I Studied Abroad in the Modern Times-Chapter 310Book 2: : The Fear of Comparison, Visiting Jiushan

Book 2: Chapter 310: The Fear of Comparison, Visiting Jiushan

Vol 2 Chapter 310: The Fear of Comparison, Visiting Jiushan

Watching Zhao Jingfan's departing figure, the elders in the hall turned their gazes toward Master Song.

Setting aside Zhao Jingfan's irrefutable reasoning, Master Song's summoning of him was, in essence, a declaration of his inclination—or at the very least, a consideration to join this so-called "technical alliance."

"Master? How could you... This is our ancestral secret technique..." The elder who had previously opposed the idea spoke up, his tone brimming with indignation.

"All of you are aware of Zheng Fa's past, I presume?"

At this, everyone nodded.

While outsiders might not pay much attention to who Zheng Fa was, the members of the Hundred Immortals Alliance were no fools—everyone had made inquiries about his background.

Seeing their agreement, Master Song continued, "Then tell me, what kind of person do you think Zheng Fa is?"

The three present fell into deep thought. Unexpectedly, it was the opposing elder who spoke first: "A peerless genius comparable to Tianhe Venerable—no, even greater than Tianhe Venerable..."

Master Song was momentarily stunned. He hadn't anticipated that the elder who had been the most vehemently opposed would hold Zheng Fa in such high regard.

The elder from Qingmu Sect shook his head. "The more of a genius he is, the more I worry... Talent and ambition are two sides of the same coin. Today, he proposes this 'technical alliance'—what will he demand tomorrow?"

Even Master Song nodded at this remark.

Tianhe Venerable was indeed formidable, but Tianhe Venerable had also exterminated countless sects in the Xuanyi Realm...

"And what of your thoughts, Master?"

Master Song didn't respond immediately. Instead, he retrieved a stack of letters from his sleeve and placed them on the table. "Do you know what these are?"

The elders shook their heads.

"These are letters written by our disciples who entered the Jiushan Realm earlier."

Letters?

Master Song continued, "Though they rarely mention what they've been doing in the Jiushan Realm..."

"Initially, they still identified themselves as members of Qingmu Sect."

"But after a month, their letters became filled with mentions of Zheng Fa."

"And now..." Master Song paused, sighing. "Guess who they refer to as their 'master' in these letters?"

Judging by their master's expression, the elders could easily guess...

Who else could it be?

Certainly not anyone sitting in this hall.

"Doesn't this further prove Zheng Fa's ambitions?" The elder frowned in confusion.

"But ambition isn't necessarily a bad thing."

"This..."

The elder was even more perplexed.

Having pondered this for a long time, Master Song now spoke with great fluency:

"From these letters, it's clear Zheng Fa is an extremely cautious and controlling individual."

"Despite the numerous sects in the Hundred Immortals Alliance, he hasn't paid them much heed, rarely interacting with us—likely because he doesn't trust us..."

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"Yet he treats his own people, even those in the Jiushan Realm, exceptionally well. You all witnessed the Golden Core ceremony at Jiushan Sect last time—dozens of Golden Core cultivators emerging in half a month. That scene is unforgettable."

"This man is cautious, protective of his own, and likely doesn't consider the Hundred Immortals Alliance sects as his allies."

The implication was clear: since Zheng Fa was both protective and distrustful, the best option was to become one of "his own."

A glint of shrewdness flashed in Master Song's eyes as he added, "But these letters also reveal something else..."

"The disciples we sent to Jiushan Sect were, at most, Foundation Establishment cultivators. Yet now they hold significant positions there. What does this tell us?"

The elder immediately responded, "Jiushan Sect lacks people! They lack alchemists!"

Master Song nodded. "Exactly!"

"This so-called technical alliance is likely for this very reason."

Seeing that the others still looked confused, Master Song spelled it out plainly:

"Even ancestral secret techniques have their price..."

"And Jiushan Sect won't lack alchemists forever."

The elder understood now.

Their master wanted to take a gamble.

Seeing that they seemed to grasp his meaning, Master Song exhaled and said, "Our Qingmu Sect has lost nearly all its accumulated resources. Rebuilding will take too long."

The elder opened his mouth as if to object.

"I know—we're all Nascent Soul cultivators;time means little to us. But how much time will the current situation in Xuanyi grant us?"

"What do you mean...?"

Master Song picked up a message talisman and handed it to the elder. "This is news from Haori Mountain."

"Haori Mountain?"

The elder took the talisman, and his face immediately paled, his voice trembling:

"Haori Mountain is demanding all immortal sects within its territory to pay tribute? Golden Core cultivators must serve ten years of labor every century?"

"This... How can this be?"

Master Song sneered. "Why not? What did you think the Six-Sect Alliance was for?"

"..."

"The Xuanyi Realm has changed. Do you still think Zheng Fa is greedy?"

The elder pressed his lips together, unable to respond.

Nothing was worse than comparison—especially when comparing how bad things could get.

Initially, he had thought Jiushan Sect's demand for their secret techniques was outrageous... but compared to Haori Mountain's actions, Jiushan Sect seemed almost merciful.

"Moreover, as Zhao Jingfan said... gaining the first-mover advantage might bring us some benefits."

The elder's expression shifted repeatedly as he finally understood why their master was considering joining this technical alliance.

Circumstances left them no choice.

If Haori Mountain was acting this way, the other five sects wouldn't be much different. Only the Hundred Immortals Alliance still maintained some semblance of decency.

After a long pause, the elder gritted his teeth and said, "Since the master has made his decision, I won't oppose it. But there are many secret techniques in our sect that I refuse to hand over to Jiushan Sect..."

Master Song was about to persuade him further when the stubborn old man stiffened his neck and declared, "I don't have much lifespan left anyway. At worst, I'll die—and at least I'll have the dignity to face our ancestors!"

This left Master Song speechless. He sighed, but just then, a message talisman flew in from outside. Master Song caught it and frowned in confusion. "Alliance Leader Zheng has invited us to Jiushan Sect... for a visit?"

Everyone in the hall was baffled. A visit? What was that supposed to mean?

...

Half a month later.

On Tiankong Island, Master Song, accompanied by three elders and Zhao Jingfan, found themselves staring blankly at a group of alluring women.

"Master Xin? Sunu Pavilion... is also here for the visit?"

Master Song's expression was a mix of bewilderment and hesitation. His tone was odd as he asked the question.

Sunu Pavilion—formerly one of the nine great sects of the Hundred Immortals Alliance—specialized in... seduction techniques.

The once-thriving brothels scattered throughout the Hundred Immortals Alliance had been their doing.

If they were here for the visit, they must be joining this "technical alliance" too... but what kind of "technique" could Sunu Pavilion possibly contribute?

Four figures emerged from the main hall of Tiankong Island.

Leading them was Senior Sister Zhang, her face bearing a smile, though no one dared to stare directly at her—Zheng Fa's achievements were legendary, but Senior Sister Zhang's Tranquility Bamboo was nothing to scoff at either.

Following her were Zhenren Qian, Jiao Wuji, and Senior Sister Yuan.

As soon as she stepped out, Senior Sister Zhang smoothly produced several confidentiality agreements—a gesture she had grown quite practiced at.

"This is..."

"You may review the terms. If you find them unacceptable, I'm afraid you won't be able to proceed with the visit to Jiushan Realm."

Master Song was taken aback but quickly skimmed through the agreement.

Though lengthy, the wording was straightforward and easy to understand.

A flicker of excitement stirred within him. A confidentiality agreement like this suggested Jiushan Sect intended to show them something substantial.

The Qingmu Sect members exchanged glances, only to turn and see that Master Xin and the Sunu Pavilion disciples had already signed—without even reading the terms...

Master Song immediately stopped hesitating and hastily signed his name.

Senior Sister Zhang glanced at them and nodded. "Qingmu Sect will follow me."

"Sunu Pavilion will follow Jiao Wuji."

Given her formidable reputation, no one dared question her. They split into groups accordingly.

Master Song and the Qingmu Sect members followed Senior Sister Zhang and Zhenren Qian.

Their tour guide, Senior Sister Zhang, was surprisingly thorough in her explanations.

"Our first destination is the market on Jingxing Island."

"Jingxing Island is the only place in Jiushan Realm open to outsiders without any confidentiality restrictions."

Master Song chuckled. "We're aware. We even have a shop there."

Being shrewd and adaptable, Qingmu Sect had rented a shop in the Jingxing Island market as soon as it was established.

However, the market hadn't been operational for long before Qingmu Sect suffered two major setbacks, leaving the shop mostly unused.

Come to think of it, Qingmu Sect still owned this asset?

Too bad it was just one rented shop...

"I know," Senior Sister Zhang said, her knowledge of Jiushan Realm seemingly exhaustive. "But your shop has barely operated. Some have expressed interest in purchasing the lease from you."

"Purchase?"

Master Song was startled. "What's the offer?"

"They're willing to pay a transfer fee."

Senior Sister Zhang quoted a figure after a brief thought.

The elder beside them widened his eyes in shock.

"Without even opening, we could make ten times the rent just by transferring it?"

He whipped his head toward Master Song, his eyes screaming: "Sell it!"

Heaven knew how desperate Qingmu Sect was for funds. The sum wasn't enormous, but in their current state...

It would take them from barely scraping by to living comfortably—at least for a while.

Master Song suppressed his excitement and decided to see the Jingxing Island market for himself.

There had to be a reason for the shop's appreciation, right?

He followed Senior Sister Zhang onto Jingxing Island.

The moment he stepped off the rainbow bridge, he froze.

The sight before them left the Qingmu Sect delegation speechless.

The bustling streets, packed with shoulder-to-shoulder crowds, some shops so crowded there was no room to turn—it was a scene of overwhelming prosperity.

Neon lights, clamorous noise—the entire Jingxing Island market seemed to pulse with energy.

To an ordinary cultivator, this might not mean much.

But the Qingmu Sect members, who knew the struggles of managing resources, were utterly mesmerized.

Compared to their own nearly deserted market, this... was what Qingmu Sect's market should have been—no, what they had only dreamed it could be.

"No wonder someone wants to buy the lease..."

The elder snapped out of his daze.

With foot traffic like this, any shop here was a goldmine!

Master Song's gaze drifted toward the docks outside the market. He noticed that Jingxing Island now had a pier where a dozen peculiar-looking ships were moored.

Senior Sister Zhang followed his gaze and spotted Han Qi at the pier, directing passengers disembarking from the ships. A faint smile crossed her lips.

She remembered Han Qi well.

By sheer coincidence, he had been one of the first in Jiushan Sect to pledge allegiance to Zheng Fa—a man of some fortune.

Now, he had even reached Foundation Establishment.

And... he was in charge of the ferry fleet servicing Jingxing Island.

Thinking of the ferry system, Senior Sister Zhang's expression grew distant—this, too, had been Zheng Fa's idea, one of his earliest reforms in Jiushan Realm.

At the time, it had been quite successful, significantly boosting the market's revenue.

But after the emergence of the Great Freedom Demonic Sect, the Jiushan market was abandoned, and the ferries ceased operation.

Now, they had returned—

Jiushan Realm no longer remained fixed in one location but roamed across the vast territories of the Hundred Immortals Alliance, staying in each area for roughly half a year.

This, too, was Zheng Fa's design.

According to him, this mobile model would etch Jiushan Sect's name into the region, ensuring every major sect and family knew of Jiushan Realm's presence above them.

But the primary reason was business.

Jiushan Realm had effectively become a mobile marketplace, attracting cultivators from all over to trade wherever it went.

The ferry system had been revived to facilitate their arrival.

And these ferries were far from what they once were.

Master Song, possessing a keen eye, stared at the glowing orb at the bow of one ferry and stammered, "An... external core?"

Senior Sister Zhang nodded.

These were upgraded versions of the Divine Thunder Skyships.

The key improvement? Each ferry now housed a complete Divine Thunder external core!

Beyond powering the vessel, its main function was to unleash Golden Core-level attacks in emergencies—

Or, as Zheng Fa called them, "Divine Thunder Warships!"

Compared to the old ferries, these warships were far more expensive, given the external core requirement.

But their operational costs were minimal—since they didn't rely on spirit stones for propulsion but on the core itself.

Once built, they were virtually pure profit!

Most importantly, they doubled as combat vessels.

A dozen Divine Thunder Warships docked at the pier—Master Song's eyes gleamed with envy.

Dismantled, how much would these be worth...?

"These... must be very costly?"

The thought of his sect's poverty made him ask, but he immediately flushed, feeling rather shameless.

Senior Sister Zhang pondered briefly before nodding.

Master Song sighed in relief. If even Senior Sister Zhang considered them expensive, he felt slightly better.

"Building one requires half a month of the market's revenue..."

Master Song's face twitched. He wanted to curse, but under Senior Sister Zhang's cool gaze, he didn't dare.

He stiffly turned his head toward Han Qi, who was barking orders at the pier, and changed the subject: "Your sect entrusts a dozen external cores to a mere early-stage Foundation Establishment disciple?"

Senior Sister Zhang smiled, not bothering to hide the truth. "He's exceptionally skilled at managing these ferries."

Zheng Fa and Han Qi had first met aboard a ferry.

When Zheng Fa reformed the ferry system, Han Qi had been among the first Jiushan Sect disciples assigned to transport cultivators.

In short, he understood Zheng Fa's vision for the ferries better than anyone—and under his management, they thrived. The liveliness of Jingxing Island owed much to Han Qi.

Master Song nodded in understanding.

Then Senior Sister Zhang added, "He has another advantage..."

"What?"

"He pledged allegiance to Zheng Fa... early."

"Early..."

Master Song caught the implication and couldn't help glancing at his own stubborn elder.

But the elder wasn't listening. His attention was fixed on an alchemy shop in the market.

Though not the busiest in Jingxing