Chapter 204: Heavenly Treasure Pavilion Settles in Gui Ling

Jin Miaoshan's channels, many of which he only used in emergencies, were truly insufficient for him and for the Guiling market. Furthermore, for the healthy development of the entire city, it's always better to have more commercial giants. A monopoly by Golden Full Pavilion wasn't a good thing.

“I understand.”

Qingyang nodded, then added, “Going to Ink Mountain City can indeed solve some equipment issues, but those people might not agree to accompany me, and the Ink Gate Master…”

“That’s not a problem.”

Wang Yu rummaged through his storage bag and took out several boxes. Inside were high-grade Soul Origin Pills. Using his perfected Cold Serpent Alchemy, he practiced a bit. After all, he had a thousand portions of materials; even if he refined them all into top-grade spirit pills, he wouldn't be able to use them all. After practicing, he obtained over ten high-grade Soul Origin Pills and over twenty mid-grade ones. There were no top-grade or low-grade pills. With his alchemy mastery, no matter how difficult the refinement, the results wouldn't be poor. After refining four or five batches, he stopped. Now, these pills were perfect for winning over those Core Formation cultivators.

Soul Origin Pills were rare, a precious elixir that could enhance spiritual sense, and had some effect on Core Formation cultivators. High-grade Soul Origin Pills were quite valuable. Inviting them to accompany him on a trip was mainly to show Heavenly Treasure Pavilion the potential customers in Guiling, as Wang Yu's personal financial resources were limited. He aimed to attract Heavenly Treasure Pavilion to compete with Golden Full Pavilion.

As a newcomer, to quickly seize market share from an old rival, a price war was the best method. He was benefiting all cultivators in Guiling! Shouldn't they erect a monument to him, praising his achievements in governing the city?

It was a good opportunity to send Qingyang on this trip. With the Soul Origin Pills as an invitation gift, the Ink Gate Master might not refuse. Given his long-standing friendship with True Lord Qingyang, it was very likely he would want to invite him back. After a conflict, reconciliation was the primary goal, not becoming lifelong enemies.

“Charge these items to my account,” Wang Yu said, “deduct them from my tribute resources.”

“No need,” Qingyang replied. “This is also Guiling City's matter; why deduct resources from your account? Besides… if I really deduct it, you won't get any spirit stones for ten years.”

Qingyang: "...!"

Waving his hand, Wang Yu didn't mind this expenditure. In the past, he was poor and meticulous about every penny, calculating everything precisely. Now that he was wealthy, he saw no need to be stingy with necessary expenses, especially when achieving his goals and incidentally building goodwill. After all, he would ultimately benefit. The Soul Origin Pills came easily, and he didn't feel particularly rich from them. With Jin Miaoshan in seclusion due to an incident, it was the perfect time to bring Heavenly Treasure Pavilion into the market, and he didn't want to delay important matters.

After seeing off Protector Qingyang, Wang Yu resumed his cultivation. He was currently immersed in comprehending the Minor Asura Killing Fist. Although the placement slots weren't enough, with the help of the Killing Intent Cultivation Chamber, his own cultivation speed was still very fast. When he encountered a bottleneck, he would then use the placement slots to "grind" it out. This situation continued for two months, until mid-July of the 20th year of City Lord Wang's tenure!

“City Lord Wang, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” a voice said. “You’re quite famous in our Cloud Ridge Prefecture. Heavenly Treasure Pavilion has always regretted not being able to establish a branch in Guiling.”

Wang Yu smiled and invited them to take a seat. “Now you’re here, aren’t you?” Wang Yu replied. “May I ask how I should address you?”

“Han Jia, from Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, one of the elders of the Cloud Ridge Main Pavilion.”

Hearing his identity, Wang Yu was a bit surprised. While an elder from a small place might not mean much, an elder from the Cloud Ridge Main Pavilion would at least be a late-stage Core Formation cultivator. Heavenly Treasure Pavilion sending such a strong cultivator to establish a branch in Guiling was truly a bit of overkill, especially since Ye Qing from the Golden Full Branch Pavilion next door was only a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Moreover, Han Jia's life force was not old, his appearance was proper, and he looked very business-like. His image as a mature elder was much better than Ye Qing's; at least he was very approachable, a cut above him. He was also accompanied by two young people, a male and a female. At this point, he also introduced them.

“City Lord Wang, these are my two children, Han Jinlong and Han Yinfeng.”

Wang Yu: "...What excellent names, full of spirit."

“Haha,” Han Jia chuckled, “when my wife gave birth to the dragon and phoenix twins, I named them after the dragon, phoenix, gold, and silver. They cannot compare to a young talent like City Lord Wang.”

Han Jia's attitude was excellent, but he also had the common flaw of many parents: liking to belittle his own children. Just like that, the two young people who had been happily coming to Guiling City had their expressions immediately soured, not just towards Han Jia, but towards Wang Yu as well.

“Long’er, Yinfeng, quickly greet him.”

Silence was their stubbornness.

Wang Yu quickly smoothed things over. “It’s fine, just getting to know each other is enough,” he said. “I’ve prepared a banquet in the inner hall; let’s eat and talk.”

Han Jia was a late-stage Core Formation cultivator. Although Wang Yu was a city lord, the cultivation gap was too large; for Han Jia to treat him as an equal was already giving him face, let alone being so polite. One should know that Heavenly Treasure Pavilion was also a hegemonic force, with a status equivalent to the Reversal Spirit Blood Sect! One might expect a stance of 'You have a backer, and so do I; my cultivation is a major realm higher than yours, so you should respect me.' Therefore, Wang Yu's attitude was primarily friendly; he didn't mind even if the two youngsters showed him attitude. Children will be children... there's a reason for that saying. Moreover, they were actually snubbing Han Jia.

Indeed. During the ensuing banquet, Han Jia repeatedly showed goodwill and even told the dragon and phoenix twins to learn more from him. These two young people seemed to be of the same generation as him. They were at the second level of Foundation Establishment, in their fifties, which was considered talented, possessing at least dual spirit roots. Wang Yu repeatedly compared them to Golden Full Pavilion in his mind and immediately felt that Heavenly Treasure Pavilion was the true business organization, thoroughly upholding the principle of harmony bringing wealth. Almost everything was settled by the end of the meal: land, taxes, auction schedule arrangements, policy support from the City Lord's Manor, market promotion… and so on.

Especially the auctions. The branch Heavenly Treasure Pavilion was establishing in Guiling City would host items up to Tier 3 spirit artifacts. Auctions of this level could bring a large flow of people and also expand Guiling City's reputation. More people, a larger market, higher consumption, and thus more tax revenue. The City Lord's Manor's industries covered all aspects: food, clothing, housing, travel, birth, aging, sickness, death, combat, and exploration—all were inseparable from the Manor's enterprises. Thus, the spirit stones he could collect annually would naturally increase, and he could occasionally spare time to refine high-quality cultivation elixirs to replenish the City Lord's Manor's treasury. The average cultivation level of the City Guards and Patrol Guards could also gradually improve.

“Oh, by the way.”

Just as the banquet was about to conclude, Han Jia took out a ring, inlaid with a blue rhombus-shaped gem, and handed it to Wang Yu. “These are the items True Lord Qingyang entrusted me with,” Han Jia said. “We’ve basically found everything written on the scroll.”

Wang Yu was surprised. “That fast?”

“Hahaha,” Han Jia laughed, “Our Heavenly Treasure Pavilion is famous for its comprehensive stock; the prodigies from both realms tend to sell here.”

Remarkable! Wang Yu saw the difference between the two sides even more clearly.

“This ring, the Sea Heart Ring, is a high-grade Qiankun Ring,” Han Jia explained. “Its internal space is vast enough to contain the entire Guiling City. All other spiritual items are inside; City Lord Wang, you can check them.”

“Alright.” Wang Yu didn't stand on ceremony and immediately began to count the items in front of him. He was not lacking resources at this stage, so most of what he bought was for future use. It was foreseeable that by the time his tenure as Guiling City Lord ended, he would have almost all the resources needed for Core Formation cultivation. This was the benefit of having the Reversal Spirit Blood Sect and Nascent Soul clans supporting him. He was quite secure for now.

The items inside were not many, but their quality was very high:Ten portions of materials for refining Ice Spirit Pills, enough to cause a pill-induced cultivation barrier.Tier 3 Yin-attribute material: Ten-Thousand-Year Locust Bark.Tier 3 Ice-attribute material: Ice Soul Stone.Tier 3 Ice-attribute material: Snow Mountain Dark Heavy Iron.Tier 3 spiritual item: Treasure Nurturing Ascension Liquid.

A total of four items, plus the value of the Sea Heart Ring itself, led Wang Yu to hand over all his savings, feeling both pained and pleased. Five million five hundred sixty thousand spirit stones! Except for the eight hundred high-grade spirit stones which remained untouched, it truly emptied City Lord Wang Yu's coffers.

The most expensive items were undoubtedly the Sea Heart Ring and the Treasure Nurturing Ascension Liquid, especially the latter. It could upgrade magical tools with promotion potential from top-grade Tier 2 to Tier 3 magical treasures. It worked without the need for an artifact refiner and was extremely rare in Red Kite. Only Tier 4 artifact refiners from the Blazing Sun Sect, a major artifact refining sect in Taihu Spirit Domain, could produce it. Golden Full Pavilion didn't have it at all, so Wang Yu had naturally prepared it for his Ghost Wail Flute. The most crucial point was that after being upgraded with the Treasure Nurturing Liquid, it could still be refined a second time to fully unleash the potential of all materials and complete its formation. It was expensive for a good reason.

Han Jia was also surprised to receive such a large sum of spirit stones. He had thought Wang Yu would choose to pay slowly, after all, he hadn't been in Guiling City for long. He truly hadn't expected him to accumulate such a large fortune. Didn't he have to make tributes? Having received the full payment, Han Jia naturally said no more. Instead, he took out a white jade token with "Heavenly Treasure" carved on it.

“This is Heavenly Treasure Pavilion’s VIP token,” Han Jia explained. “It’s issued only for expenditures exceeding five million spirit stones. From now on, wherever City Lord Wang goes to Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, he can directly enter a VIP room for transactions. Participating in any auction also grants you a private booth and a discreet exit path.”

Wang Yu took the token, examined it, and said, “Thank you.”

Here again, the difference was clear: Heavenly Treasure Pavilion issued VIP tokens based on expenditure, while Golden Full Pavilion issued them based on cultivation level—the one he had was gifted by Jin Miaoshan. She had been very clear at the time: with this token, he could receive the courtesy and benefits typically offered to Core Formation cultivators within the pavilion, plus a five percent discount. It seemed Heavenly Treasure Pavilion valued the transaction itself more.

Having eaten and drunk their fill, and concluded their discussions, Han Jia then rose to take his leave. He had brought an architectural magical treasure refined by the pavilion; he could go directly to the land Wang Yu had approved for him, level the ground slightly, activate the treasure, and deploy it. It was very convenient. The dragon and phoenix twin siblings, however, remained sullen all evening, making Wang Yu chuckle and finding it truly amusing.

After personally seeing them off from the City Lord’s Manor, Wang Yu specifically instructed Xu Ruozhou: “The City Lord will be entering secluded cultivation for a period. I will not see anyone, and no one is permitted to disturb me.”

Upon hearing this, Xu Ruozhou nodded repeatedly.

Meanwhile, when Han Jia and his two companions arrived at the land Wang Yu had approved, they were dumbfounded. Not only was there another building on the plot, but Golden Full Pavilion was right next door. The three couldn't help but exchange bewildered glances.