Chapter 340: The Gods

The concept of gods and divinity seemed very prevalent in this world, but up to this point, Chu Qiguang still didn't know exactly what a god was and what qualified as a god.

Qiao Zhi once told me that as time passes, the demonic tainting will only become worse and worse to the point that even the fiends will eventually succumb. The entire world is in the middle of wars and turmoil; the majority of the humans and fiends in the world will die without even knowing what enemy they're fighting.

"Who are the gods?" Chu Qiguang asked. "The Profound Origin Dao Lord? The Imperial High God? Or is it some other entity I haven't even heard of?"

"Gods cannot be referred to directly by name," Shi replied. "They are known only as the gods. Demonic tainting is the gods' breath, and knowledge is the gods' thoughts. Following the return of the gods, only a small portion of fiends who comply with the Heavenly Dao can survive.

"For now, focus on finding the Heaven Book, the Earth Book, the Star Scripture, and the Moon Diagram. As for the matters related to the gods, that has nothing to do with you for now, so do not allow such things to distract you..."

Shi's voice gradually trailed off before fading into silence.

Even though the conversation was over, Chu Qiguang was still mulling over everything he had just heard. Not only were the gods set to return in a hundred years, according to Qiao Zhi, but the fiends and dragons were also going to invade the central plains in the not-too-distant future.

Chu Qiguang felt pressured. No matter what happens in the future, my objective of becoming even stronger remains. This way, I can handle whatever is thrown at me.

Chu Qiguang disliked going with the flow and following the lead of others. As opposed to setting off in search of the Heaven Book, the Earth Book, the Star Scripture, and the Moon Diagram for some unknown goal, he felt like his time was much better spent accumulating power and wealth.

Casting that train of thought aside for now, Chu Qiguang proceeded with the board meeting. The terms of the merger acquisition weren't something that could be finalized in just a day or two.

There were countless parties and tremendous sums of money involved, so it was certainly not something to be taken lightly.

In particular, in the initial phase, Chu Qiguang would have to personally establish the rules and boundaries for everyone else to follow, and propaganda also had to be released to console the public.

Furthermore, the spinning mule had to go into mass production, and that was another massive undertaking, and that wasn't even to mention all of the logistical work that had to be done in order to merge the three trade associations into one.

In particular, the account books had to be examined extensively. Given how rampant and deep-rooted corruption was in the Great Han Empire, Chu Qiguang was certain that there had been some shady dealings in the financial departments of the two trade associations.

At the same time, Chu Qiguang was also aware that, even though he had temporarily managed to get a leg up over all of the shareholders, they were not innocuous sheep at all. They were bloodthirsty wolves eager to pounce at the first sign of weakness.

Hence, when it came time to finalize the details that concerned profits and jurisdictional powers, there was definitely going to be a tough battle ahead.

***

"You think you can make decisions for me now, is that right, Sun Bin? Why did you take it upon yourself to turn Chu Qiguang away when he came to see me last time?"

As soon as the board meeting was adjourned for the day, Wu Wei immediately returned to his residence and uncovered the truth behind Chu Qiguang's visit.

Sun Bin was forced to bear Wu Wei's wrath in silence, and only after Wu Wei had finally trailed off into an infuriated silence did Sun Bin wipe away the spittle all over his face.

"Don't be fooled by Chu Qiguang's conniving words, Master Wu!" Sun Bin implored. "Do you really think he came to sell the spinning mule to us? He was the one who developed the water-powered machines, and he's also the one who developed the spinning mule.

"If you ask me, he was most likely the one who leaked the blueprints!"

"What's the point in bickering over semantics at this point?" Wu Wei snapped. "The fact of the matter is that he has the spinning mule and the support of Zhong Shan'e and even His Majesty!

"Who's going to dare to oppose him? That ungrateful bastard! He's only where he is today thanks to me, yet he turns around and bites the hand that fed him at the first opportunity he gets!"

Sun Bin still wasn't willing to give up. As the CEO of the Azure Sun Trade Association, he had immense power, yet Chu Qiguang had just taken that power away from him. This was enough to sow a bitter seed of resentment in his heart.

Furthermore, Sun Bin had leveraged his position to embezzle significant sums of money, and he was very much concerned that Chu Qiguang would use that to get back at him.

"Chu Qiguang hasn't won yet," Sun Bin said. "He has Zhong Shan'e as a backer, but as an individual, he’s still too weak if he wants to be in a position of power. I heard from our sources in the Demon Vanquishing Department that he only reached the fourth state a year ago..."

"You're saying we should assassinate him?" Wu Wei asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No, that would be too risky," Sun Bin replied with a shake of his head. "All we have to do is humiliate him in front of everyone tomorrow."

In the Great Han Empire, the importance of martial arts couldn't be overstated, and individual power was championed above just about all else.

There was even a tradition among many trade associations and gangs to decide the ownership rights to businesses and territories based on the outcomes of sparring matches. In villages, fights over land and water regularly broke out.

Sparring matches were prevalent throughout the Great Han Empire, at all levels of society, from village disputes to imperial examinations.

The existence of martial arts and Dao arts granted cultivators unfathomable powers, and as a result, the people of the Great Han Empire held an innate sense of admiration and reverence toward those stronger than them.

This was an integral part of the Great Han Empire's culture.

Sun Bin wanted to use this to his advantage to remind the shareholders that Chu Qiguang was far from infallible, and he was hoping to diminish Chu Qiguang's authority and credibility by exposing his flaws.

That way, they ought to be able to sway some of the shareholders back to their side to oppose Chu Qiguang.

If Chu Qiguang turned to Zhong Shan'e to back him up every time, then he would be seen as incompetent and unable to stand up for himself, and that would chip away at his influence over time.

"Do you have a good candidate in mind?" Wu Wei asked. "Chu Qiguang may not be a fifth-state martial artist yet, but even fourth-state martial artists are no slouches."

"I have a perfect candidate for the role," Sun Bin replied with a confident smile.

Shortly thereafter, a man was invited to the Wu Residence by Sun Bin.

His physical appearance was rather unremarkable, but he gave off a mountain-like aura that placed Wu Wei under tremendous pressure. A look of surprised recognition flashed through Wu Wei's gaze as he exclaimed, "You're Jin Haitian from the Cloud Midst Military Base!"