Becoming an immortal and ancestor begins with the golden toad spitting out money.

Chapter 154 Widespread Reputation, Chamber of Commerce Expansion

After the true gods under the command of the Golden Flame God arrived at Chrysanthemum Mountain, the matter of the demons was officially taken over by the gods of Lunzhou.

After Su Ji and the group of cultivators underwent testing, no one showed any problems, which even amazed the gods of Jiuxiang County.

It should be noted that evil spirits are not only incredibly mad, but they also employ a variety of methods. Whether they infiltrate the crowd or leave behind strange tricks, they are impossible to guard against.

Back then, the Qiu family patriarch was unknowingly influenced by evil spirits. The gods even suspected that the so-called Insect Mother was hiding inside the Qiu family patriarch, which is why she escaped this calamity.

Now, the Eyeless Demon Lord and the Insect Queen have disappeared from everyone's sight along the Yin Sha Rift, and the gods of Jiuxiang County have begun to plan the exploration of the Yin Sha Rift.

The deities of Jiuxiang County did not overlook the cultivators who had distinguished themselves in this battle. They recorded all the information and planned to report it together in the afternoon.

Even if Su Ji could help with the rest, the Jin Feng County City God Temple would never allow him to take such a risk.

The City God Spirit Officer still needed to stay and help, so he sent two spirit soldiers to invite Su Ji and the Old Man of Thousand Machines.

At this moment, Sanqiu Jun was discussing the payment with Su Ji. According to the prior agreement, the Qiu family was to pay Su Ji a treasure worth 22,000 strands of divine power.

Su Ji first glanced at the ravaged foot of the mountain, then at the dejected Second Elder of the Qiu family, and shook his head with a smile: "Sanqiu Jun, when demons appear in this battle, it will no longer be a task agreed upon by you and me, but a righteous cause to eliminate the demons together."

"This time, the Qiu family only needs to pay the agreed-upon ten thousand strands of divine power treasures!"

Su Ji spoke from the heart.

From a personal perspective, Su Ji didn't want to take advantage of the situation or ruin his reputation.

From a broader perspective, by giving up some of his profits, Su Ji can actually gain more goodwill, and the cooperation between the Chamber of Commerce and the Qiu family can at least be deepened.

Judging from today's events, the Qiu family's power is no weaker than that of the Ren family in Jinfeng County, with two high-level cultivators of the Dongxuan realm, a Qi cultivator, and several Ghost Kings in charge.

Although the spiritual realm at the foot of Jushan Mountain had encountered problems, the spiritual plant garden on Jushan Mountain remained unaffected. Even though the Qiu family's power had slightly declined after the demonic threat was resolved, they still possessed a vast fortune.

"The Guardian of the Sun is so righteous!"

Not to mention the Qiu family cultivators, even the gods of Jiuxiang County around them couldn't help but feel a slight unease.

A treasure containing twelve thousand strands of divine power is equivalent to thirty or forty years' salary for an ordinary spiritual soldier, and could also buy two slightly inferior high-grade spiritual artifacts, so it can be said to be extremely valuable.

It's important to understand that a salary is just a salary; it doesn't represent current income. Most of the salary is spent on cultivation, and some cultivators are even in debt.

Even ordinary spirit officials and generals might not be able to accumulate a treasure with 12,000 strands of divine power in their entire lives; the local earth god Zhang Gong is a prime example of this…

In no time, praises poured in, and it was likely that within a few days, the name of Jin Feng County Supervisor Ri Ling would spread throughout Jiu Xiang County along with the Ju Shan demon incident.

Sanqiu Jun was quite excited and said, "If it weren't for the Sun-Watching Spirit General, we would not only have been unable to stop the strange insects raised by the demons, but we would also have been unable to hold out against the siege of the demonic sect. It is no exaggeration to call him our savior!"
"From now on, if the Watcher ever needs anything from my Qiu family, please don't hesitate to ask..."

If Su Ji hadn't possessed the sunlight capable of piercing the membrane of the Spirit Realm, the Qiu family would probably have continued to seal and suppress the Spirit Realm. If it had dragged on for a few more years, by the time the Spirit Realm was opened, it would probably have been hollowed out by the Insect Queen and the Insects.

Su Ji's arrival inadvertently thwarted the Undying Demonic Cult's conspiracy, revealing everything to the world.

In an effort to protect the Insect Queen, the Demonic Sect mobilized numerous experts, but they were all blocked by Su Ji, the Qiu family, and the exploration team of cultivators. In the end, only the Eyeless Demon Lord and the Insect Queen escaped.

Moreover, forcing the Eyeless Demon Lord and the Insect Mother into the Yin Sha Rift was the best of countless bad outcomes, at least giving the gods of Jiuxiang County in Lunzhou the possibility of entering the Yin Sha Rift to continue their capture.

As a result, the Qiu family not only survived the potential threat of evil spirits, but also won praise for their spirit of not fearing sacrifice in the fight against evil spirits, which is something that many cultivation families envy.

"Regarding the East-West Chamber of Commerce, someone will be coming to Kikuyama to make contact soon. At this time, Kikuyama is completely under the control of the True God, so we should take our leave!"

Although Su Ji only stayed at Jushan for half a day, he developed a strong bond with the cultivators who fought together with him, and dozens of people saw him off when he left.

The Ghost King of the Explorers Squad said, "It is truly an honor for us to fight alongside General Jian Ri today. We will definitely visit Jin Feng County when we have the chance!"

If Su Ji hadn't sent the Yin Sha Fire into the new spiritual realm, even the Ghost King of the exploration team would have been affected. Not to mention, Su Ji had put in a lot of effort when fighting against the evil insects.

The cultivators replied, "Since the East-West Chamber of Commerce belongs to the Sun-Watching Spirit General, we must support it. We will definitely support it as soon as we hear any news of its establishment!"

Some of these cultivators are independent practitioners, while others are spirit soldiers from local earth god temples. They come here to explore in order to earn some extra money, and they are distributed over a wider area.

The second elder of the Qiu family bowed respectfully and said, "If it weren't for the intervention of the Sun Guardian General today, I would have become a sinner of the Qiu family. If you ever need my help in the future, please don't hesitate to ask!"

When the group of cultivators emerged from the spiritual realm, the Second Elder of the Qiu family withstood the pressure and used an array to prevent them from leaving. If all of these people died within the array, even if the Second Elder of the Qiu family did it for the greater good, he would still become a sinner of the Qiu family.

Although the Qiu family has lost more than a dozen members, it is still better than the complete annihilation of the entire army. The second elder of the Qiu family has also exhausted his magical power of several years of hard work, which is better than dying and losing his cultivation.

Overwhelmed with emotion, Su Ji finally uttered only one sentence: "Gentlemen, farewell!"

Immediately, the four of them took to the air and headed towards Jinfeng County.

The two soldiers from Jinfeng County were more like companions than protectors; the one who truly protected Su Ji was the old man Qianji.

Fortunately, nothing happened on the way back, and Jinfeng County was soon in sight.

The Earthly Serpent King continued to breathe in and out the flowing clouds, creating a strange scene of a dragon coiling among the clouds over the entire Jinfeng County.

The flowing clouds seemed endless, constantly moving under the influence of the wind. The Earthly Yang Serpent Lord only used one-thousandth of the flowing clouds. Even if the flowing clouds that left contained more qi, they would soon turn into lightning and fall.

However, while it rained for several days in Dazhen Prefecture, it was sunny and hotter in Jinfeng County.

The crops in the farmland were sparse, but the scenery in Dongsang and Xisang villages was quite different. The crops in many fields looked very dense. When the water in the paddy fields was still flowing, the rice seedlings were lush and green, but when the water dried up, the rice seedlings began to turn yellow from the tips of the leaves. Fortunately, after many days of hard work, and with the help of two mechanical sorcerer guests from the East and West Chambers of Commerce, Li Jiahe successfully assembled the first waterwheel in Xisang Village.

As the stream flowed, streams of water, like life itself, continuously flowed into the fields. The parched fields, as if thirsty for a long time, gurgled as they drank the water flowing along the bamboo poles.

"Success!"

Not to mention carpenter Li Jiahe, Zhou Lan and others from the East-West Chamber of Commerce, even the two mechanical masters sent by the Old Man of a Thousand Machines were shocked.

While the world is governed by deities who regulate the weather, it is still impossible to guarantee favorable weather in every place. Although the harvest is decent, there is still a certain upper limit.

The advent of waterwheels has significantly increased the upper limit of grain harvests. It may not matter for one or two villages, but if it could be extended to the whole country, it would be a tremendous achievement.

"Yuzhou has a population of just over five million. If we can get the waterwheels running, even if the harvest only increases by 20% or 30%, it will be enough to feed more than a million more people!"

There is no family planning policy here. The reason why people dare not have too many children is because there is not enough food to feed so many people.

Moreover, population is the foundation of faith that gods compete for. If the world's population could increase by 20% or 30%, even the faith of the gods would rise accordingly.

However, the gods tend to prefer more direct conflicts of faith, only concerned with gains and losses in one place. Even the struggle for the Heavenly Emperor is nothing more than a conflict of faith.

In addition, the arrogance and aloofness of the gods, who disdained to participate in human production, resulted in the development of agriculture remaining at a backward stage.

Now that the experiment of the Golden Toad Messenger's waterwheel irrigating the grains has been successful, it has excited many skeptical people.

Originally, only Li Jiahe's family was busy with the waterwheel project, and Li Jiahe did many things by himself. It took more than a month to build one waterwheel.

Now, with the support of the two villages, the second waterwheel was completed in just four or five days under Li Jiahe's supervision.

At the same time, many villages within the chamber of commerce sent people to learn from this news.

Representatives from the cooperating chambers of commerce also came to visit and learn, including the Cai Family Chamber of Commerce in the north of the city, the Ren Family Chamber of Commerce in the east of the city, and the Qiu Family Chamber of Commerce in Jiuxiang County.

Since Su Ji returned from Jushan, the East-West Chamber of Commerce has been in contact with the Qiu Family Chamber of Commerce. This visit to the waterwheel is also an opportunity for both sides to discuss further cooperation.

The Qiu Family Chamber of Commerce is not only firmly established in the countryside north of Jiuxiang County, but also occupies a significant share in Jiuxiang County, making it the leading cultivation family in Jiuxiang County.

The last time Sanqiu Jun visited the Taibai Dragon Clan of Qili Lake, he was representing the Qiu Family Chamber of Commerce of Jiuxiang County. Otherwise, an ordinary high-level cultivator might not even be able to meet the Taibai Dragon Clan.

Today, the Jinfeng County East-West Chamber of Commerce and the Jiuxiang County Qiu Family Chamber of Commerce have joined forces to conduct in-depth cooperation agreements in various fields, including black gold stone, fishery products, agriculture, honey, flowers and fruits, and sericulture.

Jiuxiang County is most famous for its flowers, fruits, and honey, which have led to the development of various industries. By cooperating with the East-West Chamber of Commerce, they have gained an additional sales channel.

The East-West Chamber of Commerce focuses on the mulberry industry, while agriculture, construction and fisheries are developing rapidly. The Qiu family Chamber of Commerce can also better penetrate Jiuxiang County through its channels.

Not long after, the Qiu family chamber of commerce visited the fishponds in the East and West villages, the brick factory west of Yemo Village, and the black gold mine in Caijia Village, and were shocked by the grand development plans presented by the East and West Chamber of Commerce.

The leader of the Qiu Family Chamber of Commerce is a woman named Qiu Yue. Although she is only in her early twenties, she is already a Dongxuan Master. It was Sanqiu Jun who sent her to Jiuxiang County to invite reinforcements.

Shocked, Qiu Yue couldn't help but feel a sense of relief: "If the Qiu family hadn't made contact with the East-West Chamber of Commerce because of the Jushan Demon incident, the East-West Chamber of Commerce would probably have expanded beyond Yuzhou in a few years, and my Qiu family's Chamber of Commerce in Jiuxiang County might have been swallowed up directly!"

"By cooperating with the East-West Chamber of Commerce, our Qiu Family Chamber of Commerce can not only gain the benefits of win-win cooperation, but also take advantage of this opportunity to become a large-scale chamber of commerce that cannot be ignored in Jiuxiang County and even Lunzhou!"

Agriculture, sericulture, and fisheries can be said to benefit the people, but the effects are not yet visible in the short term.

The brick factory配套 with the black gold mine has transformed the entire countryside. Any villager who has earned some money will try their best to build a new house. This is not only a change in living environment, but also a sense of superiority in terms of face...

In the past, it wasn't that no one made bricks. High-quality bricks were expensive, and there was even a saying that a single brick was worth an ounce of gold. Low-quality bricks were cheaper, but they hadn't been fired at high temperatures and would crack and deform after only a few years.

Today, the bricks produced by the East-West Chamber of Commerce brick factory demonstrate excellent quality to all visitors, and what is even more appealing is that the cost of the bricks is much lower than they imagined.

Other areas in Jinfeng County may need to transport bricks from the brick factory, incurring additional transportation costs.

Near the Qiu family's Jushan Mountain, there are clay mines and black gold mines. If the land where the clay mine is located is purchased, the clay mine will belong to the Qiu family's Chamber of Commerce. As for the black gold mine, it can be purchased from the mountain strongholds, which is definitely much more convenient than transporting it from Jinfeng County.

Immediately afterwards, Qiuyue led the Qiu family business association back to Jiuxiang County. Because Sanqiujun had returned first, many plans had already begun to be implemented.

That evening, the true high-ranking members of the Qiu family held a meeting. After brief speeches by Sanqiu Jun and Qiuyue, the cultivators present reached a consensus.

The next day, the second elder of the Qiu family personally led a team to Dongsang Village and expressed his request to join the East-West Chamber of Commerce.

Indeed, although the Qiu Family Chamber of Commerce is not small, its vision is far inferior to that of the East-West Chamber of Commerce. Even if it cooperates deeply now, it may still be swallowed up by the East-West Chamber of Commerce in the future. It would be better to take the initiative to join the East-West Chamber of Commerce and gain more autonomy and benefits.

Before long, the news reached Su Ji's ears.

"The Qiu family's business association has taken the initiative to join... In that case, it's time to take action against the Qian family's business association!"

Currently, although the East-West Chamber of Commerce has only been established for a little over two months, it has inherited the leadership of the Zhou, Wu, and Li families, and has also absorbed the Cai Family Chamber of Commerce and the Qiu Family Chamber of Commerce of Jiuxiang County.

Currently, Ren He of the Ren family is a spirit soldier under Su Ji's command. If the East-West Chamber of Commerce and the Qian Family Chamber of Commerce go to war, the Ren Family Chamber of Commerce will definitely not turn against them.

With less than three days until the second batch of silkworms was harvested, Su Ji could accumulate faith power to prepare to become a human deity while simultaneously launching a war against the Qian family's merchant guild.

Soon, the East-West Chamber of Commerce fired its first shot, targeting the landlords in the streets and alleys of Jinfeng County.

(End of this chapter)