If this had been the Immortal Pivot, that wretched place, Lü Yang would never have dared to entertain such a thought. After all, achieving his own Seeking Gold Ascension Position had been incredibly difficult.

In the Celestial Mansion, however, it was another matter entirely.

’Because in the Celestial Mansion, Fruits can be bought!’

’They cost a fortune, it’s true, but I happen to have a project that can rapidly accumulate capital. Given enough time, affording one might not be out of the question.’

’Besides, I don’t need him to hold it for long. Even if I can only buy it for a single breath, as long as it allows him to become an Orthodox True Monarch of the Celestial Mansion, my [Student as a Model] Talent Skill will activate. It will synchronize all the corresponding True Monarch Level Dao Practice, adding it to my own foundation!’

At this thought, Lü Yang’s heart burned with excitement.

Meanwhile, following a second issuance, the explosive popularity of the Wuyou Talisman completely swept through the first to fifth layers of the Celestial Mansion, giving rise to countless tales of newfound wealth.

A massive number of Cultivators began to enter the market.

Soon, the Wuyou Talismans on the market were once again frantically snatched up, and the price soared like a rising dragon, further igniting the Cultivators’ fervor.

After all, no one had anything against money.

However, as the scale grew ever larger, the storm became more and more outrageous, finally reaching the ears of those in power and alarming the Immortal Monarchs in the upper echelons of the Celestial Mansion.

「The Eighth Layer of the Celestial Mansion」

Aside from the 9th Layer, which was the Dao field of the Taiyin Immortal Venerable, the eighth layer was the Celestial Mansion’s decision-making stratum, a place the various Immortal Monarchs used only when they convened to discuss matters.

And now, within a great hall on the eighth layer.

As streams of spiritual perception tore through the void and lit up the Dao Platforms, the once-empty hall was instantly filled with one towering figure after another.

Aside from the empty Taiyin position, the Immortal Monarchs governing the other five Dao paths of the Celestial Mansion—Sun, Yangming, Lesser Yang, Lesser Yin, and Jueyin—had all arrived, their numbers already exceeding ten.

"There has been a lot of commotion in the Lower Realm recently."

"Have you heard? Those of the Outer Dao in the Lower Realm seem to have come up with something new called the Wuyou Talisman. Its price is being driven up to incredible heights."

"Forget the Lower Realm! Lesser Yin is dead! Tao Yan is dead too!"

"Qingyang, you sound heartbroken. Were you two that close?"

"Close my ass! I heard they were headed to the Immortal Pivot on a vanguard mission, so I invested heavily in their Immortal Talismans. Now I’ve lost the whole damn lot!"

An Immortal Monarch roared in anger. His name was [Qingyang], and he was also an Immortal Monarch of the Sun position. However, unlike Dao Yan Immortal Monarch, he held the Sun in the Spring’s Intermediate Position.

In the Celestial Mansion, each Dao path is divided into Celestial Master and In the Spring.

Celestial Master is above and In the Spring is below; this is one major dividing line. Then, within each of those, there is a further distinction between a Master Position and an Intermediate Position, which serves as another major dividing line.

The In Spring Intermediate Position was the worst position within a Dao path. In the Immortal Pivot, it would be equivalent to a Fourth Grade True Monarch, only slightly stronger than an Outer Dao True Monarch.

Therefore, for Cyan Yang Immortal Monarch, his greatest dream was for the price of his own Cyan Yang Immortal Talisman to skyrocket, allowing him to afford the Fruit for an In Spring Master Position. To that end, he had invested a great deal of money into the Immortal Talismans of various other Immortal Monarchs, especially Lesser Yin Immortal Monarch and Dao Yan Immortal Monarch.

But now, not only was that all gone, it had even affected his own Cyan Yang Immortal Talisman.

Although he could still create new Immortal Talismans, their value had dropped. This meant he would have to make up for the loss in quantity, which would significantly increase both the effort and cost.

After all, unlike Outer Dao Immortal Talismans, the talismans of Orthodox Immortal Monarchs contained a sliver of Fruit Position Imagery. In large quantities, they could even aid a Perfected Lord’s cultivation. Otherwise, they wouldn’t command such high prices, and there would be no need for Perfected Lords to hoard talismans issued by other houses.

At this thought, Cyan Yang Immortal Monarch heaved another long sigh.

Seeing his dejected state, another Immortal Monarch laughed. "Qingyang, if your recent losses have been that severe, I think you should pay more attention to the Lower Realm."

"What do you mean?"

Cyan Yang Immortal Monarch was stunned for a moment. Then, with a wave of his hand, the Immortal Monarch who had spoken sent a stream of Divine Sense that explained the recent, sudden emergence of the Wuyou Talisman.

"I have to admit, the Outer Dao Alliance has produced a real talent."

"I’ve looked into it. The person responsible just arrived. He has some tricks up his sleeve. He’s a first-generation Outer Dao True Monarch who achieved Attainment on his own, much more capable than the ones we’ve raised ourselves."

"This Wuyou Talisman..."

Cyan Yang Immortal Monarch mulled it over for a moment before laughing. "Interesting. Price speculation? Do they really think they can drive the price up to match an Orthodox Immortal Talisman?"

"In my opinion, it’s very likely."

"It has already surpassed Tao Yan’s Immortal Talisman. Surpassing Lesser Yin’s is only a matter of time. That outcome will inevitably boost market confidence even further."

"However, the Wuyou Talisman is still fundamentally an Outer Dao product. Its value can’t compare to our Orthodox Immortal Talismans, which contain Fruit Position Imagery. The only reason its price is rising so rapidly is that enough people are buying in. It can’t last forever. Once it hits a critical point, I’m confident it will crash."

"So what?"

"Whether its price crashes or not is ultimately up to us. As long as we coordinate, we can easily use this opportunity to make a huge profit."

Cyan Yang Immortal Monarch’s eyes grew increasingly bright:

"Ultimately, an Immortal Talisman is backed by the Immortal Monarch who issues it. The stronger the Immortal Monarch and the deeper their cultivation, the higher the value of their talisman."

"So, if we want to tank the price of this Wuyou Talisman and trigger a crash, it’s actually very simple. Any one of us can just step forward, publicly defeat the Outer Dao True Monarch who issued it, and humiliate him thoroughly. The price of the Wuyou Talisman is guaranteed to collapse that very night."

"And the timing of that is entirely up to us."

"Before that, we can just ride the wave and actively encourage the Wuyou Talisman’s growth... The higher its price goes, the more we’ll make!"

"Once we’ve cashed out and left the market, we can strike at its price."

"But since it’s an Outer Dao Immortal Talisman, even after it plummets, it’s bound to rebound eventually. We can buy up a large batch when it hits rock bottom."

"Once the price recovers, whether we decide to sell again or hold on to them for the long term... we’ll have this newly arrived Outer Dao True Monarch eating out of the palm of our hand."

In the space of a few words, an opportunity had clearly taken shape.

For the Immortal Monarchs of the Celestial Mansion, these were all routine tactics. Every so often, they would use similar methods to harvest the lower levels.

Whenever the upper-echelon Immortal Monarchs were short on funds, they would deploy this invisible, massive hand, a method that proved effective time and time again.

"Excellent, excellent."

The assembled Immortal Monarchs all nodded in approval of the plan.

Finally, the one presiding over the meeting—an old man who appeared kind and benevolent, with white hair but a youthful complexion—spoke, smiling at Cyan Yang Immortal Monarch.

"Qingyang, I’ve always been able to count on you."

"Let’s proceed with the plan, then. However, with the fall of Lesser Yin and Tao Yan, the rest of us must focus our energy on military matters for now. I’ll leave this affair in your hands."

"I accept this order!"

Cyan Yang Immortal Monarch hurriedly cupped his hands and agreed.

After all, the old man’s name was [Du Xuan]. Despite his appearance, he was in fact the chief monarch under the Taiyin Immortal Venerable, the de facto second-in-command of the Celestial Mansion.

An Immortal Monarch of the Sun Celestial Master Intermediate Position.

If not for the fact that the Sun Celestial Lord position was an Emperor Fruit, which could not be purchased even with a Great Dao Immortal Talisman, this Du Xuan Immortal Monarch might have already become an Immortal Venerable.

Soon, the meeting concluded, and the streams of Divine Sense withdrew.

「The Sixth Layer of the Celestial Mansion」

Cyan Yang Immortal Monarch opened his eyes within his secluded Cave Mansion, his gaze scorching. "Since we are both of the Sun path, it seems there’s still some camaraderie between us."

’Du Xuan Immortal Monarch knows I’ve damaged my Primordial Qi and suffered great losses, so he’s deliberately giving me this chance to make a fortune from that Wuyou Talisman in the lower levels. What’s more, with Tao Yan dead... the Sun in the Spring Lord Position is now vacant. Perhaps Du Xuan Immortal Monarch intends for me to fill it.’

At this thought, Cyan Yang Immortal Monarch grew instantly excited.

Looking again at the price of the Wuyou Talisman, he cursed himself for not paying attention to the lower levels sooner and buying in late. If he had purchased them earlier, wouldn’t he have made even more money?

’No time to waste,’ he thought. ’I have to go all in!’