X-Dragon Era

Secondly, all gold mines previously owned by the Kashi Family will belong to the Cangqiong Family. The reason Xin Yun didn't covet this aspect was that even if he had the gold mines, he couldn't manage them and lacked the energy to organize people to mine them. Therefore, it was better to let the Cangqiong Family take care of everything.

Although the amount of gold produced each year is significant, at least a million people are needed to keep the entire gold industry chain running, including protecting, maintaining, mining, transporting, smelting, and so on. The Sky-opening Sect simply couldn't do this. Moreover... with the banking scheme in place, Xin Yun didn't care how much gold was mined; it would all end up in his hands anyway. So why bother doing it himself?

Earth People all know that as the banking scheme develops, in the later stages... all the gold will be taken by the banks, and what will circulate instead will be paper-printed Coins.

Originally, the negotiations should have ended there, but... the ruler of the Cangqiong Family, absolutely cunning and shrewd, directly offered four times the profits of all the gold mines in exchange for four hundred unaging and immortal spots from Xin Yun!

Of course, Xin Yun wouldn't agree to this, as it would effectively make the Cangqiong Family invincible. Unless one were a member of the Sky-opening Sect, nobody else deserved such treatment; it was something that no amount of money could buy.

When Xin Yun verbally refused, the top brass of the Cangqiong Family also felt helpless. The two parties were merely cooperating, not begging each other, so they couldn't use this as a bargaining chip. As Xin Yun said, if you don't cooperate, others will, and he wouldn't have approached the Cangqiong Family if not for respecting Po Kong.

Regarding this issue, both parties engaged in fierce discussions. The Cangqiong Family was determined to succeed, while Xin Yun was resolute in refusing. Finally... left with no choice, the crafty ruler of the Cangqiong Family played the emotional card with Po Kong.

Faced with Po Kong's entreaties, Xin Yun found it difficult to refuse. Po Kong wasn't doing this for the family, but for his loved ones. He wasn't asking for much, just one hundred unaging and immortal spots, simply to avoid the agony of life and death separations.

Xin Yun knew Po Kong very well; he was a sentimental man. Otherwise, in his previous life, he wouldn't have spent his whole life with only Chu Rui. With his status and position, he could have had anything and anyone. A mere gesture from him would have women desperately throwing themselves at him. Yet in reality, he had just one woman in his entire life: Chu Rui.

Unable to refuse Po Kong, Xin Yun was indeed at a loss. But to simply give them what they wanted made Xin Yun feel stifled. After a week of intense pondering, he finally... rushed to the Cangqiong Family with a gleam in his eye, gathered the Ten Elders as well as the father and son of the Cangqiong Family, and together they entered the conference room for the final negotiation.

Within the secret chamber, the Ten Elders of the Cangqiong Family, along with Po Kong and his son, plus Xin Yun, thirteen people in total, sat around a large conference table. All eyes were fixed on Xin Yun, waiting for him to speak.

After a long silence, full of hesitation, Xin Yun finally mustered up the courage and said, "Alright, I won't beat around the bush. I admit... I can't refuse Po Kong's request. However... to get me to agree, money alone won't suffice. You all know that more than a year ago, I moved all the gold mined by the Kashi Family over the years, so money doesn't mean much to me anymore."

Upon hearing Xin Yun's words, the upper echelons of the Cangqiong Family simultaneously frowned. Indeed... everything Xin Yun said was true, and precisely because of that, they were concerned Xin Yun might make an exorbitant demand.

In the silent room, Xin Yun continued, "Immortality is not as easy as you imagine. I can give you a maximum of one hundred spots, not one more. It's not that I won't give them, but there's a limit. If I give them all away, what will become of our Sky-opening Sect?"

Listening to Xin Yun, everyone subconsciously nodded in agreement. Indeed... there should be a limit. If everyone could be made unaging and immortal without limits, wouldn't that be absurd? The entire world might as well become Xin Yun's disciples.

Seeing everyone agree with him, Xin Yun scratched his head and said with some difficulty, "This decision is really hard to make. Have you thought about it? Since I've given you the ability to be unaging and immortal, what about Po Kong? It's not fair to him, is it?"

"What! This..." Hearing Xin Yun's words, Po Kong stood up in shock, about to say something but then suddenly recalling something, and turned pale, at a loss for words.

Being unaging and immortal naturally eliminates the need for succession—meaning that the current family head can continue to hold the position forever. Even if they are too tired, aren't there the Ten Elders? So, what about Po Kong? From this perspective, if Xin Yun agreed, it would be the same as denying Po Kong his right and qualification to succeed.

For a family, the head is like an emperor; unless they are too old to continue, who would abdicate voluntarily? Now that they can be unaging and immortal, and even revived after death, why would there be a need for a successor?