Cultivation: Being Immortal

Chapter 246:

In the central region, there is Shenmu Sect.

Lin Batian hasn’t been heard from since he joined Shenmu Sect. Lin Die has gotten used to Lin Batian’ way of doing things, so she’s not worried. But Lin Jiang is having a hard time adjusting.

"Who should I ask? Don’t you know I’m here every day?"

Faced with Lin Jiang’s question, Lin Die shrugged her shoulders, indicating that she didn’t know. They had been staying in the guest house arranged by the Shenmu Sect these past few days, and hadn’t been anywhere else.

"Can I leave first, Third Auntie?"

"What do you need to do?"

"I want to go back to Shenmu City. If I don’t open my shop, it will be a waste because I still have to pay rent."

"So narrow-minded."

"Well, before I had money, it didn’t matter. But now that I don’t, I have to be very careful with my spending. Life is tough…"

"Third Auntie, it’s not just a small amount, it’s at least more than ten million spirit stones."

"More than ten million? That’s a lot. Your master is really good to you."

"What a jerk! He dumped me, he’s just a loser."

"I’ll tell your master and he’ll punish you again."

Lin Die rolled her eyes. Her nephew was so rebellious, he even schemed against his master.

"I’m not afraid anymore. Since he already takes my money, he thinks he’s in charge. If he doesn’t give me money, he’s nothing."

"Is your business in Shenmu City big?"

"Not really, just a small shop. I make a few tens of thousands of spirit stones a year. But now that I’m going back, I definitely need to expand my business."

Lin Jiang said, before he thought he had some industries in two places, so he could just relax and make a little profit. With a golden core and a fourth-rank beast pet, he only made a few tens of thousands of spirit stones a year. Now that he lost his industries, he can only work hard to make money.

"Can your Third Auntie help you?"

"Are you trying to plant someone close to me?"

"Yes, you also mentioned before that moving frequently is not good for disciples’ training. Our clan has many talented young people, and they have been delayed in their training due to all these years of moving. We need to find an opportunity to provide them with a stable environment."

"That works too. It’s better to have people from the Lin family rather than recruiting independent cultivators. But let’s make it clear that they are just workers and cannot take shares in my business."

"No problem, but we shouldn’t mistreat them. We need to give them what they deserve."

"Don’t worry, I believe in winning people over with kindness."

Lin Jiang said. What needs to be given must be given, and what needs to be exploited must be exploited. This is what fits his identity as a wealthy capitalist of the Lin family.

"Alright, you go ahead, and I’ll write a letter home. Within a month, someone will come over. We will provide Pills, Talismans, Items, and Formations for them. You can start expanding our industries."

"Are there any strong cultivators? Will Lin Dongyan come?"

"Dream on. At most, he’s at the third level. Elite cultivators like Lin Dongyan will definitely stay with us."

Lin Die said. These elite clan members have been carefully nurtured with extremely high costs. There’s no way they will easily be sent away. They must stay by our side.

"Okay, let’s go, it’s just three steps."

Lin Jiang nodded. Without masters who are above the fifth level in Pill, Talisman, Item, and Formation, the store can’t grow big. But he didn’t plan to grow too big anyway, since the Lin family or the Five Elements Sect didn’t fully support him. He didn’t have the strength for that. If he really made it big, it would only bring trouble.

A few days later, Lin Jiang left with Small Shadiao. Before leaving, he saw Lin Die receiving another pile of challenge letters. Ever since she luckily defeated Duanmu Ling, the Nascent Soul cultivators from the Shenmu Sect were excited and came one after another to challenge her.

You should know that the chief position in the Shenmu Sect is not fixed and can be replaced. As long as the challenger is around the same age, cultivation level, and talent, if they win during the challenge, they can replace the chief.

Now that Duanmu Ling lost to Lin Die, those people were excited. They thought that if they won against Lin Die, wouldn’t that be the same as winning against Duanmu Ling? How could he still have the face to hold on to the chief position?

Lin Die wasn’t interested in fighting with them. She fought against Duanmu Ling before to protect her friend, but now she had no interest.

Lin Jiang secretly returned to Shenmu City, still disguising himself. After all, it’s not good to go around with his true appearance. If he encountered danger, he would have to run away.

After more than half a month, about sixty to seventy people from the Lin family arrived, mostly younger generations and the oldest being from the storage branch. Plus, more than half of them didn’t have skills in Pill, Talisman, Item, and Formation.

"Oh dear, life is tough. After Master cheats me, Third Sister cheats me too. Is this forcing me to be a nanny?"

Lin Jiang sighed. He was now stuck with this group of people, and it seemed like he might have to be their babysitter. Luckily, they didn’t throw any seven or eight-year-old kids his way. Otherwise, Lin Jiang would have run away immediately. He really disliked bratty kids.

"Greetings, Uncle."

Sixty to seventy people stood in a neat row, bowing to Lin Jiang. It was quite a spectacle. Lin Jiang stroked his chin, deciding to grow a beard in the future. That way, he would look more like an elder.

Lin Jiang waved his hand, signaling everyone to go rest. He called over the two older ones. This group of people, led by them, had strong cultivation just like Lin Jiang. They all had golden cores.

"Lin Cunjian, Lin Cuncheng, in the future, you will be in charge of managing these people. I’ve rented three houses for you. Squeeze in together for now. When you start making money, you can change your residence. Is that okay?"

"No problem, Uncle. Third Ancestor has said that we’ll listen to you."

"Alright, then let’s divide tasks as I’ve said. The sixty to seventy people will work together. Some will handle logistics. There are no servants here to order you around. You’ll have to do everything on your own. Some will specialize in Pill, Talisman, Item, and Formation. Others will work in the trading company."

Lin Jiang said, managing the sixty to seventy people was not an easy task. Each person had their own ideas. Many couldn’t even manage a dormitory properly. Thankfully, Lin Jiang wasn’t inexperienced. He had managed many people before.

The sixty to seventy people formed groups. The ones with the lowest cultivation would handle logistics, taking care of themselves while also managing some other tasks. Those with decent skills in Pill, Talisman, Item, and Formation would specialize in crafting goods for the trading company. The rest would join the company to help.

The company also needs to grow bigger. Lin Jiang has already found a new store, which is much larger than the previous small one. He has divided the positions of the accountant, assistant, and store manager, ensuring that everyone has work to do but not too busy. After all, it is most important for them to practice and improve their skills.

The first half month was quite chaotic. A group of people were not used to this kind of life. Except for Lin Cunjian and Lin Cuncheng, most of them were still being supported by their families. But as time passed, they gradually adapted. Lin Jiang was very forgiving towards them and would not punish them for making mistakes.

"I have seen it. You have arranged it well."

After a few more days, Lin Die appeared and said to Lin Jiang that she had been observing for a day. Lin Jiang had arranged the people very well.

"Third Auntie, why are you here?"

"I’m worried, so I came to take a look."

"Well, you have to disguise yourself. I have already given the order that no one is allowed to talk about the Lin family. Your appearance would render all my efforts useless."

"There’s no need to be so nervous. The four major families have no influence over Shenmu City. I received information that the four major families have visited Shenmu Sect, but they were driven away. It seems that they have grudges against each other, and their relationship is not good."

"Alright, how is the family head?"

"We have achieved our goal, but we still need to stay in seclusion at the Shenmu Sect. I don’t know when we will come out. Please inform me when I should return to the Lin family. Also, intensify the harassment against the remnants of the four major families, gather their remaining forces."

"Didn’t we say we were taking a break? Do we have to fight?"

"We have to fight, otherwise it won’t work. The four major families almost control the entire Qing State. Once they settle down and develop, we won’t be able to compete with them no matter what. So we can only fight them to deplete their resources and prevent them from focusing on their development. Otherwise, we have no way out."

Lin Die said. The Lin family has very limited resources and territory. If we compete with the others, the Lin family will definitely lose.

Now, the only hope for the Lin family is to constantly harass the four major families, assassinate their talented descendants, and slow down their development. Otherwise, the future of the Lin family is in danger.

Hearing this, Lin Jiang frowned. The Lin family’s situation reminded him of the Shu Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period. Even if the enemy is stronger, they still need to be on the offensive. Strategically, this is the right approach. However, Lin Jiang already knows the fate of the Shu Kingdom.

"It seems like you don’t have much confidence in this strategy."

"Even if we exchange one member of the Lin family for five or ten members of the four major families, in the end, the Lin family will still lose. Let’s not forget that at the Nascent Soul level, the Lin family only has you and Lin Ying, and if we include Big Shadiao and Small Shadiao, it’s still only four of you. How can you compete with the four major families?"

"Then tell me, what other options do you have?"

"There’s no other way, the only hope is to rely on the appearance of an extraordinary genius in the Yu family, similar to the Yu family’s head, and gather all resources to cultivate him, allowing him to take a shortcut."

Lin Jiang said. If it’s in the ordinary world, the Lin family has no hope at all, but in the world of cultivation, there is still hope. The hope lies in an extraordinary genius.

"Extraordinary geniuses are rare and cannot be sought after. My father’s appearance alone is already a stroke of luck for the Lin family. So now, all the plans revolve around my father. This trip to the Shenmu Sect is already halfway successful. If my father can achieve the plan, then revenge is possible. As for us, all we can do is to buy time for my father."

"Auntie Three…"

"There’s no need to be so desperate, everything will get better."

"Yes, Auntie Three."

"Take care of these people. They are all the elite of the Lin family, with excellent Spiritual Roots, talents, and understanding. Take good care of them, and the Lin family will reward you handsomely. It will definitely be a priceless reward."

Lin Die said. The Lin family’s descendants have been dispersed and arranged in various places, just to plan for the future. We should also take care of our eldest nephew here, considering how much he has contributed to the Lin family.