Huang Rong from The Return of the Condor Heroes: Brother Jing, let's get a divorce.

Yang Guo pointed the pen tip at the string of circles, "There are all kinds of wood on Zhongnan Mountain, such as cliff cypress, sandalwood, and boxwood. These materials are worth a lot of money down the mountain. We cut them down, cut them into small pieces, polish them into beads, and string them into bracelets. Then I, as the leader of the Quanzhen Sect, personally 'bless' them and infuse them with a bit of my true energy."

Yang Guo became more and more excited as he spoke, gesturing with his hands in the air.

"The wood itself isn't worth much, but adding the words 'blessed by the head of the Quanzhen School of Taoism in Zhongnan Mountain' changes everything. If you tell those rich tycoons who have money to burn that this is made of ancient wood from Zhongnan Mountain, personally blessed by the head of the Quanzhen School, and that wearing it can prolong life, ward off evil, and bring good fortune, they won't buy it! They'll be scrambling to buy it! A string of these starts at at least fifty taels."

After hearing this, Li Mochou was stunned for two seconds, and her lips twitched.

"Aren't you lying?"

"This is called cultural export, understand?" Yang Guo slammed his hand on the table with righteous indignation. "The economy of faith is never a loss! Do those wealthy merchants lack money? What they lack is psychological comfort. The true energy I infuse is genuine; carrying it can indeed improve blood circulation and calm the mind. Unlike the counterfeit goods of those charlatans, we're selling real efficacy. Whether that efficacy is worth fifty taels is a matter of opinion. Countless wealthy merchants in Chang'an burn incense and pray to Buddha all day long, seeking peace and wealth. If you give them a string of ordinary wooden beads, they won't even look at them. But if you tell them that these were personally blessed by the head of the Quanzhen Sect, they'll not only buy them, they'll line up to buy them!"

Lu Wushuang, who was listening nearby, couldn't stop smiling.

Li Mochou stared at Yang Guo for several seconds before finally exhaling through her nose.

What did you do in your past life?

"Best Actor," Yang Guo replied with a grin.

Lu Wushuang couldn't understand the meaning behind Yang Guo's words.

Li Mochou didn't ask any further questions. She looked down at the string of crooked circles on the paper and tapped her fingers on the table a few times.

"We can try making the bracelets. But the first batch shouldn't be too large; scarcity drives up the price," Li Mochou said quickly. "Have Wang Tieniu go to the back mountain to cut the material for the bracelets. Leave the polishing to the Fire-Worker Monk; they're good at rough work and will pick it up quickly. When you consecrate them, don't infuse too much true energy; just a thread is enough for one string of beads, so use it sparingly. Make twenty strings for the first batch and consign them to the largest jewelry store in Chang'an. Set the price high; don't sell them for less than five taels of silver per string. The more expensive they are, the more the wealthy will think they're effective. At the same time, take a few strings to the market in Huxian County to test the market."

Yang Guo gave Li Mochou a thumbs up.

"expert."

The two discussed for another half hour and finalized the division of labor for the four tasks: picking medicinal herbs, preparing for brewing wine, performing talisman rituals, and making bracelets.

"Talismans, rituals, and bracelets—these three will help us recover in the short term. We'll proceed with medicinal herbs and brewing wine simultaneously; a stable income should be generated in three months." Li Mochou closed the booklet and stood up. "I'll write the plan; I'll give it to you tomorrow."

She walked towards the door, but stopped halfway there without looking back.

"Being the sect leader must be quite tiring for you."

The tone was so soft that it seemed to dissipate with a gust of wind at the door.

Yang Guo opened his mouth, but before he could reply, Li Mochou said something else.

"Don't try to tough it out. If you need money, just say so. Don't try to shoulder the burden alone."

After saying that, he pushed open the door and went out.

Yang Guo stood there, watching the slender figure disappear at the end of the corridor, and grinned.

This woman has a cold mouth, but a heart as soft as tofu.

Lu Wushuang looked at Yang Guo, then at the doorway, opened her mouth, and finally muttered, "Master, Master is so good to you."

Yang Guo touched his nose and changed the subject: "Go and call Wang Tieniu. Tell him to take twenty fire-working monks up the back mountain this afternoon. Half of them will cut down cliff cypress, and the other half will go up the north slope to collect herbs. Also, have Li Zhiqing pick eight clever disciples, change into civilian clothes, and go down the mountain early tomorrow morning to scout out Huxian and Zhouzhi, and find the largest pharmacy and market in the area."

Lu Wushuang responded and ran out to deliver the message.

The council chamber was empty.

Yang Guo sat in the chair for a while, staring blankly. He looked at the account book over and over again, and finally locked it in the drawer of his desk.

Seven taels of silver. In his previous life, he couldn't even afford a phone case, but now he has to support hundreds of people with that little money.

That afternoon, Wang Tieniu led twenty formidable cooks, carrying bamboo baskets and machetes, up the north slope. Li Zhiqing selected eight clever disciples, changed into civilian clothes, and prepared to descend the mountain early the next morning to scout the location.

Li Mochou sat in the small courtyard of the Economic Department, with a simple map of Zhongnan Mountain drawn by Lu Wushuang spread out in front of her, marking the distribution of medicinal herbs and the location of springs stroke by stroke.

Lu Wushuang squatted down beside her, grinding ink, tilting her head and secretly glancing at Li Mochou several times.

"Master, you are so good to your master."

"Shut up and get to work."

Lu Wushuang stuck out her tongue and obediently lowered her head to grind ink.

Yang Guo returned to the backyard, to the headmaster's residence, and sorted out the remaining miscellaneous matters one by one.

The bracelets can be made starting tomorrow, and the talismans can be written the day after. Wang Tieniu is handling the medicinal herbs, and we'll have to get the brewing recipe from Hao Datong.

into the night.

The doors and windows of the sect leader's residence were tightly closed.

Lu Wushuang was already asleep on the couch in the outer room, her breathing even.

Yang Guo sat cross-legged on the hard bed, closed his eyes, and focused his mind on his dantian.

During his last practice, the dark red energy dissipated as soon as it reached the Tanzhong acupoint. Today, he changed his approach, avoiding greed and haste.

The correct way to practice Nine Yin Manual begins with the Lung Meridian of the right hand, allowing the Qi to rise slowly. The reverse way to practice Nine Yin Manual begins with the Yongquan acupoint on the left foot, allowing the Qi to flow upwards along the meridians of the leg.

The moment the two forces collided at his chest, Yang Guo did not rush to guide them, but instead let the red and black beads absorb them on their own.

The bead spun twice, releasing a wisp of red and black gas.

Yang Guo controlled this wisp of air so finely that it was thinner than a strand of hair. A single thread slowly crawled upwards along the Ren meridian.

After passing the Guanyuan acupoint.

After passing the Qihai acupoint.

After passing the Shenque acupoint.

Upon reaching the Tanzhong acupoint, it paused slightly. Yang Guo gently guided the wisp of air with his mind, neither pushing nor pulling, letting it inch forward on its own. The air paused for a moment, then squeezed through.

Continue upwards.

The Tian Tu acupoint. The crimson-black energy trembled at the throat. Yang Guo held his breath and reduced the rotation speed of the bead to the lowest possible level.

passed.

Lianquan acupoint. The area that was scattered last time.

Yang Guo's heart raced, and his palms were sweaty. The crimson-black energy flowed to his Lianquan acupoint, then paused again. Yang Guo gritted his teeth, concentrating all his attention on that single point.

The airflow lingered at the Lianquan acupoint for a few breaths, then suddenly surged forward and glided past Lianquan.

Chengjiang acupoint. We've arrived.

The dark red energy flowed at the Chengjiang acupoint for less than half a breath before finally giving way. The energy flow trembled twice and dissipated into wisps of smoke within the meridians.

Yang Guo suddenly opened his eyes; the back of his inner garment was already soaked with sweat.

He looked down at his hands, his fingers trembling slightly.

I visited three more acupoints than last time. I went through Tanzhong, Tiantu, and Lianquan, and continued all the way to Chengjiang.

The Ren meridian has a total of twenty-four acupoints, and he can currently traverse seventeen of them. The remaining seven acupoints represent the gap between him and mastering the Qiankun Technique.

Only the final segment remains to complete the entire cycle of the Ren Meridian. Given another ten to fifteen days, the crimson-black energy will traverse the entire Ren Meridian. At that point, the two opposing streams of true energy will form a closed loop, and the Qiankun Technique will be considered initially complete.

The direction is correct. The road is passable.

Yang Guo wiped the sweat from his forehead and rolled over to lie flat. The hard bed made his back ache, so he propped up his pillow and stared at the dark ceiling.

The moon outside the window was very bright, illuminating the whole room with a silvery-white light.

"The old Taoist is right." Yang Guo closed his eyes and mumbled, "Do not seek, do not rush, the Tao follows its own course."

We're still a bit poor, but things are getting better.

He fell asleep within two seconds of finishing speaking.

The snoring soon spread from the bedroom and echoed throughout the quiet backyard all night.