BXBX NOVEL Chapter 32 - 32: 32: Cutting Loose Cultivator’s Chives,
Chapter 32 - 32: 32: Cutting Loose Cultivator’s Chives,
After receiving this news, Zhou Sui returned home with a heavy heart.
At this moment, Ji Bingyu, Mu Ziyi, and Xia Jingyan had also returned from outside where they had been gathering information. After all, they were all late Qi Cultivation cultivators, and possessed connections to higher circles.
“Husband, it’s true that the situation is a tad tricky. Misty Cloud City has completely changed hands, with the Immortal Mist Sect deciding to settle there. The original City Lord, Lu Hongran, is nearing the end of his life. For the sake of his descendants, he had no choice but to affiliate himself with the Immortal Mist Sect, becoming a guest elder there,” Ji Bingyu shared the information she had gathered.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Sui immediately understood why Lu Hongran had decided to do so. The latter basically had no hope of achieving the Golden Core stage, and his lifespan was also nearing its end.
The problem was that after his death, without self-protection, the Lu family would inevitably become a target for surrounding cultivators, and get devoured like prey by a pack of wolves.
If they wanted to preserve the Lu family, they had to find a powerful backer. Within thousands of miles, who could be bigger than the Immortal Mist Sect?
The Immortal Mist Sect also wanted to exploit the Misty Mountain Range, with the focus on mining the Red Gold Mine and Spirit Stone veins, making Misty Cloud City one of the most important footholds.
The cooperation between the two parties was a perfect match.
This also explained why Lu Hongran chose to give up Misty Cloud City.
“So, does it mean that the Immortal Mist Sect wants to reclaim all property rights in the city?”
Zhou Sui clenched his fists.
“Correct.”
Ji Bingyu nodded: “The Immortal Mist Sect does not recognize any of the previous property rights. Whether it’s a house or a shop, they all have to be rented from the Immortal Mist Sect.
Furthermore, rumoredly the Immortal Mist Sect plans to significantly raise the rent. For example, the house we’re currently living in, we’ll have to pay at least two hundred Lower Grade Spiritual Stones each month.”
What?!
Zhou Sui’s face changed at the news. Two hundred Lower Grade Spiritual Stones was downright robbery. An average cultivator might not even earn that many Spiritual Stones in a year.
If they really choose to live within the city, they would essentially become wage slaves for the Immortal Mist Sect, stripping away any hope of making profits.
“How could the rent be so outrageous? Is the Immortal Mist Sect trying to drive away Loose Cultivators?”
Zhou Sui furrowed his brows.
“No, the Immortal Mist Sect wouldn’t be so foolish. In fact, they want to force
Loose Cultivators to mine for them.”
Ji Bingyu explained: “Even though the Immortal Mist Sect had dug a path to the Red Gold Mine, mining its minerals still requires a large labor force.
The problem is that long term exposure to the Red Gold Mine causes cultivators to be corroded by the essence of Red Gold, making Foundation Establishment impossible, not to mention reducing lifespan. How would the disciples of the Immortal Mist Sect be willing to accept such a reality?
However, they couldn’t not mine either. So, the Immortal Mist Sect set their eyes on us, hoping that we would enter the Red Gold Mine to mine. They are offering a salary of a hundred Lower Grade Spiritual Stones each month, and each laborer can live in the city for free without having to pay any rent.” “The Immortal Mist Sect are certainly ruthless! But aren’t they afraid to scare all Loose Cultivators away?”
Zhou Sui griped his fists tightly, his eyes filled with depth.
Obviously, this was the Immortal Mist Sect’s scheme, using high rents to force Loose Cultivators into mining for them.
If they didn’t wish to mine, they would have to leave Misty Cloud City and head elsewhere.
“They’re not concerned about that at all. There are simply too many Loose Cultivators in the world.”
Ji Bingyu shook her head: “Rumors are, Loose Cultivators from other places have heard about what’s happening in Misty Cloud City and are rushing over. The Immortal Mist Sect even dispatched Flying Boats to help them quickly reach here for free. At least tens of thousands of cultivators arrived in the first batch, with one wave after another continuously pouring in.
Whether we Loose Cultivators remain or leave doesn’t matter to the Immortal Mist Sect at all. The number of Loose Cultivators they can recruit is incredibly vast, and they’re far from being short of hands.”
“What!”
Zhou Sui’s mouth twitched. He had nothing to say. No wonder the Immortal Mist Sect was so fearless, unafraid of a rebellion from the Loose Cultivators. It was simply because there were too many Loose Cultivators, an inexhaustible supply.
They were like constant harvests of leeks, one batch after another. People s lives in this world were worthless.
This was a cruder perspective of the world that he had yet to comprehend deeply.
“Husband, what should we do now?”
Mu Ziyi couldn’t help but ask.
“We have to bow our heads under eaves, and pay the Spiritual Stones. We can’t really leave the Misty City,”
Zhou Sui clenched his fists.
Honestly, the circumstances outside Misty Cloud City wouldn’t necessarily be better. It also lacked the resources Misty Cloud City had.
Moreover, living inside the city was far better than living outside, without worrying about attacks by other Loose Cultivators. There was a certain degree of safety assurance.
Though the monthly rent of two hundred Lower Grade Spiritual Stones was indeed pricey, he wasn’t unable to afford it.
By selling Spiritual Wine over the past half-year, he had essentially earned 120,000 Lower Grade Spiritual Stones, the equivalent of 1,200 Middle Grade Spiritual Stones. He could earn 20,000 Lower Grade Spiritual Stones each month.
After all, one Middle Grade Spiritual Stone is equivalent to a hundred Lower Grade Spiritual Stones.
So, to him, such a rent was affordable.
“Indeed, if more Loose Cultivators come to Misty Cloud City, our Spiritual Wine business could expand further, allowing us to earn even more Spiritual Stones.”
Ji Bingyu agreed as well. Although the rent in Misty Cloud City had risen significantly, they currently could comfortably afford it.
Furthermore, the gathering of large numbers of Loose Cultivators would bring a wealth of cultivation resources and abundant Spiritual Stones.
Viewed from this perspective, there weren’t entirely downsides.
The following morning.
The moment Zhou Sui woke up, he heard a deep voice echoing through the streets and alleys.
“I am Fan Ze, a steward from the Immortal Mist Sect.”
“Starting from today, Misty Cloud City has a new master, and will be overseen by our Immortal Mist Sect.”
“AU previous contracts signed with the Lu family are invalidated, and new ones will have to be made.”
“Whether you rented or bought your houses before, they do not belong to you now.”
“All cultivators residing within houses must come out, register, and pay their rent. Each house must pay two Middle Grade Spiritual Stones per month.
“If you don’t register by today, you will be evicted from your houses by tomorrow. Don’t say I did not warn you in due time.”
Clatter!
The moment the words fell, doors to buildings on the street flung open. One by one, cultivators walked out with grim looks on their faces.
Zhou Sui also came out from his house and immediately saw a middle-aged cultivator dressed in the attire of the Immortal Mist Sect. That man was Fan Ze, a cultivation-eight-level cultivator.
Additionally, a group of patrol cultivators stood beside him, at least all of them were Qi Cultivation Level Seven.
After all, to become a patrol officer in Misty Cloud City, one had to be at least at the Qi Cultivation Level Seven. If their cultivation was too low, they couldn’t suppress disturbances and would not be respected by other Loose Cultivators.
However, this team of patrols was enough to silence all present Loose Cultivators..