has personally brought the Merit Hall to Clear Stream, and there is a transformation behind this move—the items available for exchange in the Merit Hall this time will be far superior to those in the past! The Red Lantern Illumination Sect's unique Candlelight Spirit-Nourishing Pills and Golden Basin Mending Pills will both be available. Miraculous medicines that assist in Foundation Establishment are completely unrestricted..."
The people in the hall no longer cared about what Guo Baichi said next.
The Candlelight Spirit-Nourishing Pill was the finest auxiliary spiritual pill in the Wunan Basin for opening a Purple Palace. It was a secret transmission of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect, a precious treasure that could not be bought with money alone.
The Golden Basin Mending Pill was one of the essential foundation-mending treasures required for a single spirit root cultivator to open a Purple Palace. After consuming four Golden Basin Mending Pills, a single spirit root cultivator at Foundation Establishment complete could bypass the lengthy process of mending their Dao foundation and directly begin charging toward the Purple Palace realm. It, too, was a priceless commodity.
"Daoist Guo, the Candlelight Spirit-Nourishing Pills and Golden Basin Mending Pills are exorbitantly priced. I am afraid we cannot afford them," Elder Zhuo Chi of Dripdrop Cave sighed.
Having finished introducing the new changes to the Merit Hall, Guo Baichi took a sip of spirit wine, set down his cup with a smile, and spoke.
"No matter," Guo Baichi replied. "Patriarch Mangxiang attaining Golden Core is the single most important event for the Red Lantern Illumination Sect over the next century. None of you are outsiders. You may use the future revenues of your clans and sects as collateral to exchange for merit points. This way, even if you cannot afford them at the moment, you can still utilize these precious pills ahead of time and slowly repay the debt in the future."
Yulou's hand holding the chopsticks tightened slightly.
With a man from a wealthy merchant family serving as the sect master, they were deploying a cultivation-world version of a wealth-harvesting engine down into a Qi Refining market town that they would normally never glance at. And now, they were beginning to leverage the future revenues of subordinate sects and clans, harvesting future wealth in the form of loans.
The Red Lantern Illumination Sect—the Ten Sects truly lived up to their reputation.
He finally understood why the rogue cultivators in the ghost market were so desperate to purchase Water Jade!