Chapter 795

After the Celebration of Heaven Festival began, Yan Buji was also invited to go to the garrisoned royal city to participate in the Celebration of Heaven Festival.

Regarding the demon tribe's once‑a‑year grand festival, Yan Buji originally had little interest, and moreover the preliminary preparations for this festival were basically finished, so there was no need for him to keep an eye on it.

However, faced with the invitations of Xiong Ba Tian and Tu Nuo Duo, Yan Buji had no choice but to go.

"My friend, you've finally come!"

Xiong Ba Tian's upper body was bare, with some bruises and wounds on his body, looking as if he had just gone through a great battle.

Yan Buji smiled, clasped his hands, and said, "Fellow Daoist Xiong, how have you been?"

"My friend, the grandest Celebration of Heaven Festival has begun; let's have a good time today!"

Yan Buji smiled and followed Xiong Ba Tian around, taking in a bit of the demon tribe's cultural festival.

However, this wasn't important to Yan Buji; Tu Nuo Duo also joined midway, and after they wandered for a long time, they only returned to the tavern in the afternoon to discuss some matters.

"Fellow Daoist Yan, I know you've been busy lately, but this matter really needs to be told to you in advance." Tu Nuo Duo's expression was very solemn.

Yan Buji's eyes shifted, and he asked, "What major thing has happened?"

Tu Nuo Duo nodded: "Fellow Daoist Yan, didn't you previously see a senior of the Qingluán clan in the Dinglong Mountains?"

Yan Buji nodded, looking at her doubtfully.

"The Qingluán clan now also has a branch that will migrate here; as a powerful tribe among the demons, when the time comes we small tribes will certainly have to follow their arrangements."

"Meaning they will intervene in business?"

Xiong Ba Tian nodded: "That's right, my friend. Although our bear tribe isn't weak either, after all the Qingluán seniors on the Dinglong Mountains... right, our tribe's mighty ones aren't in Luohuang Zhou either, so when the time comes we'll probably have to give the Qingluán clan face."

Yan Buji furrowed his brows; he didn't want the trade he had painstakingly built to be easily handed over to another demon tribe. If it weren't for Xiong Ba Tian handling this, who knows what attitude the Qingluán clan's cultivators would have.

"Is there any news about what they plan to do? It's impossible that in the future the demon tribe and humans in Luohuang Zhou will have no contact, right?"

"No, actually this is the royal court's intention." Tu Nuo Duo said: "The royal court knows that Luohuang Zhou has been developing rapidly lately, so they dispatched a branch of the Qingluán clan here, wanting to integrate the trade operations of all demon tribes into an organization similar to your human merchants' association. The organization would handle trade with you humans, and thereafter you wouldn't directly deal with these tribes."

"Ah?!"

Yan Buji's face changed: "This is certainly not good news."

"So, my friend, can you think of a way?"

Yan Buji hesitated a bit; speaking of it, they had earned quite a bit from trading with the demon tribe, but if the demon tribes of Luohuang Zhou were to follow the leadership of the Qingluán clan's branch and form a merchants' association, it would inevitably become a huge trade framework, not easily set in motion.

Precisely for this reason, their profits would only increase; even if a powerful demon cultivator were to manipulate this demon merchants' association for profit, they would at most lose some benefits, but not suffer a loss.

The ones truly harmed would certainly be these demon tribes.

Because their trade with humans is direct face‑to‑face, they don't bear intermediary fees; after calculating other expenses, it is currently beneficial to both sides.

But once the demon merchants' association develops, the situation becomes uncertain. If the association suppresses purchase prices, their risk will increase. Even after factoring in transport, storage, and sundry costs, Yan Buji imagines himself in the leadership of the demon merchants' association, with ten thousand ways to exploit these demon tribes, squeezing their interests to fatten himself.

Xiong Ba Tian surely can see this future trend, which is why he sought Yan Buji's counsel.

Yan Buji fell silent and asked, "Is this unavoidable?"

"It's already a done deal." Xiong Ba Tian sighed.

"Then we can only see how the Qingluán clan's cultivators will set the new rules; but since we're forming a merchants' association, Fellow Daoist Xiong might as well seek a position in it, which would benefit both of us."

"That's not difficult, but in reality they wouldn't entrust important posts to cultivators of other tribes." Xiong Ba Tian shook his head.

"Then you'll have to figure it out yourselves; I'm a human, so I shouldn't say more."

"Fellow Daoist Yan.... truly there's no other way?" Tu Nuo Duo looked at Yan Buji pitifully, as if the Rabbit Tribe would suffer huge losses from the establishment of the merchants' association.

Yan Buji pinched his chin, gave a glance: "But I really don't know how to handle your side's affairs; my feeling is that this matter can only be 'you guys' figuring out a solution."

Xiong Ba Tian looked at Yan Buji doubtfully, then suddenly realized: "Yes, yes, my friend, this matter indeed shouldn't be made difficult for you."

Xiong Ba Tian quietly sent a message to Tu Nuo Duo; Tu Nuo Duo also understood Yan Buji's meaning, gazed at him with tender affection, moved over and leaned on his shoulder: "Fellow Daoist Yan, you've really troubled us."

"No, only by working together can we make money." Yan Buji smiled and pinched Tu Nuo Duo's hand.

Seeing the situation, Xiong Ba Tian tactfully left.

Afterward, Yan Buji engaged in several rounds of friendly exchange with Tu Nuo Duo, and on the third day he departed from the garrisoned royal city.

"The Rabbit Tribe originally didn't get along with the Qingluán clan, no wonder Tu Nuo Duo is so anxious." Yan Buji narrowed his eyes; over these three days he finally learned some demon tribe secrets from Tu Nuo Duo, realizing that the Rabbit Tribe and the Qingluán clan have had a rift since ancient times.

Yan Buji doesn't know the Qingluán clan's attitude, but the Rabbit Tribe's cooperation with them is too close; he also has some designs on Tu Nuo Duo, and cannot simply watch the Rabbit Tribe collapse.

"It would be best to let the Rabbit Tribe realize my ability now, so I can help them get through this crisis. The method conveyed back via Tu Nuo Duo should be able to help them to some extent handle the difficulties they'll face in the merchants' association. That way, even if the Rabbit Tribe has normal guard against human cultivators, they won't be overly wary."

"Gaining the Rabbit Tribe's full favor is, for Yan Buji, to later use Tu Nuo Duo to seek a way to obtain the Time Sand. Even if not, given Yan Buji's current status, maintaining good relations with Tu Nuo Duo is also to ensure his own interests aren't affected."

"After all, between the Great Sinful Sect and the Rabbit Tribe, whether it's the trade of Changxin grass bricks or fierce fur, Yan Buji has made a fortune; how could he stand by and watch them suffer?"

"Back when Yan Buji heard that Tu Nuo Duo had been attacked and rushed to help, wasn't it also out of this consideration that he went to look for them?"

"This also allowed Yan Buji to obtain the Time Sand and the Time Secret Technique."

"Huh?"

"What reaction... could it be the twelve zodiac signs?" Yan Buji suddenly felt a surge of Way of the Universe power calling to him; wasn't it just that the twelve zodiac signs he had previously poured into the Time River had given feedback?

After returning to the sect, Yan Buji immediately entered seclusion, employing the Time Secret Technique to receive the feedback of the twelve zodiac signs.