Reconciling the Accounts

The Cultivator immediately bought a bottle and said he would come back to the store to buy more the next day.

Zhang Ying continued to target Late Qi Refining Cultivator on Alchemy Street, and conducted offline sales to these potential customers.

Before long, this batch of Golden Marrow Pill was sold out, making these Cultivator remember the existence of Number Nine Pill Shop...

In the blink of an eye, the new Number Nine Pill Shop has been open for a month.

During this month, thanks to Su Bai's unconventional marketing methods...

Sending people to the streets to actively promote products, limiting purchases at low prices, creating a sense of scarcity...

The business at Number Nine Pill Shop quickly established itself from scratch, and its customer base became increasingly stable.

Su Bai's actions initially drew some criticism from his somewhat aloof Alchemy Street, who felt it was beneath his dignity.

But when they saw that the once deserted shop at Number Eighty-Seven was gradually becoming more popular, and even starting to attract some price-sensitive customers, some Pill Shop Master in equally less desirable locations finally couldn't sit still any longer.

In the latter half of the month, Zhang Ying was able to see one or two slightly awkward shop assistants from other stores on the street, who were trying to imitate her by introducing the Pill to passersby.

However, by this time, Zhang Ying no longer needed to run around on the streets all day, because the number of customers who came to her shop by word of mouth or by reputation was enough to keep her busy.

The Number Nine Pill Shop has made a preliminary breakthrough.

For Su Bai, this month was a month of simultaneous improvement in skills and high-intensity output.

After nearly a hundred batches of Golden Marrow Pill were repeatedly refined, and with the continuous and stable assistance of his Yellow-tier Alchemy Talent [Candle Heart Reflecting Fire], his skill in refining Golden Marrow Pill had reached a level of consummate mastery.

Nowadays, the Golden Marrow Pill he produces are perfectly round, with golden light inside and a hidden precious glow. The medicinal power is pure and mild, and the success rate of producing the pills has stabilized at a very high level.

In terms of quality, it can already firmly rank among the top three of all the Golden Marrow Pill sold on the Alchemy Street.

It is no less impressive than those two long-established Pill Shop that have been operating for decades and have made their living from this pill.

However, Su Bai's pricing was significantly lower than theirs, which resulted in extremely high customer loyalty at Number Nine Pill Shop, and its reputation spread like ripples through word-of-mouth referrals from existing customers.

Su Bai was well aware of this. He understood that with his unparalleled talent of [Candle Heart Reflecting Fire], it was not unrealistic to expect that, given time, he could elevate his family's Golden Marrow Pill to the top position in the Alchemy Street.

Those two old shops have a profound history, but the difference in their potential due to their Alchemy Talent cannot be easily made up for by simply accumulating alchemy experience.

One night in mid-April, Number Nine Pill Shop put up a "Sold Out Today" sign early in the morning.

The shop quieted down, with only the faint glow of the Magic Array remaining. Su Bai had Zhang Ying close the shop, while he took the detailed account book and went to the tea room by the window on the second floor.

The tea room was simply and elegantly furnished, with a pear wood tea table and two rattan chairs. Outside the window, one could see the lights and the gradually thinning figures at the other end of Alchemy Street.

Su Bai brewed a pot of calming and soothing spiritual tea. The fragrant aroma filled the air, dispelling some of the fatigue from months of alchemy.

"Ying'er, come, sit down. Let's go over the accounts for the first month and settle your monthly salary." Su Bai gestured for the somewhat reserved Zhang Ying to sit down.

Zhang Ying sat down as instructed, placing her hands neatly on her knees, her eyes filled with anticipation.

Su Bai opened the ledger, his fingertips tracing the still-fresh ink on the numbers, and began to calculate in a steady voice. "From the opening in mid-March to today, a full month has passed."

"I exerted all my efforts, opening the furnace a total of ninety-nine times, producing nine thousand and ninety pills, equivalent to nine hundred and nine bottles."

Behind this number lies nine hours of almost uninterrupted daily alchemy work. Even with Su Bai's Foundation Establishment Realm cultivation and spiritual strength, a barely perceptible trace of weariness flashed across his brows as he recalled this moment.

"Boss, you've worked so hard."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Ying sighed from the bottom of her heart.

She witnessed firsthand how Su Bai spent that month.

Often, when she finished her cultivation late at night and prepared to rest, the lights in the upstairs alchemy room were still bright, and the unique, invigorating fragrance of the Golden Marrow Pill would still waft down, accompanying her to sleep.

If even Foundation Establishment cultivators work so hard, what reason does she, a mere Qi Refining, have to slack off?

Inspired by this, she practiced diligently in the evenings, and her Dao Heart seemed to be tempered by her busy schedule and responsibilities. A few days ago, she successfully broke through to the Qi Refining Layer Six.

Upon learning this, Su Bai not only offered verbal encouragement but also rewarded her with a bottle of Golden Marrow Pill to help her consolidate her cultivation, which deeply moved her.

Su Bai waved his hand and continued, "Regarding the Spirit Medicine Ingredients, since our usage is stable and increasing, we renegotiated the price with the supplier. Now, the price for each portion of Golden Marrow Pill Ingredients has dropped to 280 Spirit Stone."

"The total cost of materials consumed in January was 25,452 Spirit Stone."

"The shop rent is 11,000 spirit stones per year, which is about 916 Spirit Stone per month. Let's calculate it as 1,000 Spirit Stone for easier accounting."

"Nine hundred and nine bottles of Golden Marrow Pill were sold at a price of forty-five Spirit Stone each, for a total revenue of forty thousand nine hundred and five Spirit Stone."

After reading out the numbers, Su Bai paused, looked up at Zhang Ying was sitting upright, and said in a gentle but serious tone, "Next is your monthly salary."

"As the shop Manager, you've been incredibly helpful this past month, running around handling everything from liaising with buyers and greeting customers to keeping accounts and inventory."

"I've inquired about the salaries of Manager of similar shops in the area. Considering your achievements, I'll tentatively set the monthly salary at 150 Spirit Stone. What do you think?"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Ying's round face flushed red, and she waved her hands repeatedly, "Boss, isn't this... isn't this too much? I... when I was a rogue cultivator, I might not have been able to save up this many Spirit Stone in a year."

One hundred and fifty Spirit Stone is definitely a substantial and stable income for a rogue cultivator in the Mid Qi Refining Stage. It is enough to support her relatively comfortable cultivation and life, and she can even have some left over.

Su Bai took a sip of tea and smiled, "No need to refuse, this is what you deserve."

"The responsibilities of Manager are extraordinary. There will be even more affairs to handle in the shop in the future, so I will need to put in a lot of effort."

"Besides, starting next month, you definitely won't be able to handle everything on your own."

"I intend to hire three more employees to assist you in managing the shop and handling daily chores."

"Their monthly salary is tentatively set at thirty Spirit Stone. This way, you can free yourself from trivial matters, properly arrange your shifts and rest days, and avoid delaying your own cultivation."

"The matter of recruiting will be entirely under your responsibility."

Zhang Ying felt a surge of warmth in her heart, knowing that this was Su Bai's trust in her. She nodded vigorously, "Yes, boss! I will definitely select carefully and live up to your expectations, but I don't know what specific requirements you have for them."

"As for the requirements," Su Bai pondered for a moment, "Gender is not a factor, but the candidate must be of reliable character, have a decent appearance, and be approachable. You can decide for yourself who is suitable."

"Understood, boss." Zhang Ying kept the instructions firmly in mind.

Su Bai turned his attention back to the ledger and did the final calculation. "Therefore, the total expenditure for this month is 25,452 Spirit Stone for materials, 1,000 Spirit Stone for rent, and 150 Spirit Stone for your reward, totaling 26,602 Spirit Stone."

"Income is 40,905 Spirit Stone, the difference is 14,303 Spirit Stone. Hmm, that roughly matches the number of Spirit Stone I currently have in my Storage Bag. This is my net profit for this month."

A net profit of 15,000 Spirit Stone! For a newly opened Pill Shop in a remote location that has only been open for a month, this is undoubtedly an extremely impressive achievement.

Zhang Ying's eyes lit up as she listened, as if she could see the shop's bright future.

Su Bai closed the ledger, a hint of relief appearing on his face. He pondered, "This profit is closely related to my almost sleepless refining work over the past month; it's truly hard-earned money."

"Starting next month, I will reduce my daily alchemy time to six hours and only operate two furnaces."

"Firstly, one needs to recuperate one's spirit; secondly, one must not neglect cultivation, study of techniques, and new Pill Formula."

"At that time, the monthly interest is expected to stabilize at around 10,000 Spirit Stone."

"However, from this perspective, the income from this Pill Shop alone is enough for me to walk steadily on the path of cultivation. The missions at the Azure Fish Hall can indeed be regarded as training and adjustment, just as I thought before."

The accounting was completed, and the results were encouraging.

Su Bai was in a good mood and stood up, saying, "Let's go, let's celebrate today. Let's go to the Food Street next door and try the spiritual cuisine at ' Hundred Flavors Tower '. It'll be a reward for your hard work this past month."

The following day, a new notice was posted outside the Number Nine Pill Shop: "The grand opening promotion has successfully concluded. From this day forward, the price of Golden Marrow Pill will return to the fair market price of fifty Spirit Stone per bottle. Thank you for your patronage this month. Quality remains the same, and our commitment remains unchanged."

The price adjustment did not cause much of a stir.

After all, the quality of the Golden Marrow Pill refined by Su Bai is undeniable. Even if they were sold for fifty-five Spirit Stone, they would still sell without any trouble. Restoring the standard price of fifty Spirit Stone would still be considered excellent value for money by most regular customers.

Conversely, because Su Bai reduced the amount of pills he refined each day, the output dropped from thirty bottles to twenty bottles, making Golden Marrow Pill even more scarce.

Every morning when the shop opens, within an hour, twenty bottles of Golden Marrow Pill are snapped up by Cultivator who rush to the scene.

The saying "Golden Marrow Pill from Number Nine Pill Shop are sold out by the time you leave" gradually spread among some customers on the Alchemy Street.

Zhang Ying's recruitment process went quite smoothly.

Within three to five days, she led two women and one man—three young, clean-cut, and upright Qi Refining Stage Cultivator— to see Su Bai.

Su Bai asked a few simple questions and, seeing that his words and actions were acceptable, nodded in agreement.

Zhang Ying quickly assigned them responsibilities: one person was responsible for assisting in the preparation and sale of Pill every morning, another person was responsible for cleaning and tidying the store and receiving temporary visitors, and the third person assisted her in receiving, verifying and registering the medicinal materials.

With more people to share the workload, Zhang Ying felt much more relaxed and was able to better manage the shop's affairs. She even had a fixed time to return to the back room to cultivate in Mind-Calming.

From this point on, Number Nine Pill Shop truly entered a stable operating track.

With daily sales of Pill, a steadily growing customer base, and gradually established store procedures, everything seemed well-organized.

The name "Lu Jiu" was mentioned more and more frequently among customers and some of his peers on the Alchemy Street, along with those bottles of high-quality Golden Marrow Pill.

Although the shop's location is still remote, the saying "good wine needs no bush" seems to be proven true here.

Su Bai still spends six hours a day in the alchemy room, but the pace is no longer as intense as it was at the beginning, and he is more relaxed.