"Daoist Jiao, might I ask what the Wanfa Merchant Guild's background really is? 'Wanfa'—Ten Thousand Methods—what audacious phrasing! Could it be that this merchant guild truly possesses tens of thousands of cultivation arts?" Li Fan asked immediately.
"Speaking of the Wanfa Merchant Guild, its roots go back to the period just after the Great Carnage ended, before the new order had been established," Jiao Xiuyuan explained.
"That era is generally referred to as the Wasteland Era.
"Back then, the number of cultivators had plummeted to rock bottom. Those who survived the catastrophe were true lone wolves. Solitary figures wandering alone, trusting no one but themselves.
"Cultivators sheltered and hid in the wilderness, exploring ruins and seeking opportunities.
"A single person has limited energy. Sometimes they found surplus cultivation arts they couldn't practice, and naturally thought of trading them with other cultivators for something useful.
"Yet in those days, trust between cultivators approached absolute zero. To successfully conduct a trade, a middleman trusted by everyone was naturally indispensable.
"The Wanfa Merchant Guild was one of those former middlemen. It is also the only organization able to endure and survive after the founding of both the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the Five Elders Association.
"In the Wasteland Era, cultivators were scarce, but cultivation arts were not in short supply. A single cultivator often carried several techniques, whether pillaged from others or obtained through fortuitous encounters.
"It was precisely during that time that the Wanfa Merchant Guild hoarded an unfathomable quantity of cultivation arts. That is the reason it has stood firm for millennia and still endures today," Jiao Xiuyuan unraveled the guild's history step by step.
Hearing this, Li Fan couldn't help asking, "Could it be that the force behind this Wanfa Merchant Guild is some supreme expert of the Longevity realm? Ordinary Dao Integration cultivators likely couldn't protect so many cultivation arts."
Jiao Xiuyuan nodded. "Most cultivators think the same way. Nowadays, both the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the Five Elders Association tacitly permit the Wanfa Merchant Guild's existence. For these two behemoths to yield some ground, the cultivator backing it naturally cannot be weak. But the true identity of an almighty being of that caliber is far beyond what nobodies like us could ever know."
Li Fan flattered him without batting an eye. "Daoist friend, your Thousand Li Hall does business across the entire cultivation world—how could you possibly count as a nobody?"
Then he asked with some confusion, "According to what you said, the Wanfa Merchant Guild's business has already been recognized by the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals. Why, then, have I never seen them within the Alliance's territory? Even with the Wanhua Merchant Guild, which handles mortal affairs, I've only ever seen guild traveling agents, never their storefronts."
"Heh, both the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the Five Elders Association have their own independent, well-developed trade systems. Why would they let the Wanfa Merchant Guild in to steal their business? The current Wanfa Merchant Guild, while recognized by both giants, is a shadow of its former scale. It can only survive in the cracks between them," Jiao Xiuyuan chuckled.
"The Wanfa Merchant Guild is only active along the borderlands between the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the Five Elders Association. Those areas are a chaotic mix of dragons and snakes, where neither side has firm control, and countless rogue cultivators entrench themselves. A neutral organization like the Wanfa Merchant Guild actually puts people more at ease when doing business.
"Furthermore, each territory of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the Five Elders Association produces a wide variety of local specialties. While official trade exists between the two in non-war years, crucial strategic materials generally aren't on the exchange registry.
"Yet the demand for such resources is undeniably high. Thus, routing them through the Wanfa Merchant Guild as a transit point became a viable solution.
"Naturally, the prices are considerably higher as well. Multiplying several times over is commonplace.
"For example, over on the Five Elders Association's side, there is a pill called the Dao Comprehension Pill. It is said to be an ancient secret formula of the Dadao Sect. Upon ingestion, it increases one's affinity with the laws of the Great Dao, thereby drastically lowering the difficulty of comprehending the Dao and boosting cultivation speed."
Li Fan paused. "Isn't that similar to the Spirit Enlightenment effect of the Heavenly Profound Mirror?"
"Precisely. What's even more brilliant is that the Dao Comprehension Pill's effect stacks perfectly with Spirit Enlightenment. Spirit Enlightenment elevates one's innate comprehension, while the Dao Comprehension Pill lowers the difficulty of comprehending the Dao. Combining the two balances internal and external, making one's cultivation progress at a terrifying pace," Jiao Xiuyuan clicked his tongue in admiration.
"The Alliance has drooled over the Dao Comprehension Pill for ages, but despite trying every method, they couldn't decipher the recipe. So each year they can only bring in a limited batch through the Wanfa Merchant Guild's channels.
"Over on the Five Elders Association's side, each Dao Comprehension Pill is said to cost only fifty low-grade spirit stones—equivalent to fifty contribution points on our end. That's practically giving them away for free! But at the Wanfa Merchant Guild, due to the severe scarcity, the price inflates tenfold, generally sitting at five hundred contribution points per pill.
"Even so, the number of cultivators eager to buy is countless. After all, what can you do when the thing is simply that effective?" Jiao Xiuyuan sighed.
Li Fan's clone pondered for a moment, then probed, "Earlier, I overheard a Golden Core cultivator casually mention the existence of the Fallen Immortal Realm and Vanguard Realms. In Vanguard Realms, it seems anonymous transactions can take place. Couldn't cultivators from the Alliance and the Five Elders Association trade that way?"
Jiao Xiuyuan was somewhat surprised. "You even know about the existence of Vanguard Realms, Fellow Daoist?"
After a brief thought, he lowered his voice to explain, "In the past, doing that was indeed fine.
"Later on, however, such a convenient and secretive method of trade bred rampant speculation, reselling, and arbitrage, sending price levels in both the Alliance and the Five Elders Association completely out of control for a time. Spies also took advantage of it to stir up trouble, stealing and transmitting vast amounts of confidential intelligence.
"Eventually, two almighty figures from both sides intervened simultaneously, each carving out a 'Great Chasm.'
"From that point on, cultivators of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the Five Elders Association could no longer use Vanguard Realms to trade with one another.
"Whenever a cultivator of the Alliance seeks to enter a Vanguard Realm whose spatial coordinates lie in the Five Elders Association's territory, their divine sense is blocked by the two Great Chasms. The same applies in reverse to the Five Elders Association."
Li Fan slowly nodded.
"I understand. So if I want to purchase cultivation arts through the Wanfa Merchant Guild, my only option is to make the trip in person?"
"Correct. The closest outpost of the Wanfa Merchant Guild is in Jiushan Province, near the border with Yongliang Province," Jiao Xiuyuan cautioned. "Jiushan Province is far from peaceful. If you truly plan on going, you could join up with other Alliance cultivators.
"That way, you can look out for each other along the journey."
"Thank you for the advice, Fellow Daoist. It is quite a long journey with substantial risk. I shall consider it further," Li Fan replied.
Meanwhile, Li Fan's true body searched the Heavenly Profound Mirror for information regarding travel from the Congyun Sea to Jiushan Province.
Sure enough, quite a few cultivators were recruiting companions.
Chapter 215