Dao of Money

Xiangrui only stopped asking Chen Ren to stay in the city and work for him after he rejected him for the seventh time.

Even then, the city lord grumbled, clearly displeased. “You are letting go of a big opportunity,” Xiangrui said, waving a hand. “Goldspire lacks nothing. I could get you most things you desire—resources, influence, comfort. Few people would refuse that.”

Chen Ren simply smiled. “I’m sorry, your lordship. I just have the heart of an adventurer. Staying in one place isn’t something I want.”

At that obvious lie, Princess Yanyue almost snorted. She caught herself just in time, smoothing her expression before turning to Xiangrui. “I believe the plays met your expectations, City Lord Xiangrui.”

Xiangrui nodded. “They did. They were as good as I expected. I look forward to seeing them performed on stage.” He paused, then added, “I would have liked to know how you came up with such stories, but I imagine you two didn’t come here just to discuss art. You likely want to ask your questions.”

“Yes. As you know, some cultivators have already started moving to the sixth floor. If we don’t leave soon, we’ll fall behind.”

Xiangrui snorted. “No, you won’t.”

Chen Ren raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean?”

The city lord’s lips curled into a knowing smile. “The sixth floor is rotten. It’s been overrun by zombies and other creatures that can only exist by feeding on demonic qi. Anyone who goes there can’t stay long—demonic qi seeps into the body and mind. There’s a reason I never visit that floor, even for leisure.”

At those words, Princess Yanyue and Chen Ren exchanged a look.

If the sixth floor was really like that, then it was no different from the Corpse Lands, perhaps even worse.

Chen Ren could already imagine it: hordes of zombies flooding toward them the moment they set foot on the floor, endless, mindless, and fueled by demonic qi. He suppressed a sigh and looked back at Xiangrui.

“Do you know where the lift to the next floor is?” Chen Ren asked.

Xiangrui nodded. “I do. But it’s controlled by the Zombie Queen.”

Princess Yanyue frowned. “The Zombie Queen?”

“She’s a trapped mouse,” Xiangrui replied dismissively. “One of the zombies that gained sentience. She can’t leave the sixth floor anymore as she needs massive amounts of demonic qi just to survive. She controls most of the floor now, and if you want access to the lift, you’ll have to go through her.”

Chen Ren paused at the information, then asked, “Does she take tokens?”

Xiangrui snorted. “Tokens? No. Tokens mean nothing there. The sixth floor is a place for uncivilized savages. They don’t care about your wealth, and frankly, I’m not even sure what they do care about.”

He leaned back, continuing casually, “The easiest way to reach the lift is to kill everything in your path and push forward. But you’ll likely have to fight through hundreds—maybe thousands—of zombies before the lift even activates. Still, once you reach the seventh floor, things become much easier. Fewer things trying to kill you, and more importantly, you won’t have to pass through the sixth floor again to move between floors.”

The more Xiangrui spoke, the clearer it became that the sixth floor was practically designed for brute force. That benefitted the Guardian sects far more than it would someone like Chen Ren.

Princess Yanyue might still manage, backed by her guards and resources, but Chen Ren was different. Until now, he had climbed to the top of the rankings through wit, planning, and leverage rather than sheer slaughter. And although nothing in the pagoda explicitly stated it, he was certain there was a reason rankings existed at all.

After all, without his rank, Xiangrui would never have allowed him to enter the castle alongside Princess Yanyue in the first place. And if the more important pagoda NPCs could check rankings, then it stood to reason that there would be others—warriors, sentient beings, or rulers like Xiangrui—who might judge him differently based solely on that number.

Would the Zombie Queen be the same?

He couldn’t say yet.

At the very least, he could still earn tokens on the fifth floor, but he had a strong feeling that the upper floors would hand out far greater rewards. If he wanted to stay near the top of the rankings, he couldn’t rely on brute force alone. He would have to play it smart.

While he was lost in thought, Princess Yanyue continued asking questions, one after another, about the sixth floor, the zombie queen that ruled it, and anything that could give them an edge once they entered. Chen Ren listened carefully to every answer, occasionally chiming in with his own questions, mostly about hidden treasures Xiangrui might know of, unusual opportunities, and the inheritances scattered throughout the tower.

On that last point, Xiangrui finally gave a more concrete answer.

“Parts of different types of inheritances are scattered on the lower floors,” he said casually, “but the core of it lies in the upper ones. I know there’s one on the ninth floor, and another on the tenth. I’ve never seen them myself—it’s all rumours—but smaller inheritances exist on most floors. They might come in handy if you’re lucky.”

Princess Yanyue frowned slightly. “Then why didn’t you ever try to claim them yourself?”

Xiangrui shrugged. “They aren’t meant for me. Only climbers can obtain them. For what reason, I don’t know, but that’s how the pagoda has always worked. No one questions it.”

Chen Ren met Princess Yanyue’s eyes when he heard that. It was genuinely interesting.

It was easy to forget that Xiangrui standing in front of them was, in the end, no more than a construct, just like the rest of the residents of the pagoda. Yet he was created so perfectly that he felt like his own person, complete with ego, boredom, and preferences. How such a puppet could exist was something Chen Ren doubted he would ever understand, but the fact that it did was fascinating in itself.

The two of them continued asking questions, one after another, and Xiangrui answered them with varying levels of interest. He spoke about the civilizations on the upper floors, how they functioned, what kind of behavior was tolerated there, and what sort of beasts appeared on different floors. Some questions he answered clearly, while others he dismissed with a wave of his hand, claiming he had no knowledge of such matters.

Eventually, Chen Ren steered the conversation toward something closer to home.

“What about hidden treasures on this floor?” he asked.

Xiangrui grinned as if he had been expecting the question all along. “I thought you would ask that,” he said. “Honestly, there are only two worth mentioning. One is a sword at the bottom of the lake, but it won’t be of much use to you since it’s made for cultivators around the early foundation establishment realm. The other…” He paused, then added dismissively, “is a dice I have with me. But it’s useless.”

Chen Ren raised an eyebrow. “Useless?”

Xiangrui waved his hand. “It’s a summoning dice. Once a day, it summons something at random for the user—water, food, clothes, trivial items like that. It all depends on luck. There’s a 0.001 percent chance it could summon something that rivals the greatest treasures in the pagoda, but realistically? No one will ever hit that chance.”

Chen Ren’s eyebrow rose a little higher. That… didn’t sound useless at all.

Compared to a sword that would be too weak for him, a dice with even the slimmest chance of producing something extraordinary sounded far more practical. Something he could actually benefit from.

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Though he could understand why Xiangrui felt it was useless. For someone with this much wealth and influence, randomly summoning food or clothes sounded laughable rather than appealing. After a brief pause, Chen Ren spoke up.

“Then… Can I take it?”

That visibly surprised Xiangrui. “Why?”

Princess Yanyue also turned to look at Chen Ren, clearly not expecting that request. He met their gazes calmly and said, “It sounds interesting to me. Who knows? I might actually be able to draw that lucky treasure.”

Xiangrui snorted. “If you are a son of providence, then sure.” He paused, fingers tapping lightly against the armrest, before adding, “Very well. You can take it. But if you actually manage to obtain something notable from it, you will come back and show me.”

Chen Ren smiled at once. “We have a deal.”

Xiangrui chuckled, clearly amused. “I’m curious to see whether luck finally chooses someone. That dice has been rotting in my palace for ages anyway. Now then, do you have any more questions? If not, I need to deal with city matters.”

Princess Yanyue immediately leaned forward. “I have one more thing I wish to ask.”

“Go on.”

“Do you know of a book,” she said carefully, “a journal written by one of the climbers, one that should exist somewhere within the pagoda?”

“There are countless books in this city. But I don’t recall anything like that. I have read every single one of them.”

Princess Yanyue’s shoulders sagged slightly. “What about the other floors?”

Xiangrui frowned in thought, resting a hand against his chin. “Maybe the ninth floor. There’s a massive library there. If it was a climber’s possession, then it’s either stored there… or someone in the pagoda has already claimed it.” He shrugged lightly. “It really depends on how important that book is.”

His words didn’t really tell them much. When Chen Ren met Princess Yanyue’s eyes, he could tell she was thinking the same thing. Still, at least they had a direction now. The library on the ninth floor.

Getting there, however, was another matter entirely. Most climbers had never even come close to reaching it. But Xiangrui clearly had no intention of helping them any further, so there was no point lingering.

Both of them stood up.

Chen Ren bowed deeply toward the city lord, while Princess Yanyue simply inclined her head.

“Thank you for your help, City Lord Xiangrui,” she said. “Despite your busy schedule, you heard us out and offered valuable assistance.”

Xiangrui waved a hand dismissively. “It’s fine. It was a trade.” Then his gaze shifted to Chen Ren. “Come with me. I’ll give you the dice.”

He nodded. Xiangrui turned to leave, but before following him, Chen Ren glanced back at Princess Yanyue.

“You can go after the sword,” he said. “It’s only fair if I’m taking the dice.”

She smiled faintly. “Alright. Don’t take too long. I’d like us to climb the sixth floor together.”

Chen Ren nodded once more, then followed Xiangrui through another door on the far side of the chamber and into a gilded hallway beyond. Servants immediately bowed as the city lord passed, but Xiangrui didn’t spare them a glance. He stopped in front of a door and said, “Wait here. I’ll be back shortly.”

He stepped inside.

Chen Ren remained where he was, standing quietly. He was glad for the moment alone with Xiangrui as there were questions he couldn’t ask in front of Princess Yanyue.

Two minutes later, the door opened again. Xiangrui stepped out, a small dice resting in his palm.

He let out a small breath and said, “It took some time to find it.”

He extended his hand and placed the dice into Chen Ren’s palm who examined it carefully. Aside from a faint, steady trace of qi lingering within it, the dice felt completely normal.

“Just remember,” Xiangrui said, “you can only use it once a day.” Then he glanced down the hallway. “I’m sure you can find your way back.” He turned, reaching for the door—

“Wait.”

Chen Ren stopped him before he could open it.

Xiangrui paused, looking over his shoulder. “I thought your questions were finished.”

“I only have one more,” Chen Ren said. “But it’s very important.”

Xiangrui sighed. “Speak.”

“Do you know of a medallion?” Chen Ren asked.

“What kind of medallion?”

“An important one. It has many copies, but I don’t have one with me. It fits easily into a palm… and it’s the key to the Gate of Immortals.”

Xiangrui fell silent for a moment, clearly thinking. Then he shook his head. “I have no idea about any Gate of Immortals. But if it’s truly important, then like the book the princess mentioned, it should be on the upper floors. Who knows, maybe even on the fifteenth floor.”

“Do you know what’s there?”

Xiangrui shrugged. “No. Even I never ventured past the tenth floor. Only climbers can go beyond that.” He turned back toward the door. “I hope your questions are finally over.”

With that, he stepped inside and closed the door behind him.

Chen Ren remained where he was, his mind far heavier than before. He had hoped the medallion would be something easily uncovered, but it seemed he would have to keep climbing and searching for it himself.

Perhaps the grand library on the ninth floor would hold some clues.

As he made his way out of the castle, Chen Ren couldn’t help but wonder how long it would truly take to climb the pagoda properly. At his current pace, several months was the most optimistic estimate, and it could easily take far longer. Maybe over a year.

He couldn’t afford that. He already felt uneasy leaving behind his sect and businesses for a few months.

If there was another way—some method to bypass certain floors—he needed to find it. And whether such a thing was even possible was something Chen Ren would have to uncover himself.

***

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