In the blink of an eye, Lin Yuan had been staying at Miaoyin Tower for three days. During these three days, apart from his daily cultivation, he devoted almost all his attention to alchemy.
With each alchemy session, his mastery of the alchemy techniques from his predecessor's memories became increasingly refined, and he vaguely caught up to about 70-80% of his predecessor's level.
He could produce seven to eight pills from a single batch of Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Pills.
This level was more than enough to satisfy Sun Yuniang.
After all, his predecessor couldn't always produce ten pills, and he would always keep one or two for himself.
As the number of Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Pills Lin Yuan provided returned to normal, Sun Yuniang, who had previously been somewhat disdainful of him, became much more enthusiastic and stopped being so rude.
Yesterday, she even specially booked a table at Zuixianju, with various spiritual foods and wines, which, after all the miscellaneous costs, amounted to more than a dozen low-grade spirit stones.
It could be said that she was quite generous.
Such a spiritual meal was something even the peak-stage Lin Yuan rarely ate.
Lin Yuan, of course, thoroughly enjoyed it, almost swallowing his tongue.
"If I could possess a spiritual land, and keep hundreds of beautiful maids and several cooks, this immortal cultivation wouldn't be in vain."
Lin Yuan savored yesterday's meal, his desire to recover his cultivation level and escape his current situation growing even stronger.
Although his safety was temporarily assured, he was still living under someone else's roof.
...
"Condense the pills, open the furnace!"
A surge of earth fire suddenly rose, and compared to his initial clumsiness, Lin Yuan's movements were now much more skillful.
His hand seals flowed smoothly, and soon the furnace lid rose, releasing eight perfectly round and plump Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Pills, which landed in a pre-prepared jade bottle.
"The last batch of materials is used up."
Lin Yuan exhaled softly, a hint of fatigue flashing in his eyes.
With his improved alchemy skills, the mana consumption for each pill-refining session had decreased significantly.
Therefore, the furnace could be opened twice a day.
The two Crimson Blood Ginsengs, along with many other materials, were completely consumed within three days, transforming into the Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Pills in the jade bottle.
The first Crimson Blood Ginseng yielded 15 pills.
The second yielded a full 21 pills.
A total of 36 pills, calculated at 5 low-grade spirit stones per pill, amounted to 180 low-grade spirit stones.
According to the initially agreed-upon profit-sharing ratio, Lin Yuan would receive 36 pills.
While Sun Yuniang received the majority of 146 pills, the cost of just the three Crimson Blood Ginsengs alone was over 70 low-grade spirit stones.
Adding other miscellaneous materials, the raw material cost alone was approximately 80 low-grade spirit stones.
The net profit was only sixty or seventy spirit stones.
Of course, this figure wasn't low, considering she only purchased raw materials and didn't have to exert much effort. Moreover, this was only the profit from three days.
If sales continued, the profit could reach six or seven hundred low-grade spirit stones per month.
This figure was already quite considerable.
Even a Qi Refining Stage 8 cultivator like Zhao Changji, leading a hunting team to fight monsters, only earns a net profit of two to three hundred low-grade spirit stones per month.
After all, he has to share the profits with his teammates, maintain his magical artifacts and equipment, purchase talismans and medicines, and even face life-threatening dangers.
That's why alchemists are considered noble and respected. It's only natural that Zhao Changji would target his predecessor.
However, people aren't machines; even cultivators need rest.
Three consecutive days of high-intensity alchemy made Lin Yuan feel like he had lost a lot of weight.
Even with the constant nourishment of Yin-nourishing and blood-strengthening properties, he still felt a deep sense of fatigue.
Putting away the pills,
Lin Yuan closed his eyes and sensed that his lost essence and blood had been fully restored under the nourishment of the "blood-strengthening" property.
He immediately activated the "Blood Qi Elixir Extraction Technique" and extracted another portion of blood qi.
As another quarter of his essence and blood was extracted, his face quickly turned paler.
However, he didn't feel particularly weak. The Yin-nourishing and Blood-strengthening properties were constantly working, slowly restoring his health.
He cast a Cleansing spell,
clearing the blood energy from the room.
Lin Yuan took a deep breath, pushed open the door, and went straight to the third floor.
The women along the way were numerous, needless to say.
Lin Yuan kept his eyes straight ahead, but felt a bitter taste in his mouth.
The "Blood-Strengthening" property was good, but it had an unspeakable side effect.
While strengthening his blood and qi, it also made him much more active, especially in the mornings.
He was almost always woken up by the urge to urinate.
Suppressing his restless desires, he arrived at Sun Yuniang's room and gently knocked.
"Come in,"
came Sun Yuniang's languid voice from inside.
Lin Yuan entered the room, his gaze momentarily freezing.
He cursed inwardly, "You vixen!" Why
did this crazy woman let him in while she was taking a bath!
In the center of the room, steam rose from a large wooden tub. Sun Yuniang rested her two slender, snow-white arms on the rim, her head tilted back contentedly, her eyes half-closed.
Two honeydew melons floated in the water, ridiculously white and round,
with faint blue veins visible on them.
"Looks like I've come at the wrong time!"
Lin Yuan apologized, not daring to look any further, and hurriedly turned to leave.
He didn't want to do anything that would make him lose control.
"Master Lin, you were so sharp-tongued and bold with your eyes before, but it turns out you're just a show-off?"
Sun Yuniang spoke lazily, her tone carrying a hint of mockery.
Lin Yuan remained unmoved, walking even faster, sneering as he went, "So flirtatious, yet you tell me to get lost when it comes to actually doing it. If Yuniang really cared, my door has been open these past few nights, why haven't you come over?"
Sun Yuniang's smile froze, and she was speechless for a moment.
Seeing that Lin Yuan was about to leave the room, she shook her head, raised her hand, and with a wave of her hand, a burst of magic closed the door.
She said with a hint of resentment, "Fellow Daoist Lin, you really know how to mock people. Yu Niang is just worried that your body is too weak to handle it. Otherwise, what harm would it do to let you have your fill?"
"Alright, alright, I suppose you don't think much of my withered body. Come back, I won't tease you anymore."
Lin Yuan then turned around.
Sure enough, he saw Sun Yu Niang obediently submerged most of her body in the wooden tub, only her slender, snow-white arms and shoulders showing.
He took out the newly refined Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Pill and let Sun Yu Niang examine it. Sure enough, he saw that the woman's originally lazy eyes immediately brightened.
They sparkled, like a mother dragon lying in her nest counting her jewels.
"Master Lin, you haven't disappointed me at all. You've recovered so quickly."
Lin Yuan deliberately feigned exhaustion, shaking his head. "It wasn't that easy. These past few days have drained me completely. I need to rest for a while now." "
...Of course. I'm not a fool like Zhao Changji and his daughter who would kill the goose that lays the golden eggs."
Sun Yuniang's gaze lingered on his pale face for a moment, then she immediately nodded and waved her hand. Instantly,
thirty-six low-grade spirit stones and a small mountain of medicinal herbs appeared on the table beside her.
The first thing that caught Lin Yuan's eye was a full fifteen Crimson Blood Ginsengs!
"Master Lin, I'll give you two days of rest, then you can continue refining pills. Refine for three days, then rest for two days."
"These herbs are enough to keep you occupied for the rest of the month, how about it?"
Sun Yuniang smiled at Lin Yuan, clearly outlining his needs in just a few words.
Lin Yuan was stunned.
Remember the first website domain name 𝕥𝕨𝕜𝕒𝕟.𝕔𝕠𝕞
You've already prepared the herbs, and you're asking me how it is? How could I possibly say no?
However, three days on, two days off is already quite humane.
Compared to the 996 work culture of his previous life, it even deserves a "benevolent" label.
Lin Yuan looked at the fifteen vibrant red Crimson Blood Ginsengs on the table, a well-hidden desire flashing deep in his eyes.
"Thank you, Yuniang."
He raised his hand to collect the herbs and spirit stones from the table.
Lin Yuan hesitated for a moment before asking, "Besides the Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Pill, there are also the Heaven and Earth Harmony Powder and the Dragon Strengthening Ointment. I wonder if you would like me to refine them?"
These two secret bedroom medicines also require some spiritual plants.
If possible, Lin Yuan naturally hoped to have more contact with them to see if he could discover any useful properties.
Sun Yuniang covered her mouth and chuckled upon hearing this, shaking her head and saying, "Alchemist Lin is very kind, but I have other plans for these two medicines."
Lin Yuan was taken aback upon hearing this.
Then he quickly realized.
That's right, he had already given out the secret formula. With Sun Yuniang's shrewdness, how could she not arrange for her true confidant to try refining them?
If it weren't for the high difficulty in refining the Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Pill, which would be difficult for ordinary alchemists to master in a short time,
her dependence on him would probably decrease further.
As for the Heaven and Earth Harmony Powder and the Dragon Strengthening Ointment, they were relatively easier to refine. That's because the "condensing liquid into pills" step was omitted.
As long as one's alchemy skills reached a certain level, there was confidence in successfully refining them.
He left Sun Yuniang's room with a slightly heavy heart.
Lin Yuan clenched his fists.
He needed to prepare as many backup plans as possible.
Otherwise, if his role were completely replaced one day, this woman might turn on him and kick him out.
Back in his room,
Lin Yuan pondered for a moment before taking out five Crimson Blood Ginsengs from his storage bag.
The speed at which the "Blood Strengthening" attribute was replenished needed to be accelerated.
Next, he planned to maintain a one-third attrition rate to increase the progress.
Sun Yuniang might have some complaints about this attrition rate, but he couldn't care less right now. Replenishing the "Blood Strengthening" attribute as soon as possible and acquiring new blank binding slots was the most important thing.
As long as Sun Yuniang's people couldn't refine the Dragon Tiger Nourishing Pill, he would be safe for the time being!
His gaze swept over the five Crimson Blood Ginsengs.
Lin Yuan slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air.
These five Crimson Blood Ginsengs were carefully selected from fifteen, all over thirty years old, with one even approaching forty years old.
[Spiritual Root Discovered: Crimson Blood Ginseng]
[Quality: 40 years old, Lower-Middle]
[Boundable Trait: Blood Strengthening Selected, Can be Replenished, Replenish?]
...
The panel information kept flashing.
Lin Yuan had already replenished all five Crimson Blood Ginseng. A
dense azure light enveloped his entire body, his heart seemed to transform into a powerful, roaring engine, constantly pumping out viscous, scalding blood energy, turning it into a mighty river, rushing and washing over his limbs and bones.
Deep in his dantian.
The small phantom of the Crimson Blood Ginseng had already solidified considerably.
[Spiritual Root Bound: Crimson Blood Ginseng (Lower-Middle)]
[Trait: Blood Strengthening (7/10)]
[After this trait is replenished, a blank binding slot will be released]
[Currently Replenished Trait: Yin Nourishing (White)]
Looking at the latest information flashing on the panel, Lin Yuan couldn't help but reveal a hint of satisfaction.
Five Crimson Blood Ginseng, yet it increased the progress by three-fifths.
Clearly, only the medicinal power of thirty years of Crimson Blood Ginseng was needed to advance the progress by one-tenth.
"If I could get three more thirty-year-old Crimson Blood Ginseng, the Blood Strengthening trait would be completely replenished. At that time, I could bind a new trait..."
Feeling the vast and vigorous blood energy within his body, Lin Yuan walked to the bronze mirror and gazed at himself in it. His
originally pale complexion had vanished, becoming rosy and full.
His previously somewhat hunched figure had straightened considerably, and upon closer inspection in the mirror, even the fine lines on his face had been smoothed out.
He
looked like a middle-aged man in his early forties, without a trace of weakness, but rather quite robust.
The essence and blood he had lost while using the "Blood Energy Nourishing Pill Technique" were now almost fully recovered.
"Looking too young isn't good either. An old man like me who failed to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage should be weakened and half-dead."
"Ideally, I should make people think I pose no threat whatsoever, that I could die at any moment without them even lifting a finger."
Lin Yuan used the bronze mirror to disguise himself,
instantly making his reflection appear much older and weaker.
"It'll do alright, but we still need a secret technique that can specifically alter one's body shape and appearance to be on the safe side."
He secretly made a mental note of this.
Instead of resting, Lin Yuan used the "Blood Qi Nourishing Pill Technique" to refine four more Nourishing Yuan Pills to a superior quality.
This gave him a total of seven superior Nourishing Yuan Pills.
These pills were given to him by the Zhao father and daughter, so he naturally wouldn't consume them.
However, that didn't stop him from exchanging them with others.
Ordinary Nourishing Yuan Pills cost three spirit stones each.
Superior Nourishing Yuan Pills could sell for five or even six low-grade spirit stones.
That was money!
...
Another day passed.
Inside the room.
Lin Yuan sat cross-legged, the "Yi Wood Nourishing Body Technique" operating at full power, constantly absorbing and releasing spiritual energy.
Since fully binding with the earth spirit and raising his spiritual root's sensitivity to eleven or twelve points, comparable to a low-grade spiritual root
, Lin Yuan's cultivation speed was almost twice as fast as before.
Furthermore, since he had once been a peak Qi Refining cultivator, and was now essentially rebuilding his cultivation from scratch,
his progress was extremely smooth.
In just three or four days, he had accumulated nearly half of the spiritual energy within his body.
He estimated that with another five or six days, he should be able to reach the peak of the fourth level of Qi Refining and recover to the fifth level.
He ended his cultivation.
A glint of light flashed in Lin Yuan's eyes.
"It's a pity Sun Yuniang only gave me the raw materials for the Dragon-Tiger Nourishing Pill. If I could refine a few batches of Qi-Gathering Pills, the time to recover to the fifth level of Qi Chain would be further shortened."
The Qi-Gathering Pill, a mid-grade first-tier pill, could help cultivators in the mid-stage of Qi Chain improve their cultivation. With
his previous alchemy skills, he could barely refine this pill, but the success rate was low, only three or four pills per batch, barely breaking even.
After a day
, he used the "Blood Qi Pill Gathering Technique" again, successfully nurturing the remaining three Nourishing Yuan Pills to a high-quality level.
Therefore, he now possessed ten high-quality Nourishing Yuan Pills, worth fifty or sixty low-grade spirit stones on the market.
Currently, all of this depended on him successfully selling these ten pills.
"It's time to go out."
Lin Yuan originally had 13 low-grade spirit stones and 77 fragments of spirit.
Adding the 36 spirit stones he received from Sun Yuniang, his savings totaled about 40 low-grade spirit stones.
If he could sell the ten premium Nourishing Yuan Pills, his personal wealth would approach one hundred low-grade spirit stones.
This would be enough to purchase three 30-year-old Crimson Blood Ginsengs with some left over.
However, Lin Yuan still had some concerns about going out to buy them. Even in broad daylight, there were patrols maintaining order in the market.
But while it's easy to dodge a spear in the open, it's hard to guard against a hidden arrow. He didn't want to risk his life to test the market's security. "I possess the blessing of a Heavenly Spirit Root, my future is limitless, safety is paramount, I must stay put! A wise man doesn't stand under a crumbling wall!" With this thought in mind, Lin Yuan got up and left the room to go find Sun Yuniang again. Upon learning Lin Yuan's purpose, Sun Yuniang's beautiful eyes flickered, and she calmly said, "If Master Lin needs anything, just tell me, and I'll have someone procure it for you." "The market hasn't been peaceful these past few days; undercurrents are swirling. Last night, I heard there were several more murders." "Fellow Daoist is quite the catch for many. What if you get kidnapped? Hehehe..." Lin Yuan thought to himself, speechless. He thought, "Are you worried about me? You're worried about your cash cow running away!" But he didn't expose her, only saying that he wanted to start refining some nourishing and strengthening pills and needed to personally select the medicinal materials to ensure their suitability. If Sun Yuniang was worried, she could arrange for someone to accompany him for protection. Sun Yuniang pondered for a moment. Finally, he chuckled and said, "Fellow Daoist is indeed very considerate. Ping'er, I'll trouble you to escort Master Lin on this journey." A beautiful female cultivator in a black dress, with a rather aloof and elegant appearance, immediately responded, nodded to Lin Yuan, and followed behind him without saying another word. Sun Ping'er. Lin Yuan had some impression of this female cultivator; she always had this unapproachable demeanor and was obedient to Sun Yuniang, clearly a confidante. This female cultivator did not have a plaque displayed at Miaoyin Tower, and her aura was quite deep and obscure, making it difficult to discern her specific cultivation level. However, no matter what, she was still much stronger than him at this moment. Lin Yuan was well aware of his own limitations. He cupped his hands in a gesture of respect to Sun Yuniang, then took out the offering plaque of the Chen Clan's Pill Hall, hung it on his waist, and then led Sun Ping'er out of Miaoyin Tower. The warm midday sun shone on him, and the bright warmth made him squint for a moment. This was the first time he had seen the sun in several days. Taking a deep breath of the fresh air, Lin Yuan looked at Sun Ping'er, who was silently following behind him, and asked with a smile, "May I ask what your cultivation level is, Miss Ping'er?" Sun Ping'er glanced at him but didn't speak. "..." Lin Yuan was rebuffed but not discouraged. He continued, "I have some enemies in this market. Therefore, I wanted to know your cultivation level just in case..." "Late stage of Qi Refining," Sun Ping'er said softly. Then, as if she had thought of something, she added in a calm tone, "You have the offering plaque of the Chen Clan's Pill Hall, and there are patrol teams on duty during the day. No one will dare to openly attack you." "As for going to dark alleys and secluded places, if the enemy's strength is below Foundation Establishment, I can always deal with them." Lin Yuan's pupils contracted slightly, and he had a rough estimate of Sun Ping'er's strength. He then said nothing more and led Sun Ping'er towards the stalls. Along the way, the sounds of vendors hawking their wares filled the air, creating a lively and bustling atmosphere. It seemed like a peaceful and idyllic scene. However, Lin Yuan keenly sensed that from the moment he stepped out of the Myriad Sounds Pavilion, several subtle gazes had been silently fixed on him. "Heh..." He sneered inwardly, remaining silent. He walked straight towards several stalls displaying spiritual plants and medicinal herbs. Along the way, several familiar faces struck up conversations with Lin Yuan, but he was too lazy to respond, simply adopting a disheartened and uninterested demeanor, which quickly extinguished their interest in continuing the conversation. Throughout the entire process, Sun Ping'er followed closely behind Lin Yuan, her fair and delicate face expressionless, exuding an aloof air. Suddenly, Lin Yuan stopped, halting in front of a stall selling spirit beast meat. The stall owner was a burly man with a full beard, sitting arrogantly in front of the stall. His slightly tattered armor was stained with blood, and one could vaguely see wounds and bloodstains on the parts of his body not covered by the armor. "Fellow Daoist Lu." Lin Yuan stepped forward and greeted him. This man was named Lu Ye, a rogue cultivator who specialized in hunting demonic beasts. He usually set up a stall in the market. Lin Yuan had dealt with him a few times before. It was said that because his body-refining technique was flawed, he had a very fiery temper and was easily provoked. The reason for seeking him out was simple. First, he was injured. Second, he had clashed with Zhao Changji's hunting team several times while hunting demonic beasts and had suffered considerable losses. "Old man Lin?" Lu Ye raised an eyebrow, saw that it was Lin Yuan, and immediately scoffed, "Why aren't you becoming Zhao Changji's son-in-law? What are you doing here?" Lin Yuan smiled bitterly, "Fellow Daoist Lu, did you just return from hunting? You don't know, but I parted ways with Zhao Changji long ago! Don't try to make fun of me with such words."
"Hmph!"
Lu Ye snorted coldly, his expression softening considerably.
He had indeed just returned from hunting and had vaguely heard about the commotion between Lin Yuan and Zhao Changji, but he wasn't clear on the details and didn't bother to look into it further.
He simply picked up his battle sword, slammed it on the table, and said coldly, "Who has the leisure to make fun of you? What you and that Zhao fellow are like is none of my business! I'm just asking you, are you going to buy anything or not? If not, then get out!"
Lin Yuan didn't take it seriously, and simply took out a jade bottle, saying, "I noticed that Fellow Daoist Lu seems to be injured. I have a bottle of Nourishing Yuan Pills here, and they're quite effective. I wonder if you would like some?"
Lu Ye took the pills, smelled them, and a look of surprise flashed in his eyes.
However, after examining them carefully for a few moments, his brows suddenly furrowed.
His expression instantly turned furious. He grabbed his battle sword, pointed it at Lin Yuan, and cursed, "You bastard Lin, how dare you conspire with that scoundrel Zhao Changji to frame me?"
Whoosh!
The next moment, a slender figure in a black dress instantly blocked Lin Yuan's path.
A chilling aura emanated from her, carrying a faint killing intent.
It was Sun Ping'er.
Lu Ye was slightly taken aback, but then his anger intensified. His blood surged, and his already burly figure suddenly swelled, a faint blood-red light emanating from his body.
The tension instantly escalated.
"Don't be impulsive,"
Lin Yuan quickly grabbed Sun Ping'er's hand and pulled her aside.
Sun Ping'er struggled only slightly before ceasing her resistance, simply tilting her head to look at Lin Yuan.
"Fellow Daoist Lu," Lin Yuan said thoughtfully, "My falling out with Zhao Changji is common knowledge in the market. Why would they conspire to frame you? Is there some misunderstanding?"
"Misunderstanding?"
Lu Ye sneered, flipping his hand to retrieve a talisman from his storage bag. He then slammed it onto one of the pills!
*Chih!*
With a soft sound, a twisted black shadow suddenly appeared on the Nourishing Yuan Pill, which appeared and smelled perfectly normal.
The shadow resembled a ferocious canine beast, and as soon as it appeared, it was suppressed by the talisman in Lu Ye's hand, completely dissipating into the air.
"This is Zhao Changji's secret technique, the Beast Soul Seal. If I swallow this poisonous pill, my life will be entirely in his hands!"
"And you still say you didn't conspire with him to frame me?"
"Beast Soul Seal?"
Lin Yuan's heart skipped a beat, secretly relieved.
[Remember this site's domain name: Taiwan Novel Network → 𝑡𝑤𝑘𝑎𝑛.𝑐𝑜𝑚]
He had already carefully examined it countless times, combining it with his predecessor's decades of alchemy experience, but he couldn't find any problems.
Only then did he dare to put it up for sale.
Unexpectedly, he was still a step behind.
Fortunately, he had always been cautious and hadn't dared to take the Nourishing Yuan Pill.
Seeing Lu Ye's angry expression, he quickly tried to appease him:
"Fellow Daoist Lu, I'm innocent! As for the Beast Soul Seal... I didn't know either. It was Zhao Changji who wanted to harm me. Fortunately, you discovered it, otherwise the consequences would have been unimaginable!"
"You say you're innocent, so you're innocent? Who knows what kind of scheme you and Zhao Changji were plotting!"
Lu Ye snorted coldly, clearly not believing Lin Yuan's one-sided story.
Lin Yuan gave a wry smile and continued to explain, "Fellow Daoist Lu, think about it carefully. Since you fell for his trick before, how could he possibly use the exact same method against you? This Beast Soul Seal was originally prepared for me!"
As he spoke, he deliberately pointed to the Chen Clan Pill Hall waist token on his body and recounted the events of the past few days.
"Many people in the market know about this matter. If Fellow Daoist Lu doesn't believe me, you can ask someone else."
After listening to Lin Yuan's explanation, the anger on Lu Ye's face finally subsided considerably, clearly indicating that he had also understood.
"That bastard surnamed Zhao, I'll settle this score with him one day!"
He gritted his teeth, his hatred for Zhao Changji reaching its peak.
Seeing this, Lin Yuan sighed and said, "This matter... I also bear some responsibility. If it weren't for the fortunate discovery of the clues by you, I'm afraid I would be the one afflicted by the Beast Soul Seal." "
How about this," Lin Yuan said, "I'll take a loss. I'll sell the remaining high-quality Nourishing Essence Pills to you for forty spirit stones as compensation. What do you say?"
"Forty spirit stones?"
Upon hearing this, Lu Ye carefully examined the pills, and his anger subsided considerably. After a moment's thought, he nodded and said, "You're a reasonable person!"
He then laid out forty low-grade spirit stones on the table.
High-quality Nourishing Essence Pills typically cost at least five spirit stones, and are often hard to find. In shops, the price could even rise to six.
There were nine left in the jade bottle, so he had gotten a considerable bargain.
Moreover, he had been seriously injured during the hunt. Without these high-quality Nourishing Essence Pills, he would need to recuperate for some time.
Living in the market was difficult, and as a lone individual, he couldn't afford to live off his savings indefinitely.
Lin Yuan put away the spirit stones, feeling a pang of regret.
He'd lost over a dozen spirit stones in one go. Although the risk had been eliminated, he was currently penniless, and every single spirit stone was incredibly precious.
"Oh well, at least I've recovered some money. This Lu Ye is reasonable, and he shares a common enemy with me; the enemy of my enemy is my friend."
The transaction was complete.
Lin Yuan then took Sun Ping'er and spent a long time haggling at several stalls, finally acquiring two Crimson Blood Ginseng plants in their early thirties.
He only had twenty spirit stones left, not enough to buy one more.
"Oh well, I can just embezzle one from Sun Yuniang. Anyway, I'll get my share of the profits later, which will make up for the loss."
With this in mind, his shopping trip was essentially complete.
Lin Yuan wasn't in a hurry to leave.
With the Crimson Blood Ginseng replenished and a new binding slot about to be released, he and Sun Ping'er browsed through several stalls selling spirit plants, trying to find suitable characteristics.
Unfortunately...
These independent cultivators setting up stalls outside were mostly at the early or even mid-stages of the Qi Refining Realm, selling relatively low-grade medicinal herbs and spiritual plants.
Many of them couldn't even be recognized as spiritual roots by the cultivation panel.
Only a few, although recognized by the panel, had characteristics almost identical to those of earth spirits and crimson blood ginseng—
characteristics like nourishing yin, strengthening yang, invigorating blood, and strengthening spirit.
"I was too naive. These low-grade spiritual herbs don't have many powerful effects; they're mostly just for nourishing the body. It's not that these characteristics are bad, but as a magic cultivator, I don't know any body-refining techniques, so these characteristics are currently useless!"
It wasn't that Lin Yuan didn't want to refine his body.
It's just that the poor study literature, while the rich study martial arts—this is common knowledge in the cultivation world.
Good body-refining techniques are not only expensive but also often require complementary spiritual materials and spiritual water to aid cultivation, which is simply beyond his current reach.
With empty pockets, it's difficult to move an inch anywhere.
Picking up a spirit herb casually, Lin Yuan pondered how to expand his business while opening his interface and glancing at the notifications:
[Spiritual Root Found: Pure Spirit Grass]
[Quality: 15 years old, Low-to-Middle]
[Can be bound to one of the following traits: Tranquility, Enhancing Comprehension, Strengthening Spirit]
[Binding?]
"Hmm?"
Lin Yuan's gaze sharpened, a subtle hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.
"Tranquility? Enhancing Comprehension?"
Clearly, these two traits were no longer targeting the physical realm but had risen to the spiritual level.
Tranquility should allow one to maintain a calm mind, but its specific effects were currently unknown.
As for Enhancing Comprehension, as the name suggests, it might increase one's comprehension.
"Boss, how much is this?"
Lin Yuan asked, waving the Pure Spirit Grass in his hand.
The old man, half-leaning on his stall, glanced at the herb and lazily said, "Fifteen-year-old Qingling Grass, 20 spirit stones."
"Huh?"
Lin Yuan was stunned, not expecting it to be so expensive.
"Want it? Put it down if you don't. You're a pill refiner, surely you know this is the main ingredient of a first-grade, high-quality Qingxin Pill? I'm selling it to you for 20 spirit stones, that's already cheap!"
The old man snorted coldly and reached out to snatch the herb from Lin Yuan's hand.
Lin Yuan's face showed embarrassment.
Although he was a pill refiner, his pill-making skills were only barely at the first-grade, mid-level.
His family's pill-making tradition had reached the threshold of first-grade, high-quality, but the focus was on the refining techniques; he didn't know many pill formulas, most of which were for sexual cultivation.
He had naturally heard of the Qingxin Pill; it was said to help cultivators purify their minds and cultivate wisdom, and was quite effective for breaking through realms and comprehending spells and techniques.
However, he didn't know that Qingling Grass was its main ingredient.
"Could you possibly lower the price?"
The old man looked at him disdainfully, pondered for a moment, nodded, and held up three fingers.
"Thank you for the three spirit stones discount, fellow Daoist. If I ever need your help in the future..."
Lin Yuan was overjoyed and was about to pay when the old man's expression changed, and he shook his head, saying, "Who gave you a three-spirit-stone discount? I said thirty spirit stones!"
"This Qingling Grass, I'll sell it to you for 19 spirit stones and 70 spirit stones!"
Lin Yuan's smile froze.
After a brief moment of embarrassment, a sense of unease crept into his heart.
What the hell?
He had exactly 19 spirit stones and 77 spirit stones left in his storage bag.
Was it a coincidence? Or did this old man have some secret technique or treasure that could see through his storage bag?
Lin Yuan was on guard for a while, then suddenly came to his senses and couldn't help but curse himself for being overly cautious.
He was a penniless man; if the other party could really see through his storage bag, then there was even less to worry about.
Even a thief would shake his head in disapproval.
What is there to worry about?