Chapter 14: Remember to Pay Back the Money

Dahe Market is located at the very edge of the Yuding Domain, adjacent to the million mountains of the Eastern Wasteland.

According to statistics from a Foundation Establishment stage cultivator who wrote a travelogue a few years ago, because it sits on a first-tier spiritual vein, tens of thousands of cultivators mingle here year-round.

The population is primarily composed of rogue cultivators; members of large sects do not stay for long, and only remain here to attend to business.

Moreover, this is cyclical; the management staff of the shops in the inner city changes every few years.

Therefore, the market as a whole is dominated by the spontaneous activities of rogue cultivators.

For instance, the rogue cultivator bazaar is divided into "big markets" and "small markets."

The big market happens once a month, while the small market takes place every fourth, seventh, and first day of the lunar cycle.

Of course, even when it isn't market day, there are still cultivators setting up street stalls, but the foot traffic is not nearly as high.

Ten days had passed since the last small market.

A chubby figure rushed into the market early in the morning.

Zeng Wen was in luck; he hadn't spent many days in the mountains this time before hunting a first-tier demonic beast, obtaining over a thousand catties of beast meat!

His storage bag was small, only one cubic foot in volume, so it was barely enough to hold it all.

Thus, once his harvest was sufficient, he knew when to quit and retreated from the mountains.

Ten catties of first-tier demonic beast meat could be sold for one low-grade spirit stone, and the beast's bones were also a type of spiritual material. Therefore, this harvest was just about decent enough to let him live it up for a while.

After returning home yesterday and finding a familiar butcher to process the meat, he couldn't wait to run to the Tianxiang Pavilion to enjoy himself.

As for the process, it was a bit hard to describe.

The beauty was excellent, and his performance was as stable and efficient as ever.

But compared to the majesty of "taking on ten" last time, it paled in comparison.

Therefore, early in the morning, he used his immense willpower to tear himself away from the "hero's grave," all to do some business with the little brother he had hit it off with last time.

When he arrived at the South City Market, there were already a few people setting up stalls. Old Daoist Chen, who sold talismans, was sitting calmly on a small stool.

"Has little Brother Luo not come yet?"

"Not yet. Probably refining pills at home!"

"Will he still come to set up his stall today?"

"Usually, if he hasn't come by this time, he won't be coming to the small market today."

Disappointment was written all over his face.

Zeng Wen was quite let down, and he chatted idly with Old Daoist Chen about his experiences in the mountains.

Seeing a customer approach, he prepared to take his leave.

However, before leaving, he saw Old Daoist Chen cautiously pulling back a dissatisfied customer.

"Fellow Daoist, are you interested in learning about the God-Concealing Breath-Restraining Talisman?"

"What's that? Is it for concealing one's aura?"

"You know Master Lingyin of the God Talisman Sect, right? Let me tell you..."

Zeng Wen's expression was a bit strange; he always felt that those words sounded familiar.

After walking far away from the market, he suddenly realized.

Wasn't that just a replica of what little Brother Luo had said back then?

"Damn, the old man has learned to be devious!"

He didn't think Luo Chen had cheated him, because when Luo Chen was pushing the Zhongmiao Pills on him, he never used definitive words, only ambiguous ones.

Moreover, the efficacy of the Zhongmiao Pills was exactly as Luo Chen had described.

He could only conclude that Old Daoist Chen had plagiarized Luo Chen's sales pitch.

As the victim, Luo Chen was currently huddled at home, wearing an apron and praying to Guan Gong.

"The first few batches failed, and I've used up most of my padding; I should be able to produce something today!"

"Lord Guan, I've offered incense to you today, you must bless me!"

Muttering to himself, he continuously added medicinal herbs into the pot.

The processed Fire Dog Whip emitted a natural stench, and under the fusion of various spiritual medicinal materials, it gave off an indescribably strange odor.

The process of boiling the medicine lasted from morning until afternoon.

After lifting the lid and seeing the deep red ointment, smelling the refreshing fragrance, Luo Chen clenched his fist tightly.

"Not bad, the sixth batch succeeded this time; this is a huge improvement!"

"Lord Guan, I knew you had me in your heart, even after I transmigrated, you're still blessing me."

"Keep up the good work tomorrow!"

Half a month later, Luo Chen looked contentedly at the fifty small jade bottles on the table.

This was the result of nearly a month of hard work.

Thirty of the bottles contained Bigu Pills, which he had rushed to make over the last two days.

The remaining twenty bottles were all Zhongmiao Pills.

But unlike the Bigu Pills, which had ten per bottle, the Zhongmiao Pills were one per bottle.

In other words, the refining of the Zhongmiao Pills had only succeeded twice this time.

Nineteen sets of materials resulted in two batches; this success rate was truly not high, and in terms of pill quality, they were only low-grade.

Low-grade pills had strong limitations; their medicinal properties were average, and taking too many had strong side effects.

However, that was not something he needed to worry about. He believed that his fellow Daoists all had strong self-control—enjoy to your heart's content, but do not be greedy.

"This is all I can do for now, but as long as I grind up my proficiency, the situation will definitely improve!"

"The future is bright, Chenchen, keep it up!"

Packing all the jade bottles into a bag, Luo Chen closed the door and rushed into the inner city of Dahe Market like a gust of wind.

Today was the day of the big market; this batch of goods had to be sold well.

When he arrived at the market, it was still sparsely populated; Luo Chen had come too early.

Old Daoist Chen hadn't arrived yet, but his old acquaintance Wang Yuan was already sitting cross-legged on the floor.

"Young man, you don't cherish your body at all; the ground is so cold!"

Muttering to himself, Luo Chen greeted Wang Yuan and naturally squatted down in front of his stall.

"Oh? You've got more things again!"

Compared to last time, there were several more old books, and even a tattered jade slip.

As for magical artifacts, there were four or five more, some of which were still stained with blackened blood.

"Brother Wang, you've pulled off a few big jobs recently!"

Wang Yuan drooped his eyelids. "Look all you want, but don't touch."

Luo Chen looked greedily at the old books: "Five Must-Know Spells for the Qi Refining Stage," "Miscellaneous Talks on Hundred Herbs," "Changchun Gong Qi Refining Chapter"...

They were all things he wanted, but unfortunately, he had no spirit stones!

If Wang Yuan sold all these things, plus those magical artifacts, who knows how much he would make.

As far as he knew, a low-grade magical artifact started at at least one hundred low-grade spirit stones; middle-grade and high-grade ones were even more outrageously expensive.

Killing people and seizing treasures—it truly was the fastest way to make money in the cultivation world.

Unfortunately, he wasn't good at that kind of thing at all; he was just a dutiful little cultivator who liked refining pills.

Sighing, he picked up the "Record of Customs in the Six Domains" that hadn't been sold yet, and Luo Chen began to read it with great interest.

In the Far East Six Domains, each has six major sects that have produced Nascent Soul True Immortals, such as the Yuding Sword Sect, the Hehuan Sect, the God Talisman Sect, and the Medicine King Sect.

However, besides these sects, there are many small sects and cultivation families within each major domain.

The vast territory and abundant resources have given birth to countless brilliant and talented figures.

Often, in every period, strong individuals will rise.

In the process of their rise, there is naturally no lack of strange tales.

The author of this "Record of Customs in the Six Domains" was a ninth-layer Qi Refining cultivator who, having no hope of Foundation Establishment, spent the rest of his life writing this book.

Limited by his realm and knowledge, many things in it were hearsay.

But that didn't stop Luo Chen from catching a glimpse of the tip of the iceberg of the cultivation world through this book.

Just those little corners were enough to make his heart sway and fill him with longing.

"True Immortal Yuding swept across the mountains and rivers with a single sword, stabilizing the domain; such style is truly magnificent!"

After sighing with emotion, Luo Chen reluctantly put down the book; it was time to set up his stall.

"If you like reading it, take it. This travelogue has too many errors; it hasn't sold for months."

Wang Yuan said indifferently, lifting a finger, and the book floated into Luo Chen's hand.

Luo Chen was surprised, and then overjoyed.

"Thank you, Brother Wang. I'll return it when I'm done."

Taking the book back to his bluestone stall, Old Daoist Chen couldn't wait to lean over.

Seeing that old face, Luo Chen smiled slightly. "Do you want to tell me how good business has been lately?"

"No, I want to tell you, remember to pay back the money!"

"Uh!"

Luo Chen was hit hard; he had just thought there were many good people in the cultivation world.

However, after he laid out his pills, Old Daoist Chen did tell him some good news.

"A lot of fellow Daoists have been asking about your Zhongmiao Pills lately. You're about to strike it rich, kid!"