The next morning at dawn.
Du Ge, accompanied by his junior brother and sister and the captives from the previous night, stood at the doorstep of the village head's home at the foot of the mountain. With a beaming smile, he introduced himself, "I am Wang Chong, the newly appointed Sect Leader of the Seven Stars Sect, greeting the village head."
Behind him, a crowd of curious villagers pointed and whispered at the shiny bald heads.
And for good reason!
The monks from Tianlan Valley, wearing only white undershirts, had "Tianlan" written in large black characters on their backs by Du Ge, along with a string of small numbers beneath.
Their feet were tied together with rope, each of them looking downcast and dispirited, resembling prisoners.
The village head, bleary-eyed, opened the door to this scene and was instantly shocked into full alertness, hurriedly returning the greeting with a fist and palm salute, "I have seen the honorable Wang."
The menial workers that Du Ge had driven down the mountain were from nearby villages.
By yesterday, the events at the Seven Stars Sect had spread through their mouths, and everyone in the villages knew about it.
Two cultivation sects fighting over territory, Tianlan Valley with its overwhelming might, Seven Stars Sect tragically slaughtered, with the dead and the fleeing, only three or four disciples left to hold the fort…
The village head always kept abreast of the village's affairs and had a clear understanding of the Seven Stars Sect's situation.
Being an official, the village head naturally knew that now was not the time to offend anyone from the Seven Stars Sect.
They were already desperate, and provoking their anger now could lead to a swift beheading with no one to reason with.
"What brings the honorable Wang down the mountain?" the village head asked, his eyes involuntarily sweeping over the bald heads behind Du Ge, surprised. Weren't the people from Tianlan Valley supposed to be formidable, having even killed Master Guan?
What's the deal with these guys?
Tianlan?
Are they from Tianlan Valley?
Sigh!
Du Ge sighed, "I'm sure the village head has heard about my master's passing."
The village head saluted again, "My condolences to you, Wang. When Master Guan is buried, I will surely bring people to mourn. If there's anything I can assist with regarding the funeral, please feel free to ask."
"Village head, we cultivators don't bother with such tedious formalities, so please don't worry about the funeral," Du Ge said. "Today, I have come to see you about another matter…"
As more and more people gathered behind Du Ge, the village head stepped aside to make way, "Honorable Wang, this isn't the place to talk. Let's go inside to discuss in detail."
"No need, it's fine to talk here. What I have to say concerns everyone," Du Ge said, bowing with his hands clasped to the villagers behind him, then turned to the puzzled village head, "Since the village head is aware of my master's death, you must also know about the conflict between the Seven Stars Sect and Tianlan Valley."
"I've heard some," the village head frowned.
"After my master ascended to immortality, I took over as the temporary Sect Leader of the Seven Stars Sect," Du Ge sighed again, "After this drastic change in the Seven Stars Sect, I have reflected deeply and concluded that the disaster stemmed from our sect's non-confrontational stance. Last night, I couldn't sleep, pondering over and over, and decided to fundamentally change the current state of the Seven Stars Sect, inviting more people to join in building the sect…"
The village head was taken aback, "What do you mean by 'join in building'?"
"It means allowing more people to invest money in the Seven Stars Sect, to help it grow stronger and create a glorious future together," Du Ge explained.
The village head murmured, "I don't quite understand."
"Village head, the Seven Stars Sect's downfall is rooted in the lack of capable people. Therefore, my plan for the sect is to expand, recruit more disciples, and make the Seven Stars Sect one of the top sects in the cultivation world," Du Ge said with a smile. "To expand the sect, we need a substantial amount of money. You know the current state of the Seven Stars Sect, with only my junior sister and me left, we definitely can't come up with that much money. Hence, I thought of raising funds through shares."
"Do you mean for us to donate silver to build the Seven Stars Sect?" the village head asked.
"Donation is akin to robbery, I am an upright person and disdain such dirty deeds," Du Ge waved his hand, "What I'm talking about is investing, treating the Seven Stars Sect like a business. I've made a rough estimate: the Seven Stars Sect's land, the mountain gate, even the spiritual energy within, and the resources of my sect, could be worth about 50 million silver taels. I plan to offer forty percent of that in shares to raise funds from the public, to build the sect and recruit disciples.
In the future, as the sect grows and gets back on track, those who invested can receive dividends from the Seven Stars Mountain based on their shares.
To put it simply, for an investment of two million taels, if the village head contributes hundred thousand taels, that's equivalent to owning one-fiftieth of the Seven Stars Sect's shares.
In the future, if the Seven Stars Sect profits a million taels a year, after deducting the operational expenses, the village head could earn at least hundred thousand taels in dividends, without lifting a finger, just sitting at home and collecting money. Why not?"
"You must be joking, honorable Wang, I can't come up with hundred thousand taels," the village head said with a laugh.
"It's just a hypothetical," Du Ge smiled, "If you can't come up with hundred thousand taels, investing ten taels of silver will still yield a two-tael dividend. For a household like the village head's, that's almost enough for a month's expenses. Money sitting at home won't generate more money, it's better to invest in the Seven Stars Sect, to plant a seed…"
"True, what you say makes sense, but I've never heard of a cultivation sect engaging in worldly business, nor do I know how you cultivators make money?" the village head looked at Du Ge with difficulty, "How about we discuss this another time?"
"If the village head doesn't understand the sect, how can you know that the sect doesn't have ways to make money?"
Du Ge laughed, "The Seven Stars Sect is a treasure mountain, rich in spiritual energy. Just by planting some rare medicinal herbs and selling them, they are a hundred times better than worldly herbs. The Seven Stars Sect recruits disciples and teaches cultivation techniques, charging a fee, which is another substantial income. And these are just the small earnings.
In the future, as the Seven Stars Sect grows stronger and conquers other sects, the profits brought in can also be counted as the sect's income. If we're lucky and discover one or two spirit stone veins, mining them would be like ascending to heaven in one step. The village head's investment of ten taels of silver could potentially multiply a hundredfold, a thousandfold…"
Behind Du Ge, the villagers whispered among themselves, seemingly moved by the grand vision he described.
The little junior sister and the seventh junior brother behind Du Ge were completely confused, not understanding what their third senior brother was doing.
What do these matters have to do with strengthening the sect?
Engaging in these worldly businesses is far less effective than concentrating on cultivation. Otherwise, no matter how big the business, if another Tianlan Valley comes along, wouldn't it all end up in someone else's hands?
***
When did I agree to invest ten taels of silver!
The village head muttered in his heart and chuckled, "Honorable Wang, the math is correct. But everyone knows the situation of the Seven Stars Sect, Tianlan Valley…"
"It seems the village head is worried about the risk. Tianlan Valley is not a concern," Du Ge interrupted, gesturing towards the bald heads from Tianlan Valley behind him, "Do you see them? They are the culprits who attacked the Seven Stars Sect, subdued by me last night. If it weren't for the protection of the ancestors of the Seven Stars Sect, who greatly increased my power, how could I have the audacity to come out and raise funds? Wouldn't that be outright fraud?"
"Are they really from Tianlan Valley?" the village head asked skeptically.
"Seventh junior brother, release the restraint on number 0001," Du Ge turned and instructed his seventh junior brother.
The seventh junior brother released his restraint and also untied the ropes on his feet.
"0001, tell everyone, are you from Tianlan Valley?" Du Ge asked sternly.
Looking at Du Ge's icy gaze and the shaking fingers, 0001 shivered and honestly said, "Yes, I am a third-generation disciple of Tianlan Valley, named Kong Gui. Last night, I was captured by Sect Leader Wang, and now, as a prisoner bearing guilt, I am detained at the Seven Stars Sect, numbered 0001."
"Show everyone a bit of your strength," Du Ge commanded.
Before leaving the house, Du Ge had demonstrated to them with the corpses of their junior brothers what it meant to extract organs from a distance, and that miraculous technique nearly scared them to death. To stay alive, they dared not make any trouble.
Moreover.
In their view, as long as they were alive, even if they were tortured, as soon as someone from Tianlan Valley came, they would surely be rescued…
0001 looked around, walked over to a roadside stone roller, embraced it with both hands, easily lifted it above his head, then walked around with it before putting it back down, without breaking a sweat or changing his expression.
This elicited cheers from the onlooking villagers.
"Now, does the village head believe it?" Du Ge casually resealed his meridians and turned back to the village head with a smile, "Tianlan Valley is far from the Seven Stars Sect. The Valley Master of Tianlan Valley hasn't reached the Golden Elixir stage and is no match for the ancestors of my sect. If they don't come, so be it, but if they dare, we'll ensure they never return. By then, we'll take over Tianlan Valley's assets, which will also count as income for the Seven Stars Sect."
Bluffing with a tiger's skin as a banner.
Du Ge's face was filled with confidence and arrogance.
"Honorable Wang, when did the Seven Stars Sect have ancestors again?" the village head asked curiously.
"The Seven Stars Sect has a five-hundred-year legacy, is it strange to have ancestors?" Du Ge glanced at him, "Otherwise, with my abilities, how could I have defeated them? You should know, even my master was no match for them. Previously, the Seven Stars Sect was unsuccessful because our techniques were incomplete. Now that the ancestor has completed the techniques, even I was able to take down the murderers of my master overnight. The growth of the Seven Stars Sect is just a matter of time."
"…" The village head looked at the people of the Seven Stars Sect but still felt uneasy and asked, "Honorable Wang, may I meet the ancestor of the Seven Stars Sect?"
"I'm afraid the village head won't be able to see him," Du Ge smiled, "It's only fair to return the favor. Tianlan Valley has bullied us so, how could the ancestor swallow this insult? After leaving behind the techniques, he has already gone to trouble Tianlan Valley overnight."
The village head fell silent again.
Du Ge laughed, "It seems the village head doesn't trust me. Well, the Seven Stars Sect needs to raise 200 million taels of silver, and after all, a small village doesn't have much money. It's only right for the village head to be responsible for the villagers."
He shook his head, "The amount of money needed to build the Seven Stars Sect is enormous, and my intention was to find those wealthy and influential families. But after thinking it over, we've been neighbors for many years.
If there's a chance to make a fortune, I can't just ignore the neighbors and give it to outsiders.
So, I came to the village head first. After talking with the village head, I still have to visit other villages and go to the towns to raise funds. Since the village head is cautious, let's call off this deal!"
The village head remained silent. If it were an ordinary business, he could make a decision, but involving a cultivation sect, one wrong step could leave him with nowhere to turn.
Du Ge never made empty trips. The village head was tough, so he turned to the crowd and said, "If the village head is unwilling to invest, are you willing? I can't deny a whole village because of one person."
Proofreader & Editor: Lotas