Zhou Xun had always believed in the saying, "The gun shoots the bird that sticks its head out."
Displaying too much talent in pill refinement was not necessarily a good thing.
Though it could earn him more resources for cultivation.
For Zhou Xun, who possessed the Ningshun Sutra, blending into the ordinary and cultivating steadily was the righteous path.
"Perhaps it's time to pay Brother Hong San a visit!"
Hong San was the hall master of the Iron Mountain Gang's Xinshou Hall. For safety's sake, he had set Xinshou Hall's headquarters in his own home.
After all, with the Red Leaf Square Enforcement Squad around, no one dared cause trouble here.
That day, Hong San was throwing a fit at home.
"Why has this month's income dropped by another twenty percent? At this rate, are we even going to keep Xinshou Hall running?"
"Third Brother, there's nothing we can do. Talismans have been rising in price again and again, and those Rogue Cultivators in the outer district simply can't afford them!"
"Several Tier 2 Demon Beasts have appeared in Hundred Savages Mountain. Those demon-hunting cultivators don't dare enter the mountains at all, so talisman consumption has dropped drastically. If this goes on, we'll soon have no income at all!"
The biggest consumers of talismans were precisely those demon-hunting cultivators who scraped out a living in the mountains year-round.
With the tide of events flowing this way, Hong San had no means of changing it.
Just as he was fretting, a subordinate entered.
"Third Brother, someone has delivered a letter!"
"A letter? What letter?" Hong San impatiently took it, tore open the envelope, and began reading.
"The agreement from five months ago... Right, it's him, it's him! I've found a road to riches!"
After reading only a few lines, Hong San slapped his thigh.
The anxiety on his face vanished completely, replaced by excitement.
"You all stay home and guard the place properly."
Overwhelmed with excitement, Hong San gave his subordinates a few instructions, tucked the letter into his clothes, and strode out the door!
This letter had been sent by Zhou Xun.
After making up his mind, Zhou Xun immediately disguised himself and went to Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion to reserve a private room.
He then found an attendant and, for the price of one Spirit Essence, asked him to deliver a letter to Hong San's home.
To keep him from slacking off, he specifically told him that once the letter was delivered, its recipient would give him another Spirit Essence.
After leaving home, Hong San tossed the attendant a Spirit Essence and strode toward Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion.
Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion, Private Room B-3.
Zhou Xun sat inside alone, sipping tea.
Suddenly, the private room's door was pushed open, and a man in his thirties with scars on his face entered.
"Pill Refiner Zhou, long time no see!"
The man clasped his fists in greeting the moment he entered.
"Long time no see, Third Brother. Please, sit," Zhou Xun said, returning the gesture.
"Pill Refiner Zhou, did you invite me here because there has been progress with the pills?" As soon as he sat down, the man could not help asking.
Zhou Xun smiled faintly without answering directly.
"Don't rush, Third Brother. Try the spirit fish from Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion first. I hear it was just caught from Lingyue Lake, fresh as can be!"
This was one of Zhou Xun's little negotiation tricks.
He deliberately avoided discussing business, making the other party feel anxious.
The more anxious the other party became, the calmer he appeared.
Only when the other party could no longer endure it would it be the best time to negotiate.
That was how he could seize the initiative in a negotiation.
Seeing Zhou Xun act this way, Hong San could only suppress the urgency in his heart. He carelessly picked up a few bites with his chopsticks and stuffed them into his mouth.
"It truly is a rare delicacy!"
Zhou Xun, meanwhile, ate unhurriedly and elegantly, like a young master from an aristocratic family.
"Try this dish too, Third Brother! These are sliced hind legs from a low-grade Tier 1 Spirit Horn Deer, cured for three days. A rare delicacy indeed!" Zhou Xun said, pointing at a plate of meat before him.
Hong San could only pick up a few more bites, put them into his mouth, chew casually a few times, and swallow.
The urgency in his eyes grew even stronger. He had no mood whatsoever to savor fine food.
Thus, Zhou Xun recommended every single dish on the table.
Only when Hong San was nearly unable to bear it any longer did he finally set down his chopsticks and begin discussing business.
"Third Brother, you have likely guessed why I invited you here. That's right, there has indeed been progress with the pills!"
Hong San was overjoyed and hurriedly said:
"Good! What pills are there, and how many?"
"For now, there are only Pigu Pills." Zhou Xun took a sip of spirit tea and spoke slowly.
"Only Pigu Pills?" More than half of Hong San's joy instantly faded.
Pigu Pills were simple to refine. Even Pill Refinement Apprentices could make them.
Therefore, their selling price was low, and their profits were not generous.
"This is our first collaboration, naturally..." Zhou Xun stopped halfway through his sentence, then merely smiled without replying.
Hong San suddenly understood and repeatedly slapped his forehead.
"I was too rash!"
For a first collaboration, naturally Zhou Xun would not bring out anything good. These Pigu Pills were merely a stone cast to ask the way, Hong San instinctively filled in the rest himself.
This was exactly the effect Zhou Xun wanted.
"Pigu Pills are fine too. They have a very broad market. Though the profits are slim, if the sales volume is high, the income still adds up to something considerable!"
"I just wonder how many pills Pill Refiner Zhou can provide?"
"Fifty bottles of Pigu Pills every month!" After thinking for a moment, Zhou Xun answered.
Goods worth two hundred Spirit Essences per month were fairly decent for a first collaboration.
Hong San nodded and continued asking:
"At what price per Spirit Essence?"
"Three for five. How about it?" Zhou Xun pondered briefly and named a price.
"Three for five... this..." Hong San revealed a troubled expression.
"Pill prices have risen recently. Pigu Pills can occasionally sell for the high price of five Spirit Essences. A profit of one Spirit Essence per pill is already quite substantial," Zhou Xun said casually.
"For fifty bottles, let's call it one hundred seventy Spirit Essences in total. How about it?" Seeing that Zhou Xun understood the market, Hong San stopped quibbling and named a figure.
"Deal!" Zhou Xun smiled and agreed.
The cost of fifty bottles of Pigu Pills was around eighty Spirit Essences. By this calculation, his monthly profit would be ninety Spirit Essences.
Adding Danbao Pavilion's monthly stipend of twenty Spirit Essences.
His total income would reach one hundred ten Spirit Essences, more than a spirit stone.
Afterward, the two continued discussing the details of their cooperation and agreed to trade on the fifteenth of every month.
Then the two left.
Zhou Xun circled around several times, changed outfits again, and headed to the Hundred Treasures Pavilion in the center of the market district.
This time, he planned to purchase the Pill Formula for Qi Induction Pills.
Pigu Pills were ultimately only basic pills. Even after working hard for an entire day, he could not refine many of them, and the money earned was all hard-earned coin.
To truly make a fortune, he still had to rely on higher-grade pills.
The Hundred Treasures Pavilion did not belong to any of the Four Great Clans of Red Leaf Square.
Yet its scale was not the least bit inferior to either Danbao Pavilion or Mystic Talisman Pavilion.
It was said that a True Core cultivator stood behind the Hundred Treasures Pavilion.
True Core was the great realm after Foundation Establishment, and those who reached it could live as long as five hundred years.
Before long, Zhou Xun arrived before the Hundred Treasures Pavilion.
The Hundred Treasures Pavilion covered more than sixty zhang and had seven floors. Calling it a pavilion would be less fitting than calling it a towering pagoda.
A towering pagoda that stored countless treasures.
On either side of the first-floor entrance stood two guards clad in spirit armor and holding long halberds.
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