Ian Song knew that the native Immortal clans had always suppressed ascended Immortals, but he hadn’t expected them to be so ruthless—they actually wanted to take seventy percent of his profits.
Even if he handed over seventy percent, he’d still make money, but Ian was never one to quietly accept injustice, much less give away the fortune he’d just earned to the City Lord’s Mansion.
That night.
Ian gathered all his women into the Divine Temple. He’d made tens of billions of immortal stones in recent days—a fortune sure to attract envy—so he had to be careful. If anyone tried to kidnap his women to threaten him, he’d rather keep them in the Divine Temple. That way, if trouble came, he could escape Wildlands City at any time.
Bayun Restaurant was famous for its Bayun Wine, and counted among the very top establishments in Wildlands City.
From what Ian knew, even native Immortal clans had to pay taxes on their businesses—usually two to five percent. For ascended Immortals, though, there was no written standard; how much they paid depended entirely on the Tax Bureau’s mood.
For other ascended Immortals, the Tax Bureau might also charge heavy taxes, but never as high as seventy percent. Mason Jiang sent someone to collect seventy percent from Ian—clearly treating him as a fat sheep to be slaughtered.
"Greetings, Young Master Song!"
Victor Yuchi arrived at Bayun Restaurant ahead of Ian.
"When is Mason Jiang coming?" Ian asked.
Victor Yuchi said, "He only said he'd be back, but didn't give a specific time!"
With that settled, they headed upstairs to wait in a private room.
Half an hour passed, but Mason Jiang still hadn’t arrived.
A full hour went by, and Mason Jiang was still nowhere to be seen.
Only after Ian had waited two full hours did Mason finally show up at Bayun Restaurant, bringing two attendants with him.
Mason Jiang was the son of the City Lord Warren Lonely’s sworn brother, and Warren trusted him deeply. Mason’s own cultivation was nothing to scoff at—he was a mid-stage Golden Immortal.
"So you’re that Ian Song everyone’s talking about?"
Mason wore a silver-white robe, his long hair draped over his shoulders. Handsome and striking, the corners of his mouth curled with a hint of arrogance.
"Yes, that’s me. Greetings, Lord Jiang!"
Ian nodded and smiled politely as he greeted him.
A flash of disdain crossed Mason’s eyes as he looked at Ian with a playful smirk. "You invited me here because you want me to go easy on you, right? If so, where’s your sincerity? Show me what you’ve got."
"This is my sincerity."
Ian took out a Masterwork Storage Ring and handed it over. Inside were a full hundred million immortal stones.
After checking the ring, Mason nodded in satisfaction. "For the sake of this hundred million immortal stones, you can skip the fine. Starting tomorrow, just pay fifty percent of your profits to the Tax Bureau."
Ian’s eyes narrowed. "Fifty percent is too high—can’t you lower it a bit?"
"You don’t know what’s good for you, and you still dare to bargain with me!" Mason’s face suddenly turned cold, but then he changed tack: "I’ve heard your concubines are all stunning beauties. If you send them to my mansion for me to play with for a while, I’ll reduce your taxes to thirty percent!"
Ian laughed, but murderous intent flickered in his heart. "My lord, if I may ask—do you have any sisters? If so, why not send them over for me to play with? I’ll even give you a few billion immortal stones to spend!"
"You’re courting death! Seize him!"
A cold, murderous glint flashed in Mason's eyes.
Swish! Swish!
As soon as Mason finished speaking, his two Golden Immortal attendants lunged at Ian from left and right.
"Hmph!"
Ian snorted coldly and stomped his right foot on the ground. Instantly, the scene shifted—everyone was transported into a flower-scented, grass-green world.
Bang! Bang!
Ian swung his fists, smashing both Golden Immortals to the ground. Then he reached out, and Mason Jiang was pulled helplessly toward him.
A flash of terror appeared in Mason’s eyes. Suddenly, with a clear sword cry, a jet-black sword light shot up like lightning, slashing toward Ian.
That jet-black sword light actually made Ian feel a hint of real threat.
"A Law-grade Immortal Artifact!"
Ian was slightly surprised, but then calmly pointed a finger.
Clang!
Ian’s finger struck the sword light dead center. After only a second of resistance, the sword light collapsed and reverted to a jet-black longsword.
"How is that possible?"
Mason was horrified. This was the Law-grade Immortal Artifact his father had left him. When he used its full power, even late-stage Golden Immortals couldn’t withstand it. How could this ascended Golden Immortal without an immortal body block it?
Slap! Slap! Slap!
Ian grabbed Mason by the neck and, without mercy, slapped him several times, leaving both sides of Mason’s face swollen and bruised.
"You bastard! Let me go or else—!"
Slap! Slap! Slap!
"Ian Song, you’re dead!"
Slap! Slap! Slap!
"Ian Song, how dare you, an ascended Immortal—!"
Slap! Slap! Slap!
After more than a dozen slaps, Mason’s face was swollen like a pig’s head. He no longer dared to threaten Ian, but his eyes were filled with bitter hatred—if he ever got the chance, he’d surely kill Ian.
But Ian wasn’t about to give him that chance.
With several Puppet Arts, Mason’s eyes changed—the hatred vanished, replaced by awe and absolute loyalty.
"Your subordinate Mason Jiang greets his master!"
Mason Jiang knelt on the ground.
His two attendants were left utterly shocked by the scene.
Ian used the same method to enslave the two Golden Immortal attendants.
"Tell me about City Lord Warren Lonely," Ian said to Mason.
"Yes, sir!" Mason nodded and began to share everything he knew about Warren Lonely.
Warren Lonely came from the Wuji Sect. He and Mason Jiang’s father were sworn brothers and fellow disciples. Warren’s father, Warren Wounded, was one of the sect’s most powerful elders, his cultivation already at the peak of Profound Immortal.
Warren Lonely himself was a Profound Immortal. Publicly, he claimed to be at the early stage, but in reality, he was already mid-stage. He also possessed several powerful Law-grade Immortal Artifacts, making his strength truly formidable.
Ian could handle an early-stage Profound Immortal, but a mid-stage one was out of his league—especially one with multiple Law-grade Immortal Artifacts. Unless absolutely necessary, he couldn’t afford to face Warren head-on.
Unfortunately, Ian still hadn’t awakened the inherited cultivation technique of his Pangu bloodline. If he could, his strength would improve dramatically.
He needed to find a way to advance to late-stage Golden Immortal as soon as possible—maybe then he’d awaken the Pangu bloodline’s inherited technique.
Once Ian got the information he wanted, he dismissed Mason Jiang.
Because Warren Lonely trusted Mason completely, Mason had full control over the Tax Bureau. As long as no one reported this incident to Warren, he wouldn’t notice anything.
Even so, Ian didn’t plan to linger in Wildlands City.
In the days that followed, Ian traded large quantities of supreme-grade Immortal Essence Pills. The Divine Temple’s stores of immortal herbs grew steadily. Unfortunately, after acquiring several grade-five and grade-six immortal herbs from the managers of seventeen pill shops, no one brought him anything above grade-five again.