Chapter 378: Chapter 289: The First Industry_2

However, the downside is, it can’t scale up.

The profit margin in talismans is already thin, and with everyone capable of becoming a Talisman Maker, competition is fierce.

The entire Cultivation industry has industrialised, which saves on labour costs. The talisman industry only has a profit margin of about 5%.

Even so, every year at least a hundred newly registered talisman shops end up closing and filing for bankruptcy.

The fact that Wood Spiritual Talisman Shop has been able to operate online in the cultivation world for ten years, even turning a slight profit every year, is already an industry success story.

[Generally for us Qi Practitioners, even achieving Rank-2 as a talisman maker only enables us to scrape by. However, it’s different for those who have achieved the Foundation Establishment. They just need to settle locally, places like our Red Sandstone City are willing to give them a piece of land for free to start an industry, and there are also various tax incentives.]

[So in the cultivation world, only the realm truly matters. Unfortunately, I failed at establishing my foundation and still owe the bank a large loan. Though I have managed to cultivate back to the ninth level of Qi cultivation, I guess there’s no chance for me to move up in this lifetime.]

[Right now, the only thing I can hope for is that my younger siblings who are in college will successfully establish their foundation, so that our family will have a chance to escape our debts.]

At the end of the conversation, the Shopkeeper of the Wood Spiritual Talisman shop seemed to be touched and sent over a string of long texts, reflecting on his struggles over the years.

Chen Mobai comforted him for a bit, added his real-life contact details, and then called his mother.

“What, you want to start a talisman factory?”

After hearing about Chen Mobai’s plan, Tang Panchui yelled in surprise.

“Yes, I heard there’s a policy in Red Sandstone City that gives free land to those who have achieved the Foundation Establishment. I recently achieved my Foundation Establishment, so it’d be a waste not to take advantage of this,” explained Chen Mobai.

When Chen Mobai was at university, his residence registration was changed to Crimson City.

Now that he found out about these benefits upon returning, he naturally wouldn’t let it slip by.

“Son, your entrepreneurial spirit makes me very proud, but starting a business is not a simple matter. After getting the land, you need to build a factory, where is the startup capital coming from? Even if you get the factory up and running, managing the operation team is another big issue. Even if all this is completed, there’s the problem of how to distribute and sell the talismans you manufacture…”

Tang Panchui, who had been a worker in a talisman factory for over twenty years, was deeply versed in the complexities of the industry.

“How about opening a small shop first to accumulate some experience?” Chen Mobai suggested after the lecture, feeling that he had not considered things thoroughly, though his entrepreneurial spirit remained undaunted.

As a trader between the two worlds, he felt that it was necessary to open a proper factory on the cultivation side to act as a cover for his large-scale reselling activities in the future.

“That’s a much better idea, and if you truly plan to start a business after graduation, I do have an opportunity for you,” Tang Panchui suddenly proposed, surprising Chen Mobai.

“Mom, you’re a worker, do you have a startup opportunity?”

“Our boss is said to be close to reaching the sixth rank in Foundation Establishment. If he wants to progress further, he definitely cannot stay in a small place like Red Sandstone City, he has to venture to the larger Heavenly Caves. When he leaves, he will have to handle these factories. I’ll talk to him, if you’re genuinely interested, he might be inclined to sell to you,” Tang Panchui explained.

Upon hearing this, Chen Mobai couldn’t help but recall his childhood days playing in the talisman factory where his mother worked.

He had met the boss several times, a very mild-mannered man.

His name was Wu Shangru, a graduate of Cinnabarite Institute. He successfully achieved the Foundation Establishment during his school years, and was adopted by Red Sandstone City as a prospective talent. After years of hard work in talisman crafting and business, he set up his now-existing industry.

However, every gain comes with a loss. The resources and spiritual energy in Red Sandstone City could not compare to those larger Heavenly Caves. Despite having earned tens of millions of Good Deed Points, his cultivation level had undoubtedly been progressing slowly.

If Chen Mobai remembered correctly, Wu Shangru should be around 80 years old. If he could not reach the ninth level of Foundation Establishment within the next forty years, and miss the peak of his physical and spiritual energy, it would basically be hopeless for him to achieve Core Formation.

If Wu Shangru had more ambitious goals, he indeed should head towards the Great Cavernous Heaven.

Obviously, this head graduate from the Cinnabarite Institute still retained his pride.

In the evening, he personally made a phone call to Chen Mobai.

Chen Mobai respectfully addressed him as uncle, considering he watched him grow up, the latter was quite pleased with this address.

Wu Shangru actually planned to leave Red Sandstone City a long time ago, but he had established his footing there with the help of the city government. The current city lord considered it a personal favor, and was reluctant to see him, a talent, leave.

Even though the Foundation Establishment True Cultivators of the 72 Blessed Lands in the Immortal Sect had mostly migrated to the 36 Great Cavernous Heavens, the Red Sandstone City Lord would delay Wu Shangru’s departure for as long as he could.

Moreover, his Flying Sky Talisman Factory was one of their pillar industries. Although Wu Shangru promised when leaving that he would hand over the factory to local businessmen, ensuring no massive unemployment.

But without a renowned Foundation Establishment True Cultivator taking over, the talisman factory, with its annual output value of millions, would only decline until it finally declared bankruptcy.

For this reason, Wu Shangru, who should have left Red Sandstone City five or six years ago, was held back.

He had already found his way out, as long as he could move his residence to Huayang Cavernous Heaven, and coupled with sixty years of experience and dedication to the prefecture’s number one talisman factory, he would qualify to purchase a Water Elemental Gold Core.

Wu Shangru actually joined the factory twenty years ago, now he just needed to change his residence.

Now that Chen Mobai had approached him, it was a perfect fit for Wu Shangru.

With the most popular current chief of the Dance Tool Daoist Academy taking over, it was estimated that Red Sandstone City would send him away with drumming and cheering, so that Chen Mobai’s residence could be moved back as soon as possible.

“Dear nephew, you have indeed helped me out. How about this? I hire you as the spokesperson for my Flying Sky Talisman Factory. I won’t give you a spokesperson fee, but after you graduate in four years, I’ll give you my business here in Red Sandstone City, how’s that?”

Wu Shangru proposed very sincere terms at the beginning, Chen Mobai thought for a moment and agreed immediately.

“Alright, I’ll start arrangements for your mother to take over the Talisman Factory from tomorrow. If you have time, you can come back and sign the contract, if not, I’ll come to Crimson Cavernous Heaven to find you.”

Chen Mobai thought about it and felt it would be better to go himself.

After all, he was getting a huge bargain. For four years he was getting a reputable talisman factory, which has been around for fifty years, for free.

Although the land belonged to Red Sandstone City, the factory building and equipment were at least worth nearly ten million Good Deed Points.

Even if he put himself at risk, he had planned to find a quiet, low-key place to practice and improve his cultivation after graduating.

His hometown, Red Sandstone City, was just perfect.

Before heading back, Chen Mobai called Qing Nu first, but unfortunately, she was busy improving herself and didn’t plan to return as Red Sandstone City would remind her of Kong Feichen and Yang Jing.

“By the way, since you could appear in Little Red Sky, are you also in Crimson Cavernous Heaven?”

Chen Mobai suddenly thought of this question, but Qing Nu said she wasn’t.

“The spiritual vein of Crimson Mountain is actually one of the prehistoric dragon pulses, theoretically, it can flow through most of the Immortal Sect. That’s why we chose to open Little Red Sky here.”

“The four main Daoist Academies and the ten universities all have internal projection lines distributed by the Immortal Sect to enter Little Red Sky. However, it’s not as stable as in Crimson Cavernous Heaven, and the number of people who can enter is limited.”

“But after this period of beta testing, Little Red Sky has become stable. Once the core Rank-5 Spiritual Treasures are put in, the Crimson Mountain Dragon Pulse will immediately be activated, covering the whole Immortal Sect. At that time, our Foundation Establishment True Cultivators from the four Daoist Academies, who have graduated long ago, will be able to enter one after another. Your unbeatable winning streak may be in jeopardy.”

Upon hearing Qing Nu’s words, Chen Mobai simply laughed.

“I have always been waiting for someone who can defeat me to appear.”