Chapter 395 - 365: Profit and Loss 2

Chapter 395: Chapter 365: Profit and Loss 2

Qin Yirong froze.

She stared at Chen Li’s impassive face, studying it for a long time.

In the end, however, she shook her head with a self-deprecating smile. "Let’s just forget it. I would rather wait for the day you, my lord, personally tell me you wish to take me as your concubine. I am no longer willing to accept this sort of transactional offer."

Chen Li neither confirmed nor denied this, saying, "If you had accepted my condition, whether or not you became my concubine in the future would have made no real difference to you."

Qin Yirong was confused. "My lord, what do you mean by that?"

Chen Li didn’t explain. "I will pass on a Cultivation Heart Method to you, and you will cultivate according to my instructions. I will be by your side the entire time. If there is anything you don’t understand, don’t guess—just ask me directly."

Qin Yirong nodded in agreement.

「Ten days ago.」

After Chen Pi delivered the copper coins he had exchanged for at the market, Chen Li had tried to cultivate by absorbing the Wealth Qi attached to them.

The process had started smoothly. The Wealth Qi attached to the copper coins was drawn out by the Innate Qi Gathering Technique, guided into his meridians, and refined into his own Inner Qi.

However, when this newly formed wisp of Inner Qi flowed into his Dantian and met the Inner Qi he had gained from refining the silver taels sent by Qian Laibao, something strange happened.

These two streams of Inner Qi, both transformed from the same source of Wealth Qi, remained distinctly separate in his Dantian, refusing to merge.

Chen Li tried to mobilize both streams of Inner Qi simultaneously with his Intention.

He found that although both streams of Inner Qi responded individually, they couldn’t operate in unison.

He was completely unable to control these two streams of Inner Qi, which were from the same source yet had different natures.

’Why is this happening?’

Chen Li’s brow furrowed, his heart filled with astonishment.

’It’s all Wealth Qi, so why is there such a clear distinction? Could it be because the physical currency is different?’

To test this theory, Chen Li went to the market himself the next day.

He secretly circulated the Qi Gathering Technique, carefully observing the silver taels and copper coins that passed through his hands.

The result, however, only left him more confused.

Whether it was from the silver taels or the copper coins, the attached Wealth Qi showed slight variations, but there was no fundamental difference in its nature.

It was nothing like the situation inside his body, where the two energies were starkly opposed.

’The problem isn’t with the material or value of the currency itself...’

Chen Li fell into deep thought.

Back in his study, he once again used Introspection to observe the two clearly divided streams of Inner Qi in his Dantian.

After thinking for a long time, a key idea flashed through his mind.

The two batches of currency.

One batch was the payment for goods from Qian Laibao, the profit the Chen Family earned from selling silk.

The other batch was the copper coins Chen Pi had gotten by exchanging silver taels at a premium—an extra cost the Chen Family paid to acquire the coins. It was a loss.

’Profit... loss...’

Chen Li mulled over these two words, the light of understanding gradually dawning in his eyes.

’That’s it! The root of the problem might lie here.’

’The Wealth Qi itself might not be different.’

’But the method of obtaining that wealth and the meaning it represents gave it different properties.’

’The silver taels from Qian Laibao represented profit earned through business operations and selling goods—it was wealth from profit.’

’The copper coins Chen Pi exchanged for were, in essence, a loss I willingly took by paying a premium to get them. This was wealth from loss.’

’One a gain, one a loss.’

’One a profit, one a deficit.’

’Profit and loss are opposites; gain and deficit counteract each other. Naturally, their Qi would be distinctly separate and difficult to merge.’

The instant he understood this, a bolt of lightning seemed to flash through Chen Li’s mind, and he suddenly recalled the verse about True Wealth from the Sixteen-Character Plate Book.

What I overcome becomes my Wealth; what overcomes me becomes Authority!

He had long known these twelve words by heart and had consulted countless classics to interpret them, but he always felt like he was scratching an itch through his boot—never truly grasping their meaning.

Now, connecting it to his own experience, everything became clear.

’What I overcome becomes my Wealth...’

’This "overcoming" isn’t simply about restriction or victory.’

’It’s about control, domination, and possession.’

’Only that which I can control and dominate can be called my Wealth.’

’I can command the silk produced by my family. When I sell it and make a profit, that profit is wealth I’ve gained by exercising control over something.’

’And as for "what overcomes me becomes Authority"...’

’What can "overcome" me are rules, laws, order, and the Dao that governs all things in the unseen world.’

’In order to get copper coins, I had to accept a loss on the exchange. That loss is the result of being "overcome" by market rules and trade conventions.’

’Those rules—that is the "Authority."’

Having figured this out, Chen Li instantly understood the misconception he had been laboring under.

He had been focused only on absorbing the Wealth Qi from gold and silver, but he had overlooked the most crucial point.

When money flowed into his hands, the Wealth Qi on it was already stamped with his mark; its nature as profit or loss was already determined.

And what he needed was Wealth Qi that was his own True Wealth—the Wealth Qi of profit.

’So, how to turn a loss into a profit?’

’How to turn what is lost into a gain?’

Drawing inspiration from the Seven Kills Heart Scripture, a bold idea gradually took shape in Chen Li’s mind.

’If I were to give this Wealth Qi from loss to someone I completely control, then for that person, it would become Wealth Qi from profit.’

’The power she would cultivate would originate from my gift, and she herself would be my subordinate. Wouldn’t that perfectly fit the definition of "What I overcome becomes my Wealth"?’

’This power could then naturally be considered my own True Wealth!’

An unprecedented path of cultivation became clear before Chen Li’s eyes.

The theory was complete, but the choice of a test subject required extreme caution.

The most ideal candidate was, of course, his wife, Song Ying.

A wife’s wealth is also considered True Wealth, their fates were compatible, and she was completely trustworthy.

But Chen Li immediately rejected this idea.

This method was newly created, with many unknown variables and unpredictable risks.

His own Cultivation was profound, leaving him some leeway; even if there was a backlash, he would at most be injured.

But his wife, Song Ying, had only a shallow understanding of the Martial Dao. Her Cultivation was sporadic at best, and if anything went wrong during the process, the consequences would be unimaginable.