GBP Chapter 188 - 155: The Black Hand Enters the Fray (2)
Chapter 188 - 155: The Black Hand Enters the Fray (2)
"You must be from out of town. That man is the master of our Yuanling Square. This entire Marketplace is his, and that Spirit Mountain not far from here is his too."
The shopkeeper’s explanation left the inquiring Cultivator with a look of envy. Then, he asked doubtfully:
"Just him, a mere Qi Cultivation? With such a vast estate, doesn’t anyone come looking for trouble?"
"Of course, there were. How could no one come looking for trouble? But the Foundation Establishment Clan that did was annihilated a month ago. That master there led a military formation and wiped them out. Let me tell you, I saw that formation with my own two eyes. There were more than a dozen Flying Manta Rays in it, not to mention..."
The nearby shop owner began to boast to the outsider about Fang Qingyuan’s capabilities. With their powerful Divine Senses, Fang Qingyuan and She Xi Yu naturally overheard the conversation. At this, Fang Qingyuan just smiled and said:
"This is the benefit of making a name for yourself through strength. If I had chosen to smooth things over and avoid conflict back then, would we have had the success we see today?"
She Xi Yu also nodded in agreement. Fang Qingyuan’s previous decisiveness, influence, and vengeful nature had completely shattered his perception of the man. The Fang Qingyuan he used to know had struck him as somewhat slick and slippery; who could have imagined that once he held power, he would become so ruthless.
After looking over the shops, inside the Marketplace’s council hall, Fang Qingyuan said:
"You’ll be in charge of vetting the merchants. Anyone with poor character, anyone who practices fraud or engages in forced transactions—once discovered, punish them severely and make them compensate the customer tenfold. If they’re caught a second time, kick them out and ban them for life. Yuanling Square Marketplace is meant to be a business that lasts for a hundred years; we can’t ruin our own reputation just to get a little extra rent."
She Xi Yu nodded again.
"I understand. With me here, a situation like that will absolutely not occur!"
Nowadays, Fang Qingyuan had entrusted all the major affairs of Yuanling Square Marketplace to She Xi Yu. Matters like security, construction, and supervision were all handled by the disciples of the She Family, while Fang Qingyuan mostly just stopped by occasionally to check in, not worrying about the specific details.
This was because Fang Qingyuan had no interest in letting these trivialities eat into his cultivation time. Moreover, he wasn’t worried about the She Family slowly turning him into a figurehead.
She Xi Yu knew of the major backers behind Yuanling Square Marketplace. He had no standing to speak with any of them; even if She Xi Yu were to request an audience, those three might not even agree to see him.
Without Fang Qingyuan, the disciple from Beast Taming Mountain, She Xi Yu couldn’t protect Yuanling Square Marketplace even if it were handed to him completely. She Xi Yu was the head of a clan, responsible for seventy to eighty thousand people; how could he not understand these matters?
After they finished discussing these matters, Fang Qingyuan asked, as if by the way:
"I haven’t seen your Xuan Yan around lately. As the head of the Marketplace’s guards, it’s not appropriate for him to be absent for so long, is it?"
She Xi Yu’s heart skipped a beat. He hadn’t expected Fang Qingyuan to have taken note of She Xuanyan. Seeing that he could no longer hide the truth, he quickly laughed and said:
"Ah, that boy Xuan Yan. Ever since he fought alongside you against the Li Family, he sensed his Foundation Establishment Opportunity not long after he returned. He left on his own half a month ago to seek it out. I’m not sure when he’ll be back."
Fang Qingyuan immediately offered his congratulations.
"Then congratulations are in order. If Xuan Yan can reach Foundation Establishment, your She Family’s fortunes will really take off."
Hearing this, She Xi Yu immediately replied:
"Even if the She Family had ten Foundation Establishment cultivators, we would still rely on you to put food on the table. If you hadn’t pulled us up back then, we’d still be in some remote mountain gully in the Southern Border, scheming against the other families and scraping a living from the dirt. We would never have the wealth and status we have today."
"Hahaha, I’m happy from the bottom of my heart to see the She Family grow stronger. Two Foundation Establishment cultivators are better than one. That way, your family’s one-tenth share is more justifiable."
She Xi Yu agreed profusely. It was only after Fang Qingyuan left that he secretly sighed. However, when others came in to see him, he resumed his powerful demeanor as a Foundation Establishment Great Cultivator, the second-in-command of the Marketplace.
....
After putting She Xi Yu in his place, Fang Qingyuan took Jinbao to the Treasure Pavilion to look for Wan Bochong. His Fire Spirit Root had reached the twenty-nine point mark, and first and second-tier spiritual materials could no longer advance it. He needed some third-tier spiritual materials to push through the final barrier.
But Fang Qingyuan didn’t dare run around carelessly now. He certainly didn’t dare go shopping in the depths of White Mountain like last time. ’Everyone knows I’ve recently struck it rich. If someone with malicious intent were to ambush me in White Mountain, then no matter how powerful the Beast Taming Sect is, they wouldn’t be able to save me.’
Going to the Earth Cave Fire Domain, however, was different. Fang Qingyuan would take a Flying Boat from Celestial Gate Mountain, with people from the Beast Taming Sect watching over him on the round trip. He naturally had nothing to fear. But as for White Mountain, he’d better forget about it for now. He would wait until after he reached Foundation Establishment.
After Fang Qingyuan entered the Treasure Pavilion, he found that Wan Bochong was out on business. Another Foundation Establishment Cultivator personally received him. There were two Foundation Establishment Cultivators at the Treasure Pavilion. Wan Bochong was at the Mid-stage Foundation Establishment, so having him run a shop here was a complete waste of his abilities. Wan Bochong had briefly mentioned his primary purpose to Fang Qingyuan before.
He had come here mainly to train a successor. The young Foundation Establishment Female Cultivator before Fang Qingyuan was to be the future Chief Shopkeeper of this Treasure Pavilion.
This Foundation Establishment Female Cultivator was named Wan Suying. True to her name, which suggested simplicity, she dressed plainly and wore no makeup. While beautiful, her face was more cold and distant. She spoke little and smiled even less, not at all like other shopkeepers who would greet customers with a wide smile. She carried herself like a lady from a noble house, and her posture and bearing were especially elegant.
But on closer inspection, one could see that Wan Suying was courteous in her conduct. When handling customers and business, she could get straight to the heart of the matter in just a few words—a skill clearly forged through experience.