The Martial Saint rose to power starting as a substitute bridegroom.

Chapter 62 Monopoly

The scene of disciples sweating profusely and shouting incessantly on the training ground of the Qingniu Martial Arts Society is no longer seen.

Instead, small groups of young people gathered together, whispering amongst themselves, and an atmosphere of anxiety permeated the air.

"Senior Brother Wang, did you go to that Jishetang in the south of the city yesterday to inquire?" a tall, thin disciple asked in a low voice.

When asked, Senior Brother Wang shook his head, his expression grave: "It's not just the south of the city; I've also checked the Huichun Pavilion in the east and the Baicaotang in the west—I haven't found a single Yixue Pill. The shopkeepers either claim they're out of stock or simply refuse to open their doors."

"It's been five days already," a younger disciple couldn't help but interject. "Without the Blood Nourishing Pill, I've clearly felt weak these past few days, and I almost damaged my meridians yesterday."

A square-faced disciple looked around and lowered his voice even further: "I heard from my distant cousin at Qingfeng Martial Arts Academy that their disciples don't lack elixirs. Do you know why?"

The disciples gathered around.

"Because Qingfeng Martial Arts School joined the Merchant Alliance last month!" the square-faced disciple said mysteriously. "Not only them, but Tianlong Martial Arts School and Weiyuan Escort Agency—now they have plenty of pills. My cousin said that their school master privately revealed that as long as they join the Merchant Alliance, the supply of pills will not be a problem."

"The Merchant Alliance?" The tall, thin disciple frowned. "What's so good about the Merchant Alliance? The city is full of their opium dens now, doesn't the government do anything about it?"

"Ha. The government? They're all in cahoots. These opium dens might have some kind of powerful connections behind them." The square-faced disciple rolled his eyes at him, then lowered his voice and continued, "Don't you find this strange? Some people speculate that the opium pills were cut off as soon as they became popular in the city. I've heard that the Xie family is behind the Merchant Alliance. The Xie family's business has grown enormously in recent years, but haven't they always been at odds with the Qian family—"

Before he could finish speaking, footsteps came from the entrance of the training ground.

Everyone turned to look and saw a middle-aged man in a brocade robe, with a fair complexion and no beard, leading two attendants and being led by Yang Cheng, the eldest disciple of the Qingniu Martial Arts Society, towards the inner hall.

"That's Xie An, the steward of the Xie family!" A disciple recognized him.

Xie An walked with ease, his gaze sweeping over the disciples as he passed the training ground, a faint smile playing on his lips.

After they turned towards the inner hall, the disciples started discussing again.

"What are the Xie family doing here?"

"It can't be anything good."

"Shh—there's movement inside!"

Sure enough, a moment later, Master Lin Chong's deep voice came from the direction of the inner hall. At first, it was not clear, but the tone was obviously unfriendly.

The training ground fell silent. All the disciples pricked up their ears, but could only catch a few indistinct phrases: "————The Merchant Alliance's good intentions————", "————Don't even think about it————", "————Show them out!"

Immediately following was the crisp sound of porcelain shattering, accompanied by Butler Xie's raised voice in defense.

A short while later, Steward Xie and his entourage strode out, their faces ashen, and left the Green Ox Martial Arts Society without looking back.

After about half an incense stick's time, Lin Chong walked out of the inner hall and came to the center of the martial arts arena, looking around at his disciples who were "busy" with their own tasks.

His expression was calm at this moment, but anyone could see the suppressed anger between his master's brows.

"Come here, everyone."

Lin Zhong's voice was not loud, but it reached the ears of every disciple clearly.

More than ten disciples quickly lined up and waited for their master to speak.

Lin Chong's gaze swept over the young faces as he slowly spoke: "The city has been experiencing a shortage of pills lately, as you all have surely noticed. I must remind you that it is precisely in times like these that you must remain calm."

"But Master," one disciple couldn't help but speak up, "without the aid of the Blood Nourishing Pill, our cultivation progress—"

"There are fast ways to train and slow ways to train," Lin Chong interrupted him. "In martial arts cultivation, the foundation is the most important. Pills are just an aid; willpower is the root."

The disciples looked at each other, none of them daring to utter a word of rebuttal, but many still had resentment and anxiety in their eyes.

Lin Chong sighed inwardly as he observed his disciples' reactions.

How could he not know the importance of elixirs for the cultivation of young martial artists?

However, Lin Chong absolutely could not agree to the conditions that Xie An, representing the Merchant Alliance, had just proposed:

In exchange for the supply of elixirs, the Qingniu Martial Arts Society would be incorporated into the Merchant Alliance and placed under the command of the Xie family.

"There's one more thing," Lin Chong emphasized, "Recently, something called 'Longevity Ointment' has become popular in the city. You must stay away from it. Once you're hooked, it's hard to get rid of; many skilled fighters have been crippled because of it. Have you all taken note?"

"Understood!" the disciples replied in unison.

"Cultivation will proceed as usual today, you may disperse." Lin Chong waved his hand and turned to return to the inner hall.

After their master left, the disciples dispersed in twos and threes, but their interest in practicing martial arts had diminished considerably.

In the crowd, a tall, sharp-eyed young disciple silently returned to his seat, his brows furrowed.

It was Li Yuan.

His master's words and Steward Xie's visit gave him a vague idea of ​​what was going on.

The Xie family made a ruthless move.

First, they used the longevity elixir to amass wealth, then they monopolized the city's supply of pills with huge sums of money, and then extended a "helping hand" to the major martial arts schools—by joining the merchant alliance, where pills would be plentiful.

In this way, the most elite combat forces in Linjiang City naturally came under the command of the Merchant Alliance.

With its internal stability and external defenses, Qianjiabao is a fortified stronghold!

Even—a counterattack?!

Once the dust settled, the Merchant Alliance, or rather the Xie family, became the sole beneficiary.

By then, won't they still have the final say on the supply of elixirs?

Prices skyrocketed, and the martial arts schools, for the sake of their disciples' training, had no choice but to grit their teeth and accept it—thus, the Xie family effectively controlled the martial arts forces of Linjiang City, which was practically equivalent to controlling the entire city.

call-

Li Yuan took a deep breath. What a vicious scheme!

"Senior Brother Li, what do you think?" Su Xuan walked over and asked in a low voice.

"What do you mean, how do you see it?" Li Yuan asked instead of answering.

"Regarding joining the Merchant Alliance," Su Xuan said, then sighed after a moment's thought. "Master rejected the Xie family, so things will probably get even more difficult for our Green Ox Martial Arts Society from now on."

"Stop asking questions and focus on your training!" Li Yuan said, feigning anger. "If the sky falls, the tall ones will hold it up; it's none of our business to worry about it!"

"Senior brother is right." Su Xuan scratched the back of his head, grinned, and ran off to practice his skills.

Li Yuan understood perfectly well that with his master's refusal, Xiao Yichen's next target for challenging Tianlong Martial Arts School would undoubtedly be Qingniu Martial Arts Society.

It seems this battle is unavoidable.

The number one person below the Transformation Realm?

Li Yuan chuckled softly to himself.

If Xiao Yichen were to face his Dragon Form Fist, which was at a high level, plus the power boost from his Yuan Sha Gong, which was at a lower level, it was uncertain how much of a chance he would have.

But Li Yuan dared not let his guard down in the slightest.

Xiao Yichen is renowned, and his methods are certainly extraordinary.

Moreover, what is this person's temperament like? Will he use dirty tricks to kill during the fight, or will he engage in some kind of conspiracy outside the ring?

Everything is unknown.

We must be wary.

But right now, the most important thing is to improve my own strength as soon as possible.