Chapter 85: 85. Lin Zhaoyue took the front. [1]
Lin Xuan infused his spiritual qi into the communication jade talisman before sending a message to Lin Zhaoyue.
"I’ve killed a messenger from the Shangguan family, so they’ll definitely come for revenge.
To prepare for their retaliation, Father is going into seclusion to break through to the Nascent Soul Realm.
While I’m away, I’ll leave the clan to you, I hope you can make the necessary preparations.
The family seal is inside the cabinet, which you already know.
There’s one more matter that needs your attention.
There’s an agreement with the Zhao family.
Every month, we’ll deliver ten jade bottles of Pure Quality Qi Refinement Pills and in return, they’ll provide us with two hundred sets of Qi Refinement Pill herbs.
I want you to take charge of that arrangement as well.
Finally... Stay alive until Father comes out of seclusion. No matter what happens, try to stall for as long as possible."
After sending the message, Lin Xuan slowly lowered the jade talisman and released a long breath.
A heavy burden seemed to lift from his shoulders.
With those arrangements finally settled, there was nothing left demanding his immediate attention.
"Now I should begin my seclusion, the sooner I start, the better."
At the very same time, Lin Zhaoyue was walking quietly along a peaceful stone path while holding the communication jade talisman in her hand.
As her spiritual sense entered the talisman, Lin Xuan’s recorded message echoed inside her mind.
Her footsteps slowly came to a halt and she lowered the jade talisman and stared at it in silence, her eyes filled with disbelief.
"What...?"
She could hardly believe what she had just heard.
Lin Zhaoyue remained standing, silently digesting everything she had just heard.
The Shangguan family were a Seventh-Rank Clan while their Lin clan had only recently entered the rankings, a Ninth-Rank clan.
Every year, the Shangguan family collected a portion of the profits earned from the Lin family’s Purple Wood Mountains.
Those mountains produced Purple Lightning Wood, one of the essential materials used in forging flying swords.
It was also the Lin family’s largest source of income.
The Zhao family and the Li family each possessed their own territories as well, and the Shangguan family similarly collected annual taxes from them.
Such arrangements were nothing unusual.
In the cultivation world, it was common for higher-ranked clans to levy taxes upon the lower-ranked clans under their jurisdiction.
Lin Zhaoyue furrowed her brows.
No matter how she looked at it, she could not think of any reason why her father would openly antagonize the Shangguan family.
Her father was never someone who acted recklessly.
If he had truly killed their messenger, then something extraordinary must have happened.
She lowered her gaze toward the communication jade talisman in her hand.
Although she could not understand everything, one thing was certain.
Her father had entrusted the entire clan to her.
A gentle smile slowly appeared on her face.
"Hmm... Father already placed all his trust in me so I should atleast do my best to prove that his trust was well placed."
———————————————————
Zhao Luhao took a sip of his tea before speaking with a smile.
"The empire has many products that simply cannot be found within our kingdom."
He gently placed the teacup back onto the table.
"I’ll make the necessary arrangements. During your merchants’ next trip into the empire, I’ll have someone provide them with a list of goods worth purchasing."
Su Qinglan’s eyes brightened.
"That would be greatly appreciated."
She smiled gratefully before letting out a quiet sigh.
"To be honest, the Lin family has entered a period of rapid growth recently. While that is certainly a blessing, it has also placed considerable strain on our resources.
Advice from an experienced clan like the Zhao family would save us from making many costly mistakes."
Zhao Luhao nodded with a smile.
"There’s no need to stand on ceremony between allies. If the Zhao family can help, we naturally will."
Su Qinglan inclined her head in thanks.
"Ah, that reminds me. I almost forgot the main reason for my visit."
With a wave of her hand, three finely crafted wooden boxes appeared on the table.
She slowly opened them one after another and inside each box were twenty jade bottles arranged in neat rows.
A rich medicinal fragrance immediately spread throughout the room.
Su Qinglan gently rested her hand on one of the boxes.
"Each jade bottle contains a batch of Body Tempering Pills."
She looked toward Zhao Luhao with a faint smile.
"They are all Pure Quality pills that we recently came into possession off and I just happened to recall that you had previously expressed interest in purchasing some, so I brought a few over today."
Zhao Luhao’s eyes immediately fell upon the three wooden boxes.
The moment the words "Pure Quality" left Su Qinglan’s mouth, his breathing became noticeably heavier.
His gaze slowly swept across the sixty jade bottles resting neatly inside the boxes.
Sixty bottles.
That would amount to six hundred Pure Quality Body Tempering Pills.
Even after receiving ten bottles of Pure Quality Qi Refinement Pills earlier, the sight before him was still enough to leave him stunned.
After all, these were Body Tempering Pills, the pills consumed by the greatest number of cultivators.
Every disciple, every branch family, and nearly every clan relied upon them.
The demand for them far exceeded that of Qi Refinement Pills.
Suppressing the shock in his heart, Zhao Luhao slowly looked up.
"May I ask... What price is the Lin family asking?"
Su Qinglan smiled gently.
This was the perfect opportunity for the Lin family treasury to get richer.
Pure Quality pills were treasures that rarely appeared on the market.
Over the past two months alone, the Young Miss had used these very pills to elevate a large number of the Lin family’s younger generation into the Qi Refinement Realm.
Even now, thinking about it still felt somewhat unreal.
Just as she was about to answer—
Bang!
The doors to the reception hall swung open and both instinctively turned toward the entrance.
Without saying a single word, Lin Zhaoyue stepped into the room and spiritual qi surged from her body.
A transparent barrier silently spread throughout the reception hall, sealing every corner of the room.
Not a single sound from within could escape to the outside world.
Comments