I Was Framed!

Zhang Yang returned to the Azure Cloud Great Hall, sat down, and looked at the silent Jiang Tao, Jing Xian, and the others. He took the initiative to ask, "Seniors, has something to discuss with us all?"

Looking at his concerned expression and puzzled look, it seemed as if he really didn't know anything about it.

"Kid, did you do this?" Yun Song couldn't help but ask.

Zhang Yang asked in surprise, "What is it?"

"Did you take advantage of the rising prices of materials and spirit medicine to make money off our Spirit Stone?" Yun Song asked, staring at Zhang Yang.

Jing Xian, Jiang Tao, Liu Chun, Luo Yi, and others were all watching Zhang Yang.

Every single one of their sects suffered huge losses this time.

The higher-ups of each sect, after much deliberation, all felt that something fishy was going on!

More than two years ago, Zhang Yang lowered commodity prices while raising material prices, which may have been the beginning of his scheme.

That's why they came together to demand an explanation from Zhang Yang.

Zhang Yang flew into a rage, slammed his fist on the table, and roared, "Seniors, what makes you say that? Are you trying to say that I ordered the price increase of all the world's spirit medicine?"

He would absolutely never admit it.

Jiang Tao asked calmly, "Besides you, we can't think of anyone else!"

"Heh!" Zhang Yang sneered, "Seniors, let's sort this out properly."

Three years ago, all the continents under heaven were attacked by Ghost Realm Envoys, but our Azure Cloud Continent was spared from the disaster... I don't need to explain why, do I?

This means that, apart from our Azure Cloud Continent, all other continents have suffered severe disasters.

We wanted to help the smaller sects affected by the disaster, so we lowered the prices of our goods and increased the purchase of raw materials, with the intention of helping them overcome their difficulties.

But what about it?

"Senior Jiang Tao, you've arrived. Relying on your stored spirit medicine and various materials, you sold us materials at a high price of over seven billion, and even forced us to owe you IOUs worth tens of billions. You have to admit to that, right?"

Jiang Tao coughed twice but didn't say anything.

Zhang Yang looked at Yun Song and asked, "Next, it's your turn. You sold us spirit medicine and materials at a high price of 5.3 billion. You have to admit that, right?"

Yun Song coughed twice but didn't say anything.

Zhang Yang looked at Diao Buer and asked, "Next up is you. Your Sacred Spirit Church sold me a total of 8.5 billion in expensive spirit medicine and materials. Is that true?"

Diao Buer avoided eye contact.

Zhang Yang sneered repeatedly, pointing rudely at the people present. "You all came here, each of you selling us billions worth of expensive spirit medicine and materials, and even forcing us to sign an exorbitantly priced IOU, didn't you?"

It is true that my Azure Cloud Sect accumulated a large amount of Spirit Stone in the past because of your compensation payments.

Over the years, we've made quite a bit of money thanks to the Azure Moon Merchant Association.

You've pocketed all these Spirit Stones by using overpriced spirit medicine and materials!

Zhang Yang slammed his fist on the table angrily and shouted, "We originally wanted to help those minor sects, but you all benefited from it all. And you still have the nerve to ask me questions today?"

Jing Xian, Jiang Tao, Diao Buer felt a little guilty; they had indeed acted dishonestly.

But dealing with the Azure Cloud Sect!

Meanwhile, Ling Yunzi, Hualingzi, and the others silently suppressed their emotions, not letting their expressions reveal any clues.

Watching Zhang Yang's performance... if they didn't know the inside story, they would all think Zhang Yang was innocent!

Zhang Yang glanced coldly at everyone, snorted, and continued, "It was under these circumstances that we persevered for a whole year and finally made it through! So let me ask you, now that we've made it through, shouldn't we sell spirit medicine and materials to recoup some of our losses?"

You sold it to me for such a high price back then, I can't possibly sell it at a loss, can I?

Then I'll ask you the opposite: you've sold so many spirit medicine and materials to me, how much stock does your sect still have? Do you want to buy some?

However, with the spirit medicine and materials in short supply, will you raise the price to purchase them?

These prices were driven up by your buying!

Conversely, if everyone else raises their prices, how dare I not raise mine?

Haven't we, the Azure Cloud Sect, blocked other people's path to wealth?

Or do you really believe that because we are Sage, it is our duty to help you?

All of this is because of yourselves!!

"You still have the nerve to ask me questions now?!"

These words left Jing Xian, Diao Buer, Jiang Tao, and the others completely bewildered.

Could it be that the price increase in materials is truly a consequence of their own actions?

However, after countless people deduced the situation, they clearly felt that an invisible hand was controlling everything.

What exactly happened?

"You mean, none of this has anything to do with you?" Yun Song asked Zhang Yang, frowning.

He had a gut feeling that Zhang Yang was behind it.

But they have no evidence!

They couldn't even deduce the reason why Zhang Yang was able to do such a thing.

Isn't this just a natural exchange of goods?

Why were they controlled by Zhang Yang?

That's because they have no idea that the influence of the Azure Moon Merchant Association and the Azure Cloud Gazette has been fully established over the past few years.

The moment the news broke, the whole world was in turmoil.

Add to that the greed of a few top-tier sects, and the matter was accomplished.

Ultimately, it was those major sects who brought this upon themselves!

Would they have suffered such a huge loss if they hadn't been looking to rip off the Azure Cloud Sect?

Zhang Yang shook his head firmly. "This is definitely not our fault. You all know best, the Azure Cloud Sect is innocent. You've made so many Spirit Stone out of me, I'm almost out of Spirit Stone, how could it be us?"

My Azure Cloud Sect has too few experts; we have no way to influence other continents.

If you don't believe me, go and investigate whether we've raised other prices.

He had unwittingly dug another pit for the Sage Master.

Because it was the Langya Sacred Land that inflated the prices of materials and spirit medicine!

That old guy has made billions of Spirit Stone; we can't let him be so complacent.

"We will definitely investigate this matter!" Jiang Tao nodded emphatically. "Next, we need to ask when you plan to pay off that IOU?"

They can get those cheap pills and Law Treasure, and also recover a large amount of blood.

Therefore, their second purpose in coming together was to force them to reveal the IOU.

Zhang Yang waved his hand dismissively and said coldly, "The pills and Law Treasure are now far more expensive than they were originally. You still expect me to pay you back the original price?"

Seniors, earning a little is enough; you can't go too far!

If you treat this according to the current market rate, we will acknowledge your IOU and gradually deliver the goods to you.

However, if you want the original price... then we'll summon all the sect leaders in the land and let everyone judge this matter. At the same time, we'll let everyone see that you've taken all the subsidies meant for everyone!

Jiang Tao and the others' expressions immediately changed. If this got out, their sect's reputation would be truly ruined!

Although people may not say it to their faces, they probably curse them as bastards in private!

Zhang Yang then added, "Or, I could pay you back the original deposit, since you did pay a sum of money back then. The price would remain the same as before. What do you think?"

Zhang Yang took a step back.

Earning seven or eight hundred billion, spending a few hundred million to shut up a few sects is nothing special.

Jiang Tao and the others exchanged glances. Although they were not satisfied, at least they had recovered some of their losses.

Yun Song suddenly asked, "What if I demand a refund plus three times the amount in compensation?"

He initially paid a deposit of 500 million Spirit Stone. If he got a refund plus three times the amount, he could make 1.5 billion spirit stones, which was more than the amount he spent on the pills.

Zhang Yang smiled faintly, "No problem, I can grant your request. However, from now on, people from One-Guard Monastery should not come to the Azure Cloud Continent to buy anything! Because you were unjust first, don't blame me for being unjust. I will tell everyone in the world that anyone who does business with One-Guard Monastery should not do business with our Azure Cloud Sect. We can't afford to offend them!"

Yun Song felt a chill in his heart and hurriedly said, "Never mind, never mind, we'll just do the same as you fellow Daoists. You can just pay us the goods according to the deposit."

He knew very well that now that the Azure Cloud Sect had released this news, One-Guard Monastery would probably only be able to play with the Great Snow Mountain from now on!

Moreover, Great Snow Mountain might not even be willing to play with One-Guard Monastery.

The other sect representatives smiled wryly. They didn't dare to make any other demands, so they could only comply with Zhang Yang's conditions.

Subsequently, Zhang Yang instructed Situ Mingyue to retrieve the goods, and on the spot, he handed over goods worth over 3 billion to several sects and retrieved the IOUs.

After leaving the Azure Cloud Sect, the representatives from several sects exchanged wry smiles and shook their heads.

They always feel cheated, but they don't know how they were cheated.

"Investigate thoroughly when you get back! You must find out exactly what caused this material price increase!"

The representatives from several sects returned home.

In the Langya Sacred Land, the Sage Master suddenly felt a chill and couldn't help but sneeze a few times.