Orders Pouring In

The young man also realized he had been a little presumptuous. In the cultivation world, treasures of such power were things one could encounter only by chance, not by seeking them out. Who would sell one so casually?

Before the young man could take back his words, Yi Xuan nodded and said, "I'm willing to sell, but what about the price?"

The young man hadn't expected Yi Xuan to actually be willing to sell it. Although he was a little puzzled, his face lit up with delight. "The price is no problem. How about a hundred low-grade Spirit Stones?"

Yi Xuan did the math in his head. The materials and labor cost about five Spirit Stones. Add my research and development expenses, and I should charge at least two more Spirit Stones per grenade. If I sell them to outsiders, I'll have to factor in a profit too. I'll make a little less this time and set the profit at three Spirit Stones. That makes ten low-grade Spirit Stones per grenade, or ten grenades for a hundred low-grade Spirit Stones. That's pretty profitable!

The young man across from him saw Yi Xuan pondering for a long while without speaking and hurriedly said, "Fellow disciple, I can offer at most a hundred and twenty Spirit Stones for one. Any higher, and buying it would hardly be worth the cost!"

"What?" Yi Xuan exclaimed, looking astonished.

Seeing Yi Xuan's reaction, the young man gritted his teeth and raised his offer. "A hundred and twenty-five Spirit Stones apiece! That's the highest price we can offer, but what you give me must be good quality!"

Yi Xuan still didn't speak, but inwardly, he was blooming with laughter.

Sure enough, silence was golden. Look at that: he had only kept quiet for a few dozen seconds, and his profit had multiplied dozens of times over.

Yi Xuan had been wondering whether ten Spirit Stones was a little too expensive for one grenade, but he hadn't expected his own horizons to be so narrow.

Just moments ago, Yi Xuan had felt some resentment toward the young man. After all, he had inexplicably brought several people over to surround his stall. Anyone who didn't know better might have thought Yi Xuan was interfering with the city's civilized development.

But in the blink of an eye, the more Yi Xuan looked at the young man, the more pleasing he found him.

How was this an enemy? This was the god of wealth!

At the thought, Yi Xuan put on a troubled expression and asked, "Are you friends with Junior Sister Mu?"

The young man nodded nervously. "That's right. I've known Senior Sister Mu for many years. She's taken good care of me, just like my own elder sister!"

Yi Xuan nodded. "Since you're Junior Sister Mu's younger brother, that makes you my younger brother too! How could I, as your elder brother, overcharge you when you come to buy something from me? Forget a hundred and twenty-five Spirit Stones. I'll sell them at cost: a hundred Spirit Stones!"

Hearing Yi Xuan's words, the young man was deeply moved. Even the hand holding the grenade fragments trembled a little as he said, "Senior Brother! No! Big Brother, I can't take advantage of you. How about this? I really am a little short on funds, so I'll pay a hundred and ten Spirit Stones apiece! I can't let you work for nothing!"

A troubled expression appeared on Yi Xuan's face. Then he sighed. "All right, we'll do as you say, little brother! I still don't know your esteemed surname."

The young man smiled. "My name is Tang Haoqian. What should I call you, Big Brother?"

"Yi Xuan!"

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Yi Xuan took Tang Haoqian's hand and asked, "Little brother, although my grenades are expensive, there's a reason for the price. The technology inside them is the fruit of my heart and blood. The materials might look simple, but the manufacturing process isn't something anyone else can replicate. Even I need a month to make a single one!"

Tang Haoqian nodded at Yi Xuan's words.

Seeing that he had thoroughly taken the man in, Yi Xuan continued, "Fortunately, aside from the ones I gave Junior Sister Mu, I still have some in stock. How many do you want, little brother?"

Tang Haoqian thought for a moment. "Five? Do you have that many, Big Brother?"

Yi Xuan nearly laughed himself to death. Never mind five, he could have produced even fifty. Still, he put on a troubled look and said, "That's a bit much. Oh well, since you're my brother, I'll sell you the two I was saving for self-defense as well!"

With that, Yi Xuan took five grenades out of his Storage Bag one after another.

Tang Haoqian's eyes shone when he saw the grenades Yi Xuan had laid out on the stall.

He hurriedly paid the Spirit Stones, exchanged a few more polite words with Yi Xuan, and left Yi Xuan's little shop with the others.

Once they had left, Yi Xuan quickly packed up his stall and returned to the little courtyard behind it.

He felt the Spirit Stones in his Storage Bag, considering what to eat for lunch and whether to find somewhere to amuse himself that afternoon.

As for the stall? Today's profit had nearly caught up with his profits from the past few years combined, so why keep it open? Yi Xuan decided to give himself a day off.

The next morning, Yi Xuan had already woken up and was lying in bed, but he had no intention of opening his stall. After all, he had already exceeded his turnover for the entire year yesterday, so why bother?

Unfortunately, things didn't go as he wished. Yi Xuan, who had wanted to go back to sleep, was awakened by a clamor outside the door, accompanied by several knocks.

With no other choice, a bleary-eyed Yi Xuan pushed open the courtyard gate, only to find more than a dozen pairs of eyes staring at him.

The sight jolted Yi Xuan fully awake. Looking at the dozen or so strangers standing before the gate, he asked curiously, "Who are you?"

The person closest to Yi Xuan cupped his hands in greeting. "May I ask if you are Senior Brother Yi Xuan?"

Yi Xuan nodded in confirmation.

The man immediately continued, "We're all disciples of the sect. We heard that Senior Brother Yi has a treasure called a grenade, and that its power is astonishing. We'd all like to buy some from you!"

After hearing him out, Yi Xuan finally understood why they had come. But he had already told Tang Haoqian yesterday that he had none left. If he sold grenades to everyone now, wouldn't he be slapping his own face?

If Tang Haoqian found out, he would surely realize that Yi Xuan had taken him for a sucker.

Seeing Yi Xuan hesitate, the man in the lead said, "Is Senior Brother Yi troubled because you have none in stock? Don't worry! We're in no hurry. We came this time to bring you our deposits. Once you have more, we'll come and collect them!"

After that, the people began handing Spirit Stones over to Yi Xuan without pause. One person even stood to the side specifically to record each person's name, the number of Spirit Stones they paid, and other details.

In the end, less than a quarter of an hour later, the group left Yi Xuan's courtyard in high spirits. Yi Xuan alone remained, standing there in a daze with the list in his hand, feeling the additional Spirit Stones in his Storage Bag.

A gust of cold wind blew past and brought Yi Xuan back to his senses. Somewhat bewildered, he muttered to himself, "Is doing business this easy nowadays?"

Only after returning to his room did Yi Xuan fully come to his senses. He checked the additional Spirit Stones in his Storage Bag: a full five thousand five hundred low-grade Spirit Stones! That meant Yi Xuan had sold fifty grenades in less than half a shichen.

If Fatty Lin found out that number, he would surely cry and shout for Yi Xuan to let him sell the grenades.

In just that little while, Yi Xuan had earned nearly as much as Fatty Lin made in profit from selling fans for a whole year!

Unfortunately, Fatty Lin was an ordinary person, after all, and it wasn't suitable for him to act as an agent selling supplies for cultivators. Otherwise, with his business acumen, he might really have been hauling money home by the sackful.