Xiuxian, I can travel to another world

Chapter 331 Borrowing Money
Pingdaochuan spoke calmly, yet his words carried an undeniable air of intimidation; with a single thought, a torrential downpour began.

The power of fake elixirs is as real as if they were tangible.

This also made Pei Jingque and Zhu Ju feel a sinking feeling in their hearts.

"Ping... Chief."

Pei Jingque pursed her lips and said slowly:
"The Mingxu Sect will certainly not shirk its responsibility to pay the Immortal Tax and support the Immortal Alliance in its fight against the Six Paths of Demonic Sect."

"But this tax..."

"That's really too high."

Although Mingxu Sect's life is better than in previous years, it is still not very comfortable. With the increase in the number of disciples in the sect, various expenses are also increasing, and sometimes they even have to live beyond their means.

They didn't have many spirit stones to begin with, and simply couldn't bear such a heavy tax.

"Sect Leader Pei is joking."

Hiramikawa spoke with a half-smile:
"The Mingxu Sect has hundreds of disciples and three thousand vassals, making it the largest immortal sect in the vicinity. If it can support so many people, what is a mere immortal tax?"

"Master Ping." Pei Jingque's face was pale, and his hands, holding the Immortal Alliance's decree, trembled slightly.
"This immortal tax..."

"Is it calculated per person?"

"Not bad." Hiramikawa:

"The amount of the immortal tax is determined by the number of cultivators at the Dao Foundation stage and disciples at the Qi Refining stage."

"Sect Leader Pei."

He clasped his hands and said:
"The Mingxu Sect is the largest force under my jurisdiction, and the immortal tax must not be reduced."

"clatter……"

Pei Jingque swayed and took a step back. If Zhu Ju hadn't supported her, she probably would have fallen.

"Mr. Ping."

Zhu Ju spoke:
"Mingxu Sect could not bear to see the people suffer, so it recruited disciples in a wide range of ways. It was already difficult to support so many people, so such heavy taxes were really hard to accept."

"That's your problem now." Hiramakawa frowned, a deep frown forming on his forehead.
"Don't say that I, Ping, am heartless. Considering our past relationship, the Mingxu Sect's immortal tax payment date can be postponed by one month."

"If you don't pay by then..."

"The Immortal Alliance has its own enforcement team!"

He clasped his hands in a fist salute, glanced at the two men with a meaningful look, and then transformed into a streak of light, soaring into the sky.

The two were left staring at each other in the rain.

a long time.

Zhu Jucai slowly opened his mouth:
"It is only right that the Immortal Alliance provides material rewards to cultivators who go to the front lines to fight against the demonic forces. Only in this way will righteous cultivators dare to and be willing to fight against the demonic demons."

"A balanced system of rewards and punishments is the foundation of good rules."

The righteous and demonic cultivators fought each other, with the demonic cultivators acting recklessly and the righteous cultivators choosing to protect themselves.

It's because the Immortal Alliance isn't doing its job.

If the Immortal Alliance were to offer a substantial reward to any cultivator who kills a demonic monster, surely someone would be willing to take action.

but……

Zhu Ju felt it was a bit too late!
If the Immortal Alliance had set such rules when the demonic path was just beginning to gain momentum, it would have been able to suppress the arrogance of the demonic path.

Even if the rules are set now and morale is boosted, the righteous cultivators are no match for the demonic path.

"Yes." Pei Jingque smiled wryly upon hearing this.

“I understand the reasoning, but such a heavy tax is too harsh. We can’t come up with that many spirit stones right now.”

"Oh!" Zhu Ju raised his eyebrows:
Is there a big difference?

Over the years, he has not paid much attention to the management of the sect and knows very little about the current situation of the Mingxu Sect.

Pei Jingque nodded slowly.

"Ugh!"

She sighed softly:
"Junior brother, did I do something wrong?"

"If only we had listened to Junior Sister Liu and Elder Zhai's advice and kept the number of people in the sect below a thousand."

"Things have come to this point; further words are pointless," Zhu Ju began.
"The most urgent task is to solve the problem of the Immortal Tax. The Immortal Alliance probably needs a counter-example to establish its authority."

"The Mingxu Sect must not be given any leverage."

Pei Jingque remained silent.

"I still have two thousand-year-old spiritual herbs that I obtained from the last time I entered the Void Rift Secret Realm." After thinking for a moment, she said slowly:
"We can exchange them for some spirit stones."

"Senior Sister still has the thousand-year-old spiritual medicine from back then?" Zhu Ju looked surprised, then shook his head:

"Even the best thousand-year-old elixir is still a drop in the ocean."

"Sister."

He frowned and spoke:
"A cultivator can withstand an army of ten thousand."

“If Senior Sister is at the late stage of the Foundation Establishment stage, even if demonic cultivators attack, the Mingxu Sect will still have the strength to turn the tide.”

"If it is a Golden Core..."

"Hirakawa would never be so arrogant. Today's matter is easily resolved!"

In Zhu Ju's opinion, Pei Jingque was too muddle-headed; how could he keep the thousand-year-old elixir?

The key is to refine and consume the elixir as early as possible to enhance one's own strength.

"Junior brother."

Pei Jingque spoke slowly, his expression complex:
“I am different from you. I grew up in a sect since I was a child. Mingxu Sect... is everything to me.”

The two had vastly different attitudes toward the sect.

Zhu Ju kept his personal belongings and those of the sect perfectly separate.

He wouldn't mind sharing some of the benefits he gained from the sect with it, such as the winemaking business and the exploration of secret realms.

However, if he did not use the sect's channels, then what he obtained would belong to him alone.

like,
The spoils obtained from killing the bandits, the profits from investing in businesses, and so on.

It's a relationship of mutual exploitation.

Pei Jingque was different.

What belongs to the sect belongs to the sect, and what belongs to the sect remains the sect's. Personal interests can be completely set aside for the sake of the sect's interests.

So it is.

Pei Jingque clearly achieved the mid-stage of Dao Foundation earlier than Zhu Ju, and his cultivation talent was also stronger than his, yet his cultivation level was gradually caught up.

If she were willing to use the entire sect's resources to support herself, she would probably have already reached the late stage of the Foundation Establishment realm.

"What should we do now?"

Knowing that persuasion was useless, Zhu Ju spoke up:
"I do have some spirit stones on me, Senior Sister, why don't you take them and use them?"

"Never mind." Pei Jingque shook his head.
"A few spirit stones are useless. I'll go borrow some from others. The Seeking Immortals Sect should be able to help."

The Seeking Immortals Sect has always been relatively wealthy, and with a small number of disciples, paying the Immortal Tax is not difficult.

"The Immortal Seeking Sect?" Zhu Ju thought for a moment, then took out a box from his storage bag and handed it over.

"Do not go empty-handed."

"Oh!" Pei Jingque took the box, opened it, and revealed a surprised expression:
"Foundation Pill!"

Still six pills!

Nowadays, the value of Foundation Establishment Pills is rising steadily, and six Foundation Establishment Pills are already a considerable fortune.

"The Seeking Immortals Sect is in dire need of Foundation Establishment Pills. With these, we can definitely borrow spirit stones." Pei Jingque's face lit up with joy.

"Junior brother, thank you!"

"Once the sect overcomes its difficulties, I will find a way to make up for it for you."

"Let's resolve this matter first." Zhu Ju waved his hand.
"After all, I am also a member of a sect."

"However, the immortal tax must be paid every year. If we borrow spirit stones to cover it this year, what will we do next year?"

“Next year…” Pei Jingque sighed:

"We should be able to bring back some spiritual herbs from the Time Rift Secret Realm, which might allow us to postpone things for another year."

"If we think of a few more ways over the next two years, we can get through this."

boil?
Perhaps you can get through it, but spiritual practice isn't something you can just endure.

Zhu Ju slowly shook his head.

*
*
*
"Gululu..."

The teapot was steaming, and the lid was shaking constantly.

Zhu Ju reached out and grabbed the handle, casually brewed the tea, blew away the foam, and took a small sip.

The delicate fragrance permeates the lungs.

"when……"

The melodious chimes drifted from afar, and he raised an eyebrow, flicking his finger to send a streak of light shooting straight into the sky.

Not long after.

An old man and a young man were led to the stone pavilion.

"Fellow Daoist Zhu."

Wu Tian, ​​the head of the Wu family, clasped his hands in a respectful gesture:

"Mr. Wu is very polite."

"Fellow Daoist Wu." Zhu Ju stood up to greet him.
"What brings you to the Mingxu Sect today?"

The Wu family is on good terms with the Mingxu Sect and is one of the forces that went to the Void Rift Secret Realm. However, the Wu family suffered heavy losses when they encountered demonic cultivators on their way back last time. Currently, the entire family only has one newly promoted Dao Foundation cultivator.

Even the spots for going to the Void Rift Secret Realm were sold to the Immortal Seeking Sect, which clearly indicates its decline.

"This..." Wu Tian hesitated for a moment before speaking in a low voice:
"To be honest, I have come here to borrow some spirit stones, as the Wu family is no longer able to pay the immortal tax."

"Oh!" Zhu Ju frowned:
"The immortal tax is calculated based on the number of people. There aren't many cultivators in the Wu family, so the immortal tax shouldn't be high."

"That's theoretically true." Wu Tian smiled wryly.
"How..."

"The Immortal Alliance also has a minimum standard. Even if a family has few members or disciples, there is a quota. This quota is an astronomical figure for the Wu family, which they simply cannot afford."

"Is that so?" Zhu Ju looked surprised, then shook his head helplessly.

"Patriarch Wu, the Mingxu Sect is willing but unable to help."

Do you know where my sect leader has gone?

"Hmm." Wu Tian was taken aback.
"Where have you gone?"

"The Immortal Seeking Sect." Zhu Ju smiled bitterly.
"Borrowing spirit stones."

"..." Wu Tian's expression was complicated. After a long while, he sighed and pulled the boy behind him out:
“Fellow Daoist Zhu, this child is named Wu Lei. Although he is not born with a Dao physique, he is still exceptionally gifted.”

"At the age of thirteen, he has already achieved the Innate Realm. He should be able to perfect all nine orifices before the age of fifty. I wonder if he can become a disciple of the Mingxu Sect."

"Oh!" Zhu Ju exclaimed in surprise.
"At the age of thirteen, when Xiantian was still doing something, it was truly enviable."

"However, the Mingxu Sect has stopped recruiting disciples in recent years. Why does Patriarch Wu want to try the Xuanqing Sect and the Zhaixing Tower?"

"Why would such a powerful sect take a fancy to my child?" Wu Tian shook his head slightly, said a few more words, and then took his leave.

As he watched the two figures disappear into the distance, Zhu Ju seemed lost in thought.

'The Wu family...'

'Is this an attempt to disband the clan to evade the immortal tax?'

Wu Tian wasn't stupid; he should know very well that he couldn't borrow spirit stones from the Mingxu Sect, so finding a way out for future generations was the real priority.

Mingxu Sect is not strong among the many immortal sects.

But the inheritance is not bad.

It could even be said that it is quite remarkable.

However, at this time, Mingxu Sect was too busy taking care of itself to accept people from other families.

and……

If the Wu family really wants to disband the clan to avoid the immortal tax, it may not be feasible.

…………

A few days later.

Dong Yuelan from the Hundred Flowers Sect came to visit.

She took a sip of the spiritual wine, her face flushed.

"Immortal tax! Immortal tax!"

"All I hear about these days is the Immortal Tax. It's fine for the Immortal Alliance to collect taxes, but it's too harsh!"

"Yes." Zhu Ju nodded:
"What's the situation with the Hundred Flowers Sect?"

"The Immortal Alliance invited us to stay away from the south for the time being, probably because they're afraid we'll run away." Dong Yuelan pouted.

"This year's tax isn't difficult, but the challenge is that it will be the same every year from now on, which will be tough."

"Fuck..."

"I've been driven crazy by the immortal tax lately, I'm even thinking of selling myself to earn spirit stones."

"correct."

She cursed and turned her head to look:
"A demonic cultivator has appeared nearby. The Immortal Alliance has made it clear that they will not provide protection unless the Immortal Tax is paid."

(End of this chapter)