Chapter 73, Touch of Despair

Translator: Raznick

 

The Nine Peaks’ Zhou Clan was now considered a well-known cultivating clan in Mist Province.

 

Because there were many rogue cultivators living around Nine Peaks, their numbers visiting to cultivate ranged between two to three hundred.

 

Luo Guangshun’s presence was completely natural.

 

In fact, Luo Guangshun really should be grateful to Zhou Chun.

 

Previously, Zhou Daoyi’s view was also to kill him and eliminate the witness, which would have been simple and quick.

 

It was Zhou Chun who spoke up strongly in his defense, convincing Clan Leader Zhou Daoyi to change his decision. Instead of killing Luo Guangshun, they decided to first bring him to Zhou Clan and detain him.

 

In Zhou Chun’s opinion, as long as the elixir that was being researched by Zhou Chun’s uncle on the other side was developed quickly and brought to market soon, within three or five years, people would come to rely solely on Spirit Beast Pavilion for their drug purchases. This would help regain the lost popularity.

 

Once the value of the poison became apparent, those strange fish in the underground river would naturally catch the attention of Zhou Clan, prompting them to invest more resources into developing them further.

 

Then, the Zhou Clan would take over that place. Even if they released Luo Guangshun and outsiders learned about the secret of the slime, could the Spirit Beast Manor really launch an attack on the Zhou Clan just for one inedible poison recipe?

 

There was no need to rush into killing someone to cover up a secret that wouldn’t even matter years from now. In Zhou Chun’s eyes, silencing wasn’t something to be avoided entirely—it could only be used as a last resort when all other options were exhausted. As long as there was a better solution, no matter the trouble, it was absolutely necessary to avoid using this seemingly simple method of keeping secrets.

 

The Zhou Clan wasn’t even dominant in Mist Province, let alone throughout the entire Jing Kingdom cultivation world. The best course of action was to avoid this course of action if possible. If anything leaked out and was exploited by someone with malicious intent, the trouble that could ensue would be far greater than the effort required to placate Luo Guangshun.

 

Zhou Chun’s long-term perspective on this matter was something Zhou Daoyi greatly admired.

 

He did not believe that killing a small cultivator to silence them would cause any trouble for the Zhou Clan.

 

However, he greatly admired Zhou Chun’s foresight and vision in considering the long-term development of the clan.

 

Such qualities were rare among most Zhou Clan members.

 

Most cultivators were selfish, and this selfishness often led them to focus only on short-term gains rather than long-term benefits.

 

It wasn’t intelligence at play here, but the harsh environment of the cultivation world.

 

A rogue cultivator, living a precarious life with no guarantee of safety, had to be selfish to survive longer in such a brutal world.

 

Even many lower-ranking clan members and sect disciples shared this mindset.

 

While an individual could afford to be selfish, a clan leader or a sect master could not.

 

If such a selfish and self-centered person were to become the Clan Leader of the Zhou Clan or a sect leader, it would be a disaster for everyone!

 

Zhou Daoyi was chosen as the Clan Leader of the Zhou Clan precisely because he was fair and strict in his dealings, thorough in his actions, and capable of considering long-term plans for the future.

 

Since the Zhou Clan established its roots on Nine Peaks, facing various internal and external pressures, he became even more aware of one thing.

 

A Clan Leader of a cultivating clan, besides being fair and strict, must also possess foresight. They must not only see short-term gains but also consider long-term interests.

 

Unfortunately, he did not see this ability in any of the other Zhou Clan cultivators, except for Zhou Chun.

 

It was precisely for this reason that he held Zhou Chun in high regard as a young talent. Whenever Zhou Chun made suggestions that did not have obvious negative consequences, Zhou Daoyi would mostly agree to them.

 

His aim was to build up Zhou Chun’s confidence and encourage him to be more proactive in offering suggestions and dedicated to the development of the clan.

 

In fact, Zhou Daoyi’s approach had proven effective.

 

At least after Zhou Chun’s suggestions were repeatedly adopted by Clan Leader Zhou Daoyi, he felt a deep sense of trust and affection from the Clan Leader, which greatly increased his sense of belonging to the Zhou Clan. He was determined to make the Zhou Clan even better!

 

Time flew by, and in the blink of an eye, three months had passed.

 

During this time, Zhou Chun made two trips to the underground river, delivering over ten strange fish corpses to Zhou Jiawei for research.

 

After extensive testing, Zhou Jiawei finally developed the antidote for what he named Touch of Despair, a poison that lived up to its name. Upon contact, it caused an intense itching sensation in both humans and demon beasts, making one want to scratch the affected area until the blood and flesh were torn away!

 

Without the antidote, this itching would persist for an extremely long time, with little relief even after washing repeatedly.

 

The tests confirmed that if a demon beast came into contact with this poison, its combat effectiveness would drop significantly.

 

That tingling sensation would distract its attention, making it unable to focus on fighting.

 

After personally experiencing the effects of Touch of Despair, Zhou Chun immediately requested thirty portions of the poison and ten portions of the antidote from a senior figure at the Zhou Clan, bringing them back to the market. He also instructed them to use existing materials to produce large quantities of this poison.

 

He then swiftly introduced this new product and actively recommended it to cultivators shopping in his store.

 

As predicted, every cultivator who tried Touch of Despair praised the poison without exception, with a 100% repurchase rate!

 

Furthermore, Zhou Chun specifically spent spirit coins hiring some rogue cultivators to advertise this poison all over the market. In a matter of two months, the reputation of Touch of Despair skyrocketed.

 

A massive influx of cultivators came to buy it, selling out the entire stock of the poison and significantly boosting sales of other animal-repellent and insect-repellent items.

 

This was precisely Zhou Chun’s goal in striving to develop a new product.

 

He was well aware that in terms of pricing, products at the Spirit Beast Pavilion and the Spirit Beast Edifice were roughly comparable.

 

The reason why the Spirit Beast Pavilion saw a significant drop in its sales after opening was entirely due to the fact that it lured customers with its special offerings.

 

As a customer, as long as the prices for similar items were about the same at both establishments, it made sense to choose whichever store happened to be more convenient.

 

Moreover, since the Spirit Beast Edifice offered special products that could not be found at the Spirit Beast Pavilion, it naturally became the preferred choice for shoppers.

 

However, with the emergence of Touch of Despair, a surge in customers visiting the Spirit Beast Pavilion had inevitably altered the situation.

 

Meanwhile, upon learning that sales at the store had skyrocketed due to Touch of Despair, Zhou Daoyi swiftly decided to support the Zhou Clan’s plan to expand production.

 

As a result, Elder Zhou Daoquan personally took charge of leading Zhou Clan members on a trip to the underground river, capturing over twenty strange fish and bringing them back to the clan. These were then kept in several ponds within the Zhou Clan compound to see if they could be domesticated and bred.

 

At the same time, Zhou Jiahui was often sent to the underground river to catch these strange fish and collect their mucus.

 

While Zhou Jiasheng and Zhou Chun were elated by the significant increase in shop revenue, their rival establishment, the Spirit Beast Edifice, was experiencing a sharp decline, causing great anger to its manager.

 

“Uncle Yu, please understand. This month, our shop revenue has decreased by about two-fold compared to last month. You must be aware of the reason, as it is due to that new product released by the Spirit Beast Pavilion which has led to a substantial drop in our customer traffic.

 

“This is only the beginning. If we don’t find a way to change this situation or increase the supply of special items like spirit honey and spirit milk, our shop revenue will continue to decline in the future!”

 

Inside the Spirit Beast Edifice, facing the Foundation Establishment cultivator Yu Deguang who had come to collect this month’s shop revenue, Manager Lu Yunsheng expressed his worries with a furrowed brow.

 

“I have heard about that new product from the Spirit Beast Pavilion. Zhou Jiawei, that rascal, does have some talent after all. Even after Zhou Mingshan’s passing, he managed to research such an extraordinary medicine!

 

“But what you mentioned about increasing the supply of spirit honey and spirit milk is impossible. In fact, their allocation will only decrease even more in the future.

 

“Those items are crucial resources our sect uses to exchange with other factions for special materials. Using them to exchange for spirit coin is a complete waste!”

 

Upon seeing the increased bitterness on Lu Yunseng’s face, Yu Deguang promptly shifted his tone and continued, “However, Nephew Lu, you need not worry too much. Zhou Jiawei’s cheap skill won’t pose any challenge to Senior Brother Du. It won’t take long before he figures out the recipe for that poison and replicates it.”

 

Lu Yunsheng’s worry eased, and he expressed his joy: “Then, I can rest assured. If we could also sell that poison, we would surely be able to bring back customers!”

 

Yu Deguang nodded with approval and stated: “Therefore, Nephew Lu, you should continue managing the shop without worries. The sect will not forget your toil.”