Extreme Temptation

Dongfang Shi had promised them an explanation and brought up the Penglai Commerce Association's secrets.

The Wuhuan generals, along with Jian Shang, Qi Ji, and Yu Ji, set aside their questions. They all perked up and turned to listen.

"And then? What does any of this have to do with me?"

Dongfang Shi had stopped just as she reached the point where the association's annual net profits were divided among five people. Jian Shang frowned.

The moment he asked, a possibility struck him. He stared at Dongfang Shi, startled and thrilled...

Judging by what she had said, and by the red-robed elder's earlier remarks, they seemed to want him to join the Penglai Commerce Association as one of its four stewards under the chief.

What a windfall!

Even now, the economy across Divine Land had begun to treat the Penglai Commerce Association's notes as the standard. Some people were already refusing notes issued by the Spring-Autumn Trading House and the Nine Provinces Trading House.

It was only a matter of time before the Penglai Commerce Association became the greatest trading house in the world!

And with an age of turmoil approaching, war would bring the easiest profits of all!

The association's profits would be staggering. Even a fifth of them was a sum Jian Shang and the others could scarcely imagine.

"In ancient times and before, the Four Secret Clans were guardians of Divine Land, and their families flourished. But one chief defied our ancestral rules and rashly drew the Penglai Commerce Association into a struggle for dominion. The Four Secret Clans suffered an unprecedented blow, and their numbers plummeted. Today, few people bear the surnames Dongfang, Ximen, Nangong, or Beiming. Those surnames have practically become names for their respective factions. In my case, Dongfang has become my name."

Dongfang