Paragon of Sin

"Father, isn't this a little too much?" Ma Sujiang frowned as she asked. Recently, the Golden Life Pavilion and various Mystic Forces were using Ascended beings as glorified transporters and security guards. Moreover, the Golden Life Pavilion was certainly hemorrhaging wealth with each passing day, fueling each Voidship, paying for the usage of other forces Voidships, such as this one, and giving each passenger good cultivation conditions that they might not enjoy in their lifetime. 

Many costs could be reduced, and this seemed a little too extravagant. Ma Sujiang was concerned that the Golden Life Pavilion would find itself in a situation they couldn't come back from, financially. 

"..." Ma Zheng didn't answer, his eyes glinting with Spiritual Light as he piloted Boundless. 

Ma Sujiang's frown deepened, "The price to rent Boundless was already incredibly high! Moreover, we had to swear an oath to only use it for transport and even bring the Boundless Martial Sect's Domain and the Jiang Clan's Onesword Domain inhabitants along while protecting them for free!" She paused for a moment, giving her father a look, and then continued: "I think-".

"Stop." Ma Zheng spoke a single word and Ma Sujiang went completely silent. After a long, long moment, Ma Zheng finally looked at his silent Ma Sujiang with a firm look. "I've taught you the principles of business, correct?"

"..." Ma Sujiang was stunned for a moment before nodding, "Yes." Her father had taught her everything he knew and had used his life as a lesson for things he couldn't speak of clearly. 

Ma Zheng calmly said, "Any profits that could be gained here or costs that could be cut are irrelevant to our relationship with Ascendant Emperor Wei. Even if I had to give up my clothes and home, I'd do so. We must put out our best for every request, no matter if it's the Divine Emperor or a pauper asking for the best clothes he could afford. Because the best profit isn't money, but good relationships formed from reliable action. Right?"

Ma Sujiang's expression changed slightly, but she nodded.

Ma Zheng eyed this daughter of his, as beautiful and headstrong as her mother, and as cunning and hardworking as him. But she was a woman. It wasn't that being a woman was an issue directly. In fact, he preferred having a female heir to a male heir, but she was no longer thinking objectively. This was a thing he feared would happen and hoped she would place the principles of business before her biased views. 

"I don't mind your relationship with Tian Yinwu," Ma Zheng commented as he turned away, continuing to pilot Boundless. Ma Sujiang's expression instantly changed drastically, and her eyes flickered with a cautious light. 

Ma Zheng seemed unconcerned, continuing: "Your love for him will cloud your sense of objective duty, I understand that. Do you think I've never been in love? I'm well aware that you believe the war between the Imperial Clan and Ascendant Emperor Wei is inevitable at this point, and Tian Yinwu will likely not be pleased with us assisting his enemy. I'll once again remind you of one of those principles: Don't involve your personal feelings in the pavilion's business decisions."

"..." Ma Sujiang went abnormally silent as she lowered her head. With a soft voice, she asked: "If they go to war, will we side with the Neo-Dawn Starfield?" 

"No—the Golden Life Pavilion has been a neutral entity since the dawn of its creation and not even gods will change that as long as I exist. If we weren't, wouldn't I have long since submitted the Golden Life Pavilion to the Ascendant Emperor or even the Divine Emperor?" Ma Zheng faintly smiled as he looked back at his daughter.

Ma Sujiang lifted her eyes and noticed his warm smile, and a wave of relief washed over her heart. At the very least, she won't have to fight against Tian Yinwu.

Ma Zheng turned back around, but his eyes gradually lost their warmth. While the Golden Life Pavilion may remain neutral, that didn't mean he intended to be. As a businessman, staying neutral was the best course of action, but as a cultivator, siding with Wei Wuyin was the only logical choice.

How could he, a 9th Runic Ascendant, not wish for a greater cultivation base? A longer life? A chance to bring the Golden Life Pavilion to the rumored World Beyond that the King of Everlore had ventured to! To do that, he needed strength. His ambition was no less inferior to Wei Wuyin!

He wished to one day establish his organization in the World Beyond! 

-----

While the Golden Life Pavilion took the route of the selfless sacrifice of profits to shuttle the majority of those who could not afford to travel to the Neo-Dawn Starfield, others had different thoughts and agendas. Due to the great distance, the price for using a Void Gate was monstrous, so most settled for traveling via a fast Voidship. 

As there was profit to be realized here, various merchants and organizations seized this opportunity to offer luxury over convenience, offering an experience that only status and wealth could afford to have, segregating them from the common folk. These organizations outfitted their Voidships with premium environments and sold tickets for comfort, luxury, special benefits, and other privileges.

Some of these luxury Voidships had Secret Realms infused within that possessed extremely valuable cultivation grounds, and most could be bought out by an organization or Clan to prevent the indiscriminate gatherings of strangers, further appeasing a desire to be undisturbed throughout their long travels, a luxury that the Golden Life Pavilion couldn't effectively provide due to the sheer volume of transported individuals.

Among those who took advantage of this opportunity despite the gazes was none other than the Everlore Association. They not only provide a top-notch environment, an exclusive location cut out for their privacy, but various exclusively offered products that could be used by their Chosen, prospective Chosen, or talented juniors. This service was taken by many who believed themselves superior, but also capable of affording the absurd cost to obtain.

Shamelessly, these organizations utilized the travel routes that the Golden Life Pavilion had etched out safely, following along to avoid the various dangers of the Dark Void. This action was ridiculed by some, while others saw this as an opportunity to be smartly seized, and a few were simply happy that they could experience a higher level of luxury at the expense of some astral stones. 

-----

The Neo-Dawn Defiant Star, otherwise known as Baby Defiant, began to experience an elevation of radiance for the last hour, and the cultivation frenzy that was instigated within was unimaginable. Countless cultivators sat where they were, be it in rough streets, the abundant forests, a hot desert, or tall sky-piercing mountains, and began to absorb the essence, be it astral or mystic.

Oddly enough, a peacefulness swept across the entirety of the Neo-Dawn Starfield. Due to it being in its early stages, there weren't any intense conflicts amongst forces, and while fights and argument were an inevitable occurrence among cultivation societies, as resources were a limited resource at any given time even if it was potentially infinite, those fights and arguments came to a halt.

Among the 49 planets and 81 lunar satellites scattered profoundly throughout the Neo-Dawn Starfield, circulating a profound orbit with Baby Defiant at its center, was a planet that had been renamed the New Prosperity, a planet where the Golden Life Pavilion's Neo-Dawn Starfield's headquarters were located. 

New Prosperity wasn't a new planet but had been terraformed by the Golden Life Pavilion long ago after obtaining the planet from the wagers that had once shaken the entirety of the Grand Cyclic Stellar Region. Wei Wuyun had properly purchased it through the proper channels and brought it over from a Secret Realm that it was stored within.

The majority of the population was beasts, amongst them were dragons, crows, tigers, and serpents. They didn't constitute the majority, but they were by far the strongest existences throughout the planet. 

There were cities established on Endless Prosperity despite the majority of its populations being beasts. In fact, the beasts often entered these cities as they properly and intelligently brought resources to the human, beastmen, and elves that lived there. They traded for certain products specialized for beasts which grew the population.

The vast majority of beasts knew not to rampage at these cities that helped grow, giving products that could help their growth, sexual drive, rate of pregnancies, etc. It was often said that beasts were mindless creatures that acted on instincts, but instincts could be ingrained into them with the proper method.

The protection of their resource points was one of those instincts. Moreover, visiting, trading, and interacting peacefully with those who lived and thrived within. They acted no differently than any other humanoid, and while there were outliers here and there, those bloodthirsty, violent, selfish, or arrogant, just like humanoids, they were dealt with. 

The most unique aspect of New Prosperous was certainly the blood trade. In the Grand Cyclic Stellar Region, organizations bred and farmed essence blood from animals so that cultivators could use them for specialized methods of cultivation, gaining extraordinary abilities or refining exceptional bodies. The Tang Clan was an example of a top-tier clan that relied on blood energies to cultivate, the Vermilion Graveyard possessing a limited amount of unique energies and blood left behind from corpses. 

The blood trade here was willingly given for other resources, providing a service that was borderline imaginary to the common cultivator. 

Within one of these cities, Wei Wuyin traveled amongst the slithering serpents, observed the flying avians, and rode a green and brown striped tiger-drawn carriage. The tiger was roughly ten meters in size, and the roads were extremely spacious as humans, beastmen, and elves lived in various buildings conducting business.

"..." Wei Wuyin caught sight of a python that was fully fifty feet in length and the thickness of a tree carrying a straw-woven large-sized basket on its back. Within this basket were various plants that gave off a bloody scent, particularly a serpent's blood scent, and had a beautiful shine to them. These were planets watered with the essence blood of this python, likely its family as well.

It slithered into a large opening suited for snakes of all types.

"You're finally back! Took you long enough," a brown-skinned elf shopkeeper exclaimed as they met the python. The python slithered out its tongue as it seemingly complained of its struggles, and the elf listened with a unique spiritual spell that seemed to be commonly used, and then he looked surprised.

"You got lucky then. Those bastards are too hateful and violent for my taste," after saying that, he glanced at the basket and the inner trader in him went wild. "You brought so many! Such high-quality too! Seems like you really want that eighth-grade Noxious Growth Pill." 

Wei Wuyin saw the shopkeeper inspect the basket excitedly. 

When he turned his attention elsewhere, he found several tigers gathered together through the window of a building, eating large grilled fish together on a wide platform. They seemed to be a family of five, excluding the father, and four were cubs. The fish exuded a pristinely rich aroma that indicated a high level of cooking techniques derived from alchemy.

The cubs nibbled joyfully as the mother ensured they each got appropriate portions. 

Interactions like this were commonplace in cities like these. The outside world, particularly the Grand Cyclic Stellar Region, had already taken note of them and referred to them as Beast Havens or Cities of Monsters by the ignorant and simple.

Some didn't even believe it existed.

Wei Wuyin smiled. 

This was how the world should be. All races, species, or existence should be together. This will be the new norm of the Neo-Dawn Starfield.

One day, that python will grow into a Genesis Beast, traveling the stars and becoming an expert among his race. A proud existence respected by many.

One day, the tiger that brought him forth will elevate its services by transporting cultivators and beasts across the stars, bringing along world-sized carriages that will enable truly affordable transportation for people and large quantities of mystic-graded materials. In regards to transporting materials, Voidships will soon become obsolete. 

Wei Wuyin was unbeknownst of these things, but he wished for them. And sometimes, that was enough to bring forth certain realities. 

After an enjoyable journey, Wei Wuyin arrived at a two-story building that had several compounds within it. These compounds were self-contained realms that were suitable for cultivation. 

When he got off, he paid in the typical currency for services here—blood stones. They were condensed and refined forms of essence blood that could be refined by any beast to elevate their strength, very useful to humanoid cultivators too. The other currency was the Beast Burst Pill, a pill on the same level as the Qi Essence Pill with all grades from first to ninth. Unfortunately, they were often only useful for beasts, beastmen, or those who cultivated Bloodline Methods of Beasts. 

Wei Wuyin entered the building and found himself at the foot of one of the compound entrances. At this entrance was a Spiritual Jade meant to transmit messages from here to inside.

Wei Wuyin interfaced with this jade and transmitted, "I have a mission for you."

"..."

There was a brief period of silence before the door that was the entrance opened, and Wei Wuyin saw a handsome figure that contained a type of evil within a walk out of the spatial film that segregated the inside of the room from the outside.

The handsome young man looked at Wei Wuyin with a wisp of grievance, calmly saying: "Finally."