Chapter 189: Greedy Bubble

"You've caught a scent of business opportunity? What do you mean?" Li Fan asked, looking at Jiao Xiuyuan with interest.

Jiao Xiuyuan looked smug. "It's like some people instinctively pursue advantages and avoid harm. Since childhood, I, Jiao Xiuyuan, have been able to effortlessly find the path to immense profits amidst countless complex and useless pieces of information! This is an instinct, a gift. Others can only envy it!"

He glanced at Li Fan again and said, "The moment you left just now, an immense sense of loss welled up inside me. It felt as if I was watching a huge pile of contribution points slip away from me, and my heart was bleeding! Therefore, I'm certain that what you said is true!" Jiao Xiuyuan concluded.

Li Fan was a little surprised, not expecting him to truly possess such a talent. However, recalling his previous encounters with Jiao Xiuyuan, Li Fan slowly nodded. "In that case, what price are you prepared to offer?"

Jiao Xiuyuan pondered for a moment, then held up three fingers. "What does that mean? Three thousand contribution points?" Li Fan watched for a moment, unable to grasp its meaning, and asked, puzzled.

Jiao Xiuyuan said in a deep voice, "Thirty percent. Thirty percent of the profit generated by the information you provide."

Li Fan narrowed his eyes, somewhat incredulous. "That generous?"

Jiao Xiuyuan smiled. "After all, you're not a businessman, so you don't understand the true value of timely, groundbreaking information. Under specific circumstances, a single piece of information can yield hundreds or even thousands of times the profit. Why wouldn't one pay a thirty percent price to gain a hundred or a thousand times the profit?" Jiao Xiuyuan's eyes gleamed with shrewdness.

Li Fan couldn't help but applaud. "What you say is true, but words alone are unreliable. How can I ensure you won't go back on your word later?"

Jiao Xiuyuan chuckled dismissively. "It seems you truly don't understand the way of business. Of course, business has its rules." He pulled out a shimmering golden foil from somewhere, and using his hand as a pen, quickly wrote down the terms of agreement on it. After showing it to Li Fan for confirmation, he unhesitatingly wrote his own name.

"Fellow Daoist, please!" He handed the foil to Li Fan.

Li Fan read it carefully again, then finally wrote down the name of his clone: Lin Fan.

The golden foil instantly split into three parts. Two flew towards Jiao Xiuyuan and Li Fan, respectively, while the third soared into the sky, its final destination unknown. A moment later, Li Fan felt an inexplicable force descend upon his clone. This force restricted and bound the clone, compelling it to fulfill the terms written on the golden foil. It was as if it had become the clone's own will, with no room for regret. Instead, it would actively work to complete the agreement.

"A power that alters mental perception..." The clone was startled by the inexplicable change within its mind. He immediately sensed that Li Fan's true self, located within the Heavenly Profound Mirror, remained unaffected.

"The Heaven-Stealing, Sun-Shifting Art is truly marvelous." Li Fan breathed a sigh of relief and praised inwardly.

On the clone's side, compelled by the power of the golden foil, it immediately began to recount the news: the Spirit Mist Herb Island had likely been attacked by the beastly Dragon Whale, and all the Spirit Mist Herbs on the island were destroyed.

"The Spirit Mist Herb Island destroyed?" Hearing this, Jiao Xiuyuan's eyes became incredibly greedy. "Wait, Fellow Daoist, let me investigate first!" With that, he closed his eyes.

After a while, he suddenly opened his eyes. "The information is correct!" He paced back and forth excitedly. "Spirit Mist Island in the Cloud Sea is one of the largest cultivation grounds for Spirit Mist Herbs. At least one-fifth of the Myriad Immortals Alliance's Spirit Mist Herbs originate from there. Now that all the Spirit Mist Herbs on the island have been destroyed, their price is bound to skyrocket in a short period. Consequently, the prices of by-products like Concealment Talismans will also surge."

Suddenly, he paused, a slight frown on his brow. "But then again, these are only used by cultivators from Foundation Establishment to Golden Core stages, and they are also cultivated elsewhere. Even if the price rises, it would probably only increase by about half at most. Compared to the business opportunity I instinctively sensed, this is far too small. Where exactly is the problem?" After pondering for a long time, he still couldn't find the answer. Jiao Xiuyuan instantly became somewhat agitated. An unsettling aura began to emanate from him.

Listening to Jiao Xiuyuan's murmuring, Li Fan also seemed to be deep in thought. Various anecdotes he'd heard before crossing over; the small group led by He Zhenghao rubbing their hands together, planning to make a fortune from this opportunity; the surge in Spirit Mist Herb prices quickly leading to a wave of followers... All these clues connected, and Li Fan suddenly understood. He patted Jiao Xiuyuan's shoulder and said in a deep voice, "This business opportunity isn't about the Spirit Mist Herbs, but about people!"

Jiao Xiuyuan was slightly taken aback, his eyes initially filled with a hint of confusion. Then he instantly cleared his mind and exclaimed joyfully, "Fellow Daoist, your words have awakened me! Yes, the profit, dozens of times over, lies in people, not in the herbs!"

While enlightening Jiao Xiuyuan, Li Fan's true self was also purchasing Spirit Mist Herbs within the Heavenly Profound Mirror. Unfortunately, after some expenditures, his true self only had a little over two thousand contribution points left, which was barely better than nothing.

Jiao Xiuyuan's demeanor changed at this moment, no longer appearing humble, but rather exuding an inexplicable dominance. "To profit from others, I must be the dealer." He added, "As the saying goes, 'one must risk the bait to catch the wolf.'" He made no apparent move, yet in an instant, Li Fan saw the price of Spirit Mist Herbs begin to skyrocket at a visible pace. In a flash, the price of Spirit Mist Herbs surged to 22 points.

"The Thousand Mile Hall, spread throughout the cultivation world..." Li Fan's eyelids twitched. This Jiao Xiuyuan truly wasn't exaggerating.

And at this moment, Jiao Xiuyuan's actions had only just begun. "Since I am the dealer, it's time to invite all guests to take their seats," he uttered with a low chuckle. Following that, he seemed to fall into a deep sleep, completely motionless. For a moment, the Thousand Mile Hall fell silent.

Li Fan, however, knew exactly what he was doing. Jiao Xiuyuan was undoubtedly using his countless puppets scattered throughout the cultivation world to vigorously spread the news of the Spirit Mist Herb Island's destruction. The situation needed time to ferment, so all he had to do was wait patiently.

Just then, He Zhenghao's exceedingly excited message arrived belatedly. "Fellow Daoist Li Fan! Do you remember when I told you I'd help you make a fortune?! Now's your chance! I've received definite news: the island where Spirit Mist Herbs are cultivated was attacked by a foreign beast, and all the Spirit Mist Herbs on it have been destroyed. The price of Spirit Mist Herbs is definitely going to skyrocket! If you don't believe me, look: in a short time, it's already risen from 18 to 22 points! But it doesn't matter, it's definitely going to rise further! Don't miss this opportunity, Fellow Daoist, act quickly!"

A faint, enigmatic smile appeared on Li Fan's lips as he quickly replied, "Thank you, Fellow Daoist He. I've already bought in with my entire position."

When the bubble descends, everyone knows it will burst with a single poke. Yet, in the face of immense profits, everyone loses their reason and throws caution to the wind. As Jiao Xiuyuan's countless puppets began to exert their influence, a piece of news started spreading throughout the cultivation world. It spread wider and wider, gradually becoming known to everyone. The price of Spirit Mist Herbs was going to rise.

And so, the bubble began its first expansion.