X-Dragon Era

After leaving the Kashi Family's territory, Xin Yun met with the ambushed sixty plus experts and the Ten Elders, then had a long talk with them. However...during the conversation, Xin Yun did not reveal his plans, instead choosing another method.

The opposing side had put forth sixty-four diamond Ten-star Experts all at once, and obviously, that could not possibly be all of their strength. Therefore...even if these forces were eliminated, it would be impossible to take over the Kashi Family's gold mines. Apart from losses, there would be almost no gain, which obviously did not serve the interests of the Cangqiong Family. The promise of all the gold mines that Xin Yun had made could not be fulfilled.

Since the initial promise could not be fulfilled, Xin Yun's only choice was to give up on this operation. Faced with Xin Yun's statement, the Ten Elders not only accepted it but were very grateful.

It should be noted that under such circumstances, Xin Yun could have forcefully initiated battle. Once the battle began...it would be inevitable that the Cangqiong Family's hundreds of experts would suffer greatly. Although not truly dead, even if they were to resurrect, restoring their strength wouldn't happen overnight. Without these experts to command, the Cangqiong Family would inevitably face relentless external assaults, and the consequences would be hard to predict.

If it were possible to smoothly take over all of the Kashi Family's gold mines, such losses could be made up for. But the problem now was that, even after defeating those forty-six diamond-level experts, it would still not deal a fatal blow to the Kashi Family. Even if the gold mines were forcibly taken, they could not withstand the Kashi Family's retaliation. That's the crux – only ten diamond Ten-star Experts would be enough to shatter any branch, and as things stood, there was no solution.

In this case, the Cangqiong Family would only incur colossal losses, with not the slightest gain to show for it; therefore...how could the Ten Elders not be grateful for Xin Yun's decisive cancellation of the plan!

Now that the plan has been abandoned, the source of everlasting life that Xin Yun had given them still remained. From this perspective, the Cangqiong Family owed Xin Yun a huge favor. It was a debt that had to be repaid, sooner or later.

However, from Xin Yun's point of view, the one hundred slots of immortality he had given to the Cangqiong Family were in fact meant to keep Po Kong in check, which was advantageous and harmless to Xin Yun. Unless Po Kong wished to give up on his family's lives, he would never have to worry about Po Kong leaving.

To Xin Yun, Po Kong was of paramount importance. After all, he was the number one expert in his previous life. In Xin Yun's eyes, it was equivalent to having Zhao Yun, Zhao Zilong of the Three Kingdoms on his side! Although Xin Yun's own abilities were not weak, that feeling of having a great general was something he could never let go of.

Moreover, what was most important was that Xin Yun clearly understood that a figure among the Nine Great Experts was absolutely not comparable to diamond Ten-star Experts. To put it in one sentence, below the rank of king, all were mere ants. Experts of the Dragon King rank could not be defeated by numbers – only other kings posed a threat to a king-level expert.

As mentioned at the beginning, to become one of the Nine Great Experts, it's not only about getting through the Illusionary Realm. Most importantly, one must have the strength to pass through the Desert of Death, the lair of the Death Sand Dragons, as well as cross Sword Dragon Valley and the nest of the Emperor Sword Dragons!

Whether Death Sand Dragons or Emperor Sword Dragons, there are countless diamond Ten-star Giant Dragons within their colonies. So...the strength of someone able to forcefully pass through is self-explanatory, isn't it?

After everything was explained, everyone departed on their separate ways, and Xin Yun returned alone to the Pot Inside Heaven. He gathered all the high-ranking members and started a week-long conference.

After the conference, the entire Sky-opening Sect was set in motion. Starting from Shoushan, they expanded outward, continuously taking one city after another into their fold. The influence of the Sky-opening Sect rapidly spread around.

It's true that cities with diamond-rank Experts stationed in them cannot be assaulted by force, but if a direct attack doesn't work, aren't there other means? For instance, money, intimidation, the temptation of immortality! In case they truly refuse to comply, there's no choice but to resort to assassination, or perhaps incite a rebellion by pretending to be city residents, directly toppling the opponent, slaughtering them, and then conveniently taking over the entire city.

Put simply, that means conquering by any means necessary without breaking the rules. Xin Yun only demanded results, not the process. As long as the cities are conquered quickly and without violating any rules, that's a major accomplishment!

However, before resorting to all possible measures, Sky-opening Sect would certainly try diplomacy first, seeking negotiations and constantly offering various terms. Generally speaking, in the face of such interests, no one can refuse. Occasionally, one might encounter a few greedy individuals or obstinate ones, but there's no need to be concerned. Whether it's a gentle approach or a tough one, any method that achieves the goal is a good one!

Thus, as time went by, city after city was annexed into the jurisdiction of Sky-opening Sect. With each city incorporated into their territory, the bank plan was aggressively rolled out in these cities.

The first step of the banking plan was to issue currency, exchanging old metallic currency for the new currency issued by the bank. During this phase, the value of the two currencies was roughly equivalent, despite a slight difference, the overall balance was maintained.

This step was actually designed to foster dependence on and trust in the new currency. Once everyone relied on this currency and developed sufficient trust, the subsequent stages of the banking plan could be gradually implemented. In the end...paper currency would replace metallic currency, akin to exchanging a plain piece of paper for a gold brick!