Xiao Fei had been holed up in his cave dwelling for over a year. Recently, he had begun to rouse himself. He intended to expend his dwindling lifespan doing something beneficial for the cultivation world.
He wanted to shine and contribute to the cultivation world, burning himself to illuminate others, and fill the world with love!
The cultivation world of the Lu Kingdom had been severely weakened after the great war with the Eagle Mountain Kingdom. Of the original four great sects, the Zi Wei Sect had been annihilated, leaving only three major sects.
The cultivation world's accumulated wealth over many years had been depleted in the war.
Currently, the Lu Kingdom's cultivation world was facing a severe shortage of spiritual medicines. They could only purchase imports from neighboring countries, but distant water could not quench a nearby thirst, and prices had at least doubled compared to before the war.
Seeing that the cultivators of the Lu Kingdom were in dire straits due to extreme material shortages, Xiao Fei felt a noble sense of responsibility welling up from the depths of his heart.
He had planted such a large patch of spiritual medicine in his space, and now he had a responsibility to bring it out to benefit the cultivation world.
It shouldn't be too much to ask to collect some spirit stones while serving the cultivation world.
Xiao Fei, dragging his near-death body, conducted an investigation of the entire Lu Kingdom market.
He finally decided to establish a trading company in Xingyue City.
Xingyue City was located in the central region of the Lu Kingdom, and its influence could radiate throughout the entire Lu Kingdom. The three major sects and numerous families would all become his potential clients.
Establishing a trading company required manpower; he couldn't waste his life guarding a small, dilapidated shop all day.
He could seek help from Fei Xin in this regard.
As the eldest disciple of Grand Master Guang Ling, Fei Xin had handled many of the business affairs for Grand Master Guang Ling's lineage in the past, and he was quite familiar with business operations.
Moreover, Fei Xin was a mature and steady person. Half of the six disciples of the Guang Ling lineage had died, yet he had managed to survive to this day, indicated by his white hair.
Xiao Fei revealed his intentions to Fei Xin, and within two days, Fei Xin had helped him assemble a team.
There were over ten people in total, all disciples who had previously worked and run errands for the Guang Ling lineage.
Now that Guang Ling was severely injured, his business had long been taken over by other elders, and these disciples had suddenly lost their support.
Among these dozen or so people, Fei Xin's own son and grandson were also present.
Xiao Fei hadn't inquired much before, but now he learned that Fei Xin was married, though his Dao companion had passed away long ago.
"Junior Brother Xiao, this is my son, Fei Ming. I ask for your continued care, Junior Brother."
"Greetings, Martial Uncle!"
Fei Ming had the appearance of a middle-aged man, looking even older than Xiao Fei, who had taken a youth-preserving pill. His cultivation had reached the early Foundation Establishment stage.
Fei Xin had failed to break through to the Golden Core stage and had limited lifespan remaining. At this point in life, people often paid more attention to the growth of their descendants.
By bringing his son and grandson, he naturally hoped to cling to Xiao Fei's coattails and receive some care from Xiao Fei after his death.
"Not bad! Young and promising. On this first meeting, I shall give you a gift."
Xiao Fei said with an air of aged wisdom, and pulled out a spiritual artifact from his storage bag to give to Fei Ming.
"Senior Brother Fei, I entrust all matters regarding the selection of the trading company's location and its opening to you. These are the initial supplies."
Even the shop's location and other details had not yet been finalized. Xiao Fei handed a storage bag of pills to Fei Xin to handle.
He himself intended to be a hands-off manager, as he needed to make more contributions to the cultivation world within his limited lifespan.
Fei Xin accepted Xiao Fei's supplies and led his team towards Xingyue City.
His lifespan was limited, and further progress in cultivation was hopeless. Now, he could only wholeheartedly help Xiao Fei succeed so that his descendants could receive better care.
Ideally, both parties would be on the same boat, sharing common interests.
After entrusting the task to Fei Xin, Xiao Fei returned to his cave dwelling to continue researching divine abilities and spells.
Three months later, Fei Xin sent a message back, stating that the trading company had opened and inviting him to preside over the grand opening ceremony.
At this point, Xiao Fei had to show his face to let people know that his shop was backed by a Golden Core expert.
The strongest person in the entire Lu Kingdom was only at the early Nascent Soul stage and rarely ventured out. A Golden Core expert was sufficient to oversee a region.
Xiao Fei felt that he could enlist two more people to increase his shop's standing.
That day, he contacted Huang Feifei and Zhu Yu.
Huang Feifei arrived looking flattered, having specifically dressed up before coming.
In the past, she had risked her life to earn resources, leaving many scars on her body.
After returning from the Qin Kingdom, Xiao Fei had given her many pills for healing and scar removal.
She had now been completely rejuvenated, comparable to a 20-year-old young woman.
Although Zhu Yu appeared reluctant, he was still persuaded by Xiao Fei to come along, wearing a sullen expression as if he were a wronged little wife.
"Little Yu'er, don't pull a long face. You just need to show up. After it's done, I'll give you a bottle of White Jade Cream."
Xiao Fei took out a jade box and opened the lid. Inside was a white paste that emitted a faint fragrance.
"This is my latest product, which can nourish the skin, making it as delicate and supple as a baby's."
"Why would a rough fellow like me use this stuff!" Zhu Yu looked disdainful.
Xiao Fei knew he would act tough, and added:
"I know you definitely won't use it, but you can take it back to give to relatives or friends."
This fellow was just being obstinate. He cherished his face dearly, yet refused to admit it, insisting he was a man of substance, not reliant on looks.
"Fine, I'll accompany you on this trip."
The three of them immediately set off for Xingyue City.
Returning to Xingyue City once more, all three were filled with emotion.
When they had lived in Xingyue City years ago, they were the weakest Qi Refining cultivators. At that time, they lacked strength and background, and even ordinary family cultivators were figures they looked up to.
Now, revisiting the old place, the patriarchs of those families had to bow and scrape, offering smiles in their presence.
The location of the new shop was rather clever. Fei Xin had directly opened the shop opposite the Ten Thousand Treasures Trading Company, clearly intending to compete for business with them.
"Junior Brother, rest assured. The Ten Thousand Treasures Trading Company has been operating for many years, enjoys a high reputation throughout the cultivation world, and is deeply trusted by the vast majority of cultivators."
Fei Xin explained the location choice to Xiao Fei with considerable confidence.
"By directly targeting the Ten Thousand Treasures Trading Company as our competitor, we gain an advantage regardless of victory or defeat.
Even if we lose, we will merely be slightly inferior to the Ten Thousand Treasures Trading Company, but we will quickly climb to second place in the industry."
Xiao Fei was quite satisfied with Fei Xin's strategy, proving himself to be an old hand.
In business competition, it was often the case that when the leader and the second-place fought, the third-place perished, while both the leader and the second-place benefited.
"Junior Brother, our shop hasn't been named yet. Please give it a name."
Xiao Fei pondered for a moment. Since he intended to target the Ten Thousand Treasures Trading Company, the name should ideally be similar.
"Let's call it the Treasure Pavilion!"
"Excellent! I'll arrange for someone to make the plaque right away."
The opening of a new shop required a great many preparatory tasks, which were very complicated.
For instance, in terms of supply, the large pile of pills Xiao Fei had produced was far from enough, and the variety was too monotonous.
Furthermore, the grade of the pills refined by Xiao Fei was too high; they were all second-grade pills, with many of them being medium and high grade. Here, they could almost be considered treasures of the shop.
Therefore, Fei Xin mobilized the network of Grand Master Guang Ling's lineage and obtained many low-grade, common varieties from the Dan Xin Sect and the other two sects to supplement them.
In addition, Fei Xin organized a trade caravan to transport goods from neighboring countries for sale.
As long as they could transport spiritual items from other countries to the Lu Kingdom, they could earn nearly double the profit.
However, this kind of work was not for everyone. Cultivators who robbed for treasures in the cultivation world were quite rampant, and those with insufficient strength could lose their lives.
The spiritual items produced from Xiao Fei's space accounted for only a small portion of the shop's total merchandise.
This also had its advantages; at least no one would suspect him.
As a Golden Core stage alchemist, it was normal for him to occasionally provide a batch of high-grade pills to the shop, wasn't it?