Spirit Stones. Everyone had seen them.

But this many Spirit Stones? Neither Jin Fugui nor Mo Yu had ever laid eyes on such a quantity before.

Mo Yu said quite excitedly, “I can finally get new fishing gear.”

Jin Fugui rolled his eyes. “Old Mo, is that all you aspire to?”

Mo Yu retorted, unconvinced, “And what do you plan to do?”

Jin Fugui grinned smugly. “I plan to raise Spirit Beasts myself. Feed them and give them drink every day, so I can get a steady supply of manure.”

Upon hearing this, Jiang Chen and Mo Yu’s mouths twitched uncontrollably.

While in a sense, this did show some business acumen… it just felt a bit dirty.

Jin Fugui happily stowed all the Spirit Stones into his storage pouch and then said, “Since today’s profits were so high, we could set up a stall at [ Fire Peak ] every day!”

Jiang Chen shook his head. “Today was only because of the duel between Long Ao and Shui Wuhen, which brought an unusually high crowd. On a normal day, we’d never make this much.”

Jin Fugui blinked. “Making any profit is fine.”

But Jiang Chen continued, “Not only that. Once our competitors see we made a fortune, they’ll definitely try to copy us, probably even undercut our prices.”

Mo Yu nodded slightly. “Old Jiang is right. That is indeed a big problem.”

“So what do we do?” Jin Fugui frowned.

Jiang Chen glanced at the two of them and chuckled. “Simple. We’ll earn franchise fees.”

“Franchise fees?” The two looked utterly bewildered.

Jiang Chen explained, “Right now, we have top-quality watermelons, top-quality Spirit Wine, the essential barbecue seasoning for the grilled meat, and even cheaper Spirit Beast meat. All of these have been proven by the market and customers. Therefore, by using the barbecue seasoning and various resources as bait to attract people to join our franchise, we can hook all our competitors like fish.”

This idea was completely new to Mo Yu and Jin Fugui. After hearing it, they were left speechless for a long time.

In their minds, just making any profit going forward was enough. Even if it was less, it didn’t matter. But Jiang Chen was different; he already looked down on such small earnings.

According to his description, as long as someone joined the franchise, it would generate income. The more people joined, the more they would earn. In the end, like a snowball rolling downhill, the profits would grow bigger and bigger.

Mo Yu hesitated before speaking. “But what if these people back out…”

Jiang Chen had already thought of a solution. “Simple. Everyone who joins must sign a spirit contract with us. Problem solved.”

Hiss!

Jin Fugui couldn’t help but suck in a sharp breath.

Both men felt as if they’d been hit by a superior strategy.

Selling grilled meat, Spirit Wine, and watermelons—while these things did make money—they had to admit it was very hard work. And they couldn’t expect profits like today’s every day.

Now, by implementing Jiang Chen’s “franchise theory,” they wouldn’t need to set up stalls outside at all; Spirit Stones would flow in continuously.

“Impressive!” Mo Yu couldn’t help but give a thumbs-up, thoroughly convinced and feeling like all his book learning had been wasted.

Jiang Chen narrowed his eyes, thinking to himself: Once word spreads here, I can later sell wine and open restaurants in the Loose Cultivator market district, even cooperate with the [ Fragrance Pavilion ].

Work for others?

Never!

I’ll never work for someone else in this lifetime!

Next, the three of them had a good discussion.

First was the follow-up plan. Second was the profit split afterward.

Jin Fugui said seriously, “Old Jiang, this time you have to take the lion’s share. Otherwise… I’m out.”

Mo Yu chimed in agreement. “That’s right!”

This time Jiang Chen didn’t stand on ceremony. “Alright. From now on, I’ll take seventy percent alone!”

Even brothers keep clear accounts. Besides, the reason he’d distributed so many Spirit Stones earlier was precisely to lure these two onto his ‘pirate ship.’

Mo Yu was the first to state his position. “I haven’t contributed much, so I’ll just take ten percent.”

Jin Fugui thought for a moment and said, “Then… I’ll take the remaining twenty percent.”

Jiang Chen provided the Spirit Wine and watermelons. Jin Fugui provided the Spirit Beast meat.

As for… Mo Yu?

Jiang Chen certainly wouldn’t let him off the hook. He smiled and asked, “Old Mo, how’s your [ Minor Rain Spell ] coming along?”

Mo Yu replied, “Not bad. Currently at the third layer.”

Jiang Chen pointed at his own second-grade Spirit Farm and said, “Then I’ll have to rely on you from now on.”

Before Mo Yu could speak, Jin Fugui asked first with confusion, “Don’t you have Lin Yu helping you?”

Jiang Chen shrugged. “Ever since that incident with Feng Xiao happened, Lin Yu has been restricted by her older sister and isn’t allowed to come here anymore.”

In fact, Wang Bing hadn’t sent any news since that exchange either. Thus, he had no choice but to find someone else for rainmaking duties.

Coincidentally, Mo Yu was an official disciple of the [ Rain Pavilion ], even having reached the Foundation Establishment stage. The key point was, this guy had loads of free time. Instead of fishing, he might as well come here to make rain. Having known each other for so long, they were practically half-partners already.

“Alright.” Mo Yu didn’t refuse. In fact, he immediately headed toward the Spirit Farm.

Having received so many Spirit Stones, he’d always felt somewhat indebted to Jiang Chen. Now, he could finally make a tiny bit of compensation.

Once he stood on the field ridge, he immediately waved a hand.

Soon, a mass of water vapor gathered above the Spirit Farm. Judging by its color, it was even darker than Wang Bing’s had been.

Splash!

Soon, dense Spirit Rain began to fall. The spirit plants, nourished by the rain, stretched out one after another. Even the air here became much fresher.

Seeing this, Jiang Chen revealed a satisfied smile.

At that moment, Jin Fugui asked, “Old Jiang, with your talent in planting, one acre of second-grade Spirit Farm isn’t nearly enough. What realm are you at now? How long until you break through to Foundation Establishment?”

Jiang Chen answered, “Already at late-stage Qi Condensation. As for breaking through… that depends on luck.”

Jin Fugui pondered thoughtfully. “Then it should be soon. By then, with two acres of second-grade Spirit Farm, your yield will at least double.”

Coincidentally, around that time, the Spirit Beasts he raised would also stably produce manure.

A thought struck Jiang Chen. He asked abruptly, “What’s the situation with that Black Pool?”

Jin Fugui snapped back to attention and said, “It’s a deep pool hidden underground. How deep exactly is still unclear. The only thing certain is that there really are Dragon Carp and fish demons inside.”

Jiang Chen nodded. “I’ve recently brewed another type of wine called Golden Wine, which is higher grade than Spirit Wine. If this wine can really be used as bait for Dragon Carp fishing, then we should give it a try.”

Jin Fugui’s eyes lit up. “Great!”

He already had an obsession with Dragon Carp anyway. Last time, although unsuccessful, he did see one. If he could catch one Dragon Carp, he could become a disciple of that Golden Core stage fishing fanatic.

Not long after, Mo Yu finished casting his [ Minor Rain Spell ].

When he returned, Jin Fugui told him about their earlier discussion regarding the Black Pool.

Mo Yu himself was an ultimate fishing fanatic obsessed with angling. Hearing about new bait, and even going to fish for Dragon Carp, he immediately got excited, his eyes practically sparkling.

The three hit it off perfectly and decided to give it a try tomorrow!