Selling Pills

"Shopkeeper, how much are these cultivation manuals?"

Bai Yu asked without giving anything away.

The shop assistant replied with a grin:

"Esteemed customer, if you sincerely want them, the Breathing Technique is fifty taels, and this Circulating Heaven Transport is one hundred taels."

"As for this Spirit Serpent Breath Art, since it's a Profound Rank technique, the price is a little higher—six hundred taels."

Bai Yu was startled when he heard that.

He had not expected the cultivation manuals in the Myriad Treasures Pavilion to be so expensive, nearly half again as much as those on the Black Market.

A Profound Rank, Low Grade breathing art, and not even a broadly applicable one—merely a method for tempering the internal organs—actually cost six hundred taels.

Six hundred taels was exceedingly expensive for Bai Yu as well.

He had less than three hundred taels of silver on him in total.

Bai Yu's expression did not change as he asked:

"Shopkeeper, isn't this a little too expensive? Could you offer a discount?"

The shop assistant smiled.

"Esteemed customer, nothing here is subject to bargaining."

Cultivation manuals and pills were commodities with prices but no supply, always in greater demand than availability.

The Myriad Treasures Pavilion was brimming with confidence and had no fear of customers walking away.

Bai Yu's mind raced.

Turmoil was imminent, and he needed to rapidly increase his strength. This Spirit Serpent Breath Art was particularly important.

At any other time, perhaps no one would have been willing to sell a Profound Rank technique.

Besides, it might be bought by someone else in a few days.

Opportunity lost would never return.

Bai Yu decisively said:

"I'll take this Spirit Serpent Breath Art."

The shop assistant beamed with delight.

"Certainly, esteemed customer. I'll wrap it up for you right away. That will be six hundred taels of silver."

But Bai Yu did not hurry to pay. Instead, he asked:

"Shopkeeper, do you buy pills here?"

The shop assistant hastily replied:

"Yes, of course. But what kind of pills are you selling?"

"A type of bone-tempering pill."

The shop assistant immediately perked up.

"Bone-tempering pills are all ranked pills. I can't make that decision—I'll need the shopkeeper to inspect them."

"Esteemed customer, please follow me."

As he spoke, he led Bai Yu to the second floor.

The second floor was elegant and secluded. An old man in a scholar's robe was quietly reading an ancient book inside.

Seeing Bai Yu come upstairs, the old man set down the ancient book in his hand and said:

"This old man is Zhou Muxian. How should I address this guest?"

Bai Yu was secretly startled. This shopkeeper was actually a sixth-rank martial artist as well.

His expression unchanged, he said:

"Senior may call me Cai Xuanji."

His previous alias, Cai Kun, used on the Black Market was clearly no longer usable, so Bai Yu adopted another refined name.

The old man in the scholar's robe smiled.

"So it is Mister Cai. Please, take a seat. What would you like to buy or sell?"

Bai Yu calmly took a porcelain bottle from his robes and placed it on the table.

"This junior happened to acquire a type of pill. I ask Senior to examine it."

The old man in the scholar's robe gave a soft laugh, took the porcelain bottle, opened it, and sniffed it.

"A second-rank completed pill, with tiger bone and snake gall as its primary ingredients, possessing miraculous bone-tempering effects. Am I correct, guest?"

Bai Yu thought to himself that the old man truly was formidable. He had identified the primary ingredients after only one sniff.

He nodded and replied:

"Senior is correct. It is indeed a bone-tempering pill."

"As for what the primary ingredients are, this junior merely acquired it by chance and does not know the exact medicinal materials."

The old man in the scholar's robe lightly tapped his fingers on the table several times. The sharp-eyed shop assistant promptly poured tea for both of them.

The old man took a sip of tea and said:

"A second-rank bone-tempering spirit pill is worth around one hundred and fifty taels. Is the guest satisfied with that price?"

Bai Yu did not touch the tea on the table. He nodded.

"As Senior says. This junior happened to obtain several pills before, but only two remain."

As he spoke, he took another porcelain bottle from his robes.

The old man in the scholar's robe accepted the bottle, glanced at it, and said:

"This pill is slightly better in quality than the previous one. This old man will value it at two hundred taels."

Bai Yu's heart stirred at those words. Though the quality of these two bone-tempering pills differed, the difference was definitely not that obvious.

The old man in the scholar's robe had offered an extra fifty taels, leaving Bai Yu somewhat unable to make head or tail of it.

"Then this junior thanks Senior in advance."

The old man in the scholar's robe smiled.

"Little Friend Xuanji, this old man has an unwelcome request. I wonder if you can agree to it?"

Bai Yu thought, Just as expected. One who offers courtesy for no reason is either a traitor or a thief.

Since it's an unwelcome request, then don't ask it.

Naturally, Bai Yu did not say that aloud. On the surface, he continued smiling as he said:

"May I ask what request Senior has?"

The old man in the scholar's robe smiled.

"It is nothing major. If Little Friend has any more pills like these, this shop can purchase all of them for one hundred and eighty taels each."

Bai Yu gave a bitter smile.

"I fear I must disappoint Senior. This junior only acquired a few by chance, and these two are the very last. If I were not short of money, I would not have taken them out in exchange for silver."

The old man did not press the matter, merely saying:

"As long as Little Friend gives this shop priority should you acquire such pills again in the future."

Naturally, Bai Yu nodded in agreement.

For a time, host and guest were both delighted, chatting most congenially.

During that time, Bai Yu also asked the old man in the scholar's robe about pill grades. The old man did not refuse and explained a few things to him.

It turned out that the pills of this world were divided into the Nine Ranks, with the ninth rank highest and the first rank lowest.

In addition, there were some unranked pills. Though they had certain effects, those effects were not obvious, and they were not included among the Nine Ranks.

For example, Bai Yu's Essence Nourishing Powder was an unranked pill.

The Dragon-Tiger Bone Tempering Pill, meanwhile, was second-rank.

Bai Yu listened with great relish. Only after a while did he cup his hands and take his leave.

When he left, there was already a copy of the "Spirit Serpent Breath Art" in his robes.

After he departed, the shop assistant quietly asked:

"Shopkeeper, did he truly have only two pills on him?"

The old man sneered.

"Absolutely impossible. The two pills he sold have already given him away."

"These two pills were completed not long ago, and their quality differs noticeably. They were clearly made by the hand of an alchemist who is still growing."

"There is an eighty percent chance that this boy is an alchemist himself, or has an alchemist friend."

The shop assistant asked again:

"If that is so, why didn't Shopkeeper keep him here?"

The old man in the scholar's robe said indifferently:

"A mere three to five hundred taels of silver is not worth smashing our own signboard over."

"Besides, an alchemist is not someone so easily offended. Let him go."

The shop assistant fell into thought.

Several hours later, Bai Yu returned to his room and impatiently took out the "Spirit Serpent Breath Art" to examine it.

After carefully reading it for nearly half an hour, another cultivation art appeared in his mind.

Spirit Serpent Breath Art: Not Initiated.

Compatibility with Dark Turtle Breath Concealment Art: 82%. Spend 500 life experience to fuse?

Profound Rank cultivation arts required more life experience to fuse as well.

Bai Yu did not hesitate in the slightest and directly invested 500 life experience.

Fusion successful. Obtained the Turtle-Serpent Breath Concealment Art!

Bai Yu was overjoyed and hurriedly examined the information on the Turtle-Serpent Breath Concealment Art.