Before one’s eyes, seven days had passed.
During this time, the Marketplace remained in a state of lockdown and alert, inspecting for Robber Cultivators.
Lu Changsheng learned from the Lu Family that the outward losses of the Marketplace were not severe and were within an acceptable range.
The main issue was the series of adverse effects brought about by the incident.
To minimize the impact and recover popularity and reputation, the four major families made certain compensations for the losses suffered by the businesses settled in the market.
And they issued a series of preferential and welfare policies.
Taking all these aspects into account, it amounted to a huge loss.
Even so, the flow of visitors to the Red Leaf Valley Market would still see a significant decline.
The fame and reputation built up by the previous auction would be rendered futile by this incident.
He was well aware that over the years, the four major families hadn’t made much money from the Red Leaf Valley Market.
The primary income had been from the initial sales of land.
But with this incident, not only had many Spirit Stones been spent,
But the Marketplace, which had just gotten on the right track, had taken a severe fall.
It would take several years, perhaps even over a decade of management, to regain popularity and get back on track.
"It seems that the Red Leaf Valley Market won’t change much in the short term,”
"Speaking of which, if I were to reveal my strength and talk with the four major families, I might be able to take over the Red Leaf Valley Market directly as my Family Spirit Land.”
A sudden thought crossed Lu Changsheng’s mind.
Through the previous battle, he had clearly realized that his current strength had already far surpassed that of the patriarchs of the four major families.
It would be incredibly easy to take a Spirit Land by force with his might.
However, he would not engage in such reputation-damaging actions of forcefully seizing others’ Spirit Lands without good reason.
But the Red Leaf Valley Market, the Lu Family held a forty percent control.
If he were to reveal his strength and cooperate with the Lu Family, it would be entirely possible to take ownership of Red Leaf Valley using both carrot and stick approaches.
"Initially, the Lu Family and the Bai Family did not have the intention to establish the Red Leaf Valley into a Marketplace,”
"It was only after the Yu Family and the Zheng Family joined that the decision was made to maximize benefits by establishing the Red Leaf Valley into a Marketplace.”
"Thus, from the Lu Family’s perspective, as long as enough benefits are provided as compensation, it wouldn’t be much of a problem,” Lu Changsheng pondered in his heart.
"But there’s no rush for that.”
"Once I’ve accumulated a bit more foundation and my children have grown up, if we still don’t have a Spirit Land, then it might be a viable option,” Lu Changsheng shook his head lightly.
Red Leaf Valley possesses a Second Rank Middle Grade Spirit Vein and several First Grade Spirit Veins.
Its geographical location is good as well, right beside Qingzhu Mountain.
In Lu Changsheng’s view, it’s an excellent place for a Spirit Land.
However, he could not reveal his true strength just yet.
At most, in a few years, he could disclose to the outside that he had acquired a fortuitous opportunity and had made a breakthrough in Foundation Establishment.
Exhibiting combat power comparable to the Foundation Establishment Late Stage in just fifteen short years would indeed be astonishing.
It would most likely draw unwanted attention.
Once targeted, it could be very troublesome.
After all, he was not a Cultivator who walked the Great Dao alone.
He belonged to those with families and vulnerabilities—a Cultivator with soft spots.
If it was possible to be more cautious, he would opt for that route.
Moreover, Lu Changsheng felt that he was still far from having the accumulation and foundation necessary to establish a Family.
To set up a Family, it required not only a top-notch combatant and a Family Spirit Land,
But also a top-tier Great Formation, a complete set of Family facilities, an operational system, as well as a sufficient core strength and a continuous influx of new blood, among other things.
Although he had a hundred and twenty-five children, thirty of whom were Spiritual Root descendants,
The oldest child was only fourteen, and the youngest was still an infant.
Under such circumstances, there wasn’t enough financial or human resources to support a Family,
Even with the help of his wives and concubines, the assistance they could provide was limited.
"The children still need to grow up; without a solid base, even if outsiders are recruited, it would be very troublesome,”
"But by the time the children are almost grown, my strength and foundation will have also improved, and by then, it should be about right,” Lu Changsheng exhaled slowly.
He didn’t mind enlisting members from outside the main lineage.
After all, it was impossible to rely solely on one’s own bloodline.
Not every child would succeed in managing the Family.
That is the limitation of a Family.
But the core matters had to be held in the hands of his own bloodline.
In this world, the cohesion of a Family bloodline could not be matched by its power.
"Sigh, it’s time to sort out the gains from this trip,”
Seeing that the alertness of the Marketplace had relaxed and things were wrapping up, Lu Changsheng got up and headed towards the cave dwelling area.
He was preparing to go to Xiao Xiyue’s cave dwelling to tally up his gains,
And to deal with the body of the Second Rank Demon Beast.
After all, the Storage Bag did not have a fresh-keeping function.
If not stored in a special container, it could cause problems over time.
"Changsheng,”
When Xiao Xiyue received Lu Changsheng’s message, she immediately opened the restrictions of her cave dwelling.
Because there had been patrols in the Marketplace these past few days, she had been disguised.
However, the main inspections in the Marketplace were focused on the Loose Cultivator’s residential area and the commercial district.
The cave dwelling area was only briefly questioned,
As those who resided there were either people from the four major families or from other Cultivation families.
"Xi Yue,”
Lu Changsheng entered the cave dwelling.
After the two of them entered the cave dwelling, they also reverted to their true appearances.
It always felt somewhat strange to look at each other in disguised forms.
"Lu Lang, your heroic and dashing figure that night truly amazed Xi Yue and is unforgettable,”