After Tan Songyong dropped that bombshell, he left with the Tan Song siblings. The rest of the clans had nothing to do with him.
"I arranged for you two to prepare the jade slips, are they ready?"
"Elder, rest assured, everything's ready."
"Good. Send them to Muqing's shop. Any lower-realm cultivator who walks in gets one. Also, when you trade for resources, give them a little extra."
Tan Songyong instructed while walking.
"Yes, I'll go with Big Sister and deliver a batch right away."
"Since we're already doing this, we might as well make it look good. Every jade slip has to carry the Tan Song family crest. Lower-realm cultivators will owe us a favor. If they ascend to the Immortal Realm in the future, they might end up joining us."
He was thinking long-term. Losses had already been made, so he intended to use this chance to expand the clan's influence. Even if the Xianwang found out, there'd be nothing to say.
The Tan Song siblings were on the same wavelength as their elder. They understood his intent and left to handle the task.
From the next day onward, every lower-realm cultivator who visited Muqing's shop to exchange resources received a jade slip, and on top of that, they got half again as many goods as usual. At first, everyone was shocked. Only after the shopkeeper explained did they understand what was happening.
One person spread the news to ten, ten to a hundred. That half increase in resources drew in countless cultivators, and the jade slips spread rapidly along with the Xianwang's command, ensuring it was carried out thoroughly.
Outer Zone
Hou San returned from Greenfield Lake carrying the trade list from the Cheng brothers. Everyone from Lingyun Continent took a look, marking the items they wanted. Finally, the list landed in Jian Dan's hands.
She scanned it, arched her brow, then glanced at the two from the Artifact Sect, Su Chui and Xiong Yan.
The two looked excited, whispering to each other as they confirmed what each of them would trade for, making sure there was no overlap so they could get more variety.
But when they felt someone watching, they stopped and looked up. It was Jian Lu Zūnshàng.
Seeing Jian Dan's faintly amused smile, Su Chui realized something instantly. He stepped forward and cupped his fists. "Zūnshàng, is there a problem?"
Everyone turned to look. They were all in this together, so there was nothing to hide. Besides, Jian Jing and the others already knew Su Chui had once followed the Cheng Squad.
"This trade list was tailored for your Artifact Sect. Most of the valuable items are forging materials, and many of them are things we can barely find on Lingyun Continent, some we've never even heard of."
Once she pointed it out, Su Chui thought back and immediately realized she was right. He'd been too caught up in the rare forging materials to notice, but Jian Dan's reminder hit the mark.
"Thank you for pointing it out, Zūnshàng. But… if this is a trap?" He hesitated. They were about to return to Lingyun Continent. If they got tricked now, it would be a huge loss.
"If they're making it this obvious, they must want something. Let's see what they're after before deciding." Jian Dan handed the list back to Hou San and answered Su Chui's concern.
"Understood. Thank you, Zūnshàng."
Su Chui bowed in gratitude. Knowing she'd go along meant he could relax a little.
After a day of preparation, Jian Dan took Su Chui, Xiong Yan, Xiao Yong, Jian Xu, and Bai Shuang, with Xiaoyue of course, and headed to Green Lake. Jian Jun stayed behind with the others. If anything happened, Bai Shuang would send a signal and they could rush over.
The Cheng Squad welcomed them. After the usual polite greetings and empty compliments, they got down to business.
They listed out what they wanted to exchange, handed it to Cheng Song, and only then did Jian Dan smile and say,
"Boss Cheng, you've gone out of your way for Su Chui. This list is packed with forging materials he's after. So tell me, what do you want from him?"
Her words were straight to the point, no nonsense. The Cheng brothers weren't used to it.
"Since Fairy Lu asked directly, I'll be frank. We're about to leave this place and return to our continent. What we want is a forging inheritance."
Su Chui's eyes widened in shock.
"So that's why you took the risk to shelter him before? For his forging inheritance?"
"That's part of it. Su Chui's helped us appraise artifacts and contributed a lot to our squad. When we learned he couldn't return to his old continent, we thought of inviting him to our Leyuan Continent.
Our forging inheritance is incomplete. If he comes back with us, he can join our sect and continue passing it on."
Cheng Zu knew there was no point hiding it. Jian Dan and her group probably already guessed, so he laid it all out.
"Tsk, seems like technical talent's in demand everywhere." Jian Dan sighed, then turned to Su Chui, who was deep in thought. "Su Daoyou, it's your decision. I won't interfere."
This was about inheritance. It wasn't her place to step in. She was only here to keep the scene under control and make sure the trade was fair. The rest was up to them.
After stepping aside, she and the others exchanged for what they wanted. Since the other side had their own goals, the trading went smoothly.
But Su Chui and Xiong Yan hadn't decided yet. Jian Dan cupped her fists. "In matters of sect inheritance, they'll need to be cautious. Give them two days to decide, how about that?"
"Of course."
As Jian Dan's group left, the Cheng brothers felt uneasy. They didn't know if, in two days, their hopes would be fulfilled.
"We've done all we can. Now we just wait."