I proved immortality with thunder magic.

Cultivators typically spend no more than three months in seclusion to establish their foundation.

In fact, whether the foundation building is successful or not can be determined in just a few days.

However, if one successfully establishes their foundation, the cultivator still needs to cultivate diligently for several months to consolidate their cultivation and avoid depleting their vital energy like a premature baby.

Zhou Tai received a message from Aaron Kwok after only nine days.

"So it failed again?"

Seeing the flames that the communication talisman had transformed into, Zhou Tai's expression darkened, but he still reached out and caught it.

After reading it, he sighed softly, "Fatty Guo is really unlucky!"

According to Aaron Kwok, the reason he failed to establish his foundation was due to a previous injury.

The Blood Transformation Curse severely damaged his vital energy. He thought he could recover through rest and medicine, but in reality, he was left with some hidden injuries that he had not noticed.

This subtle, almost imperceptible injury was triggered at the crucial moment of his Foundation Establishment, causing him to fail at the last minute and suffer serious injuries himself.

Moreover, this failure to establish his foundation dealt him a heavy blow, leaving him feeling very depressed and unwilling to do anything.

The message to Zhou Tai served two purposes: first, to inform him of his failure to establish his foundation; and second, to bid him farewell, as he was preparing to leave the sect and return to his family's ancestral home to recuperate and relax, promising to contact him again upon his return.

Zhou Tai understands Aaron Kwok's choice.

The other party is already quite old, and this failed attempt at Foundation Establishment has cost them most of their life savings. They will likely never have another chance to try again.

After suffering such a major blow, it would be impossible for anyone to recover immediately.

But Aaron Kwok's departure is undoubtedly a great loss for him.

He had originally thought that if Aaron Kwok successfully established his foundation, he could also benefit from it.

Unexpectedly, Aaron Kwok failed so quickly, not only ruining his hopes of benefiting from the deal, but also temporarily losing the opportunity to cooperate and trade with him.

Without Aaron Kwok as a trading channel, he'll probably have to find another way.

In the past two years, as he has drawn more and more thunder talismans, the internal market of Spirit Beast Mountain has clearly shown a trend of saturation. Hu Qianqian has reminded him of this matter many times and has taken the initiative to reduce the amount of goods she takes.

Zhou Tai knew that if he didn't want his income to drop significantly, he had to find a way to open up the outside market.

Compared to the vast market of Hengguo outside, the internal market of Lingshou Mountain is insignificant.

He originally placed his hopes on Aaron Kwok, because the two had agreed that as long as Aaron Kwok could successfully establish his foundation, he would use the Kwok family's resources to open a shop in the Outer Market.

Now that there's no hope left with Aaron Kwok, Zhou Tai has to find another way on his own.

After thinking for a while, he sent a message to Hu Qianqian, inviting her to come over for a chat.

"Junior Sister Hu, would you be willing to make a trip to Bailong Market in my place?"

In the living room, Zhou Tai looked at Hu Qianqian, who had come by invitation, and went straight to the point about his requirements.

The White Dragon Market he mentioned was a cultivator's market jointly established by Spirit Beast Mountain and Yunxia Sect, another major sect in Heng Kingdom. It was also the only large-scale market within a radius of 10,000 miles around Spirit Beast Mountain.

This market town is located on an island in the middle of the Bailong River, the largest river in Heng Kingdom. It is more than 2,000 miles away from Ling Shou Mountain. Even at the speed of the Black Feather Vulture, it would take three or four days to make a round trip.

Therefore, after hearing Zhou Tai's words, Hu Qianqian's expression changed slightly, and she looked at him nervously, asking, "I wonder what Senior Brother Zhou wants Qianqian to do at Bailong Market?"

Looking at her nervous face, Zhou Tai said calmly, "The market for thunder talismans within the sect is nearing saturation. I'd like you to go to the White Dragon Market and find a reputable shop to cooperate with. In the future, any thunder talismans that the sect can't absorb can be sold to them."

"Of course I know this is risky. If you can succeed for me, I'll give you half a low-grade spirit stone as commission for every thunder talisman you sell!"

Zhou Tai offered a commission of half a low-grade spirit stone for each thunder talisman, a tempting offer that was undeniably attractive.

Having spent more time with him, Hu Qianqian had a rough idea of ​​his current success rate in drawing talismans. If she could really get this commission rate, she could earn ten or twenty low-grade spirit stones every month, or even more.

This kind of high income is something that many outer disciples in the late stages of Qi Refining may not even have.

But coming from a family of merchants, she knew all too well that the greater the profit, the greater the risk.

Zhou Tai could clearly go to Bailong Market to do business himself, so why should he give her his share for nothing? What makes her so special?

Hu Qianqian's eyes flickered with uncertainty as she fell into deep thought, her face filled with conflicted emotions.

Zhou Tai didn't urge her. He had already offered his bargaining chips, and now it was up to Hu Qianqian to see if she was willing to take the risk.

After pondering and hesitating for a while, Hu Qianqian seemed to have made a decision. With a complicated expression, she looked at Zhou Tai and said, "I appreciate Senior Brother Zhou's kindness, but my cultivation is too shallow to shoulder this responsibility. I can only disappoint you!"

Zhou Tai didn't seem surprised by her answer. He simply met her gaze calmly and said, "Could you tell me why you refused? I don't mean to blame you, I'm just quite curious about it."

Hu Qianqian lowered her eyes, avoiding his gaze, and replied softly, "When I went home before, I talked to my father about cooperating with Senior Brother Zhou. My father taught me a principle: it's okay to take risks in business, but the premise is that there should be no danger to one's life. It's true that merchants value profits, but they should value their own lives even more!"

Upon hearing her answer, Zhou Tai couldn't help but exclaim, "Old Hu really sees things clearly; no wonder your Hu family has been able to remain powerful for generations!"

The Hu family of Yannan City has been in business for generations. Although there have been ups and downs, they have never suffered any major disasters, which shows the value of this family motto.

Zhou Tai knew that there were risks involved in going out to negotiate business, which is why he was willing to offer a high commission to someone else to handle the matter on his behalf.

Unfortunately, Hu Qianqian is unwilling to take the risk now, which puts him in a difficult position.

Admittedly, he could find other people willing to take the risk to do this, and he believed that Spirit Beast Mountain was not short of outer disciples who dared to take risks.

The question is, can he trust those complete strangers from the outer sect as much as he trusts Hu Qianqian?

Lei Fu involved too much interest, so he dared not be careless in the slightest.

He couldn't help but frown slightly and fall into deep thought.

Seeing that he remained silent for a long time, Hu Qianqian hesitated for a moment before whispering a suggestion: "If Senior Brother Zhou is willing to give up some profits, perhaps he could cooperate with those cultivation families that are affiliated with the sect and sell the Thunder Talismans to the outside world through them."

Zhou Tai was slightly taken aback, then nodded gently to Hu Qianqian and said, "Thank you for your suggestion, Junior Sister Hu. I will consider it."

He knew Hu Qianqian meant well, but he was finding it difficult to weigh the pros and cons of the matter.

Because he has to consider not only the present, but also the future.

Cooperating with those cultivation families could certainly bring him considerable income and temporary safety.

The longer and deeper the cooperation, the more clearly those cultivation families will know his actual income.

Would he dare to leave the gates of Spirit Beast Mountain so easily in the future?

If Aaron Kwok were still alive, he might still dare to give it a try.

But Aaron Kwok is no longer in the mountains, and he truly doesn't believe in those cultivation families from the bottom of his heart.

"Perhaps there's another way!"

Suddenly, something occurred to Zhou Tai, and he had another idea.

After seeing Hu Qianqian off, he immediately went to the cave dwelling of Zeng Qiming, the master of the Talisman Palace.

Since he failed to make a decision that day, Zeng Qiming, apart from occasionally testing his talisman-making skills, did not provide him with any special guidance or care, as if he had been left to his own devices.

Zhou Tai was happy to maintain this distance and never bothered the other party in private again.

However, in order not to delay his own money-making plans, he has no choice but to try to find this teacher's connections again.

Zeng Qiming was in the cave at the time. After receiving Zhou Tai's notice of his visit, he quickly received Zhou Tai in the living room.

"Zhou Tai, what brings you to see me so suddenly today?"

Inside the living room, after Zhou Tai finished bowing and paying his respects, Zeng Qiming didn't probe him further and directly asked him about his purpose.

"Master Zeng has keen insight; I do indeed have something to ask of you."

Zhou Tai first offered a compliment, and then explained his purpose for coming.

Unexpectedly, after hearing his request, Zeng Qiming immediately shook his head and said, "If you want the sect to buy your mid-grade first-tier thunder talismans, the price will definitely not be high. At most, you can only get ten low-grade spirit stones per talisman!"

Zhou Tai's original idea was to have Zeng Qiming represent the Talisman Hall to negotiate with the sect's Shancai Hall to purchase the "Lightning Strike Talisman" he had drawn, and he was willing to make some concessions on the price for this.

But Zeng Qiming's current answer is undoubtedly unacceptable to him.

Even if his success rate in drawing talismans is now over 20%, if each talisman costs ten low-grade spirit stones, the profit is completely not worth his efforts.

This practically halved his annual income; how could he possibly be willing to work like that?

"I understand. I'll think of another way to handle this!"

Zhou Tai sighed inwardly, having no choice but to give up the path of joining a sect.

Just as he was about to take his leave, Zeng Qiming suddenly looked at him and said, "I have a general idea of ​​your thoughts on talisman drawing. I will not rush you on this matter; let's see how your personal destiny unfolds."

After saying that, he casually reached into his storage bag, pulled out something, and tossed it to Zhou Tai: "Keep this token safe. If you want to seek cooperation in Bailong Market, you can check out a shop called Hongfuju. The shopkeeper there used to work with me, and he might give you some favors out of respect for me!"

Zhou Tai never expected such an unexpected gain.

After receiving the letter from Zeng Qiming, he didn't have time to examine it closely. He immediately bowed deeply and said, "This student thanks Master Zeng for his understanding and kindness. Master Zeng's kindness and virtue are beyond measure, and this student is deeply grateful!"

Zeng Qiming waved his hand and said no more, his intention to see the guest out was clear.

Upon seeing this, Zhou Tai bowed again before turning and leaving.