When Chu Liang heard more rumors about the incident, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of unease.

The pair of robbers described by Shen Qiongguang were a man wearing a bamboo hat accompanied by a particularly fierce little girl, who was the very one that had beaten him half to death with a single punch.

Hearing such a detailed description, it was hard for Chu Liang not to think of those two individuals.

In the world of cultivation, there might be more than one man who carries a child and wears a bamboo hat; however, there couldn’t be many such ferocious young children.

Especially a combination of the two.

But why would they rob fruit outside of Shu Mountain? It would be simpler to just come up the mountain and ask him directly.

Then he thought about the little girl’s identity and her intricate connection to the legendary calamity. Perhaps it was precisely because of this that they found it inconvenient to come up the mountain?

Chu Liang sighed inwardly, lamenting the trouble. After all, he had a connection with them, and it was thanks to the little girl that he was able to find the Immortal Ascension Grass. He could just send a letter up the mountain and personally deliver a few boxes of fruit.

The next day, even more news came back.

It turned out that Shen Qiongguang was not the only one who had been robbed. Yesterday, more than twenty cultivators from various sects were robbed after leaving Shu Mountain. The commonality was that they all had their Gold-Patterned Berries stolen. Moreover, after the berries were taken, they all received gifts worth far more than the value of the berries.

In fact, even Shen Qiongguang experienced the same.

Although the man in the bamboo hat did not leave any items for him, the true qi he used to heal Shen’s injuries also served to cleanse his marrow and open his meridians, which was greatly beneficial to his future cultivation.

Chu Liang’s heart stirred upon hearing this. Wasn’t this equivalent to buying at a high price? If he had known, he would have delivered a few hundred boxes himself, why let middlemen make a profit?

Before he could take action, Lin Bei and the others came looking for him early in the morning.

The berry gift boxes were selling like hotcakes!

Originally, many people were not interested in the Gold-Patterned Berries, thinking they were not worth the slightly high price. Perhaps only one in ten would consider it.

Now, after such a commotion, everyone became interested in the berries.

A mysterious and powerful being willing to rob just to get these extraordinary fruits!

This selling point was even stronger than the fruit tea advertisement that Jiang Yuebai had endorsed. After all, this was the world of cultivation, where people were more inclined to follow the powerful than the beautiful.

As for the possibility of this being a marketing ploy, some had suggested it, but it was quickly dismissed by the spit and scorn of the crowd. Did Chu Liang have the power to mobilize two unknown powerful beings or to bribe more than twenty cultivators from various sects?

If he had that kind of influence, he wouldn’t need to bother with these petty profits.

So today, when the small group went out to sell the berry gift boxes, the situation was completely different. Previously, they had to work hard to sell, but this morning they were swarmed and nearly mobbed by eager buyers!

The inventory that usually took a day to sell was gone in the blink of an eye, and they hurried back to Silver Sword Peak to restock.

Shang Ziliang said, “Big brother, this is a godsend opportunity, quickly restock for us so we can go back and raise the price!”

With this craze, even if the price increased tenfold, it was estimated that everything would sell out!

He was also considered a rich second generation, his father being the master of Shu Mountain. He had seen money since he was young, and initially, he followed Chu Liang in business out of friendship, not for profit. But the longer he followed Chu Liang, the more eager he became.

He had seen money before, but he had never seen so much money!

Although Chu Liang always took the lion’s share of the profits, Shang Ziliang had already saved over a thousand sword coins just from his share. His father couldn’t possibly give him that much pocket money in a year, yet following Chu Liang, he only needed to do a few days of business. There was no need to exhaust himself with tasks; at most, he just had to set up a stall and sell goods.

He had completely experienced the charm of being a successful merchant!

With a big price increase during this wave, he could even give his father pocket money after the Shu Mountain summit.

Imagining the scene where he and his father switched roles, Shang Ziliang couldn’t help but smirk.

But after pondering for a moment, Chu Liang firmly said, “Don’t raise the price, and… not only should we maintain the original price, but we also can’t restock. You’ve sold so much in just one day.”

“Ah?” The attendant was also puzzled, “Once the Shu Mountain summit is over, we won’t have such a good opportunity again. Shouldn’t we earn more during this time?”

“The hardest thing isn’t the product, but the brand,” Chu Liang explained. “If we rush to raise prices just because of some hype, what does that make our product? It’s just a trend started by the powerful, and once the trend passes, no one will remember you.”

“We need to have our own style, to have the powerful become our audience, not to seek favor from the powerful.”

“Spread the word that today’s berry quota is sold out. If you want to buy more, please come early to Tongtian Peak tomorrow. Additionally, using sword coins can give you priority in purchasing.”

What he didn’t fully disclose was that for a relatively low-value product like the Gold-Patterned Berries, maintaining a high profit margin could only be achieved by adding a brand premium. Once everyone could easily buy and eat them, it wouldn’t take long for people to realize they weren’t worth much and would quickly be abandoned.

Only by allowing some people to buy and others to be unable to purchase with their money could those who bought feel a sense of superiority, believing that their money was well spent.

Lin Bei nodded in agreement, “Makes sense.”

The attendant looked at him curiously, “Did you understand?”

“Not really,” Lin Bei said, “but I know that whatever Chu Liang says is definitely right.”

…

When Chu Liang and his team arrived at Tongtian Peak again, they immediately attracted everyone’s attention.

Some were those who wanted to buy berries but couldn’t, having already learned from the surrounding Shu Mountain disciples that this handsome young man was the behind-the-scenes owner of the berry plantation, their eyes filled with surprise.

Others were more concerned about the Shu Mountain summit, having learned that Chu Liang had become the first to secure a spot in the top four, and were indignant about it.To know, Chu Liang had only taken action three times in all the previous matches combined, using up less than five breaths of time in total.

Never in history had there been a disciple who could become one of the top four newcomers of Shu Mountain in such a short time that it wouldn’t even suffice for a quick pee.

Especially since every victory seemed to rely on magical artifacts, tricks, and schemes, without showing any real strength. This made many Shu Mountain disciples feel… I could do it too if I tried.

They were both amazed and envious.

Some even secretly speculated whether Chu Liang’s opponents were those he had conspired with his master to injure. Although Shen Qiongguang’s description was clearly not Di Nvfeng, couldn’t she have hired someone to do the deed?

It was definitely something she was capable of.

Even Master Sun, sitting in the spectator’s stand, curiously asked, “Feng, are you sure you didn’t have someone beat up your disciple’s opponent?”

Di Nvfeng gave him a glance, “Do I need to hire someone if I want to beat someone up?”

“Indeed.” Master Huang nodded repeatedly, “You shouldn’t doubt Feng’s character.”

His left eye socket was slightly bruised, and there were traces of flames on his body, looking a bit disheveled, but his expression of support for Di Nvfeng was unwaveringly firm.

It was hard to say there was no cause and effect between the two.

“I just find it strange, what kind of powerful being would rob others just for some fruits?” Master Sun chuckled.

Seeing Master Huang’s appearance, he was in an exceptionally good mood.

“I think I can guess some of it, combining some previous news, I already know who did it,” Master Huang said, “But I won’t tell you.”

“Hmph, I can’t be bothered to ask,” Master Sun snorted coldly, “But now that Chu Liang has made it to the top four without fighting, he has won, hasn’t he? Does that mean I’ve won our bet?”

“How could that be possible?” Master Huang glared, “At most, he hasn’t lost, but he hasn’t won either. I propose we postpone the bet and wager on his next win or loss.”

“You’re sly,” Master Sun sneered, “Are the quarterfinals and the semifinals the same?”

It sounded like the bet was postponed without change, but the opponents in the quarterfinals and semifinals were completely different. The newcomers who made it to the top four of Shu Mountain were among the top existences in the nine provinces, and the difficulty for Chu Liang to win was much higher than in the quarterfinals.

Master Huang immediately turned his head and said to Di Nvfeng, “Feng, did you see that? This old guy has lost confidence in your disciple, he thinks your disciple will lose, hehe…”

Stirring the fire.

“Don’t you dare slander me!” Master Sun, feeling Di Nvfeng’s gaze sweeping over him, immediately raised his voice, “I’ll take the bet! But remember, Feng, I’m betting on your disciple winning, he’s betting on your disciple losing!”

Reverse stirring the fire.

When that dangerous gaze shifted onto himself, Master Huang’s eyes darted around, and he quickly said, “I heard that you and Wang Xuanling of Shu Mountain also have a bet. You wagered your Phoenix Spirit Blood Jade against his position as the head of all peaks. Do you have that much confidence in your disciple?”

“Not really,” Di Nvfeng said frankly, “To be honest, when I made the bet with Wang Xuanling, Chu Liang’s cultivation was still weak. I’m already very pleased that he has come this far.”

“Ah?” Master Sun said, “Then you dare to wager the Phoenix Spirit Blood Jade, aren’t you afraid of losing?”

“Can’t I just go back on my word?” Di Nvfeng looked at him curiously.

“What if Wang Xuanling loses and goes back on his word too?” Master Huang asked again.

“Then wouldn’t he be shameless!” Di Nvfeng exclaimed.

Masters Sun and Huang: “?”