108: The supervisor's "pledge of allegiance" and his insane money-making scheme

Zhenhai City, Third Defense Zone, secret room in the stone tower.

In the darkness before dawn, two spirit lamps flickered unsteadily, illuminating two faces with vastly different expressions.

Young Master Ling slumped in his chair, tightly gripping that yellowed merman skin. His face was as pale as paper, and cold sweat streamed down his forehead.

"This... how is this possible?"

His voice trembled as he pointed at the blood-red characters on the skin. "Under Zhenhai City... an ancient Devil Whale corpse is suppressed? We... we have been living on a corpse for three thousand years?"

"That is the reality."

Zhou Wannian remained indifferent, even finding the leisure to pour himself a cup of tea. "Furthermore, the goal of that transformed Yao Beast is to awaken this corpse. Once it succeeds, this city-protecting Formation will become a cage that traps us to our deaths."

"Then... why aren't we running?" Young Master Ling stood up abruptly.

"Run? Where would you run?"

Zhou Wannian sneered. "The entire city is under martial law, the teleportation array is restricted, and the sea routes are blockaded. If you run, you'll be executed as a deserter before you've even gone a mile. Don't forget, you are not just the Young City Master now, but also an 'Overseer'. There are plenty of people watching you."

Young Master Ling slumped back into his seat, his eyes filled with despair.

"Then, Old Man Han... what do you suggest we do?"

He now placed his only hope in the unfathomable old man before him.

"Find survival in the jaws of death."

Zhou Wannian set down his teacup, his gaze deep. "Since we cannot run, we must muddy the waters. It is easier to fish in troubled waters, and easier to survive in chaotic times."

"Young City Master, you need a 'talisman'."

"A talisman?"

"Yes. You need to convince the higher-ups of Zhenhai City that the Third Defense Zone is a key node that must remain under your control, not that Golden Core Elder's."

Zhou Wannian pointed to the merman skin. "This thing is your trump card. But you must never hand it over."

"Why?"

"If you hand it over, you become someone who knows too much and will be silenced. This secret is too great; the fewer people who know, the better."

"Instead, keep it as leverage to 'suspect an insider'."

Zhou Wannian guided him patiently. "Tomorrow morning, go see the Zhenhai City Master. Do not mention the corpse. Just say that during your inspection, you discovered anomalies in the underground Spiritual Vein and suspect an insider is sabotaging the Formation base."

"You must use this opportunity to apply for 'independent defense authority' and 'priority allocation of resources'."

"The reason is simple: to prevent infiltration, the Third Defense Zone must be as secure as an iron fortress—impenetrable."

Young Master Ling listened with a racing heart, but a ruthless glint soon flashed in his eyes.

"Good! I'll go right now!"

"Wait."

Zhou Wannian called him back. "Besides this, there is one more thing."

"Please instruct me, Old Man Han."

"I need money. A large amount of money."

Zhou Wannian pulled a long list from his Storage Pouch, filled with various rare Materials and high-grade talisman paper.

"Distribute this list and tell all the Cultivators in the defense zone that Overseer Han has a batch of 'life-saving talismans' (which are actually just old stock plus some freshly made ones). We are only trading, not selling! We want the Materials on this list—collect as many as you can get!"

"Also, take out those few Thunder Whale cores and let the highest bidder take them!"

"Old Man Han, given the current situation, you're still thinking about making money?" Young Master Ling asked, confused.

"This isn't about making money; this is called... preparing for war."

Zhou Wannian gave him a meaningful look. "With these Materials, I can set up a 'lethal Formation' capable of saving our lives when the city falls. As for money... the greatest tragedy is dying with money left unspent."

Although Young Master Ling didn't understand what a lethal Formation was, he understood the words "saving our lives."

"Understood! I'll get it done right away!"

...

Over the next two days, the Third Defense Zone became the liveliest place in all of Zhenhai City.

News that Overseer Han was "trading wealth for goods" spread like wildfire.

"A second-tier top-grade protective talisman? You can trade it for just two catties of deep-sea cold iron? Let's trade!"

"Thunder Whale cores? Those are top-tier Materials for refining thunder-attribute Magic Treasures! I must bid for one, even if it bankrupts me!"

Countless Cultivators swarmed in, bringing out their most precious Materials.

Zhou Wannian sat in the work shed like a greedy beast, crazily devouring these rare and precious resources that were usually hard to come by.

"One thousand catties of deep-sea cold iron... that's enough."

"Five hundred catties of red-refined fire copper... barely enough."

"Essence blood of a third-tier Yao Beast... this is too little. I must increase the offer to acquire more."

He calculated in his mind while collecting the goods.

Most of these Materials were to be used for refining "palm thunder tubes" and "Heavy Water Yin Thunder," but a small portion was being prepared for his "final retreat."

Although he had created a backdoor in the Seal Formation he had seen in the underground stone chamber, it was not stable. To pass through safely at the moment the Devilish Qi erupted, he needed to fully reinforce that passage.

This required a massive amount of resources.

"Old Man Han, someone wants to see you."

Li Feiyu hurried in, looking somewhat nervous. "It's... the commander of the First Defense Zone, a Late Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator. He says he has official business to discuss with you."

"Official business?"

Zhou Wannian raised an eyebrow.

The First Defense Zone was the Golden Core Elder's direct unit and the most heavily guarded area. Coming to see him at this time certainly didn't bode well.

"Show him in."

A moment later, a middle-aged Cultivator clad in black armor with a stern expression walked in. His gaze was as sharp as a hawk's, and he stared fixedly at Zhou Wannian the moment he entered.

"Fellow Daoist Han, I have long heard of you."

"I don't know what brings the Commander here today?" Zhou Wannian remained calm.

"I heard that Fellow Daoist Han killed a third-tier Thunder Whale yesterday?"

The middle-aged Cultivator offered a cold, insincere smile. "According to wartime regulations, thirty percent of the core Materials from any third-tier or higher Yao Beast hunted within the defense zone must be handed over to the main camp as strategic supplies for unified distribution."

"That is a military order."

Extortion?

Zhou Wannian sneered inwardly. A military order? It was clearly just jealousy because they saw he had made a fortune and wanted a slice of the pie.

If he actually produced the thunder spirit pearl, not only would his wealth be exposed, but it would also invite even greater greed.

"The Commander is right."

Zhou Wannian looked innocent and cooperative. "I understand the rules. It's just that the Thunder Whale's self-destruction was so violent that most of its Materials were destroyed. As for what remains..."

He pulled a large, pre-prepared package from his Storage Pouch.

Inside were a few of the Thunder Whale's massive teeth, a bucket of essence blood, and some slightly valuable pieces of hide.

"This is all the 'core Materials' I could salvage. Please, Commander, take a look."

The middle-aged Cultivator glanced at the package. Although the items were decent, they clearly hadn't met his expectations (such as an internal core or a thunder spirit pearl).

"Just this?" He frowned.

"Just this."

Zhou Wannian sighed. "I risked my life to salvage these. If the Commander doesn't believe me, you can ask the guards who were there. That Thunder Whale died by self-destruction."

The middle-aged Cultivator stared at him for a long moment, sweeping his Divine Sense over him several times.

Zhou Wannian accepted it calmly. His aura fluctuated only between the Qi Refining Stage (a disguise) and the Early Foundation Establishment Stage (occasionally revealed), and his Storage Pouch was protected by a Restriction that could not be seen through.

"Hmph, you're sensible."

Although the middle-aged Cultivator was unwilling, he couldn't find any fault. After all, Old Man Han was now one of Young Master Ling's people and served as a "technical consultant"; pushing him too hard would not be wise.

He took the package and coldly left behind a parting remark:

"Fellow Daoist Han is a smart man. In the future, if you find anything good, remember to think of the main camp first. Otherwise... life in this defense zone will not be easy."

With that, he turned and left.

Watching his retreating back, the blankness in Zhou Wannian's eyes vanished instantly, replaced by an icy coldness.

"How unsightly."

"However, since you've started eyeing my purse, it's time for me to prepare to withdraw."

He touched the Heavenly Secret Dao Disk inside his robe.

"Fei Yu, tell the brothers we're working through the night."

"We're going to turn all these Materials... into 'bombs'."

"The more, the better."

Because soon, this Zhenhai City will turn into a true slaughterhouse.