All Walks of Life in Congyun

"Fuck your mother, give us our money back!" "I knew it! How could that Li Fan suddenly be so kindhearted?! That fundraising scheme had been dormant for so long, and then out of nowhere, he restarted it without warning! Restarting it was one thing, but he even removed the collection cap! Turns out this was what was waiting for us all along!" "Exactly! The man's divination abilities have reached the pinnacle of perfection. He even foreknew the truce between the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the Five Elders Association. How could he possibly fail to foresee the lifting of restrictions on cultivation techniques? If you ask me, he deliberately took advantage of this opportunity to fleece his own brothers!" "Surely not? Given the Secret Emissary's current wealth and stature, would he really care about petty change from the likes of us?" "From one person or ten people, maybe he wouldn't be tempted. But more than ten thousand cultivators took part in this fundraising round! With that vast amount of contribution points, let alone a petty provincial Secret Script Emissary like him, even a Dao Integration Immortal Venerable would drool with envy! Just you wait—when we demand our contribution points back from He Zhenghao in a moment, he'll definitely make every excuse under the sun!" Rallied by the instigation of several cultivators, panic and outrage quickly spread through the crowd. They clustered around the entrance of the Administration Hall, refusing to disperse. Under normal circumstances, unrelated persons were strictly forbidden from congregating in the central core of an immortal city. Unfortunately, this fundraising affair had ensnared far too many people; even a good number of cultivators within the system had committed their entire life savings. Now that techniques were fifty percent off, these people could not produce enough contribution points on short notice. Because of their official positions, they naturally did not dare to stir up trouble for their direct superior. Yet they certainly had the nerve to turn a blind eye and let these outsiders in to "defend their rights for them." And so this chaotic spectacle was born. While the outside boiled over with clamor, inside the Administration Hall, Gao Yuan and He Zhenghao were completely at ease, unbothered in the least. "A bunch of unruly rabble!" "We agreed on five years from the start. Five years means five years! How long has it been, and already they're clamoring to redeem their contribution points?" "Do they really think the commercial contracts I painstakingly signed with each and every one of them are just scraps of waste paper?" He Zhenghao sneered in disdain, his gaze continuously skimming across the surface of the Lesser Heavenly Profound Mirror before him. "*Nine Dragons Soaring Transformations*, a Soul Formation technique, nine hundred and fifty thousand contribution points. Metamorphose like a dragon, defy the heavens to alter one's fate, and reshape one's body..." "*Mountains and Rivers in a Sleeve*, a Soul Formation technique, one million contribution points. Mastered to completion, a flick of the sleeve gathers rivers and mountains at will..." ... Techniques he had once never dared dream of were now his to browse and select without the slightest pressure. After following Li Fan for just a few short years, he was no longer that Liuli Island garrison who had to pinch pennies over a mere hundred contribution points. *Although these Soul Formation techniques are decent, they still leave something to be desired. Better to achieve it in one step and exchange directly for a Dao Integration technique.* *A rare opportunity like this doesn't come twice.* Dazzled by the choices, a new thought surged into He Zhenghao's mind, and he could no longer suppress it. After carefully studying the descriptions of several Dao Integration techniques, those Soul Formation arts he had previously fancied suddenly felt bland and tasteless. *Hmm... None of these are ordinary. The cheapest requires at least two million contribution points, so the points on hand are a bit short.* *If I pick one tailored specifically to me, the gap will be even wider.* *Still, it's not like I can't figure out a way...* He Zhenghao began calculating quietly in his heart. Beside him, Gao Yuan had remained silent the entire time. Yet the excitement in his eyes was impossible to conceal. Just like He Zhenghao, he was browsing through techniques to find one that suited his fancy. Only Zhou Qing'ang, seated between the two of them, was different. He merely kept his eyes closed in deep contemplation, utterly unmoved. *Zhou Qing'ang's composure is growing more astonishing by the day. To be able to resist a temptation like this... No wonder the Secret Emissary values him more and more,* both He Zhenghao and Gao Yuan thought to themselves whenever their gazes casually swept past him in their spare moments. Ever since cultivators had begun turning up one after another not long ago demanding early redemptions of their contribution points, the three had grown thoroughly sick of the harassment. Together, they had retreated here behind tightly barred doors, seeking peace out of sight and out of mind. After a while, Zhou Qing'ang, who had kept his mouth shut all this time, suddenly spoke up: "Allowing them to make such a fuss isn't a long-term solution either." "It matters little to us, no matter what they think. But in their shame and fury, they might speak out of turn and tarnish the Secret Emissary's good name." "Gossip is a fearful thing! If word spreads, outsiders who don't know the truth might actually think the Secret Emissary is some petty scoundrel coveting other people's wealth!" Gao Yuan was remarkably quick to react. Before Zhou Qing'ang had even finished speaking, he chimed in, "Indeed. The Secret Emissary intends to use this matter to win the hearts of the people. If this drags on any longer, it might delay his grand plans!" He Zhenghao lifted his head and asked blankly, "What brilliant ideas do you two fellow Daoists have?" "Didn't the Secret Emissary already give instructions before? The commercial contract clearly spells it out. If they want an early redemption, it's not entirely forbidden. It simply means forfeiting a bit of penalty fee, along with a lifetime ban from participating in future fundraising plans." "Go out and make it crystal clear to them. If they still stubbornly insist on their course, then return their contribution points to them and be done with it." "Take down a registry of their names, and I will report it to the Secret Emissary. Won't that resolve the matter?" Zhou Qing'ang spoke in an unhurried, measured tone. Internally, however, He Zhenghao cried out in bitter dismay: *You make it sound so easy! A 'bit' of penalty fee? That's a full one-third! Every bit of it was saved through blood and sweat—who would willingly part with that? If I actually say that, won't they tear me to shreds alive?!* He cast an imploring glance at Gao Yuan, only to see the man's eyes cast down toward his nose and his nose aligned toward his heart, wearing an expression that declared this was none of his concern. "Fellow Daoist He?" Hearing the added weight in Zhou Qing'ang's tone, He Zhenghao had no choice but to brace himself and agree. The instant he stepped out of the Administration Hall, the boisterous, clamoring crowd of cultivators abruptly fell silent in unison. Every pair of eyes snapped onto He Zhenghao. *Boom!* The heavy doors behind him slammed shut in a flash. He Zhenghao forced a smile that looked uglier than weeping: "Everyone, please hear me out!" ... While He Zhenghao racked his brains trying to reason with the throng of cultivators, Han Yi had still not recovered from his profound remorse. After the announcement of the half-price sale on techniques, despite being completely penniless, he had joined the crowd just to see the spectacle and studied the released catalog of techniques. If he hadn't looked, it would have been fine, but that single look immediately threw his heart off balance. Among them was a technique titled *Primal Scripture of Empty Calamity*, which held the miraculous effect of averting disasters and dodging tribulations. Moreover, it was only a Soul Formation technique. At half price, it cost a mere 1.1 million contribution points. *If paired with my Heavenly Fortune Scripture, it could drastically mitigate the backlash of heavenly fortune upon me.* *I would never have to worry about bizarre, inexplicable calamities befalling me like before.* *It couldn't be more suited to me...* The more Han Yi thought about it, the deeper his regret grew. "Damn it! Why couldn't I control these hands of mine back then!" Suffocated by the pent-up anguish in his chest, Han Yi felt a stifling tightness, nearly spitting out a mouthful of blood.