Setting aside Gao Yuan's shrewd insights and petty schemes, the focus returns to He Zhenghao.
Amidst restless anxiety, he spent about another ten days and finally completed the fundraising of one hundred million contribution points.
After that, following Gao Yuan's advice, he quietly awaited Li Fan's next order.
This stretch of time was quite torturous.
Because no matter how reasonable it sounded, it was merely Gao Yuan's personal speculation.
As for what Lord Secret Emissary truly thought...
Who could really say for sure?
Perhaps he really did have the mind to let He Zhenghao manage that one hundred million contribution points himself.
Although He Zhenghao appeared calm on the surface, his mind was in turmoil, and his heart was rife with apprehension.
Like a condemned prisoner about to be taken to the execution grounds, he waited in agony as time ticked away, anticipating his final fate.
It truly gave him a taste of what ancient cultivators meant by "an invasion of inner demons."
Fortunately, He Zhenghao's luck was not half bad.
Just when he felt he could endure it no longer, he suddenly felt strange ripples pulsing from his storage ring.
Overjoyed, He Zhenghao did not forget to tidy his appearance before hurriedly bringing out that metal figurine.
"My Lord, do you have instructions for me?" Placing the figurine on the table before him, He Zhenghao asked respectfully.
"Use the raised one hundred million contribution points to purchase the materials on this list as quickly as possible."
Li Fan's voice came from the metal statue.
"You do not necessarily have to buy from the Heavenly Profound Mirror. For other items that are slightly flawed in quality but far cheaper, you may give them priority at your discretion."
"Not long from now, once the prices of these goods rise, sell them off."
...
Having delivered his instructions, Li Fan's voice gradually faded away.
Yet He Zhenghao's mind went completely blank, thundering like a tempest.
"Gao Yuan guessed wrong!"
"This time, Lord Secret Emissary really intends to hand this hundred million contribution points over to me to manage!"
After a brief pause, his thoughts slowly returned.
This time, however, he felt none of his earlier terror and helplessness.
Instead, he felt a strange rush of excitement and surging blood.
Relying solely on his own skill, he would certainly fall short.
But with the Lord's guidance, none of that was a problem!
The path of investment was, frankly speaking, very simple.
It was nothing more than an information gap.
As long as one knew beforehand what others did not, from then on, even a pig could make money lying on its back!
Trembling slightly, He Zhenghao quickly read through the list Li Fan had provided in his mind.
"Tianyu Pill, Violent Qi Powder, Killing Intent Frenzy Pill..."
"Standard-issue Tiangang Armor, Shenwu Thunder..."
"Hundred Battles Formation Diagram..."
The more He Zhenghao read, the tighter his brows knitted, his face filled with bewilderment.
This was completely different from what he had anticipated.
He Zhenghao had originally assumed the materials Li Fan wanted him to procure would be raw resources such as rare ores, spiritual woods, or medicinal herbs.
Because the Heavenly Profound Mirror maintained overall control, the price fluctuations of such goods were never too large.
At most, they swung around twenty percent up or down.
Even if one were unfortunate enough to buy at the peak, as long as one held onto them long enough, one could wait until the next price crest arrived.
When selling them off then, at worst, one would only lose a bit on handling fees.
And if one's merit rank was high enough, the loss from handling fees was practically negligible.
Yet the goods on the list Li Fan gave him this time were entirely finished products.
And furthermore...
They were all pills, magical artifacts, formation diagrams, and the like that were only used when fighting other cultivators!
Pills were reasonable enough; cultivators inevitably encountered danger when exploring sect ruins, so carrying a few just in case made perfect sense.
Yet artifacts like Tiangang Armor and Shenwu Thunder were never touched by ordinary cultivators unless they were engaged in life-and-death combat.
Not to mention those formation diagrams.
He Zhenghao searched the market transaction records for these goods; there were hardly any.
Practically no one showed any interest in them.
As a result, their prices had remained exceedingly stable. Moreover, these were standardized goods that could be mass-produced, so their stockpiles were bound to be enormous.
The prices of these items would rise?
Even though Li Fan had demonstrated his miraculous prophetic abilities several times before, at this moment, He Zhenghao could not help falling into deep doubt.
Did they really have to buy these things in bulk?
He Zhenghao suddenly hesitated.
Just then, Gao Yuan's warning echoed in his mind once again:
"For subordinates like us, lacking ability doesn't matter. What matters most is being obedient enough."
"Whatever the Lord tells us to do, we must carry it out resolutely and without hesitation."
"Otherwise, with so many cultivators in the Congyun Sea and neither of us being some peerless genius, why on earth would the Lord favor us?"
...
He Zhenghao gritted his teeth and made up his mind.
"Though I can't quite understand it, I just need to follow the Lord's instructions."
"Besides, these pills and artifacts are widely known; whenever cheap and useful items are mentioned, they're the first to come to mind."
"Even if the Lord's prophecy fails, how much could we possibly lose?"
He Zhenghao consoled himself thus.
Steadying his nerves and calming his mind, He Zhenghao dared not dawdle and immediately began inquiring among his friends.
He Zhenghao was a hot commodity right now.
Hearing that he needed assistance, many cultivators eagerly offered suggestions.
After contacting and comparing quotes from over a dozen suppliers, He Zhenghao commenced his grand purchasing enterprise.
With a big customer arriving at their doors to buy products that had sat accumulating dust in warehouses, these sellers were naturally grinning ear to ear. To close the deal quickly and prevent him from backing out, they offered very generous discounts.
Although one hundred million contribution points was a huge sum, once split across every variety of pill and artifact, it wasn't an overwhelming amount for each.
Any reasonably large workshop was capable of meeting He Zhenghao's demands.
Consequently, the procurement proceeded at a speed that slightly exceeded He Zhenghao's expectations.
After spending all one hundred million contribution points he had raised in exchange for a mountain of seemingly useless "junk," even knowing it was Li Fan's order, He Zhenghao felt rather hollow inside.
A sense of unreality suffused his heart, lingering without fading.
And while He Zhenghao had been as careful as possible, movements on this scale still could not escape the notice of certain observant eyes.
In the eyes of the public, every move He Zhenghao made represented far more than just himself.
Everyone knew he was Li Fan's trusted aide. To claim that such massive purchases were made without Li Fan's instructions would be completely absurd.
Could it be that this ancient Heavenly Mechanism Sect cultivator had deduced something once more?
Would the prices of the goods He Zhenghao bought skyrocket?
Quite a few people were instantly tempted.
However...
With the tragic debacle of Puxian True Leaf fresh in their minds, more cultivators had grown wiser through experience. Believing this was likely Li Fan playing his old trick again to intentionally drive up prices, they chose to wait and watch.
Chapter 548