Gao Yuyao

Seeing that Song Qingming seemed to already recognize him, Qin Zhen glanced again at the wooden sign in front of the stall and continued, "I see your sign says you need pills. I happen to know a friend who often sells pills, but she does not want anything else, only Spirit Stones. Would you be interested?"

"Fellow Daoist Qin, I also came here to help my family collect pills that improve cultivation. If someone can provide them over the long term, that would be excellent and would save my family from having to frequently go to the Marketplace to buy them."

So he was a cultivator from a nearby family. No wonder that despite his young age, he could bring out dozens of Spirit Talismans for sale at every gathering. It turned out that most of those Spirit Talismans had been made by elders of his family.

Pills, such sought-after cultivation resources, were basically controlled by the major cultivation families in Qinghe County. Through the accumulations of several generations, most of them possessed complete pill formula inheritances, making it easier for them to nurture Alchemists than Rogue Cultivators.

Even if a few exceptionally gifted Rogue Cultivators obtained some alchemy inheritances through their own fortuitous encounters and became Alchemists, if they wanted to acquire more pill formulas and improve their alchemy, they could ultimately only choose to join them, becoming retainers of those cultivation families and refining pills for them for the rest of their lives.

Qinghe Market, the only Marketplace in Qinghe County, had been jointly established by cultivation families large and small throughout Qinghe County. Pills refined by Rogue Cultivators simply could not compete with those cultivation families within Qinghe Market.

Of course, there were still some Alchemists unwilling to collude with those cultivation families, who chose other ways to make a living. However, the pills they refined could generally only appear at small gatherings like these.

The pills sold here were usually a little cheaper than those in the Marketplace. Nearby cultivation families coming here to purchase pills for the sake of a few Spirit Stones' profit was quite common."

After hearing Song Qingming's words, Qin Zhen finally seemed somewhat relieved. "I was wondering why someone as young as you needed so many pills. So you are purchasing them for your family."

"If you can introduce me to such a source, then from now on, any Spirit Talismans you buy from me will be at a ten percent discount off the market price. How about it?"

As he spoke, Song Qingming picked several Calming Heart Talismans—this man's favorite—from the pile before him and stuffed them into Qin Zhen's hands.

"Not bad, not bad. After the gathering ends, wait here for me a moment."

Seeing Song Qingming was so sensible, Qin Zhen happily agreed. Rogue Cultivators like him spent all year mingling through various gatherings. Apart from venturing out to hunt demon beasts, they could only earn some cultivation resources by buying and selling information at Marketplace gatherings.

Not long after Qin Zhen left, another beautiful woman wearing a veil came to Song Qingming's stall.

The woman had delicate brows and fine eyes, white teeth and red lips. She wore a light pink palace dress that traced her exquisite figure, its hem embroidered with pale blue butterflies poised to spread their wings and fly. A layer of white gauze draped over her shoulders. Her cultivation was even slightly higher than Song Qingming's, already at the Fifth Level of Qi Refining.

During his months at Caolu Mountain, this was the first time Song Qingming had seen a female cultivator with such stunning looks, and he could not help looking at her a few more times.

After stopping before Song Qingming's stall, she carefully examined the written sign on the table. After thinking for a moment, she asked, "Do you accept mid-grade Silver Leaf Grass?"

Song Qingming only felt that her voice was clear and melodious, like wind chimes ringing in his ears. Snapping back to his senses, he hurriedly replied, "I do not accept mid-grade. Low-tier is fine."

Silver Leaf Grass was also one of the spirit herbs needed to make blank Spirit Talismans. However, Song Qingming was still only a Low-tier Talisman Master, so using mid-grade materials would truly be wasteful. He did not have many Spirit Stones, so naturally he would not waste them purchasing such materials.

When the Pink-robed Woman saw Song Qingming refuse, a trace of displeasure appeared on her face. After hesitating for a moment, she added, "I also have some low-tier pills that improve cultivation. Can I exchange them for all the Calming Heart Talismans on your table?"

"Pills that improve cultivation? Let me first see what kind they are."

Hearing that she wanted to exchange pills for his Spirit Talismans, Song Qingming was somewhat surprised. What strange wind had blown today? In the past, hardly anyone at this market used pills to exchange for Spirit Talismans. How had he encountered two people in a row today who could trade pills?

After hearing Song Qingming's words, the Pink-robed Woman did not answer. She took out a small bottle and placed it on the table.

Song Qingming took the purple jade bottle she handed over, opened it, poured out a pill, and lowered his head to carefully inspect its medicinal properties.

"These are Qi Nurturing Pills."

Song Qingming took out one of his own small bottles and put three pills inside. He then placed the remaining pills from the bottle, along with the dozen or so Calming Heart Talismans on the table, before her.

"Your Qi Nurturing Pills are worth about three Spirit Stones each on the market. These dozen or so talismans of mine are only worth three of your pills. If you agree, we can make the exchange."

The Pink-robed Woman did not hesitate. She nodded readily, quickly put away the pills and Spirit Talismans, glanced at Song Qingming, then turned and drifted away.

After completing that deal, Song Qingming's good fortune seemed to have run out. He never again encountered such a good opportunity to exchange for pills.

Still, the Spirit Talismans he had laid out continued to sell steadily. By the end of the day, he had sold seven or eight out of every ten and had also received some talisman-making materials. Only the Black Stone Ninth Uncle had left with him remained as immovable as thunder, ignored by everyone.

At dusk, as the sun gradually sank in the west, Song Qingming stood on the western side of Caolu Mountain, staring at the person Qin Zhen had introduced as a seller of pills with a bitter smile.

The familiar figure before him was precisely the Pink-robed Woman who had exchanged pills for his Spirit Talismans earlier that day. He simply had never imagined that she would still want to sell the remaining pills.

What a pity for those Calming Heart Talismans he had painstakingly made.

The Pink-robed Woman still wore that white veil. Although Song Qingming had never clearly seen her face, he quickly confirmed from her clothing that she was the stunning woman who had traded with him half a day earlier.

The Pink-robed Woman was also somewhat surprised to see Song Qingming and asked Qin Zhen, "Fellow Daoist Qin, is this the person you mentioned who wishes to purchase pills?"

"Fairy Gao, this is Fellow Daoist Song, also a cultivator from a nearby family. He has a fairly good reputation at Caolu Mountain. This time, he has come to purchase some pills for the elders of his family."

Qin Zhen seemed somewhat respectful toward the woman, and there was a hint in his tone that he feared she might not be satisfied with Song Qingming as a trading partner.

After hearing Qin Zhen's introduction, the Pink-robed Woman asked Song Qingming another question.

"Are you from the Song Family of Funiu Mountain?"

"Funiu Mountain, Song Family, Song Qingming."

Seeing that the woman immediately knew where he came from, Song Qingming assumed she must have cultivated nearby for many years. He no longer concealed anything and openly gave his name.

After hearing Song Qingming's reply, the Pink-robed Woman thought for a long while. Finally, as though she had made up her mind, she tossed a yellow cloth bag to Qin Zhen.

After Qin Zhen caught the cloth bag and opened it for a look, his face lit up with delight. He nodded at the two of them, then quickly left.

Only after Qin Zhen had walked out of their sight did the White-clothed Woman slowly speak. "May I ask what kind of pills Fellow Daoist Song needs?"

"Any pills like Qi Nurturing Pills that can increase Mana. The more, the better."

"I only want Spirit Stones, nothing else."

"Of course."

After speaking, the Pink-robed Woman took out several identical purple jade bottles and placed them in Song Qingming's hands. Song Qingming accepted them and saw that all three bottles were filled with the Qi Nurturing Pills he had dreamed of. His face was full of shock, and he could not help forming a few more speculations about the Pink-robed Woman.

For her to produce so many Qi Nurturing Pills at once, her alchemy must be extremely accomplished. She was not someone an entry-level Alchemist like Second Sister could compare to. She was at least a Mid-grade Alchemist, and there were not many people like that in Qinghe County.

"The quality of my pills is excellent. If you buy an entire bottle, I can reduce the price by two Spirit Stones."

Song Qingming nodded in agreement. After accepting one bottle of pills, he took out a bag of Spirit Stones and handed it to the woman.

"I came out in a hurry and did not bring many Spirit Stones with me. One bottle is enough for today. Next month, bring the rest to the place where we last gathered and find me. I will set up a stall here every month. As long as the quality is guaranteed, I can purchase from you over the long term."

"As long as you have Spirit Stones, the quality of the pills I refine will be guaranteed. However, if you want a long-term partnership, I have one more condition."

"Please speak, Fairy."

"You cannot reveal our transactions to your clansmen. That should not be difficult for you, should it?"

Song Qingming had initially been puzzled by the Pink-robed Woman's strange request, but after thinking carefully, perhaps her alchemy inheritance came from Qinghe Market. That was why she did not want family cultivators like them to know her identity.

"Agreed!"

Compared with her, Song Qingming was even less willing to let his family know the secret of how he was currently earning Spirit Stones. To him, being able to steadily exchange for pills and improve his cultivation was what mattered most.

At most, he only dared take a small portion of these pills to the Treasury Pavilion in exchange for talisman-making materials. If he took them all there and Fourth Elder asked where he had obtained the Spirit Stones to purchase so many pills, how could he explain it? In the eyes of the other Song Family members, he could have no more than twenty or thirty Spirit Stones on him.

The Pink-robed Woman counted the Spirit Stones, then nodded and satisfactorily put them into her Storage Bag. Just as she was about to drift away—

"May I ask your name, Fairy?"

"Gao Yuyao."