Chapter 341: Targeting Chu Qiguang

The next morning, Wu Wei and Sun Bin set off for the board meeting venue, accompanied by Jin Haitian, who was dressed as a servant.

Furthermore, he was able to manipulate and alter his facial structure through the circulation of his qi and blood, and in the blink of an eye, he had turned into someone else entirely.

Wu Wei was a bit of a talentless slouch, but as the son of the grand secretary, he was quite knowledgeable about martial arts, and he knew that Jin Haitian had just used Zhou Junyan's Tendon Altering Bone Refining Arts.

Sun Bin naturally knew next to nothing about these matters, but he was brimming with confidence, nevertheless.

Chu Qiguang had only reached the fourth state a year ago, while Jin Haitian had already been a fifth-state martial artist for close to ten years. Furthermore, he was a battle-hardened warrior who had slain countless fiends, so Sun Bin was supremely confident in Jin Haitian's ability to crush and humiliate Chu Qiguang.

Once Chu Qiguang is humiliated in front of all of the shareholders, his authority will be completely undermined, and there will be no confidence in his trade association. In fact, if it's revealed to the public that someone so weak is going to serve as the figurehead of the stock market, the stock price will likely plummet!

After altering his physical appearance, Jin Haitian smiled and said, "Alright, I'm ready to go. I'll find an opportunity to challenge Chu Qiguang during the board meeting, and I'll make sure to humiliate him in front of everyone."

"What if Zhong Shan'e is also there?" Wu Wei asked. "Surely your disguise isn't going to be able to fool him."

Jin Haitian merely smiled and offered no response. He knew that Zhong Shan'e wasn't going to be in attendance because his master had already invited Zhong Shan'e for a meeting today.

Jin Haitian's master was Zhou Junyan, one of the two Dao Comprehension state martial gods of the nine border military bases, and Zhong Shan'e couldn't just brush off an invitation from someone who was his equal.

Furthermore, the Cloud Midst Trade Association had immense financial backing from the nine border military bases. If the trade associations were going to be merged, then the funds from the border military bases would also have to be moved over.

In light of these developments, there was much to be discussed between Zhou Junyan and Zhong Shan'e, so the invitation that he had extended wasn't just a diversion tactic.

Once Jin Haitian knocked Chu Qiguang down a peg, the shareholders of the Cloud Midst Trade Association would immediately pile on him with pressure and insults. At the very least, they had to establish a few people of their own to manage the new trade association alongside Chu Qiguang.

***

At the board meeting venue, the shareholders were all chatting among themselves. Chu Qiguang and Wang Cailiang were also present, and they were conversing amicably with a few representatives from the prominent clans.

These figures were all going to be very useful connections for Chu Qiguang, so he was eager to take advantage of this occasion to acquaint himself with them.

Even though Abbot Chen Zhu was a very important figure in Azure Sun County, he paled in significance compared with all of the other important people present.

Looking at Chu Qiguang from afar, he couldn't help but reminisce about when they were working together on the graveyard project.

"It's only been two years since then, and Chu Qiguang has already risen to some truly unimaginable heights," he said, sighing.

Daoist Master Law Origin nodded in full agreement. He could still recall Chu Qiguang bribing him during the investigation of the Hao Yongnian murder case.

"Back then, he was giving me bribes. Now, I'll probably have to bribe his underlings just to get a chance to see him."

"Don't be in a hurry to go and see him," Chen Zhu cautioned. "It may seem like his rise is unstoppable at the moment, but with so much attention on him, there's no guarantee that he'll be able to firmly establish himself.

"He's definitely an extremely capable and brilliant young man, but he's still too young, and his individual strength is lacking. If someone takes advantage of that to plot against him, then they may be able to successfully bring him down."

Daoist Master Law Origin nodded in response. He had also heard that Chu Qiguang had only reached the fourth state a year ago, so even with the backing of a martial god, not everyone was going to be willing to follow his lead.

This sentiment was shared by many of the other shareholders present. None of them dared to go against Chu Qiguang in Zhong Shan'e's presence, but many of them were hoping that someone would be able to knock Chu Qiguang down a peg somehow.

That way, they would be able to pile on him all at once to secure more power and profits for themselves.

As time passed, it became clear that Zhong Shan'e wasn't going to be in attendance, and some of the shareholders were already casting hostile gazes at Chu Qiguang.

Meanwhile, Wu Wei was furious at the fact that Chu Qiguang hadn't bothered to come and greet him. Chu Qiguang, you ungrateful bastard! I made you! You'd be nothing without me, yet now that you've managed to suck up to Zhong Shan'e, you've thrown me aside like an old rag! If I hadn't supported you in the past, you'd still be tending to the fields in the Wang Clan Village!

Emboldened by his fury, Wu Wei strode directly toward Chu Qiguang with Sun Bin and Jin Haitian behind him.

Upon noticing the approaching trio, Chu Qiguang's attention was immediately drawn to Jin Haitian. He was quite surprised to see the seven tentacles beneath Jin Haitian's feet.

Who's this guy? His powers are on par with Yi Siman!

A short phrase drifted across his Dao pursuer eyes. "A mighty warrior in disguise."

Chu Qiguang was very much intrigued, but on the surface, he maintained a calm and steady facade.

Sun Bin wasted no time with pleasantries, cutting straight to the chase as he said, "Chu Qiguang, I heard that you only reached the fourth state last year. Do you really think you're fit to lead the new trade association?"

Chu Qiguang glanced at Sun Bin, then returned his gaze to Jin Haitian with a smile and conceded, replying, "That's a valid concern. If the leader of the new trade association is too weak, then there won't be enough confidence from the general public, and that could negatively impact the stock prices.

"What do you propose then? Do you want to test my martial arts?"

"That's not my intention," Sun Bin said. "My concern is that if you become the sole leader of the new trade association, there's undoubtedly going to be a lot of attention on you.

"If you're not strong enough to defend yourself and end up being killed by some nefarious party, the trade association will be thrown into turmoil, so how about we nominate two or three others to manage the trade association alongside you?

"That way, if, heavens forbid, something were to happen to you, someone could step in at any time to take your place. Wouldn't you agree, everyone?"

Sun Bin had intentionally spoken loudly to draw attention to himself, and many of the shareholders present immediately rallied under his call.

"I agree," Fei Yixian said. "You only left Jade Face Mountain this year, didn't you, Chu Qiguang?"

The Huiqin Feudal Lord was also nodding in agreement. "It's definitely not going to be a good look if we instate a fourth-state martial artist as the sole leader of the new trade association."

"Besides, he's only seventeen years old," Grand Abbot Wang Xi chimed in. "What is the general public going to think if we put a seventeen-year-old into such a lofty position of power?"

"Forgive us for being blunt, Chu Qiguang, but this is a very important matter, so we cannot afford to mince our words," Wu Wei said. "I bet you can't even defeat this servant of mine. If even someone like him can take your life, how can we and the general public trust you to manage the new trade association?"

"That makes a lot of sense," Chu Qiguang agreed with a nod. "You say I'm no match for this servant of yours? Why don't we start there then? We can have a little spar to put everyone at ease."

Looks of ridicule appeared on the faces of many of the shareholders present at this proposal. In their eyes, Chu Qiguang was voluntarily lowering himself to the same level as a mere servant. Even if he could defeat this servant, what would that prove?

In contrast, Wu Wei and Sun Bin were both feeling rather apprehensive, wondering if Chu Qiguang had seen through their ruse.

However, that didn't make sense. If Chu Qiguang had seen through Jin Haitian's cover, then surely his reaction wouldn't be to challenge the latter to a sparring match.

"A sparring match with nothing at stake is boring," Chu Qiguang continued. "Why don't we bet some shares as well?"