NOVPUBLi Fan, who had quietly changed his appearance, sat in a corner, attentively listening to the conversation of the cultivators within the fortress.
"Have you heard? It seems the Immortal Alliance is no longer planning to build a Floating Sky City in Jiushan Province."
"Oh? Why is that?"
"It’s all because of the instability of the space here. Although the Heavenly Venerable Law Phases thoroughly plowed through Jiushan Province, they did not change the spatial characteristics. The Teleportation Array still can’t be used stably."
At these words, all the cultivators suddenly understood.
"Not building the Floating Sky City... With such a huge piece of land, the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals won’t just ignore it, will they?"
"Hard to say. Before, they could rely on Jiushan’s advantageous terrain and build cities flanking the mountains. Now, this place is as flat as a board with no strategic points to defend. The most crucial issue is that the Teleportation Array can’t be used; once surrounded without the ability to receive quick support. Both the cost of defense and its effectiveness are too poor."
"You don’t know shit! The Five Elders’ Monk came knocking on our door begging for peace after we beat them. Do you think they’d dare to launch an offensive? What danger could there be?"
"This fellow Daoist is really too naive. Have you not heard that the momentum of strength and weakness has no ancient constant? Can a momentary victory or defeat define a hero? Last time we won because we caught the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals off guard. In my opinion, if we were to fight again, the outcome would still be unknown!"
"You weren’t saying this when our Alliance of Thousands of Immortals was defeated before."
...
The cultivators within the fortress were very keen on discussing the situation in the Xuanhuang World.
They each stuck to their own arguments, endlessly debating, unwilling to concede to anyone. It was quite lively.
Li Fan looked around and noticed that, besides himself, there was another cultivator who was only listening with a sideways ear and did not join the discussion.
This person appeared to be in his thirties, dressed in a black long robe with his silver-white hair tied up. Watching everyone’s debate, a hint of disdain flashed in his eyes.
He obviously did not agree with the opinions of the cultivators present.
Li Fan smiled faintly, bought a pot of top-quality Spiritual Wine, and sat in front of the other man.
"How should I address fellow Daoist?" Li Fan poured a cup for the silver-haired cultivator with a smile and asked.
"Hmm?" The silver-haired cultivator was still full of wariness towards Li Fan’s unexpected kindness.
Instead of answering Li Fan’s question, he narrowed his eyes and kept sizing up the overly familiar cultivator in front of him.
"Heh, fellow Daoist need not be too suspicious. I could see at a glance that fellow Daoist has an imposing presence, unlike the common crowd, and harbors deep thoughts within. Moreover, you seem to be intensely curious about the future situation of Jiushan Province, which is why I took the liberty to ask for your opinion."
The silver-haired cultivator looked at Li Fan’s sincere face, hesitated for a long time, but still let go of his wariness.
After downing the Spiritual Wine in one gulp, the silver-haired cultivator conveyed through a mind-message, "Heh, you’ve asked the right person!"
"My name is Xin Hongzhang, if we’re talking about being well-informed, none of these people here can compare to me!"
Li Fan, hearing this, promptly refilled Xin Hongzhang’s cup.
Xin Hongzhang was quite pleased with Li Fan’s attitude and conveyed through a mind-message, "Seeing as you and I are fated, I will reveal a little to you. You must remember not to pass this on."
Li Fan nodded again and again.
"Indeed, those people are correct, the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals has indeed decided not to build a Floating Sky City in Jiushan Province. However, this does not mean the Immortal Alliance intends to abandon the place."
"On the contrary, the Immortal Alliance decided to establish the first-ever Free Trade State in history right here."
"Oh? A Free Trade State?" Watching the other party speak so earnestly, Li Fan couldn’t help but become genuinely interested. "What does that mean?"
Xin Hongzhang said proudly, "You know about Wanfa Commerce, right? The Alliance of Thousands of Immortals and the Five Elders Organization have been at odds for years, preventing each other’s goods from circulating. Wanfa Commerce, situated in the buffer zone between the two sides, is beyond the reach of both the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals and the Five Elders Organization. Thus, Wanfa Commerce can openly sell all kinds of precious treasures. Although they mark up their prices considerably, cultivators still travel thousands of miles to make their purchases, and the flow of buyers never ceases."
"However, those days are old news. The Heavenly Venerable Law Phases showed their might, and the entire Jiushan Province was leveled. Wanfa Commerce has not been completely wiped out but has suffered heavy losses. To return to their former glory... that would be difficult..." Xin Hongzhang shook his head.
"But the leading figure of Wanfa Commerce is indeed quite the personage. He actually persuaded the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals to remove trade restrictions in Jiushan Province. Cultivators from both the Alliance of Thousands of Immortals and the Five Elders Organization can come here to freely trade the materials they need. They just need to pay a small tax."
"The Immortal Alliance is in control, assisted by the experienced Wanfa Commerce. It is said that they have already secretly concluded an agreement with the Five Elders Organization, ensuring that if war breaks out again in the future, neither side will choose to start it in Jiushan Province..."
"You do know what it means to have safe and confirmed free trade, don’t you?" Xin Hongzhang stared at Li Fan.
Li Fan nodded, his eyes shining with excitement.
"One can imagine, the now desolate Jiushan Province will soon become bustling beyond compare. It may even surpass the prosperity of the inner Four Big States. If one can seize this rare opportunity, it will surely lead to a reversal of fate..." Xin Hongzhang also took another fervent drink of Spiritual Wine, venting the excitement in his heart.
"If it weren’t for this reason, I wouldn’t have traveled thousands of miles to this remote and desolate borderland."
Li Fan lowered his head and remained silent for a long time, as if digesting this astonishing news.
Then he looked up, full of gratitude, and said to Xin Hongzhang, "Such important insider information, and you just casually told me, a stranger you met by chance... "
Xin Hongzhang waved his hand: "Hehe, if you hadn’t approached me to chat and ordered a pot of good wine, I wouldn’t have shared this matter with you."
"Actually, this matter isn’t exactly top-secret. The notice from the Immortal Alliance will probably come out soon. We just have the chance to gain a bit of a head start."
"By the way, if you have enough contribution points to spare, consider keeping an eye out for the opportunity to acquire a Cave Mansion in Jiushan Province."
"I dare bet that within ten years, the price of a Cave Mansion here will at least double! Even tripling or quadrupling would not be a problem. If you can buy a few Cave Mansions early on and then sell them later..."
"It’s simply a business with no capital and all profit!"
Xin Hongzhang quietly transmitted his voice again.
"Xin my friend, you truly have great foresight!" Li Fan appeared as if he had just woken from a dream, smacking his own forehead, "How did I not think of that?"
He then proceeded to shower praises incessantly.
After drinking too much Spiritual Wine and hearing Li Fan’s flattery, Xin Hongzhang couldn’t help but feel somewhat elated.
Suddenly, he noticed that Li Fan seemed to hesitate about something.
Eventually, as if making up his mind, Li Fan transmitted his voice secretly: "Since Xin my friend has treated me so well, I can’t be stingy."
"To be honest, I have a secret technique called [Descent of the Divine]. If you don’t disdain it, I can pass it on to you," he offered. 𝙣𝒐𝙫𝙥𝙪𝙗.𝙘𝙤𝙢
Seeing Li Fan so serious, Xin Hongzhang laughed and was unconcerned.
