NOVPUBChapter 273
“Shaoshang, I see that your aura is full and your energy is vibrant. You clearly have reached the peak of Foundation Establishment Realm.
“Why haven’t you gone into seclusion to break through?”
In True Martial Sect, Senior Brother Gu looked at Gu Shaoshang curiously.
Gu Shaoshang smiled bitterly and said, “I recently won a treasure at the Immortal Net Auction, spending all my spirit stones.
“Now I can’t even afford the lowest-grade Foundation Pill, let alone any other supportive pills for the breakthrough.
“So, to be safe, I plan to save spirit stones for a few more years before attempting the breakthrough. I’ll treat it as a way to temper my foundation.”
For most cultivators, breaking through was highly risky.
Without the aid of pills, the success rate of a breakthrough was extremely low.
And if the breakthrough failed, it would cause severe damage to their vitality.
In some cases, even regression in cultivation was possible.
Moreover, with the right pills, it could even enhance the quality of the Golden Core after the breakthrough.
The quality of the Golden Core determined the future path to immortality.
Naturally, the higher the quality, the better.
Thus, most cultivators would fully prepare before attempting a breakthrough.
To prepare for a breakthrough, spending seven or eight years gathering resources was entirely normal.
The senior brother nodded in understanding but soon furrowed his brows and asked, puzzled, “Shang, don’t you have a Cultivation Loan limit?”
Gu Shaoshang nodded, “I do, and it’s not a small amount.”
“Then why not borrow spirit stones from the Cultivation Loan to break through?” The senior brother was even more confused.
Gu Shaoshang hesitated, “That loan doubles in six years. I feel that’s too expensive. But if I just work a bit harder, I can gather the resources I need in two or three years without paying any interest.
“Considering it that way, it seems more sensible to save up on my own.”
The senior brother shook his head immediately, “That’s where you’re wrong! Cultivation Loan might seem costly due to interest, but if you break through to the Golden Core Realm two or three years earlier, your ability to earn spirit stones will be vastly different from when you’re in the Foundation Establishment Realm.
“By then, you can easily repay that loan within a couple of months.
“Not to mention the other benefits of forming your Golden Core earlier.
“You don’t need to waste two or three years at all.”
The senior brother’s words made Gu Shaoshang’s eyes light up.
Indeed!
He had only been thinking about the interest.
But if he broke through early, the treatment and rewards from the sect for tasks would greatly surpass his previous earnings.
At that moment, Gu Shaoshang made up his mind.
He would borrow to break through!
Without hesitation, he borrowed his entire limit from the Cultivation Loan.
Then, he went to the Immortal Net Taobao and added all the pills and formations he needed to his cart and placed an order.
Since his borrowing limit was high, he even managed to bid for a treasure from the Immortal Net Auction House, one that could potentially enhance the quality of his Golden Core.
Three days later, everything he had ordered arrived.
Gu Shaoshang entered seclusion to begin his breakthrough.
Ten days later, he succeeded in forming his Golden Core and emerged from seclusion, receiving envious glances from countless disciples. Shortly after, the elders summoned him and promoted him to a true disciple.
His status and treatment increased nearly tenfold.
After forming his Golden Core, a single mission earned Gu Shaoshang as much as a year’s income from when he was at the Foundation Establishment Realm.
In just two months, Gu Shaoshang had repaid the entire loan.
—
Late at night, sitting in his true disciple’s abode, Gu Shaoshang reflected on his journey.
He was truly grateful he had chosen to take the Cultivation Loan.
Otherwise, he’d still be at the Foundation Establishment Realm, far from enjoying his current success.
He would have never become a true disciple so soon.
Who knows? His future might see even greater heights.
In the path of cultivation, once you gain an edge, you maintain it.
At this moment, Gu Shaoshang felt a deep gratitude for the Cultivation Loan and for the Heavenly Origin Saint Master who had invented it.
He opened his Immortal Net Weibo and shared his story with countless cultivators, telling them that borrowing money isn’t a disaster, and they shouldn’t be scared off by interest.
If used wisely, loans could bring even greater benefits.
—
Meanwhile, in the Martial Emperor City in the Eastern Sea…
At the home of the alchemist family, the head of the Cheng family wore a hesitant expression.
Not long ago, a beast tide had wreaked havoc.
Although the Heavenly Origin Saint Master eventually pacified the chaos, much of Martial Emperor City was left in ruins.
When the Cheng family fled, many valuable items were left behind.
For instance, their expensive alchemy rooms and the Earth Fire formation were all destroyed by the beasts and were no longer usable.
Now that they had returned, rebuilding the alchemy rooms and formations required a massive amount of spirit stones.
The Cheng family managed to build just one alchemy room, leaving them completely out of spirit stones.
In the past, they could produce nearly a hundred thousand pills daily.
Now, they could only manage a few thousand.
Their income had plummeted.
They wanted to expand production but lacked the spirit stones to do so.
They could only watch helplessly as customers turned to other sellers, causing them immense pain.
“I can’t hesitate any longer!
“At this rate, it’ll take us over ten years to gradually rebuild the alchemy rooms and restore production capacity.
“That’s way too long!
“I’ll borrow from the Cultivation Loan.
“I’ll take out the spirit stones and build more alchemy rooms!
“Once production increases, income will follow.
“Although the Cultivation Loan has high interest, if we repay early after making enough profit, we could be debt-free in a year.
“After that, it’s all pure profit!”
At that moment, the head of the Cheng family made up his mind.
He decided to take a loan from the sect’s Cultivation Loan service.
As a third-rate family, the Chengs had a loan limit of fifty thousand high-grade spirit stones.
Without hesitation, the head of the family borrowed the entire amount.
When the elders and other clan members learned of this, they were all anxious.
After all, a fifty-thousand-spirit-stone loan would incur eighteen hundred spirit stones in interest alone per year.
Moreover, if they couldn’t repay it, the consequences would be severe.
No one wanted to find out what would happen if they owed the Sacred Land.
But the head of the Cheng family ignored these concerns.
He silenced the opposition and, with a grand gesture, began the expansion.
