Chapter 1091 - 912: Pushing Oneself to a Dead End First

Young Master Nan pondered for quite a while but couldn't figure it out, and said bewilderedly, "Using business as collateral? What kind of business can earn tens of billions?"

Shi Chun said, "You should know this better, since your Wuyu Inn has business connections everywhere. Wherever there's a profitable business, you'd know it better than I do. I'd still need to consult you. In short, wherever there's a profitable business, you just let me know, and I'll find a way to help you make the connections and facilitate the deal."

Activating Yu Xuanbing now isn't just a whim; he knows too well the divine skills of Yu Xuanbing and knows that if used properly, it's practically a divine artifact for seizing control.

Now, with the Gong family's handle in his hands, there's no way he'd easily give up on the fat opportunities of Dingxi and Dingbei that have fallen into his lap.

Young Master Nan spread his hands, looking as if he still didn't understand.

Shi Chun waved a hand, signaling him to discuss later, and turned to Wu Jinliang and Tong Mingshan, "Alright, it's settled. Once you return, formally announce the news. Also, the skilled free manpower previously serving as craftsmen at the Dingnan Mansion needs to be ready for assembly at Young Master Nan's call." Pointing to Feng Chi.

Feng Chi nodded in understanding; this meant she should also prepare the manpower for assembly.

Wu and Tong exchanged glances, ultimately trusting the master's authority and assuming he wouldn't act recklessly, so they both took the order and left.

Afterward, Shi Chun dismissed Feng Chi as well.

With no one else around, Shi Chun moved closer to Young Master Nan and whispered, "Brother Nan, let me ask you something. What do you think the size of the Gong family's estate in Minister Nanshan Chapter is?"

Young Master Nan was stunned, scrutinizing Shi Chun with suspicious eyes for a while, then pondering it himself before responding carefully, "Perhaps around a hundred billion."

Shi Chun was surprised, "Only that much?"

Young Master Nan waved it off, "They don't need to blatantly stash wealth in their own home at that level; they just need to control a large number of people who control vast industries. The wealth and industries they directly or indirectly control are hard for outsiders to estimate. Let's put it this way: with just a single mine worth billions, they could probably influence at least a hundred such mines. Whether that counts as their industry is hard to say; it's both a yes and a no."

Upon hearing this, Shi Chun was immediately relieved; he almost jumped from fright, thinking the Gong family only had a mere hundred billion.

He immediately asked, "Finding out which people and industries the Gong family directly or indirectly controls, shouldn't be too difficult for you, right?"

Young Master Nan looked at him cautiously, "Such families are unfathomable; it's impossible to uncover it all."

Shi Chun immediately leaned in close, whispering, "Since their estate is so deep, there's no need to beat around the bush. Use a more direct approach this time, and try to find collateral associated with the Gong family for your mortgage."

Young Master Nan stroked his mustache, blinking his eyes, "What do you mean?"

Shi Chun clearly explained, "Because I intend to default."

"..." Young Master Nan's expression turned gradually intriguing, and finally, as if shocked, he nearly pulled out a tuft of his mustache, glaring and saying, "Don't mess around; the Gong family's accounts aren't easy to default on. If you dare to default, it's my collateral on the line; I won't dare to take that gamble, don't set me up."

Shi Chun reassured, "Relax, if I truly intended to default, even your partners wouldn't let me off the hook. I wouldn't cause myself such a big problem; I've invested billions to secure this position, so it can't be taken lightly." Then he leaned towards the other's ear and whispered, "When I say 'default', I mean not having to repay. I'll have a way to make the Gong family not claim the debt."

Young Master Nan's gaze flickered, and he asked in a low voice, "Did you get some kind of leverage on the Gong family? Let me tell you, such families might not fall for this."

Shi Chun said, "Brother Nan, don't ask too much; knowing too much might force you to betray me, knowing less is better for both you and me."

Talking about betrayal made Young Master Nan a bit embarrassed as he rubbed his nose.

Shi Chun continued, "In short, just go ahead and do it. Building cheap houses might have thin margins, but accumulatively across the two regions, it amounts to pretty handsome profits. Such a lucrative business isn't often seen, is it? Go ahead and make your big profits; it's rightfully yours to earn. I'll take care of the cleanup after my suggestions."

Seeing a clear direction, proving it wasn't a headless chicken act, and considering the Lord Commander's past achievements, Young Master Nan was gradually at ease but couldn't help sighing as he contemplated, "Isn't this just borrowing money from others? But the fact is, even my Wuyu Inn doesn't have over ten trillion worth of assets to pledge. However... given there's collateral for borrowing money, it might be split among partners. With their credit, heavy use of collateral to gain loans shouldn't be hard, but this scale of ten trillion is just too big. I'm afraid after loaning bits and pieces, it might alarm others to halt, and it may be difficult to gather the required amount."

Shi Chun replied, "Be careful to diversify the operations; don't overly concentrate on one point. You're good at this; I'm sure you don't need an outsider like me to teach you. Just handle it yourself. In short, try your best to gather it from the Gong family. If it really doesn't work, you should be familiar with the Beiju Mutual Market Young Supervisor, Liang Mian?"

Mentioning Liang Mian, Young Master Nan gave Shi Chun a peculiar look. How could he not know Liang Mian, who snatched away Shi Chun's woman, and chuckling uneasily, said, "I'm in business, and Liang Mian oversees the mutual market over at Beiju; how could I not know him? To be honest, I'm actually quite familiar with him."

Shi Chun nodded, "Being familiar is good; it's easier to work with. I've heard that Liang Mian is linked to quite a lot of industries as well. If you can't gather it all from the Gong family, then pledge the loans from industries associated with Liang Mian."

He isn't some kind of saint; for those who tried to kill him during the Battle of Great Pardon, he doesn't intend to let anyone off easily. He hasn't acted before just because he hadn't found the right opportunity.

Going to fight Liang Mian without benefits would only result in losses without any gain, just venting anger which isn't worth it? He doesn't care about face, it's not worth it.

But now it's different. If in the future Liang Mian doesn't write off the debt and forces him into a corner, then Liang Mian will certainly have to seek the Demon Path Tianyi Lineage's help to pressure Xiang Laner to persuade Liang Mian.

If the Demon Path can't settle this matter, then you can only sacrifice Xiang Laner. It's impossible for him to walk the path of no return for Xiang Laner; he's certainly going to report it to the Xuanji Token Master, Mulan Jin, and expose it. He's surely going to use another way to smooth things out.

Robbed my woman without compensation, wanted to kill me—does the world have such reasoning?

Young Master Nan hesitated, saying: "Actually, the industries connected to Liang Mian aren't that vast; as far as I know, many are held on behalf of others."

Shi Chun replied indifferently: "No problem, if the Gong family can't gather enough, go borrow from Liang Mian."

Young Master Nan curiously asked: "Liang Mian doesn't like you much; can he help you settle such a large debt? Xiang Laner isn't that valuable, is he?"

Shi Chun said: "Brother Nan, I have my methods; you can rest assured. If it's still insufficient after adding Liang Mian, then go put up collateral with Thunder Sound Sect for a loan. That top-tier sect surely has plenty of assets."

Young Master Nan's eyes widened suddenly, "Everyone knows about the incident of you killing a disciple of Thunder Sound Sect. Can Thunder Sound Sect also help you settle the debt?"

Shi Chun scoffed inwardly; he believed Xiang Laner, Liang Mian, and Thunder Sound Sect were all on the same line. He didn't think the attempt to kill him was an isolated action by one side. As for how Xiang Laner and Liang Mian might persuade Thunder Sound Sect to cancel the debt, he couldn't care less; if they can't settle his debt and leave him with no way out, they should be prepared for his desperate retaliation.

He's quite familiar with Mulan Jin, the Xuanji Token Master, and asked those involved with the Demon Path, daring them to drive him to desperation!

He's now determined to first place himself on the path of no return, then let the related parties handle it when the time comes.

To console Young Master Nan, he solemnly informed him: "Feel free to proceed with borrowing money as I stated; let me handle the settlement with these few houses. I won't let Brother Nan be troubled; Brother Nan just needs to comfortably earn money with others' funds."

Upon hearing, Young Master Nan couldn't help but rub his hands and pace in the hall, inexplicably feeling a thrill in potentially borrowing and not repaying the money, despite the dire consequences of such a venture.

Considering Shi Chun's achievements, considering Shi Chun has never broken a promise, considering the current cooperative relationship, Young Master Nan ultimately gritted his teeth, stomped his foot, seeking fortune amidst peril, and agreed, hastily departing to handle the matter.

Not long after Young Master Nan left, Shi Chun retrieved the Mother-child Talisman and received a message to go to 'Yuling Mountain,' sent by Yu Xuanji.

Clearly, Yu Xuanji had returned. Shi Chun immediately disguised himself and then departed.

Outside the mountain gate of Yuling Mountain, the people dispatched by the Golden-haired Rat Clan were already there, guiding him to an entrance inside the mountain and then stepping away.

Inside the mountain belly, Yu Xuanbing, cloaked and hooded, was waiting for him, with a black cloth bag thrown beside him.

Shi Chun's right eye superpower glanced at that black cloth bag, fixating on the Magic Source inside, confirming it's Demon Essence indeed.

This was already the second person recently captured on Yu Xuanbing's list who practiced Demon Eye, the first crippled one had already been absorbed by Shi Chun.

"Thank you for the hard work. Qing'er is waiting for you at home." Shi Chun bowed to express his gratitude to Yu Xuanbing.

Without saying a word, Yu Xuanbing turned and left.

Soon, the cave was sealed. Shi Chun uncovered the black cloth bag, only to find a naked old man inside. He awakened the man, personally conducting a harsh interrogation.

Admittedly, the man held strong, refusing to disclose his superior regardless.

Shi Chun didn't intend to waste time on him either; his right eye superpower scanned the surroundings, confirming Yu Xuanbing wasn't secretly observing, then sat down and directly began absorbing the opponent's Demon Essence.

Nowadays, the Demon Essence of a Demon Cultivator with just a Heavenly Immortal Small Success realm was insufficient to satisfy his appetite, easily absorbed.

Afterward, he directly killed to eliminate the witness, destroyed the corpse, and whatever lingering scent remained, the Golden-haired Rat Clan would handle the cleaning thoroughly.

Shi Chun finished and quietly returned to his mansion, then summoned Yu Xuanbing once again.

Upon reunion, Shi Chun spoke directly, informing him, "I extracted information on a person—the Manor Master Mu Anchang of 'Green Rong Manor' in Nanshan Royal City is also someone from the Demon Path. This person is very important; the specifics aren't well-known even by the captured individuals you brought, requiring Elder to personally investigate his details."

Meanwhile, he handed over a Jade Scroll containing the relevant information.

Yu Xuanbing furrowed his brows, having just returned to reunite with family, yet before even warming the seat, he was being sent out again.

Before he could speak, Shi Chun preemptively addressed, "Though Qing'er is small, if she keeps playing around like this, it won't be ideal; she should start reading and writing. I suffered in this aspect while in the Land of Exile, hence I have two plans. One is to send the mother and daughter to 'Chao Yue Hall' in Dazhi City, where there's a wealth of books; the library's second young lady, Dong Liangyu, is scholarly and graceful, an excellent teacher. The library is under the protection of the Demon Queen, with the eldest young lady, Dong Liangyi, being a disciple of Situ Gu, the top expert in the Artifact Refining World. The third young lady is a disciple of Li Hongjiu from Yanbao Sect, while the fourth, Dong Liangze, is a disciple of Sword Saint Fu Que. With these backgrounds, living there as ordinary people should pose no safety concerns. The second plan is to hire a renowned teacher to instruct Qing'er specially here; Elder, consider which is better. No rush for a response; you may first visit 'Chao Yue Hall' for evaluation before deciding."