After reacting, Gu Zuo obediently started recalling the pill prescriptions within his mind.
He had very many prescriptions. Just the Human-Level ones had more than thirty thousand types. It was only that the ones which suited Houtians weren’t considered for the time being. There were very many different patterns, but the refining processes didn’t have too many new ideas. One would see with just a look.
The ones suited for Xiantians also had more than ten thousand types. Among the thousand or so commonly-seen ones, there were many sections where the effects were actually duplicated. If someone wanted to refine, they just had to select the one with the best cost-performance ratio.
The Immortal Realm had more than eight thousand types, but with his present strength in refinement, he supposed that he had no way to succeed. Even if he did, it would be difficult to make one or two low grade pills. That was an outright waste of time...
In that case, which ones had the best cost-performance ratio?
In the first place, a high selling price. The higher the price, the more profits one would earn. Then, it was the price of the medicinal herbs. After all, his big brother was running a business; analogous medicinal effects with cheaper herbs was quite worthwhile. Finally, the effects of the medicinal pills. If the effects weren’t good, then no one would buy and use them. Of course, it was for the best that the effects didn’t overlap. Otherwise, one would be competing with themselves in the same medicine store. That would also negatively affect the business!
Therefore, Gu Zuo silently started filtering.
He thought things over. They had pills that upgraded one’s true qi, pills that treated external and internal injuries, pills that regrew missing limbs and reconnected meridians, pills that maintained one’s beauty, pills that enriched the blood and removed toxins... What else didn’t they have?
Moreover, dividing the different product grades and selling them at different prices saved him lots of things... Wait a minute, different product grades!
The reason why medicinal pills had different product grades was due to the amount of impurities within the pills!
Medicinal pills could upgrade a martial artist’s true qi and aid a martial artist’s complete recovery. There were all sorts of effects. All martial artists who wanted to smoothly break through couldn’t do it without the assistance of medicinal pills. However, aside from top grade pills, even high grade pills contained some impurities, which would be deposited within a martial artist’s body over the years. It would either stick to the meridians, dissolve into the blood, or adhere to the muscle fibers. Concealed within the internal organs, one might not feel it at first. However, as time went on, the impurities would cause difficulties when breaking through.
In addition, among the effects of those pills that assisted in making a breakthrough, an important one was to briefly dissolve those impurities. This allowed a martial artist to smoothly break through. However, this didn’t mean that those impurities had been eliminated. There were still some small pieces that remained within the martial artist’s body — Unless that breakthrough pill was also a top grade medicinal pill!
As a result, there was a wide variety of medicinal pills that eliminated impurities. However, this was also about choosing the lesser of two evils. For example, Gu Zuo had refined many Blood Purification Pills — Its function was to eliminate the impurities within the blood. However, the Blood Purification Pill had no effect on the impurities within the meridians, muscles, and internal organs.
Currently, what Gu Zuo was thinking about was that, in order to guard against that Lu Jiusi, the Blood Purification Pill couldn’t be exposed yet. But other types of medicinal pills that cleared away impurities could be chosen.
As such, a problem arose.
The one with the best cost-performance ratio for eliminating the impurities within the muscles was the Body Purification Pill. The best one for the meridians was the Meridian Purification Pill. And the best one for the internal organs was the Heart Purification Pill... He hesitated, somewhat at a loss.
These few medicinal pills were very precious, and their prices would reflect that. Gu Zuo carefully recalled the prescriptions for refining them and analyzed those medicinal herbs... He decided to pick the Meridian Purification Pill.
The meridians were the most important for people who practiced martial arts. Once the meridians were blocked, the consequences were practically instantaneous — Previously, wasn’t his big brother, Gongyi Tianheng, unable to cultivate because of this reason? Only, at that time, what blocked Tianheng’s meridians weren’t impurities, but Xiantian Qi.
At any rate, Gu Zuo was still considering a problem.
The medicinal herbs required for refining the Blood Purification Pill had two that coincided with the Snowy Ginseng Pill. At first, they were supposed to use the Snowy Ginseng Pills to confuse Lu Jiusi. Since the Meridian Purification Pill had quite a few that coincided with the Blood Purification Pill, justly and honorably refining this type of pill wouldn’t attract people’s attention.
Because that Lu Jiusi... He still hadn’t made his move.
But such a viper was hidden in the dark. Although Xu Lingxiu and Xi Yangyun were pining him down, no one knew whether he could act or when he would act.
As a result, although this matter was a little troublesome, they still had to rely on other medicinal pills as a cover-up. Gu Zuo felt that he’d rather be inconvenienced now than to rashly dispose of that hidden hand. Otherwise, Lu Jiusi would set up something else. If they weren’t careful and fell into his trap, what would they do then? Confusing the enemy was also very important!
Thinking up to here, Gu Zuo heaved another sigh.
Hold on.
When his big brother got stronger and reached the stage where he was capable of getting rid of Immortal Realm martial artists, who’d still care about that Lu Jiusi’s petty tricks?
If one’s skills were inferior, then they could only depend on careful and patient maneuvering.
Shaking his head to rid himself of this matter, Gu Zuo decided on the Meridian Purification Pill. Soon after, he considered another medicinal pill — The pills that were used for breaking through realms were the Xiantian Pill and the Dust Molting Pill.
The Xiantian Pill’s market certainly wasn’t small. Only, he either needed to get the blood of other Xiantians or a few of the main medicinal herbs they hadn’t found previously. But this actually wasn’t something they needed to worry about because Gu Zuo already knew that the Qingyun Sect had pharmacists who could refine the Xiantian Pill. This proved that the three types of medicinal herbs existed — Because refining pills using blood was too unorthodox, it couldn’t be supplied in great quantities. In any case, the Qingyun Sect was a Sect that looked very honorable and proper, so it was unlikely to use this type of deviant prescription. Those few main herbs could be purchased, or directly exchanged with the Sect using contribution points.
It was just that, although the Xiantian Pill was good, basically all the Inner Sect disciples were Xiantian. Only when they wanted to attract talents from the Outer Sect would they need the Xiantian Pill. While they could sell it to the Outer Sect’s people, they wouldn’t be able to extract too much money...
The Dust Molting Pill... Gu Zuo paused. He actually wanted to refine the Dust Molting Pill, but his current strength was too low and he simply wouldn’t have any success at refining it! He had to break through two more realms at the very least! There was no rushing it.
Then, what medicinal pill would be used?
After thinking about this and that, Gu Zuo’s eyes shined.
If a person couldn’t break through for a long time, then one could for a short time!
At this moment, Gu Zuo recalled a type of Human-Level medicinal pill that was relatively rare in the Qingyun Sect, but was rated as a life-saving panacea.
— The Jinyuan Pill!
Let alone that temporarily promoting one’s realm by one stage was just with a low grade pill, if it was a mid grade pill, it could increase by two stages and a high grade pill by three stages. Merely, it could only last two hours each time. If it was a top grade pill, the continuation time would double!
The Jinyuan Pill was just so useful!
Gu Zuo’s mood was suddenly inspired.
At a critical juncture, the Jinyuan Pill could save a person’s life. The refining technique also had a certain degree of difficulty. If he grasped it, it would be a type of tempering for his skills.
Thus, not only could he help earn money for his dear big brother, he could also upgrade his own capabilities. It was two birds with one stone! It was the same as his big brother giving him pointers!
These scattered and fragmented thoughts became clear, and Gu Zuo snapped out of it. He lowered his head to see that his own bowl already had many good dishes placed inside of it. He was a little embarrassed and raised his head: “Many thanks, big brother...”
At this moment, Gongyi Tianheng also smiled and said: “I saw that Ah Zuo was lost in thought, and it wasn’t appropriate to disturb you. I picked some dishes in case you kept pondering. Ah Zuo, please eat. Don’t be picky.”
Gu Zuo: “...”
Don’t think that he didn’t see that saying such tactful words was to poke fun at him... His big brother always had a bit schadenfreude. Meanwhile, he was clearly thinking about proper business.
Tianheng saw that his face was sullen, and couldn’t help giving some more meat essence with his chopsticks.
Gu Zuo immediately resembled a deflated balloon, and without any better option, he lowered his head to dig in. At first, he was prepared to discuss his thoughts with his big brother, but now it seemed that he had to finish eating first...
After helplessly finishing his meal, Gu Zuo assumed a very serious face: “Big brother, I’ve already thought about which medicinal pills to refine next.”
Tianheng poured him a small cup of tea. He smiled and said: “I’d like to hear the details.”
Gu Zuo was still very serious: “The Meridian Purification Pill, the Xiantian Pill, and the Jinyuan Pill.” After that, he talked about the Meridian Purification Pill and Jinyuan Pill’s effects as well as why he chose these pills, “How does big brother feel about it?”
After Tianheng pondered for a bit, he nodded his head: “Ah Zuo thought it over very meticulously.”
The embarrassed feeling Gu Zuo had from being teased suddenly faded away. He showed a happy smile: “Big brother also thinks that they’re pretty good, right? One batch of Meridian Purification Pills and Jinyuan Pills can only produce nine pills per cauldron. The Xiantian Pills are even fewer. At most, just three pills. However, I believe that so long as I keep training myself, I certainly won’t waste any medicinal herbs!”
Tianheng smiled: “Ah Zuo is naturally extremely powerful.” Shortly after, he paused before continuing, “I can only trouble Ah Zuo with the Meridian Purification Pill and the Jinyuan Pill. Unless there are pharmacists who are willing to be controlled by us, these two pill prescriptions can’t be leaked out. On the contrary, we can have the other pharmacists help out with the Xiantian Pill.”
Gu Zuo thought about it and nodded, saying: “Big brother, I understand.”
People’s hearts were hard to fathom. If all of the prescriptions were shared, those pharmacists would be fattened up and wouldn’t necessarily continue to work hard without complaints. Rather than placing one’s hopes on their gratefulness and loyalty, it was better to carefully control them from the start.
Gongyi Tianheng saw that Gu Zuo accepted his instructions, and nodded his head in satisfaction.
His little pharmacist was also gradually learning more as he grew older. However, his inherent qualities hadn’t changed... This was very good.
Although Tianheng believed that he could protect Gu Zuo, he wouldn’t restrict Gu Zuo’s growth. What other people provided were all external things, and what a person obtained by themselves were one’s true possessions.
Only...
Tianheng’s eyes flashed with a dark light.
But when he looked at Gu Zuo, his gaze became as soft as usual.
Gu Zuo didn’t discover what thoughts arose from the bottom of his dear big brother’s heart. Even if his back suddenly felt a slight chill, this coldness quickly dissipated. With no evil intentions, it was only natural that he didn’t discover anything.
The two quietly drank their tea. Occasionally they’d watch that bustling scene down below at Medicine of Life. It was really quite pleasant.
After being busy these days, stealing half a day of leisure time out of one’s dreary life was also very comforting.
However, this tranquility was soon broken.
Gu Zuo silently turned his head.
Seriously... He could’t stop for a bit to drink some tea!
It should be said that it was fortunate that things were still running smoothly while they were eating.
At this time, a person was walking over from three tables away.
That person’s strength was very high. He seemed to be Xiantian stage six or higher, because even Tianheng could detect a threatening feeling from him.
Gu Zuo also felt that this person’s qi energy was a bit oppressive. In addition, the other party’s temperament was deep, his qi field was formidable, and his clothing’s material was very special. This, at the very least, showed a problem — It was for the best that they didn’t ignore this person, who had both strength and a powerful backer.
However, this person’s manners were still very courteous. After arriving, he first asked: “Would it be possible for me to join these two Junior Sect Brothers at this table?”
In his heart, Gu Zuo ridiculed: It’d be weird if all he wanted is to just share a table!
However, this kind of matter didn’t need to be dealt with by Gu Zuo. Tianheng took the lead first. His bearing was unhurried, and his aura wasn’t the least bit suppressed: “This is but a small matter. Please sit, Senior Sect Brother.”
That person sat down, and his line of sight also fell upon Medicine of Life down below.
Gu Zuo pursed his lips. While he appeared at ease, he transmitted to Tianheng through his Tianfu Acupoint.
[Big brother, is this person someone who came to find us?]
[Ah Zuo has good eyesight.]
[Then why hasn’t he said anything yet?]
[When coming to find someone, one should always first observe for a time...]
[I feel that he should’ve already observed us for a long time.]
At this point, Tianheng’s grin deepened. He refilled Gu Zuo’s half-finished tea, and poured a new cup for this person: “Senior Sect Brother, if you don’t mind...”
[What Ah Zuo says makes sense. Since it’s like this, I’ll give him an opportunity to chat.]
Gu Zuo was speechless.
[Big brother, whatever you’re thinking about, don’t push it onto me...]
[En, what Ah Zuo says makes sense.]
[...]
Off to the side, after the exquisitely-clothed Senior Sect Brother took his tea, he showed a smiling expression. He nodded to Tianheng: “Many thanks for the kindness, Junior Sect Brother. It would be rude of me to refuse.”
Tianheng faintly smiled: “After you, Senior Sect Brother.”
Then, that person said: “After you, Junior Sect Brother.”
The two silently drank a round of tea just like this.
After the preceding pleasantries were covered and the atmosphere was somewhat harmonious, that person said to Tianheng: “I am Senior Brother Hai Tian. How should I address my Junior Sect Brother?”
Tianheng was also very polite: “This one is Gongyi Tianheng. Greetings, Senior Sect Brother Hai.”
Hai Tian smiled: “Junior Sect Brother Gongyi, I happened to see you looking at that Medicine of Life, but your expression is different from ordinary people. Would you be familiar with the people of that Medicine of Life?”
Tianheng lightly placed the tea cup in his hand onto the table: “Senior Sect Brother Hai, this question is...”
Hai Tian seemed a little embarrassed: “Junior Sect Brother Gongyi, don’t keep me in the dark. In fact, I want to ask Junior Sect Brother to help give me an introduction so I can get to know the owner of that medicine store in order to...”
In order to do what, Hai Tian didn’t say. Gongyi Tianheng also didn’t ask.
After that, Tianheng sank into contemplative muttering.
Hai Tian watched him act like this, and his heart also became somewhat nervous.
Precisely as Gu Zuo said, he really had been watching these two people for a long time. Furthermore, these two people had been looking at that medicine store without any looks of greed or envy. As this being the case, they either had a robust backer and didn’t care about those medicinal pills, or they had something to do with the medicine store’s people and didn’t react strangely.
Hai Tian felt that the probability of the latter was quite large. Additionally, his hearing ability was very good. Once in a while, he could hear one or two words like medicinal pills, meridian purification, and profits. With such wording, he felt that the probability of his guess was even greater. On top of that, he had come bearing a mission. Previously, he was at his wit’s end, so it was better to come over and give it a try.
Now, he really hoped that Tianheng would provide him an affirmative answer.
A good while later, while Hai Tian was feeling somewhat impatient, Tianheng nodded his head with some hesitation: “The owner of that medicine store, I indeed...”
Hai Tian was a bit eager, and his expression was one of joy: “Can Junior Sect Brother help me or not?”
Gongyi Tianheng hesitated again.
On the side, Gu Zuo only felt that he couldn’t bear to look straight ahead.
Whatever. In any case, he was already used to this type of matter of putting on an act and tempering one’s performance skills.
Tianheng made things difficult for a while, before lightly sighing: “I won’t hide it from Senior Sect Brother Hai, the owner of that Medicine of Life is this lowly one.”
The pupils of Hai Tian’s eyes constricted, and his heart was extremely surprised.
He had unexpectedly encountered the medicine store’s owner? Taking another look at this Junior Sect Brother’s age and realm, he felt it was even more unimaginable.
Tianheng forced a smile and said: “If Senior Sect Brother Hai doesn’t believe...”
Hai Tian shuddered, and immediately snapped out of it: “No, this Hai believes Junior Sect Brother. It’s just too shocking, so I was slow to react.”
Originally, he was the one to take the initiative to strike up the conversation. He thought this Xiantian stage three Junior Sect Brother wouldn’t dupe him over this matter. After all, there weren’t any benefits in doing this. On the contrary, Tianheng would offend him after being exposed... Looking at Tianheng’s appearance, he didn’t look so foolish.
Tianheng shook his head: “My luck has been good to receive some pill prescriptions and recruit several pharmacists.” He appeared as if he mentioned something without paying attention, “Later on, there happened to be something in the prescriptions that a certain Immortal Realm Senior Sect Brother in the Inner Sect urgently needed. I brought it in exchange for some benefits and saved up a bit of capital... Then, I accumulated some medicinal pills and opened this medicine store. I also exchanged these golden banknotes for martial arts resources.”
After Hai Tian heard the words Immortal Realm, his heart lurched. His mind was only left with a few uncertainties, which were gradually dispelled: “No wonder. In fact, I came here this time to run errands and handle matters for my Immortal Realm Senior Sect Brother. Fortunately, I’ve met this Junior Sect Brother and talked with you by chance.”
Tianheng smiled and said: “It’s familiarity at first sight. Please speak your mind, Senior Sect Brother. If I can accomplish it, then I naturally won’t make things difficult for Senior Sect Brother.”
Hai Tian gave a sigh of relief, and solemnly said: “Junior Sect Brother’s medicine store has many pills of exceptional quality. The power that this Hai belongs to requires an enormous amount of top-notch medicinal pills. However, in the past, it was always hard to obtain a sufficient supply of goods. Even though we sought many channels, it was like a cup of water on a burning cart of firewood.
He continued: “The day before yesterday, a Junior Sect Brother discovered that Medicine of Life had a large quantity of high grade pills. Naturally, we were wild with joy. Therefore, this Hai was sent here to complete a business transaction with Junior Sect Brother Gongyi, and order a batch of medicinal pills. There won’t be any problems when it comes to the price.”
In Gu Zuo’s mind, he secretly said: Sure enough!
What else would one do after finding the boss of a store that sold these medicinal pills? It was to privately place an order!
Gongyi Tianheng murmured: “Which types of medicinal pills does Senior Sect Brother Hai want?”
Hai Tian looked hopeful, and promptly replied: “Mainly Qi Linking Pills and Revitalization Pills. In addition, there are a few other types. Besides the Rejuvenation Pills, Qi Generating Pills, and Anti-Aging Pills, all the rest are needed.”
Tianheng’s brows furrowed tightly: “Then, how much is needed?”
Hai Tian said: “We’ll need a thousand Qi Linking Pills each month. We’ll also need over a hundred Revitalization Pills and Qi Accumulating Pills each month. As for the remaining medicinal pills, they can be commissioned at your discretion. So long as they’re high grade pills.”
Tianheng forced a smile: “This quantity of medicinal pills is a bit too large. Senior Sect Brother Hai, I only have those pharmacists altogether, and I still need to support this store. I can’t provide that much in quantity.”
Hai Tian instantly became taciturn.
Actually, he was aware that he was being somewhat forceful.
But he was also unwilling to give up just like this.
Tianheng saw him acting this way and somewhat troublingly asked: “Which power does Senior Sect Brother Hai belong to? Why do you need such great quantities of high grade medicinal pills?”
Hai Tian smiled ruefully: “I said that it’s a power, but it’s actually more like a loose alliance. Junior Sect Brother probably knows that the members of the Earth Leaderboard within the Inner Sect are fond of colluding and forming forces of their own. However, once they rise to the Sky Leaderboard, their own strengths naturally become even more important. Those forces are also transferred to secret places, and won’t appear every day in a scramble for power.”
Tianheng nodded his head.
Hai Tian said: “The alliance this Hai belongs to is actually a combination of several Sky Leaderboard Senior Sect Brothers, known as the Hundred Rivers League. The League Master is currently second place on the Sky Leaderboard: Senior Sect Brother Xiao.”
Gongyi Tianheng’s face flashed with a trace of amazement: “The Hundred Rivers League is indeed extremely powerful.”
The corner of Hai Tian’s lips had a hint of bitterness: “If it was before, it was naturally very powerful. But the influence of a secret power completely depends on the Sky Leaderboard disciple’s position and order. Previously, Senior Sect Brother Xiao received a serious injury during a certain outing and hadn’t been able to completely recover since then. Afterwards, the Sky Leaderboard disciple who ranked third pointed his sword at Senior Sect Brother Xiao, wanting to forcefully take the second ranking.
He continued: “And once Senior Sect Brother Xiao lost, the following properties were tacitly plundered. If the disciples of the Hundred Rivers League don’t have enough medicinal pills to upgrade, not only will they be defeated during those robberies, they’ll even...”
The implications were already crystal clear.
T/N: Thanks for the corrections, Charysa.
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