Chapter 446: Our Great Astral Sect

Red Cotton Peak, Mount Shu.

After a period of development and construction, Red Cotton Peak rapidly became one of the most prosperous places in the world of immortality cultivators, second only to Taotie City. Thanks to the various promotional discounts for the opening period, many cultivators from all corners of the nine provinces visited daily.

Actually, the main reason was something else. Compared to the enormous number of immortality cultivators, there were far too few shopping districts available to them. There was only Taotie City, which was in the Northern Regions. That wasn't enough to cater to such a large customer base.

Chu Liang and his fellow disciples had faced the same problem in the past. Whenever they wanted to buy something, they had to fly for an entire day to Taotie City. It was really inconvenient.

However, the sudden rise of Red Cotton Peak greatly alleviated this problem. From now on, all cultivators closer to the Southern Regions could make Red Cotton Peak their first choice for shopping.

The scale of Red Cotton Peak was still nowhere near that of Taotie City, but at its current rate of development, it was only a matter of time before it caught up.

Nevertheless, this wouldn't cause much of a problem to Taotie City, as they had always been overwhelmed with excess demand. Additionally, a portion of the profits from Red Cotton Peak would go to them, so they were more than happy with the arrangement.

After the cooperation between the two parties was established, Huyan Bin organized the expansion of around half of the larger stores in Taotie City. They opened branches on Red Cotton Peak, and business was booming.

Red Cotton Peak was no longer just a simple Red Cotton Road on a mountain. It had several long intersecting streets, resembling a small town in scale.

On this particular day, there was an especially large number of people on the mountain. It was the day of the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Four Seas Whale Gang's shops.

The Whale Gang's first batch of shops had long been completed and operational, but the formal ribbon-cutting ceremony had been delayed. Now that the Whale Gang had completed the construction of a street on Red Cotton Peak, they held a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony for the grand opening of their branch shops.

The chief of the Whale Gang, Xu Bashan, personally attended the event, significantly raising the status of the ceremony. Many famous figures from the world of immortality cultivators had also been invited, making it a huge event.

Since the Whale Gang's chief was present, the higher-ups of the Mount Shu Sect could not ignore the event, so the grand peak master, Wang Xuanling, made an appearance.

"

Hahaha,

Elder Brother Wang! Welcome, welcome! Since Mount Shu is the host, you should make the first cut," Xu Bashan said warmly.

As he handed a pair of scissors to Wang Xuanling, he gestured for Wang Xuanling to stand on his left.

Xu Bashan called out, "Come, Younger Brother Chu! All these shops are here on Red Cotton Peak thanks to you."

As he handed a pair of scissors to Chu Liang, he gestured for Chu Liang to stand on his right.

Wang Xuanling: "..."

He felt extremely awkward, but he could only smile.

The people from the Celestial Pivot Pavilion were watching, and any misstep in his expression would surely result in a scathing article later.

Wang Xuanling had done his homework. Seeing how the relationship between Di Nufeng and the Celestial Pivot Pavilion had improved, it was possible that the Celestial Pivot Pavilion might target him next. Therefore, he had to behave with extra caution.

As for why Chu Liang had the right to stand at the center of attention with Xu Bashan and Wang Xuanling, it wasn't just because he was sworn brothers with Xu Bashan. It was also because he was the one overseeing everything on Red Cotton Peak.

The fact that he was renting the mountain from his sect hadn't been leaked, but it was widely known that he had spearheaded the planning and construction. Considering his heavy involvement, it was impossible to keep that a secret. Thus, Chu Liang's position on Red Cotton Peak was far more significant than that of a mere young disciple.

From the side, Xu Hongqiu yelled, "Three, two, one! Cut!"

As Wang Xuanling, Xu Bashan, and Chu Liang cut the red ribbon together, celebratory fireworks shot into the sky.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A round of enthusiastic applause erupted from the guests of the ceremony.

Many of Chu Liang's close friends were present.

Wen Yulong, who was sitting among the many guests, suddenly recalled a few months ago when he had gone to Taotie City with Chu Liang and remarked that Mount Shu could never have such a place like Taotie City.

At the time, Wen Yulong truly had no idea... that Chu Liang could establish such a grand Red Cotton Peak in such a short amount of time.

The only word to describe it was "miraculous."

After the ribbon-cutting ceremony ended, Chu Liang hurried back to the second floor of the building, arriving at a table in the loft.

Jiang Yuebai was sitting there, smiling at him. "Peak Master Chu, you're quite impressive."

"

Hehe,

it's just a small event." Chu Liang humbly waved off the compliment. "Why are you here? I thought you didn't like these kinds of events, so I didn't invite you."

"I'm the one who invited Jiangjiang," Xu Hongqiu chimed in, walking over to sit next to Jiang Yuebai.

"You two..." Chu Liang uttered, stunned at how they seemed so close with each other.

As far as he remembered, the two of them didn't even know each other.

"Jiangjiang and I hit it off right away, and now we're besties," Xu Hongqiu said with a grin.

"Then..."

Chu Liang trailed off as he glanced at Jiang Yuebai and suddenly smiled.

"I know what you're about to say. Shut up." Jiang Yuebai shot him an annoyed look. "Keep it to yourself."

Chu Liang grinned without saying anything.

"

Hmph

," Xu Hongqiu scoffed. Her tone shifted as she suddenly said, "Jiangjiang, you'd better keep a close eye on him. He's richer than you can imagine now. Even if he doesn't go looking for girls, they'll come looking for him."

Jiang Yuebai's face immediately turned red. She snapped, "What are you talking about..."

"Yeah, what

are

you talking about?" Chu Liang chimed in. "I would never—"

Before he could finish speaking, a sweet voice called out from the staircase, "Young Hero Chu! We've finally found you!"

Chu Liang turned to look and saw two cute and lovely young ladies running toward him.

...

Sitting upright, Chu Liang said, "Miss Ji, Miss Tang, please explain. Why have you come looking for me in broad daylight?"

The two lovely young ladies were now sitting across from him. They were none other than Ji Lingyu and Tang Shi.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yuebai and Xu Hongqiu sat on the side, watching the conversation with amused expressions.

Ji Lingyu, clearly unaware of the situation's complexity, looked around with a bright smile. "It's really lively here today."

Chu Liang pointed at Xu Hongqiu. "Today's the ribbon-cutting for the Whale Gang's shops, so it's a bit more lively than usual."

Then he added, "Is there something

important

you need to discuss?"

He emphasized the word "important." Normally, he wouldn't mind chatting with them for a while since they were friends, but given today's occasion, it wasn't the time for idle talk.

"It's like this," Ji Lingyu responded seriously. "Our Great Astral Sect recently..."

"

Hmm?

"

Chu Liang thought there was something odd about what Ji Lingyu said.

It's already become ‘our' Great Astral Sect...?

"Miss Ji, are you really not planning to return home?" he asked curiously.

"

Hah,

" Ji Lingyu let out a cold laugh. "Did you know my eighth brother has joined the Imperial Supervisory Bureau?"

"

Huh?

"

Chu Liang honestly didn't know.

The last time he met Ji Lingfeng, the eighth young master of the Ji Family, had been in Python Belly City. Ji Lingfeng had stayed behind, but he and the other people in Python Belly City were later rescued by the Imperial Supervisory Bureau.

He actually stayed with them afterward?

With his family background, talent, and cultivation level, it wouldn't have been difficult for him to join the Imperial Supervisory Bureau. The bureau often recruited talents from various immortal sects, and having Ji Lingfeng among their ranks would be valuable for building future relations with the Ji Family.

But...

"Is your bet still on?" Chu Liang asked.

"He won't go home, so how can I admit defeat?" Ji Lingyu replied. "Now I'm already an outer disciple of the Great Astral Sect. In time, I'll achieve success in martial arts. Joining the inner sect won't be a problem."

Well, well.

Just because of this bet, one sibling has become a government official, and the other is pursuing martial arts.

I guess the Ji Family's desire to win must be made of iron. At this rate, will the two of you refuse to return to your family's ancestral tomb even in death?

Thinking this, Chu Liang glanced at Jiang Yuebai and then thought of his teacher...

Could it be that all descendants from noble immortality cultivator families are like this? Is "I can never lose" ingrained in their blood?

After some small talk, Ji Lingyu explained, "Yesterday, a disciple from the Great Astral Sect was killed in Kaoshan City, on the outskirts of the Southern Bastion Mountain in the Southern Regions. That person was Tang Shi's senior brother. Tang Shi's esteemed teacher took a group of us to investigate the matter, but we couldn't find any clues. Then Yun Chaoxian suggested that you have some connections in Kaoshan City. Furthermore, you're very resourceful, so we came to ask for your help."

"I see," Chu Liang replied with a nod. He then gazed at Jiang Yuebai and reiterated what Ji Lingyu said. "So, you came to ask for my help regarding the murder of a disciple of the Great Astral Sect."

"If they're asking for your help, then help them properly. What are you looking at me for?" Jiang Yuebai said, shifting her gaze away.