I run a casino in the immortal realm.

Xu Zhengkun returned and stopped in front of the white jade steps. He looked at Zheng Yifei, who stood with his hands behind his back, his expression complex.

"Father agreed."

Xu Zhengkun spoke in a low voice: "The land you want will be ready tomorrow. The main peak will provide full support in terms of array masters and craftsmen."

Even security personnel can be drawn from the Enforcement Hall.

Zheng Yifei turned around, waiting for what was to come.

"but."

Xu Zhengkun stared into Zheng Yifei's eyes, "The main peak should own 50% of the shares in Nevernight City."

Xu Zhengkun was prepared for Zheng Yifei to jump up and down and haggle, which was tantamount to cutting half of the meat off Zheng Yifei's plate.

"make a deal."

Zheng Yifei didn't even frown, and uttered two words.

Xu Zhengkun was stunned: "You agreed? Aren't you going to try again?"

"Young Sect Master, that's not how the accounts are settled."

Zheng Yifei walked to the railing and pointed to the endless lights below the mountain: "What I want to earn is money from the entire Southern Wilderness Region. The bigger the business, the bigger the storms. Without the sect leader, a true god at the Great Perfection of the Golden Core stage, to keep me in check, my City That Never Sleeps will be devoured alive by other sects on the very first day it opens."

"By acquiring a 50% stake, I've secured absolute military protection and a pass to the outside world. I made a profit on this deal."

Xu Zhengkun took a deep breath.

He realized that he had underestimated the vision of this Qi Refining disciple. He was not greedy for short-term gains and had a sharp eye. This kid was born to do big things.

"It would be best if you could figure it out."

Xu Zhengkun's tone softened, but his expression turned extremely serious: "Put the matter of Nevernight City aside for now. For the next few days, you should stay obediently in Tingfeng Pavilion, or go into seclusion."

"Do not show your face on the main peak without my message."

Zheng Yifei noticed the change in Xu Zhengkun's tone: "What happened?"

"The tribute envoy from the Xuantian Sect will arrive the day after tomorrow."

When Xu Zhengkun uttered those words, his eyes revealed undisguised apprehension.

Zheng Yifei raised an eyebrow slightly.

Xuantian Sect, one of the two overlords of the Southern Wilderness, is the superior sect of Qingyun Sect. He knew that Qingyun Sect had to pay tribute every year, but he knew very little about the specifics of this behemoth.

"The envoy has come to collect money; simply hand it over. Why is the young sect leader so tense?"

Zheng Yifei asked.

"Pay money? You think it's as simple as collecting rent in the mortal world?"

Xu Zhengkun gave a bitter smile. "The people of Xuantian Sect are extremely arrogant. Three years ago, when the previous envoy came to collect tribute, an inner sect member who was in the late Foundation Establishment stage was smashed into mincemeat by the envoy on the spot simply because he accidentally startled the envoy's mount."

My father was right there, but he didn't dare utter a sound.

Zheng Yifei's eyes narrowed. A sect leader at the peak of the Golden Core stage, watching his own people being killed without daring to utter a sound?

"Surprised?"

Xu Zhengkun shook his head self-deprecatingly, "Yifei, you've always stayed in the Qingyun Sect, you have no idea how deep the waters are outside. The Xuantian Sect, that's a true Nascent Soul sect!"

Xu Zhengkun turned around and looked to the north, his voice carrying a hint of awe: "The Sect Master of Xuantian Sect is a peak Nascent Soul expert, only half a step away from becoming a Divine Transformation expert."

Within the sect, there are a full fifteen powerful elders at the Nascent Soul stage!

"Golden Core stage? In the Xuan Tian Sect, they can only be deacons, and there are over a hundred of them. As for Foundation Establishment stage disciples, there are five thousand! Over ten thousand Qi Refining stage disciples are considered menial laborers!"

A barrage of cold, hard data hit him, making Zheng Yifei's breath catch in his throat.

Peak Nascent Soul stage, fifteen Nascent Soul cultivators, and over a hundred Golden Core cultivators.

Even with the defector Hu Lie, the Qingyun Sect only has a dozen or so Golden Core cultivators. Compared to the Xuantian Sect, the Qingyun Sect is like an ant under an elephant's feet.

"A powerful cultivator at the early Nascent Soul stage could wipe out our entire Qingyun Sect."

Xu Zhengkun's voice was hoarse, "They don't need to produce their own resources at all. Hundreds of sects like ours in the Southern Wilderness are just food for them, handing over spirit stones, spirit herbs, and mineral veins on time every year to support their elders and disciples."

Zheng Yifei's mind raced. The dimensional reduction attack of the power system made him feel an unprecedented sense of oppression.

"Then what's the deal with this 1.5 billion tribute?"

Zheng Yifei asked the core question: "Logically speaking, even if they are vampires, they should still pay attention to a long-term approach. Qingyun Sect only paid 500 million in previous years, but this year it suddenly increased to 1.5 billion. This is trying to force Qingyun Sect to its death."

Xu Zhengkun slammed his fist on the jade railing, gritting his teeth: "It's all that old bastard Hu Lie's doing!"

Zheng Yifei's eyes flashed: "Does the Hu family have a background in the Xuantian Sect?"

"It's more than just having connections."

Xu Zhengkun took a deep breath and began to reveal the most core secret of the Qingyun Sect's higher-ups: "Hu Lie's eldest son, Hu Xiaotian, was favored by the Grand Elder of the Xuantian Sect in his early years and was taken in as a personal disciple. Now he has reached the half-step Golden Core stage and is highly favored by the Grand Elder."

"Our Xu family also has members in the Xuantian Sect. My younger brother, Xu Zhenghai, is also a disciple of an elder in the Xuantian Sect. But that elder is only at the early stage of the Nascent Soul realm, and he is no match for the all-powerful Grand Elder."

Therefore, my younger brother was suppressed by Hu Xiaotian at every turn in the Xuantian Sect.

Xu Zhengkun turned his head and looked at Zheng Yifei: "This year's tribute suddenly tripled, which must be because Hu Xiaotian whispered something in front of the Grand Elder."

Their goal was clear: they knew our Xu family couldn't raise the 1.5 billion. If we couldn't pay the tribute, the Xuantian Sect would hold us accountable, and my father would surely lose his position as sect leader.

At that time, Hu Lie will be able to rightfully take over, and the Qingyun Sect will completely become the Hu family's domain.

Zheng Yifei understood everything.

Behind the lottery issuance is not a sect's financial crisis at all, but a proxy war.

It is a political game between two factions within the Xuantian Sect on the chessboard of the Qingyun Sect.

The Hu family colluded with the Grand Elder of the Xuantian Sect, using a 1.5 billion tribute as a scheme to force the Xu family to their deaths.

He himself used 1.8 billion spirit stones to break through this deadlock, not only preserving the Xu family's base but also uprooting the Hu family's foundation in the Qingyun Sect, killing 300,000 people cleanly.

As the night breeze blew by, Zheng Yifei suddenly felt a chill on his back.

"Young Sect Master."

Zheng Yifei's voice was eerily calm: "Where did Hu Lie go after his defection?"

Xu Zhengkun was stunned for a moment, then his expression changed drastically.

The two exchanged a glance and both saw the coldness in each other's eyes.

Hu Lie escaped by detonating his natal magic weapon, Blood Escape. Where could he go?

He had become a homeless dog in the Qingyun Sect's territory. His only way to survive was to go to the Xuantian Sect and find his son, who was his personal disciple!

"The news of the Hu family's demise cannot be kept secret."

Zheng Yifei spoke very quickly: "If Hu Lie isn't dead, he would definitely be at the Xuantian Sect by now. Even if he is dead, Hu Jinpeng has already escaped."

"I, Zheng Yifei, a mere outer sect director at the ninth level of Qi Refining, managed to thwart Hu Xiaotian's meticulously planned assassination attempt by generating 1.8 billion spirit stones, and indirectly caused the annihilation of the Hu family."

Zheng Yifei paused, looked at Xu Zhengkun, and a cold smile appeared on his lips: "Young Sect Master, what do you think Hu Xiaotian would do if he knew I did it?"

Cold sweat beaded on Xu Zhengkun's forehead.

What would they do? For a half-step Golden Core cultivator with a Nascent Soul expert behind him, crushing a Qi Refining disciple from an affiliated sect would be easier than crushing a bug.

"Who is the tribute envoy who has come this time?"

Zheng Yifei asked.

"It's not clear yet."

Xu Zhengkun swallowed hard: "But what if it's someone from Hu Xiaotian's faction..."

Before he finished speaking, the meaning was already clear. If the envoy was Hu Xiaotian's man, he could easily find an excuse to kill Zheng Yifei on the spot in the main hall.

Even if Xu Tianyang wanted to protect her, he would never dare to turn against the Xuan Tian Sect's envoy for the sake of a Qi Refining stage disciple.

Zheng Yifei fell silent.

He originally thought that by clinging to Xu Tianyang, a Golden Core cultivator at the Great Perfection stage, he could rest easy in the Qingyun Sect and focus on building his Never Sleeping City.

But he overlooked the cruelest rule in the cultivation world—there are always higher heavens and more powerful people.

Faced with true absolute power, his proud business tactics and calculations proved to be incredibly fragile.

"Yifei, listen to me."

Xu Zhengkun pressed down on Zheng Yifei's shoulder, his tone urgent: "Don't go anywhere for the next two days. Just hide in the underground secret chamber of Tingfeng Pavilion. I'll send assassins to guard outside. Just endure these few days while the envoys collect the tribute, and you can come out after they leave."