Family Cultivation: Rise of the Wilderness

Chapter 219 Request for Instructions
"correct!"

Li Qianyou asked in a low voice, "Xiangming, the positions of head and deputy head of the Beast Capture Center are both vacant. Do you have any candidates to recommend?"

Since Li Xiangchuan's appointment, the position of deputy head of the animal trapping station has remained vacant.

Now that Li Xiangming has been promoted, the position of "head of affairs" has been revoked.

Of course, Li Xiangming can also continue to apply to take charge of the animal trapping station.

Just like Li Qianyou—Li Qianyou served as the head of the Foreign Affairs Hall and also as the head of the Guest House.

However, Li Qianyou's situation is rather special, because the head of the guesthouse is responsible for dealing with external forces.

Li Qianyou has been in charge for a long time and has established many connections with various forces, both large and small, in the surrounding area.

If he were to leave it to his own devices, the work of the hotel staff would be greatly hampered.

Li Xiangming was different; he accomplished three major things at Puyin Mountain.

The first thing was to manage Monkey Valley, such as the Taibai Restaurant, which attracted a large number of independent cultivators from Puyin Mountain and demon-hunting groups.

This gave the Li family a huge market, and the Li family could earn hundreds of spirit stones every month just from selling wine.

Not to mention the business of other elixirs, talismans, and magical artifacts.

The second thing was to create a relatively fair and orderly trading environment in Puyin Mountain.

This was the most difficult task, and it consumed the most of Li Xiangming's energy.

Fortunately, the ending was acceptable.

Now that the Puyinshan Guild Hall is on the right track, more and more itinerant merchants are joining it.

The prices of monster materials also tended to converge as the traveling merchants echoed each other's sentiments.

This means that the Li family can control the Puyin Mountain Guild Hall and influence the production of monster materials in Puyin Mountain in a short period of time.

This is of great significance to the Li family.

In addition, the exchange established by the Li family and the association also brought considerable profits to the Li family.

The more prosperous Puyin Mountain becomes, the greater the benefits will be.

The third thing was to dismantle the beast-catching house and establish a demon-hunting group, transforming the Li family's semi-hostile relationship with the majority of independent cultivators into a semi-friendly relationship between the demon-hunting group and the majority of independent cultivators.

Today, the Beast-Catching Bureau is divided into three demon-hunting teams: Heavenly Pillar, Golden Light, and Divine Wind.

In their spare time, these demon-hunting groups hunt demonic beasts in Puyin Mountain to earn spirit stones.

In times of war, they return to the leadership of the family and unite against external threats.

As the demon-hunting group grew stronger, the Li family not only retained its original fighting strength but also gained new demon-hunting power.

With the help of these demon-hunting groups, Li Xiangming took the opportunity to establish the Demon-Hunting Guild.

They indirectly controlled the armed forces in Puyin Mountain.

These three events signify that the Li family has completely established itself in Puyin Mountain.

Although there are still many things to do, I no longer need to do them personally.

In fact, if it weren't for the evil Green Robe, Li Xiangming might still have wanted to stay in Puyin Mountain and continue cultivating the land.

Because there is still more potential for development in Puyin Mountain.

I have devoted a lot of effort to Puyin Mountain.

But now, Li Xiangming prefers to stay at Tailai Peak and stay by Li Qianxiong's side.

Only in this way can Li Xiangming obtain more information, better resolve the crisis brought about by the evil Green Robe, and better prepare for future foundation building.

After a moment of contemplation, Li Xiangming slowly said, "The animal trapping room needs to cooperate with the animal breeding room, so stability should be the priority. I suggest promoting two people from the existing staff to fill the vacancies."

"Oh? Who do you prefer?"

Li Xiangming answered without hesitation: "Li Xiangfeng is quick-witted and farsighted, and can be the person in charge; Li Xiangting is calm and steady, and can be the deputy person in charge."

Upon hearing this, Li Qianyou smiled but remained silent.

Both Li Xiangfeng and Li Xiangting were from the fourth branch of the family.

Li Xiangming truly doesn't shy away from recommending talented individuals based on personal connections.

However, Li Qianyou did not refuse.

In any case, their appointments and removals still require the approval of the clan elders' council.

It would be highly unlikely that the clan elders would appoint two members of the fourth branch of the family as the head and deputy head of the clan.

There was no need for him to play the villain now, so he immediately smiled and said, "I understand. I will submit their list to the head of the family. As for whether it will work out, that depends on the family's decision."

"Thank you, Master!"

After chatting for a while, Li Xiangming saw Li Qianyou off and then looked at the remaining Li Xiangru.

"Fourth Brother, the Patriarch appointed me as the Deputy Head of the Foreign Affairs Hall. Does that mean everything is alright on Dai Mountain?"

Li Xiangru looked around and whispered, "It's not that simple."

"However, you can't keep hiding forever. Recently, the Soul Suppressing Sect sent people to Tailai Peak to mediate the conflict between the Li family and the Mountain Moving Sect, but behind the scenes they were investigating the cause of death of Ao Sheng and Li Dong. With so many of you not showing yourselves, the Soul Suppressing Sect will become suspicious."

"Mediation?"

Li Xiangming was stunned for a moment. Even if the Zhenhun Sect did not discover the Li family's secret operation, Ao Sheng and Li Dong died in battle because they failed to attack the Maojing Mine. Based on his understanding of these powerful sects, they would not have time to take revenge on the Li family, so why would they choose to mediate?

"Do you think the patriarch sent us to ambush the Mountain Moving Sect out of a moment of hot-blooded enthusiasm?"

Li Xiangru smiled mysteriously, "Do you remember last autumn when Bailu Gate fully opened up Dahuang Town?"

"Bai Lu Sect and Heng Yue Sect are inseparable family members. It's already quite a big deal that they've been fighting for a few years. No matter what the conflict is, they will eventually swallow it down."

"Now the two factions are on good terms again, Pu County has returned to the embrace of Zhangning Prefecture, and trade between the two places is becoming more and more frequent."

"Bailu Sect has its eye on the spirit pets that Yuyuan is selling off in Pushui Market. They hope to purchase these spirit pets on a long-term basis and then transport them to Hao County to sell."

"But Yuyuan has a special status. They are backed by the Cao family, and the Cao family is backed by the Suxin Sword Sect. The Suxin Sword Sect is at odds with the Hengyue Sect. The Bailu Sect has only just bowed down to the Hengyue Sect. How could they dare to contact Yuyuan on their own?"

"After Yuyuan learned about this, they asked us to act as an intermediary to help them reach a cooperation agreement with Bailumen."

"This is the honeymoon period for us, Yuyuan, and Bailumen."

Li Xiangru did not continue speaking, but Li Xiangming already understood completely.

The Li family sold demonic beasts to Yuyuan, who then trained them into spirit pets and sold them to Bailumen through the Li family. Bailumen then transported the beasts to major cultivation counties in Zhangning Prefecture, such as Hao County, to sell them for profit.

In short, the Li family, as a supplier of monsters and an intermediary, has become an indispensable part of this closed trade route.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Li Qianxiong launched a ruthless attack on the Mountain Moving Sect.

Before the Soul Suppressing Sect could react, Li Qianxiong immediately brought up the White Dew Sect.

The Bailu Sect was unaware of the truth; all they saw was that the Li family's Maojing Mine had just been plundered by the Zhenhun Sect and the Banshan Sect, suffering severe damage.

Now they are facing retaliation from the Soul Suppressing Sect.

Who wouldn't feel sorry for her if they heard that?
Originally, Bailumen and the Li family were on the same side, but now that their interests are intertwined, they can no longer bear to see the Li family decline.

According to Li Xiangru, the Bailu Sect sent Hua Lun personally to warn the Zhenhun Sect not to attack the Li family.

The Zhenhun Sect had no evidence to begin with, and seeing that the Bailu Sect was supporting the Li family, and having also clashed fiercely with the Shengyi Sect.

The elders' attitude instantly became conservative.

Thus, the current mediation took place.

The Soul Suppressing Sect shifted all blame for the attack on the Maojing Mine onto the Mountain Moving Sect, claiming they knew nothing about it.

He also defended the Moving Mountain Sect, saying that their actions were revenge against the Flying Fox Cave and that they were unaware that the Li family was stationed at the Maojing Mine.

In short, the Soul Suppressing Sect knew nothing, then brought up the old grudges between the Mountain Moving Sect and the Flying Fox Cave, talked at length, and finally clapped their hands, wanting to turn hostility into friendship.

The two sides signed an agreement to end their hostile relationship. The Zhenhun Sect and the Banshan Sect acknowledged that the Maojing Mine belonged to the Li family, but did not acknowledge that it belonged to the Feihu Cave.

If people from Flying Fox Cave appear in the mine, the Moving Mountain Sect has the right to retaliate, and the Li family must not interfere.

Master Duyin was naturally extremely dissatisfied with this, but the Li family was overjoyed. Under the strong persuasion of the guest master, Feihu Cave finally agreed to transfer its Maojing mining rights to the Li family and thus withdrew from the Maojing mine.

We can't refuse to give it to the Li family, because Flying Fox Cave was raided by the Mountain Moving Sect and now has no way to mine the Maojing.

For the past three years, the Li family has been running the Maojing mine on their own, while Feihu Cave can only watch helplessly from their half of the mountain – the Li family is not going to mine and smelt the ore and then share half with them.

In exchange for acknowledging the mine, the Li family would treat the Zhenhun Sect and Shengyi Sect as customers of equal standing and would not unilaterally supply Maojing to the Shengyi Sect.

In fact, the original demand of the Soul Suppressing Sect was to prohibit the Li family from selling any Mao Jing to the Sheng Yi Sect.

But Li Qianxiong readily agreed after hearing this, which aroused the suspicion of the elders of the Zhenhun Sect.

It wouldn't matter if this Mao Jing wasn't sold to Shengyi Sect, but to Feihu Cave!

At worst, the Li family will have to go through a lot of trouble and make several trips, but Mao Jing will eventually end up in Shengyi Sect.

After much deliberation, the Soul Suppressing Sect decided that instead of forbidding the Li family from buying Mao Jing, it would be better to buy Mao Jing themselves.

Mao Jing was used in large quantities, and there was no fear of storing it after purchase, so the two parties reached the aforementioned agreement.

Li Xiangming was secretly astonished after hearing this.

Li Qianxiong secretly plotted against the Zhenhun Sect and even planned to harvest their spirit stones.

Ginger is still spicy!

"So, the Soul Suppressing Sect and the Victory Intent Sect have started a major battle?"

Li Xiangming asked curiously, "Without this background pressure, the Soul Suppressing Sect and the Mountain Moving Sect would never have compromised so easily." "Of course, the Soul Suppressing Sect even seized the Sheng Yi Sect's camp in Jade Spring Ridge, but the Sheng Yi Sect also revealed its trump card, sending two completely unfamiliar Foundation Establishment cultivators to retake the camp. In short, both sides have suffered heavy casualties!"

"An unfamiliar Foundation Establishment cultivator?"

Li Xiangming's heart stirred. Both Zhenhun Sect and Shengyi Sect were old-established Foundation Establishment sects, but their roots were not originally in Pu County.

For most of the forces in Puxian County, including the Li family, these two sects were unfamiliar.

People's impression of them is that they are always fighting, and their strength is evenly matched.

However, the specifics remain unknown.

Now that Shengyi Sect has mobilized its hidden Foundation Establishment cultivators, Zhenhun Sect will likely take action as well.

The full strength of both factions will soon be fully exposed in the war.

And there's another crucial point: where do these foundational foundations come from?

It naturally came from the Purple Shade Cave!

Li Xiangming was somewhat agitated. The Li family's revenge against the Mountain Moving Sect was secondary; their main objective was to instigate a war between the two sects and divert the Foundation Establishment cultivators stationed at the Purple Yin Cave.

In retrospect, Operation Daishan was a perfect success.

There has been unusual activity at Shengyi Gate.

However, only two unfamiliar Foundation Establishment level figures appeared from Shengyi Sect, while Zhenhun Sect didn't have a single person.

This indicates that Ziyin Cave still has considerable remaining strength.

"Don't rush!"

Li Xiangming secretly comforted himself, reminding himself that the Li family had just finished their operation and now was the time to keep a low profile.

If they were to show their faces again and try to sow discord between the two factions, anyone would sense that something was amiss.

Anyway, the two factions are now fighting, and it probably won't stop for at least three to five years.

This matter concerns the succession of the Nascent Soul cultivator; the Li family will proceed cautiously and meticulously!
-
Upon returning to Tailai Peak, Li Xiangming set up his office in the outer courtyard before heading to Changlin House to pay his respects to the family head.

Not long after he walked, he saw a familiar face that he didn't expect.

"Young friend Aimei?"

The man paused for a moment, then smiled and went up to greet him.

Li Xiangming quickly and politely said, "I was unaware of Fellow Daoist Cao's visit and was unable to greet you properly. Please forgive me!"

The person before me is Cao Fuyi, the current head of Yuyuan.

According to Li Xiangru, Yuyuan Garden is now the Li family's gold mine.

Since the last collaboration between the two companies, Qingliangshan has immediately increased its investment in Yuyuan.

Today, Yuyuan has nearly thirty beast tamers, which is comparable to the Li family in terms of numbers.

However, the beast tamers in Yuyuan are all experienced veterans.

It is far superior to the Li family's animal breeding facility.

Even though the Li family introduced the Cao family's technology and invited non-family beast tamers such as Chen Chihe and Gong Wan to join them.

Overall, however, the Li family's animal breeding facility is still inadequate.

The number of trained spirit pets is small, and there are no spirit pets with their own unique characteristics.

Therefore, the Li family focuses on cultivating excellent beast tamers in the art of beast taming, and does not train spirit pets for commercial purposes.

Of course, making money is still a priority, but this heavy burden falls on the animal trapping house.

Currently, the Li family mainly sells monsters to Yuyuan. After being trained by Yuyuan, these monsters are sold to Pushui Market.

Since they were selling demonic beasts rather than spirit pets, the Li family's profits were not particularly high, but there was nothing they could do about it, since the beast breeding center had started slowly.
At least the Li family sold off the monsters they had accumulated that they had nowhere to put, which is a good thing.

However, the Bailu Gate and Hengyue Gate reconciled.

The spirit pets from Yuyuan were sold to Zhangning Prefecture and quickly became highly sought-after items there.

Driven by self-interest, Bailumen risked everything to contact the Cao family.

As a result, the Li family also became honored guests of Bailu Gate.

Meanwhile, the relationship between the Li family and the Cao family is also rapidly warming up.

"I just mentioned you to Patriarch Li, and now we've met. It seems we are truly destined to meet!"

Cao Fuyi's words were meaningful and profound.

Upon hearing this, Li Xiangming felt a sense of confusion and cautiously asked, "I wonder what Fellow Daoist Cao and my patriarch are discussing?"

Cao Fuyi laughed heartily, deliberately keeping everyone in suspense: "Judging from your appearance, you're looking for Patriarch Li, aren't you? You'll find out soon enough."

After saying this, Cao Fuyi, accompanied by two disciples from the Direct Envoy's Hall, leisurely departed.

Li Xiangming was filled with suspicion, and his pace quickened involuntarily.

Soon, he arrived in front of Changlin's residence, awaiting the patriarch's summons.
Li Qianxiong was sitting alone in his room handling official business when he saw Li Xiangming arrive. He put down his brush and asked, "Xiangming, what brings you here?"

Li Xiangming respectfully said, "Xiangming has come to inquire about the next priorities for the Foreign Affairs Department."

In fact, Li Qianyou planned the development direction of the Foreign Affairs Office.

However, he had just taken over as deputy head of the hall and should have received Li Qianxiong's entrustment.

Even if Li Qianxiong didn't contact him, he still had to come to comply with the rules.

This way, both of them will feel confident.

Sure enough, upon hearing Li Xiangming's question, Li Qianxiong tapped the table lightly, pondered for a moment, and then said, "Qianyou told me that he would entrust the accounting office and the animal trapping office to you. The animal trapping office has always performed very well, so I am very relieved. As for the accounting office, we need to put some effort into it in Xulong Township."

"Yes."

Li Xiangming understood that Xulong Township was a secular settlement north of Danggui Mountain, with half of its residents surnamed Li and half surnamed other. Currently, most of the miners in Maojing Mine came from Xulong Township.

After the mine war, the Li family had to deal with the aftermath. In addition to dealing with the Soul Suppressing Sect and the Mountain Moving Sect, they also needed to restart the Maojing Mine.

This includes not only repairing the destroyed buildings, but also replacing the lost miners.

Without a doubt, Li Qianxiong meant that Xulong Township should quickly transfer new miners to the Maojing Mine.

In addition, the Li family also has several unexplored mineral veins and urgently needs miners.

Then, Li Qianxiong mentioned another matter: "Everything else is fine, but there is one thing that I need you to do personally."

"Oh?"

Out of curiosity, Li Xiangming said, "Please give your instructions, Patriarch."

Li Qianxiong slowly said, "Our cooperation with the Cao family has not yet expired, but the two families have signed a new cooperation agreement. Currently, the family needs to transport a batch of demonic beasts to Yuyuan. I'm entrusting this matter to you."

"I?"

Li Xiangming was somewhat taken aback, as transporting demonic beasts had always been the responsibility of the City Brocade Workshop.

When he was in the animal trapping room, he would at most send the monsters from Monkey Valley back home.

Now that he has been promoted to deputy head of the Foreign Affairs Hall, he has to personally deliver the monster to Pushui Market?

Looking at Li Xiangming's expression, Li Qianxiong said calmly, "Cao Fuyi specifically asked you to go, and I agree!"

A hint of surprise flashed across Li Xiangming's face, but he quickly regained his composure and nodded in response, "In that case, I will do my best."

At this critical juncture, the Li family will not easily refuse the requests from the Cao family and Yuyuan.

However, although he agreed, Li Xiangming was still puzzled and couldn't help but ask, "Why did the Cao family specify that I go to Yuyuan?"

"You will know when you go."

Li Qianxiong said calmly.

Upon hearing this, Li Xiangming cursed under his breath.

It seems that everyone in the cultivation world likes to act mysterious, leaving people puzzled.

When I rise to a high position in the future, I will definitely let others taste the joy of solving riddles.

Just then, Li Qianxiong said, "After you arrive at Yuyuan, take the opportunity to check out the shops in Pushui Market."

"As ordered."

The shops in Pushui Market are all operated by Shijinfang.

These shops were an important source of income for the Li family, but they were far from Danggui Mountain.

What comes up in the monthly reports are nothing but cold, hard numbers.

Although he was the head of the family, Li Qianxiong found it difficult to personally verify the authenticity of these figures.

To ensure the stability and authenticity of the family income, he would occasionally send trusted family members to conduct on-site investigations into the operation of these industries.

As a trusted confidant, Li Xiangming would undoubtedly have to shoulder such responsibility when necessary.

However, although the city government has placed more staff in Pushuifang.

However, most of these people still work under Li Qianhe, since Li Qianhe is the deputy head of the Jinzhou Municipal Bureau of Housing and Urban-Rural Development.

It feels a bit strange to send a son to investigate his father.

(End of this chapter)