Reaching an Agreement with the New Town Chief

Amid the ruins of the Wang Family, Wang Xiong held the only remaining fragment of his child's body, his face seeming to have aged decades.

"Yang'er, your father was useless. Your father let you down..."

His lineage had been destroyed, and he had suffered the agony of losing a son. Yet Wang Xiong had not collapsed. On one hand, his resolve was firm enough; on the other, he still had a young son cultivating in a sect.

Because he had been taken to the sect, he had escaped the great calamity of this Beast Tide.

That child was Wang Xiong's sole hope. So long as he could cultivate successfully and achieve something, the Wang Family's roots would remain.

The Dynasty soon dispatched troops and a newly appointed town chief to White Stone Town to organize its reconstruction.

The new town chief was named Gao Hui. He was at the Peak of Fifth Level of Qi Gathering, having only just turned thirty.

On his second day in White Stone Town, he paid a visit to the Yang Family.

When he saw how everything in the Yang Family was in perfect order, he immediately looked at Yang Guanfeng, the patriarch, in a new light.

"To have completed reconstruction so quickly, and for the common folk here to show no sign of despondency—this patriarch's methods are truly formidable!"

Yang Guanfeng personally received him in the Council Hall.

Upon seeing him in person, Gao Hui was first startled, then swiftly recovered and cupped his hands in congratulations.

"Congratulations, Yang Family Patriarch! You have attained the Sixth Level Realm!"

"Thank you, Town Chief Gao. Sit, and let us talk."

Gao Hui sat down in response. His face remained calm, but his thoughts began to multiply.

The intelligence he had received earlier said that Yang Guanfeng was only at the Fifth Level of Qi Gathering, yet now he had broken through into the Sixth Level Realm.

That changed the standing between the Yang Family of Little Pine Mountain and the two towns to the east and west.

With that thought, his attitude became even more respectful.

"What brings Town Chief Gao here?" Yang Guanfeng asked.

Though he could already guess the other man's purpose—nothing more than asking the Yang Family to contribute money and manpower toward rebuilding White Stone Town.

Still, those words had to come from Gao Hui himself.

Seeing this, Gao Hui did not beat around the bush and got straight to the point. "To be frank, I would like to ask the Yang Family Patriarch to help rebuild White Stone Town."

Gao Hui then made his offer.

So long as the Yang Family took action, once White Stone Town was rebuilt, Yang Guanfeng could choose any three storefronts, all of which would be tax-exempt for the next thirty years.

Hearing this, Yang Guanfeng merely chuckled and gave no reply. Gao Hui understood that what he had offered was not enough to move him.

The town's shops were merely a foundation for mortals. It seemed this patriarch was seeking something else.

Gao Hui pondered as he drank his tea.

Yang Guanfeng did not urge him, simply drinking tea alongside him.

As an officially registered Dynasty cultivator, Gao Hui's realm was not high, but this status granted him many rights that others did not possess.

Those rights were precisely what Yang Guanfeng had his eye on.

Unlike Xu Guang, that seasoned old fox who had eyes only for profit,

Gao Hui was still young. Rebuilding White Stone Town was merit delivered straight into his hands. Once the town regained its prosperity, it would also make his abilities stand out.

If he succeeded in this matter and relied on the Yang Family to manage things properly for a few years, perhaps he would later take a Promotion Order and rise to a better position elsewhere.

Thus, he would not place such importance on immediate benefits. Instead, he was more concerned with making a name for himself here, so he could seek a higher post in the future.

"Greetings, Ancestor. Greetings, Town Chief Gao."

At that moment, Yang Lingrui entered the Council Hall. After greeting them both, he stepped forward to refill their tea.

When Gao Hui saw this young cultivator of the Yang Family, he was first shocked, then suddenly enlightened.

What shocked him was that this child had already reached the Second Level of Qi Gathering at such a young age. Achieving the Condensing Origin realm in the future was not impossible for him.

With this child around, it was only a matter of time before the Yang Family became an aristocratic clan.

What he understood was why Yang Guanfeng had allowed Yang Lingrui to appear before him.

"So that's how it is. Yang Family Patriarch, this child is truly exceptional—a pillar of the future."

Gao Hui said, "How about this? Though my rank is low and my authority limited, I govern a town and hold a few sect recommendation slots. If the Yang Family Patriarch is willing to help me rebuild White Stone Town, then when the Myriad Transformation Sect accepts disciples ten years from now, I will recommend one Yang Family descendant. What do you say?"

"Deal!"

Yang Guanfeng agreed without hesitation.

The two reached an agreement, and once they had discussed the details, the matter was settled.

Elder Yu would lead two hundred laborers to White Stone Town to assist with reconstruction. At the same time, the Yang Family would bear half of all supplies and funds required for the rebuilding effort.

This was equivalent to making the Yang Family White Stone Town's largest shareholder.

For Gao Hui, who had only just taken office, this investment had arrived at precisely the right time.

With the Yang Family's support, he could complete the reconstruction ahead of the deadline set by his superiors.

"Many thanks to the Yang Family Patriarch for your wholehearted support. Actually, aside from rebuilding White Stone Town, there is another matter I came for."

"Please speak, Town Chief Gao."

"This Beast Tide was vast in scale, with numerous Demon Beasts appearing. The Yang Family is powerful, so I presume you have slain quite a few."

Gao Hui said, "Before I took up office in White Stone Town, my superiors issued an order to purchase the corpses of these Demon Beasts."

"Oh? There is such a thing?"

Upon hearing this news, Yang Guanfeng was immediately interested.

As mentioned before, for the Yang Family, the Beast Tide carried both danger and opportunity.

One opportunity was to establish themselves through this battle, build prestige throughout the region, and draw in people.

The other was that after killing Demon Beasts, their corpses were all valuable goods.

From fur and flesh to organs and bones, every part had its own use and could be sold for quite a few Spirit Crystals.

They had emptied their coffers earlier to purchase the formation. This time, these Demon Beast corpses could help them recover a great deal of blood.

This was another advantage of moving out of town. So long as you had the capability to withstand the Beast Tide, however many Demon Beasts you killed belonged to you.

After the families within the town resisted the Beast Tide, they could only receive meager rewards, while the lion's share went to the Dynasty.

"I wonder, what price is the Dynasty offering?" Yang Guanfeng asked.

This was an important question. If the price was too low, then even if the Dynasty wished to purchase them, he would not sell.

Gao Hui pressed his five fingers together. "Seventy percent of market price. We will take as many as you have!"

"Fine. When will they come to collect them?"

Yang Guanfeng immediately nodded in agreement.

"At most, within a month. Someone will be sent down then, and I will contact the Yang Family Patriarch."

"Good! Then I'll have to trouble Town Chief Gao with that."

With business concluded, the two exchanged a few pleasantries before Gao Hui took his leave.

Yang Guanfeng returned to the Forbidden Ground and told everyone about the matter.

"This is the first time I've heard of the Dynasty conducting a purchase on such a massive scale, but it is good news for us." Elder Yu nodded.

"Only seventy percent? Wouldn't the Yang Family be losing thirty percent of our profits for nothing?"

Yang Linghu frowned after hearing this.

In response to his confusion, Yang Lingqing stepped forward and pointed toward the side courtyard.

"Tiger, look at that pile of Demon Beast corpses."

Yang Linghu immediately turned toward the Demon Beast corpses piled like a small mountain in the side courtyard of the Forbidden Ground.

"I see them. What about them?"

"To travel to Yuling River Market, even with Ancestor Yu's speed, it would take three days. For us, it might take five."

Yang Lingqing explained unhurriedly, "Our family has no spatial storage items, so we can only transport them from home to the market trip by trip. Every time we enter, we have to pay an entrance fee. Carrying so many Demon Beast corpses out also means guarding against bandits blocking the road to rob us. The time spent and the dangers we face are all costs of selling these corpses. If some are stolen as well, it would cause even more needless losses."

At this point, Yang Linghu understood. He slapped a hand against his forehead.

"I get it. If we sold them through the market, after accounting for all the losses along the way, the profits we actually received would not even reach seventy percent of the original amount!"