Foundation Establishment Ceremony, Preparations for a Trade Route!

The auspicious hour had arrived.

In Hongtian City's central square, hundreds of seats were filled to the last.

The main table was at the very front, inside a great hall. Everyone seated there was an ancestor of one of the few remaining Foundation Establishment Lineages in White Cloud Commandery's nine counties, save for an executive elder sent by White Cloud Temple.

"Patriarch Sun has arrived-!"

At the herald's cry, the noisy square fell silent at once.

Sun Bo'an emerged from the main hall with a steady stride, clad in an embroidered dark-cyan brocade robe and a jade crown. Though his face was still aged, the spiritual pressure of a great Foundation Establishment cultivator swept across the venue in full force!

"Congratulations to Patriarch Sun on reaching Foundation Establishment! The Great Dao lies ahead!"

The cultivators rose as one and cupped their fists in congratulations.

"You are too kind, fellow Daoists. Please, take your seats. I am already deeply grateful that you could come to witness today's ceremony!" Sun Bo'an smiled and returned their greetings.

His manner was perfectly measured, neither overbearing nor overly humble, with a composure no one could ignore!

It was precisely this bearing that best displayed the Sun Clan's current strength.

At the main table, the Li Household's ancestor from Qinghe County held his wine cup, looked Sun Bo'an up and down, and sighed inwardly.

His breath was unsteady, his true essence weak.

Just as the rumors said, he was a defective Foundation Establishment cultivator. If they really fought, any Foundation Establishment Early Stage cultivator present could strike Sun Bo'an down in fewer than a hundred moves.

But who would dare make a move?

The thought had barely crossed the Li Household ancestor's mind when a series of remarkably rhythmic tremors came through the ground...

Thud!

Thud!!

Thud!!

Heavy footsteps came from the rear mountain, each one seeming to land on the hearts of those present. Ripples spread across the wine in their cups.

Savage, wild, suffocating Yao Qi descended like a tsunami, engulfing all of Hongtian City in an instant.

In the square, several Qi Refining cultivators with slightly weaker cultivation went limp at the knees and fell to the ground.

A black bear as massive as a small mountain slowly entered the square.

His body stood two zhang tall, and his dark fur bristled like steel needles, faintly gleaming with blood-red light. His cold, vertical pupils swept across the gathering with the indifference of one looking down on ants.

Shi Jian shrank his body, walked over to the main table, and sprawled lazily on a specially made, enormous bluestone couch.

Shi Jian made no effort to restrain his presence. His terrifying Foundation Establishment Middle Stage Peak pressure was immediately unleashed without reserve...

The Li Household ancestor's hand jerked, spilling wine all over himself.

The other Foundation Establishment Ancestors beside him also turned pale and breathed heavily. One by one, they lowered their heads, afraid to look directly at the black bear.

Strong.

Too strong!

The sheer physical pressure was even more terrifying than that of White Cloud Temple's sword cultivators, and his cultivation had faintly touched upon the Foundation Establishment Late Stage...

"Ancestor."

Sun Bo'an turned and bowed with the utmost respect.

Shi Jian yawned, baring his white fangs. "Go on eating and drinking. Don't mind me."

"I'm just here to join the fun and, while I'm at it, have a look at my fellow Daoists of White Cloud Commandery."

He put particular emphasis on "have a look."

The Foundation Establishment Ancestors at the main table felt their scalps tingle. They hurried to their feet and bowed with cupped fists to Shi Jian. What they lacked in cultivation, they made up for with seniority.

"Greetings, Senior Shi!"

In the world of cultivation, the accomplished were teachers.

All the more so when he was a Demon Beast who could easily tear them apart.

"Sit."

Shi Jian waved a paw, and the banquet proceeded in a strange atmosphere.

The Qi Refining cultivators on the outskirts exchanged toasts in lively spirits, while the Foundation Establishment Ancestors at the main table sat as though on pins and needles. Even picking up food, they were exceedingly careful, their smiles awkward.

After three rounds of wine,

Sun Bo'an set down his cup and cleared his throat.

Now came the main event.

"Everyone." Sun Bo'an looked around. "Taking advantage of today's ceremony, I have a matter I would like to discuss with you all."

At his words, the cultivators put down their bowls and chopsticks, their gazes converging on him. The Li Household ancestor picked up the conversation at just the right moment. "Please, speak freely, Fellow Daoist Sun. We all live under the same commandery's jurisdiction; there's no need for such formality."

"In that case, I'll speak plainly."

"Some days ago, True Person Yunxiao granted the Sun Clan a favor, waiving ten years' rent on our three prime storefronts in White Cloud Market. He also promised that the Sun Clan could freely sell all manner of spiritual resources we produce."

At those words, envy flashed in the eyes of several Foundation Establishment Ancestors.

White Cloud Market was the trading center of the entire commandery, and every inch of storefront space there was worth its weight in gold. Ten years without rent meant a sea of profit.

"The Sun Clan's foundations are thin. We can't swallow a spread this large."

Sun Bo'an smiled and cast out the bait. "So I intend to convert these three storefronts into the 'Autumn Cry Merchant Alliance.'

"The spiritual specialties of every household in the nine counties can be sold through the Sun Clan's storefronts on their behalf."

"The Sun Clan will take only ten percent of the profits."

The main table fell deathly silent.

Only ten percent?

How was that business? He was practically giving money away!

In the past, when the households set up stalls in White Cloud Market or sold to major trading firms, they lost at least twenty to thirty percent of their profits to forced markdowns and exploitation.

"Patriarch Sun, do you mean that?"

The Lin Household ancestor from Feng'an County could not resist asking. This was no ordinary deal.

"Of course."

Sun Bo'an raised his wine cup. "Not only that, the Sun Clan will also organize a caravan to make a circuit of the nine counties once a year."

"If any household urgently needs supplies, you can draw up a list. The Sun Clan's caravan will coordinate their distribution, so that each can provide what the others lack."

At that, everyone understood.

The Sun Clan intended to use the privilege granted by True Person Yunxiao to bring all the surviving Lineages of the nine counties together, forming a web of shared interests with the Sun Clan at its center...

Join, and everyone would get rich together; refuse to join...

Everyone stole a glance at the enormous black bear resting with his eyes closed nearby. This god of pestilence was no vegetarian!

Most of the Foundation Establishment cultivators present were at the early stage. Only two were at the middle stage, and neither was at its peak...

If they refused to join, they would likely have a bitter harvest to reap in White Cloud Commandery from then on.

"Patriarch Sun is most righteous!"

The Li Household ancestor was the first to react. He raised his cup and called out, "My Li Household of Qinghe is willing to advance and retreat alongside the Sun Clan!"

"From now on, all the Li Household's spiritual herbs can be sold through the Autumn Cry Merchant Alliance!"

"The same goes for my Lin Household!"

"Count my Zhao Household in!"

In an instant, the atmosphere at the main table grew fervent.

The lure of profit, coupled with the deterrence of force, led these household heads, old enough to have become wily spirits, to make the wisest choice in an instant.

Sun Bo'an beamed and clinked cups with each of them in turn.

Cultivation wasn't just about fighting and killing. It was about social connections and worldly affairs, the exchange of benefits, business in which each party had a stake in the other!

Shi Jian watched the scene with half-lidded eyes and nodded inwardly.

That old fellow's skill at manipulating hearts had indeed improved considerably. Taking ten percent of the profits looked like a loss, but with control over the flow of supplies throughout the nine counties firmly in its grasp, the Sun Clan would become a local moneyed power in White Cloud Commandery.

Hosts and guests alike enjoyed themselves.

The ceremony lasted a full three days. By its end, the Sun Clan had signed a thick stack of contracts with the households, and every household went home laden with gains.

Each household could earn extra resources and save time as well.

The Sun Clan, meanwhile, had more options and, through this, gained access to channels for obtaining spiritual resources. Hongtian alone was simply too small, after all...

It had two Foundation Establishment cultivators to support and a path to pave for the younger generation.

There was a limit to managing affairs and diverting resources from within.

The right path was to open new channels and expand resources from outside!