MTL - Accompanying the Phoenix - Chapter 8

A 21st-century tech manager, accidentally thrust into the body of Emperor Commodus—yes, the infamous villain played by Joaquin Phoenix—has one goal: not to die like him.Armed with his wits and a hyper-intelligent AI on a solar-powered laptop, he must navigate the treacherous politics of ancient Rome. Everyone, including his own sister, expects the arrogant, decadent tyrant. Instead, they find a calculating reformer. But as he tries to avert the fall of the empire, he discovers that being a “good” emperor might be even more dangerous than being the monster everyone is waiting for.

In the rural northeastern mountainous regions stands a tiny Buddhist temple, named One Finger Temple. It isn’t a large one but it is extremely miraculous.

The temple has rice that emanates an aromatic fragrance.

The temple has sweet and refreshing water that rivals ambrosia.

The temple has Buddhas that grant wishes to the sincere.

The temple isn’t large but it has everything. The temple isn’t large but it has flourishing incense offerings that far exceed all temples. The temple isn’t large but it attracts both citizens and foreigners that line up overnight…

The temple has a bald but handsome monk. Every day, he would bawl, “I want to renounce asceticism! I want to marry a chick that’s not too pretty, have a cute baby, and lead a stable life!”

“Xavier Lancaster, the richest and most influential man on Earth, lives by one simple motto: 'Money First'. A brilliant strategist, ruthless businessman, and master negotiator, he built an unshakable financial empire. But when a mysterious incident transports him to a medieval world on the brink of collapse, he finds himself… the ruler of a weak and crumbling kingdom.Faced with corrupt nobles, hostile neighbors, and a shattered economy, Xavier decides to use the one thing he knows best: the law of the market. Armed with his cunning, modern strategies, and cutthroat business sense, he turns every problem into an opportunity and every enemy into an investment.His goal? To become the richest and most powerful emperor this world has ever seen. But in a land where strength rules and magic exists, will money really be enough to buy everything?Get ready to witness the rise of a man who’s ready to put a price on the throne itself.”

At a low point in his life, Xia Ruofei discovered that a scroll that was passed down in his family had a hidden secret: it contained its own independent world.

In the space, there was a spiritual pond that enhanced the growth of plants. There were mysterious spiritual flowers that could cure illnesses. Time in the independent world flowed at a pace ten times that of the outside world. Everything he planted there was of supreme grade and grew at a rapid pace. Everything he raised gained sentience.

From that day forth, Xia Ruofei began a different, brilliant life of planting succulent plants and vegetables, raising animals and flirting with beauties.