"You really are amazing!" Zhou Zhendong said, taking it with immense admiration. "You know how to do everything! Nothing can stump you. We could try to learn from you, but we’d never be able to."

Cheng Zongyang gave a wry smile. "There’s no need to be like me—just be yourself. You’ll get the hang of it with more experience. If you get more involved during this period, you’ll learn how to handle all sorts of things. By the way, how are things going with Li Yihuo?"

"Everything’s fine..."

The two cousins fell into conversation.

Zhou Zhendong learned from Cheng Zongyang about the three families and the plan to deal with the He Family.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Zhendong eagerly agreed. The prospect of a fight seemed to make him quite happy.

Cheng Zongyang knew that ever since his cousin had started practicing martial arts, Zhou Zhendong had grown to love improving himself through sparring and combat. This was a good thing, but it also had its downsides.

Such a tendency could easily make one belligerent and aggressive, and thus easy for others to exploit and entrap. Those who fell for it often suffered. Therefore, Cheng Zongyang gave him a few words of warning.

Zhou Zhendong took the advice to heart and agreed.

Seeing it was already the middle of the night, Cheng Zongyang and Zhou Zhendong returned to their respective rooms to rest.

Although things had mostly calmed down, many people still spent a sleepless night.

That night, Xu Dong and Ma Yue worked hard to absorb the potent medicinal energy coursing through their bodies.

That night, a conflicted Li Lu was also attempting his final breakthrough. He was already at the Peak of Eighth Grade Cultivation, and now with the qi-and-blood-fortifying Red Blood Pill, this final step was no longer an issue.

That night, the Qiu, Xu, and Ding Families were also on edge. After all, dealing with a Sixth Grade Martial Artist was hardly a relaxing affair. But they were even more worried that they had just driven off a wolf only to let in a tiger.

That night, within the Li Courtyard, Li Mingxin listened with a calm expression to Li Tonghua’s report on the various family powers, their eyes glinting as they stared at a tattered, yellowed booklet.

That night, in his study, He Shujun gazed at an agreement on a beast hide scroll, his face surprisingly calm.

「The next morning.」

Cheng Zongyang received Li Yihuo in his study.

"Sir, you summoned me. What are your instructions?"

Cheng Zongyang motioned for him to sit and said:

"There are a few things I need to make clear. The Cheng Family, the Celestial Break Gang, and the Qiu, Xu, and Ding Families have now reached a commercial agreement."

As he spoke, he handed a nearby Beast Hide Scroll to Li Yihuo and continued, "You’ll be in full charge of what happens next. The money—including the previous ten thousand taels, for a total of one hundred thousand taels of silver—and the resources from the Lu and Liu Families are all in the warehouse. You can use them whenever you need."

The original sum should have been one hundred and fifty thousand taels, but the ten thousand from He Shujun had already been delivered. He planned to take fifty thousand taels to the Wilderness World to use for expansion when he eventually perfected the map.

Li Yihuo’s face lit up with joy after he finished reading the Beast Hide Scroll. He quickly said,

"Rest assured, Sir. With this agreement, I know exactly what to do."

"Furthermore," Cheng Zongyang continued, "when you approach the three families, you have full authority to arrange and decide on all business operations and development. I will not interfere.

What I want is for everyone to work hand-in-hand to quickly restore the County Town. If you need manpower, have Gang Leader Li coordinate the search. Everything must be done quickly! Also, if you find anyone with a large stock of goods they can’t sell, remember to bring a sample back for me to look at."

Although Li Yihuo didn’t understand the meaning behind this last instruction, he didn’t ask any questions. With a solemn expression, he cupped his hands and said, "Rest assured, Sir. I understand."

Once the matters were settled, Li Yihuo took his leave.

Cheng Zongyang, for his part, entered the Wilderness World once again to check on the progress of the Collection Hunting Team’s recent explorations.