Chapter 502

Chapter 502: Start Small (Part 1)

After a stick of incense, Lu Chengfeng finally arrived at Heaven’s Secret Pavilion.

"Senior…"

As if he had exhausted every ounce of his strength, the moment Lu Chengfeng entered Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, he thudded to his knees and kowtowed heavily to the ground. "This junior begs you, Senior, to save them."

He summoned his magic, and Lu Yunzhao, Yuan Ziying, and Yuan Qingfeng appeared in Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, clinging to life.

Their cultivation had been destroyed, and their life force was draining away visibly.

In the time it took for a stick of incense to burn, their jet-black hair turned white, their faces became covered in wrinkles, and age spots spread over their entire bodies.

They were not long for this world.

Yi Tianxing saw this and showed a conflicted expression.

"You don’t blame me?" Ye Xu said.

Lu Chengfeng shook his head.

"Although this junior doesn’t understand why you spared me alone, I know you had no obligation to save the Lu Family."

"I can only blame myself for being too weak, left helpless against others."

Lu Chengfeng saw it all with utmost clarity.

Swish!

Ye Xu flicked his sleeve, and a mysterious force enveloped the three of them.

Immediately, their life force stopped draining, and they transitioned step by step from old age back to middle age, restoring their original appearance.

But they were still ordinary mortals.

"Thank you, Senior!"

Lu Yunzhao, Yuan Ziying, and Yuan Qingfeng were healed of their injuries and offered their thanks to Ye Xu one after another.

Gaining back their lives was an incredible stroke of luck.

"Rise."

As soon as Ye Xu spoke, an unseen force lifted them up.

"The three of you practiced weak techniques from the start," Ye Xu said meaningfully. "Now that your cultivation is destroyed, it’s the perfect chance to start anew."

"Start anew?"

Lu Yunzhao gave a bitter smile—starting over would be immensely difficult.

Yuan Qingfeng also hung his head in despair.

"Father, all of you can cultivate the Primordial Longevity Technique that I’ve been practicing," Lu Chengfeng said. "Once this technique is mastered, limitless futures await. You’ll surely return to your peak and win back everything we’ve lost."

At this, the three of them lit up with hope.

The Primordial Longevity Technique was a Dao Sovereign-level technique, a grade beyond the Five Emperors’ Supreme Scripture.

"Do you know why I saved you?" Ye Xu asked lightly with a smile.

"This junior does not."

Ye Xu continued, "I saved you because I valued your wisdom."

He sighed softly. "Heaven’s Secret Pavilion is newly established. Though its reputation is loud, turning that into profits has been tremendously difficult. As a mere mortal, you managed the Canglan Merchant Alliance with order and growth."

"That ability alone was enough to make me save your life."

"This junior wishes to serve Heaven’s Secret Pavilion!"

Lu Chengfeng half-knelt on the ground. "I await Master’s orders!"

Ye Xu nodded in satisfaction.

"Master, could my father and the other two remain?" Lu Chengfeng asked after considerable hesitation.

"They have their own path," Ye Xu replied with a smile.

"Though the Lu and Yuan clans are gone, Yuan Daozong still lives. Right now, he’s within Canglan City."

Whoosh!

Before the words fully faded, a figure materialized silently within Heaven’s Secret Pavilion.

The burly man thoroughly concealed his aura. It was none other than Yuan Daozong.

Finding himself suddenly transported somewhere unknown, Yuan Daozong immediately gathered his divine energy without a word, ready to flee.

"Ancestor!"

A voice called out.

Yuan Daozong halted instantly. He turned and saw his kin: Lu Yunzhao, Yuan Qingfeng, and Ziying—their cultivation entirely gone, reduced to mere mortals.

"Qingfeng! Ziying!"

Fury erupted in Yuan Daozong’s eyes. "Who destroyed your cultivation?"

"We were left with no choice but to cripple it ourselves," Yuan Qingfeng answered bitterly. "Fortunately, the Master intervened, allowing us to survive."

He recounted the entire sequence of events to Yuan Daozong.

Yuan Daozong ground his teeth.

Beside anger, overwhelming helplessness washed over him. How could he possibly contend with the omnipotent Second Young Master?

"This old man thanks the Master on behalf of these four," Yuan Daozong bowed deeply. "I owe you a favor. If you ever summon me, I will answer without fail."

"Daoist friend, I summoned you today to entrust these three to your care," Ye Xu stated.

Yuan Daozong paused, his gaze shifting to Lu Chengfeng. "And Chengfeng? Is he not coming with me?"

"Ancestor, I belong to Heaven’s Secret Pavilion now,"

Lu Chengfeng declared.

"Good!"

Yuan Daozong finally smiled. He well understood the formidable strength of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion.

For Lu Chengfeng to be there meant not just safety, but growth. The revival of the Lu and Yuan clans might yet hold promise.

"Move!"

Yuan Daozong drew Lu Yunzhao and the others into his Great Dao World, preparing to depart.

"Canglan City teems with spies. Allow me to see you off," Ye Xu offered. With a thought, a time-space passage opened, transporting Yuan Daozong to another immortal domain.

"Master, where have they gone?" Lu Chengfeng inquired.

"Penglai Immortal Domain."

Lu Chengfeng nodded, finally feeling no more worry in his heart.

However, the death of Lu Xuanyin, like a shadow, had always loomed over him.

"Master, Chengfeng boldly asks one thing—if one day I can develop and expand the Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, I wonder if Master could agree to a request?" Lu Chengfeng spoke up bravely.

"Ask," said Ye Xu with a smile.

As for Lu Chengfeng, he valued him extremely much.

After all, his grand money-making plan still relied on Lu Chengfeng to achieve it.

"Can Master help me revive the Ancestor?" Lu Chengfeng asked, his eyes full of expectation.

"Since you’re already a member of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion, I can reveal a secret to you," said Ye Xu. "In this world, I am an invincible existence."

Lu Chengfeng and Yi Tianxing felt their hearts tremble.

This was the first time they had heard Ye Xu admit to being invincible.

Ye Xu continued, "In worldly matters, if I want to know something, nothing can be hidden from me. But being invincible doesn’t mean all-knowing and all-powerful."

"Lu Xuanyin has merged with the Dao, integrating into the Dao of heaven; wanting to save her is fundamentally impossible."

Lu Chengfeng’s disappointment gradually spread.

"However…"

Ye Xu smiled slightly, "Lu Xuanyin is an old fox; she seemed to merge with the Dao in front of everyone, but actually that’s not true."

"Master, what do you mean by that?" Lu Chengfeng’s heart rekindled with hope.

"A wisp of her remnant soul resides in that tobacco pouch. If you truly help me expand the Heaven’s Secret Pavilion’s business, reviving Lu Xuanyin for you would have no difficulty," said Ye Xu confidently.

"I understand!" Lu Chengfeng was extremely excited; so long as there was a sliver of hope, he would fight for it.

Moreover, Ye Xu’s promise was one hundred percent certain he could revive Lu Xuanyin.

"No wonder Master dares to ignore the Third Young Master and confront the Second Young Master; the so-called nine young masters truly aren’t worth looking at in Master’s eyes," Yi Tianxing thought to himself.

"Chengfeng, now let’s talk about how Heaven’s Secret Pavilion can make money?" said Ye Xu with a smile.

With his worries gone, Lu Chengfeng felt completely at ease.

"In the Heavens and Ten Thousand Domains, nearly all areas are unified by major powers. They impose taxes and require cultivators and merchants in those regions to pay; this is the biggest source of income."

Lu Chengfeng spoke eloquently.

"The Canglan Merchant Alliance earns nearly one hundred million divine stones in various taxes annually." Note: the Canglan Merchant Alliance is the top power in the Canglan Immortal Domain but hasn’t covered all areas; collecting one hundred million divine stones is already an extremely high price.

"Gross profit, in three billion two hundred million divine stones."

"Net profit, about one billion two hundred million."

"That method won’t work for now," said Ye Xu.

"Young Master Lu, Master is currently fixated only on doing business and doesn’t want to get involved in worldly conflicts, so tax collection isn’t suitable for Heaven’s Secret Pavilion," Yi Tianxing explained.

Lu Chengfeng’s expression froze.

He couldn’t figure it out. Ye Xu clearly had invincible strength, yet why not unify the Hongmeng Dao Realm? That way, he could have as much money as he wanted.

"Perhaps this is just the fun of a master," Lu Chengfeng thought to himself.

"…"

Ye Xu was left speechless.

As for unifying the Hongmeng Dao Realm, so far he had no great interest in it and couldn’t achieve it temporarily.

His interest in making money was extremely strong.

"Since Master doesn’t want to enter the world, the tax method is impossible," Lu Chengfeng pondered and looked at Ye Xu. "Earlier, Master said you can know everything in the world?"

At that moment, Lu Chengfeng suddenly remembered the couplet posted outside Heaven’s Secret Pavilion. "Know the past, present, and future; measure all heavenly secrets."

Ye Xu nodded, "Of course, that’s natural."

"Since its founding, Heaven’s Secret Pavilion has only been responsible for selling information and providing opportunities for cultivators under heaven."

Lu Chengfeng’s lips curved slightly.

"The most valuable things in the world are opportunities and information."

"By mastering both, Master wanting to make money would be as easy as flipping a hand."