Return of the Immortal Emperor Daddy

"This..." The shop owner was stunned, not expecting Wu Tian to say such a thing. After a moment’s hesitation, he sighed. "No, it’s actually shrimp ink, refined from the blood of high-grade shrimp. You... 15 Gold Coins will be fine."

"Lucky for you that you chose to tell the truth," Wu Tian said with a chuckle, holding the little one in his arms.

Since that was the case, Wu Tian naturally couldn’t take the ink. He had to find something of higher quality.

He took a step, looking around the shop to see what other rare inks might be available.

Suddenly, Wu Tian felt a strange resonance from the Investiture of the Gods.

"Name: Jia Fatty!"

"Cultivation: Foundation Establishment, Third Rank."

"Suitable Weapon: Jia Bujia Weapon Shop."

"Life Story: Mother died at birth, father died at age three..."

Wu Tian was somewhat surprised. This man is actually a candidate for the Investiture of the Gods! A future member of the Heavenly Court I plan to establish. The Heavenly Court would need its powerful Heavenly Soldiers and Generals, but it would also need other roles filled.

"Daddy, I want that ink," the little one called out in her sweet, childish voice, pointing to a bottle in the shop. Her innocent, fair, and smooth little face was full of excitement.

Wu Tian looked closer and saw a beautiful golden liquid inside a small glass bottle. Under the gaze of the silver mark on his forehead—the Heavenly Eye—he could see the image of a nine-headed lion within the golden fluid.

This must be ink refined from the blood of a nine-headed lion.

The nine-headed lion was not of the Divine Beast lineage. However, among the Beast Clan creatures ranked below Divine Beasts, it was exceptionally rare.

Wu Tian smiled. "I’ll take it."

The shop owner, Jia Fatty, glanced at the bottle of nine-headed lion ink, his brow furrowing slightly, but he still replied, "Respected customer, this is nine-headed lion ink. It’s valued at thirty million Gold Coins."

"No, no, no," Wu Tian said suddenly. "We won’t need to spend any money."

"No money?" The plump Jia Fatty was confused.

"That’s right, no money," Wu Tian said with a playful smile.

"Are you planning to just take it without paying?" Jia Fatty asked, his brow tightening as the implication dawned on him.

Wu Tian nodded.

Jia Fatty grew furious. How difficult is it to craft an Array Master’s ink? How hard is it to obtain the blood of a Beast Clan creature?

Especially the nine-headed lion ink! To get the blood of that nine-headed lion, Jia Fatty had gone through hell and back, nearly dying in the process.

"You will give it to me," Wu Tian stated calmly.

"Nonsense!" Jia Bujia shook his head resolutely.

Wu Tian smiled. "You were born without a mother and lost your father at the age of three."

All of his information was recorded clearly on the Investiture of the Gods.

"You... how do you know that?" Jia Bujia was stunned. When he collected his thoughts, he could only assume one thing. He must have investigated me.

But that raised another question. I have no background, no family fortune... Why would he go to the trouble of investigating me, Jia Fatty?

"Don’t overthink it. I don’t have time to investigate you," Wu Tian said with a slight smile.

The little one chuckled. Daddy’s showing off again. She began to play with her fingers out of boredom. It’s fun when I get to show off, but watching someone else do it is just boring.

Wu Tian continued with a placid expression, "Alone and without support, you decided to jump off a cliff at the age of seven. Unexpectedly, you survived and were saved by an old woman who lived at the bottom. She taught you how to craft ink for Array Masters. At that moment, you finally found a way to survive, a path to keep from starving to death."

"You... you..." Jia Fatty’s eyes widened in shock, looking as if they might pop out of their sockets.

It was true. The loss of his parents had made him feel that life was meaningless. With no relatives, he resorted to begging everywhere until he felt he couldn’t go on. He chose to jump from a cliff. He never expected there to be an old woman living below, let alone one who would teach him a trade to survive. He had never told anyone about this. How could this person possibly know? Jia Fatty’s face was a mask of utter disbelief.

"Hehehe." Wu Tian gave a profound, enigmatic smile before sighing. "Although the old woman taught you a trade to make a living, it’s not enough. You aren’t suited for this craft. Doing a job you dislike is draining your spirit. Every day, you earn less than the last. If this continues, you might very well starve to death after all."

Wu Tian’s words struck Jia Fatty like a bolt of lightning. He hurriedly bowed low. "Sir, you... you are absolutely right! But... but do you have a solution to my problem?"

For Jia Fatty, just surviving was incredibly difficult. With no family or friends, he had to rely solely on himself to earn enough to live. It was so hard! The shop’s business was declining day by day, and he no longer knew what to do.

"Of course, I have a way. It’s just..." Wu Tian paused deliberately.

"Just what? Please, sir, speak freely! As long as you... as long as you can tell me how to solve my problems, I... I will give you the nine-headed lion ink for free!" Jia Fatty fell to his knees, his face a picture of desperation.

He was now completely convinced that Wu Tian was an enlightened master. For a merchant like Jia Fatty, the most important things in life were to survive and make a great fortune. Everything else was secondary.

"The solution is actually very simple. First, acknowledge me as your master and address me as Sect Leader from now on."

"I must also warn you in advance: once you become a member of my Heavenless Gate, any future rebellion is punishable by death," Wu Tian stated. He noted that while Jia Fatty was suited to be a merchant, his true calling wasn’t selling ink—it was selling weapons.

"Yes, I... I am willing," Jia Fatty agreed without a second thought.

As long as Wu Tian could give him the confidence to keep living, pledging loyalty was no problem at all.

"Good. In that case, I bestow upon you a Supreme Treasure: the Jia Bujia Weapon Shop."

With a flick of his finger, Wu Tian transformed the entire store.

Suddenly, it was no longer an ink shop but a weapon emporium. The interior was now filled with fascinating armaments, mostly swords, but other strange and wondrous items as well. This Jia Bujia Weapon Shop was an artifact from the world of the Heavenly Scar. In that world, an army of gods and cultivators had once assaulted the Immortal Emperor Realm, and the original owner of the Jia Bujia shop had been among them.

"These are..." Jia Fatty’s eyes lit up as he gazed upon the weapons.

He fell in love with the place at first sight. To do business that you love... no matter how tiring the work, your heart would feel fulfilled.

"Thank you, Sect Leader! From now on, I will serve you with utmost devotion until my dying day!" Jia Fatty exclaimed, his eyes gleaming with excitement as he immediately kowtowed to Wu Tian.

From his very first glance, he felt a deep connection to this weapon shop. Each weapon, to a greater or lesser degree, was imbued with Spiritual Energy. A shop like this couldn’t possibly fail to prosper.

Meanwhile, Wu Tian took the nine-headed lion ink, now free of charge.

Seeing her dad have all the fun showing off, the little one in his arms grew a bit pouty. She decided to show off a little herself. "My dad and I said from the start that you would give us the ink for free, didn’t we? Tell us, were we right or not?"

Jia Bujia was taken aback. I don’t remember the child saying anything.

But as a savvy merchant, he knew better than to point that out. He just nodded eagerly. "Yes, yes, of course! The Sect Leader and the little Sect Leader have divine foresight! This humble one is thoroughly impressed."

"Hmm." The little one nodded, satisfied.

At that moment, the street outside suddenly erupted into a noisy commotion, as if something major had happened.