Chapter 29: The Old Ancestor? I’ll Just Go Do Eight Hundred Years of Hard Labor

Although Xu Gu had been living in this world for two years, most of that time had been spent as a demonic cultivator in remote mountains and barren ridges.

His understanding of the world naturally couldn’t compare to people like Huan Caiyi and the others.

Especially when it came to everyday common sense.

For example, he’d never even heard before that Zhao Gully was that big.

But when it came to the Don’t-Earn-Money Commerce Association, he actually knew quite a bit.

The Don’t-Earn-Money Commerce Association was the largest merchant guild on the Tianxuan Continent. The powers behind it were complicated and mysterious, and the wealth they controlled was beyond counting.

Any transaction you wanted could be handled through them.

As long as you had enough spirit stones, you could not only buy divine weapons and celestial fruits, you could even spend a day as the Great Shang Emperor, have lunch with the Western Buddha Lord, or “dual cultivate the Great Dao through the night” with the Sect Master of the Hehuan Sect, and so on.

And if someone happened to owe the Don’t-Earn-Money Commerce Association a debt, or got clever and intentionally damaged their property, they would soon discover that lightning tribulation didn’t strike only those undergoing tribulation.

Rumor had it that, in the beginning, the Association’s advertised motto was:

“Doing business without making money, just making friends.”

Later, they made so much money, and made it so fast, that it became impossible to hide.

When everyone saw how rich they’d become, no one believed that motto anymore.

So the Association changed their slogan to:

“We don’t take the last coin.”

The idea was that they’d give the customer some benefit and earn a bit less themselves.

But the Don’t-Earn-Money Commerce Association’s rate of profit was just too terrifying.

They soon became so rich it scared people.

Everyone was convinced that what they really meant was:
“We won’t stop until you’ve only got your last coin left.”

In the end, as the Association grew more and more astonishingly wealthy, every slogan they came up with turned into a joke, deeply misunderstood by all their customers.

Helpless, they changed the motto back to the original:

“Doing business without making money, just making friends.”

But it no longer felt anything like it had at the beginning.

No matter how the Don’t-Earn-Money Commerce Association tried to explain, the whole world firmly believed one thing:

If you did business with them, there was absolutely no way you’d ever make any money—
Not as their peer, not as their partner, not even as their customer.

In Xu Gu’s impression, one of the big reasons the Demonic Abyss had become so impoverished and dilapidated was closely related to this very Association.

The most famous incident had taken place over a thousand years ago.

A few demonic old ancestors had wanted to rob a batch of supreme treasures, so they went to the Don’t-Earn-Money Commerce Association and bought a new line of magic tools. Since they didn’t have the cash, they chose to take out a loan and pay in installments.

In the end, that robbery went down in history as a huge success.

It was known as the “Millennial Spirit Stone Heist” in the annals.

Those demonic old ancestors were overjoyed and ecstatic.

They never dreamed it could go so smoothly. They’d seized a mountain of spirit stones—enough, in their minds, to last several lifetimes.

Then, after they finished paying back the Association’s loan…

Every demonic power they belonged to announced bankruptcy.

Clack!

A strange sound snapped Xu Gu’s thoughts back to the present.

“It’s your turn to play.”

Huan Caiyi urged him on.

Before they started, she hadn’t wanted to play at all and kept trying to drag Xu Gu out to the deck to look for excitement. Now she was completely hooked.

As she played, she muttered with excitement,

“How has something this fun never appeared before? Senior Brother, did you invent these cards?”

Xu Gu grunted in acknowledgment, but his eyes weren’t on her.

They were on a group of people ahead of the flying boat.

They were dressed in long golden robes, shining like walking blocks of gold.

The sound from earlier had come from them.

Their faces were expressionless.

On their gold robes, five dazzling, multicolored characters were written:

Don’t-Earn-Money Commerce.

These people were staff of the Don’t-Earn-Money Commerce Association.

One man stepped out from among them, carrying a lantern-shaped magic tool that shone with a ghostly light and radiated an ancient, mysterious aura.

He lifted it and swept it slowly across the interior of the flying boat.

“What’s that?”

Among the two sides who had just shaken hands and made peace, some of the less experienced folk were puzzled.

Not only were they confused, Xu Gu was too.

“They’re assessing the damage.”

Huan Caiyi understood this stuff better and explained quietly to Xu Gu:

“You’re not allowed to fight on a flying boat.

“If you damage the boat, you have to pay for it.

“The lantern he’s holding is a special secret treasure called the ‘Damage-Fixing Lantern’.

“Any damage that can’t be seen by the naked eye will show clearly when it’s shined on.”

Xu Gu frowned slightly.

He could understand paying for damages to the flying boat.

But “using a lantern to see damage you can’t see with the naked eye”—now that he didn’t quite follow.

If the naked eye can’t see it, does it count as damage?

On the boat, some people acted like they’d seen this all a thousand times before. Others, like Xu Gu, were full of questions.

The people from both sides who’d just been fighting all went pale.

Their expressions grew grim.

After a short while,

All the Association staff stopped their work.

One of them addressed the two Deity Transformation old ancestors from the opposing sides.

“Physical damage totals three hundred and seventy-eight points, spiritual damage totals…”

He rattled off a long string of numbers.

“…psychological damage caused to staff and passengers totals…”

Just the damage report itself was several meters long.

Quite a few people on both sides stared blankly, dumbstruck.

They had never seen anything like this.

Finally, the tally came out.

“The two sides together only need to pay eighteen million seven hundred thousand spirit stones.

“Would you like to pay in full now, pay in installments, or work it off?”

The Association representative smiled politely at the two old ancestors.

“You said… eighteen million seven hundred thousand?” someone asked in disbelief.

“Eighteen million? Not eighteen thousand?”

“Yes, eighteen million seven hundred thousand spirit stones.”

The representative repeated calmly.

Whoosh.

At that number, everyone from both factions went stiff.

Some were furious, some tore up in despair.

They’d known fighting on or near a flying boat and causing damage meant compensation.

So both sides had been especially careful, trying not to hit the ship.

Who could have imagined they’d still have to pay this much?

The bystanders’ expressions shifted as well.

Some were shocked; some just looked like they were enjoying the show.

“We’re not paying. What can you do about it?”

The two factions looked at their numbers and suddenly felt quite bold.

Boom!

Several Deity Transformation experts and one Fusion-stage cultivator descended from the sky, releasing an overwhelming pressure that blotted out the heavens.

The two factions who’d been shouting suddenly went silent, their faces as white as paper.

“Don’t be afraid, kids.

“With us here, even if the sky falls, it won’t matter.”

The Deity Transformation old ancestors on both sides exchanged a look and smiled.

They seemed utterly unconcerned by the powerful figures of the Don’t-Earn-Money Commerce Association.

Hands clasped behind their backs, they stood proudly, gazing at the sky with imposing momentum.

“It’s just a small fee.

“As your old ancestor, I’ll go work eight hundred years in the mines. That’ll cover it.”

And so, the two Deity Transformation old friends who had just reunited were escorted off the flying boat by the Association staff and sent to one of the nearby Don’t-Earn-Money spirit stone mines.

“Waaah!”

The members of both factions stared blankly for a moment, then started crying even harder.

How many eight-hundred-year stretches does a Deity Transformation cultivator get in one lifetime?

What clan’s Deity Transformation old ancestor wasn’t supposed to roam free, sitting in grand halls and overseeing an entire region?

Who was supposed to go dig spirit stones in a mine for eight hundred years?

“We won’t accept this! We want to appeal! We’ll go to the imperial court and sue the Don’t-Earn-Money Commerce Association!”

Someone in the crowd shouted angrily.

“Don’t!”

The elders of both factions turned pale and rushed to stop them.

“We don’t want to lose a few more old ancestors.”

Appeal?

You might win.

But you’d definitely pay.

At that point, their entire family might be squeezed by the Association until they were stripped bare.

Who knew how many more old ancestors they’d have to send off to the mines to work it off?

Some of the less worldly passengers were scared white by all of this.

They quickly yanked their hands off the tables and didn’t even dare lean back in their chairs, afraid that any pressure might “damage” the flying boat.

“So overbearing…”

Xu Gu was lost in his shock, his eyes burning.

This Don’t-Earn-Money Commerce Association was delightfully demonic.

Now this was what true demonic style looked like.

Compared to them, the Demonic Abyss really was just a slum.

Honestly, this Association suited his taste perfectly.

Xu Gu was already thinking that once he became the Demonic Lord and led the demonic path to glory, he might just bring the Don’t-Earn-Money Commerce Association under his banner.

“Don’t worry, the Don’t-Earn-Money Commerce Association is still very reasonable.

“As long as you don’t fight on the flying boat and only use it normally, even if you literally dismantle the entire ship, it’s fine.”

Huan Caiyi saw his shaken expression and assumed he’d been frightened.

She quickly tried to comfort him.

“So reasonable? That’s really a shame.”

Xu Gu shook his head, looking genuinely disappointed.

“Huh?”

Huan Caiyi stared at him in shock.

Wasn’t that a good thing?

Why did he sound so disappointed?

(End of this chapter)