Cultivation is just so scientific!

Chapter 524: Chapter 308: Takeover_2

The entire process did not take long, primarily because the identities of the two parties did not match. The shopkeepers were all Foundation Establishment Cultivators without prospects, while Li Yuanba was a Golden Core Elder, creating a gap in status that made the meeting essentially a courtesy visit.

Li Yuanba accepted the congratulations gift and reassured the shopkeepers with his words, signaling he would not cause trouble in Jieshan City.

He was not much concerned about the profit; what he valued more was the connection between Jieshan City and the forces of the Righteous Path.

Manager Xin Shun, please stay!” Li Yuanba called out as the nine shopkeepers were leaving.

Manager Xin Shun was the shopkeeper of his own sect’s shop, and Li Yuanba, being his direct superior, had the authority to dismiss him with a single word.

Manager Xin Shun respectfully stopped, wondering if Li Yuanba was interested in his position and wanted to replace him with his own person.

Manager Xin Shun, would it be possible to exchange some Spiritual Objects through the shop’s channels?” Li Yuanba asked straightforwardly, with no intention of hiding his thoughts.

In Jieshan City now, he held significant power, even the Jieshan Mountain Pass would give him face, otherwise, how could they cooperate in defense?

Manager Xin Shun, relieved that he was not being replaced, felt his unease dissipate.

Elder, as long as the quantity of Spiritual Objects is not too large, there wouldn’t be an issue. In fact, by greasing some palms, even some forbidden Spiritual Objects can be exchanged!” Manager Xin Shun answered honestly.

Such matters were unknown to Li Yuanba, who had just arrived, but over time, someone would surely inform him. Therefore, Manager Xin Shun, eager to curry favor with Li Yuanba, did not hold back any secrets.

Do your job well, and I will notify you when needed!” Li Yuanba waved his hand and said.

Manager Xin Shun bowed and left.

The day after Li Yuanba took charge of Jieshan City, he received welfare benefits fitting a Golden Core Elder of the Senluo Sect, which surprised him with the sect’s efficiency.

The welfare for the elders had increased somewhat, consisting of several servings of Third Grade Spirit Tea and Spirit Fruit, enough for three years.

The nine shopkeepers had brought third-grade spiritual items as congratulatory gifts. Although not exceedingly precious, they were certainly valuable.

Since he had not changed anything, Jieshan City calmly transitioned through the power handover, and commercial activities were unaffected.

He selected three items from the congratulatory gifts and transformed into a streak of sword light, flying toward the Jieshan Mountain Pass.

Outside the Jieshan Mountain Pass, he cast a Sound Transmission Technique, and soon the formation opened a passage allowing him entry.

Brother Jiang, Brother Meng, Senior Brother Shi, I apologize for the intrusion, please forgive me!” As soon as Li Yuanba entered the Jieshan Mountain Pass, he saw three Guardian Golden Core Elders come out to greet him and he promptly stepped forward to bow.

The three Golden Core Elders stationed to guard the Jieshan Mountain Pass were all at the Middle Stage of Golden Core, their combat abilities ranked high among the sect’s Golden Core cultivators.

Yet all three Golden Core Elders came out to greet him, indicative of the importance they placed on Li Yuanba.

Of course, much of it was because Li Yuanba had shown great respect by visiting with gifts the day after taking over Jieshan City.

Junior Brother Li, having a Sword Cultivator like you nearby, allows us to rest much easier!” Jiang Pu responded with a smile and returned the gesture.

Among the three Golden Core Elders stationed at the Jieshan Mountain Pass, Jiang Pu was the most senior and could speak on behalf of all three.

Jiang Pu’s words were not mere politeness. The original Golden Core Elder of Jieshan City had been transferred, impacting the security of the Jieshan Mountain Pass, so they could not help but take it seriously.

Jiang Pu used internal sect connections to learn about Li Yuanba’s circumstances.

Upon learning that Li Yuanba was newly promoted to Golden Core and had been assigned to Jieshan City right after completing a task, he was quite displeased.

However, after hearing about Li Yuanba’s performance on Northern Island, especially his few interventions that showed his mastery over formations and formidable combat power, Jiang Pu had a change of heart.

Especially considering the Ten Thousand Sword Peak Treasure in Li Yuanba’s possession, equating to the combat power of a Late-stage Golden Core, not to mention that as a Sword Cultivator, Li Yuanba was inherently powerful.

“Brother Jiang, this is a small gift, I’ll be needing the care of the three seniors in the future!” Li Yuanba said as he presented the gift.

“What need is there for gifts when you come here? Come inside!” Jiang Pu said with a smile, inviting him in while the other two Golden Core Elders also seemed very pleased.

It wasn’t because of the gift but rather Li Yuanba’s attitude that pleased them.

Li Yuanba had a chat with the three Golden Core Elders for a while, and they, intending to look after him, shared some information about the Golden Core Realm, which proved very beneficial to him.

Li Yuanba had recently entered the Golden Core Realm and, with Elder Jian in seclusion early on and no one to guide him, had been figuring out many cultivation issues on his own; having the advice of the three veteran Golden Core Elders made his future cultivation smoother.

“Brother Jiang, in the future I might have some personal items I’d like to bring through Jieshan Mountain Pass, I hope the three seniors can look after me!” Li Yuanba noted that it was about time to switch the topic to his real purpose for this visit.

Some things need to be frankly discussed; he too was a Golden Core cultivator and knew that with the pass’s gateway, under the Divine Thought and Formation of a Golden Core cultivator, any concealed Spiritual Objects would be detected.

Thus, to smuggle Spiritual Objects stealthily without prior notification could lead to trouble later.

Of course, even if Li Yuanba didn’t notify them and they knew the items were his, there’s a very good chance they wouldn’t interfere; but with notification, there would definitely be no trouble.

“Haha, junior, rest assured, we guard the Jieshan Mountain Pass, and a small amount of Spiritual Objects moving through is quite normal. Some of the resources we three need for cultivation are also exchanged directly from there!” Jiang Pu laughed.

Jiang Pu actually misunderstood Li Yuanba, thinking he just wanted to save some expenses to obtain more resources.

The resources of the Ten Thousand Great Mountains complement those of the Righteous Path; the resources from the Ten Thousand Great Mountains would double in price when reaching the Righteous Path, and vice versa.

This is referring to the official channels. Official channels on either side involve service charges, shops seeking profit, and powers that levy taxes.

Consequently, the selling price of resources after passing through the checkpoints naturally increases a lot.

In private dealings, however, the various costs are omitted, and the prices thus lower.

“Actually, Jieshan Mountain Pass also has some unofficial income, even if you hadn’t come we would have informed you!” Meng Sheng chimed in beside him.

Li Yuanba couldn’t help but be curious, looking towards Meng Sheng who spoke.

“We have a private connection with the Guardian Golden Core on the other side; there are some deals involving third-grade spiritual items that don’t go through the official channels, and the profits from these transactions are split equally between the guarding Golden Cores, almost equivalent to the income standard of a guarding mission!” Meng Sheng said with a smile.

If Li Yuanba hadn’t come, it wouldn’t have taken long for the relationship between both parties to become close; though he wouldn’t be short of benefits, the timing would be uncertain.

Maybe a delay of several months, or perhaps one to two years.

Now that the relationship was close, there definitely would be a share for Li Yuanba in this profit belonging to the Jieshan Mountain Pass.

You should know that Jieshan City, where Li Yuanba was, also played an important part in this chain of benefits.

Therefore, Li Yuanba felt more confident about future resource movements.

He wanted to enhance his strength faster, which required the resources from his counterpart Li Shiming’s side; previously, to obtain resources he or Li Shiming himself needed to arrange a meeting.

Whether it was him or Li Shiming himself, they each had their troubles.

His entanglements with Qianye Temple seemed to have calmed down, but he was well aware that once Qianye Temple made a move, escaping would be incredibly difficult, thus he needed to avoid leaving the protection of the formation as much as possible.

As for Li Shiming’s side, it was almost like a curse that trouble would find him whenever he left the sect, so Shushan Sect had restricted him from leaving.

This caused a temporary discontinuation of contact between him and his counterpart Li Shiming until his transfer to Jieshan City presented a chance to reconnect.

When leaving the Jieshan Mountain Pass, Li Yuanba and the three Golden Core Elders scheduled the next time they would meet. The three Golden Core Elders also regularly discussed cultivation, a practice beneficial for Golden Core cultivators’ training, and they were willing to include Li Yuanba, which was their way of acknowledging his joining their ranks.