Danwu Refining Spirit

Chapter 101 Initial Clues

Xiao Chong's money-making plan is progressing smoothly.

Sandworms are a rare delicacy, and they are also known for their nourishing properties and blood-tonifying effects; regular consumption can greatly benefit martial arts practitioners. Furthermore, under Xiao Chong's guidance, various dishes are constantly being innovated and created, making them simply irresistible.

People from all walks of life came to Tiannan Town to seek their fortune, including many wealthy and powerful individuals. Many of these people were young masters from small families across the country, who were afraid of hardship during their cultivation.

But now things are much better. With the sandworm feast offered by Happy Forest, not only can we enjoy delicious food, but we can also improve our cultivation while enjoying it. This is a rare and wonderful thing in life.

Therefore, these people, under the guise of cultivation, spend lavishly every day, lingering in the Pleasure Forest and refusing to leave. They feel that compared to the sandworm feast, everything they had eaten before should be fed to the dogs.

Especially the Situ Mingyue siblings, who treated Happy Forest like their own dining hall, not only eating and drinking for free, but also packing two pieces to take away as a late-night snack.

This wouldn't have been a problem in itself. They had brought back tens of thousands of sandworms, which, in Xiao Chong's opinion, should have been enough for them to eat for a year and a half.

Unfortunately, these people were all martial artists, and each of them had an astonishing appetite. They could eat several sandworms that were ten feet long each, over three meals a day.

After half a month, Xiao Chong was surprised to find that, apart from the pickled sandworms, the remaining thousands of sandworms had been devoured.

In the middle of the night, the Happy Forest Restaurant had just closed. In the back room, a single light flickered, and the fat man was slumped in a chair, frowning as he asked Xiao Chong for advice: "Young Master Chong, the restaurant's revenue has plummeted these past two days, and many people have stopped coming."

"How could this be? Could it be that they've gotten tired of eating sandworms?" Xiao Chong asked.

"Don't even mention it. The fresh sandworms were all eaten two days ago, and they don't want to eat the dried ones that are left."

"Is that so? Then we really need to think of a way." Xiao Chong lowered his head and fell into deep thought.

The fat man asked eagerly, "What method?"

Xiao Chong thought for a while, then his brows relaxed and he said, "It's easy. Turn those pickled sandworms into cured meat, and use a scarcity marketing strategy. Double the price and limit the supply."

"Curned meat? Scarcity marketing? What are those?" The fat man clearly hadn't heard of such a novel term and asked with a look of ignorance.

"Cured meat is made by air-drying or roasting cured meat, and as for hunger marketing, it's... well, it's too complicated to explain now. I'll go back to sleep first, and tomorrow I'll compile these things into a booklet, and you can just follow along."

Seeing that it was getting late, Xiao Chong didn't bother to explain.

"Will it work?" The fat man was somewhat skeptical of Xiao Chong's words.

"Listen to your brother, you're right." Xiao Chong patted the fat man's shoulder, ruthlessly stifling his thirst for knowledge.

On the third day, the Sandworm and Cured Meat series at the Happy Forest Restaurant was officially launched, and thanks to Xiao Chong's meticulous planning, it finally became an instant hit.

This time is very different from the past. The restaurant says that the quantity of sandworm cured meat is limited, and each person can only be served one piece per day at most. The price of the cured meat feast is also extremely expensive, and it must be paid with spirit stones; gold, silver, or other valuables will no longer be accepted.

Even so, it couldn't stop everyone's desire for delicious food. Although the nutritional value of sandworms is inevitably reduced after being made into cured meat compared to fresh ones, the taste is even better than before.

The young masters weren't picky about this, since their ambitions weren't in cultivation and they didn't care much about the price; their real purpose was to enjoy a good meal.

Therefore, within half a day, these people spread the word and called their friends to re-enter Happy Forest, and the restaurant, which had been deserted for several days, was once again packed with people.

Making money is a good thing. Not only Xiao Chong thought so, but all the disciples who came to the Southern Wilderness with him also thought so.

Although the Tianyun Continent has always revered martial arts, everyone knows that martial arts cultivation is an extremely expensive endeavor, except for those idle rich kids who only know how to chase girls.

It's said that scholars are poor and warriors are rich. Without a lot of money, where do you get so many cultivation resources? Without the support of resources, what makes you think you can cultivate faster than others?

If you don't provide a recognized genius with any cultivation resources and only let him cultivate by absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, his cultivation speed may not be much faster than that of a pig that eats spiritual stones every day.

Of course, this doesn't apply to people like Xiao Chong who have cheat codes; many of the techniques he cultivates don't belong to this world.

The people here cultivate mental power, but he cultivates a higher level of divine sense. The people here absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth for their own use, but he can simultaneously absorb an additional portion of stellar power.

In the spiritual community, regardless of the specific method of practice, there is a saying that goes something like this: the Four Essentials of Practice are wealth, Dharma, companions, and environment.

Wealth refers to money and all available resources; Dharma refers to cultivation methods; Companions refer to all friends and partners who can help you, that is, a group; and Territory refers to having your own sphere of influence.

Many people who have just embarked on the path of cultivation often believe that the practice methods are the most important thing, but this is not the case.

Admittedly, a good cultivation method may allow a practitioner to go further, but this is only one possibility.

Without a massive amount of cultivation resources as a backing, even the best cultivation technique is useless. Without accumulated resources, your cultivation speed will be much slower, and you may die of old age before reaching a high level.

Companions are also very important. Without a group of capable partners to help you, you will only die faster, unless you are already a god of war.

Therefore, in the cultivation world, especially on the more dangerous path of martial arts, going it alone is not feasible; one must form a group and help each other in times of trouble. However, once a fixed group is formed, the financial cost is enormous.

In conclusion, it's not without reason that wealth is ranked first among the four essentials. If you possess wealth, possess good skills, and receive help from others, you will become increasingly powerful. Once you become powerful, the sphere of influence you desire—that is, territory—will naturally follow.

Xiao Chong had always understood these principles clearly, and he had been silently instilling these ideas in Fatty and the others. Therefore, under Xiao Chong's influence, these people became increasingly excited when they saw Happy Forest making a fortune every day.

However, amidst the excitement of these people, Xiao Chong harbored a hidden worry: the Crimson-Eyed Flaming Wolf and the Sandworm, two wild beasts that shouldn't have been present here.

In Xiao Chong's eyes, nothing exists in isolation; there must be some connection between them. The reason it hasn't been revealed yet is simply because people haven't discovered it.

The saying "If things are abnormal, there must be something fishy" is a universal truth, applicable both in my past life and in the Tianyun Continent.

Therefore, while Fatty and the others were all immersed in their dreams of getting rich and unable to extricate themselves, Xiao Chong went to find Yin Changkong on his own.

"Uncle Yin, I've come to see you today because I have something to discuss with you," Xiao Chong said earnestly.

"Huh? Aren't you always so decisive? Why aren't you putting on airs as the captain today? This isn't a good thing!" Yin Changkong was taken aback, his eyes filled with deep suspicion as he looked at Xiao Chong.

After looking for a long time without finding anything, Yin Changkong had no choice but to ask, "Nephew, what is it? Please tell me first."

Xiao Chong thought for a moment and said, "We've been in the Southern Wilderness for so long and we've collected quite a few spirit stones. So I'd like to ask Uncle to go back to Flying Moon City and escort these spirit stones back."

Yin Changkong was even more puzzled and asked, "Although the amount of spirit stones we mined is not small, it's not even enough to fill one cloud boat. We brought as many as eight boats, so why are we in such a hurry?"

“Alas,” Xiao Chong sighed, “To be honest, I have a feeling that this trip to the Southern Wilderness has come at the wrong time, as if something unusual is about to happen.”

Yin Changkong was startled and pressed for an answer: "Why do you say that? Is there any basis for it?"

“Lately, my eyelids have been twitching non-stop. There’s a saying that a twitching left eye means bad luck, and a twitching right eye means disaster. Better safe than sorry,” Xiao Chong said with certainty.

You dare to try and fool me with such a ridiculous excuse? Do you think I'm a three-year-old? But since you're the team leader, I'll let it slide for now. Seeing Xiao Chong's "believe it or not" attitude, Yin Changkong rolled his eyes, wishing he could slap him to death.

"What exactly happened?" After a long while, Yin Changkong smoothed his heaving chest and asked.

"It's purely a premonition, an inexplicable feeling, but premonitions are generally more likely to come true than good ones," Xiao Chong said without changing his expression, completely disregarding Yin Changkong's feelings.

Okay, you've got me. Yin Changkong asked one last question: "Then why should I go back? Wouldn't you be in greater danger if I left?"

"Because you're the strongest in martial arts." Xiao Chong rolled his eyes at Yin Changkong and said, "If I let Yin Feng escort the Yuan Shi back, do you think he'll be robbed on the way? Or have his body disposed of?"

Yin Changkong was immediately rendered speechless by the question.

The next morning, the Xiao family's residence was bustling with activity, which continued until noon.

After Xiao Chong found Hengshan and paid 10% of the total amount of Yuan Stones as required, and also took a share of the embezzled money extorted from various pioneering teams, Yin Changkong finally took two members of the Xiao family and set sail in a cloud boat towards Feiyue City.

It must be said that Xiao Chong's premonition was quite accurate.

Three days after Yin Changkong left, Fatty heard some bad news from the guests at the Happy Forest Restaurant: a pioneering team was attacked by a powerful wild beast while searching for spiritual veins. Of the nearly one hundred people in the team, less than ten survived.