A Business Without Capital

"Why stop him?" The Academy Elder raised his eyebrows and chuckled. He extended a finger, pointing at Fang Yuan from afar, and added, "This child has already gained the upper hand, and his actions are well-measured. Look at how he strikes at people's necks; he only targets the sides, never the back of the head or nape. This is because he knows that striking the sides of the neck causes immediate unconsciousness, while striking the back of the head or nape can be fatal. Therefore, he has proactively abandoned such methods of attack."

"Look at these youths lying on the ground; which one of them is seriously injured? None! Even if there were severe injuries, so what? With the healing Gu Masters in our academy, can't they still treat such bruises and strains?"

"But Elder Sir, this child is simply too arrogant. He's blocking the main entrance, completely disregarding us guards. It's one thing for us to be ignored, but more importantly, how will the clan members view our academy? To allow a mere C-grade student to cause such a disturbance in the academy without intervention. If this news spreads, it might even affect your reputation, sir." The guard said, narrowing his eyes.

"Hmph, so you feel your dignity has been offended because this brat ignored you, don't you?" The Academy Elder said unhappily, letting out a cold laugh. His sharp gaze swept over them, and the guards all lowered their heads, collectively stating they dared not.

"What's wrong with fighting? As long as no lives are lost, it can further stimulate the students' competitive spirit and temper their fighting will. If we were to prohibit such brawls, we would be stifling the students' fighting passion! Haven't there been brawls in previous years? Every year there are, and they happen quite frequently. It's just that in the past, it was in the latter half of the year, after the youths had mastered some combat techniques. Once they had strength, they couldn't resist showing off, and it happened to be an age where they were prone to fighting. Why didn't you stop them then?" the Academy Elder questioned sternly.

"Perhaps it's because the fights in previous years were individual duels, rarely on such a large scale. But this Fang Yuan is really too much of a troublemaker!" the head guard replied.

"No, no, no," the Academy Elder shook his head. "It's because you didn't dare to stop them. Because after the latter half of the year, Gu Masters would possess combat power surpassing mortals. With your mere mortal bodies, how could you stop them? Now, you want to stop Fang Yuan, perhaps because you feel he has just started cultivating and lacks strength. You also feel he has disrespected you and offended your dignity. But you must remember, these students all have the surname Gu Yue! They are members of our Gu Yue clan, your masters! Even if they are younger and weaker, they are still your masters!"

The Elder's tone suddenly turned sharp.

"You don't have the surname Gu Yue, what are you? I gave you the position of guard because I saw your loyalty, rewarding you with some benefits. But in essence, you are still servants. Just servants! And a servant dares to question their master, to meddle in their master's affairs?" The Elder's face was as dark as water.

"This subordinate didn't mean that, didn't mean that!"

"This subordinate dares not! This subordinate dares not!"

The guards turned ashen with fear, all kneeling on the ground and kowtowing incessantly.

The Academy Elder snorted coldly and pointed at the head guard who had just called Fang Yuan a troublemaker: "You questioned your master, you are stripped of your leadership position."

After a pause, the Elder said to the others, "In half a month, we will re-evaluate for a new leader."

The other guards' eyes immediately lit up, their hearts suddenly filled with excitement.

"The head guard gets an extra half primeval stone each month!"

"To become a head guard, you're above others. Besides the masters, who else would dare to look down on me?"

"If I become the head guard, how glorious would that be…"

"Alright, why are you all standing here? Get going, and after the brawl is over, come and clean up the venue!" the Elder commanded.

"Yes, yes, yes."

"Your subordinates take their leave!"

The guards left the building in extreme fear. As they walked down the stairs, someone's footing faltered, and they tumbled down. This immediately caused a chain reaction of stumbling and falling.

However, fearing the Academy Elder's authority, the guards held their breath, their faces red, struggling to suppress any other sounds.

"Hmph, servants are like dogs. Every so often, their bones itch, and they need to be disciplined to know reverence. Then, throw out some meager dog bones, let them fight amongst themselves, and strive to serve my clan. This is the infallible method of the superior: a carrot in one hand, a stick in the other." The Academy Elder listened to the commotion downstairs, inwardly sneering with satisfaction. He then turned his head and looked through the window towards the academy's main entrance.

On the ground by the entrance, over a dozen more students had been added.

Fang Yuan stood tall and proud, while opposite him, three girls huddled together back-to-back.

"You, you, you don't come any closer!"

"If you come any closer, we'll shoot you with Moon Blades!"

A layer of watery blue light appeared in their hands. It seemed they were pushed to their limits and had actually channeled their true essence to activate the Moonlight Gu.

Fang Yuan's body was still that of an ordinary fifteen-year-old boy. If they were to launch Moon Blade attacks, it would indeed be quite troublesome.

However, he was not afraid, sneering dismissively as he approached the girls: "You have quite the nerve. Have you forgotten the academy's rules? Using Gu worms for fighting within the academy is not allowed, or you will be expelled. If you wish to be expelled, then go ahead and attack."

"This…" The girls hesitated.

"There is indeed such a rule." The blue light in their hands gradually dissipated.

A sharp glint flashed in Fang Yuan's eyes. Seizing this opening, he charged forward, his hands moving swiftly, "crushing flowers" with ruthless efficiency, knocking out two with thuds.

One remained, her fighting spirit crushed. Her knees buckled, and she collapsed onto the ground. She cried, tears streaming down her face, begging Fang Yuan, "Fang Yuan, don't come any closer, please spare me."

Fang Yuan looked down at the girl from above, his cold voice echoing, "One primeval stone."

The girl's delicate body trembled. She suddenly understood and quickly opened her money pouch, taking out three or four primeval stones. She held them in her palm and offered them to Fang Yuan, "Don't hit me, I'll give them all to you, all to you!"

Fang Yuan's expression was blank as he slowly extended his right hand, his index finger and thumb gently pinching one primeval stone from the girl's hand.

The girl's body trembled uncontrollably. Fang Yuan's hand, with the pale slenderness characteristic of a youth, seemed like a monstrous claw, terrifying and grotesque in her eyes.

"I already said, I'm only taking one primeval stone," Fang Yuan paused, then said calmly, "You can go now."

The girl stared blankly at Fang Yuan for a long while before remembering to get up, but her limbs were weak, and she couldn't stand.

Her heart was filled with fear of Fang Yuan, so terrified that she couldn't muster any strength.

Seeing this scene, the Academy Elder couldn't help but shake his head.

Taking this opportunity to discover the students' individual combat talents was one of his objectives.

Although this girl, who had collapsed on the ground, possessed C-grade aptitude, with such a disposition, she could only serve as a logistic Gu Master, engaging in production within the clan. There was no hope for her on the battlefield.

"As for this Fang Yuan…" the Academy Elder stroked his chin, his eyes narrowed, a sharp glint flashing within them.

He found Fang Yuan truly interesting, not only possessing combat talent but also knowing where to draw the line. Extorting only one primeval stone did not exceed his internal threshold. However, if Fang Yuan had demanded two, that would have been excessive, and he would have intervened.

The academy's subsidies were originally only three primeval stones. Extorting one was harmless. But demanding two would negate the purpose of the subsidies. It would be better to just give them all to Fang Yuan.

Soon, the last batch of students arrived. There were only five of them, including Fang Yuan's twin brother.

"Brother, how could you do this?! You're too bold, actually beating up your classmates at the main entrance and extorting their primeval stones!" Gu Yue Fang Zheng watched, dumbfounded. He couldn't believe his eyes. "I urge you to quickly admit your mistake to the Academy Elder, otherwise, you've caused such a major incident, this is no joke, you might get expelled!"

Fang Yuan smiled, "What you said makes a lot of sense."

Fang Zheng let out a sigh of relief. It seemed his brother wasn't completely mad and could still be reasoned with.

But soon, he heard Fang Yuan continue, "One primeval stone per person."

"What?" Fang Zheng's mouth fell open in surprise. "Even I have to pay?"

"My dear brother, you certainly don't have to," Fang Yuan said gently. "But then you'll end up like them."

Fang Yuan pointed to the youths lying on the ground, either unconscious or groaning.

"He won't even spare his own brother!"

"This Fang Yuan has gone mad, he's too brutal..."

"We can't beat him. A wise man doesn't fight when the odds are against him. Let's just pay and get through this."

"Exactly. Pay the primeval stones first. It's only one each. We'll report him to the teachers and elders when we get back, and he'll have to deal with them!"

With the previous examples, the remaining youths, though resentful, obediently accepted Fang Yuan's extortion.

"Wait a moment." As they were about to leave, Fang Yuan called out to them.

"Fang Yuan, are you going back on your word?" The youths immediately tensed up.

Fang Yuan sighed softly at the youths scattered on the ground. "Do you think I'm going to crouch down and search each of them individually?"

The youths froze for a moment before a look of realization dawned on them. Their faces flushed red as they hesitantly stood in place.

Fang Yuan stared at them, narrowing his eyes.

A cold glint flashed in his eyes, and five youths suddenly felt a jolt of fear, their scalps tingling.

"Alright, Fang Yuan, we understand what you mean."

"We'll help you out this time."

Under Fang Yuan's oppressive might, they had no choice but to lower their heads, retrieve the money pouches from the youths on the ground, take out one primeval stone from each, and then hand them over to Fang Yuan.

There were fifty-seven people in the entire class. Each was extorted for one primeval stone, so Fang Yuan now had fifty-six.

He had originally had twenty, but he spent ten on several jars of Green Bamboo Wine. Combined with his own subsidies and rewards, he now had seventy-nine primeval stones on hand.

"Robbery and extortion are truly the most profitable 'no-capital' businesses," Fang Yuan said, tucking his suddenly bulging money pouch into his clothes and swaggering away.

He left behind a ground full of youths, lying there like corpses.

Fang Zheng was among a few other youths, staring blankly at Fang Yuan's receding figure.

"Hurry up."

"Be quick and make sure the young masters are properly taken care of."

"Where are the healing Gu Masters? Hurry and invite them over!"

The guards shouted and rushed forward, eager to show their worth. They were full of drive for even a small leadership position.