Chapter 541: Hoarding and Living Unusually

Leaving aside Gao Yuan's shrewd calculations, the focus shifted back to He Zhenghao.

Feeling restless, he spent another ten days or so, finally managing to gather 100 million contribution points. Afterward, following Gao Yuan's advice, he quietly awaited Li Fan's next command.

This period, however, was quite agonizing. Because no matter how reasonable it sounded, it was still just Gao Yuan's personal speculation. As for what the Lord Envoy truly thought, who could truly say for sure? Perhaps he had decided to let He Zhenghao manage those 100 million contribution points?

Although outwardly, He Zhenghao maintained a calm expression, internally, his mind was a tangled mess of thoughts, and his heart pounded with apprehension. He was like a condemned prisoner about to face execution, agonizingly awaiting his final fate as time slowly passed. This truly allowed him to experience what ancient cultivators referred to as the "intrusion of inner demons."

Fortunately, He Zhenghao's luck was rather good. Just as he felt he could no longer endure, he suddenly sensed inexplicable fluctuations emanating from his storage ring. Overjoyed, He Zhenghao quickly composed himself, then promptly retrieved the metal figurine.

Placing the figurine on the table, He Zhenghao respectfully asked, "My Lord, do you need something from me?"

"Use the 100 million contribution points you've gathered to procure the materials on this list as soon as possible," Li Fan's voice stated from the metal figurine. "You don't necessarily have to purchase them from the Heavenly Profound Mirror. You can also prioritize, at your discretion, other items that are slightly flawed in quality but much lower in price."

"Before long, when the prices of these items rise, you can then sell them off."

After relaying the instructions, Li Fan's voice gradually faded. He Zhenghao's mind, however, was now a complete blank, as if struck by lightning.

"Gao Yuan was wrong!"

"The Lord Envoy truly intends to entrust these 100 million contribution points to me for management!"

After a brief moment of mental paralysis, He Zhenghao slowly regained his composure. But this time, the previous fear and helplessness were gone. Instead, he felt a strange mix of excitement and fervent energy. Although relying solely on his own abilities would certainly be insufficient, with the Lord's guidance, none of that would be an issue!

Investing, to put it plainly, is actually very simple. It's nothing more than information asymmetry. As long as you possess information others don't, then even an idiot could make money effortlessly!

He Zhenghao's body trembled slightly as he quickly scanned the list Li Fan had provided in his mind.

"Heavenly Healing Pills, Rage Powder, Killing Intent Madness Pills..."

"Standard Heavenly Gang Armor, Divine Might Thunder..."

"Hundred Battle Array Diagrams..."

The more He Zhenghao read, the more his brows furrowed, and his face filled with doubt. This was completely different from what he had expected. He Zhenghao had initially thought that Li Fan would instruct him to procure raw materials such as rare ores, spirit wood, or herbs. Given the Heavenly Profound Mirror's comprehensive oversight, the price fluctuations for such items wouldn't be too significant. At most, they would fluctuate by about twenty percent either way. Even if one unluckily bought at the peak, as long as they held onto the items long enough, they could wait until the price peaked again. If sold then, the loss would be minimal, just a small transaction fee. If their merit level was high enough, even the transaction fee loss could be negligible.

However, the materials on the list Li Fan provided this time were surprisingly all finished products. Furthermore, all of them were pills, magical artifacts, and array diagrams typically used in combat.

Pills were understandable; cultivators exploring sect ruins inevitably encountered dangers, so carrying some for emergencies was reasonable. But magical artifacts like Heavenly Gang Armor and Divine Might Thunder were useless to ordinary cultivators unless they were in a life-or-death battle. Not to mention the array diagrams. He Zhenghao searched the market's transaction records for these items and found them to be few and far between. They were practically ignored. Consequently, their prices had always been stable. Moreover, these were all items that could be mass-produced, so their inventory was likely enormous.

The prices of *these* items would rise?

Even though Li Fan had demonstrated his miraculous prophetic abilities several times before, He Zhenghao couldn't help but fall into deep doubt at this moment. Did he really have to buy these items in such large quantities? He Zhenghao immediately hesitated.

At this moment, however, Gao Yuan's words of warning echoed in his mind once again. "'For us, as subordinates, lacking ability isn't a problem. The most important thing is to be sufficiently obedient. Whatever the Lord tells us to do, we must complete it resolutely and without delay. Otherwise, with so many cultivators in Congyun Sea, and us not being extraordinary talents, why would the Lord favor us?'"

He Zhenghao gritted his teeth and made up his mind. "'Although I don't quite understand it, I'll just follow the Lord's instructions. Besides, these pills and magical artifacts are widely circulated. Whenever something cheap and useful is mentioned, they are the first things that come to mind. Even if the Lord's prophecy fails, I'm unlikely to suffer significant losses.'" He Zhenghao comforted himself with these thoughts.

Having composed himself, He Zhenghao dared not delay. He immediately began inquiring among his friends. He Zhenghao was now a hot commodity. As soon as word got out that he needed help, many cultivators eagerly offered their suggestions.

After contacting and comparing prices from over a dozen suppliers, He Zhenghao began his major procurement. With a major client seeking products that had accumulated significant inventory, these sellers naturally beamed with joy, and to quickly finalize the deal and prevent the buyer from changing his mind, they offered very favorable prices. Although 100 million contribution points was a substantial sum, when distributed among various types of pills and magical artifacts, it wasn't an overwhelming amount for each. Even slightly larger production workshops could meet He Zhenghao's requirements. Consequently, the procurement was completed with a speed that somewhat exceeded He Zhenghao's expectations.

After spending all 100 million of the gathered contribution points, and receiving a pile of seemingly useless "junk" in return, He Zhenghao felt a certain hollowness in his heart. A lingering sense of unreality spread through his mind.

Despite He Zhenghao's carefulness, his unusual activity still did not escape the notice of certain individuals. In the public's eye, He Zhenghao's every move represented more than just himself. Everyone knew he was Li Fan's confidant. It would be truly bizarre if such large-scale procurement wasn't at Li Fan's behest.

Could it be that this ancient Heavenly Dao Sect cultivator had divined something again? Would the prices of the materials He Zhenghao procured really rise? Many people were instantly tempted. However, with the tragic incident of the Puxian True Leaf Grass still fresh in mind, more cultivators, having learned their lesson, believed it was very likely Li Fan was employing old tricks again to deliberately inflate prices. They chose to wait and see.