lpffa Chapter 239 - 183: A Tentacle of Civilization
Chapter 239 - 183: A Tentacle of Civilization
Lechuan, naturally, had never heard of such a thing. Lotteries were a concept that had only become widespread in recent years during Fang Qingyuan’s past life. The Cultivation Realm here simply hadn’t evolved to that point yet.
Seeing Lechuan’s confusion, Fang Qingyuan explained the entire concept, and Lechuan quickly understood.
It was essentially a zero-sum game; if some people lost, others would naturally win. Since the Southern Border Beast Taming Sect would be launching and operating it, it was only natural for them to take a cut of the Spirit Stones.
This was a new industry, one that wouldn’t compete for profits with existing sectors. Naturally, no one would object. If Fang Qingyuan had tried to meddle in traditional industries like Spirit Beasts, Magical Artifacts, or Talismans, he would have likely faced significant resistance.
After processing this information, Lechuan asked:
"This lottery you speak of seems to rely purely on luck. But in the Cultivation Realm, cultivation techniques for divination are not unheard of, and many people know rituals and arts to temporarily boost their own good fortune. In that case, won’t you just end up handing free Spirit Stones to these Cultivators?"
Lechuan’s point was valid, and it was something Fang Qingyuan had already considered. He believed that as long as the system was fair, if people won, it would be through their own abilities. Besides, he had no intention of letting such Cultivators run rampant; he would certainly have countermeasures in place.
"I envision each ticket being redeemable for a fixed amount of Spirit Stones. There won’t be a situation where a jackpot of dozens of Top-grade Spirit Stones is swept up by a single person."
"That way, Cultivators who use rituals to boost their luck will discover that the Spirit Stones they win are worth less than the cost of the ritual’s materials. They naturally won’t engage in a business that loses them money."
"As for the Cultivators skilled in divination, I’ve decided to employ Magical Artifacts that counter scrying and probing. If they can somehow bypass the artifacts’ interference and guess correctly, well, I’ll have nothing more to say."
"But such Cultivators are typically at the Golden Core realm, and divination consumes Innate Primordial Qi. I doubt they’d be willing to expend it, let alone for such a small amount of Spirit Stones."
Fang Qingyuan fluently laid out his various countermeasures while Lechuan listened in silence. When Fang Qingyuan had finished, Lechuan said:
"It seems you already have a solid plan. Since you’ve thought it through so carefully, I’ll support you. Just tell me what you need me to do."
Seeing Lechuan declare his support, Fang Qingyuan’s face lit up with joy. It was a relief that his master hadn’t reprimanded him for being unorthodox and was even encouraging him to try. Lechuan’s approval was the greatest support he could ask for.
But it would be a waste not to make use of a Golden Core Cultivator. Thus, Fang Qingyuan said:
"Master, you don’t need to do much. I just need you to lend your presence and support."
...
「Half a month later.」
A Tier Three Floating Giant Ship slowly came to a stop in the sky above the Celestial Gate Mountain Pier. A short while later, a group of people began to file out.
Among them, a party of a dozen or so Cultivators was the most conspicuous. Each was dressed in revealing attire: the men wore only shorts, while the women added a bandeau top. They had a distinctly Exotic Realm flair.
These Cultivators were accompanied by numerous Spirit Beasts, the majority of which were enormous toads.
Once the group of Cultivators had disembarked from the Floating Giant Ship, Fang Qingyuan led a welcoming party forward.
"Senior Sister Jingyu, we meet again."
Situ Jingyu was the most striking among the Cultivators from the Earth Cave Fire Domain. She looked at Fang Qingyuan and said:
"Why are you the one greeting us? Aren’t you supposed to be cultivating on Yuanling Mountain?"
Situ Jingyu didn’t yet know that Fang Qingyuan was now the Elder of the Miscellaneous Affairs Peak. She had spent the entire past month on a Flying Boat, completely cut off from news of the outside world.
In response to Situ Jingyu’s question, Fang Qingyuan gave her a mysterious smile. He then motioned for the disciples from the Ministry of Affairs behind him to come forward and present various refreshments. Even the toad Spirit Beasts were treated to a feast of delicious insects.
"You should call me Elder Fang now, Senior Sister Situ."
"You? An Elder? What kind of potion did you slip your master?"
Situ Jingyu was stunned. She never imagined that in the mere half a year since they had last met, Fang Qingyuan had become an Elder of the Southern Border Beast Taming Sect. In terms of status, he now outranked her own master.
’I’m already at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment and I’m still not an Elder. And speaking of my master, he’s been an Elder for years now. It’s about time I took his place.’
’Hmph. We Cultivators are born to stand between heaven and earth; how can I be content to languish under someone else? I’ll bring it up with Master as soon as I get back. It’s not like he can beat me anymore, anyway.’
Fang Qingyuan, oblivious to Situ Jingyu’s inner thoughts, began leading her toward the Marketplace. As they walked, he asked:
"Senior Sister, I’ve had a new Cultivation Cave Mansion built for you all near the edge of the Marketplace. It should be large enough to house everyone. Please go take a look first. If you’re not satisfied with anything, just let me know."
Fang Qingyuan had built a total of five new Cultivation Cave Mansions on the outskirts of the Marketplace, specifically to accommodate the Cultivators who had come to lend their aid.
Normally, Fang Qingyuan would have built these cave mansions on Celestial Gate Mountain itself. However, after so many years of development, there was no good land left; it had all been claimed by other disciples long ago.
Fang Qingyuan couldn’t just force the disciples to vacate their land, and acquiring it through compensation would have been prohibitively expensive in terms of Spirit Stones. It was far better to build anew on the outskirts of the Marketplace. That way, once these guest Cultivators left, the cave mansions could be sold off, generating extra income for the sect. It was a plan that killed several birds with one stone.
Situ Jingyu nodded slightly. She wasn’t particular about her accommodations. As a Body Cultivator, she had low requirements for the quality of a Spiritual Land.
The grand procession appeared on the edge of the Celestial Gate Mountain Marketplace, drawing a crowd of onlookers. Those in the know naturally recognized Fang Qingyuan, the new Elder. The arrival of Situ Jingyu and the other Cultivators from the Exotic Realm sparked a great deal of speculation.
Ever since Zhao Liangde’s injury and Fang Qingyuan’s promotion, the outside world’s perception of the Southern Border Beast Taming Sect had subtly shifted. While nothing was said openly, Fang Qingyuan could sense that the sect’s prestige was waning.
Thus, Fang Qingyuan used this opportunity to have Situ Jingyu and her group make a grand appearance before the Marketplace as a show of force. This was just the beginning; he planned to do the same with the other four families and the Huo Family from Zongshan.
That was why Fang Qingyuan had deliberately taken a slight detour, leading Situ Jingyu’s party on a slow walk along the edge of the Marketplace.
"Get your lottery tickets! One Spirit Stone for a ten-thousand-fold return! Brought to you by the Southern Border Beast Taming Sect, with a guaranteed reputation! Even the Lechuan Ancestor tried it and gave it his seal of approval!"
The shouts immediately reached Situ Jingyu’s ears. Though she didn’t understand the words, she instinctively glanced at Fang Qingyuan. Her intuition told her this was undoubtedly his doing.
Meeting Situ Jingyu’s gaze, Fang Qingyuan felt a flicker of pride. He walked right up to the lottery stall and said to the Cultivator inside:
"Give me two tickets."
The Cultivator in the lottery stall beamed upon seeing Fang Qingyuan. He took out two blank pieces of Talisman Paper and asked:
"Senior, which symbols would you like to choose? Pick seven of the Twelve Primordial Beasts, in any order you like. If the final result matches your selection, you’ll hit the jackpot!"
Fang Qingyuan casually chose seven Primordial Beasts, arranging them as he pleased. Then he had Situ Jingyu try her hand as well.
After a curious Situ Jingyu made her selection, the stall owner wrote down the sequence of Primordial Beasts they had chosen. He then meticulously copied a line of symbols and a serial number from the Talisman Paper before finally handing it to Fang Qingyuan and recording the information for his own records.
"Senior, you can claim your prize with this ticket in one month. Don’t lose it! You must keep it safe, or it’ll be a hassle if the Beast Taming Sect won’t honor it."
Fang Qingyuan nodded, handed the stall owner two Low-grade Spirit Stones, then pressed both tickets into Situ Jingyu’s hand before leading her away.
Once they were a short distance away, Situ Jingyu asked curiously:
"With just this, you can really get ten thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones back in a month?"
"You’d have to win first," Fang Qingyuan explained casually, pointing to the lottery ticket in Situ Jingyu’s hand. "It’s not that easy."
"Choosing seven symbols out of twelve... statistically, your chances of winning are minuscule. You could buy more, but it would ultimately be a losing proposition. This lottery is just meant to give low-level Cultivators a chance to change their fortunes. Otherwise, they might go their whole lives without ever seeing ten thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones."
Situ Jingyu grew thoughtful. Then she asked:
"Aren’t you afraid of cheaters? Those Cultivators who specialize in talisman making and artifact refining have all sorts of tricks. A simple piece of Talisman Paper like this could be easily forged."
Fang Qingyuan said with a shrug:
"The Talisman Paper is only meant to stop unskilled, low-level Cultivators from forging them, and they’re the main ones buying tickets anyway. A truly powerful Cultivator wouldn’t risk offending our Beast Taming Sect over a mere ten thousand Low-grade Spirit Stones. You know, we don’t make idle threats. We really will kill people."
"Besides, the Talisman Paper might be easy to forge, but the unique serial number on it isn’t. See these symbols? Only I can understand them. The symbols on every ticket are different. Even if someone makes a perfect forgery of the Talisman Paper, if the symbols don’t match, it’s a fake. And in that case, we will launch a full investigation."
Situ Jingyu stared at the mysterious symbols on the Talisman Paper in her hand. She couldn’t understand them, but her intuition screamed that they were not to be trifled with.
But as Fang Qingyuan looked at those symbols, he was already performing a calculation in his head. He was using the high-school-level mathematical notation inscribed on the Talisman Paper, plugging in the seven chosen symbols as variables. If the final result of his calculation didn’t match the one the stall owner had copied down, the ticket was a fake.
When the time came, no matter how sophisticated the forgery, he would be able to spot it in a single glance. The Talisman Paper itself was completely irrelevant. The more effort a forger put into replicating it, the more laughable their attempt would be.
This was his anti-counterfeiting measure: a mere sliver of a great, other-worldly civilization, the likes of which the Cultivators of this realm had never seen.