Chapter 192: One Word Settles the Storm

In his twelfth life, Li Fan’s net worth once surpassed a million contribution points, but he had diligently earned that through years of spiritual cultivation at Bright Moon Palace.

While not literally "blood and sweat" money, it was certainly hard-earned.

This was a stark contrast to his current situation, where he had invested almost nothing. By simply leveraging the opportunity to fuel speculation, he had amassed 650,000 contribution points in the blink of an eye.

The ease with which he acquired such a large sum left Li Fan with an unsettling sense of unreality.

Li Fan composed himself and observed He Zhenghao and Jiao Xiuyuan, who remained consumed by fervent greed. Both his main body and clone simultaneously spoke up to caution them.

"Cease now, Fellow Daoist He!""Cease now, Fellow Daoist Jiao!"

"You've earned more than enough; it's still not too late to stop!"

Despite being in different locations, their responses were remarkably similar.

"Stop now? Impossible! This surge in Spirit Mist Grass prices has only just begun!"

"The destruction of those cultivation grounds indicates that a major player has truly entered the market! Three hundred contribution points aren't the peak; they're just the beginning! Fellow Daoist, do not mislead yourself!" He Zhenghao analyzed precisely, utterly dismissing Li Fan's advice.

"Not enough, not enough, still not enough! The opportunity hasn't run out; let's wait a bit longer!" Although Jiao Xiuyuan was somewhat more rational, he remained consumed by avarice, hoping to earn even more.

Observing their demeanor, Li Fan realized that they were beyond anyone's persuasion.

"Good advice is wasted on those intent on self-destruction," he mused. "I wonder how many more deluded cultivators will lose everything and shatter their Dao hearts after this."

Li Fan sighed inwardly.

The Spirit Mist Grass price bubble burst much faster than Li Fan had anticipated.

It also caught the vast majority of fervent cultivators completely off guard.

As the price of Spirit Mist Grass soared, breaking the 350-point mark and seemingly on its way to surpassing 400 points, all cultivators scrambling to purchase Spirit Mist Grass before the Sky Profound Mirror suddenly heard the slightly mechanical, cold voice of the Sky Profound Mirror simultaneously in their minds.

"Due to significant and abnormal fluctuations in Spirit Mist Grass prices over recent days, and to ensure the stable and harmonious development of the Myriad Immortal Alliance, the following announcement is hereby made:

"Three months ago, the Myriad Immortal Alliance discovered a sealed grotto-heaven. This grotto-heaven is immensely vast, boasts exceptionally high wood-attribute spiritual energy, and is incredibly rich in various spiritual plants and herbs.

"According to rough estimates, the annual yield of Spirit Mist Grass from this grotto-heaven alone is approximately ten million plants.

"This volume can fully satisfy all production and consumption demands within the Alliance."

Cultivators no longer paid attention to the rest of the Sky Profound Mirror's announcement.

Their expressions froze the moment they heard that the annual output of Spirit Mist Grass amounted to ten million plants.

Boundless terror then instantly descended, gripping their minds.

Although rumors had circulated earlier about the incredibly high output of that wood-attribute grotto-heaven, amidst the frantic surge in Spirit Mist Grass prices, no one had been willing to believe those rumors.

They preferred to believe it was a cunning ploy released by those with ulterior motives to disrupt the market.

They refused to acknowledge the truth of the news.

Now, however, it was different.

Because the one delivering this news was the Sky Profound Mirror itself.

As the very foundation of the Myriad Immortal Alliance and the central platform for all resource exchange, no one would ever doubt the words of the Sky Profound Mirror.

Consequently, once the Sky Profound Mirror's announcement was made, all cultivators felt as though they had been struck by lightning.

Only one thought remained in their minds: Get out as fast as possible.

Minimize losses as much as possible.

But...

All cultivators knew that the price of Spirit Mist Grass had completely collapsed.

Everyone wanted to sell their Spirit Mist Grass.

Yet, no one was willing to buy.

The final straw that broke the camel's back was the Sky Profound Mirror directly announcing a precise, standardized buy-back price.

Four contribution points per plant.

Cultivators attempted to activate their privileges to sell to the Sky Profound Mirror at the real-time market price.

However, they discovered the Sky Profound Mirror refused to buy back.

Consequently, Li Fan witnessed an unforgettable scene.

The price of Spirit Mist Grass plummeted like a waterfall.

The numbers rapidly transformed, dropping from three digits to two.

Then from two digits to one.

In mere moments, barely a dozen breaths, the price of Spirit Mist Grass plummeted from nearly four hundred points to four.

It instantly lost ninety-nine percent of its value.

Inside the Thousand Miles Hall, Jiao Xiuyuan's face was blank, a contorted expression frozen upon it.

"I, Jiao Xiuyuan, never make a loss in busi—"

After painfully forcing out a few words, cracks appeared on his body, and his life aura rapidly faded.

In an instant, Jiao Xiuyuan transformed from a living person into a withered, dilapidated piece of wood.

It crashed to the ground with a thud, shattering into several fragments.

"Fellow Daoist Jiao!" Li Fan couldn't help but "exclaim" in surprise, stepping forward to investigate.

"I'm... fi... ne."

Jiao Xiuyuan's gritting voice emerged from beneath the Thousand Miles Hall counter.

Another complete Jiao Xiuyuan crawled out from a pile of miscellaneous items beneath the counter, a smile more grotesque than a sob twisting his dark face.

"The business opportunity clearly hadn't run its course, yet it was cut short by a single pronouncement from the Sky Profound Mirror..."

"This time, I've suffered a terrible loss."

Li Fan also feigned a despondent expression. "I advised you to stop long ago, but you wouldn't listen."

"My thirty percent share of the profit has also vanished into thin air."

"If I had cashed out at three hundred points, or even at two hundred, it would have been an unimaginable profit..."

"Bang!"

The face of this newly emerged Jiao Xiuyuan instantly fractured with countless cracks again.

He then promptly shattered into countless fragments.

"You... don't say another word."

"Let me compose myself..."

Yet another Jiao Xiuyuan slowly crawled out from the miscellaneous items, his face etched with pain as if his heart was bleeding.

Witnessing this, Li Fan seemed to snap back to reality, his gaze darting between the scattered wooden fragments on the floor and Jiao Xiuyuan, an expression of shock on his face. "Fellow Daoist Jiao, are you... human?"

Changing the subject seemed to suit Jiao Xiuyuan's preferences.

He cleared his throat and waved a hand dismissively. "There's no need to panic, Fellow Daoist; of course, I'm human. It's simply that I cultivate the Myriad Puppetry Dao."

"The Myriad Puppetry Dao?" Li Fan's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Could it be that... all the Thousand Miles Halls throughout the cultivation world are your puppets, Fellow Daoist?" Li Fan asked, feigning ignorance.

"Haha, indeed. Business is challenging, so naturally, I handle everything myself. Every additional person hired means significantly more costs. Sometimes, expanding too broadly isn't necessarily a good thing!" Jiao Xiuyuan murmured weakly, lying back down.

"Just like this time, merely destroying so many puppets will cost me..."

Before he could finish, this puppet also exploded.

"Fellow Daoist, please, no more. Let me have some quiet first."

Jiao Xiuyuan's faint voice came from the bottom of the scattered items.

A communication talisman flew to Li Fan's front.

"Let's talk another time..."

Li Fan's clone tossed the communication talisman in his hand and quietly exited the Thousand Miles Hall.

Jiao Xiuyuan was not the only one to suffer a devastating blow.