Chapter 526

Wang Yan asked.

“Who would it be?”

Jin Ja-gang didn’t need to answer.

The answer was already decided.

If a world came where money was the highest priority value, it was clear that those who professionally handled money would be in the most advantageous position.

Those who knew market prices well, were familiar with calculations, and skilled at transactions.

Precisely the merchants skilled in financial management.

Wang Yan said.

“Buying one straw sandal or one measure of salt as cheaply as possible and selling it expensively with as much profit as possible is not work for someone like me. No matter how much money one earns doing that, people disparage them as a peddler or merchant, merely jealous of their money, but don’t give them the treatment of a gentleman.”

Wang Yan made an expression as if asking isn’t that unfair.

“But if a world comes where money is the highest priority value, everything will change. People will work desperately to earn money, and those who earn money well will be the envy of others. People will flock to those with money-making skills, and those with the most money will receive respect rather than jealousy and be counted as models of success.”

Wang Yan’s words continued.

“However, all of this is only possible if the standard of our lives becomes money. So how should we do that? Do you think you can create a world where money’s value is supreme simply by paying lots of money as compensation? Absolutely not!”

Wang Yan took out various receipts and coins from his sleeve and scattered them.

Receipts flew around and coins rolled about.

“Money is a means of exchange. It’s a promise. No matter how much money I have, if there’s nowhere to spend it, it’s just scraps of paper, pieces of metal.”

Wang Yan held up a coin.

“Even if you go to the most remote mountain valleys, you must be able to spend this money. Even if just one person meets another person anywhere at any time, they must be able to exchange and buy anything with this money. Only then does the value money possesses increase.”

“The value of money…”

It was different from prices and market rates. It was the value of money itself.

“So I opened roads for money throughout the Central Plains, everywhere. I sent peddlers, paved roads so carts could travel. I did my best to send goods even to any remote mountain valley, even to fishing villages with fewer than five self-sufficient households, so money could be used there. I led the merchant world’s investment to build the maximum distribution network while accepting many losses.”

Distribution network.

The merchant world’s distribution network.

Roads where goods, money, and information could come and go.

The merchant world’s distribution network that had developed enough for the An Family Medical Clinic and other sects to use. However, the moment they used those roads, all information was already being exposed.

Because this affair was not orchestrated by one merchant group or individual, but the entire merchant world conspiring together.

Moreover, Jin Ja-gang realized what else had traveled through the distribution network.

“Ah.”

The reason why disaster reached even the Hundred Flowers Valley, which had lived leisurely deep in layer upon layer of mountains, at the end of winding mountain paths, with numerous formations spread out.

“You spread poison.”

“Poison?”

“Through the roads you opened, poison spread everywhere. The poison called greed.”

It wasn’t just goods that entered through the distribution network pioneered in every corner. Inevitably, greed began to spread along with them.

The Extreme Poison Sect was also one of those intoxicated by greed. They tried to subjugate the Hundred Flowers Valley to expand their size, for profit.

The self-deprecating words left by Gang Gyu, sect leader of the Iron Mountain Sect, as he died echoed in Jin Ja-gang’s ears.

“We too… had no choice…”

Did he already know that he was swept up in jianghu’s currents and couldn’t escape the general trend by his own power?

Wang Yan said.

“Greed is human nature. And money is merely wealth that embodies greed. It was unavoidable.”

“How is that unavoidable?”

Anger gradually settled into Jin Ja-gang’s voice.

“As you said, those who had been self-sufficient from the start don’t need money. To them, money is nothing but lumps of metal. So how did you make them need money? There’s only one way to make them need money.”

Jin Ja-gang pointed out the crux.

“Deprivation.”

Wang Yan stared intently at Jin Ja-gang.

Jin Ja-gang spat out words as if chewing them.

“You forcibly deprived those who didn’t need money. So you made unnecessary money necessary. That’s how you spread poison step by step. Isn’t that right?”

“Mountain villages have many wild beasts, so they need quality bows and arrowheads. To skin leather, they need whetstones to sharpen knives, and to store meat, they need salt. All things difficult to obtain in the mountains!”

Wang Yan’s voice rose.

“With a good bow, you can catch two animals in the time it takes to catch one, and with a good whetstone, you can cleanly process leather. With salt, you can store meat without rotting for a long time and eat meat all year round. Making an inconvenient life abundant. We don’t call that deprivation, we call it fulfillment.”

“No.”

Jin Ja-gang firmly cut off Wang Yan’s words.

“Your words contain inconsistencies. Instead of catching one deer and being done, to buy a bow and arrowheads, you must catch two and exchange one. To exchange for a whetstone, you must catch three instead of two, and to exchange for salt, you must catch four instead of three. Even in winter when deer are hard to catch, to make transactions, you must catch five instead of four and exchange them for money in advance.”

Jin Ja-gang continued speaking.

“Though it’s become more abundant than the deprived times, you must catch more deer to earn money and go hunting more often. If that repeats, you’ll come to have greed not for the value exchangeable for money, but for money itself. Is that the ideal life you desired?”

“Did you forget what I said just now? Movement costs money. The same goes for life’s conveniences. To use things produced by others’ labor, you must pay the corresponding price. Who forced them to become poor or more abundant? Money has no emotions. Greed comes from people, not from money.”

“If money has no emotions, why are you talking about money? It’s not money, it’s what you did. Didn’t you spread greed even to mountain villages and fishing villages, substituting greed with money and cleverly making them pursue money?”

Wang Yan clasped his hands behind his back.

Then he snorted and asked back.

“Fine. Let’s say that’s all true. Let’s say that thing about greed. So… what exactly did I do wrong? All I did was expand the distribution network and work to improve merchants’ treatment.”

Wang Yan spread his arms to show.

“Martial artists swing their swords daily to become strong. Strong martial artists receive the adulation and even respect of their juniors. I’m a merchant. Is it wrong to want to create a world where merchants who earn lots of money are respected? Are you martial artists okay but we’re different?”

A light of disgust and anger arose in Wang Yan’s eyes.

“If we’re not born different, why should merchants and martial artists receive different treatment!”

Wang Yan put force in his eyes and frowned, urging an answer.

“Come now, tell me quickly. What exactly did I do wrong?”

“Do you think I’m a fool? You were the architect of all these plans. You presented a vision of the future and structured the overall framework. Though it was the great merchants who actually moved, wasn’t it because you persuaded them? And now you insist you did nothing.”

Jin Ja-gang continued.

“There was one thing I’ve been curious about until now. Occasionally, your plans that seemed so meticulous failed pathetically.”

Especially the recent rebellions in each sect. They incited rebellions that clearly wouldn’t succeed, and failed. Why did they encourage rebellions that would fail?

That greatly perplexed Jin Ja-gang. It was also a reason that made it difficult to approach the Hungry Ghost King’s true identity.

“But now I understand. The reason you weren’t fixated on failure.”

“Let me hear it.”

“You said it. That you wanted to create a world where all actions and value judgments are based on money. When chaos arises, people judge and move according to the standards they believe in.”

“That would be so.”

Jin Ja-gang looked into Wang Yan’s eyes and said.

“You spent a long time carefully doing groundwork and changed jianghu’s perception. You corrupted from the roots the flow of jianghu that prioritized chivalry and righteousness first, making them prioritize profit. Then you caused chaos in jianghu.”

That was why it didn’t matter if it failed.

They didn’t need to plot complex conspiracies. The seeds of greed had already sprouted and spread throughout jianghu.

So the merchant world incited martial artists to rebel. They didn’t need to succeed. Just causing chaos was enough.

Jianghu, already corrupted from the roots, became intoxicated and rotten on its own just by being made chaotic.

The affairs of jianghu that unfolded with incomparable complexity were, in one aspect, also results jianghu had brought upon itself.

Wang Yan nodded.

“Very plausible. Plausible.”

Wang Yan looked straight at Jin Ja-gang. Then he smiled with a fierce expression and said.

“And amazingly, most of what you said is correct?”

Eeheeheehee! Eeheeheeheehee!

An auditory hallucination.

It was as if he heard demonic laughter resembling Tang Qing’s laugh.

Jin Ja-gang squeezed his eyes shut.

Taoist Haewol had said that all the events that occurred were related to profit.

“If there’s someone gaining profit, they’re the ones behind it.”

However, even Taoist Haewol couldn’t find who was behind it because he didn’t know what kind of profit that profit was. Because he didn’t notice the malicious greed behind the profit.

Because even Taoist Haewol had already become so corrupted that he could only think of profit as money…

Jin Ja-gang bit his lips tightly.

Now, he understood everything.

He uncovered the reasons hidden behind the incidents.

Why the Hundred Flowers Valley suddenly suffered misfortune and was destroyed.

Why chivalry and righteousness disappeared from jianghu and it became a world where profit came first.

Because the seeds of greed Wang Yan planted from the start had spread throughout jianghu…

There was the Poison Sect that absorbed medicine sects and tried to advance into the Central Plains.

There was Baek Li-jung who tried to use that Poison Sect.

There were sects that cooperated with Baek Li-jung to gain profit.

And there was the merchant world that tried to use those sects.

All of this was the reason for the bloodshed that had occurred until now.

A great disaster created by each other’s greed to gain even a little profit…

Jin Ja-gang muttered quietly.

“I didn’t know the sense of dissonance I felt since coming to jianghu and meeting Lady Zhuge would end like this.”

“Tens of years, hundreds of years. No, since humans have existed in the world, everyone has waged war, killed, and stolen for profit. What you felt isn’t particularly new.”

“Hungry Ghost King. The poison called greed that you use and the poison I use are not different from each other. Just as one drop of poison dropped in a pond spreads throughout the entire pond and intoxicates all the carp living there, the poison called greed you spread has intoxicated people.”

Jin Ja-gang raised his arm.

“Fundamentally, I sympathize with your intentions. I also agree that you must pay a price for abundance. I understand that people spend their own time to earn money for convenience. However.”

Along with killing intent, one strand of Asura Scripture slowly rose into the air.

“Greed must not come before humanity. You mustn’t create a world where people kill others to live well themselves, to gain profit.”

The remaining Asura Scriptures fluttered and shot up upside down.

“Supremacy of the strong. Survival of the fittest. Only those with power survive. If all of murim thought and acted that way, I wouldn’t have survived in the first place.”

Grandfather Son Wi-hak who sacrificed himself for Jin Ja-gang.

Vice Sect Leader Yong Myeong of the Medicine King Sect.

Taoist Haewol…

Jin Ja-gang clenched his teeth tight.

“But because there was minimal chivalry and righteousness even in this world, I could come to this place today.”

The Asura Scripture Jin Ja-gang released turned direction and faced forward. The tip of the Asura Scripture shook threateningly.

“So, now it’s the end. Your journey and my journey both.”