Rise of the Wang Clan: Starting with a Portable Farm

Chapter 251: The Unconventional and Innovative Brothel

Taking advantage of the one-hundred-mile buffer zone, many cultivators carrying heavy treasures stopped to frantically disguise themselves. They swapped robes, altered their bone structure, and changed their auras, desperate to slip through the dragnet waiting in the wilderness.

But as the mortal saying went: When the priest climbs a foot, the devil climbs ten. The predators waiting on the perimeter were seasoned killers. Relying on overwhelming numbers and tracking arts, they locked onto their targets like hounds on a blood trail.

The moment the travelers crossed the hundred-mile marker—stepping out of the protective shadow of the Wang family’s deterrence—the wolves bared their fangs.

Many cultivators bled out in the dirt, the treasures they had just bankrupted themselves to buy snatched from their cooling corpses before the jade boxes even lost the warmth of their hands. Some of the weaker ambushers bit off more than they could chew and were slaughtered by their prey. And in the deepest shadows, patient “orioles” waited for the mantis to catch the cicada, swooping in to murder both the victor and the vanquished.

Wang Hao didn’t spare a second thought for the slaughter in the woods. The Wang family had honored their end of the bargain. If a cultivator lacked the strength or the cunning to survive the journey home, it simply meant their fate had reached its end.

The next morning, the Low Grade auction for Qi Condensation cultivators commenced. Wang Hao didn’t bother taking the stage; he delegated the task to Wang Longxing, an early-stage Foundation Establishment elder, to give the man some practical experience.

Instead, Wang Hao took a leisurely stroll through his newly minted “Entertainment City.”

The results were exactly as he had projected. Cultivators were starved for novelty, and they embraced this bizarre modern concept with open arms. Word of mouth spread like wildfire; those who visited on the first day dragged their friends back on the second for a “relaxing experience.”

However, one detail annoyed Wang Hao immensely. The venue generating the highest foot traffic wasn’t his meticulously crafted “Heavenly Human World” idol club.

It was the damn brothels opened by Lei Liheng and the other vassal families.

Following the Wang family’s aggressive push for population growth, the vassal patriarchs realized they needed to rapidly expand their own bloodlines to remain competitive. However, they were stingy. They refused to spend Spirit Stones to subsidize childbirth within their own ranks. After all, without heavy financial compensation, what female cultivator would willingly cripple her Dao path by spending years pregnant and nursing?

Since the righteous path was too expensive, they adopted the pragmatic, ruthless strategy pioneered by the Si family’s ancestor, Si Ji. They opened brothels staffed by their mortal clanswomen, charging a premium for rogue cultivators to “borrow seeds” and impregnate them. It was a cold, biological business model—a factory for churning out potential spiritual roots.

Because the Wang family was the sovereign lord of Qingniu Market, Lei Liheng and the others had to petition Wang Hao for permission to operate such establishments.

Wang Hao had pondered the ethical and optical implications for days before finally approving the request.

Not only did he approve it, but his inner capitalist took over. He gave them operational advice, suggesting specific themes, exotic costumes, and immersive roleplay settings. He told them that if they were going to do it, they needed to be unconventional and innovative.

It created a perfect, symbiotic ecosystem of vice. Wang Hao provided the “high culture”—the untouchable, ethereal idols that drained the wallets of the wealthy—while Lei Liheng provided the “low culture”—the traditional, physical release that catered to the masses.

It turned out the masses vastly preferred the traditional approach.

Wang Hao shook his head. He was an architect of empires and a Foundation Establishment powerhouse; he didn’t have the time to micromanage a red-light district. He checked the foot traffic, reviewed the ledgers to see which themed houses were underperforming, tossed out a few basic marketing corrections, and washed his hands of the whole affair.

Qingniu Market roared with activity for ten straight days before the tide of Qi Condensation cultivators finally receded.

After concluding his private, post-auction transaction with the Ye family, Wang Hao returned to Wang Family Ridge with his retinue.

Inside the sprawling Grand Council Hall, the atmosphere was electric. Every member of the Wang family’s upper echelon was grinning from ear to ear. The auction had been a monumental triumph.

The final gross revenue approached 600,000 Spirit Stones. Of that, nearly 500,000 belonged solely to the Wang family treasury.

Four hundred thousand came directly from the high-tier and low-tier auction sales. The remaining one hundred thousand was a chaotic amalgamation of shop profits, entrance fees, auction commission cuts, and the staggering cash flow from the Entertainment City.

The volume of standard Pills and talismans sold to the Qi Condensation crowd was staggering, generating over 20,000 stones in pure retail profit.

The Entertainment City had pulled in nearly 10,000 stones in less than ten days. Wang Hao knew this was a bubble inflated by the massive influx of tourists and the sheer novelty of the venues. Once the crowds thinned, profits would likely plummet to a tenth of that figure. However, if Qingniu Market ever grew to the permanent size of the Qingyuan Sect’s capital market, the Entertainment City could easily net 10,000 stones a month. It was a terrifyingly lucrative venture, potentially out-earning their alchemy division.

Hosting auctions would also become a permanent pillar of their economy. Even if the Wang family didn’t supply the treasures themselves, taking a ten percent commission on external consignments was basically printing money.

Of course, this wasn’t all pure profit. Refining Foundation Establishment Pills required expensive raw materials. To stock the shelves and host the assembly, the Wang family had effectively liquidated years of hoarded output. They would likely face a severe supply drought in the coming years.

After Wang Hao delivered the financial summary, Wang Guang’an waved a hand, dismissing the Qi Condensation managers. Once only the Foundation Establishment Elders remained, the Monarch spoke.

“Yanzhao, have Yanzhong and the others emerged from Secluded Cultivation?”

Wang Yanzhao stood. “Ancestor, all four have successfully reached Foundation Establishment. Eldest Brother Yanzhong has already exited seclusion. The other three are still consolidating their realms and will require a bit more time.”

“Excellent,” Wang Guang’an smiled, a deep, genuine expression of relief. The cost to push those four across the threshold had been astronomical. A single drop of Water Spirit Essence Milk cost over 20,000 Spirit Stones. If they had failed, it would have been a devastating 60,000-stone loss.

“Our expansion overseas can no longer be delayed,” Wang Guang’an declared, his tone shifting back to the authoritative Monarch. “I will lead the expeditionary force tomorrow. Yanzhao, are the personnel rosters finalized?”

“Yes, Supreme Elder,” Wang Yanzhao replied. “We have selected 40 young, mortal clansmen. The majority possess earth-attribute spiritual roots and are skilled in construction. We have also included a dozen spirit farmers to break ground on the new spirit fields. To ensure the overseas branch is self-sustaining, we have selected five married couples to make the journey.”

Wang Hao leaned forward, tapping the table. “The teleportation array is too expensive to use for regular troop movements. The overseas branch must be able to organically reproduce. The first two batches of cultivators we sent are already aging. We need to actively encourage them to breed. If they cannot secure a cultivator for a primary wife, they should take mortal women as concubines. We can incentivize this by linking reproduction directly to the Foundation Establishment Pill: those who produce the most offspring get priority.”

Wang Longyou frowned deeply, his traditional sensibilities offended. “The men we stationed overseas are our elite combatants. Should they not be focusing every ounce of their energy on cultivation?”

“Circumstances have changed,” Wang Hao countered smoothly. “When the clan was facing annihilation, our overseas vanguard needed to prioritize combat power. But the crisis has passed. We are no longer desperate for a handful of Foundation Establishment fighters. The main branch has spent years vigorously expanding our population. Why should the overseas branch be exempt from this duty?

“I propose we send three additional clansmen tomorrow. Give them no official duties. Their sole purpose on that island will be to take wives, take concubines, and breed. As for a reward… add a new bounty. If a man sires ten children who possess spiritual roots, he will be rewarded with a Foundation Establishment Pill. He can consume it himself, or save it for his heir.”

“Ten children? A guaranteed Pill?” Wang Yanzhi gasped. “Isn’t that reward far too heavy? What if the father and his children all have terrible spiritual roots? Giving them a Pill would be a catastrophic waste of resources!”

“Think about it,” Wang Hao argued, his voice cold and pragmatic. “The men willing to act as breeding stock already have comfortable lives, wives, and children here on the mainland. If you want them to abandon their families, travel across the ocean to a hostile, monster-infested island, and start over… how can you motivate them without an exorbitant bounty?”

Wang Guang’an nodded slowly, the logic undeniable. “Wenhao is right. That is how we will proceed. Our overseas territory contains one third-rank spirit mountain, five second-rank mountains, and over a dozen first-rank peaks. We could send a thousand clansmen over there and still not fill the space! Without heavy incentives, the population will stagnate.

“Our overseas vanguard enjoyed safety and peace while the main branch bled in the clan wars. It is time they contribute to the future of this family! In fact, I will set the example myself.”

Wang Guang’an slammed his hand on the table, his eyes sweeping the room, daring anyone to contradict him. “I will be taking concubines upon my arrival. Let us see who dares to oppose this policy now!”