Just as Su Fu was preparing to set off for Xiqi, the sky suddenly underwent a drastic change.
The originally clear sky was suddenly filled with clusters of white clouds.
Then, golden light burst forth like thousands of golden silk ribbons stretching across the firmament.
A brilliant pillar of golden light descended from the highest heavens, as if plating everything in the vicinity with a layer of dazzling gold.
“This is…” Su Fu paused, her heart suddenly racing.
This was clearly the precursor to being bestowed a Godly Power.
But at a time like this, who would grant her a Godly Power?
The answer was about to reveal itself.
Within the golden light, a figure gradually manifested.
The man wore a golden crown and a brocade robe, with a jade belt inlaid with treasures around his waist.
He stepped upon auspicious clouds, and the Treasure Basin before him shimmered with a blinding radiance.
“Zhao Gongming?!” Su Fu’s heart jolted, but she quickly reacted.
‘No, this is Zhao Gongming’s true form as the God of Wealth after his deification in the Investiture of the Gods.’
The phantom of the God of Wealth looked toward Su Fu, his eyes carrying several hints of appreciation.
His voice echoed between heaven and earth.
“I have observed your actions and found them to be exceedingly clever. Your tactical acquisition of the Sea-Fixing Beads has greatly pleased me.”
“Today, I specially bestow upon you a Godly Power. I hope you will maintain a righteous heart and use it well in the future.”
As the God of Wealth’s voice fell, scenes of bustling commerce suddenly appeared in the sky: thriving cities, gathered merchants, rare and exotic treasures being traded, circulating currency, and countless people coming and going in a display of immense prosperity.
Simultaneously, the voice of Shen Yan rang in Su Fu’s ears: [“You have obtained the Godly Power bestowed by Caishen Zhao Gongming: Wealth Connects the Three Realms · Myriad Worlds Merchant Alliance”]
[“Level: S-grade”]
[“Effect 1 — Cross-Realm Trading: Can open a passage to the Myriad Worlds Black Market, breaking through planar barriers and allowing beings from different planes and systems to conduct trade.”]
[“Effect 2 — Fortune God Contract: All transactions completed within the Myriad Worlds Merchant Alliance automatically sign a Fortune God Contract. Violators will have their wealth luck completely dissipated. If fraud is involved, the fraudster will suffer equivalent misfortune.”]
[“Special Note: Once the platform is established, it will automatically attract merchants from all realms (including Immortals, demons, supernatural entities, and beings from other worlds) to join.”]
Almost at the same moment, Su Fu felt as if she had established a mysterious connection with something.
It felt as though with just a single thought, she could open a commercial channel leading to the myriad worlds in the heavens.
The figure of the God of Wealth gradually faded away, his voice lingering powerfully.
“Facing each other with swords can gain a moment, but commercial trade allows for longevity.”
“Wealth can reach the gods, and profit can change the heavens.”
“Take care.”
The voice gradually dissipated, and the golden afterglow across the sky slowly receded.
Su Fu bowed respectfully and deeply, “Thank you for the blessing, God of Wealth! This disciple will certainly not disappoint your expectations!”
When the golden light completely vanished and the sky returned to normal, Su Fu remained standing where she was, her heart trembling with excitement.
‘The potential of this Godly Power… is a bit terrifying.’
This Godly Power clearly targeted the entire Dungeon world.
She could completely cross multiple Dungeons to establish the Myriad Worlds Merchant Alliance, thereby opening up inter-Dungeon trade.
Furthermore, the Fortune God Contract guaranteed fair trade and eliminated fraud, which was equivalent to building an online cultivation marketplace that spanned across the heavens and myriad worlds.
The Penglai Immortal Ship could travel through thousands of Dungeons in the future, establishing alliance branches wherever it went, allowing the specialties and resources of different worlds to flow freely.
Eventually, it would become a massive trading network covering the myriad worlds.
The impact of this was immense.
It was equivalent to all Dungeon resources being integrated and summarized by the Myriad Worlds Merchant Alliance.
Making a profit was a small matter; the important thing was possessing the power to influence various Dungeons.
Trade — this was the true power to change the world.
The Myriad Worlds Merchant Alliance could establish an entire trading system, perform currency conversion, and unify measurement standards, making it entirely possible to standardize culture and logistics across different worlds.
No wonder the God of Wealth said at the end: Wealth can reach the gods, and profit can change the heavens.
There were many ways to change a Dungeon.
Force was the most direct, but there were also paths that shed no blood.
Using money to pave the way and allowing interests to penetrate was a way to influence various factions by controlling their economic lifelines.
You won’t listen?
Economic sanctions.
This was indeed another path, and one with a very high probability of success.
What she needed to do was plan carefully how to maximize the use of this Godly Power.
***
When Su Fu returned to the Xiqi military camp, what she saw was a scene of gloom and misery.
The generals were frowning, and the soldiers were disheartened.
In front of the central command tent, Jiang Ziya was frantically pulling everyone together for a meeting.
Su Fu understood.
Although Zhao Gongming had lost the Sea-Fixing Beads and the Dragon-Binding Rope, his inherent abilities were still formidable.
With such a powerful enemy stationed on the Shang army’s side, Xiqi was naturally worried sick.
However, she thought to herself, ‘Zhao Gongming should be back at Three Immortals Island by now, right?’
In order to reclaim the Sea-Fixing Beads, he would go to borrow the Golden Dragon Scissors from the Three Goddesses — a Dharma treasure known as the primary killing weapon beneath the level of a Saint.
It was said to be transformed from two ancient flood dragons with boundless power, capable of snipping anything in two.
When he returned with the support of the Golden Dragon Scissors, he would be incredibly fierce, driving everyone, especially Ran Deng, into a panicked retreat.
But that had nothing to do with Su Fu.
She wasn’t going out to fight anyway.
She was slipping away.
She returned to the Hundred Grasses Hall tent, and Chesia immediately ran over excitedly by asking, “How was it? Did it succeed?”
Su Fu nodded and showed her the twenty-four Sea-Fixing Beads.
They were magnificent.
“Twenty! Four! Beads!” Chesia was wild with excitement, “I knew you could do it!”
“Later, can you build a nest for me? That way, I can put my true body inside!”
“I never want to stay in that dark Well of the Abyss again! Oh, and right, you have to choose a place with the best sunlight for me, then—”
Chesia chattered on about her future plans.
To her, Su Fu’s possessions were her own.
She had endured hard times with Su Fu for so long and was finally about to welcome a bright future!
Su Fu was surprised.
Was Chesia that trusting of her?
This was the true body of an angel, the Serpent of Temptation — a divine body, a treasure among treasures.
Wasn’t she afraid Su Fu would refine her?
Chesia paused and asked, “…Wait, what’s with that look?”
Su Fu quickly shook her head repeatedly.
Chesia looked at her suspiciously.
At that moment, another burst of rapid hoofbeats came from outside the tent, mixed with anxious shouts.
She looked outside with some concern and lowered her voice, “Seriously, Zhao Gongming alone is currently beating Xiqi into pieces. The Twelve Golden Immortals, even that old man Ran Deng, are no match for him.”
“Given this momentum, can the Zhou army really win?”
Su Fu replied calmly, “Rest assured, his nemesis is coming soon.”
That was the Lu Ya Daoist, who claimed to be a rogue cultivator.
However, although he called himself a rogue cultivator, his origins were a mystery with many theories.
Some said he was the son of Sui Ren Shi because he once sang a song: “Sui Ren once refined the Yin within the fire, the Samadhi gathered with deep intent.”
Others guessed he was the only Golden Crow that escaped when Hou Yi was Shooting the Sun — the Prince of the Monster Tribe.
This was because when he broke the Ten Absolute Formations’ Blazing Flame Formation, he was not afraid of the fire at all.
In fact, he became more energetic the more he burned, and he was the only one who broke a formation without using a mortal to scout it first.
And the Golden Crow was a Divine Beast that controlled flames and the Sun Real Fire.
Although his origin was unclear, one thing was certain: his power was immense, and he held two top-tier Dharma treasures.
One was the Immortal Slaying Flying Dagger.
Just the name alone suggested its incredible sharpness; with only the phrase “Please, Treasure, turn around,” it could claim a head.
The other item, the Nail-Headed Seven Arrows Book, was even more terrifying.
It completely ignored defense and directly locked onto causality.
One only needed to make a straw man, write the opponent’s name on it, and bow to it for twenty-one days to kill anyone beneath the level of a Saint.
Zhao Gongming was impressive now, right?
He would be even more impressive after borrowing the Golden Dragon Scissors, wouldn’t he?
But in the end, he would be silently cursed to death by this thing.
If Grand Preceptor Wen hadn’t discovered something was wrong at the end, he might have died without ever knowing how he was harmed.
It was essentially the Great Desolation version of a voodoo curse — just stabbing a doll to curse someone.
Who could detect that?
Thinking of this, Su Fu sighed, ‘There really are far too many Dharma treasures in the Great Desolation.’
And every single one was incredibly powerful.
She thought about the treasures she had already “pre-ordered”: the Heaven-Turning Seal in the hands of Guangchengzi, the Taiji Diagram and Yin Yang Mirror in the hands of Chijingzi, and now there were the Immortal Slaying Flying Dagger and the Nail-Headed Seven Arrows Book…
She felt like she wouldn’t even be able to collect them all.
Once the Great Desolation Dungeon ended, she would practically have baskets full of Dharma treasures.
Who would dare call her poor then?
Who would say she had no foundation?
All of China was her foundation!
She would use a different Dharma treasure every day!
Su Fu thought happily, ‘Indeed, getting rich was the way to be happy. Winners and losers were temporary, but Dharma treasures and Divine Artifacts were eternal.’
‘Scavenging — it was still all about scavenging!’
***
Meanwhile, outside the Exam Hall, the proctoring room was silent.
Everyone watched the screen of Su Fu humming a little tune while checking her Dharma treasures, remaining speechless.
“So, the reason Su Fu was farming in Mount Wuyi before was specifically to obtain these twenty-four Sea-Fixing Beads in the end?”
Was it worth it?
Of course it was worth it!
It was worth it beyond measure!
A treasure that could beat the Golden Immortals in the Dungeon until they ran away with their heads in their hands — who among those present wouldn’t want it?
“So, Su Fu has changed her route in this Dungeon? Instead of fighting and killing, she’s specifically collecting treasures?”
The crowd fell silent again.
While others were fighting for their lives, Su Fu was secretly scavenging and collecting Dharma treasures?
After a long while, someone finally said, “I originally thought she was being so cautious because she sensed something. I never expected she just wanted to make a fortune in silence.”
“The Treasure Basin… does this count as cheating?” someone asked weakly in a small voice.
“Being able to replicate anything, what’s the difference between this and an official cheat code?”
Shen Yan responded: […]
It solemnly and seriously stated: [“Using the Treasure Basin for replication is not considered cheating, nor is scavenging on the battlefield.”]
[“This is merely Su Fu’s personal China-style clearing route.”]
[“Friendly reminder: Not recommended for imitation.”]
Everyone: “…”
The way it said that!
Even if they wanted to learn, could they?
The problem was, where would they find a Treasure Basin like that?
“Speaking of which, are the concepts of the Chaos Umbrella and the Coin of Falling Treasures a bit too heaven-defying?”
“Dharma treasures can all be taken or dropped… how did China do it?”
“The treasures that come later are even more ridiculous! Each one is more powerful than the last!”
“That Heaven-Turning Seal kills whoever it hits, the Taiji Diagram creates its own space, and the Yin Yang Mirror directly uses the laws of life and death…”
“Putting any of these in any Dungeon would be a dimensional reduction strike, wouldn’t it?”
“The design concept of the Chinese Mythos system is too unique. it’s not a simple contest of strength; it contains a concept they call ‘Dao,’ which even aligns with the laws of the universe!”
“No wonder these Dharma treasures are so powerful.”