All three Holy Sons had become the Master's people. Didn't this mean the Master had successfully taken control of the "Three Immortal Sword Sect"?
Qian Duoduo's grand plan was unfolding perfectly.
At this moment, "True Lord Tianzhao" spoke.
"Young friend Qian, would you be willing to become a Holy Son of my Yingzhou Sword Sect?"
Willing? Of course, he was willing!
Hadn't he worked so hard for so long precisely to secure the position of "Holy Son"?
Qian Duoduo thought to himself, but he didn't betray any eagerness. Instead, he maintained a harmless smile and chuckled as he replied to "True Lord Tianzhao."
"Sect Master Tianzhao, would you be willing to let me be a Holy Son? If you are, I will, and if you are not, I won't!"
These words were incredibly skillful.
Even "True Lord Tianzhao," with his profound mind, couldn't help but reveal a satisfied smile.
Excellent, Qian Duoduo's attitude was perfectly aligned!
"True Lord Tianzhao" pondered for a moment, carefully choosing his words, before slowly speaking.
"Young friend Qian, to be frank, I am very pleased with you. Currently, the position of Holy Son in my Yingzhou Sword Sect is vacant, and you are indeed the most suitable candidate. However…"
Upon hearing "however," Qian Duoduo inwardly rolled his eyes. How cliché!
When you big shots speak, do you have to include a "but"? Can't you avoid a twist?
While Qian Duoduo was internally grumbling, his face maintained its harmless smile, betraying no hint of his thoughts.
"True Lord Tianzhao" stated his condition.
"I have only one requirement! Your Dragon Rider Merchant Guild's goods, especially distinctive items like Starlight Aura Water, Starlight Sand, and Sage Dragon Tooth Rice, must not be sold anywhere else in the vast outer seas region. They can only be sold on our Three Immortal Islands!"
Oh, so this was about exclusive sales rights!
One had to admit, "True Lord Tianzhao" had a bit of an "economic mind." Hmm… but not much!
The ordinary goods of the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild" were one thing, but their distinctive products like "Sage Dragon Tooth Rice," "Starlight Aura Water," and "Starlight Sand" were incredibly attractive.
Most importantly, the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild's" prices were outrageously low.
Starlight Aura Water, which had a market price of ten thousand spirit stones, was often unavailable, with people having to pay double or triple, twenty to thirty thousand spirit stones, to acquire it if absolutely necessary.
How much did the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild" sell it for?
One thousand low-grade spirit stones!
And they offered unlimited supply, open for all!
What did this mean? Buying it was a profit; it was a massive gain!
The "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild's" goods created a tidal wave in the market of "Three Immortal Port." All buyers went mad, desperately scrambling to purchase them, even selling off their assets.
In less than half a month, all the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild's" goods were sold out, raking in a staggering three billion, a full thirty "small targets."
A massive profit, wasn't it!
The "Three Immortal Sword Sect" also reaped substantial profits from this.
For every transaction made by the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild," the "Three Immortal Sword Sect" collected a certain amount of commercial tax.
The tax wasn't heavy, a mere ten percent, which was quite reasonable, right?
This way, the "Three Immortal Sword Sect" did nothing but earn a net profit of three "small targets," with each sword sect receiving one "small target."
Wasn't that wonderful!
Having tasted the benefits, "True Lord Tianzhao" hoped this excellent tradition would continue.
If the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild" always conducted business at "Three Immortal Port" in the future, the "Three Immortal Sword Sect" would continuously earn three "small targets" each time. Wouldn't that be fantastic!
As they envisioned this "bright future," the three "Sect Masters" revealed smiles of yearning.
The future was promising!
However, Qian Duoduo's mouth twitched. He felt that "True Lord Tianzhao's" request was preposterous!
It was truly outrageous!
"True Lord Tianzhao" had some "economic sense," but it really wasn't much!
The "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild's" distinctive goods were plentiful, of high quality, and ridiculously cheap.
Whoever could acquire these goods would strike it rich.
Reselling them could yield ten to twenty times the profit.
Was there any more profitable business than this? No!
Since reselling the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild's" distinctive goods was so lucrative, why bother with the arduous task of operating other businesses?
Selling elixirs, magical treasures, talismans… it was exhausting and didn't yield much profit. It was pointless!
Forget it, forget it. Reselling the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild's" goods was more profitable and more satisfying!
If this atmosphere took hold, it would be disastrous.
The entire commercial model of "Three Immortal Port" would develop into an extremely distorted state, with all merchants becoming downstream buyers for the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild."
They would abandon all other businesses and focus solely on reselling the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild's" distinctive goods.
At that point, no other goods would be able to enter the market except for those from the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild." If one wanted to buy an elixir or a talisman on "Three Immortal Island," they would have to source it from the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild."
This was tantamount to handing over the "economic lifeline" to the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild."
It was very dangerous!
Previously, Qian Duoduo had used this very excuse to gain the trust of "Lord Neon Quasi-Holy Son," making "Lord Neon Quasi-Holy Son" genuinely believe that the "Dragon Rider Merchant Guild" needed his protection.
While it was an excuse, the basic logic was sound.
A powerful and prosperous sect would never allow a "merchant guild" to control its "economic lifeline." If such a trend emerged, the sect would suppress the "merchant guild" with all its might.
Yet now, "True Lord Tianzhao" was actively asking Qian Duoduo to do just that.
It was truly preposterous!
However, as Qian Duoduo thought further, he quickly realized that the matter was not that simple. "True Lord Tianzhao" had other intentions.
"Sect Master Tianzhao, you should have more than just one request. Why don't you state them all at once!"
"True Lord Tianzhao's" eyes flashed, and he chuckled.
"Young friend Qian, sharp eyes!"
"However, I wouldn't say I have another request; it's just a small, insignificant additional condition!"
"Since your Dragon Rider Merchant Guild's goods are to be sold at Three Immortal Port, who better to sell them to than ourselves? Rather than benefiting others, why not sell them directly to our own Three Immortal Sword Sect! Wouldn't that be wonderful!"
Heh, just as he expected!
At this point, Qian Duoduo understood "True Lord Tianzhao's" true intention.
A "middleman profiteer"!
What was the main characteristic of a "middleman profiteer"? Earning the price difference!
A portion of Starlight Aura Water sold for one thousand low-grade spirit stones. If he sold it to you for six thousand low-grade spirit stones, he would pocket five thousand low-grade spirit stones, and you would still have a profit of three to four times. Wasn't that good and reasonable!