Chapter 50: The Sword Pavilion Meeting

As the master of the Great River Market, the Sword Pavilion established by the Jade Tripod Sword Sect usually had little presence here.

The only presence it had was when it collected rent every month, causing local independent cultivators to gnash their teeth.

As for the Jade Tripod Sword Sect's Bell Tripod House, it was merely a tavern.

With people coming and going, the secular atmosphere was too strong, and sometimes even the cultivators entering and leaving found it hard to associate the Bell Tripod House with the Jade Tripod Sword Sect.

Therefore, even though the Jade Tripod Sword Pavilion was the most prominent and tall building in the Great River Market, in the hearts of local independent cultivators, it was far less significant than places like the Spirit Medicine Pavilion and the Ten Thousand Treasure Tower.

But from today on, everyone would have to face the towering Sword Pavilion.

There were three days left until the opening of the Dao Discussion Platform.

Inside the Sword Pavilion, a man with a resolute face sat at the top, wearing a golden robe that exuded the might of a Golden Core cultivator.

Pang Renxiong, the Golden Core elder of the Jade Tripod Sword Sect.

Below him were eight Foundation Establishment cultivators.

Seven were inner disciples who had just rushed over from the sect, and the other was an outer disciple who was permanently stationed here.

Pang Renxiong sat high above, saying nothing.

Below, the attendant Miao respectfully reported various matters.

"The joint market fair of the five markets—Snow Lotus Market, Mount Tai Market, Flowing Light Market, and Lan沧 Market—will begin tomorrow, and the city's array will be fully activated. The entry fee is set at one low-grade spirit stone, and this market fair will last for seven days, enhancing cooperation and exchange between our Great River Market and the other four markets."

"After the opening of the Dao Discussion Platform, the auction designated by the sect will also begin. The participation criteria are from late Qi Condensation to below the Nascent Soul stage. At that time, Luo Tianhong will be the host, and Elder Pang will oversee the event."

Pang Renxiong nodded, his expression as stern as before.

Although it was said to be for those below the Nascent Soul stage, in reality, not many Golden Core cultivators would participate in this auction.

From the information he had, there would be only four or five.

He alone could handle the situation.

This level of auction was more targeted at Qi Condensation and Foundation Establishment cultivators.

His gaze swept over, and an inner disciple with Foundation Establishment cultivation stood up.

"Luo Tianhong will certainly complete this task perfectly!"

Next, he went over the various important items to be auctioned.

Some of the precious materials needed to be strictly arranged in order of value for the auction.

Otherwise, if they failed to sell or didn't fetch a high price, it would be a loss for the Jade Tripod Sword Sect.

"If this is successfully held, it will become a regular event, with a Great River Auction every ten years."

Pang Renxiong set the tone for this matter, and Luo Tianhong couldn't help but feel nervous.

This kind of event was very lucrative.

He must not make any mistakes.

Fortunately, the Luo family was well-known in the Jade Tripod Sect for their extensive knowledge and was very good at handling such matters.

"The focus should still be on the opening of the Dao Discussion Platform," Pang Renxiong mentioned.

Attendant Miao nodded hurriedly, "All the preparations for the opening have been made, and the process is as follows."

As he spoke, the original reasons for the opening of the Dao Discussion Platform in the Great River Market were explained.

From the initial investment to the construction process, this time they did not rely on the array masters of Tianfan City but instead used the array masters within the Jade Tripod Sect, with a high participation rate from the Ailao Mountain cultivators in the Jade Tripod Domain.

Then, before the opening, the invitation letters sent out mostly received responses.

Representatives from dozens of nearby cultivation families and seven market forces would all come to attend the ceremony.

The final focus was on the various programs during the opening.

"The music and dance performances are handled by the Heavenly Fragrance Tower, a subsidiary of the Joyful Union Sect. They will be responsible for warming up the audience and various performances during the event."

"The human-beast battle is placed at the beginning, with three relatively weak second-stage beasts. Currently, several Foundation Establishment cultivators have signed up to participate. The winner will receive all the materials from the slain beasts, as well as an excellent magical tool, a Qi Condensation Pill, and a sword pill made by our sect."

"The eighteen-man death match from the local gangs is a program I recently added. Although it's just a battle among Qi Condensation cultivators, the life-and-death struggle between humans is no less exciting than the second-stage human-beast battle."

At this point, the other Foundation Establishment cultivators also became interested.

Most of this batch of Foundation Establishment cultivators had emerged in the past two to three hundred years.

They were all sword cultivators, pursuing combat.

But in recent years, most of their battles were against external beasts.

Battles between cultivators were mostly for sparring.

Now, seeing a large-scale battle to the death among cultivators, anyone would be interested.

"I heard from Sun Shou that this isn't just a conflict between two gangs?" Luo Tianhong asked curiously.

Attendant Miao nodded, "Indeed, the Great River Gang has the support of the Lianyun Merchant Alliance."

Mentioning the Lianyun Merchant Alliance, Luo Tianhong and the other two cultivators were greatly surprised.

"Is that the loose alliance of independent cultivators that rose two hundred years ago? I heard they have over twenty Foundation Establishment cultivators."

Over twenty Foundation Establishment cultivators was not a small force.

It was just lacking a powerful Golden Core leader; otherwise, it would be comparable to a medium-sized sect.

"Yes, they were one of the earliest merchant alliances to enter the Great River Market, and they know their place, not competing with us for mainstream materials."

Attendant Miao nodded, "So this time, we didn't interfere, letting them fight it out."

"Then isn't the Broken Mountain Gang bound to lose?"

"Pretty much! I looked at the lists submitted by both sides, and the cultivators sent by the Broken Mountain Gang are not up to par."

Attendant Miao casually handed out seven lists, and everyone looked at them and laughed.

The Broken Mountain Gang sent a bunch of misfits, even including a Qi Condensation Seventh Layer cultivator.

Attendant Miao thought for a moment and then said cautiously, "But the outcome isn't that absolute. After all, they are a group of independent cultivators who make a living in the mountains and are not short of the courage to fight to the death."

"That's better. The more intense the battle, the easier it is to stir up the audience's enthusiasm." Luo Tianhong laughed.

The others also smiled, the atmosphere relaxed, and they were looking forward to the battle.

Perhaps disliking this relaxed atmosphere, Pang Renxiong grunted.

"Miao Zhen, is the Tianjiao Board set up properly?"

Attendant Miao's expression stiffened, and he hurriedly nodded.

"That magical treasure has been nurtured in the foundation of the Phoenix Landing Mountain Dao Discussion Platform for a hundred years. It will not fail."

Pang Renxiong said with a deep gaze, "It must not fail. If there is a problem, none of you can bear the responsibility."

Everyone instinctively lowered their heads.

The Dao Discussion Platform was not only a major industry of the Jade Tripod Sect but also involved the sect's strategic plan for attracting talent.

The Jade Tripod Sword Sect was a sect primarily based on master-disciple inheritance. Even though there were some small families within the sect, they had little voice.

This was because the path of sword cultivation had extremely high requirements for a cultivator's aptitude.

So over the years, even though the Jade Tripod Sword Sect had established itself in this domain, the number of cultivators within the sect had not increased.

As a result, the Jade Tripod Sword Sect's control over the Jade Tripod Domain had never been strong.

For this reason, the high-level officials of the Jade Tripod Sword Sect had set a plan.

That was to promote the Dao Discussion Platform throughout the domain.

The function of the Dao Discussion Platform was similar to an arena in the secular world.

It mainly provided a fair place for combat-loving cultivators to fight.

The victors would gain fame and cultivation resources and be listed on the Tianjiao Board.

The Tianjiao Board rankings were settled annually, and those with high rankings would receive substantial rewards and even have the chance to join the Jade Tripod Sword Sect.

Whether as an outer disciple or an inner disciple.

Those with suitable aptitude would be taken as disciples by Golden Core cultivators, helping them advance to Foundation Establishment True Disciples.

This was the plan of the Jade Tripod Sword Sect, to not only earn spirit stones through the Dao Discussion Platform but also to discover outstanding talent and address the shortage of cultivators within the sect.

If developed properly, they could better control the Jade Tripod Domain.

Of course, this kind of thing and the atmosphere of martial combat needed to be cultivated over a long period.

And the performance at the opening would set a good tone for future development.

After discussing some more matters, the Sword Pavilion meeting was about to end.

Before dismissing, Pang Renxiong solemnly mentioned one more thing.

"Manage the independent cultivators in the outer city, especially those who like to kill and rob. Catch and deal with them one by one. Don't let these bandits tarnish the reputation of the Great River Market."

(End of Chapter)