Time flows like a river, the sun and moon cycle, and in the blink of an eye, summer is approaching.
More than two months have passed since Xu Xian recruited the fourteen masters from the Seven Great Forging Workshops.
Over these two months, Xu Xian had delivered most of the old orders he held.
Although the fourteen spirit forgers were not as relentless as Xu Xian nor as efficient, they could still produce over two hundred earth weapons a month.
By working overtime day and night, they averaged about fifty earth weapons per person each month, totaling over six hundred orders.
Because the price of fifth-grade demon beasts had plummeted two months ago while Xu Xian’s pricing remained constant, new orders in Demon-Slaying City continued to pour in without end.
Furthermore, the news of Xu Xian recruiting the fourteen spirit forgers had quietly spread across most of the Central Plains.
People everywhere were saying that Xu Xian intended to build a second Ancient Sword Mountain in Demon-Slaying City.
Some even jokingly referred to him as the Father of Earth Weapons.
Many cultivators from the Central Plains came for his reputation. The number of demon hunters in Demon-Slaying City was now significantly higher than it had been during the winter.
With more people in the Demon Suppression Abyss, the number of demon beasts coming from the Great Desolation also increased.
Both sides slaughtered each other in battles that were grand and intense.
As time went on, Xu Xian did not just accept a large volume of orders; he also remembered to purchase the carcasses of fifth-grade demon beasts, which caused their prices to steadily recover.
Eventually, the price settled at over 1,500 spirit stones.
Throughout it all, Xu Xian held onto his stock, refusing to sell a single one.
This triggered a steady recovery of raw material prices in the Central Plains.
The inventory of fifth-grade demon beast carcasses held by the Three Sects, Three Schools, and one Chamber of Commerce was eventually consumed.
With no stock left to sell in the Central Plains, many merchants resumed the business of trading fifth-grade demon beast carcasses.
However, with the recent lesson still fresh in their minds, they did not dare to be too blatant. At the very least, they didn't dare to inflate prices or deliberately suppress them.
They feared provoking that Little Grand-Uncle of the Wendao Sword Sect and being driven to bankruptcy.
After all, if even the seven great powers of the Central Plains couldn't defeat him, small-time vendors wouldn't dare harbor ill intentions.
As for the major sects of the Central Plains, having just suffered a silent loss, they were even less willing to provoke him.
It seemed the entirety of Fanzhou had tacitly agreed to let Xu Xian handle the fifth-grade demon beast business alone, and let him run the forging workshops in Demon-Slaying City by himself.
Even if he held a monopoly, given the nature of the Wendao Sword Sect, he would likely only adjust prices slightly. They would have to spend a bit more money, true, but they wouldn't be unable to find stock, nor would they suffer massive losses from extreme market volatility.
At least for now, no one was willing to run to Demon-Slaying City to compete with that Little Grand-Uncle of the Wendao Sword Sect.
To do so would be to suffer a double loss, losing both the lady and the troops, and perhaps getting themselves trapped in the process.
The fact that fourteen spirit forgers had been 'conscripted' as laborers had become the biggest joke in the Central Plains over the past two months.
It made the high-level officials of the Three Sects, Three Schools, and one Chamber of Commerce roll their eyes in frustration.
Xu Xian’s name also began to rise in prominence across the Central Plains.
Even those who had never met him knew of his deeds. Even those who had never seen his face had heard the rumors.
Word had it that in the tower of the Half-Step Human Realm in the Central Plains, Xu Xian appeared on three separate rankings.
One was the Fanzhou Hidden Dragon Rank.
This rank consisted of the youngest cultivators from various sects in Fanzhou. Based on talent, cultivation, and strength, Xu Xian was ranked third. The first and second places were solely because their cultivation stages were slightly higher than his.
Another was the Most Potential Forging Genius Rank.
Xu Xian was the undisputed number one.
A twenty-something sixth-rank spirit forger—no one in the new generation of Fanzhou could come close. He led the second-place candidate by two full ranks.
The last one was the Fanzhou Business Genius Rank.
Xu Xian had become famous overnight due to the trade war in Demon-Slaying City. He held a steady spot in the top ten, with a clear upward trend.
One person on three ranks.
It was a display of boundless glory.
One had to realize that this youth had never once shown his face in the Central Plains, yet he received such high evaluations and fame.
It was truly remarkable.
Many of the new generation in the Central Plains were eager to see just what kind of figure this legendary Little Grand-Uncle of the Wendao Sword Sect actually was.
Unfortunately, Xu Xian was far away in Demon-Slaying City, bordering the Great Desolation. They could only wonder from afar.
In Demon-Slaying City, Xu Xian had not forged a sword in a long time. His daily task was turning spirit ore into synthetic immortal gold to reduce costs, living frugally and tightening his belt.
The fourteen spirit forgers had worked for over two months without receiving a single cent, and yet they didn't dare to rest.
Their lives were more than just miserable.
It was said that some of the spirit forgers had actually cried.
They claimed they never imagined in their lives they would live like this—like slaves.
Li Xun was even more melancholic every night, growing more haggard by the day.
Bitter. It was truly bitter!
If they could go back in time, they would never set foot in Demon-Slaying City again for the rest of their lives.
As fifth-grade raw materials became scarce in the Central Plains, Xu Xian finally gave the nod to open the warehouses and resume the business of fifth-grade demon beasts.
This time was different from before. Xu Xian proactively yielded a point, splitting the profits fifty-fifty with the Merchant Hall. However, the condition was that the Merchant Hall could only increase the current price by ten percent.
Others feared trouble.
How could Xu Xian not fear trouble as well?
He had won the last trade war and made a lot of money, but ultimately, it carried risks and was extremely draining.
In the end, it had even affected Demon-Slaying City. It wasn't just the Three Sects, Three Schools, and one Chamber of Commerce that were hurt; the demon hunters in Demon-Slaying City were also impacted to some extent.
He was from the Wendao Sword Sect and held great respect for Demon-Slaying City.
He needed a stable business environment and a Demon-Slaying City that could grow healthily.
Only when everyone could make money would more people enter the Great Desolation.
Only then could he buy more demon beast skeletons.
Therefore, price stability was crucial.
The Merchant Hall naturally had no objections. They knew exactly how easy it was to handle a monopoly. Whether they made a little or a lot, it was still profit—and besides, they were still making quite a bit.
Xu Xian’s repeated concessions only served to elevate his status in the hearts of the Merchant Hall members to the absolute highest level.
The Merchant Hall Master had stated more than once in public that Xu Xian was the lucky star of the Merchant Hall.
To have such a Little Grand-Uncle was the sect’s fortune and the Merchant Hall’s fortune.
Since Li Qingshan was the one who brought him back, Li Qingshan inexplicably basked in Xu Xian’s reflected glory.
Li Qingshan also used this matter to show off in public multiple times.
As the fifth-grade demon beasts entered the Central Plains market, Xu Xian’s financial predicament was broken. With the first wave of capital returning, life became much easier.
He first repaid his debts to Wen Qingxue and Yao Zhijian, and then gave a sum to Yao Xiaoxiao.
Yao Xiaoxiao refused, but Xu Xian told her to keep it as her dowry.
Yao Xiaoxiao happily accepted.
At the same time, he settled the wages of the fourteen spirit forgers.
For two months of work, each person received several tens of thousands of spirit stones.
Though it wasn't an astronomical amount, it was a bit of sweetness in their miserable lives—a ray of light in the darkness that gave them something to look forward to.
"It hasn't been easy."
"Making money is hard!"
As time marched on, Xu Xian’s assets grew more and more. He even sent a large amount of spirit stones to Lin Qianqian and Zhang Yang through an intermediary, urging them to cultivate well.
Looking at the increasing number of demon beast skeletons in the sword pool, Xu Xian was in a great mood, often reflecting alone under the moonlight.
"Soon, soon!"
What was originally planned to take over a decade could now be completed in at most three years at the current pace.
By then, he would have gathered one hundred thousand skeletons to unseal the Yellow Spring Burial.
He would advance to the sixth stage.
And save Yao Xiaoxiao.
Rate on N.U.
