CHAPTER 30: CHAPTER 30: BUNDLED SALES

Qi Xiu eyed the two bowls of Golden Lock Qi-Boosting Kidney Strengthening Soup before him. He lifted one bowl, took a sip, rinsed his mouth, then took another sip from the rim of the second bowl. Indeed, the medicinal properties were not the slightest bit off! Setting down the bowl, Qi Xiu revealed a blissful smile.

Both bowls of Golden Lock Qi-Boosting Kidney Strengthening Soup had been concocted by him. The difference lay in the second bowl; this particular bowl of medicinal soup had been specially brewed for him to test the Divine Marvels acquired from mastering the First Realm of Alchemy. The outcome was clearly very satisfying to him.

"Originally, I thought the mastery of the First Realm in Alchemy would be like calligraphy, attaching Divine Marvels to the medicine, enhancing or changing its properties. I didn’t expect it would take this form; it seems I oversimplified it."

Sitting cheerfully in his rocking chair, Qi Xiu appeared carefree and content.

The Divine Marvel gained from the breakthrough in the First Realm of Alchemy was simple yet exceedingly practical.

As is commonly known, in the Dao of medicine—whether for decoctions or pills—emphasis is placed on the ’four pillars’ principle. This means that a prescription requires a monarch, minister, assistant, and messenger, whose medicinal strengths work in concert, forming the four pillars.

The monarch herb is the principal ingredient, its medicinal strength being paramount in the formula and used in the largest quantity. In any prescription, the monarch herb is primary and indispensable.

The minister herb acts as an auxiliary, supporting the monarch herb’s effects with lesser medicinal strength.

The assistant herb, also known as a moderating herb, serves to eliminate or reduce the toxicity or harshness of the monarch and minister herbs.

The messenger herb, often called the ’guiding herb,’ is responsible for directing all the other herbs in the formula to the targeted meridians and organs.

But the Divine Marvel of the First Realm of Alchemy allowed Qi Xiu to break free from the constraints of this four-pillar principle, enabling him to directly omit a portion of the ingredients.

"This Divine Marvel might seem insignificant at first glance, but upon deeper reflection, it was nothing short of heaven-defying."

"After all, for the same formula, where others need twenty ingredients, he only needs nineteen."

"And most crucially, this was only from the First Realm of Alchemy."

"If the First Realm allowed for omitting some ingredients, what about the Second Realm, or the Third Realm?"

"Once he elevates his Alchemy to the Fourth or Fifth Realm—could he possibly exempt all ingredients?"

"By then, he could toss a handful of roadside weeds into a crucible and concoct a Timeless Miracle Medicine!"

"I’m admiring the mountain view from the city tower, my ears catching the sound of turmoil outside the gates..." Humming a tune from his past life, Qi Xiu’s buoyant mood allowed him to temporarily forget his prior unease.

「That night.」

At the first quarter of the hour of Chou.

The back door of the Qian Family quietly opened, and six corpulent Daoist priests clad in Yuhua Temple Taoist Robes walked out, their faces expressionless.

In their hands, they each carried a basin-sized box carved from dark wood.

After briefly conferring, they dispersed, each taking a separate path but all heading in the same general direction.

Chanting abstruse, low, and eerie scriptures, the corpulent Daoists walked slowly, as if waiting for something.

In the surrounding streets, alleys, and residential buildings, those who had partaken in the Qian Family’s funeral feast and were sound asleep suddenly slumped over, unconscious.

In a few seconds, their mouths bulged out as though something was writhing inside.

The next instant, several slender, multi-limbed creatures, resembling beetles with hairy, spider-like legs, forced their way past lips and teeth, slowly crawling out of their mouths.

These strange creatures crawled out from the people, drawn by the sound of the scriptures towards the corpulent Daoists, and burrowed one by one into the dark wooden boxes.

The six Daoists traversed the entire Baoho County.

The previously empty wooden boxes were now crammed full of those bizarre creatures.

As if by some arrangement, just before dawn broke, the Daoists returned to the Qian Family, bringing those brimming boxes before Wu Changqing.

"Hmm, not bad."

"Xuan Chang, how many have we collected so far?"

"Reporting to Master, in these past few days, we have altogether recovered 6,431 Yuan insects. We are still short 3,569. We should be able to gather all of them within seven days," Xuan Chang replied respectfully.

"Good. As soon as the Jade Bodhisattva’s seal is broken, I will be able to crush those curs from the Taibao Sect."

With a hint of ferocity in his eyes, Wu Changqing dismissed his Disciples with a wave of his hand and quietly fondled the white jade horsetail whisk in his grasp.

"Once the Myriad Insects Return to Origin technique unseals the Jade Bodhisattva, and I use the city’s able-bodied young men to refine this ’Autumn Zelkova’ Magic Artifact in my hand... With two Magic Artifacts, a mere Condensation Realm cultivator... Hmph!"

「Ghost Market Treasure Ship, along the street stalls.」

With a gloomy expression, Qian Yuchuan kept sizing up the continuous line of small stalls beside him.

Nearly twenty days had passed since his eldest senior brother had given him the task.

During this period, he had scoured all of Baoho County’s medicine shops and had visited the Ghost Market three or four times.

Yet he hadn’t found either of the two items.

Watching the increasingly unfriendly glances from his eldest senior brother and fellow Disciples, he was so anxious he felt like clawing at his own heart, yet he had no leads.

He had no choice but to try his luck at the Ghost Market again.

"Hey, Stink Mouth Qi, any news on those items I asked you to keep an eye out for?"

Reaching a corner, Qian Yuchuan flicked a silver bean towards a gaunt, raggedly dressed man opposite him, who reeked of fish.

"Oh, you’re here."

Hurriedly catching the silver bean, Stink Mouth Qi scratched at himself and chuckled, "Quite the coincidence today, the market actually has the items you’re looking for."

"Really?"

Raising his eyebrows, Qian Yuchuan pressed, "Where?"

"Hehe, don’t be in such a hurry, the person isn’t going anywhere, but about my hard-earned fee..." Stink Mouth Qi continuously rubbed his fingers together and stretched out his hand with a sheepish grin.

"Your due, as if you could be shortchanged." Impatiently tossing a silver ingot, Qian Yuchuan urged, "Lead the way, quickly!"

"Alrighty, please follow me." With the silver ingot in hand, Stink Mouth Qi took the lead and moved forward.

"Is it him?"

Standing in front of Qi Xiu’s stall, Qian Yuchuan skeptically eyed the vendor before him, then swept a glance over the items on his stall.

The stall wasn’t large: just three porcelain bottles and an old redwood talisman plaque.

"That’s him. Don’t let the ordinary appearance of his talisman plaque fool you. It’s incredibly effective."

"At Jiayi Prefecture, a man named Xue’s daughter was seized by a Demonic Cultivator. Out of desperation, he bought this guy’s talisman plaque."

"And guess what? Damn, the moment he used the talisman plaque, all the Evil Methods and Demon Skills fizzled out right then and there."

"Without his Evil Methods for protection, the Demonic Cultivator was promptly captured by Xue, who tortured him mercilessly—poor sod!"

"After that, this fella’s reputation spread."

"But he’s an odd one, comes here and only sells three talisman plaques, not one more."

"And these talisman plaques don’t last either. They expire after five days at most."

"If you’re looking to buy, you need to act fast; they might not be here later."

Listening to Stink Mouth Qi’s earnest explanation, Qian Yuchuan squatted down, reaching out to pick up the talisman plaque for a closer look.

"Don’t touch if you’re not buying," Qi Xiu, his face obscured by a Bamboo Hat, spoke in a muffled voice.

"Heh, some temper, I like that. How much for your talisman plaque?" Smiling, with no other options at hand, Qian Yuchuan decided to give it a try.

"The talisman plaque is not for sale."

Removing his Bamboo Hat, Qi Xiu, wearing a pale mask, pointed to the porcelain bottles on the stall, "Golden Lock Qi-Boosting Kidney Strengthening Soup, the evergreen tree for men. One hundred taels per bottle, sold in sets of three."

With a frown, Qian Yuchuan glanced back at Stink Mouth Qi and said in a low voice, "What kind of medicine costs a hundred taels per bottle? I don’t need it, but this talisman plaque..."

"We’re having a big promotion in our store: buy three bottles of Golden Lock Qi-Boosting Kidney Strengthening Soup, and get a talisman plaque for free. Are you sure you don’t need it?"

Staring at the smirk-like white mask across from him, Qian Yuchuan took a deep breath, "Fine, I’ll take it!"

"Done deal, appreciate your business, that’ll be three hundred taels of silver in total." Qi Xiu deftly wrapped up the three bottles of Golden Lock Qi-Boosting Kidney Strengthening Soup and handed them along with the talisman plaque to Qian Yuchuan.

"If this thing isn’t as useful as you say, Stink Mouth Qi, you better just stay on the ship for the rest of your life and never come down."

With a snort, Qian Yuchuan took his purchases and strode away.

"Heh, bundle selling really does save a lot of hassle. Stink Mouth Qi, this is for you." Qi Xiu tossed a silver ingot to Stink Mouth Qi.

With another nine hundred taels in his account that day, Qi Xiu was in high spirits as he packed his belongings.

At this rate, accumulating fifty thousand taels to purchase the True Cultivation Power was just around the corner.

"Tsk, however, the voice of that man just now sounded somewhat familiar..."

Standing up and focusing on the retreating figure of Qian Yuchuan, Qi Xiu’s eyes narrowed slightly, as the image of a face fond of hearty laughter vaguely surfaced in his mind.