Chapter 1498: Chu Shen's Plan

The Winds of Kyushu Rise

After much thought, Chu Shen realized that to solve the current problem, he would still need to trouble Elder Fa. He had tried to find Lu Ye once before but unfortunately failed. Now, seeing Lu Ye's starship return, he rushed over.

Lu Ye had just returned to his cave; before he even had a chance to settle down, the restriction at the entrance was triggered. Upon opening it, Chu Shen walked in, bustling with anticipation. At a glance, Chu Shen was taken aback, as there was a tall, cold-tempered woman in the cave besides Lu Ye. Lu Ye didn't know why this Soul Clan woman chose to reveal her form, but she looked no different from a human, provided she didn't use her unique Soul Clan abilities. If she was willing to appear this way, Lu Ye couldn't control her. At this moment, Lu Ye was seated, and the Soul Clan woman stood quietly by his side, like a maid. Chu Shen clearly misunderstood something. He gazed at Lu Ye with admiration, thinking, "As expected of Elder Fa, for a woman of such beauty and figure to be willing to serve him, he truly is a role model for us." However, he wasn't sure about the exact relationship between Lu Ye and the Soul Clan woman, so he didn't dare to ask directly and simply greeted Lu Ye.

"What is it?" Lu Ye asked.

Chu Shen sat before Lu Ye and briefly explained Wushuang Island's current predicament. Lu Ye said, "For a force to survive in the Myriad Manifestation Ocean, it indeed needs its own way of generating wealth. There's no need to mention the top-tier spirit islands with spirit jade mines. Below the top-tier, whether they are high-grade, mid-grade, or low-grade spirit islands, without a stable source of income, they cannot thrive here. Which aspect of cultivation for cultivators doesn't require spirit jade?"

"What are your plans?" Lu Ye asked, assuming Chu Shen had some ideas given he was coming to him at this time. Chu Shen composed himself and replied, "Senior Brother, this is what I'm thinking: we don't have any special skills, like refining pills or artifacts for others. So, apart from taking on escort missions to earn spirit jade, we can only cooperate with other forces." He explained that escort missions were common in the Myriad Manifestation Ocean. For instance, when An Zhe concluded his massive Dragon Breath Crystal transaction with Lu Ye and wanted to return to his realm, it wasn't safe for him to travel from the Myriad Manifestation Ocean to the Worm Path location with so much spirit jade. Thus, he had to enlist people for protection along the way. Once one passed through the Worm Path and returned to their realm, they were essentially safe. However, An Zhe couldn't just find anyone for escort. He would need to find reliable and trustworthy forces. Wushuang Island now qualified for such tasks, but the avenue hadn't fully opened yet. Chu Shen didn't intend to get involved because, firstly, the profits were not significant; secondly, competition was fierce, and Wushuang Island had no advantage in this area; and thirdly, Wushuang Island's population was not large. Therefore, he believed that collaborating with other forces was the most stable and quickest approach.

"How would you cooperate?"

Chu Shen replied, "We could offer them preferential rates, or even let them open shops on our spirit island for free. Once they generate income, we would take a certain percentage as a return. One or two shops might not yield much, but with a large number, the profits won't be small." Lu Ye nodded, "You're thinking of turning Wushuang Island into a commercial spirit island."

"That's exactly what I'm thinking, Senior Brother. What do you think?"

"The idea is sound, but there's a problem," Lu Ye said, looking at Chu Shen. "How can you persuade other forces to set up shops on our spirit island? And even if you do persuade them, how can you guarantee customer traffic?" Without customer traffic, no matter how many shops there were, it would be futile. Of course, if there were truly enough shops to transform Wushuang Island into a commercial hub, customer traffic wouldn't be too low. At that point, even if Chu Shen didn't actively reach out, some forces would certainly seek him out to discuss business. But everything is difficult at the beginning. Wushuang Island's first priority must be to ensure a certain amount of customer traffic. Only then can various forces see profitability and be willing to open shops. The more shops, the greater the customer traffic—it's a snowball effect.

Chu Shen said, "So, we need a special product that can attract many cultivators, preferably something that interests all Constellation cultivators and isn't too expensive!" As soon as Chu Shen said this, Lu Ye knew what he was getting at. He clearly wanted the "Same Spirit Array" formation plates! Although it had been some time since the Constellation Palace auction, major forces were still studying the mysteries of the formation plates, and many had made good progress. However, mass production of these items was still very difficult. Currently, only a few top-tier forces, besides Myriad Manifestation Island, were qualified to sell formation plates externally, and even they had extremely limited quantities available for sale, and the prices were high. If Wushuang Island were to offer these formation plates at this time, it would undoubtedly attract many cultivators, thereby guaranteeing customer traffic. While cultivators would primarily come for the formation plates, if they saw other goods they needed, they would surely be willing to purchase them. After all, the spirit islands in the Myriad Manifestation Ocean were very far apart. As long as prices were similar, no one would want to waste time buying elsewhere. At the auction, the price of a single formation plate was indeed not too expensive; if three to five cultivators pooled their resources, it wouldn't be difficult to buy one.

Lu Ye pondered in silence. He considered that if they truly did this, Wushuang Island would no longer be so peaceful; it would inevitably become bustling with people coming and going. However, if it truly succeeded, wouldn't it be a good thing? He planned to bring the cultivators from Kyushu to the Myriad Manifestation Ocean someday if the opportunity arose. If there was a stable source of income, the cultivators from Kyushu wouldn't have to worry about lacking spirit jade when they arrived. The mermaid territory was his exclusive source of wealth, but Lu Ye hadn't asked for spirit jade from the mermaids when he sent them some spirit pills last time. He felt it was better to maintain their friendly relationship rather than solely a transactional one. The mermaids held him in high regard; last time, he had even borrowed their power to deal with a mid-stage Moon Reaching cultivator. Such things could not be measured by the quantity of spirit jade. Chu Shen watched him nervously, unsure of Lu Ye's final decision. After a good while, Lu Ye finally spoke, "I can give you the items, but they are not suitable for large-scale distribution; otherwise, it will invite jealousy. You need to devise a plan to ensure that not too many are sold within a certain period."

"Don't worry, Senior Brother, I've considered that. I won't lose sight of the bigger picture for small gains. I think selling three to five pieces per day would be excellent. It would ensure a steady stream of customers without attracting too much attention from the major forces!" Lu Ye praised him, "The fact that you've thought of these things shows you've considered it seriously. But remember, cultivators must always prioritize their own cultivation. Your talent is exceptional, so don't let the affairs of Wushuang Island delay your personal cultivation!"

"You're right, Senior Brother, I've noted that!"

Having received Lu Ye's approval, Chu Shen was visibly delighted. He wasn't in a hurry to leave and instead discussed many of Wushuang Island's future developments and plans with Lu Ye. It was clear he cared deeply about Wushuang Island, which was understandable. At his age, to establish a force in a place like the Myriad Manifestation Ocean, with a high probability of it improving over time, was certainly something to be proud of. A little over an hour later, as Chu Shen prepared to leave, Lu Ye suddenly spoke, "Send someone to Myriad Manifestation Island. Find a woman selling spirit pills in the scattered market there and see if you can recruit her!" If successful, Wushuang Island could have its own spirit pill shop, as that woman's alchemy skills were quite good. However, Lu Ye thought the chances were slim. Someone with such alchemy skills would have already joined a force if they truly wanted to, so why would they be reduced to setting up a stall in the scattered market? Despite this, Lu Ye still wanted Chu Shen to give it a try. It was a pity Lu Ye didn't even know her name. Chu Shen inquired about the woman's appearance and characteristics, and also took a bottle of spirit pills she had previously sold from Lu Ye, before finally departing.

Lu Ye pondered silently for a moment. If Wushuang Island could truly develop as Chu Shen planned, its prospects were excellent. He increasingly felt that leaving Chu Shen on Wushuang Island had been a wise decision; otherwise, managing these affairs himself would be too much of a waste of time and energy. Turning to look at the Soul Clan woman standing nearby, Lu Ye asked, "What should I call you?" The Soul Clan woman merely glanced at him indifferently, showing no intention of speaking. If she hadn't spoken in his divine sea before, Lu Ye might have thought she was mute or couldn't understand him. Lu Ye wasn't bothered by her attitude. Putting himself in her shoes, if he were under a restriction and deprived of freedom, his demeanor wouldn't be much better. However, Lu Ye couldn't possibly remove the restriction on her. He had paid a hefty 32 million spirit jade to acquire this Soul Clan member, specifically to solve the problems of the Kyushu martyrs. Until that problem was resolved, even if she resented him, Lu Ye had to keep her by his side. There was plenty of time; they could get along slowly. Lu Ye believed that sincerity could move mountains, and one day, he would find a solution from the Soul Clan woman.

Continuing to deduce the spirit patterns of the Life Essence Art, Lu Ye resumed refining the "Same Spirit Array" formation plates. In the following days, things were calm. Lu Ye remained in his cave, and the Soul Clan woman showed no intention of escaping. After the last incident where she tried to invade Lu Ye's divine sea, she had given up any thought of attacking him, as Soul Clan techniques had no effect on Lu Ye, making any such attempts futile. During this time, Ghost continuously contacted his clone, clamoring to go to the mermaid territory to cultivate with Bailu. Lu Ye was greatly annoyed. So, his clone arranged a time and place with Ghost, met her, and sent her over, bringing peace back to his world. Wushuang Island once again embarked on extensive construction. Chu Shen re-planned the entire spirit island, dividing it into two: one part for the island's cultivators as residences and cultivation areas, which would not be open to outsiders; and the other part, which would be opened to the public, to establish numerous shops. Lu Ye did not participate in this, but from the occasional information he gathered, Chu Shen's progress was excellent. It seemed he had reached agreements with many forces, and now they only needed to complete the preliminary preparations before a grand opening.