A New Money-Making Venture

The few gold soul coins he had given Village Chief Grandpa yesterday had already been most of the savings he had accumulated over three months.

Although he had no worries about food and lodging at the academy, what about the future?

Cultivation required resources. Soul tools, medicinal herbs, cultivation manuals, even equipment and connections when traveling outside—what didn't cost money?

Not to mention that he had promised to build irrigation canals and buy grain for Yun Family Village. Those promises could not just be empty words.

And since he had transmigrated to Soul Land, he could not simply muddle through until graduation.

He wanted to build something for himself. He wanted to leave his name in this world.

Earth Tiger Armor had given him power beyond the ordinary, but beyond power, he also needed resources, influence, and connections.

Where would his first pot of gold come from?

Yun Tian walked along the streets for a while, his gaze sweeping over the various roadside shops as knowledge from his previous life raced through his mind.

Soul Land's technological level was roughly equivalent to the agrarian era of ancient China. Although soul masters and soul tools existed, everyday goods and commerce among the common people remained at a fairly primitive stage.

Many things—sugar refining, brewing, papermaking, glassmaking, soapmaking—were commonplace technologies in his previous life, but here, they might become paths to wealth.

But he quickly shook his head.

Those things could be made, but they would take too long to turn a profit. They required investment, manpower, and a market. With his current status and circumstances, he simply could not support such an undertaking.

What was a more direct route?

He stopped in front of a weapon shop.

Several standard iron swords and bows were displayed in the window. Their workmanship was crude, their edges terribly dull. At a glance, they were clearly ordinary wares forged by common blacksmiths.

Yet their prices were not cheap. A lousy iron sword like that actually cost two gold soul coins.

Yun Tian watched for a while, then suddenly thought of something.

Hidden weapons.

Tang San's hidden weapons were secret techniques of the Tang Sect. Their craftsmanship was precise and their power astonishing, making them practically one of a kind in this world.

But Tang San currently treated hidden weapons only as a means of self-defense. He had never considered using them to make money.

And in the weapon markets of Notting City, or even the entirety of Soul Land, no one had ever seen such compact, exquisite hidden weapons that could be concealed in one's sleeves and deployed or retrieved at will.

What if he produced a batch of simplified hidden weapons to sell without revealing the Tang Sect's core secrets?

For example, hand-thrown darts that needed no complex mechanisms, simplified sleeve arrows that were easy to carry, or beast-hunting needles for hunters. These items had simple structures and low material requirements. An ordinary blacksmith could forge them, yet they would fill an entirely untapped market in this world.

Yun Tian's eyes lit up.

But he could not do this alone.

Hidden weapons were Tang San's signature skill. Even if they were going into business, he had to discuss it with Tang San and let him take part in the profits.

Furthermore, the production process would require partners. Blacksmith shops, material suppliers, sales channels—an entire chain of operations had to be established.

But the direction was right.

Yun Tian continued down the street, his gaze passing over one storefront after another as the plan in his mind became increasingly clear.

Besides the hidden weapon business, he thought of another avenue: reselling soul beast materials.

Notting City was close to Soul Hunting Forest. Soul masters came and went every day, bringing back hides, bones, claws, poison sacs, and other materials after hunting soul beasts. If he could buy them cheaply and resell them in higher-level cities, the price difference would be quite substantial.

Of course, that path required connections and credibility. It would have to be built up slowly.

The sky gradually darkened, and there were fewer pedestrians on the streets.

Yun Tian stopped at a steamed bun stall and spent a few copper coins on two piping-hot meat buns. Standing by the roadside, he ate while looking out at the small city, whose lights were beginning to glow in the evening.

He still had many things to do.

His cultivation could not fall behind. After obtaining his second soul ring, he needed to reach level thirty as soon as possible.

Earth Tiger Armor's abilities also needed further development. The power contained within the Earth Shadow Stone went far beyond what he had currently uncovered.

At the same time, he needed to pave the way for making money. The sooner he began accumulating wealth, the more calmly he could face the broader world ahead.

He took a bite of the bun, and the fragrant meat juices spread through his mouth.

Standing on a Notting City street beneath the twilight, Yun Tian finished the last bite, wiped his mouth, and strode toward the academy.

Night had just fallen, and the lanterns along the street lit up one after another.

His shadow stretched long beneath the dim yellow light, while his steps remained firm and unhurried.

Having transmigrated here, he could not live for nothing.

As the summoner of Earth Tiger Armor, he had to live up to the weight of the Earth Shadow Stone.

That night, after returning to the Seventh Dorm, Yun Tian sat cross-legged on his bed and meditated. Earth-element power flowed through his meridians like gentle streams, circulating endlessly.

Ever since forming his second soul ring, his control over the power of the earth had become increasingly refined. Not only could he sense the flow of earth veins within several zhang beneath his feet, but he could also actively guide earth elements to gather and take shape outside his body.

He raised his right hand and poured a thread of soul power into his palm.

The Earth Shadow Stone glowed faintly. Drawn by his will, the earth elements in the air slowly gathered in his palm.

First came a thin layer of yellowish light. It gradually became denser, more solid, and crystallized, eventually forming a brown crystal the size of a thumbnail in his palm.

The crystal's surface was smooth and warm, with pale golden patterns flowing within it. It faintly emitted a dense, pure earth-attribute aura.

Yun Tian weighed it in his hand. He could sense that the energy within was weak, yet incomparably pure, as though the essence of a patch of land had been compressed into this tiny stone.

He stared at the crystal for a long while before his eyes suddenly lit up.

This!

He had never heard of such a thing existing in Soul Land in his previous life.

Soul beasts could produce soul bones and soul rings. Ores and medicinal herbs could assist cultivation. But attribute crystals condensed from a soul master's own energy...

At least in Notting City and the surrounding region, such a thing was absolutely unheard of.

And this was not ordinary condensed soul power. It was a pure elemental crystal refined from the power of the earth, drawn forth by the Earth Shadow Stone. It naturally carried dense fluctuations of earth energy.

For soul masters cultivating earth-attribute martial souls, carrying one while cultivating would definitely provide beneficial effects.

The lower a soul master's rank, the more obvious the effect would be. After all, their perception of the power of the earth was still shallow. With a natural elemental crystal as a medium, both their absorption and conversion efficiency could rise by a level.

The curve of Yun Tian's lips widened.

This business was something only he could do.

The Earth Shadow Stone was a one-of-a-kind martial soul, and Earth Tiger Armor's passive ability allowed him to draw energy from the earth without limit. Even if others wanted to imitate him, they would have no way to do so.

And these earth-attribute energy crystals he condensed from his own soul power and the power of the earth veins cost almost nothing to make.

Other than consuming a little soul power, they required no materials, no manpower, and no tools.

But he absolutely could not tell outsiders that.

"Condensed from the energy of an innate martial soul by a two-ring Grand Soul Master. Only one can be produced each week. The refining process consumes an enormous amount of energy and requires a week-long recovery period."

The rarer something was, the more valuable it became.

He could not let people know that he could make these things whenever he wanted, or else he would not be able to sell them for a high price.

How much should one sell for?

Yun Tian pondered for a moment, then held up two fingers.

Two hundred gold soul coins.

He would only do business with the rich.

Because only the rich could afford it.

When a two-ring Grand Soul Master went out to hunt a hundred-year soul beast, the income from its hide, bones, and other materials was probably only around ten to twenty gold soul coins.

Two hundred gold soul coins was no small expense for an ordinary soul master, but compared to cultivation, what was that amount of money?

If an earth-attribute soul master was truly stuck at a bottleneck, there would definitely be someone willing to pay two hundred gold soul coins for a crystal that could assist their cultivation.

"Only one a week. The consumption is immense, and my body needs time to recover." Yun Tian muttered as he refined his sales pitch. "The rarer it is, the more valuable it becomes. It can't be mass-produced, or it won't have value."

He lowered his head to look at the warm brown crystal in his palm, suddenly feeling that it was practically a hen that laid golden eggs.

He did not need to stop cultivating, he could make crystals whenever he wished, and he could make money along the way.

Once he had built up a reputation, he could even hold limited auctions and let wealthy earth-attribute soul masters compete for them.

Perfect.

Yun Tian tucked the crystal into his clothes and lay down in high spirits.

Moonlight streamed into the Seventh Dorm through the window, and even as he closed his eyes, a smile remained on his lips.

This was the right path.