Chapter Six: Rekindling the Summoning and Restoring Balance

After Gao Shun finished speaking, Li Xiang frowned. His lack of experience meant he had failed to consider many of the intricacies that a renowned general of the age like Gao Shun would have foreseen.

After a moment of contemplation, Li Xiang said, "Let us do this: recruit as many soldiers as you can for now. I will go to the Inspector and the Assistant Governor later to request permission to draw from other garrisons, and then we shall recruit the remainder from among the common people to fully flesh out the ranks of the Trapping Battalion. As for the supplies and military provisions, I will find a way to secure them for you, brother. You need only focus your full efforts on training the troops."

When Gao Shun did not respond for a long while, Li Xiang looked up to see him suddenly kneel. "I, Gao Shun, shall train a peerless force for you, my lord—a legion that knows only victory, worthy of the name 'Trapping Battalion' that you have bestowed upon them. Should you ever have need of me in the future, I shall gladly walk through fire and water, and face death without hesitation." Before Li Xiang could reply, Gao Shun took his leave to begin the work of forming the battalion.

"Ding! Congratulations to the host for obtaining 9 summoning points. Current balance: 127 points."

A long time later, Li Xiang snapped out of his reverie, his heart brimming with joy. Although Gao Shun had not yet officially sworn fealty, he was all but his. He had not expected that even before he had fully consolidated his previous summons, he would be on the verge of claiming one of the great generals of the Three Kingdoms era.

However, his joy was quickly tempered by worry. The issue of manpower was manageable—a request to his father would likely suffice. But supplies and logistics were a different matter. While his father could provide some support, it would not be enough. Li Xiang possessed a small private treasury with a fair amount of gold and silver, but he doubted it would last long. Money, money—he had worried about money before his rebirth, and he had not expected to be plagued by the same concerns afterward.

Li Xiang forced himself to calm down and hit upon two potential solutions. First, Bing Province was rife with mountain bandits. While many were in league with powerful local families, as long as he did not overstep, his status as the eldest son of the Li family would provide sufficient cover. By leading his troops to suppress these bandits, he could solve his funding problems while simultaneously training his soldiers—a case of killing two birds with one stone.

Yet, this was ultimately unsustainable; the bandits would eventually be wiped out. He needed a more permanent source of income. As a college-educated elite in his past life, while he knew nothing of manufacturing firearms or cannons, he was well-versed in simple commercial principles, as well as the production methods for refined sugar, spirits, and various daily necessities. With a talented merchant to manage operations and the backing of the Li family, he could quickly accumulate significant capital and lay the groundwork for when the world inevitably fell into chaos. Thinking of a merchant talent, Li Xiang realized he had 127 summoning points and could perform another summon.

"System, I recall that I can perform a special summon. Surely a commercial talent counts as that, right?"

"Ding! Host, you may conduct a special commercial summon. Shall I begin?"

"System, since it's possible, let's begin."

"Ding! Summoning initiated. Special summons display only four-dimensional attributes. Due to the scarcity of these specialized talents, only three candidates will be shown. You cannot delete them; you must choose one. Please take note."

"First candidate: Shen Wansan, Commercial Ability 100."

Excellent. Zhu Yuanzhang had started with nothing but a begging bowl and went on to establish the Ming Dynasty; his success was surely due in no small part to the financial backing of Shen Wansan, alongside his civil and military officials. It was a pity that while his investment succeeded, he himself failed. After Zhu Yuanzhang ascended the throne, he discarded his supporters like worn-out shoes, and Shen Wansan’s end had been tragic indeed.

"Second candidate: Hu Xueyan, Commercial Ability 98."

The 'Red-Topped Merchant' Hu Xueyan was also an excellent choice, his talents likely no less than those of Shen Wansan.

"Third candidate: Fan Li, Commercial Ability 100."

Upon hearing this name, Li Xiang felt as if he might explode. Fan Li, the Saint of Commerce, was not only one of the progenitors of business but his strategic and military acumen were legendary throughout history. His stats from the previous summon had already made that clear.

"System, let's make a deal. Just give me Fan Li directly."

"Ding! Host, the system cannot interfere with the results of a summon. Please understand. Commencing the summon now. Congratulations to the host for obtaining Shen Wansan. He has been implanted with the identity of a refugee you saved years ago and will arrive by tomorrow."

Forget it, Shen Wansan it is. Li Xiang sighed and let it go. If he had actually summoned Fan Li, he might not have had the heart to force such a great talent, capable of strategizing for the entire world, to focus solely on commerce. If he had done so, Fan Li would likely have been resentful. Summoning Shen Wansan saved him the dilemma.

"Ding! Please note: you have now summoned five times. The novice hidden bonuses are canceled, and the probability of lower-tier attributes appearing in future summons has increased."

Li Xiang felt nothing regarding this, as he had long expected it. Moreover, from Xiong Kuohai, Meng Tian, and Xing Tian to Wang Meng and Shen Wansan, he had elite warriors, commanders, and strategists—all among the best in the world. With Shen Wansan to handle his finances, he had a dream start. Which warlord of the Three Kingdoms could compare to this? But, as they say, extreme joy often gives way to sorrow.

"Ding! You have summoned five times. The Balancing System has been activated."

"System, what is this Balancing System?" Li Xiang quickly queried the voice in his mind.

"Ding! Every five summons, the system triggers a balance. The quality of the balanced characters is related to the characters you have already summoned. These characters are given randomized identities, and there is a small chance they will pledge loyalty to you. Furthermore, summoning god-tier characters also triggers a balance. Because Xing Tian was part of the novice gift pack, he does not trigger a balance and does not affect the quality of this event. Additionally, to compensate you, the system grants you one random summoning card for every balance triggered."

Li Xiang was furious. "System, do you hate to see me succeed? I finally get a great start, and now you’re going to make things difficult for me."

"Ding! Please note that the Balancing System exists only to increase the difficulty of unifying the world. Surely you do not wish to use the system to simply steamroll through everything?"

"Fine, System, you have a point. The prospect of crossing swords with legendary figures is not entirely unappealing. Very well, let the balancing begin."

"Ding! Balancing initiated. First candidate..."