After Transmigrating as an Immortal Master, I Hold a Group Meeting - Chapter 98

“Administrative structure of Smoky Cloud Tower: one Tower Master, one Deputy Tower Master, and ten Island Lords.”

“Of the ten islands, eight correspond to the ‘eight tones.’ The instruments are classified by manufacturing material: metal, stone, earth, leather, silk, wood, gourd, and bamboo. Instruments outside the eight-tones belong to the foreign islands. In addition, all medical cultivators are grouped on Medical Island.”

“The Smoky Cloud Tower islands are connected, except for Medical Island, which hangs alone off to the side.”

“Centuries ago, Medical Island used to be an independent sect. When demons and fiends invaded, they had no means of defense and could not hold out alone, so they eventually came under the Smoky Cloud Tower,” Gui Ruoxue said coolly.

Ning Mingmei: “I see.”

“I’d advise you to lower your expectations,” Gui Ruoxue folded his arms. “Lu Mengqing is supremely competitive. She’s been like that for over six hundred years.”

Ning Mingmei glanced at Gui Ruoxue and pushed up his glasses. “You and she are close?”

He hadn’t even remembered that Gui Ruoxue was over two hundred years older than him.

Although Gui Ruoxue was centuries older, his résumé didn’t match his age. Like a connected insider, Ning Mingmei had firmly taken the post of Elder Swordbearer in the Supreme Clarity Sect; an unwieldy, sidelined office, perhaps, but a lifetime appointment and with a Sect Master as an ally. Gui Ruoxue, by contrast, had been bounced between the Brilliant Blossom Valley and the Green Green Jade Altar, either promoted or dismissed, and after a life wandering, returned to be a postdoc on Ning Mingmei’s peak.

The lesson is, choosing the right position beats trying harder.

Another thing, it’s better to loaf at your desk than to make enemies by trying to innovate over your bosses. Gui Ruoxue had been expelled from the Brilliant Blossom Valley for exactly that, upending the old medicinal path’s cake. Who else were they expected to throw out if not him?

Gui Ruoxue’s expression soured at the memory. “When we were kids… she would occasionally stay at the Brilliant Blossom Valley for a few years.”

Occasionally, apparently, meant practically childhood playmates.

Ning Mingmei asked, “How competitive? Tell me.”

Gui Ruoxue’s face puckered like he’d been made to eat ancient pickled cabbage. “When I beat her at archery, I used a little trick… and she chased me down on horseback for three hundred li.” Thinking of how he’d ended up now, Gui Ruoxue couldn’t help but wonder whether Lu Mengqing had rubbed her hands with glee.

He swore under his breath. “Forget it. Don’t make me meet her.”

Ning Mingmei was perfectly impartial. “Hypocrite. You brought this on yourself.”

So the portrait of Lu Mengqing took shape.

“I heard the disciples they sent this time are mostly mid-to-late Golden Core and above. If Lu Mengqing wants to win, she’ll be ready,” Gui Ruoxue said, half-smirking, half-warning. “Spend less time on useless fights. Winning a few contests won’t do you much good.”

Gui Ruoxue thought he was being sensible.

The Debate Conference between the Supreme Clarity Sect and Smoky Cloud Tower concerns the two sect masters and the high-profile elders, so what if other sects send people to watch? The shame, if it comes, will fall first on Qi Miancheng and Fang Wuyu. Ning Mingmei’s winning would mainly benefit the Supreme Clarity Sect and Qi Miancheng; he might collect some honors, but they couldn’t be cashed in. The only real upside would be drawing recruits for the next enrollment.

Could Ning Mingmei even afford to take in that many disciples?

Over time, Gui Ruoxue had come to see clearly that Misty Peak was truly poor and barebones. Gui Ruoxue had to make his own test tubes. If not for Hu Yang being useful and Ren Miao being honest, Gui Ruoxue would be tempted every night to climb into Ning Mingmei’s bed and yank his collar, asking where his conscience had gone.

However, if both Ning Mingmei and Fang Wuyu lost to Smoky Cloud Tower…

The worst embarrassment would fall on the Supreme Clarity Sect itself and Fang Wuyu’s reputation. Ning Mingmei, who few outside the sect remembered anyway, would only lose a little face.

And there was the added bonus of maybe claiming Fang Wuyu’s wager.

Most satisfying of all was watching Fang Wuyu being ridiculed.

“If I were you, I’d start thinking today about how to mess with Fang Wuyu,” Gui Ruoxue said.

Ning Mingmei bent to inspect something Gui Ruoxue had made. “Little Gui, your thinking is problematic.”

Gui Ruoxue: …

“You… are you talking about me?”

Gui Ruoxue nearly choked. For someone as utterly heartless as Ning Mingmei, wasn’t it a bit much to accuse him of having the wrong mindset?

Ning Mingmei pushed up his glasses and casually picked up a jar from Gui Ruoxue’s worktable.
“I intend to win the Debate Conference.”

Gui Ruoxue: “?? Then why did you have me slaving away all month making these things?”

Ning Mingmei lifted the lid, sniffed the liquid inside, and nodded. It was about ninety percent similar. “This is for a double victory.”

Gui Ruoxue: ?

Winning twice.

It had been more than half a month since Qi Miancheng’s ascension and the arrival of the Smoky Cloud Tower’s honored guests. During that half-month, Ning Mingmei had been herding Gui Ruoxue, Xue Zhu, Hu Yang, Ren Miao, and the four disciples just back from training into the workshop every day.

The rows of glass bottles before them were the fruits of their labor.

Ning Mingmei went down the line, one bottle at a time.

“This one boosts vigor slightly, gives you the strength of a bull. We’ll call it RainbowBull.”

“This one enhances memory a little. Let’s name it Suanxin Oral Liquid.” |45|

“This one… well, it’s a tonic. If tonics had a platinum grade, this would qualify. We’ll call it Old Platinum.”

Gui Ruoxue’s expression grew darker by the second.

“As for these two…” Ning Mingmei took a sip of a black liquid, shut his eyes, and nodded. “Mm. Strong enough.” He sampled the clear one too. Same verdict. “The black one will be called Cola, because the Debate Conference is about to start and it’s truly a cause for delight.”

Gui Ruoxue’s tone turned razor-edged. “Sounds like Peak Lord Ning is feeling very delighted indeed.”

Ning Mingmei remained unruffled. He picked up another cup. “This one we’ll call Sprite, inspired by the ‘snow’ from Gui Ruoxue and the ‘teal’ from the teal robe you wore the first time we met. What do you think, Wig? I only described the flavor profile and you recreated it perfectly. Poison, medicine, food; it’s all the same to you. You really are a genius. The Green Jade Altar may be gone, but from Misty Peak, starting with this one bottle of Sprite, the world will see your creativity.” |46|

Gui Ruoxue: …

“Wh-what nonsense! You think this kind of thing could stump me?” he snapped, his neck stiff.

“Hu Yang and Wu Yun have already set up the production line. Add in those automation talismans from the talisman cultivators, and all you need to do as a Divine Transformation cultivator is feed in a bit of spiritual power three times a day.”

For that, Ning Mingmei owed thanks to Ren Miao and Xue Zhu.

He’d expected Wu Yun to be reluctant and had even prepared a whole pep talk. But to his surprise, Ren Miao and Xue Zhu’s academic enthusiasm had been so infectious that Wu Yun was working by the very next day. Even more, Xue Zhu seemed to have quickly pierced through Wu Yun’s inner knot.

Xue Zhu had said, “These drinks are good for the body. Even if they weren’t, they taste wonderful. I wandered as a child and never had even a sip of sweetness like this. Who would have thought that the fleeting lives of plants and herbs could become something so delightful?”

And Wu Yun, visibly moved, had silently joined the work the next day.

Although he hadn’t wielded the blade directly, the creation of One Dream of Huaxu still weighed on Wu Yun’s conscience. A medicine meant to heal had, through human greed, become the poison that sent a city to hell.

The system, hearing this analysis, thought the whole thing absurd.

However, Ning Mingmei only remained calm. “New technology almost always profits villains first. Scientists discovered radium and soon enough, watchmakers churned out legions of ‘radium girls.’ Scientists searching for better pesticides created compounds that ended up in gas chambers. |47|

“From another angle, it’s simple: who would pour endless money into basic research that seems useless? The things you invent must have utility and must make money. And if someone funds you, the first question should be: what return do they want? That’s the cold logic of the market.

“And for those who want to ‘make the big money,’ the most lucrative path has always been war. War is gambling and many people love to bet small for a big win.

“That’s just how things are. There’s no way around it… Which is why, when faced with gifts that fall from the sky, your first reaction should be fear for yourself.”

The tone with which he said this startled even the system.

Because Ning Mingmei showed not a trace of emotion.

Not the slightest flicker.

Aside from all that, the talisman cultivators assigned to the library management system were themselves shaken to the core. Who could have imagined that the very first automated assembly line for large-scale beverage production in the cultivation world had quietly been born in the back mountain of Misty Peak?

And then there was the matter of Gui Ruoxue not recognizing Xue Zhu, nor Xue Zhu recognizing Gui Ruoxue. After all, Gui Ruoxue wasn’t some sort of celebrity; it wasn’t as though everyone knew what he looked like.

As for Xue Zhu, Gui Ruoxue’s only impression of him came from those grotesquely distorted product illustrations.

…Only Ren Miao, still retaining a child’s curiosity, had once secretly asked Ning Mingmei, “Master, Master, this Miss Xue… is she a man or a woman?” Now that Gui Ruoxue had returned to wearing male attire, the matter had confused Ren Miao thoroughly.

Ning Mingmei simply answered, “Miss Xue’s gender is Miss Xue.”

Ren Miao: ???

That only made things more incomprehensible.

Leaving aside such details, Ning Mingmei was very pleased with the current progress. All that remained was for the Debate Conference to begin and then the sales strategy could be rolled out.

Gui Ruoxue, however, kept his arms folded as he asked, “And what exactly are these drinks for? Why even make them?”

Why indeed?

Ning Mingmei first glanced at the bottles of Cola and Sprite.

A sporting event without beverage sponsors? Unthinkable.

In the mortal world, drinks like Cola and Sprite, the so-called ‘happy drinks’ that had ensnared legions of couch potatoes, were always headline sponsors for sports tournaments. And unlike the real world, where sponsorship fees had to be paid, Misty Peak was free and Ning Mingmei’s disciples were free.

Which meant these endorsements cost nothing.

Ning Mingmei had already storyboarded the exact lines his disciples would deliver, and combined with other marketing tricks, he was confident Cola and Sprite would skyrocket to popularity.

“A life without Cola is an incomplete life.”

“If you don’t drink Cola, your life lacks refinement.”

“Everyone in the Supreme Clarity Sect drinks it, but your Smoky Cloud Tower doesn’t? Don’t tell me you’re still living in the sticks?”

“Two sects ranked number one already swear by it, yet you lot, ranked third, fifth, or even tenth, don’t drink it?”

As for RainbowBull, no explanation was even needed. Ning Mingmei had the perfect scene in mind.

Besides, there were no bans in the cultivation world against drinking stimulants before, during, or after a tournament. Wasn’t this practically a gift from the heavens?

Old Platinum, though, that was another story.

Back during the Yaochuan trip, Ning Mingmei had stockpiled tea for twenty years just to use as gifts. But tea, over and over again, became monotonous.

When Qi Miancheng ascended last time, Ning Mingmei once again gifted tea, only for Fang Wuyu to mock him.

“Ten catties this time? What will you send next time he ascends again, twenty catties?”

So, Ning Mingmei conceived of Old Platinum.

Even the slogan was ready-made. “I won’t accept any gifts this holiday, but if I do, I only accept Old Platinum.”

However, when producing Old Platinum, Ning Mingmei gave one strict instruction: it should be effective, but only slightly.

Otherwise, how could they release newer, better, and more specialized supplements down the line?

The health supplement market had only just been cracked open. The disciples of the Supreme Clarity Sect needed room to grow and carve out niches.

If a single supplement did everything, how could you sell a second, third, or fourth one to ‘fill in the gaps’?

And after all, when it comes to supplements, the point isn’t whether they work. So long as they don’t kill anyone, that’s enough. In fact, the most troublesome thing is when a supplement actually does work.

As for the Suanxin Oral Liquid, that was tailor-made for students preparing for entrance exams to the great sects. Ning Mingmei was confident it would sell like wildfire.

And when the Immortal Realm’s market reached saturation, all these useless supplements could simply be dumped into the Fiend Realm. That place had been dead and dreary for ages; it was surely full of lonely, elderly cultivators.

The plan was to pry open the hearts of those solitary fiend elders with small promotional activities, and then relentlessly tempt them into buying supplements, or better yet, subscribing to premium supplement packages.

Just like gym memberships, the plan was to drain the fiend elders of their savings.

Thus, without lifting a sword, the fiends would be subdued by their own purses.

Once the sect had reached the peak of the supplement industry, if the disciples still had free time, they could even move on to producing miracle remedies like Isatis root granules, expanding from supplements into the realm of traditional medicine. |48|

Ning Mingmei had only shared part of his vision with Gui Ruoxue. Unfortunately, even that small part made Gui Ruoxue think he was talking utter nonsense.

“Forget it.” Gui Ruoxue irritably shook his long hair back. “I can never make sense of what you’re doing… I’ll just wait and see the results.”

Ning Mingmei nodded. “Alright. I’ll be off. There’s still business at the front mountain.”

Leaning back in his chair, Gui Ruoxue’s face had gone a shade pale. “By the way, what exactly have you been doing at the front mountain lately? Ning Mingmei, you need to ease up on your disciples. Pushing them too hard won’t help. You’ve been tormenting them until their howls and wails carry all the way to the back mountain.”

Ning Mingmei blinked. “What howls? We’ve been rehearsing the peak’s anthem.”

Gui Ruoxue: ?

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

Ning Mingmei didn’t explain. Draped in his signature black robes, he sauntered away.

Denied an answer, Gui Ruoxue simmered in impotent rage for a while, and then finally sat down again. He stared at the glass of Sprite in front of him, his expression shifting.

Hu Yang came in. “Braunt Xue, could you help me check these parameters? Did I set them correctly?”

He, too, was unsure about Gui Ruoxue’s gender, but he’d cleverly chosen a compromise. Humans always like to take the middle ground. Thus, he called him ‘Braunt Xue,’ half ‘bro,’ half ‘aunt’. To Hu Yang, everything could be Braunt’d, after all. |49|

He only saw Gui Ruoxue staring into the bottle.

“…What a ridiculous thing.”

Then, after a long pause, Gui Ruoxue suddenly raised the bottle and drained it in one gulp.

Hu Yang froze at the door, too intimidated to move. Gui Ruoxue always gave off a dangerous air and right now, expressionless, he turned his gaze toward him.

“Sprite is pretty good. Bring me another bottle,” Gui Ruoxue said.

The taste really wasn’t bad at all.

***

On his way back to the front mountain, Ning Mingmei had no idea that Gui Ruoxue had just become the first long-term, loyal victim of ‘happy drink.’

Ever since learning that the Smoky-Clarity Debate Conference—no, Cultivation Debate Conference—was about to begin, Ning Mingmei had been planning. He wasn’t penniless anymore. With forty-seven million in hand, he was no longer the destitute man he’d once been.

“I’ve already built up my initial capital,” he mused, adjusting his glasses. “This time, I have to carve off a fat slice of profit from this conference!”

Otherwise, when would my ‘Misty Peak Natural Hot Spring Leisure and Research Resort’ ever be built? …Damn, that hurts.

He’d been zapped by the system again, the first time in ages.

The system: [The administration buildings aren’t even finished yet and you’re already planning a hot spring research base?]

Ning Mingmei pushed up his glasses. “It’s all because yesterday, the Workers Hall handed me the preliminary budget and asked for twenty-seven million! Two lousy buildings for twenty-seven million? They might as well be robbing me.”

The system: [Who told you to demand so many facilities and fancy interiors?!]

A luxury studio, a luxury office wing, plus a gym, juice bar, and restaurant… The fact that the Workers Hall Master only asked for twenty-seven million was practically charity, considering he’d left out the labor costs.

Ning Mingmei adjusted his glasses. “I don’t care. I’ll have them come discuss the budget in person. There’s definitely room to maneuver here.” Even on a planet made entirely of stone, Ning Mingmei could find a way to drill out an oil well.

The system: …Completely hopeless.

The system had assumed that once Ning Mingmei secured his forty-seven million, he would finally settle down and play the role of an aloof, dignified master. Instead, not only had he failed to calm down, but his appetite only kept growing.

[Can’t you do something proper for once? Something a master should actually do?]

Ning Mingmei replied, “On the contrary. Without money, how can I be a master? How can I pursue academic research?”

…You want money for academic research? More like for your own indulgence.

He continued with a straight face, “Besides, in my old world, people retired at sixty-five, and after retirement, only had twenty years left at most. Pensions were meager, so it made sense. But here, in the cultivation world, retirement means endless years, stretching to thousands, even tens of thousands. If one reaches immortality, it’s even worse. Life is unpredictable. Who knows if the Supreme Clarity Sect will still have funds to pay pensions by then? So really, I’m just securing a basic safety net for my long-term retirement.”

The system: [You’re stockpiling enough funds for ten thousand years of luxury retirement. You must be joking.]

As everyone knew, the number of buildings represented the academic level of the college. By Ning Mingmei’s standards, with such a vast estate, they’d need at least fifty buildings.

“So selling drinks alone isn’t enough,” he declared. “I’ll need to use the Debate Conference between the Supreme Clarity Sect and the Smoky Cloud Tower to rake in profits on every front.”

The system: [Do you even look like a master anymore?]

The system was about to zap him again, but since Ning Mingmei had already reached the mountain gate, it reluctantly held back.

Recently, the gate of Misty Peak had been lively. But today, it was oddly quiet.

Because just that morning, Ning Mingmei had chaired a group meeting. The whole peak was on edge. Every disciple, gripped by a temporary pang of conscience, was buried in frantic study in the small pine forest. Especially after being thoroughly scolded for their dreadful performance in rehearsing the peak anthem.

However, today, a few uninvited guests appeared before the gate.

At their head was a woman in white robes trimmed with gold, elegant in bearing. She smiled gently at Ning Mingmei.

“Tower Master Lu,” Ning Mingmei greeted with a bow.

“I’ve long wanted to pay Peak Lord Ning a visit, but my duties have kept me occupied. At last, I found the time today,” Lu Mengqing said warmly, “I’ve yet to thank you on behalf of my disciples for the matter in Yaochuan City. When Mingke wrote back to the tower, he emphasized your help.”

“A trifling matter,” Ning Mingmei said smoothly.

Lu Mengqing smiled. “These are but small gifts. Please, you must accept them. My disciples have troubled you enough during their stay at the Supreme Clarity Sect.”

“It’s no trouble at all,” he replied. Of course it wasn’t. He’d taken their money and left on a business trip immediately afterward.

The Smoky Cloud Tower Master was indeed generous. Several large chests of rare treasures were delivered on the spot. Ning Mingmei summoned a few disciples to carry them away.

He’d tally the accounts later, after she was gone.

However, Lu Mengqing made no move to leave. So Ning Mingmei invited her into the hall for conversation.

On the way, she remarked politely, “This peak of yours, Peak Lord Ning, truly…”

Ning Mingmei glanced at the barren, treeless mountain.

Lu Mengqing searched for words. “Truly reflects the refined, unadorned spirit of a sword cultivator.”

…

Ning Mingmei pushed up his glasses and accepted her painstaking compliment.

“Speaking of which,” she added, “I’ve noticed that in recent nights, my disciples often come down from Misty Peak. Yet when they return, they look thoroughly drained. Might Peak Lord Ning know why?”

Ah, so that was her concern.

Well then, since she had gone to such effort to flatter him, perhaps he should have his disciples, fresh from a group meeting and brimming with energy, perform for the Smoky Cloud Tower Master the very songs her own disciples had composed?

Author’s Note:

Ning Mingmei to the Smoky Cloud Tower: As the twin Number Ones under Heaven, we shouldn’t fight each other. Instead, we should unite… to fleece the Number Threes. There are four sects, all claiming third place. Whoever we squeeze the most money out of, that’s the real Number Three.

The Smoky Cloud Tower: Splendid idea.