In this desolate environment, she instinctively reached for her storage bag. Suddenly, she realized something and quickly got up to glance around before silently drawing the curtains.

After doing all this, she pulled out a brand-new novel from the bag, swallowing hard as she did:

"I’m almost done. Once I finish, I can seal these books away."

...

After the little incident with Princess Dongzhou, Bai Feng's life seemed to have finally settled into a calm routine.

The imaging device was being produced in an orderly manner, and its quality was perfect, with advertisements starting to roll out.

Meanwhile, within the sect, Zuo Qiu was still confined to her small room, waiting for the investigation results. Bai Yu Mo and the other children of fortune, after enduring a tough battle, had also begun to diligently cultivate.

Even Princess Dongzhou, Shui Miao Miao, was working hard on her training and swordplay.

"It's so peaceful lately! No children of fortune causing trouble—what a difference from before!"

Bai Feng savored a cup of tea, setting it down with a sigh. This was the life he had always yearned for!

"Little junior brother, I’m here to see you!"

At that moment, his door was flung open, and a petite figure rushed in.

She glanced at Bai Feng, who was smiling, and noticing he didn’t tease her as usual, she felt a bit out of sorts. "You’re in a good mood!"

"Of course! Nothing major has happened recently, and I can finally enjoy a peaceful life," Bai Feng replied, popping a sweet treat into his mouth. "Senior sister, what brings you here?"

"The imaging device is being released today, so I came to let you know," Yu Yao said, unabashedly grabbing a piece of pastry and mumbling as she chewed, "Also, among the new hires, there’s one with great talent, and I’m thinking about how to keep him."

Bai Feng merely glanced at Yu Yao’s sneaky little hand, not angry at all. Instead, he pushed the pastries closer to her. "That’s simple. Just sign him a new contract with a higher salary and keep him at Yu Linglong as your formation master."

"I did that, but the others told me that compared to spirit stones, he’d rather have you mentor him."

Yu Yao kept stuffing her face with snacks, clearly a bit frustrated.

"Seems like he’s a pretty pure-hearted person. Don’t bother trying to keep him; you won’t succeed," Bai Feng shook his head. Such people couldn’t be swayed by a few spirit stones.

"Sigh..." Yu Yao sighed, then looked at Bai Feng, her eyes suddenly sparkling. "Little junior brother~~"

Bai Feng was startled by her sweet voice, breaking out in goosebumps. "Stop! Talk normally!"

Yu Yao cleared her throat, her expression filled with anticipation. "Ahem, how about you take him as a registered disciple? His talent is really impressive! You have to trust my judgment!"

"Not interested," Bai Feng shook his head, having no desire to take on disciples. "Besides, I can’t just take in every talented employee, can I?"

"Yeah, you’re right..." Yu Yao sighed again. "Sorry, I misspoke. I’ll think of another way."

Seeing Yu Yao’s disappointed expression, Bai Feng felt like she was putting on an act.

Well, she had helped him so much, and her suggestion had sparked a new idea in him.

"Actually, it’s not entirely hopeless," Bai Feng said, lifting his teacup for a sip.

Yu Yao immediately perked up, lunging toward him. "Little junior brother, I knew you’d have a solution!"

"Taking him as a registered disciple won’t work, but..." Bai Feng pushed Yu Yao’s head away gently, "I can be his teacher."

Yu Yao looked puzzled. "Teacher?"

"It means I’ll teach him the basics, but I won’t train him like a disciple," Bai Feng explained briefly. "Besides, if he encounters difficulties, he can write to me for help, but he can only ask once every six months."

After thinking for a few seconds, Yu Yao nodded. "That sounds feasible. With your reputation, you should be able to attract quite a few people."

Though Bai Feng’s terms seemed stingy, they were already quite generous for a low-level formation master. After all, not everyone had the luck to have a master in formation arts.

"That’s just the minimum," Bai Feng shook his head. "If he wants to learn more advanced knowledge, he’ll need to join the research team."

Yu Yao tilted her head. "Research team?"

---

Chapter 138: Little Junior Brother, You’re So Bad!

"Similar to assistants," Bai Feng explained. "After all, I have limited energy. If I have more products to sell in the future, I can’t manage everything myself, so I’ll need a few helpers for ongoing research and improvements."

A qualified product must continuously evolve based on market feedback, but he probably wouldn’t have the energy to maintain all of that, so he needed a research team dedicated to development.

In fact, if one day he suddenly became too busy, he could let the research team continue the work.

If this model could be established, he could truly sit back and earn money.

Yu Yao nodded thoughtfully, but soon she noticed a problem. "But if that’s the case, it’s not just about teaching a bit of basic formation knowledge. What if our hard-trained employees get poached by competitors?"

"That is indeed a concern, so..." Bai Feng turned to Yu Yao, his expression serious, "this research team must be independent from Yu Linglong, or at least not solely comprised of Yu Linglong members."

"You mean..." Yu Yao paused, quickly grasping Bai Feng’s intent. "You want to involve Tianjian Sect as well?"

Bai Feng nodded. "Exactly. After all, just relying on Yu Linglong, even with the Bai family, isn’t enough. I want to have this research team affiliated with Tianjian Sect."

"Little junior brother, your courage is as great as ever!" Yu Yao felt a bit tempted, but then her expression turned worried. "But will the sect leader agree?"

"I don’t know, but it’s worth a try," Bai Feng shook his head. "This would benefit Tianjian Sect as well. They need to make money too; for instance, the Pill Peak is one of their important sources of income. Moreover, if the products can be widely distributed, it would serve as a massive promotion for Tianjian Sect, increasing its standing in the hearts of people in the Northern Region. In the future, talented disciples, especially those skilled in formations, would be more inclined to join Tianjian Sect."

Of course, that was the best-case scenario; right now, it was still just a thought!

"But there’s no rush on this. We only have one talented employee for now, and he might not even join," Bai Feng waved his hand. "Even if we want to establish a research team, it’ll probably take a long time."

Yu Yao nodded. "True, I’ll keep the talented employee engaged for now."

"Yeah, you can hint at the research team to him, dangle the carrot a bit."

"Little junior brother, you’re so bad!"

After solving the problem, Yu Yao grabbed a handful of snacks and sat down next to Bai Feng, dreaming about the future. "If this works out, little junior brother, you’ll have your own employees, and we can join forces to break out of the Northern Region."

"What are you talking about?" Bai Feng shot her a glance. "This research team is a commercial venture, so of course, it’ll be managed by someone who understands customer needs—like you."

"Me?" Yu Yao was taken aback, pointing at herself, her words stumbling. "Little... little junior brother, do you trust me too much?"

This was nothing like the few formation plates from before! Such an important position was just handed over to her?

Not only providing products, helping train employees, and offering substantial funding, but now also helping her build a research team—what had she done to deserve this?

"I’ve said it before, I trust your character, and I’m not completely hands-off," Bai Feng waved his hand with a smile. "Besides, this time Tianjian Sect is involved. Even if you suddenly turn greedy and want to trick me, would you dare to trick Tianjian Sect?"

Of course, the main reason was that he didn’t want to manage any teams. Just thinking about it was a hassle; he just wanted to relax and reap the rewards.

"But... this kind of thing is really..." Yu Yao mumbled softly, then she looked up, her expression serious. "Little junior brother, I think we should strengthen our relationship."

Bai Feng glanced at Yu Yao, knowing what she was about to say even without asking. So before she could speak, he directly countered, "Oh? You want to swear brotherhood with me?"

Yu Yao’s expression immediately fell. "Little junior brother, you’re not cute anymore!"