Doing business

After three months in seclusion, Tang Xuan finally emerged. During those three months, he had further consolidated his cultivation. His greater gain, however, was that he had worked out the method used in later generations to condense Soul Cores! Soul Masters on the continent in later generations had far less difficulty breaking through levels than those of the present, and those who condensed Soul Cores were also stronger than other Soul Masters at the same level. The benefits of Soul Cores were therefore beyond comparison.

Although Tang Xuan's Soul Power had not made another breakthrough during those three months, he was delighted to have already formed the embryonic shape of his first Soul Core.

Once my first Soul Core fully forms, my Soul Power cultivation will yield twice the results with half the effort, and my path of cultivation will be smoother. But the situation on the continent is tangled and chaotic, with the various powers interlocking like a dog's teeth. If I want to truly gain a firm foothold here in the future, I'll need a force of my own. No matter how strong an individual is, there will always be places beyond the reach of his whip. And given my background, I'll inevitably have to face the threat of Spirit Hall someday. Building up my own force is necessary. Besides, who wouldn't want to establish his own school and become its founding patriarch? Doesn't Tang San found the Tang Sect later on? I can't go tagging along with him. An older brother following his little brother around? That would be too embarrassing! As for the Clear Sky Sect, forget it! Leave it to those old fossils! With these thoughts running through his mind, Tang Xuan headed toward Grandmaster's residence.

He asked Grandmaster for three days off. Grandmaster did not ask much about the reason; he had no desire to pry into his student's private affairs. He figured that after three months in seclusion, Tang Xuan deserved a rest, so he let him go.

As Tang Xuan walked down the street, he thought, If I want to accomplish something big, I can't do it without money. Men die for wealth, and birds die for food. Without some benefits, who would willingly follow me? After weighing the savings in his pocket and giving it serious thought, Tang Xuan decided to open a barbecue shop in the city. It was the most suitable choice for him right now. A barbecue shop cost little to set up and could draw in customers. Given how popular barbecue was on Earth, business certainly would not be bad. He could also amass considerable funds in a short time. Besides, he had previously run a barbecue stall in the village with Tang San, so this would be like driving a light carriage down a familiar road.

Tang Xuan first spent sixty Gold Soul Coins renting two storefronts in the city. Then he spent twenty gold coins on custom-made barbecue equipment and another twenty on the various ingredients he needed. He also spent five gold coins hiring two helpers, followed by ten more to spruce up the storefronts. In less than a day, nearly everything was ready. His barbecue shops could open tomorrow.

Tang Xuan weighed his purse in his hand. Sigh! You really don't know how dear firewood and rice are until you run a household. Of the two hundred gold coins I saved over the past few years, only eighty-five are left. You really can't snare a wolf without being willing to sacrifice a child!

A month later, four shops within a short distance of one another in Nuoding City were overflowing with enticing aromas and packed with customers. These were, of course, Tang Xuan's barbecue shops. But why were there four? Because, just as Tang Xuan had predicted, people had fallen in love with barbecue as soon as it appeared. The original two shops had an endless stream of customers from morning to night; business was simply too good. Tang Xuan had seized the opportunity to open two more shops and expand his enterprise. By his calculations, he had already earned over ten thousand gold coins that month. After deducting costs, each shop brought in an average net profit of over a hundred Gold Soul Coins a day. As his purse grew fatter by the day, Tang Xuan wanted to say that making money was really hard-but apparently not quite that hard!

Even Grandmaster visited during that time. Although he disapproved of Tang Xuan spending time on business, he said no more when he saw that Tang Xuan had not neglected his Soul Power cultivation. Besides, the barbecue really did smell delicious.

Tang Xuan, who had been sitting in meditation in the dormitory, suddenly ended his meditation.

My first Soul Core has successfully formed, and my Soul Power has reached level eighteen. Another breakthrough in my Soul Power cultivation will probably be difficult in the near future. Cultivating Soul Power really is hard! ʘʚʘ Huh? Listen to that! Was that something a human being would say? Brother, only four months had passed since you obtained your Soul Ring, and you had already advanced another four levels! What more could you possibly want? How were other Soul Masters supposed to face that?

Although barbecue is popular, its profits come in a small but steady stream. The short-term returns are too low; it's still a small business. It won't let me accumulate a large amount of capital quickly. Tang Xuan paced back and forth, thinking it over. If I opened a betting shop-a gambling house-I could make enormous profits in a short time. After some thought, he really did feel that a gambling house was an opportunity to rake in money.

Let that filthy stink of money corrupt me! He rushed out of the dormitory in a whirlwind, leaving Tang San beside him as baffled as a ten-foot-tall monk scratching his head. Why is my brother getting worked up out of nowhere?

Tang Xuan now had a little capital, after all, and spent lavishly. He paid two thousand gold coins outright to buy a large storefront on a bustling street, spacious enough to hold over a hundred people. Then he spent another two thousand gold coins hiring six One-Ring Soul Masters and two two-ring Soul Grandmasters to keep order and prevent anyone from refusing to pay up.

It had to be said that things moved incredibly fast: the place opened the very next day under the name Ten Thousand Profits Hall. Tang Xuan had chosen the name himself, taking it from the saying "one investment, ten thousand profits." At first, people only came to look at the excitement and join the commotion around this novel business. They remained skeptical and did not dare try it. To address that, Tang Xuan specifically ordered a day of free trial play. The hall made no money that day and only incurred losses. But this gave people a taste of the sweetness, and customers soon came without needing an invitation. The place was packed every day, and business boomed! The gambling house earned over ten thousand gold coins a day, roughly equal to a month's earnings from all four barbecue shops! At this rate, it would not be long before Tang Xuan became the richest man in Nuoding City.

As for school classes, Tang Xuan had stopped attending long ago. Listening to those teachers was not nearly as worthwhile as listening to Grandmaster. His days now consisted of attending Grandmaster's lessons, cultivating, and inspecting his businesses. Life was busy and fulfilling, and most importantly, great heaps of wealth flowed into his accounts every day.

Apart from cultivating, forging, and attending classes, that kid Tang San spent every day sparring with Xiao Wu and accompanying her shopping. Even Tang Xuan sighed. Little San, you've been training to be henpecked since childhood! (๑♡ω♡๑) I'm sold on this pairing. But hasn't this whole raising-your-future-partner thing gone a little crooked? Why does watching you go shopping with Xiao Wu look like Empress Dowager Cixi taking Li Lianying to the supermarket? Look at you fawning behind her! ε=ε=(＞Д＜)ノノ!! Honestly, I'm scared of running into you two on the street. Your brother still needs to show his face in public! Sigh! What a misfortune for the family. The old one and the young one are exactly alike-love's die-hard devotees!

Later, Tang San would declare, "Can saving face possibly compare to having a wife? ●‿●"