Chapter 467: Corrupting the Kid

"

Huh?

"

Chu Liang looked at Chu Yi beside him, slightly surprised.

This wasn't a particularly difficult arithmetic problem, but it was still challenging for his eighty-something-year-old teacher, let alone a six-year-old child. Even Chu Liang's mental calculation speed was just comparable to the boy's.

This kid is really intelligent.

Di Nufeng looked at Chu Liang and asked, "Is that correct?"

"Absolutely," Chu Liang answered.

"This little thing sure is something." Di Nufeng beamed with joy. "Let me test him."

Chu Liang had the same thought.

Di Nufeng leaned forward, thinking hard for a moment. Then she asked extremely seriously, "What does three... plus three equal to?"

Chu Liang: "...?"

"Six...?" Little Chu Yi answered hesitantly.

He even looked a bit unsure of himself, as if this was more difficult than the previous calculation. The question was so simple that it made his little brain wonder if he had made a mistake.

Chu Liang quickly stepped forward. "Esteemed Teacher, let me test him instead."

How did I actually believe that someone who is pretty much illiterate could come up with an adequate question to test a prodigy?

He said to Chu Yi, "I'll ask you some questions. What is four hundred forty-three multiplied by two thousand two hundred?"

"Nine hundred seventy-four thousand six hundred."

"Four thousand three hundred ninety-six multiplied by two thousand seventeen?"

"Eight million eight hundred sixty-six thousand seven hundred thirty-two."

"If a person shakes their shoulders three times a day, how many times would they shake their shoulders in two and a half years?"

"Two thousand seven hundred thirty-nine."

"..."

Using mental calculation to answer the series of questions, Chu Yi delivered his answers without hesitation, and they were all correct without a single error. Such a feat wouldn't be unusual for cultivators that specialized in the power of the mind... but Chu Yi was still just a child!

Di Nufeng asked in surprise, "Did you have some special training in this?"

"I don't know..." Chu Yi answered timidly. "It seems that the moment I hear the numbers, the answer appears in my mind..."

Looking at Chu Yi, Chu Liang remarked, "His calculation skills are indeed amazing. How about we test something else? Let’s see how well he can memorize things."

"Sure." Di Nufeng casually pulled a book from her bed and handed it to Chu Yi. "Read this once, then recite what's written on it."

Chu Yi took the book, obediently glanced at the page, and quickly handed it back.

"Done?" Di Nufeng asked.

"Yes," Chu Yi answered with a nod. Then he obediently recited, "That rich young master wrapped his arms around Ping'er's shoulders. Sliding his hand inside her sleeve, he laughed lewdly and said, 'My dearest—'"

Chu Liang hurriedly interrupted Chu Yi, "All right, all right. That's enough."

Then he shot a sharp look at Di Nufeng.

Goodness. What kind of unhealthy things have you been reading all day?

You almost corrupted the kid.

Di Nufeng's face flushed as she said, "Grabbed the wrong one."

She walked over to the bookshelf and flipped through them, wanting to find a normal book. However, after flipping through one book, she set it aside. Then she flipped through a second and set that aside too. She repeated this process for quite a while. Di Nufeng didn't have a single book that could be given to a child to read.

Chu Liang buried his forehead deep in his hands. He couldn't help but wonder if bringing this child to Silver Sword Peak was actually harmful to him.

Such an intelligent child could probably easily succeed under the care of any normal guardian, right? But if he stays here... It's hard to say how well he'll do.

Ultimately, Chu Liang took out a foundational cultivation manual,

The Divine Nine's Profound Mental Cultivation Technique,

from the inner chest pocket in his robe and handed it to Chu Yi to read.

Little Chu Yi took the manual and glanced through it once.

Then he put it down and recited from memory. "The Divine Nine's Profound Apertures lie within a person's body, within the Gate of the Profound..."

As he recited, his gaze grew brighter, and a mildly warm air expelled from his nose.

Naturally, Chu Liang and Di Nufeng knew what was happening.

He's already developing qi sensitivity...?

A person's potential for cultivation was measured by seeing how long they needed to cultivate for before they could sense the existence of foundational qi.

Some people could spend their whole lives cultivating and would still be unable to open up their apertures. There were some that needed two or three years to develop qi sensitivity, but people who needed that long wouldn't have much of a future in cultivation.

Meanwhile, there were others that only needed a few months to develop qi sensitivity. This was considered the average standard in the world of immortality cultivators. However, those who could unlock their qi sensitivity in just three to five days would likely be prodigies in cultivation.

The talent a person had at the start wasn't an absolute factor in determining how much they could achieve in cultivation, but very few people could break through their innate limitations. The speed at which a person unlocked their qi sensitivity was a strong indicator of their level of perception and affinity with spiritual qi.

Chu Liang only knew of one person in the Mount Shu Sect who had unlocked their qi sensitivity just by reading through the cultivation manual once—Jiang Yuebai. However, she possessed the Transcendent Spirit.

Of course, there was the possibility that the child had been cultivating since a long time ago, making it easier for him to develop qi sensitivity. Nevertheless, the boy was only six years old, so even if that was the case, this was still astonishing.

The Alchemy Master's grandson had developed qi sensitivity at the age of seven, and he was hailed as a rare prodigy. For children, even a year's difference could make a huge difference in their innate development.

After considering Chu Yi’s situation, Chu Liang suggested, "How about... we find a school for the child? We shouldn't disrupt his development by letting him stay on our peak."

However, Di Nufeng was eager to handle things herself and replied, "Is that necessary? I can teach him myself."

Chu Liang thought,

That's exactly what I'm afraid of...

If Esteemed Teacher teaches Chu Yi nothing, he'll probably just end up like me. So, I guess that's not too bad. But if she were to be serious about teaching... he'll probably get ruined.

Of course, Chu Liang hadn't really meant it when he suggested sending Chu Yi away.

After all, he had been entrusted with the child and wouldn't feel at ease unless he was the one taking care of Chu Yi. Given the boy's sensitive background, Chu Liang needed to stay by Chu Yi's side and observe him for at least a year before letting him leave Mount Shu.

"We should observe him for a while longer. Taking in a disciple is a big decision and shouldn't be based on talent alone," Chu Liang advised. "Let's take some time to assess his temperament and then consider accepting him as a disciple."

"That's true." Di Nufeng nodded. "My disciple must not only match my talent but also have a character like mine."

Well, that's not necessary...

This made Chu Liang worry about how bad Silver Sword Peak's reputation could become in the future.

Nonetheless, seeing how little Chu Yi was so well-mannered and composed, seemingly wise and mature well beyond his years... Chu Liang thought it was unlikely that Chu Yi would grow up to be a troublemaker like his teacher.

Chu Liang ruffled the little guy's hair and smiled. "Stay by my side for now. I'll see which areas you can improve in, and while I'm at it, I'll teach you some interesting things like..."

Chu Liang's smile widened, his eyes narrowing into slits as he finished his sentence in a soft and gentle tone.

"Reviewing the account book."

...

The shopping district on Red Cotton Peak was bustling with activity; people were streaming in and out.

Most shops in the world of immortality cultivators were dignified and proper, with an old-fashioned charm. The signboards hanging above their doors, inscribed with the shops' names in gold, tended to look pretty similar, so they rarely stood out visually.

However, there were some shops on Red Cotton Peak that stood out from the rest. For example, there was a shop named Spirit Pill Pavilion. Under the large golden words on its signboard, there was a line of small words with an arrow:

The first shop on Red Cotton Peak.

This unusual addition attracted many passersby to check out the shop. Coupled with the fact that the berry-flavored pills it sold were in high demand, business quickly boomed for the Spirit Pill Pavilion.

Not wanting to be outdone, the weapons shop next door that belonged to the Whale Gang had added a line under its name too:

Our shop's the real first shop.

This dispute was quite amusing. Both shop owners stuck to their claims, attracting many visitors to come and check out the spectacle.

Seeing that, the surrounding shops followed suit, adding notes below their shop names.

They're all fakes; ours is the real first shop.

Let them fight over being first. We're the second shop anyway.

The shop next door’s talking nonsense. We are the real second shop.

Regardless of what number you are, ours is definitely the last shop.

The shop across the street is shameless.

Right back at you.

These childish antics became quite the spectacle, and the visitors found them rather amusing.

Many cultivators from the nearby provinces visited Red Cotton Peak. In terms of scale, it was still incomparable to Taotie City, which had expanded in size over many years. Nevertheless, Red Cotton Peak had already surpassed all of the other markets in the world of immortality cultivators.

With various factions joining and establishing shops on Red Cotton Peak, everyone was convinced that it would only be a matter of time before Red Cotton Peak would stand shoulder to shoulder with Taotie City.

Due to the great distance between them, Taotie City wasn't as heavily impacted as expected. Moreover, they received a share of the profits, so they were happy to see Red Cotton Peak's growth.

Meanwhile, the Mount Shu Sect, a recipient of an even larger share, became more accommodating and granted Chu Liang various conveniences, wishing he could rapidly further Red Cotton Peak's development. After all, his lease period was only ten years, and Red Cotton Peak would still belong to the Mount Shu Sect in the future. That meant Chu Liang was laying the foundations of a great business that could be passed down for generations within the sect.

Initially, the shops on the mountain were all built by the Whale Gang. Now, disciples from the Mount Shu Sect's Hall of Construction were fully stationed on Red Cotton Peak. Shops could be applied for one day and erected the next. With the extra source of income on Red Cotton Peak, the disciples from the Hall of Construction made a fortune during this period, and they wore beaming smiles as they worked.

Red Cotton Peak offered a rent discount for Mount Shu disciples, so many of them were inspired to open shops of their own. However, even with the discount, the cost of opening a shop was still quite high, and most disciples on Mount Shu were relatively poor. Thus, those who were bold enough to try mostly did so through partnerships.

Shang Ziliang, along with Lackey A and Lackey B, teamed up to open a small shop. The three of them had saved quite a bit while working for Chu Liang, so this investment was naturally within their means.

Their shop was called Ink Treasures. It specialized in selling calligraphy and paintings by famous Confucian masters of the current era. With his father Shang Shuwen's connections, it was easy for Shang Ziliang to acquire those precious works.

Lin Bei didn't open a shop, but he quickly built an extensive network in a short period and became quite well known on Red Cotton Peak. He took on a broker-like role, helping shop owners develop business relationships and securing resources for them. He made a considerable income from that.

The thirty-six peaks of Mount Shu gathered their strengths to open shops on Red Cotton Peak. Initially, it was the higher-ups of the Mount Shu Sect that had called upon the peaks to set up shops to bolster Chu Liang's reputation, but everyone had been quite hesitant to do so.

Yet, it hadn't even been two days since the opening, and Red Cotton Peak had already become a sensation. Now, everyone wanted a piece of the action; there was nothing left for them to hesitate about.

By establishing Red Cotton Peak, Chu Liang had effectively created a large platform for all the peaks of the Mount Shu Sect to take advantage of. As long as they had the ability to set up and run a shop well, they had the opportunity to prosper financially.

For this reason, Chu Liang had even reminded Venerable Wen Yuan that while it was a good thing the peaks had a strong interest in running businesses, the disciples shouldn't get too invested in it. After all, cultivators should still prioritize cultivation as their main pursuit.

He hadn't needed to say that though. The higher-ups of the Mount Shu Sect had already warned all the peaks of that. The result was that disciples from each peak would take turns working in the shops, ensuring it didn't affect their cultivation.

Everyone was eager to work in the shops. They got to enjoy the liveliness and excitement of Red Cotton Peak and earn money at the same time. The amount they earned just working there for a few days each month was more than what they would get from completing ten missions. The rest of the time could then be dedicated to cultivation.

𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

Without needing to go on so many missions, they ended up having more time for cultivation and more money to buy resources. This arrangement was actually beneficial to them, so why not take advantage of it?

Despite that, there was no concern that the disciples wouldn't go on missions anymore. After all, once the Mount Shu Sect became wealthy, the rewards for missions would naturally increase. Ultimately, the profits the sect gained from Red Cotton Peak would be passed on to benefit the disciples.

As for Chu Liang, he kept only a tiny bit, just a sliver, of the profits for himself.

That's right. That's how he had explained it to Di Nufeng.

As Chu Liang walked through the streets with little Chu Yi, he shared the key points about Red Cotton Peak.

Then they arrived in front of a grand restaurant.

Chu Liang was here today because Jiang Yuebai planned to open a shop too.