Chapter 60: Selling Elixirs, Setting Out Once More!

“Fellow cultivator, what kind of pills do you require?”
The voice carried a subtle allure, almost making Shen Lian wonder if he had walked into the wrong place. He glanced again at the sign above the door to confirm.
Yes, it was a pharmacy, not a house of courtesans.
“Does your establishment accept pills for sale?”
Seeing Shen Lian unaffected by her charm, Bai Wangshu arched her brows and sized him up anew, quickly forming her judgment.
“Oh, so you’re an esteemed alchemist. Please, come in.”
She led him inside, issuing instructions to her staff before guiding Shen Lian upstairs.
“May I ask where you hail from and your name?”
Bai Wangshu drew spirit tea from her storage pouch, deftly brewing a steaming cup before him.
“Please, enjoy the tea.”
“Ding Xiu.”
Shen Lian placed the tea cup on the table. “A wanderer, I have no home to speak of.”
Bai Wangshu half-covered her laugh. “No wonder you are unfamiliar. I know all the alchemists near Chiya Island, and have friendly relations with them.”
“For you to grace my Bai Family’s Spirit Pill Shop is truly my honor.”
This Bai steward was exceedingly practiced; her every gesture brimmed with charm.
Shen Lian saw at once that she cultivated some kind of allure technique.
“I wonder, what sort of pills are you looking to sell, Fellow Ding?”
Bai Wangshu blinked at Shen Lian, relying on her Thousand Faces Enchantment—a technique meant to draw people closer and foster goodwill and interest.
With this secret art, she had drawn over half the freelance alchemists in the Chiya Island region to the Bai Family’s camp, suppressing the rival Lu Family.
Shen Lian chose the Bai Family to sell his pills precisely for this reason—their formidable influence.
The family boasted a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, three in mid-stage, and five in early-stage, making them the strongest in the Chiya Alliance.
The Lu Family, also dealing in pills, could only claim a single mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator as their greatest strength.
Of course, Bai and Lu were locked in their own intrigues, which did not interest Shen Lian. After this sale, he planned to leave the Chiya Island Alliance waters.
Sell once, then depart—what else?
“Yellow Sprout Pills, Returning Essence Pills.”
Shen Lian took out two small bottles of his concoctions. The Yellow Sprout Pills included one of medium quality.
Upon seeing the bottles, Bai Wangshu’s seasoned expression grew serious, her allure subdued.
“Fellow cultivator, please wait a moment. I must inspect the pills.”
Pills, being ingested, demanded more rigorous scrutiny than talismans.
Bai Wangshu opened the bottles to examine the quality.
Nearly all the pills Shen Lian offered were low grade.
Compared to refining higher-grade pills, low-grade ones yielded more per batch, making up in quantity what they lacked in quality.
The inferior spirit stones could be compensated for by sheer numbers.

Bai Wangshu took one pill from each bottle, tapped her spirit beast pouch, and a fluffy white mouse darted out to swallow the pills.
It was custom in pill shops that externally supplied pills were tested on the spot, the cost borne by the shop.
Shen Lian was not in a hurry, sipping tea and watching Bai Wangshu work. For some reason, his eyes kept drifting to the rolling waves outside—the surf was so dazzlingly white.
The little mouse perched by Bai Wangshu’s ear and squeaked a flurry of messages. She smoothed her hair by her forehead.
“The pills you refined are without issue. How many do you intend to sell?”
Without speaking, Shen Lian produced a storage pouch and poured out a cascade of pills onto the table.
He didn’t bother with bottles—they cost money, and filling them was a hassle.
Bai Wangshu’s eyes widened in surprise at the mountain of pills.
A major supplier!
The heap on the table was at least over a thousand pills.
It was her first time encountering such a seller.
Could he be a pill dealer?
“Fellow Ding, you’ve certainly startled me.”
Her fair hand pressed to her chest, fingers rising and falling like mountain peaks amid stormy waves, her aura billowing.
Shen Lian deftly stepped aside, and in that instant, Bai Wangshu shifted closer.
“Fellow Ding…”
“Let’s settle in spirit stones.”
Her charm failing, Bai Wangshu was a little surprised, but quickly recovered. The mouse hopped down and sniffed the pills.
When the mouse finished its inspection, Bai Wangshu began counting them one by one.
She remarked as she counted, “Your alchemy skills seem quite adept—selling so many at once.”
“I came from Black Whale Island in the north, headed for the Wildlands in search of rare herbs. With the voyage across the boundless sea measured in years, there’s little to do but refine pills and earn spirit stones for cultivation.”
Black Whale Island was near the central sea of Myriad Stars Sea, a place thriving with cultivation, guarded by a Golden Core cultivator.
Traveling from there to Chiya Island by ordinary treasure ship, with stops and storms, could easily take three to five years.
“So you’ve come from Black Whale Island—no wonder your style is so grand, you’re a person of broad experience.”
Bai Wangshu laughed lightly. “My little charms are beneath your notice.”
“The Yellow Sprout Pills will be purchased at four spirit stones each, the Returning Essence Pills at eight.”
She watched Shen Lian’s reaction as she spoke.
All were low grade, with a dozen or so medium grade. Once mixed with family-made inferior pills, they could be sold with a markup.
“In total, eight thousand six hundred and sixty spirit stones.”
Most of the materials for these pills were from Shen Lian’s prior purchase in Ninefold Immortal City. Though he had supplemented them, the total cost stayed under two thousand spirit stones.
“Here is our Bai Family’s honored guest talisman. With this, you’ll receive discounts at Bai Family shops across the Chiya Alliance.”
She arched her brows again.
“If the journey tires you, our Bai Family has cultivated beautiful women, should you wish to rest.”
“Even meeting you for the first time feels oddly familiar.”

“When I return from the Wildlands, I’d like to experience the Bai Family’s gentleness.”
Shen Lian pocketed the spirit stones and guest talisman, cupped his hands, and departed.
“Then I shall await your return.” Standing in the doorway, Bai Wangshu watched him leave like a wife bidding her husband farewell, her eyes soft and alluring.
“This woman…”
“Elder Bai.”
After Shen Lian left, an old man appeared at Bai Wangshu’s side, bowing his head.
“Have the clan in the city observe this Fellow Ding, see what he does while here.”
“I’ll arrange it. If he leaves the island, should we track his residence?”
“No need for now. Just see if he leaves Chiya City, and ensure he doesn’t contact the Lu Family.”
…
Outside the Bai Family pharmacy, Shen Lian withdrew his divine sense.
“Ah…”
He sighed softly. No matter where he went, there was always intrigue and trouble.
This sale made him realize that selling large quantities of low-grade pills was not wise.
In a place like Chiya City, his pills could affect the competition between two Foundation Establishment families.
Small places aren’t always so simple.
“Perhaps I could open a pharmacy myself.”
Selling pills in bulk always drew attention. As he pondered, the idea took shape.
Of course, it could never be in Chiya City—aside from a few major guilds, the Bai and Lu families split the market.
Opening a pharmacy here wouldn’t be for selling pills, but for stirring up the families.
First, win them over; if not, offer a dignified exit. Shen Lian was familiar with such tactics.
If he opened a shop, it would have to be in a grand city—guarded by a Golden Core master, a hundred families contending.
With many shops in the city, blending in would make him unremarkable and avoid attention.
Safe, with a Golden Core ancestor and city-wide defensive array.
Such cities had strict rules, forbidding fights within their walls.
When the time came, pay taxes, offer tribute, and focus on being a proper merchant.
He wandered the city, bought a few Five Elements spirit materials and a Sea Spirit Manual, then summoned his second-hand, patched-up little spirit boat and flew out into the vast ocean.
Farewell, White Sand Island.
He headed northeast, five thousand miles to Wanshan Island—a transit point with occasional spirit ships.
His destination: Black Whale Island.
Before Foundation Establishment, he needed many Five Elements spirit materials; hiding away on a deserted isle was no longer an option.
To live in obscurity, to stride straight toward Foundation Establishment.