Chapter 431: Different
Chapter 431: Chapter 386: Different
The developments of the Netherworld Ship thereafter proved Li Sanli right.
The new Netherworld Ship Black Market never ran into trouble again.
Even when the Celestial Sword Sect occasionally managed to find a contact point or two, they could rarely capture any key personnel, let alone track the Netherworld Ship itself. After several such fruitless crackdowns, their operations noticeably decreased.
After operating this way for a year, the Netherworld Ship Black Market had established a firm foothold. Business gradually improved, attracting more merchants who had previously frequented Hidden Emperor Castle.
The three black market merchants came to trust Li Sanli more and more, gradually looking to him as their leader. Li Sanli’s own authority grew by the day.
With the steady stream of profits from the Black Market, Li Sanli not only lifted the members of his Tuo Long Bang from poverty in Hibernation Marsh, but also secured his own resources for Cultivation. Furthermore, a fortuitous encounter allowed him to successfully break through to the Spirit Realm’s Fifth Level, Void Transformation, causing his strength to soar.
Of course, in terms of scale, variety of goods, and daily trade volume, the current Netherworld Ship Black Market was no match for Hidden Emperor Castle, which had dominated Jiangzhou under the Pig Emperor’s rule.
At its peak, Hidden Emperor Castle was practically a small, underground kingdom, attracting wealthy merchants, powerful magnates, and desperate outlaws from several surrounding prefectures.
The Netherworld Ship, in contrast, was more like a mobile, clandestine bazaar. Its inventory skewed toward easily-fenced stolen goods and items for specialized needs, operating on a model of quick turnover.
But Li Sanli did not mind.
Hidden Emperor Castle had been a prime example of a tall tree catching the wind; its prominence had led to its eventual destruction at the hands of the Celestial Sword Sect.
His Netherworld Ship, though small, possessed immense advantages that Hidden Emperor Castle had lacked: secrecy and the ability to keep nearly all the profits.
It sailed upon the waters, leaving no trace.
The location of the market, the contact routes, and even the trading hours were all constantly changing.
Back in the day, the Pig Emperor had to maintain Hidden Emperor Castle’s massive operation and pay off various factions. The cut he actually took home was likely smaller than anyone imagined.
The Netherworld Ship’s scale, however, was manageable, and its costs were relatively fixed. After deducting the shares for his merchant partners and the necessary operating expenses, the vast majority of the profits flowed into his and his gang’s pockets.
He was no longer short on money.
Thanks to the exorbitant profits from the Black Market, the Tuo Long Bang had long since escaped their dire straits.
However, Li Sanli did not relax in the slightest. On the contrary, he felt as if he were walking on thin ice.
He knew better than anyone that this period of peace and prosperity would not last.
Danger had never been far away.
The Celestial Sword Sect would never give up on eliminating the Netherworld Ship, which they viewed as a thorn in their side.
Other powers, such as gangs that had long coveted the Black Market trade, were also Spying from the shadows.
No matter how elusive the Netherworld Ship’s movements, its long-term activity near Thunder Shock Marsh and a few fixed waterways meant its patterns would be figured out sooner or later.
When that happened, the daggers would be drawn.
Li Sanli needed time. A great deal of time.
He needed time for the Tuo Long Bang to regain its strength and cultivate more experts. Even more, he needed time for himself… to break through to the Divine Realm.
Once he broke through to the Divine Realm, any power—be it the Celestial Sword Sect or another faction—would have to think twice before making a move against him or the Netherworld Ship. They would have to consider the wrath of a Divine Intent Grandmaster.
Only then would he truly have the foundation to secure his place in the world, perhaps even to establish his own sect.
Therefore, his strategy was never direct confrontation, but rather to muddy the waters.
The murkier the waters of Jiangzhou, the better. His goal was to make his potential enemies grow suspicious of one another and fight amongst themselves, indefinitely postponing the day they would turn their attention to the Netherworld Ship.
Meanwhile, he could grow and strengthen his own power, hidden within the chaos.
It was for this very reason that when Peng Anming and Gossip appeared on the Netherworld Ship carrying eighty thousand boxes of Opium Paste, Li Sanli’s first reaction—aside from greed—was the thrill of an opportunity to stir things up.
Eighty thousand boxes of Opium. Even taking just a thirty percent cut would mean a fortune on the scale of one million taels of silver.
On the surface, the risk seemed worth taking.
Li Sanli was indeed tempted at first, which was why he had personally come out to negotiate with them.
But once he found out who the two men really were, and after they had clearly rejected his offer, he changed his mind.
Peng Anming was the Vice Gang Leader of the Xinyi Bang, a subordinate of the Seven Kills Association. In recent years, the Seven Kills Association’s influence had clearly waned, and they no longer dared to accept many of the contracts they once had.
Rumors had long circulated in the Jianghu that their leader, the Seven Kills Ancestor, had run into serious trouble, though their veracity was unknown.
Gossip, on the other hand, was a former subordinate of the Pig Emperor of Hidden Emperor Castle, and his name was on the Celestial Sword Sect’s wanted list.
It was no secret that the Seven Kills Association and the Su Family were sworn enemies.
And Gossip was a thorn in the side of the Celestial Sword Sect.
These two men, and more importantly, the Seven Kills Association and the Opium they represented, were enough to make the Su Family and the Celestial Sword Sect tear each other apart in the ensuing struggle…
How could the waters of Jiangzhou possibly remain clear after that?
And so, Li Sanli used a secret channel to leak the information to informants from both the Su Family and the Celestial Sword Sect.
He was certain that neither of the two factions would sit idly by.
As for why the Hai Jiao Bang and the Saltwater Bang managed to strike first, Li Sanli didn’t know, nor could he be bothered to find out.
Perhaps the news had leaked, or perhaps it was just a coincidence. It didn’t matter. Having players like them stir the pot could sometimes make the situation even more chaotic.
The results were surprisingly effective.
As expected, the Su Family and the Celestial Sword Sect sprang into action at the news, and they seemed even more eager than he had anticipated.
Word soon arrived from Nanjiang: the Hai Jiao Bang and the Saltwater Bang had launched a fierce assault on a stronghold of the Seven Kills Association.
Soon after, forces from the Celestial Sword Sect and the Su Family appeared and joined the fray… Everything was proceeding just as he had hoped.
He just never expected that the flames of war he had personally ignited would seem to die down so quickly.
‘Peng Anming and Gossip hadn’t died. Instead, they dared to swagger right back to his Netherworld Ship? And from the looks of it, they were completely at ease?’