Chapter 2486: Learn Your Lesson

Chapter 2486: Chapter 2486: Learn Your Lesson

Jing Yan had decided to meet Gao Zhenjiang outside the city precisely in order to avoid prying eyes.

In fact, more than ten days ago, Gao Zhenjiang had already contacted Jing Yan via message, informing him that he would be coming to Hongmeng City in the near future. And the purpose of this trip to Hongmeng City was not just to improve relations with Jing Yan; he also wanted to purchase a batch of Elixirs from Hongmeng Pill Tower.

For a Superpower like Golden Toad Commerce, there were naturally Immortal Pill Masters within the organization, and quite a few of them. For the vast majority of Elixirs, Golden Toad Commerce did not need to purchase from outside; however, for some relatively special Elixirs, Golden Toad Commerce still had to buy from external sources.

Across all of Kunling Heaven, in terms of Elixirs, there was no force that could compare to the Eight Gods Pill Sect. Even many Superpowers would, from time to time, have to purchase Elixirs from the Eight Gods Pill Sect.

This time, Gao Zhenjiang had come to Hongmeng City intending to purchase a batch of Celestial Void Eye. The Celestial Void Eye from Hongmeng Pill Tower was of very High Level quality; on this point Golden Toad Commerce had already confirmed it. Even the Celestial Void Eye sold by the Eight Gods Pill Sect was inferior in quality to that of Hongmeng Pill Tower. And for a Superpower like Golden Toad Commerce, the demand for Elixirs such as Celestial Void Eye was quite large. After all, these Superpowers generally had dedicated personnel searching for Treasures in the Chaotic Primordial Space, and they even had independent Heavenly Domain Flying Boats.

Why had Yama Palace been able to discover a relic site in the Chaotic Primordial Space? It was precisely because they had people active in the Chaotic Primordial Space all year round!

Golden Toad Commerce also had its own Heavenly Domain Flying Boat in the Chaotic Primordial Space.

"Causing trouble in Hongmeng City? They really have the guts of bears and leopards!" Gao Zhenjiang gave a slight smile, taking the opportunity to flatter Jing Yan.

Of course, his words were not much of an exaggeration. Even four of Yama Palace’s Red-Clothed Killing Stars had been wiped out in Hongmeng City; ordinary Cultivators making trouble in Hongmeng City—wasn’t that just courting death?

"I can’t resolve this matter directly with force." Jing Yan shook his head.

If it could be solved by force, Jing Yan could crush Nie Quan and the others to death with a single finger. But if Jing Yan were to act in such a way, it would be extremely detrimental to Hongmeng City’s future development. After all, Nie Quan and the others had not openly violated Hongmeng City’s laws; as City Lord, even if Jing Yan wanted to resort to violence, he would have no pretext.

"Could it be related to Hongmeng City’s tax collection?" Gao Zhenjiang’s expression shifted slightly as he asked.

The matter of Hongmeng City collecting taxes was no secret; the City Lord of Mystic Underworld City would, of course, report this to the Trade Union Headquarters of Golden Toad Commerce. Naturally, Gao Zhenjiang also knew about it.

"Yes. Ever since I decided to collect taxes within the city, some people haven’t been able to sit still. Among them, the people of Jade Flame Business Association are the main ones. That fellow’s name is Nie Quan, and lately he’s been jumping around quite aggressively." Jing Yan pursed his lips slightly.

"Led by Nie Quan, that group of people controls quite a few industries within Hongmeng City. They are attempting to force me to back down by dumping their properties. Elder Gao, tell me, can I yield?" Jing Yan continued.

"In this world, there are hardly any cities that don’t collect taxes. Is Jade Flame Business Association unaware of this? Their actions are truly hateful!" Gao Zhenjiang nodded and said, "They want to force City Lord Jing Yan to give in by dumping real estate? That method is indeed rather crude. However, as long as City Lord Jing Yan has enough Black Crystal Stone on hand, such a tactic simply won’t work."

"I do have some Black Crystal Stone, but not that much. In Hongmeng City, we’ve been constructing the Cultivation Tower for a while now, and the expenditure has been immense." Jing Yan said.

"I also heard that Hongmeng City is constructing a Cultivation Tower; that news seems to have first come from Tianyin Building. It’s said that City Lord Jing Yan intends to build a Heavenly Cultivation Tower; the cost for that is indeed terrifying." Gao Zhenjiang’s gaze flashed as he spoke.

The difficulty of constructing a Heavenly Cultivation Tower was immense—far, far too great. In truth, in his heart, Gao Zhenjiang did not really believe that Hongmeng City could build an Advanced Cultivation Tower. To construct an Advanced Cultivation Tower required Immortal Array Masters of extremely high ability. And how many Immortal Array Masters did Hongmeng City have? Even if Hongmeng City had some Immortal Array Masters, they absolutely would not be able to construct a Heavenly Level Cultivation Tower.

Of course, such words were not something Gao Zhenjiang could voice openly in front of Jing Yan; it was better to keep them to himself.

"Yes, I have indeed constructed a Heavenly Cultivation Tower." Jing Yan nodded.

Jing Yan looked into Gao Zhenjiang’s eyes and could see that Gao Zhenjiang did not really believe that Hongmeng City could build a Heavenly Cultivation Tower.

Smiling, Jing Yan continued, "After more than fifty years of construction, Hongmeng City’s Heavenly Cultivation Tower is basically complete. After some more time, it will officially be opened to the public."

"What?" Gao Zhenjiang’s mouth opened slightly as he let out an exclamation.

How was that possible?

To have a Heavenly Cultivation Tower completed in just over fifty years?

That was absolutely impossible! Even for a Superpower, this would be extremely difficult to accomplish. Looking at Jing Yan, Gao Zhenjiang found himself uncertain about the credibility of this information.

"Elder Gao, once Hongmeng City’s Heavenly Cultivation Tower is open, you are welcome to come and experience it for yourself. However, for now, there’s another matter I’d like to discuss with you."

"I wonder if Golden Toad Commerce has any interest in acquiring some industries in Hongmeng City? For example, opening a Business Building within my Hongmeng City. Of course, not limited only to opening a Business Building. If my estimate is correct, Nie Quan and the others definitely won’t retreat easily. I anticipate they will continue to drastically lower the prices of their own industries to force me to compromise. At that time, Elder Gao, you will be able to purchase a large amount of industries at extremely low prices." Jing Yan said slowly.

Before Jing Yan had even finished speaking, Gao Zhenjiang was already smiling.

In truth, Gao Zhenjiang’s understanding of the situation in Hongmeng City was not shallow. He also had a rough grasp of the movements of Nie Quan and the others. He was well aware that property prices in Hongmeng City were currently very low. Therefore, even if Jing Yan hadn’t brought it up, he would have taken the opportunity during this trip to represent Golden Toad Commerce and purchase a large quantity of industries in Hongmeng City.

Hongmeng City had many powerful enemies, yet City Lord Jing Yan’s strength was extremely fierce. Investing in industries in Hongmeng City did indeed carry some risk, but after deliberation, the high-levels at Golden Toad Commerce’s Trade Union Headquarters had decided that this was a risk worth taking, especially given that they could buy a large amount of real estate in Hongmeng City at relatively low prices.

"City Lord Jing Yan, there’s no need for you to say more on this. Rest assured, I’ve brought quite a lot of Black Crystal Stone stock with me on this trip." Gao Zhenjiang said briskly.

"Good! Very good! Excellent!" Jing Yan’s eyes lit up as he said, "Elder Gao, then over the next while you can stay in Mystic Underworld City and wait for my news."

Strictly speaking, Jing Yan could already have allowed Gao Zhenjiang to enter Hongmeng City to purchase properties and open Business Buildings right now. As long as this news got out, property prices in Hongmeng City would definitely stabilize very quickly. However, Jing Yan did not intend to let Nie Quan and the others off so cheaply. This time, he wanted Nie Quan and his group to learn a proper lesson. As for the news that Nie Quan and the others had been quietly buying up properties over the past few days, Jing Yan was well aware of it.