Test Prep Materials Were the Real Everlasting Moneymakers

Lu Ping looked at A and was indeed tempted.

He wasn't uninterested in the cultivation effects of Middle-Grade Spirit Root.

But this thing uses Child Mother Gu, planting Gu is like inviting a god.

The saying goes, "It's easy to invite a god, but difficult to send him away."

[You chose B.]

[Please hand the flyer back.]

The waitress did not answer.

"Fellow Daoist, you can consult first."

[You spoke.]

"I Low-Grade Spirit Root."

The waitress's eyes lit up even more.

She shoved the flyer almost half an inch deeper into your hand.

"Then we should rent it even more."

"Our institution has developed a special installment payment plan for cultivators with Low-Grade Spirit Roots."

[You shake your head and leave.]

[Another boy's urgent voice came from behind.]

"Can I rent it for half a day?"

The waitress immediately went to greet her.

Installment payments are available.

The boy then asked, "Is this safe?"

[The waitress scoffed.]

"Cultivating immortality is a battle against the heavens. You may not want to rent it, but others will."

You didn't turn around.

[This city is just like Greenwood Sect; it doesn't care about poverty, it has ways to make the poor owe money first.]

[Further ahead, you'll see a stall offering trial versions of Body-Tempering Pills.]

[The stall owner shouted at the top of his lungs.]

["Preliminary version of Body-Tempering Pill, free trial for those below Foundation Establishment!"]

[Limited to 20 spots today!]

"You are responsible for your own life and death; we will not compensate you if anything happens!"

A young man at the Body Tempering Realm stood in front of the stall.

The woman beside him was clinging tightly to his arm.

[The boy, however, stared intently at the elixir bottle.]

"Can eating this help one enter the Qi Refining?"

The stall owner pushed the jade contract forward.

"There is a chance."

"If you don't eat it, you won't have a chance at all."

The woman was so anxious she almost knelt down.

"We're not going to try."

The boy shook her hand off.

"Mother, other people's children have Spirit Stones and Pills. But I have nothing."

"I don't want to spend my whole life moving goods for others."

Upon hearing the boy's words, the woman trembled and could no longer utter a word.

The stall owner immediately shoved the pen into his hand.

[You stand outside the crowd and see the last line of the contract.]

[The participant is solely responsible for any injuries, loss of control, or body explosions that occur during the trial period.]

[You recall Si Wangshu testing the Spirit-Urging Pill at the Greenwood Sect back then.]

[At that time, I also felt she was cold.]

[Now, in Qingyang City, Si Wangshu could be considered quite mild-mannered.]

[After the young man finished taking the Pills, the attendant next to him immediately took out a pen to record it.]

"Number thirty-seven, muscle spasms after three breaths."

"Number 37, nosebleed after seven breaths."

You did not stay.

[After walking a dozen or so steps, a muffled thud came from behind.]

"Number 37, thirty breaths, exploded and died."

[The crowd dispersed.]

The woman's cries were silenced by a single sentence from the stall owner.

"The jade contract has been signed."

"One is responsible for one's own life and death."

You paused for a moment, then continued forward.

[You can't save someone from this kind of situation, and you can't just randomly save someone on the streets of Qingyang City.]

The cultivation technology in this world is truly advanced.

[People are constantly improving Pills; even Spirit Roots can be rented.]

[But you always feel that the cultivation technology tree in this world is a bit off.]

[You continue to the Azure Dragon Merchant Association Branch.]

[The Azure Dragon Merchant Association Branch in Qingyang City occupies half of the street.]

[Pills Futures]

[Rental of Law Artifact]

[Secret Realm Insurance.]

[Wholesale of Spirit Blank.]

[Debt restructuring.]

[Monk Hiring.]

[There's also a black plaque with gold lettering at the very back.]

[Property trusteeship.]

You stood before the plaque, silent for three breaths.

[Cultivation capitalism has extended its services even to the afterlife.]

[You enter the lobby and retrieve the Azure Dragon Merchant Association VIP Level 1 token.]

[The female cultivator behind the counter took the token, verified it, and immediately stepped aside.]

"Distinguished guest, please proceed to the Elegant Chamber on the second floor."

[ In Elegant Chamber on the second floor, incense burner held a calming incense.]

[A female cultivator in a purple dress, accompanied by a maid, entered through the door.]

[The female cultivator in the purple dress had her hair neatly styled in a bun, and a jade pendant indicating she was the head manager of the Azure Dragon Merchant Association hung from her waist.]

The jade plaque is engraved with three characters.

[Shen Yuerong.]

[The aura is so powerful that you can no longer fathom its depth.]

A chill ran through you; this shopkeeper was likely already Golden Core True Person.

She sat down opposite her and placed an account book on the table.

"Sect Master Lu, a first-class distinguished guest of the Greenwood Sect in the Qingling Border Region."

"Your turnover at Green Grain Shop is enough to upgrade you to Level 2 VIP."

"The formalities aren't finished yet."

[Friend of Women, in effect.]

Her previously businesslike demeanor softened slightly.

"Shopkeeper Zhou often mentions you."

He said you never buy medicinal herbs on credit.

"These days, there aren't many Alchemists who don't offer credit."

[You spoke.]

"I'm looking for a medicinal herb."

[Shen Yuerong opens a blank purchasing catalog.]

["Name."]

"Void-Aperture Jade Marrow."

[She paused in her writing, lifted the pen, and then put it down again.]

This stuff isn't cheap.

[You didn't reply, but simply put down a Spirit Stone bag.]

Shen Yuerong opened the bag and glanced at it.

She pushed the shopping catalog half an inch closer to you.

"Void-Aperture Jade Marrow is a rare material."

"Regular counters won't display this."

"Seven days from now, the Azure Dragon Merchant Association and the Heavenly Certification Alliance Joint Auction."

"Many things leaked out through the Heavenly Certification Alliance channels."

"What you're looking for might be there."

You paused, then asked,

"I'm afraid not just anyone can get into this kind of Auction, right?"

Shen Yuerong chuckled softly.

"Sect Master Lu is indeed a wise man."

"Second-Grade Alchemist, or any professional qualification of Level 2 or above."

"Without a certificate, no matter how many Spirit Stones you have, you can't get into this level of Auction."

[Heavenly Certification Alliance's certificates are more than just identity badges.]

It is a resource gatekeeper.

[Without a permit, you have to stand outside to buy things.]

[Options pop up.]

[A: Using their status Sect Master and their VIP pass from the Chamber of Commerce, they forcibly demanded entry.]

[B: Obtain the Second-Grade Registered Alchemist qualification through the proper entry-level process.]

[C: Inquired about the possibility of obtaining fake documents and requested support for a seven-day no-questions-asked return policy.]

Lu Ping paused for a second on option A.

He felt that the system must have misunderstood his abilities.

Option B, obtaining the certificate directly is troublesome.

But he was already planning to sell pills, buy materials, and continue climbing the ranks.

The access card for the cultivation-based capitalism system will have to be obtained sooner or later.

Poor Little C was once again ruthlessly ignored by Lu Ping.

[You chose B.]

"I want to take the Second-Grade Alchemist exam."

Shen Yuerong did not immediately agree.

She closed the ledger.

"Sect Master Lu, the Level 2 exam is not the Greenwood Sect First-Grade Examination."

"The Heavenly Certification Alliance provided inferior spiritual herbs."

"The fire in the Pill Furnace is fluctuating."

"The examination hall Formation Technique will suppress Divine Sense."

"Retake fee doubled."

"Most First-Rank Alchemists take three to five attempts to pass the exam."

She paused for a moment, then added.

"Some people go into debt because of exams, and eventually have to sell their original Level 1 qualification certificates to pay off the loans."

[After you've listened, ask only one question.]

How do I register?

Shen Yuerong stared at you for a long time.

She took a blue jade box from under the cabinet.

"Heavenly Certification Alliance Second-Grade Registered Alchemist Pre-Exam Tutoring Package."

"Total price: one thousand Low-Grade Spirit Stones."

["Includes exam card, official textbook, past exam paper analysis, training to adapt to inferior spiritual herbs, simulated exam stress levels, psychological counseling, and priority service for retakes."]

[You stared at the words "psychological counseling" and remained silent for a long time.]

[The cultivation exam has even industrialized the process of causing breakdowns.]

The most absurd thing about this set isn't its price.

[It just seems to really work.]

[Options pop up.]

[A: Purchase a package and exchange time through official channels.]

[B: I won't buy it; I'll rely on my own hard work to pass the exam and save a thousand Spirit Stones.]

[C: Request Shen Yuerong to package the psychological counseling separately, because you need it right now.]