Players: All NPCs in the Sect Are Moles

"You know, he does look a bit familiar. Who was it again? There are so many people in that line of work, I can’t quite place him."

"Dong Changsheng’s master... could he be someone like us?"

"It’s not impossible, I guess. The flow of time between the two places is different, after all..."

"Who cares if he is or not? We can’t even get out of the sect gates right now!"

"When will we be able to leave?"

"Another twelve just showed up. This should speed up the grind, right? We should be able to get out soon, shouldn’t we?"

"The point is that Dong Changsheng is his disciple!"

"Then maybe Dong Changsheng knows all this success guru stuff too!"

"If he gets on stage to say a few words at some future event, and the new disciples hear him, won’t they all start howling, ready to shed their blood and dive headfirst into a crazy rat race?"

"Then they could set up some ’pay-to-work’ scheme. HEHEHEHEHE!!!"

"Eldest Brother,"

"Do you think... people like us could get suckered in too? Get caught up in the heat of the moment and whale until we’re bankrupt?"

"Probably... not, right?" Lu Wu said, sounding unsure.

Lin Qingfeng replied, "Is that even a question? Of course, there will be! Who else would fall for this whole success guru routine?"

"..." The group fell silent.

"In any case, he’s a talent. As long as he’s useful to our sect, that’s all that matters. We’ll deal with any problems if and when they come up."

Su Ling’er only caught bits and pieces of the conversation—something about her being a bad influence, always thinking about other people’s Heart Demon Illusion Realms, something about success gurus, and someone being a talent.

’What the hell!’

’You’re peeping too, you know!!’

’Making it seem like *I’m* the perverted peeping tom!!!’

’That damn Eldest Brother!!!’

Although she was mostly confused, she finally understood the most crucial point:

These people from the demonic sect also believed that Mr. Dong was a rare talent.

And as the players chattered among themselves, the illusion within the crystal on Lin Qingfeng’s table, used to peer into Dong Changsheng’s Heart Demon, continued to play out.

In the vision, Dong Changsheng deeply believed in the "Great Path to Success" his master taught.

But there were always some stubborn fools who wanted to cling to their meager family businesses, unwilling to rush down the golden road to "financial freedom" and success.

For example, a middle-aged merchant in the crowd.

The merchant was decently dressed, but his brow was furrowed. It was clear his business was struggling and he didn’t have much wealth left.

He longed for success but suffered from a lack of funds.

The master slowly walked forward.

"My good layman, I see from your face that you are destined for great wealth and fortune. You should have riches pouring in, so why do you stand here with such a worried frown?"

Seeing the great master himself address him, the merchant was overwhelmed by the attention. He quickly bowed and clasped his hands in respect.

"Master, what you say is absolutely right!"

"Unfortunately, my luck has been poor..."

"I also wish to listen to the master’s teachings and embark on the path to success, but... but I can’t even scrape together five hundred taels right now. I fear I’ll miss this god-sent opportunity. I’m truly ashamed!"

As soon as he said this, the surrounding merchants who had already invested, along with the shills hired by the master, immediately began to scoff.

"Tch, you’re not even willing to part with a mere five hundred taels, and you still want to be successful? You think you’re worthy?"

"The master’s time is incredibly precious. Why would he lead someone like you, who shows no sincerity, to success?"

A young Dong Changsheng, who was in charge of collecting the fees, also put on a stern face and said matter-of-factly:

"Not a single coin less."

The downtrodden merchant’s face flushed red. He said with difficulty, "Then... then what if... I don’t sign up..."

The laughter from the crowd grew louder, making him wish the ground would swallow him whole. He felt that success in this life was now hopeless for him.

Just then, the master clapped his hands and laughed heartily, patting the merchant’s shoulder with a grand air.

"No matter! A mere fee to hear the Dao—I will cover it for you!"

"You... you’ll cover it for me?"

The merchant’s eyes lit up instantly, and he was so excited he began to stammer,

"R-Really? M-Master, you are too merciful! Such a great kindness, this junior..."

"Don’t thank me,"

The master waved his hand, cutting him off.

"You need only give me your personal seal and the token of your shop."

Although the merchant was confused, his boundless desire for success and his trust in the "master" compelled him to hand over his seal and the wooden plaque that represented his shop’s credit.

The master took the seal without even glancing at it. Instead, he raised his voice to the crowd:

"Is Mr. Wang of the ’Four Seas Universal Treasure’ Money House present?"

The words had barely left his mouth when a skinny man with a beaming smile squeezed out of the crowd and trotted forward.

He knew it was finally his turn to join the harvest in this grand play.

"Master, this humble one is here. What are your instructions?"

The master handed over the merchant’s seal and token.

"This is a man I have taken a liking to. Take a look and see what his credit is worth."

Mr. Wang took the items and pretended to inspect them for a moment, then replied in a loud voice:

"Reporting to the Master, this merchant layman has always had a good reputation in the city. Although he’s having some temporary cash flow problems, his credit is still excellent!"

The master nodded in satisfaction, then said something that made the merchant break out in a cold sweat:

"Excellent!"

"Go ahead and use his shop and credit as collateral to loan him ten thousand taels on a flexible contract. Charge him the lowest interest rate, as a favor to me."

"This way, he will no longer have to suffer the ridicule of those rude people."

"T-Ten thousand taels?!"

The merchant was dumbstruck, his mind a complete blank.

He just wanted to attend a lecture, how did he suddenly get saddled with a massive debt of ten thousand taels?!

However, before he could even react, Mr. Wang had already taken out the contract. With a sharp SMACK, he stamped it with the merchant’s personal seal. His movements were as smooth as flowing water, showing incredible proficiency in his trade.

The master took a ten-thousand-tael silver note from Mr. Wang and tucked it into his own sleeve. He then pulled out enough notes to make five hundred taels and stuffed them into the merchant’s hand.

"There, you now have a share of the secrets to success that they possess. You’ve also gained the startup capital to embark on your journey to success."

"This five hundred taels... don’t stand on ceremony with me. Consider it a loan from me for your living expenses."

"I wish you smooth sailing and a prosperous journey in your future business ventures!"

The merchant stared dumbly at the silver in his hand, then looked at the master and said:

"This... this isn’t right, is it? Master, isn’t there something wrong with this..."

The smile on the master’s face faded. He then began another round of "baptism" on him:

"Sigh, do you still not understand?"

"What I have done today is to personally shatter these shackles for you!"

"To let you break free from the mire and soar to the heavens!"

"What I am giving you is a chance to completely turn your life around, to take control of your own destiny!"

"Do you think this mere ten thousand taels is ’debt’?"

"No! This is ’momentum’!"

"It is the ’momentum’ to leverage your future fortune of tens of thousands!"

"It is the ’momentum’ that forces you to say goodbye to your past timid self, the momentum to burn your bridges!"

"I don’t see your money; I see your determination to succeed!"

"I originally thought you were different from the common rabble, which is why I was willing to make an exception, to personally pave the way for you, even going so far as to leverage my own reputation to borrow this ’great momentum’ for you!"

"And yet you dare to judge my compassion with your short-sighted, greedy, and calculating heart?!"

"Sigh, the world is cold, and people are not what they once were!"