Chapter 86: Fishing in Troubled Waters

The sentry realised that Ye Shang was not merely threatening him, but was out to kill when cold metal was pressed to his neck.

“I’ll speak! I’ll speak!” The sentry revealed everything he knew.

After listening to the confession of the sentry, Ye Shang knew he had found the right place. This group of people were the Lushan bandits. Except for a few lackeys who were out gathering information, almost everyone else was at the mountain pass. This was their stronghold. Ye Shang also found out the place where the two leaders were located.

Ye Shang reached out and stripped the sentry of his vest, then shook his head, “It’s not an unforgivable crime to be a mountain bandit, but you shouldn’t have massacred a family.” With a wave of his spear, Ye Shang slit the throat of the sentry.

Ye Shang put on the sentry’s vest and returned his reincarnation spear into the storage ring. He then brushed his hair to look more like the sentry before heading towards the mountain pass. He planned to infiltrate and observe the pass.

When he arrived at the mountain pass, Ye Shang did not enter it directly. Although he was unlikely to be discovered, he didn’t want to take risks.

He went along the mountainside, dodged two sentries, before sliding down the mountain and into the stronghold, walking in casually. Although he did not look as fierce and hardened as the other bandits, there wasn’t much of a difference. There was no need to be nervous since it did not seem likely for them to know everyone in the large group of bandits.

Ye Shang walked towards the innermost part of the stronghold where the two stone houses of Huang Jun and Huang Jue, the two leaders of the Lushan bandits, were located.

He walked confidently with the sentry’s sabre in his hand, pretending to be on patrol, while gradually getting closer to the innermost part of the stronghold.

Several bandits saw Ye Shang but did not question him, and he continued to close in on the two stone houses.

Two bandits stood on guard outside the stone houses. Ye Shang did not approach, but walked back and forth, and continued to pretend to be patrolling.

Right then, the door curtain of one of the stone houses was lifted, and out came Huang Jue in his tiger skin vest.

“Er Mazi, bring some jars of wine to my room,” Huang Jue yelled at the bandit standing guard.

“Just a second! You, come and carry the wine with me,” Er Mazi waved to Ye Shang.

Ye Shang hurried over, seizing the chance to get close to the two leaders of the bandits.

Er Mazi led Ye Shang to the east side of the stronghold. As he walked on, Ye Shang saw seven to eight naked women being imprisoned in a cell and became livid at the brutality of the bandits.

“What are you looking at? If you …

Chapter 41 – Stinky Tofu in the Nine Spiritual Mainland

When Xia Fukun exited the Red Maple Chamber of Commerce, he was as pale as a sheet of paper, unlike Chang Yuxuan, who was next to him with a face full of smiles.

“Young Master Kun, where are we going now?

“I heard from my uncle that you’re not only a Profound Realm martial artist but similar to me, a fourth-grade beast trainer?”

Hearing Chang Yuxuan’s words, Xia Fukun shook his hand immediately.

“No… I am not similar to you. We are not the same, thank you.”

With that being said, Xia Fukun clenched his fist, releasing his aura. It was so strong that Chang Yuxuan nearly kneeled down to him.

“War… Warrior Realm?”

Previously, Chang Yuxuan had heard a lot about Xia Fukun from his uncle. Just like any kid on Earth, they hated to be compared to other children by their parents. Thus, Chang Yuxuan was sure that the Xia Fukun in Master Ni Gu’s words was half made up of boasting.

However, he never expected that, not only were Master Ni Gu’s words all true, but Xia Fukun was even stronger than they thought!

He was a Warrior Realm martial artist!

And a sixth-grade beast trainer!

Even though Warrior Realm martial artists were nothing special in the Scarlet Water Province, it was a sixth-grade beast trainer who achieved this! And he was only about twenty years old, how could that not be jaw-dropping?

“Young Master Kun, can you take me as your disciple?”

Seeing that Chang Yuxuan was ready to kowtow to him, Xia Fukun immediately held him up.

“Please don’t…. What can I teach you with your talent of summoning food? We shall just have to wait and see if any weirdo teacher at Odin Academy likes you. What can I even teach you? How to summon stinky tofu?” (Translator note: Stinky tofu is a Chinese dish)

The thought of stinky tofu made Xia Fukun’s mouth water.

It was a dish that he enjoyed back on Earth, but sadly, such things did not exist in the Nine Spiritual Mainland, so he could only recall the mouthwatering taste of the dish.

“Stinky tofu?”

This was the first time Chang Yuxuan heard this name, but he felt that it was the name of a food.

“Stinky tofu, stinky tofu….” Chang Yuxuan pondered hard. Suddenly, he heard a loud thud.

A plate of stinky tofu could be seen in Chang Yuxuan’s hand, and it looked and smelled exactly like the stinky tofu Xia Fukun had on Earth!

The smell made Xia Fukun turn back immediately and pop one in his mouth.

He frowned and patted Chang Yuxuan’s shoulder.

“Hey, so are you able to summon any food as long as I tell you the name of it, how it roughly looks, and the ingredients?”

“Yes. Young Master Kun, am I a beast trainer?”

“Duh! Of course you are!”

Xia Fukun felt that he had found a treasure. Chang Yuxuan …

Chapter 29: The Result goes Further and Further on the Road of Crime

Wu Qingsong looked at the two people sitting opposite him with bright eyes, but to his embarrassment, Bernard was still indifferent, while Ramu still kept that smile, and the mood seemed to be the same.

Oh, good. What else?

It made him feel like a punch in the air, very uncomfortable.

“Uncle Bernard says you lack common sense, and it seems that you do.” Ramu finally broke the frozen air with a smile. “You can’t say you’re wrong, but costs and profits are not calculated like you are.”

“Oh?” Wu Qingsong finally had a chance to adjust his posture to make himself less embarrassed.

“As a half-elf, you should have been more clear about the right and wrong of elves than I am, but you are obviously a little ignorant, Wu?”

Sweat began to appear behind Wu Qingsong, but Ramu didn’t continue with this point.

“Do you know who is in charge of the soap business present?” She took a sip of tea and put the cup on the table. “It’s the Figit Chamber of Commerce in the East, and the master behind them is Archduke Figit. He is one of the most influential nobles in the Empire, a member of the upper house of the Empire, vice president of the Empire magic association, Honorary Professor of Padmiya Magic University, and one of the honorary members of the Empire Business Federation. Soap was discovered by chance nearly 250 years ago, but it didn’t develop into a luxury and only became popular since 100 years ago. As far as I know, the Figit Chamber of Commerce can provide more than 200,000 golden sols to his family every year to support his magic research. Soap is definitely one of the biggest products. Of course, the archduke will not ask about the specific affairs himself, but it is impossible for his officers to ignore it. Anyone, any organization, as long as they try to make achievements in this field, will inevitably be strangled by the Figit Chamber of Commerce! Otherwise, why do you think it’s so expensive? ”

“Are you afraid of this?” Wu Qingsong asked. It may be worse than what Harold said, but that’s why he decided to work with Nina.

They are by no means law-abiding citizens. As a rebel army, they must have enough money to support their actions, otherwise, they cannot persist. It’s impossible for Nina to support the long-term activities of the rebel army by only depending on the barren mountain villages he had been to. Without other sources of funds, Nina would never be able to be so generous to him, a potential partner who has not much relationship with her.

The rebel army must have its own way, its own dependence, and that’s what he wants to borrow.

“You overrated us,” Ramu said. “No one is not afraid of elves. If it is not because they only want to enjoy themselves and …

Chapter 40 – Gourmet Chang Yuxuan

“It’s fine, Master Ni Gu, just cut straight to the point. Why did you call me here? I’m only going to be here for a short period of time since I have to return to the capital soon.”

Master Ni Gu burst into laughter and sent the group of ladies off.

Why do you need to send them off? Xia Fukun pouted slightly. They are not affecting me!

“Young Master Kun, you will be heading to Odin Academy, right?”

“Eh?” Xia Fukun raised his brows. “The rumors you heard are quite accurate, huh?”

“Hehe, Young Master Kun is good at jokes.” Master Ni Gu said. He was full of smiles.

“The reason why I called Young Master Kun over is because our executive is interested in getting to know Young Master Kun. We have a branch near Odin Academy, and I hope that Young Master Kun will forgive us for the previous incident. Before Young Master Kun returned, I already apologized to Mayor Xia on the behalf of the Red Maple Chamber of Commerce.”

Xia Fukun nodded. They were humans after all, and the relationship between the Xia family and the Red Maple Chamber of Commerce was nothing more than business. During the Baiyun Mountain incident, Xia Fukun was sure he would do the same if he were in Master Ni Gu’s shoes. However, he never expected that the Red Maple Chamber of Commerce’s executive was interested in meeting him.

“I will make a trip to the branch near Odin Academy if I have a chance then.”

Master Ni Gu heaved a sigh of relief. He received the command to leave a good impression of the Red Maple Chamber of Commerce on Xia Fukun. If he failed to do so, he might lose his status as head of this branch.

“Putting that aside, I have another matter….” Master Ni Gu said, slightly embarrassed.

“What?” Xia Fukun frowned.

Bro, this is too much! Aren’t you getting too much screen time right now?

“So, it’s this,” Master Ni Gu said and clapped. “Chang Yuxuan, come out.”

And Xia Fukun saw a person walk in immediately.

It was a youth around his age. However, he was slightly plump, and he seemed to be chewing something, which should be food.

“Uncle.” Chang Yuxuan greeted Master Ni Gu and flashed Xia Fukun a smile before plopping down onto a seat.

Master Ni Gu flashed Xia Fukun an awkward smile.

“Young Master Kun, I am so sorry that you have to see this. He’s my nephew, Chang Yuxuan, and the Red Maple Chamber of Commerce’s vice-chairman’s son. Not only that, he’s also a fourth-grade beast trainer who will be making a trip to Odin Academy soon. I hope that you can look out for him for me in Odin Academy….”

Xia Fukun blinked his eyes in confusion.

Beast trainer? Another beast trainer?

Didn’t they say beast trainers are rare? And there are less than ten beast trainers in the Yaslan …

Chapter 28: Looking as Though the Pinnacle of Life is within Reach

Wu Qingsong began to walk around the wharf area at different times every day, sometimes in the morning, sometimes in the afternoon, sometimes in the dawn.

But the red flower had not been put outside the door of the Ramu Herb Shop.

What’s going on? The news hasn’t arrived yet? Or is Nina inseparable from other things?

Wu Qingsong felt for the first time that without newspapers, it was so inconvenient that all the news depended on people’s oral communication. If there were any news about the rebel forces in the former world, it should be published on the Internet and in the newspapers soon. Even if it was just a gloss-over, at least it could let him know if something happened.

This reminded him that it might be a good idea to start making newspapers in the future.

“Someone’s looking into you,” Harold told him with a sullen face on one particular morning. “An old friend of mine told me that someone was looking into your whereabouts.”

“Who?” Wu Qingsong suddenly became nervous. Even regardless of the event in Leimu City, he killed four people in Umbel City!

“It should not be the authorities. If they suspect something’s wrong with you, the first reaction should be to arrest you and interrogate you instead of secretly investigating like this.” Harold replied. “It should be someone from the chamber of commerce. You said you would go and contact reliable buyers, were they investigating you?”

Ramu’s people?

Wu Qingsong couldn’t help getting angry. But after thinking about it, if they didn’t investigate his background at all and look for Nina for his words, then the rebel organization should have been disintegrated a long time ago.

He then waited for a few more days, and after Harold’s warning, he began to realize that in fact, someone had been quietly following him these recent days, which should be to see who he was in contact with.

It’s a bad feeling. It’s like all your privacy have been exposed to others.

When he became more and more impatient and wanted to go directly to Ramu to find out about this, he was surprised to see a big pot of red flowers at the door of the vanilla shop.

He hesitated for a moment, then pushed the door open and went in.

“Here you are?” Ramu was still in a relaxed manner, but Wu Qingsong always felt that there was some kind of bad taste in the expression on her face, as if she was going to have a good laugh at him.

“What is the result?” Wu Qingsong asked.

“Wait a minute,” Ramu said, then closed the door again.

“When will Nina see me?” Wu Qingsong had been very angry, so he asked directly.

Ramu raised her eyebrows a little, then smiled, “You look upset?”

“If you are being followed up all day long, you may not be able to laugh.”

“Sorry.” Said …

Chapter 39 – Sexy Girl Group

Xia Fukun arrived at where the Red Maple Chamber of Commerce was originally located and was taken aback by the scene. Not only did they not move out after the Baiyun Mountain incident, they had even expanded. The shops next to them were now theirs.

“Wow, are they intending to become the masters of Summer City?” Xia Fukun sneered and walked in.

After upgrading his power to the Profound Realm and then to the Warrior Realm, there was an obvious difference in his appearance, but in a good way. Now, he was no longer the weakling that he used to be.

However, he was currently being stopped at the door of the Red Maple Chamber of Commerce.

Even though this would be a normal situation for him on Earth…

This is the Nine Spiritual Mainland!

And the Yaslan Empire! And Summer City! My father’s the mayor of this city!

Moreover, I’m now a Warrior Realm martial artist! It’s so embarrassing to be stopped!

This thought made Xia Fukun extremely unhappy. He stared at the young guard who held him up and smiled thinly.

“Young kid, do you know who I am?”

Hearing Xia Fukun, the guard snickered.

“I don’t care who you are, but this is the Red Maple Chamber of Commerce! Other than Mayor Xia and the two Young Master Xias, everyone else needs an entry ticket in order to enter.”

Hearing the guard, Xia Fukun was full of smiles.

“Brother, I’m quite sure that I’m the Young Master Xia you’re talking about.”

“You mean that you’re Young Master Xia Fukun?” The guard scanned Xia Fukun.

“Of course. I’m the Xia Fukun you’re talking about.”

Xia Fukun felt that he should be holding a fan right now. It would suit this situation perfectly!

However, Xia Fukun never would have dreamt that the guard would start laughing at his words.

“Recently, Young Master Xia Fukun defeated the sect leader of Baiyun Mountain, Mu Yun. He even followed the regent to the capital. When this news broke out, many swindlers pretended to be Young Master Xia Fukun. Young lad, you’re young and good looking, you’re not making a good choice. I am afraid you’ll get beaten up.”

Xia Fukun was utterly confused.

What the hell, since when am I so famous that people have started impersonating me?

Even though he has stopped me, I can’t blame it on him!

“Why not go get Master Ni Gu and tell him that I, Xia Fukun, am back and have him come out to take a look?”

“No…” The guard held back the urge to roll his eyes. Does he not understand human language? “You’re dying to receive a beating, huh?”

“I’m really Xia Fukun….” Xia Fukun said, not knowing what to do next. “Master Ni Gu told my father to have me take a trip here when I return.”

The guard hummed after hearing him.

“Okay, I’ll go call Master Ni Gu for you, just because you’re …

Chapter 27: Ramu Herb Shop

“Ramu Herb Shop…” Wu Qingsong took the words written by a person he hired and searched for the same signboard in the business district near the port area.

It was even more lively here than the commercial street near the city gate. In fact, the entire Umbel business district was basically concentrated on the sides of the street connecting the port and the gate, while other places were warehouses, workshops and residential area.

Learning knowledge and writing was a very extravagant thing in this world. Wu Qingsong especially went to the business school established by the Commerce Guild to find out that the conditions for a person to enter the school must first be smart enough and loyal, born in Umbel or young people who have settled for more than three years, and another condition was that they must serve the Three Big Guilds as apprentices for seven years, but even if you are willing to sign a contract that was practically a slave contract, the fees were still very high.

Private teachers were also hard to find. In Umbel, literate people often hold a position in the Three Big Guilds and do not have to resort to doing such things. Another fact that makes people feel helpless was that these people regard literacy as a symbol of their identity that made them above those who worked as labourers, and at the same time, the capital for them to settle down and get on with their pursuit, and they would never easily teach it to others except for their children.

However, Wu Qingsong was fortunate enough to find a teacher who could wipe away his illiteracy, the son of the restaurant owner.

Of course, he was not qualified to go to business school to study, mainly because he had no money, but fortunately, he learned to read in a company during his apprenticeship. Wu Qingsong reached an agreement with him…. Or rather his mother, to teach him mathematics as the cost of learning how to read from him.

But why do illiterate people know math? The lady boss was not aware of such a loophole and Wu Qingsong certainly would not reveal it himself. But this poor lad could only take a day off every ten days, so although the agreement has been reached, there was no chance to implement it yet.

Because of the fear of leaking secrets, Wu Qingsong did not find someone else to inquire about the location of the Ramu Herb Shop. Instead, he walked back and forth in the business district for two laps with his own feet and finally found the shop in a remote side of the street.

He stood in the distance and quietly observed for a while. He found out that most of the people going in and out of the shop were middle-aged beastwomen, and there seemed to be no signs of the shop being watched. Then he found a chance when no one was …

Note: By mistake we posted Chapter 37 of a different novel in previous chapter, please go back and read real Chapter 37 before continuing. We apologize for the inconvenience. 

Chapter 38 – The Xia Family Must Never Be at a Disadvantage

“Younger Brother, this is somehow hurtful….” Xia Fuqian pulled Xia Fukun to the side and whispered.

“What’s wrong, Elder Brother?” Xia Fukun asked.

“No, look, you only gave me one piece of armor while you gave Father an entire storage ring. I’m sure it’s filled with treasure. Look, Elder Brother let you have the Flame Bear. Now that you’re rich, I’m sure you have something better for me, right?”

Seeing Xia Fuqian rubbing his fingers in front of him, Xia Fukun was in utter disbelief.

Don’t tell me…

The entire family is made up of money grubbers?

“Elder Brother, I would have done so if I could, but all I have is the one storage ring, which I have given to Father. Why don’t you just ask Father to spare you some items for his son?”

Xia Fuqian’s face fell immediately.

Xia Fukun, you’re indeed not my brother!

Xia Kuangyun’s a money grubber! What would he give me?

“Haish…”

Xia Fukun initially thought that Xia Fuqian was a generous person since he offered to give him the Flame Bear, but he was wrong. If I did not isolate myself for an entire year, forget about a thousand gold coins, he would not even give me a single cent!

I pity Elder Brother! Now I understand why they say the elder sibling knows the parents the best!

Xia Fukun shrugged. Suddenly, something crossed his mind.

“Oh yeah!” He patted Xia Fuqian on his shoulder. “Elder Brother, do not say that I treat you badly. I have something else, but it’s up to you if it turns into a treasure.”

The word “treasure” made Xia Fuqian’s eyes light up.

Xia Fukun is now in the Warrior Realm, so the gift he takes out will surely be good.

“Here,” Xia Fukun said, and a thought crossed his mind.

“Ding dong! Host has exchanged for a magical egg for ten refinement points. A magical egg gives you a chance of hatching a rare beast.”

Hearing the notification, Xia Fukun squinted his eyes.

He had seen this magical egg long ago, but he never exchanged for it since he did not have the time to hatch it. I can’t be hugging it in my hands whenever I’m with Ye Qingwan and the rest, right?

But Xia Fuqian is a different story….

In Xia Fukun’s mind, Xia Fuqian was the ideal person. Someone like him and such a weird egg was the perfect combination! They suited each other perfectly!

And what was more important was that the beast from the magical egg did not need Xia Fukun to parent it. Anyone who hatched it could be its master.

“What’s that? Younger Brother? Is this the treasure you’re talking about? This salted egg?”

Looking at …

Chapter 26: Bro, I Can Take A Shower With All The Cold Water You Pour On Me

“How do you know that I don’t have the foundation?” Wu Qingsong asked after a while.

“If you have the foundation, you wouldn’t have waited until this age to learn swordsmanship from someone like me,” Harold said mercilessly.

Wu Qingsong was unable to retort. After a while, he spoke again, “According to what you said, what kind of people are able to develop their business?”

“There isn’t,” Harold said without hesitation. “At least in my fifty-something years of lifetime, I have never heard of such a story. Behind many companies in Umbel is the feudal lord of some land or some sort of bigshot in the capital, and it is the same in other places. Without any support, just the exorbitant taxation itself can exhaust all your potential, so how is it possible for you to develop? Do you think that the workshops around you really belong to their own? If they don’t become a peripheral member of a large company in the Craftsmen Guild with all their products being given priority of purchase and marketing to the company, just the fines for pollution and noise alone can kill them. Just take the restaurant you know, for example, if they are not attached to the Port Guild, they can’t even buy any ingredients, let alone doing their business.”

“You have no common sense at all. I really don’t know which mountain did you came from,” he shook his head and said to Wu Qingsong. “This place may excel compared to the territories under the direct control of the feudal lords, but it is no paradise. On the contrary, if you don’t keep your eyes peeled in this place, you may die much faster and worse than in those other places. At the very least, in those places, you only need to please the feudal lord, but in this place, sometimes you don’t know who you should be attached to, and who is the enemy. One wrong step, and maybe you’ll be falling into the abyss.”

“What if I put this method out for open bidding?” Wu Qingsong suddenly remembered a line that he had seen in a book. “I let it go and sell the manufacturing method to them. This should do, right? Let them compete on their own! The Three Big Guilds should not be on the same team right?”

“Don’t think yourself clever,” Harold’s cold water poured over again. “The result of this is likely that the Craftsmen Guild will get your methods, the Commerce Guild will be responsible for the sale, and the Port Guild will be responsible for the transportation, and each of them will get a good return from this thing in the way that they are best at, and you will not get even a single coin… No, they might give you a lot of money in order to fool the public, and then capture you when …

Chapter 25: MT Is My True Calling

“This is?”

When Harold walked into the small courtyard where Wu Qingsong rented as usual, getting ready to start a new day of training, he saw that he was using a knife to cut a large piece of a translucent object on a wooden board into small even pieces.

“Soap,” Wu Qing Song replied while throwing one to him.

While waiting for the soap to be formed, he had already calculated the costs. Altogether, he could cut out a total of thirty-two pieces of soap.

The fish oil costs twenty copper. Recently, the weather was hot, causing this kind of thing to easily go bad and could only be sold nearby. For a port city, it really was not anything valuable.

A bag of refined ash costs two Renal. Luckily, only half a bag was used.

Ten coppers for a bag of quicklime and less than half a bag was used.

This way, if he did not consider the money for the wooden moulds, cauldron and jars, and also, for the time being, the cost of labour and the cost of the site and fuel, the production cost of thirty-two pieces of soap was only one hundred and twenty-five coppers. On average, the cost of one block was not even four copper coins!

This was because these were only trial products, small in size with high material prices. If it were mass production, he believed that the manufacturing cost could certainly drop to three coppers. If the money for rent, water and fuel were allotted, as long as the volume were large, the production cost would never exceed five coppers.

Yet, the cheapest soap in the store costs at least one Renal!

This was practically a robbery!

After calculating the production costs, Wu Qingsong could not help but curse in his mind.

However, the method of making soap for others may not be the same. After all, according to his cousin who loves to make handmade soap, Europeans have discovered the method of making soap hundreds of years before BC, but the price of this thing hasn’t always been cheap.

On one hand, there was no such thing as caustic soda at that time. The ancients could only use weak alkali such as ashes from plants to carry out the saponification reaction. There were too many impurities and the alkalinity was too weak causing the saponification reaction to fail most of the times. On the other hand, suitable ash made from seaweed was too expensive.

In fact, even in modern times, novices have a high failure rate in making handmade soaps themselves. However, with the experience of his maternal cousin aiding him, Wu Qingsong went and added excess lye without considering the cost and chose the hot process method to make sure the reaction was successful.

In… in any case, it was the low-end route, after all, the rough-skinned beastkins can’t be as crazy as those hipsters like his cousin in which they …