Roll Forth the Nine-Five Dragon Carriage to Kill the Chicken and Scare the Monkeys

Seeing that the timing was about right, Elder Chen cleared his throat. As if something had suddenly clicked in his mind, he smacked his forehead and put on a look of deep regret. "Valley Master Qi, forgive my poor eyesight! I failed to recognize you just now." "Medicine King Valley is a Level 1 trusted faction of Fan Domain." "You are entitled to a credit limit of up to one hundred thousand ghost stones." "You may freely select goods valued up to one hundred thousand ghost stones from the Fan Domain marketplace and take them without paying upfront. All you need to do is settle the balance within one month." "This is your token." With great deference, Elder Chen produced a custom rectangular plaque from his robes. The front was engraved with the words "Fan Domain," while the back bore the name "Medicine King Valley." "Present this token at any stall operated by Fan Domain throughout the marketplace, and you can buy on credit." "..." Valley Master Qi froze in sheer disbelief. He had never encountered such an arrangement before and instinctively asked, "Is Fan Domain not worried that I won't come back to pay?" Elder Chen smiled faintly. "Not at all. If that happens, Medicine King Valley's pill furnace will simply be put up at our next auction." *Ahem.* Valley Master Qi immediately realized what an idiotic question he had asked. He gave a dry cough to hide his embarrassment, yet he took the token as if handling a rare treasure, unable to part with it, before offering it back toward Elder Chen. "Then I'll use this token right now. Reserve as many Skeleton Horses as it will cover, and I'll take them all when I depart." "No problem at all." Elder Chen took the token, pushed open the door to the room behind him, and slipped inside. Moments later, he stepped back out, returning the token to Valley Master Qi with a smile. "We have reserved sixty-six Skeleton Horses for you, with one thousand ghost stones left on your credit line. I wish you a smooth and prosperous journey, Valley Master Qi." "Excellent, excellent, excellent!" An irrepressible smile beamed across Valley Master Qi's entire face. He tucked the token carefully into his robes and asked, "Have any other factions become trusted factions of Fan Domain?" "Any faction that spends fifty thousand ghost stones in the Fan Domain marketplace, or receives a direct invitation from Fan Domain, may become a Level 1 trusted faction." "Does that mean there are Level 2 trusted factions as well?" "Indeed. A Level 2 trusted faction enjoys a credit limit of up to two hundred thousand ghost stones." "Two hundred thousand..." Valley Master Qi's breath hitched. *Is Fan Domain really this damn rich?* All of Medicine King Valley's current ghost stones combined did not even reach two hundred thousand. If he dared emulate Chen Fan, a single round of credit would bankrupt Medicine King Valley outright. Yet what concerned him even more was... "How does one become a Level 2 trusted faction?" "Simply by spending two hundred thousand ghost stones in the Fan Domain marketplace." "Then aren't I already halfway there?" "In a manner of speaking," Elder Chen chuckled. "Though strictly speaking, it will only count toward your spending progress once you settle this bill, Valley Master Qi." "Understood." Grinning from ear to ear, Valley Master Qi nodded. He pulled the token out again to turn it over in his hands, noticing a Level 1 insignia on the reverse. Wasting no further time, he headed straight for the inn at the end of the street and pushed through the doors. "Waiter, rooms!" He was in high spirits. Exceptionally high spirits. He could hardly wait to rush back to Jiangnan. The next instant— The waiter stationed by the front entrance turned toward the group with a warm smile. "Might you be Valley Master Qi?" "I am." "Right this way, please. Medicine King Valley is a Level 1 trusted faction of Fan Domain. There is no charge for your stay at the inn, and your rooms have already been upgraded." "Upgraded?" "That means you will stay in rooms superior to those provided to other factions." "Good, good, good!" Valley Master Qi couldn't help beaming once again. He certainly did not lack the small sum required for an inn, but the feeling of having exclusive privileges delighted him to no end. So being a Level 1 trusted faction of Fan Domain came with perks like this! Truth be told, even though it was a marketplace like any other, this Fan Domain marketplace carried an atmosphere entirely absent from other trading posts. It was a wondrous feeling. He loved it. *** Fan City. The street on both sides of the city entrance was packed with vendors. Although buildings lined the road, their doors remained tightly shut. In reality, the interiors of these roadside buildings had all been knocked through, forming an enclosed corridor shielded within the structures. Men and women, young and old, all dressed in standard Fan Domain robes, were sprinting back and forth through this passageway. "Report! Level 1 trusted faction Medicine King Valley used 99,000 ghost stones of credit to purchase 66 Skeleton Horses. Remaining credit: 1,000 ghost stones!" "Recorded!" "Report! Level 1 trusted faction Gongyang clan used 100,000 ghost stones of credit to purchase 64 Skeleton Horses and 2 Ghost Camels. Remaining credit: 0 ghost stones!" "Recorded!" "Report! One Sword Sect spent 75,000 ghost stones to purchase 50 Skeleton Horses and applied to become a Level 1 trusted faction!" "Recorded. Application approved!" Sitting at the end of the corridor rapidly logging entries, Wang Kui picked up a voice transmission talisman at his side. "Wang Kui calling the Logistics Pavilion. One Sword Sect applied to become a Level 1 trusted faction. I have approved it. Please rush production of a trusted faction token tailored for One Sword Sect." Xiao Qiu's voice promptly came through from the other end of the talisman. "Copy that. On it now. It will be delivered shortly." A few hundred breaths later, a man clad in a Fan Domain uniform galloped out of the canyon on a Skeleton Horse, entered Fan City from the opposite side, and swiftly pulled up at the building's back door to respectfully hand over a token. Wang Kui accepted the token and passed it to a runner beside him. "Deliver this to One Sword Sect." "Another report! Level 1 trusted faction One Sword Sect used 100,000 ghost stones of credit to purchase 65 Skeleton Horses, 1 Ghost Camel, and 16 Level 2 ground spikes. Remaining credit: 20 ghost stones!" "Recorded!" "..." Chen Fan was no longer out greeting guests at the entrance. That duty had been handed over to Wang Mazi. As the head of Fan Domain's Commerce Pavilion overseeing the merchant chamber, Wang Mazi needed to make himself known and build familiarity with the various factions. Chen Fan himself stood at the end of the indoor passage along the market street, watching the members of Fan Domain dash to and fro. A rich smile spread across his face. To expand a business rapidly, sharing profits was essential. Ensuring that others got a slice of the cake was an absolute must. And to make the enterprise explode in scale, providing credit terms was equally indispensable. He supplied the capital, and he supplied the goods. These factions only had to run the errands to reap exorbitant rewards—it would be a miracle if they didn't go mad over it. He had long anticipated the frenzy sweeping the marketplace today. The only regret was that this world had no computers. Keeping accounts was rather inconvenient. Everything depended on pure manpower. It looked exhausting, yet from the expressions on their faces, everyone seemed thoroughly exhilarated. "We're still short on hands," Chen Fan couldn't help remarking with a sigh. Fan Domain now had 247 members, but they were still understaffed. They had enough runners, but not enough specialized talent. For instance, he currently lacked a few sharp, trustworthy bookkeepers, which would have saved him from having to pull Wang Kui away from his regular duties. Every articulate speaker had already been dispatched to tend stalls in the marketplace. Just then— "Domain Lord," Sick Monkey asked hesitantly beside him, "aren't we taking things a bit too far? What if we can't sustain this? If we can't collect the ghost stones we lent out in time, we'll be in dire straits." "We won't be." Chen Fan chuckled without explaining further. None of them knew the actual cost of crafting a Skeleton Horse. To build one Skeleton Horse, he needed only... one hundred ghost stones. When someone bought sixty-six Skeleton Horses on one hundred thousand ghost stones of credit, to him, it represented a net outlay of a mere 6,600 ghost stones. He could absorb that effortlessly. "Still, don't you think we're letting them earn a bit too much?" Sick Monkey grumbled indignantly. "They don't even have to put up any coin. A single round trip nets them tens of thousands of ghost stones. What makes them deserve that?" "Don't rush," Chen Fan said with a soft smile. "This is called buying horse bones for a thousand gold—showing everyone through practical action that sticking with Fan Domain means meat on the table. "It will make every faction that hasn't joined turn green with envy. "They will crave a taste of meat alongside Fan Domain. "Under such a massive influx of supply, the Skeleton Horse markets across Jiangdong, Jiangxi, and Jiangnan will saturate before long. They will gradually lower their prices. Buying at 1,500 ghost stones and selling for 1,700 or even 1,600 will become the norm. "And after that— "comes the main event. "By that time, numerous factions will have eaten their fill by following Fan Domain. Their trust in us will be sky-high, and they will hunger for even more. Some of those factions control trade routes extending into the Guanxi Plain. Through them, we can distribute our Skeleton Horses even farther afield. "Our reputation will soar higher and higher. "When that day comes! "If anyone dares make an enemy of us, we won't even need to lift a finger. With a single word, countless factions will step forward to wipe them out on our behalf. "This is what it means: 'The world may not belong to me, but the world serves my purpose.'" Sick Monkey lowered his head in deep contemplation. He could vaguely sense that if this plan succeeded, it would be epoch-making; no faction in history had ever achieved such heights. Yet the fatal flaw was... If it failed, it meant utter ruin. "What if someone defaults on their debt?" "Roll forth the Nine-Five Dragon Carriage to kill the chicken and scare the monkeys." *** This day was destined to be a madhouse. Many factions had been drawn purely by Fan Domain's fame and the upcoming auction, knowing nothing of the marketplace beforehand. But after taking a single stroll through the stalls, their eyes turned bloodshot with greed. *What kind of Jiangbei is this?!* *This is the long-lost second home we never knew we had!* "Quick, hurry up!" On another street in Fan City—one dedicated to purchasing goods and facilitating open trade between factions—stood an official Fan Domain purchasing shop. An anxious middle-aged man pointed frantically at a carriage full of cargo behind him. "Give me an appraisal! I'm selling the whole lot!" He hailed from a faction in Jiangdong. Knowing that many factions would converge on Fan Domain once the rainy season ended, he had hauled a shipment of goods here the moment the rains ceased, intending to sell them. Only after arriving did he realize how utterly insane this place was. His faction had no prior dealings with Fan Domain. To become a Level 1 trusted faction and take a massive drove of Skeleton Horses back to Jiangdong, he had to spend fifty thousand ghost stones in the marketplace. Yet he had only come to sell goods. He wasn't the leader of his faction, merely the manager of their merchant guild. How could he possibly carry so many ghost stones? He had only thirty to forty thousand on him, originally intended to be combined with the proceeds of his sales to purchase local goods to haul back. Furthermore, Fan Domain had capped today's quota for becoming a Level 1 trusted faction by spending fifty thousand ghost stones at just twenty slots. After consulting with his clan leader, they decided to dump their stock onto Fan Domain in a rapid clearance, immediately buy fifty thousand ghost stones' worth of Skeleton Horses to qualify as a Level 1 trusted faction, and then leverage the one hundred thousand ghost stone credit line to purchase even more Skeleton Horses to take home. By now, only seven spots remained. That was why he was in such a frantic rush. This was practically free money! Above all, there was zero risk. Fan Domain bore all the risk; they only had to make the round trip to return filthy rich. "I know the rules," the middle-aged man urged breathlessly. "These exotic treasures are all unopened. There's no time to appraise them individually—can you just buy the whole lot in bulk?" "No need to rush, honored guest." Second Elder Chen walked out with a genial smile and gestured. Several attendants emerged from the shop, hauling the bundles and crates inside before he continued, "Our shopkeeper will take a general look first and give you a concrete figure." "Please make it quick! I'm running out of time!" "Understood, understood." Inside the shop, Chen Fan sat in the back room, swiftly scanning the attribute panels of each exotic treasure. There was quite a haul—mostly White-grade treasures, along with seven or eight Green-grade ones. Finally, his eyes came to rest on an emerald jade plaque. [Exotic Treasure Name]: Architect Token. [Exotic Treasure Grade]: Green. [Exotic Treasure Effect]: Allows the holder to become an architect. A simple effect, yet one pregnant with tremendous value. Chen Fan couldn't help chuckling. Sure enough, once the crowds swelled, treasures delivered themselves right to his doorstep. This item could serve as the final lot of the auction! The grand finale! As for the other exotic treasures, some were decent, while others were ordinary. He intended to purchase them all to replenish Fan Domain's merchant reserves. A moment later, he settled on an appropriate price. Looking at the former Second Elder of the Chen family waiting for instructions in the room, he said softly, "Offer ten thousand ghost stones and see if he bites. You can go higher, but don't look too eager." "Understood." Second Elder Chen nodded respectfully, strode outside, and cleared his throat toward the anxiously waiting middle-aged man. "The shopkeeper has completed the appraisal. Our purchase price is eight thousand ghost stones. Among them..." Before he could finish— "Deal!" The middle-aged man urged in flushed excitement, "Quick, quick, hand over the ghost stones! The cargo is all yours!" "..." The corner of Second Elder Chen's mouth twitched slightly. He had intended to bump the price up to ten thousand ghost stones to make the man feel he had received a generous concession. He hadn't expected the fellow to be in such a desperate rush. Waving his hand, he had an attendant swiftly count out the ghost stones and hand them over. The middle-aged man seized the ghost stones without a second thought. Leading his men, he bolted toward the adjacent Fan Domain Marketplace Street, terrified that the slightest delay would cost them the last remaining spots for Fan Domain's Level 1 trusted factions. "Honestly..." Watching the man's receding figure, the elder couldn't help letting out a long sigh. Fortunately, he had never mistreated the Young Master in the past. That was the only reason he had kept his life and had the privilege of witnessing Fan City's blossoming prosperity. Though he was getting on in years, he couldn't help wondering whether he had truly stepped into a second spring for his career.