Money is not power. Money is a superpower. Jiang Chen had always believed this. Now, with 500 Million Spirit Stones in his pocket and a newly autonomous mountain peak, he was ready to prove it.
Early the next morning, Jiang Chen gathered his disciples. "Get dressed," Jiang Chen ordered. "We are going to Sky City."
Sky City was the largest trading hub in the region, a massive floating island where cultivators from all sects gathered to trade. It was a place where anything could be bought—if you had the stones.
"Master," Ye Kai asked, adjusting his new silk shirt which felt too tight. "What are we buying?"
"Everything," Jiang Chen smiled. "We have a mountain to fortify. I need arrays, materials, furniture, and a watchdog."
The Shopping Spree
They arrived at the Heavenly Treasure Pavilion, the most expensive store in the city. The shopkeeper, a sharp-eyed old man, saw Jiang Chen's group. He saw the expensive robes. He smelled the money.
"Welcome, esteemed guests!" The shopkeeper bowed. "What are you looking for? Pills? Weapons?"
Jiang Chen walked to the Array Section. He pointed at a display case. "This defensive array. The Nine-Palace Lockdown Array. How much?"
"Ah, excellent taste!" The shopkeeper beamed. "That is a Peak Earth-Tier array. It can withstand a Spirit Severing attack. The price is 5 million stones."
"I'll take ten," Jiang Chen said.
The shopkeeper froze. "Ten? Sir, we only have three in stock..." "Then order seven more. And I want them linked."
Jiang Chen moved to the Furniture Section. "This bed. Is it made of Spirit Wood?" "Yes, sir! It aids meditation!" "I'll take fifty. And that gold bathtub. And the chandelier made of monster cores."
Su Ling followed behind, furiously tapping on an abacus. "Master! You've spent 80 million in five minutes! At this rate of expenditure, we will be bankrupt by lunch!"
"Su Ling," Jiang Chen patted her head. "You need to learn Macro-Economics. I am not spending. I am investing."
Ding! [System Alert: Investment Detected.] [Item: Nine-Palace Lockdown Array x10 -> Invested in Divine Dragon Peak.] [Cashback Triggered: 50x.] [Reward: The Absolute Void Barrier (Heaven Tier).] Description: Creates a pocket dimension around the peak. Attacks below the Void Treading Realm are ignored.
Jiang Chen grinned. He just bought a god-tier shield for the price of a few rocks.
The Pet Shop
Finally, they arrived at the Spirit Beast Emporium. The cages were filled with roaring tigers, flying eagles, and armored bears.
"We need a Guardian Beast," Jiang Chen announced. "Something to guard the door while we sleep."
The beast tamer, a muscular woman with a scar on her face, stepped forward. "You want a guardian? I have a Steel-Tooth Tiger (Golden Core). Only 20 million."
Jiang Chen looked at the tiger. It roared. "Too loud," Jiang Chen dismissed it. He looked at a Wind Eagle. "Too feathery."
He walked to the back of the shop, to the "Discount/Dying" section. In a dirty, rusted cage, there was a small, pathetic creature. It looked like a lizard, but it had no scales. Its skin was grey and flaky. It was curled up in a ball, shivering. It looked like it had one foot in the grave.
[Scan Result] [Species: Unknown Hybrid.] [Status: Dying. Bloodline Severed.] [Potential: ???]
Jiang Chen's eyes lit up. The System couldn't read its potential. That meant one of two things: It was trash, or it was a god in disguise. Given his luck, he was betting on the latter.
"How much for the sick lizard?" Jiang Chen asked.
The beast tamer scoffed. "That thing? We found it in a meteor crater. It refuses to eat. It just sleeps. It's useless. If you want it, take it for 100 stones. Or I'll just throw it in the soup pot."
"I'll take it," Jiang Chen paid the 100 stones.
He opened the cage. The lizard opened one eye. It was a cloudy, milky blue. It let out a weak hiss.
"Master," Ye Kai whispered. "That looks like a worm with legs. Can it even fight?"
"Not yet," Jiang Chen smiled.
He carried the lizard out of the shop and found a quiet alley. He pulled out a bottle. It wasn't normal water. It was True Dragon Marrow (diluted).
"Drink," Jiang Chen poured the golden liquid into the lizard's mouth.
The lizard swallowed. Then, Jiang Chen pulled out a Beast Evolution Pill he had bought earlier (Price: 10 million). He shoved that down its throat too.
"Invest," Jiang Chen whispered. "I am investing everything in you, little worm."
Ding!
[System Alert: High-Risk Investment Detected.] [Subject: Dying Unknown Lizard.] [Investment Cost: 10 Million Stones + Dragon Marrow.] [Calculating Return...]
The roulette wheel in Jiang Chen's mind spun. It spun fast. It started smoking. It turned gold. Then it turned purple. Then it turned black.
DING!
[CRITICAL JACKPOT!] [Multiplier: 10,000x!]
[Evolution Triggered.] [Reward: The Primordial Chaos Devouring Dragon (God Tier - Hatchling).]
The lizard in Jiang Chen's hand convulsed. CRACK. Its grey skin shattered like glass. A blinding black light erupted from the alley, shooting into the sky.
The clouds above Sky City swirled. A terrifying, ancient roar echoed—not from the beast, but from the void itself. When the light faded, Jiang Chen was holding... a dragon.
It was small, only the size of a cat. But its scales were pitch black, absorbing the sunlight. Its eyes were like two galaxies, swirling with purple stardust. It had two tiny horns that crackled with black lightning.
It looked at Jiang Chen. It burped. A small ball of black fire came out, burning a hole through the stone wall.
"What... is... that?" Su Ling backed away, her survival instincts screaming.
"This," Jiang Chen lifted the baby dragon. "Is Little Black. Our new watchdog."
[Status: Primordial Chaos Devouring Dragon] [Current Rank: Nascent Soul Level 1 (Hatchling).] [Ability: Can eat anything. Arrays, Qi, Souls, Physical Matter. Hunger is infinite.]
"Nascent Soul Level 1..." Ye Kai gulped. "This baby is stronger than me?"
"It's stronger than the Sect Leader," Jiang Chen corrected.
The Return
Jiang Chen returned to Divine Dragon Peak with a haul that would make an Emperor jealous.
He deployed the Absolute Void Barrier. A shimmering dome covered the mountain. From the outside, the peak disappeared. It looked like empty sky. From the inside, it was a paradise.
He placed the Time-Dilation Chamber (another cashback reward). [Effect: 1 Day Outside = 10 Days Inside.]
He placed the Gravity Room. [Effect: 10x to 100x Gravity.]
And finally, he placed Little Black at the gate. "Sit," Jiang Chen ordered. "If anyone who isn't us tries to enter... eat them."
The baby dragon nodded intelligently and curled up on a rock, looking like a harmless statue.
The Assassins Arrive
Night fell. Three shadows moved silently through the forest at the base of the mountain. They were the Blood Shadow Assassins. Leader: Blood One (Spirit Severing Level 1). Members: Blood Two and Blood Three (Nascent Soul Peak).
They had been paid a fortune by Grand Elder Feng to kill Jiang Chen and his disciples.
"Target is ahead," Blood One whispered. "They have set up an array. It looks like a simple illusion."
"Foolish," Blood Two scoffed. "An illusion array against us? Break it."
They approached the gate. They didn't see the array. They just saw a path leading up. And sitting on a rock by the path was a small, black lizard.
"A pet?" Blood Three laughed. "Look at it. It's sleeping."
"Kill it," Blood One ordered. "Leave no witnesses. Not even a lizard."
Blood Three drew his dagger. He stepped forward to stab the sleeping dragon.
Little Black opened one eye. It saw a man with a knife. It felt hunger.
CHOMP.
It happened too fast to see. Little Black's mouth opened. It didn't just open normally; the jaw unhinged, revealing a void of darkness that was bigger than its body. It lunged.
Snap.
Blood Three vanished. He didn't scream. There was no blood. He was just... gone. Eaten whole.
Blood One and Blood Two froze. They looked at the lizard. The lizard licked its lips. It looked at them. Then, it burped. Blood Three's dagger fell out of its mouth, bent and twisted.
"Run," Blood One whispered.
But Little Black was still hungry. It roared. It wasn't a loud roar. It was a suction sound. A black vortex formed in its mouth.
"NO!" Blood One screamed as he was dragged off his feet. "What is this monster?! The intel said nothing about a dragon!"
SLURP.
Blood One and Blood Two were sucked into the vortex. Gone.
Little Black closed its mouth. It looked satisfied. Its belly glowed slightly as it digested three high-level cultivators. Ding! [Guardian Beast XP Gained.] [Rank Up: Nascent Soul Level 2.]
Little Black curled back up on the rock and went to sleep.
Morning
Jiang Chen woke up and stretched. He walked to the gate to check on his new investment.
He saw the bent dagger on the ground. He sensed the residual energy of the Blood Shadow Assassins (or rather, the lack of it). He patted Little Black's head.
"Good boy," Jiang Chen smiled. "You ate the trash."
He looked at the horizon. The sun was rising. "One month left until the Alliance Summit. The Peak is secure. The resources are ready."
"Time to maximize the Time Chamber. By the time we leave this mountain... the Mystic Cloud Sect won't be the only ones shocked."