The Master and His Wealthy Fiancée

It didn’t matter that they hadn’t learned the techniques; Chen Dong was still under their control.

Zhuang Zheng cleared his throat and said solemnly, ”Pavilion Master Zhou from the Treasure Hunting Pavilion contacted me. He wants to pre-order five thousand jars each of the Drunken Immortal Brew. What do you all think?”

The others were stunned. Their minds instantly calculated the total price: a hundred thousand Spirit Stones. Their brew was already in such high demand that they wouldn’t discount it by a single Spirit Stone, no matter the quantity.

Divided among them, that one hundred thousand Spirit Stones would mean over ten thousand each. For an ordinary Cultivator Clan, accumulating such an astonishing sum would take at least sixty years.

The lanky Fourth Brother said excitedly, ”Let’s do it! This is the opportunity for us Eight Immortals!”

Hao Niu the Fifth, however, was a bit dumbfounded. ”That’s too much. If I really had that many Spirit Stones, I wouldn’t even know how to spend them!”

The rest of them were also visibly excited.

Chen Dong, however, frowned slightly. ’This order looks too much like a trap.’ He couldn’t care less what happened to the ’Eight Immortals’, but his fate was still in their hands. There was no guarantee they wouldn’t just hand him over when the time came.

For now, the ’Eight Immortals’ were intimidated by Chen Dong’s fabricated, powerful background and hadn’t resorted to coercion. Another group might not have had such reservations; they would have just thrown him into a cage indefinitely, or perhaps even resorted to soul extraction.

Just as Chen Dong was about to speak up and warn them, the Fox Daoist shook his head. ”Big Brother, I don’t think this is an opportunity. We all know how this world works. We’ve been too conspicuous these past ten days. The profits from the Drunken Immortal Brew have already caught the attention of the Gu Chuan lineage!”

Zhuang Zheng nodded, his expression grim. ”I was thinking the same thing, which is why I turned down Zhou Zeyuan. As long as the profits aren’t too enormous, the Gu Chuan lineage has no reason to break the rules of the Xiayun River just to deal with us.”

Fatty Xin Ranming frowned. ”Big Brother, if you already turned him down, why even bring it up? You could have just made the decision yourself.”

A fierce look returned to Zhuang Zheng’s face. ”I’m bringing it up to tell you all that we need to lie low for a while. From now on, we’ll limit sales of Drunken Immortal Brew to around a hundred jars per month. We’ll play the long game.”

Xin Ranming immediately shot back, ”A hundred-odd jars? How many Spirit Stones would that leave for us to split?”

Zhuang Zheng’s gaze hardened as he stared at him. ”We’ll wait a few years until the attention dies down. Or what, Third Brother, do you have an objection?”

Xin Ranming hastily shook his head. ”None, none at all!”

’As expected of the infamous ’Eight Immortals,’ so cautious!’ But this was not the outcome Chen Dong wanted. If they laid low and went into hiding, he would remain effectively imprisoned. They could afford to wait, but he could not. Given the weakened state of his Spiritual Golden Lotus, he only had a little over two months left to live.

So, Chen Dong spoke up. ”Since the first and second courses of the Drunken Immortal Brew have attracted attention, we can use this time to develop the third course. If we can replicate it, the profits will be far beyond what the first and second courses could ever generate. Whether you brothers drink it yourselves or sell it, the benefits will be endless.”

Hearing this, the ’Eight Immortals’ turned to him with irritated looks. ”The third course? Ninth Brother, are you sure you can replicate it?”

Chen Dong glanced at them all and revealed his true aim. ”Just let me taste the Drunken Immortal Brew once, and I guarantee I can replicate it.”

Zhuang Zheng’s rejection was instant. ”Absolutely not!”

’A recipe figured out just by smelling it? The Fox Daoist had already told him about that claim, and he hadn’t believed a word of it. Now Chen Dong wanted to drink the Drunken Immortal Brew? To him, that was just a flimsy excuse to try and escape. If they actually set foot in the Qixia Sect’s territory, the ’Eight Immortals’ might all end up dead.’

Chen Dong played his trump card. ”Big Brother, you’ve been at the Mid-stage Foundation Establishment for quite some time, haven’t you? Legend says the third course of the Drunken Immortal Brew was designed for Realm Breakers in the Foundation Establishment Stage. If you brothers get to drink it, not only could you break through to the next level, Big Brother, but the other brothers could also break past the Early-stage Foundation Establishment.”

The ’Eight Immortals’ had varied reactions to this. Fatty Xin Ranming and Eighth Brother, Flood Immortal, looked indifferent; their bottlenecks were due to a lack of resources, not talent. The others, however, grew restless with anticipation. They were stuck at the Early-stage Foundation Establishment because their talent was lacking. If the third course of the Drunken Immortal Brew was real, then with that and the resources from selling the first two courses, even a pig could probably achieve a breakthrough.

But Zhuang Zheng still didn’t believe Chen Dong. He said coldly, ”No means no. It would be best for you to just stay quietly in the manor, Ninth Brother!”

Chen Dong understood his concerns and pressed on. ”Big Brother, you don’t trust me. So, you can all accompany me to Drunken Immortal City. We can come back immediately after I’ve tasted the Drunken Immortal Brew. On the way, I’ll even give you the recipes for the first and second courses. If that’s still not enough, you can poison me or place a restrictive seal on me. Whatever you want.”

Zhuang Zheng’s eyes narrowed as he flatly refused. ”This matter is not up for discussion. No means no!”

But the others immediately cried out, ”Big Brother, wait!”

The Fox Daoist went a step further, sending a voice transmission directly to Zhuang Zheng. ”Big Brother, this kid’s background is definitely extraordinary. Keeping him around could be a liability. When his sect or family eventually comes looking for him, given our reputation... even if we haven’t harmed him, the fact is we’ve held him captive. We won’t get off easy. We could even be wiped out with a single palm strike. Why not do him a favor on this trip? Take him to drink the Drunken Immortal Brew. All we need are the recipes for the first two courses, and that’s enough! Besides, on the off chance the kid is telling the truth, it’s a win-win situation for us!”

Zhuang Zheng fell into deep thought. The Fox Daoist had a point.

The others began to chime in. ”Big Brother, this is an opportunity for our cultivation paths. We have to at least give it a try.”

”We’ve been stuck at the Early-stage Foundation Establishment for so long. Opportunities like this are rare!”

Zhuang Zheng weighed the pros and cons, his brow furrowed in thought. ”Fine!” he declared. ”We’ll take Ninth Brother to taste that Drunken Immortal Brew!”