"Zhou Qing'ang" laid out his deductions in meticulous detail. Gao Yuan could not help slapping the table in admiration as he listened. "If this plan succeeds, the vast majority of cultivators across the entire Congyun Sea will be indebted to the Master Secret Emissary!
"Even when the two Soul Formation Immortal Lords, Hongxi and Ziyun, return, if they wish to move against the master, they will have to weigh the consequences carefully.
"The master is truly far-sighted, planning a hundred steps ahead with every move. It is far beyond anything we could ever fathom."
Never imagining that a seemingly simple scheme to amass wealth could contain so many intricate twists and turns, He Zhenghao sighed in wonder as well.
Both men were thoroughly awed.
Yet neither realized in the slightest that they had overlooked the single most critical link in this seemingly airtight plan:
Whether Li Fan, after absorbing astronomical amounts of contribution points, could truly deliver a "two hundred percent return over five years."
Perhaps it was because Li Fan had repeatedly demonstrated unbelievable abilities in the past, subtly brainwashing them over time.
Or perhaps their own assumption that Li Fan was a fallen Longevity Heavenly Venerable who had plummeted down cultivation stages made their trust in his abilities so absolute that it required no second thought.
In short, they did not harbor the slightest shred of doubt regarding whether Li Fan could achieve the target of this fundraising scheme.
Was it not merely tripling the funds in five years?
How could that possibly trouble the esteemed Master Secret Emissary?
Yet in reality...
To be quite honest, even though Li Fan had reincarnated through multiple lifetimes in the Congyun Sea and held every foresight of the future, this time he genuinely could not achieve it.
It was not due to any incompetence on his part, but rather because once assets expanded to a certain scale, the difficulty of doubling them grew exponentially.
To put it bluntly, Li Fan was merely a speculator profiting from price margins by buying low and selling high.
He was not a creator of wealth.
He was not the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals, capable of generating contribution points endlessly without restriction.
With tens of millions of points, he might barely manage to double them through his maneuvers.
But if it were hundreds of millions, or billions...
Nothing short of another epochal war erupting between the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the Five Elders Association—with him foreknowing it just as before—could make that possible.
Still, failing to achieve it did not matter.
From the very beginning, he had never intended to pay out the promised returns.
That was precisely why this fundraising scheme required a five-year lockup period.
Five years from now, with the Crimson Flame Burning Sea, the Congyun Sea would turn into a dead realm.
Once everyone was dead, these debts naturally would never need to be repaid.
Rather than letting their points be reclaimed for nothing by the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals after their deaths, it was far better to let Li Fan put the discarded resources to use.
Thus, Li Fan felt not the slightest psychological burden.
As for the claim that Immortal Lords Lancang and Haoxuan, along with numerous Nascent Soul cultivators, would return—while true—it was merely rhetoric used to hoodwink He Zhenghao and Gao Yuan.
Whether they returned or not, Li Fan truly did not care in the least.
As long as they dared return to the Congyun Sea, none of them would likely escape death.
If anything, Li Fan actually hoped that Zhang Zhiliang and the other formation masters he was familiar with might live a little longer in this lifetime.
These thoughts flashed through his mind in an instant. "Zhou Qing'ang" then said to He Zhenghao and Gao Yuan, "Fellow Daoists, you have already disappointed the Master Secret Emissary once. You must not squander this final opportunity to redeem yourselves!
"You must handle the master's plan with utmost precision and propriety."
Both men nodded in agreement.
The two of them understood clearly that if the two Soul Formation Immortal Lords returned and Li Fan lost power, their fates as his handpicked direct subordinates would certainly be dire.
Even setting loyalty aside, if only for their own futures, they had to go all out and treat this matter with absolute seriousness.
Yet Gao Yuan remained the more cautious of the two.
After hesitating for a while, before departing, he asked Zhou Qing'ang with great care, "Fellow Daoist Zhou, do you possess any proof from the Master Secret Emissary?
"It is not that we doubt you, but after all, this matter is of grave consequence..."
"Zhou Qing'ang" gave a faint sneer and was just about to answer.
Suddenly, two strange fluctuations emanated from He Zhenghao's and Gao Yuan's storage rings.
Realizing what it was, their expressions changed drastically.
They swiftly retrieved the sources of the disturbance—the two Divided Spirit Jade Slips that Li Fan had handed to them before entering seclusion.
The two Divided Spirit Jade Slips flew up into the air and merged into one.
From within a faint silhouette, Li Fan's voice drifted out: "What you say is not wrong. This matter is indeed of great consequence, and it is fitting that I show myself."
Seeing Li Fan's sudden appearance, both He Zhenghao and Gao Yuan panicked.
They dropped to the ground in haste, calling out, "Greetings, Master Secret Emissary!"
At the same time, their nerves were stretched to the absolute limit.
For Li Fan's words made it blatantly clear that from start to finish, the master had witnessed every word of their exchange with Zhou Qing'ang!
More than that, ever since the master entered seclusion, every single move they made had remained within his grasp!
Overcome with terror, both pressed their foreheads against the ground, not daring to lift their heads without Li Fan's permission.
"He Zhenghao!"
"Present!" He Zhenghao answered in haste.
"From among the cultivators who participated in the previous fundraising schemes, select a number of representatives. In ten days, I shall meet with them.
"I will personally explain this five-year plan, and in doing so, put your minds at ease," Li Fan said in a deep voice.
Seeing that Li Fan had a task for him, He Zhenghao was overjoyed and accepted on the spot.
"Gao Yuan!"
"This humble servant is here!" Gao Yuan's voice trembled slightly.
"Compile a list of all Congyun Sea cultivators who perished in the great battle of Tianling Province, and hand it to me in ten days as well."
Gao Yuan also agreed without a second's hesitation.
The light upon the Divided Spirit Jade Slip in the air grew dimmer and dimmer, until it was virtually invisible.
With a clatter, it dropped to the floor, accompanied by Li Fan's final words: "Remember, in my absence, Zhou Qing'ang may act as my plenipotentiary representative.
"His words are my commands!"
Zhou Qing'ang bowed his head slightly and offered profuse thanks to the Master Secret Emissary, the corners of his mouth curling upward in unmistakable smugness.
Seeing this, He Zhenghao and Gao Yuan could not stop a wave of bitter envy and regret from washing over them: *Originally, this level of trust from the master belonged to me!*
Yet they dared not grumble, merely nodding in obedient acquiescence.
With Li Fan having appeared in person to verify that the plan described by Zhou Qing'ang was genuine, the reprimanded He and Gao carried out Li Fan's will with trembling caution and meticulous obedience.
After years of running local operations, their control over Congyun City was, in practical terms, even more effective than Li Fan's.
Under their orchestration, two major developments—that the great war was nearing its end, and that a new fundraising scheme was about to launch—spread across the cultivator community of the Congyun Sea in the span of a single day.
Even as it stirred an uproar, hearts and minds were set adrift with restless excitement.
Countless messages flooded in to He Zhenghao, inquiring whether the news was true.
He Zhenghao naturally embellished the tale with dramatic flourish.
And so, ten days later, a gathering of cultivators assembled in one hall, awaiting Li Fan's arrival.
Chapter 573