Elder Bing Xin’s breath was caught in her throat. The [Blood-Ignition Pill] was a taboo alchemical creation from the dark eras of the Western Sacred Lands. It forcibly extracted a cultivator’s potential, burning their lifespan to temporarily grant them strength equivalent to the Core Formation Stage for a few hours.

Once the effect faded, their meridians would be crippled, turning them into mortals. If they survived the cardiac strain at all. It was a one-way ticket. Will their allied sects even agree to it?

—

Meanwhile, hundreds of miles away, in the opulent, gold-gilded headquarters of the Golden Carp Trading Guild.

Guild Master Jin Cheng sat behind his massive desk, which was no longer cluttered with parchment scrolls and bamboo slips. Instead, it was completely clear, save for a single, glowing token hovering in the center.

The [Distributor Token].

To his left and right stood the five Grand Elders of the guild. Just a few days ago, they had been skeptical, stubborn old men. Now, they stared at the holographic projection emanating from the token with the zealous reverence of newly converted monks.

Suddenly, the door to his chamber opened, and in walked his son, Jin Bao.

"Father, the Black Lotus Sect just submitted a secret purchase order for the maximum amount that they could order for [Stardust Repeaters], [Energy Replenishing Candies], [Heavenly Dew Soda], and [Taihao Spicy Noodles]," Jin Bao reported, wiping sweat from his brow. "They are offering a 200% markup if we deliver it through the hidden gorge routes. They want to use them to secure an undiscovered minor ruin near their borders."

"Deny the Repeaters," Jin Cheng said without looking up, his fingers flying across the glowing runes of the interface. "The Shopkeeper was explicit. Strategic assets like firearms are strictly regulated. We do not arm the unpredictable elements of the West yet. But approve all the other items within the limitations. Remember, an individual is not allowed to hoard these products, but we’re allowed to expand the limit if it’s for an entire sect."

"I understand. Based on their qualifications, the Black Lotus Sect is a Rank 4 Cultivation Land with a Spirit Severing Stage as their strongest practitioner. Fifty times the limitation of an individual." Jin Bao said after checking all the information they had regarding the sect.

In the Western Sacred Lands, apart from those prominent sects and factions, the others are categorized based on their strongest practitioners. A Rank 1 Cultivation Land would have a single Foundation Establishment Stage cultivator at the top. Rank 2, Core Formation Stage. Rank 3, Nascent Soul Stage.

Rank 4, like the Black Lotus, had a Spirit Severing Ancestor anchoring their power.

The classification stopped at Rank 5 with Void Refinement Stage cultivators as the powerhouse. The Liu Clan, before they were banished from the Western Sacred Lands, was at this level, as were the likes of the Impervious Flare Sect and Phantom Mirage Sect.

The top-tier entity, like the Violethaven Temple or the Supreme Sun Church, is unranked, as its foundation couldn’t be estimated.

"Mhm. Charge them a 250% ’discretion fee’. Tell them the logistics of smuggling past the Violethaven Temple’s patrols are steep."

"Yes, Father!" Jin Bao bowed excitedly before leaving the chamber again to complete the order. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Jin Cheng watched his son’s back with fondness mixed with a profound sense of relief. The boy had shed the brittle skin of a spoiled heir and was finally growing the scales of a true merchant shark. It was, ironically, the most valuable thing the Shopkeeper had sold them: humility leading to competence.

"Guild Master," Jin Gu, the eldest of the Grand Elders, spoke up. He tapped a gnarled finger on a glowing ledger projected beside the Distributor Token. "It seems our margins will be astronomical. Is this truly going to be accepted by the Divine Convenience Store? Won’t he catch us enriching ourselves by stamping those additional fees?"

"You need not worry, Uncle. The Convenience Saint cares not about the spirit stones but the propagation of his convenience. To him, the spirit stones we collect are just numbers on a ledger. What matters is dependency."

If Lin Mo ever heard him say that, he’d probably spat out a mouthful of blood. Rather than convenience, he’d value the spirit stones more to reach the next tier of the Divine Convenience Store as soon as possible.

Just as the Grand Elders began to murmur their hesitant but greedy approval, the heavy, soundproofed doors of the Central Council Chamber banged open once again.

A figure clad in the unobtrusive robes of the Golden Carp’s elite intelligence division stumbled in. He was gasping for air while his aura seemed erratic and pale, signifying that he had burned blood essence to travel at maximum velocity.

"Guild Master!" He dropped to one knee, ignoring the furious glares of the Grand Elders for the interruption. "Emergency-tier intelligence from the Violet Peaks! A Level-One Edict has been issued!"

Jin Cheng’s demeanor shifted instantly. "Speak. What has Zuo Tianqiong done?"

An Edict from the Temple? This is the kind of intelligence Lin Mo hoped to hear from him.

—

In another city within the Western Sacred Lands, a bazaar known as the ’Sunless Boon’ can be found.

This bazaar, which was nominally under the control of the Sacred Foundation Bank, had always operated on a strict hierarchy. High-grade spirit stones bought high-grade artifacts. Low-grade stones bought scraps. The flow of wealth was slow, deliberate, and heavily taxed by the Bank’s enforcers.

Today, however, a new stall had opened, guarded by heavily armed mercenaries wearing the golden carp insignia. But they weren’t selling ancient manuals or forged swords.

They were selling brightly colored, crinkly packets and small, sleek cans.

"Step right up, fellow Daoists! We bring goods from the East!" A charismatic Golden Carp merchant shouted while standing on a crate. "Are you tired of meditating for three days just to heal a minor meridian tear? Are you exhausted from carrying inefficient rations into the danger zones? The Golden Carp Trading Guild brings you the miracles of ’Convenience’!"

A crowd of ragged rogue cultivators and minor sect disciples had gathered, their eyes wide with suspicion, curiosity and hunger.

"I have here the [Fruity Healing Tablet]!" The merchant held up a small, round tablet with a vibrant color between his fingers. It wasn’t shaped as a pill at all and it didn’t emit the bitter medicinal scent that most cultivators had already grown accustomed to. "This tablet is such a miracle, you won’t ever feel like you’re gnawing at a bitter pill. Its taste is sweet and fruity. You can even take your time sipping on it, and within seconds, your flesh knits and your minor wounds close! Perfect for the battlefield!"

"Lies!" A gruff voice yelled from the crowd. An enforcer from the Sacred Foundation Bank, clad in silver and grey robes, pushed his way to the front. "No pill acts that fast without severe toxic backlash! You are peddling poison to the desperate. Has the Golden Carp about to declare bankruptcy? You’re stooping this low to fool the poor folks! The Bank will not allow this disruption of the market!"

The Golden Carp merchant didn’t flinch. Instead, his smile widened into a grin. Something that made the enforcer feel like he was being stared down by a predator.

"Ah, Enforcer Lin of the Sacred Foundation Bank. A perfect volunteer. I see you favor your left leg. An old injury from a beast hunt, perhaps? It limits your mobility, does it not?"

Before the Deacon could draw his weapon, the merchant tossed him a single, pink tablet. "Try it. If it is poison, the Golden Carp will compensate your family tenfold. If it works... well, you pay me double the asking price."

The crowd murmured as the tension built up. Enforcer Lin caught the tablet with a frown. Obviously, he was familiar with this merchant of the Golden Carp and they often had conflicts with the way the merchant conducted his business.

He stared at the tablet in his hand with scrutiny. At the corner of his mind, he thought of crushing the fraudulent product into powder. However, the words of the merchant made him hesitate.

The chronic ache in his leg was truly a constant torment that the Bank’s expensive alchemists had failed to cure without demanding an exorbitant fee. A fee that he could only accumulate after working for a century.

If it was truly so miraculous... it won’t hurt him to give it a try. After all, it’s only double their asking price. And upon looking at their sign, it’s only around two months’ worth of his salary.

"You’d better get out of our bazaar if this doesn’t work."

With that, he popped the tablet into his mouth, and everyone waited in bated breath.

Meanwhile, watching this scene from a shadowed balcony overlooking the bazaar were two figures. One was an elderly man with eyes like polished coins. An Executive of the Sacred Foundation Bank. The other was a woman draped in shimmering, almost invisible fabrics, an Orange Silk Matriarch of the Heavenly Silk Consortium.