Even if it's a one-off deal, you can still make a fortune by grabbing a small amount of cash before leaving, right? And if you manage it properly and make a steady stream of profits, the gains can be astonishing!
Putting everything else aside, given the conditions in Azeroth, building a hundred or two hundred blessed lands and a dozen or two grotto heavens would be a piece of cake.
The value of so many blessed lands and grotto-heavens cannot be measured by mere gold and silver. A single blessed land can create at least one fourth-tier Human Immortal cultivator. A single grotto-heaven can create a fifth-tier Earth Immortal powerhouse.
Moreover, within the blessed land, the strength of these experts will only increase! At that time, with double-digit numbers of fifth-order Earth Immortal level experts appearing together, even if the Titans were to reappear, they would be able to suppress them!
Then, we can truly gain the whole world!
Thinking about this, Lin Yang felt a pang of heartache. The plan was good, but its feasibility was slim! It was all because he wasn't strong enough, and his physique wasn't robust enough.
"Hmm, although we've amassed quite a lot of treasure this time, we've also exposed quite a few problems. Especially the issue of experts, but the problem is that experts are rare!" Lin Yang patted his head with a headache.
What standards define a master? Before the appearance of the Reincarnation Land, a fourth-tier Human Immortal cultivator was already considered a master.
Back then, even the prefects of the Central Plains might not have reached the fourth rank in terms of strength. Many prefects of small counties were only civil officials at the peak of the third rank! At that time, any fourth-rank cultivator was a guest of honor of the governor of a prefecture.
But now? The Land of Reincarnation has opened, and the Heavenly Dao has automatically lifted its seal, greatly accelerating both enlightenment and cultivation. Even the threshold between the fifth and sixth tiers no longer exists.
In the past, due to the Heavenly Dao's blockade, cultivation was very difficult, and breaking through was even more difficult.
However, now, the younger generation's strength has generally reached the third rank. Among those who have entered the Reincarnation Land, such as Lin Yang, quite a few even possess the fourth rank of cultivation.
In this era of great change, in this era where sixth-tier masters are gradually emerging, fourth-tier masters are really nothing anymore.
At least a fifth-level expert is needed to be considered a master, and only a sixth-level expert can truly suppress the destiny of a powerful force and serve as a foundation!
The key issue is that fifth- or sixth-tier experts aren't exactly common! Moreover, if they have that kind of strength, why would they want to cooperate with Lin Yang? And why would Lin Yang be able to motivate them?
Based on profit? Where would Lin Yang get profit? He could indeed hire someone for a period of time with just a fifth or sixth-tier magic weapon, but that would be nothing more than hiring.
Would you dare let someone you've hired get involved in the most crucial secrets?
Are these hired men willing to stand with the Wu Kingdom through thick and thin?
Would a hired hand dare to risk his life in a critical moment?
So, what if we think about it another way: expecting something in return for a favor?
"If we're talking about repaying kindness, then Huang Zhong is the one. Following the tropes of many Three Kingdoms online games, would it be possible to find Huang Zhong, cure his son's illness, and then repay the favor by getting Huang Zhong to join your side?"
"No, that's impossible. Huang Zhong in this world is a fifth-level marrow cleansing master, with an extremely high status. At the same time, he is also the leader of the number one sect in Jingzhou. Zhang Zhongjing has already treated his son, but it was useless!" Lin Yang sighed and shook his head.
Different social statuses dictate different ways of repaying a debt of gratitude. Saving a nobody means the nobody has no choice but to repay with their life. Saving a wealthy person means the wealthy person can repay with money. Saving Huang Zhong's son, given Huang Zhong's current status, there's no way he could simply offer himself up!
"What about my father-in-law, Cai Yong? He's not my father-in-law yet, and as an official of the imperial court, it's best not to let him know many things."
"What about the masters of the Daoist sect? Right, Yu Ji, one of the Four True Immortals, wasn't he from Jiangdong? It seems he was killed by Sun Ce, the Little Conqueror, in the future. But the problem is, where do we find him? And how can we persuade him?"
"Who else? Hmm, there are some experts from the Central Plains..."
Chapter Thirty-Six: A Bumper Harvest
After a long while, Lin Yang had a headache. He searched through the original owner's memories several times, but still couldn't find any good opportunities.
At least, I couldn't come up with the idea of a peerless expert who, for some reason, fell to the mortal realm and was then encountered by me, who saved him and helped him break through his limitations.
That's true. Fifth-tier experts, even those whose strength has greatly declined, are all the focus of the world's attention. Even if such an opportunity really existed, with so many Taoists proficient in divination and numerology around, would it even be his turn?
As for helping fifth-tier experts break through and then subjugating them, that's even more unreliable. Breaking through from fifth to sixth tier might be possible with external help, but Lin Yang certainly doesn't have that ability.
If they really had that ability, they might as well cultivate their own people! After thinking it over, they couldn't find any fifth-tier powerhouses that they could recruit.
To put it bluntly, the Wu Kingdom was simply too small, with a mere million people. Any fifth-tier Earth Immortal cultivator could easily wipe out Wu's million inhabitants with a bit of ruthlessness!
If the Wu Kingdom at this time had a population of hundreds of millions and had successfully waged interdimensional wars to conquer other worlds, it might actually be possible to subdue a fifth-tier powerhouse.
In short, it's just too weak!
After thinking for a while and still not having any good ideas, Lin Yang pushed open the door and went out. When he couldn't figure things out, he would just wander around and clear his head.
Soon, accompanied by his guards, Lin Yang began to patrol his territory like a mountain king.
As he walked, he spotted a familiar face—his chief civil official, Guo Jia. Guo Jia was carrying a stack of documents, apparently having been waiting for him.
Guo Jia looked somewhat tired, and his hair was a little disheveled. It was said that he had been working overtime recently, sleeping only two hours a day, extremely diligent and conscientious.
"Hey, Fengxiao, aren't you inside handling government affairs? How come you have time to come out?" Lin Yang joked.
Upon hearing this, Guo Jia rolled his eyes in annoyance, then said, "My lord, this is the information about the recent bumper harvest." He then handed over a stack of documents. It was about an inch thick, totaling several dozen pages.
Seeing this, Lin Yang knew he couldn't keep joking around; it was time to get serious. Otherwise, things would be inappropriate.
Upon receiving the document, Lin Yang subconsciously glanced at the cover, the table of contents, and the title.
There's not much to say about the cover; it's just a blank sheet of paper with the two seal characters for "Wu Kingdom" stamped on it, along with a light ink painting as the background.
It goes without saying that Lin Yang did this intentionally. The purpose was to subtly influence them. These office workers, facing the two large characters for "Wu Kingdom" every day, would inevitably be affected in some way.
It might not be much, but as long as you persist, you can influence them in every way possible, such as through official rewards and packaging. Although it may seem inconspicuous, it is actually rapidly assimilating the entire bureaucracy of Wu.
The title is simply the detailed rules for a bumper harvest in Wu State in a certain year.
Lin Yang opened the table of contents and then the main text, beginning his research. However, after a while, he realized he didn't really understand these things. He couldn't see anything particularly special about them, so he simply said, "Fengxiao, could you explain this to me?"
Seeing Lin Yang's expressionless face, Guo Jia nodded in satisfaction. Asking questions instead of pretending to know and giving nonsensical advice was already quite good. After all, it's not the formidable opponent you should fear, but the incompetent teammate. As long as he wasn't a terrible teammate, that was enough; you couldn't ask for more.
"Our average yield per mu is eleven shi, is that really true? Is there no falsification involved? I mean the specific yield, is it really that much?" Lin Yang asked somewhat seriously.