Urban Cultivation with a Demonic System-Chapter 220 - 195: If I’d Known Cultivators Could Be Laid Off…

At the back entrance of a large gym in Taihua City, there was a dark alley.

Two figures stood silently in the depths of the alley's darkness, quietly waiting.

Yang Wentao hurriedly pushed open the back door, glanced around, and upon seeing the two in the darkness, his heart first tightened, then he quickly stepped forward to respectfully greet them.

"Greetings, Sect Leader, Vice Sect Leader."

Yang Wentao buried his head very low, and for some reason, he felt a sense of indescribable tension.

"Raise your head."

A chilly voice came from the darkness.

"Yes."

Yang Wentao cautiously raised his head, meeting the indifferent gaze of the figure in the darkness.

He understood why he was nervous.

Because the person in front of him was the legendary first in the Top Ten Preparatory Classes, destined to join the Ten Great Immortal Sects in the future, a prodigy of the heavens.

Such a super student, just standing there, would exert an extreme pressure on someone like him, a mere college student.

Moreover, Yang Wentao also knew what kind of immense darkness lurked beneath that seemingly pure nature.

Just the secret medicine business alone had already seized half of the dark fitness industry in Taihua City.

Seemingly glorious, respected by countless fitness enthusiasts, he was merely a small fish in the hands of the other.

And the Sect Leader's Demon Sect empire encompassed far more than just the secret medicine business.

It's possible even the Ten Great Immortal Sects had been infiltrated by him.

How could Yang Wentao not be respectful?

"Report your recent interactions with other demonic influences."

Yang Wentao's heart tightened again.

Although he already knew part of the information over the phone, confirming it in person now left him utterly shocked.

Because every move the Sect Leader made next would determine the fate of the underground demonic influences in Taihua City.

And he, Yang Wentao, a mere college student, would be part of it.

Suppressing the inexplicable fervor and excitement within him, Yang Wentao meticulously reported.

The Primordial Sect's secret medicine business's direct competitor was an underground Demon Sect known as the "Nine Dragon Hall."

Their signature products included the Recovery Dragon Pill, symbolizing recovery and healing; the Group Dragon Pill, representing endurance and stamina; and the Sith Dragon Pill, representing masculinity and vitality, among nine types of elixirs named after dragons.

"Sect Leader, the Nine Dragon Hall is not an easy Demon Sect to deal with."

"In the gym behind me, there are several loyal followers of the Nine Dragon Hall, who refuse to accept our body refining secret medicine despite my attempts to sell it to them."

"There are two reasons: first, the Nine Dragon Hall's elixirs are genuinely potent, not fraudulent health products."

"Second, consuming too many elixirs from the Nine Dragon Hall leads to significant side effects, making people mentally sluggish and naturally unwilling to accept new things."

After his introduction, Yang Wentao carefully explained the recent decline in secret medicine sales.

"The Nine Dragon Hall, indeed an evil sect, deserves extermination."

The voice in the darkness was cold, brimming with murderous intent:

"Where is Wang Chao? I remember he went undercover in the Nine Dragon Hall a while back, how is he doing?"

Yang Wentao hastily replied:

"Wang Chao is now a Junior Squad Leader in the Nine Dragon Hall, but because he joined recently, he hasn't been able to access the core locations."

"Hmm, I remember his meeting with the Nine Dragon Hall headquarters is tonight?"

"Yes, they will meet in two hours, here is the address."

Yang Wentao quickly handed over a slip of paper with coordinates written on it.

A small, fair hand emerged from the darkness, taking it over.

Then a cool female voice spoke:

"Tonight, the Nine Dragon Hall will be destroyed. Once they're gone, you know what to do."

Elated, Yang Wentao quickly nodded and said:

"Don't worry, Sect Leader, Vice Sect Leader!"

"I will ensure our body refining medicine and diet pills rapidly occupy the vacant market..."

"Body refining medicine?"

A cold snort echoed from the darkness, causing the surrounding temperature to drop several degrees.

Yang Wentao was initially startled, then quickly realized and promptly put on a smile to correct himself:

"I misspoke, we are selling health products, not any medicine."

Only then did the temperature slightly warm up.

"You may leave, but remember, even though I'm your protector, if the health product business is exposed, it has nothing to do with me."

Yang Wentao opened his mouth, but did not dare to say anything more, could only bow respectfully, and turned to exit through the back door.

After he left, the two figures in the darkness slowly stepped out of the alley.

Who else could it be but Su Yuan and Chen Nuoyi?

"Su Yuan, if there's any problem with this health supplement business, can we really remain untouched?"

Chen Nuoyi asked.

Su Yuan calmly replied:

"If we get discovered, so be it. Our secret medicine neither contains harmful substances nor involves forced sales. We can always say they're homemade nutritional pills."

"Even if Yang Wentao and the others do get targeted, at most they'll be questioned and warned a bit, and that'll be it."

Only then did Chen Nuoyi feel reassured.

Soon after, the two of them set off according to the Nine Dragon Hall's transaction location, arriving early at the scene and hiding.

The transaction site was on a shopping mall rooftop. As the time approached, Wang Chao appeared on the rooftop.

Soon after, another figure dressed completely in black appeared.

The two exchanged no more than a few words before handing over the collected money in one hand and the new batch of Nine Dragon Elixir in the other.

From the shadows, Su Yuan's Demon-Revealing Wisdom Eye emitted a bright gleam.

He saw a thick demonic aura emanating from the figure in black.

It was the aura generated by prolonged exposure to demonic elixirs.

It seems this person not only sells the medicine but also consumes it himself.

But for some reason, Wang Chao's demonic aura was even stronger than that of the black-clad man.

Must be because he's deep undercover... right.

The entire transaction process was extremely quick, taking less than thirty seconds, but that was more than enough time.

Su Yuan pulled out the Ten Thousand Souls Banner and waved it towards the black-clad man, immediately cutting off his phone.

Through the phone, he could track the person's real-time location.

Once the person jumped off the mall and left, Su Yuan and Chen Nuoyi followed him at a distance using the location data.

During this time, the person changed both clothes and phones, but relying on his Demon-Revealing Wisdom Eye, Su Yuan was still able to easily spot him in the crowd.

After some tracking, they arrived at a small printing factory located in the outskirts of the city.

It seemed like this was the real lair of the Nine Dragon Hall.

However, from the outside, this printing factory showed no trace of demonic aura.

It appears there are measures inside to block the 'Demon-Revealing Wisdom Eye' and similar reconnaissance techniques.

Unhurriedly, Su Yuan used the Ten Thousand Souls Banner to hack into the printing factory's surveillance cameras, observing the interior.

The ground floor housed regular printing equipment, whereas the lower level was a busy alchemy workshop.

Such a small-scale operation naturally lacked automated alchemy equipment, relying instead on a group of alchemists over the age of fifty-three practicing ancient techniques.

The entire lower level was ablaze, resembling a boiler room.

"Sigh, now I see how Nine Dragon Hall has developed. It's because all the laid-off alchemists end up working in places like this."

Su Yuan remarked while sending the surveillance footage to Chen Nuoyi's phone, shaking his head in reflection.

The young girl looked at the footage and said:

"I've heard that many sects, in pursuit of a youthful image, lay off employees as soon as they hit fifty-three."

"These alchemists working in black workshops are probably burdened with mortgages and have no choice but to work here."

"If we report this now, would they lose their jobs and go hungry?"

Losing their jobs is certain, but going hungry? Not so much, since prison provides ample meals.

Su Yuan wanted to reply like that.

But that would be overly cynical.

Besides, truth be told, Su Yuan could empathize with these alchemists.

They're not puppets; they each have families.

If not for the fortunate encounter with a dog system, Su Yuan might have faced being laid off at fifty-three as well.

Why make life difficult for fellow workers?

However, Su Yuan did not voice these thoughts, only saying lightly:

"Throwing all of them in prison would indeed be a waste."

"After all, they're skilled workers with over twenty years of experience. Once the Primordial Sect develops, we might have use for them."

"Here's the plan: before taking action against the Nine Dragon Hall, I'll first evacuate these innocent alchemists."

Saying this, Su Yuan commanded the Ten Thousand Souls Banner to short-circuit the spiritual energy supply lines of the printing factory.

Amidst sparks flying, the printing factory plunged into darkness.

After an inspection by the line workers, they discovered that restoring power would take over ten hours, leading to the on-the-spot dismissal of the alchemists for the day.

Once the alchemists left work, Su Yuan again activated the Ten Thousand Souls Banner, creating a 'coincidental' short-circuit in the spiritual energy lines that set the warehouse storing Nine Dragon Elixirs on fire.

As a result, the Hall Master of Nine Dragon Hall would surely rush over to inspect the situation in person.