As soon as the Human Emperor Banner came out, I became the Lord of the Old Ones

Chapter 184 Xiong Tieshan's Test
Xu Yan smiled.

"It seems that my thoughts are similar to those of the bear curator."

"Do not."

Xiong Tieshan shook his head seriously and said, "We are different. I am just a coward, an ostrich burying its head in the sand. I know perfectly well that everything I have done cannot stop the change in Dawn City. It may even backfire and promote the business of those profit-driven guys. The vast majority of members come to Kuang Tie Martial Arts Hall not to strengthen their bodies and create everything with their own hands, but to squeeze out stronger life force from the depths of their cells in order to drive more sealed cards and be qualified to buy more cards and take on higher card debts."

"I know all this perfectly well."

"But they dare not take the first step in a truly meaningful way to change or even rebel."

"They've just been hiding under the banner of 'cardless streaming' and deceiving themselves for decades."

"For decades, Kuangtie Martial Arts School and the three major clubs in the city have always lived in peace, not because the 'old friends' still cherish the old friendship, but because those guys know that I can't cause any trouble, and even act as their accomplices, so what need is there for them to drive me to my death?"

"But you are different."

"When I saw Ah Long and Ah Hu, under your guidance, use the interference of the Black Iron Civilian Card in the ring to perform a soul-shaking dive slam, I knew that you and I were completely different."

"You are bolder and more dangerous than me, a hundred times more dangerous."

“A young man as ambitious and audacious as you would never want to be an ostrich deceiving himself. You were born to be a predator and a game-changer. Wherever you go, you will stir up a storm and change everything.”

Xu Yan shrugged.

"Perhaps I'm not being bold, but simply having no other choice."

He said, "Coming from the depths of the wilderness, with no roots in Dawn City, we have to fight to survive."

"Makes sense."

Xiong Tieshan admitted, then changed the subject, "So, you want to seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make your philosophy shine in the Dawn Cup through the Kuangtie team, and then introduce the second-hand card distribution business to the Kuangtie club, using my life's work to endorse you, and even to fight against the three major clubs with you?"

Xu Yan raised his eyebrows slightly.

It seems that what Xiong Tieshan really cares about is not whether the traditional cardless data transfer model can be changed.

Rather, it's the secondhand card distribution business that might impact the Kuangtie Club.

However, the fact that they didn't directly refuse is a good sign.

If Xiong Tieshan truly had no intention of cooperating whatsoever, then he wouldn't have bothered to go on and on about the past.

"Is Master Xiong worried that I, like your 'old friends,' will taint the Kuangtie Club with too much commercialism, or even turn it into a mere money-making machine?"

Xu Yan thought for a moment, then tentatively asked.

Xiong Tieshan slowly shook his head.

"There's no point in dwelling on this."

He said, "Even if you are truly filled with pure and kind intentions right now, determined to be selfless and dedicated to helping others, as your business expands and time goes by, you could very well become unrecognizable, just like my old friends who once shared life and death with me."

"A-Yue has already told me all your ideas and the initial business model."

"I've also come to know your skill in refurbishing secondhand cards through the tournament highlights."

"I've heard a little about the changes in the Rolling Stone Fort secondhand card street in recent months."

"I heard that Ms. Lelena from the Rolling Stone Club—the best card maker near Dawn City—has a very high opinion of you."

"Therefore, I absolutely believe that, at least in the initial stages of introducing the secondhand card distribution business into the Kuangtie Club, it won't be a bad thing, either for the club's operation or for the wallets of ordinary citizens." "So, does Director Xiong still have any concerns?"

Xu Yan said, "If you are really willing to cooperate, we can study the specific terms and profit-sharing ratio carefully."

"That's not the point. The point is that introducing the second-hand card business to Dawn City on a large scale will seriously damage the interests of the three high-end clubs and the four card manufacturing companies behind them."

Xiong Tieshan said, "Have you ever thought about why there is a 'second-hand card street' in a planning area like Rolling Stone Fortress, while Dawn City, although it has a large-scale underground market, only has a few scattered second-hand card stalls and no established second-hand card market?"

"This cannot be explained simply by saying that 'city people have plenty of money and disdain buying second-hand cards.'"

Xu Yan remained calm.

He had certainly thought about this question seriously.

Cutting off someone's livelihood is like killing their parents.

Snatching food from a tiger's mouth is never easy.

However, after finally traversing from Earth to the cultivation world, and then being reborn as a remnant soul in the era of heroes millions of years later after the destruction of the cultivation world.

If we still have to be mindful of the attitudes of the four major card manufacturers.

That would be a terrible disservice to the Emperor's Banner, which resides deep within my mind.

Trying to eat meat in large quantities will always lead to trouble.

With depleted resources, a financial crisis, the ravages of the past, and the looming presence of the Black Dream organization poised for a major attack, Dawn City is the perfect place to fish in troubled waters and seize the opportunity to rise up.

If we can't even gain a foothold here, how will we ever advance into the "core area" firmly controlled by the four major card manufacturers?
"It seems you know what you're doing, and you're aware of the risks involved?"

Xiong Tieshan grinned, but there was no smile in his eyes. "And you don't care at all about putting my life's work and my daughter at this risk?"

"When a storm comes, burying your head in the sand like an ostrich may not be safe."

Xu Yan said calmly, "Of course, the choice is entirely in Master Xiong's hands. If you insist on opposing it, I believe General Manager Xiong will not go against your wishes."

“If it were a month ago, I would have opposed it without hesitation.”

Xiong Tieshan's lips twitched into a bitter smile. "However, Chu Zhifeng's matter has made me start to doubt myself."

"What annoys me the most is not that Chu Zhifeng betrayed me."

"But how could he be so despicable, only daring to sneak around and launch a surprise attack when betraying me?"

"If he truly believes from the bottom of his heart that the multi-card strategy is stronger than the no-card strategy, that the Kuangtie team cannot bring him the success he wants, and even resents my simple and crude teaching methods."

"He should have explained everything clearly and walked out of the Crazy Iron Club with his head held high long ago. After that, it would have been his freedom to decide whether to defeat me or to defeat the entire Crazy Iron Club."

"If he doesn't even have the courage to openly and honestly express his determination, he can't go very far no matter which path he chooses."

"However, can we blame him for this?"
"He was taught by me, so his mistakes are my mistakes, and his flaws are my flaws."

"Isn't it because I've been an ostrich for decades, preferring to deceive myself and live in a facade of toughness, yet I dare not do what I firmly believe is right, and dare not truly challenge the three major clubs and the seemingly invincible forces hidden behind them?"

"That's why my most beloved disciple has become a cowardly and despicable scoundrel?"

"so--"

(End of this chapter)