Chapter 102: Impending Change
He watched as the men’s gazes shifted away, only to fall back on him. They were completely unfazed, their faces still etched with doubt.
"Actually..."
Lanshan sighed helplessly and explained what had happened.
"Oh!"
"So that’s what happened..."
Understanding dawned on the crowd. Ma Bizi even picked up a dark, crescent-shaped Pill.
"Such a fine Pill, and once it passed through your hands, Lanshan, it ended up looking like this."
His words were laced with undisguised contempt.
The rest of them nodded in fervent agreement.
"No wonder this stuff wasn’t put in pill vials."
"I bet Alchemist Bai considered them defective goods."
Lanshan sneered, his eyes sweeping over the ruffians.
"You think that’s the reason?"
He grabbed the cloth bag and gave it a shake.
"Do you have any idea how many Spirit Stones this bag of Pills is worth?"
At his words, the crowd instantly fell silent.
Ma Bizi hesitated, a hopeful look in his eyes.
"You said the new Pills were cheap."
"And that blockhead Ah Ling confirmed it. Alchemist Bai didn’t argue with you then, either..."
Lanshan cut him off. "Forty-one Spirit Stones. I paid in full, on the spot, before I could bring these Pills back."
The words hung in the air. The courtyard fell silent as everyone stared at each other in disbelief.
"This..."
Qin Ying returned from outside.
As she neared the courtyard gate, she heard a cacophony of howls and wails.
’What an unruly bunch. It’s no wonder the chief has such a hard time with them!’
She frowned, waiting at the gate until the noise inside died down before pushing it open and stepping in.
The motley crew inside wore varied expressions, the lingering excitement evident in their unrestrained grins.
"Qin Ying, come here!"
Lanshan looked over at her and pointed to the Pills in the cloth bag.
"Distribute the Pills to the men! And have everyone get themselves ready."
"The day after tomorrow, we’re heading into the mountains!"
Qin Ying asked no questions. She simply glanced at Ma Bizi and the others, took the bag, and went to carry out her orders.
Ma Bizi and the others still hadn’t calmed down, one of them sighing.
"Heh, at that price, of course they don’t deserve vials. Bottling them would just eat into ten percent of the profit for no reason."
Lanshan shot a glare at Ma Bizi and the others.
"You’ve all led Demon Hunting Teams before. Try to act like it! Show some damn composure!"
The men immediately burst into a clamor.
"We can’t compare to you, Lanshan! You’ve successfully scouted the great Celestial Barrier Mountain and latched onto Alchemist Bai!"
Lanshan sighed and held up a hand to quiet them. "Let’s get down to business!"
The men fell silent in an instant.
"Tell our men on the outside to keep a close watch. Don’t let any suspicious strangers get near Alchemist Bai."
Having scraped by in Immortal Arrival City for so long, there was no kind of person Lanshan hadn’t seen.
’Of course, I have to be on guard!’
Ma Bizi nodded eagerly.
"Don’t worry, our people are watching."
"Once word gets out about these Pills, others will start paying even more attention."
As he spoke, he remembered something.
"Earlier, one of our men reported spotting a few loiterers. They were making small talk all over, trying to fish for information with every word."
"Later, those same men were seen returning to the Chaoyun Commerce Association..."
Lanshan nodded, not particularly concerned.
"A new Pill Master has appeared. The Chaoyun Commerce Association was bound to find out sooner or later."
"They’ve gotten slow over the years, but their foundation is still solid. As long as they aren’t causing trouble, just ignore them."
While the members of the Demon Hunting Team divided up the Pills, Bai Mo arrived at Sun Qiao’s shop.
Inside the shop, Talismans were plastered everywhere, their surfaces covered in mysterious, calligraphic patterns.
A row of tall cabinets lined the back wall, resembling the apothecary chests used for storing herbs, packed densely with small drawers.
Bai Mo turned to stare intently at a nearby Talisman, but after only a moment, he felt a wave of dizziness.
"Hm? Shopkeeper Bai! What a rare honor!"
Sun Qiao came out to greet him, wiping his hands on a cloth stained with black and red ink.
Bai Mo rarely darkened his doorstep. The last time had been shortly after moving in, when he had made the customary visits to his new neighbors.
"Mm, I’m here to look at some fire-warding Talismans."
Bai Mo averted his gaze from the Talisman, and the dizziness cleared in an instant.
’This fellow Sun Qiao’s Talismans really have some power to them.’
"Fire-warding Talismans?"
Sun Qiao’s interest was piqued. "What’s the occasion? A magical duel, or just keeping away smoke?"
"Just keeping away smoke."
"Heh, I didn’t take you for the brawling type, Shopkeeper Bai."
Sun Qiao chuckled, then turned to pull open one of the drawers in the tall cabinet, plucking a single Talisman from the stack within.
"This one will do."
"Lots of young ladies and new brides love this Talisman. They all want to seem otherworldly, you know, untouched by the smoke and grime of the mortal world."
Bai Mo took the Talisman. Seeing the rather simple lines drawn on the bright yellow paper, he couldn’t help but ask:
"It’s this crude?"
Sun Qiao spread his hands.
"It’s just for warding off a bit of smoke. Why would you need a complicated Talisman for that?"
"A better one would be a waste of money. The cost would outweigh the benefit."
Bai Mo held up the Talisman and gave it a flick.
"How long does it last?"
Sun Qiao answered offhandedly, "An ordinary household could get about a month out of it."
"But for a Pill Master like yourself, I’m afraid it’ll be spent in half a month."
"Good," Bai Mo said. "I’ll take one more."
"How many Spirit Stones?"
"That’ll be six Spirit Stones."
Now it was Bai Mo’s turn to be impressed.
’Six Spirit Stones for two simple Talismans.’
’The profit margin on that isn’t much lower than my Alchemy.’
To this, Sun Qiao simply said, "A willing buyer and a willing seller."
"People don’t need Talismans all the time, but when they come knocking, it means they’ve decided it’s worth it."
The two exchanged the Talismans and Spirit Stones, concluding the transaction.
Sun Qiao gestured for Bai Mo to take a seat.
"There’s probably nowhere to sit over at your place right now. Why don’t you stay and chat for a bit?"
He poured two cups of strong tea, and they sat facing each other.
Sun Qiao skimmed the surface of his tea with the lid and blew lightly to cool it.
"Thanks to you, business on this street has picked up quite a bit."
The sudden appearance of the Demon Hunting Team on the street was no mystery. Recalling the day Lanshan came to help Bai Mo, everyone naturally put two and two together.
Bai Mo shook his head.
"Those Cultivators from the Demon Hunting Team have short tempers and aren’t easy to deal with. All of you should be careful."
Sun Qiao scoffed.
"That’s just for now. Once the Xuandao Sect takes over, no one will dare cause trouble in the city."
’With the Xuandao Sect’s near-obsessive fastidiousness, who wouldn’t be forced to keep a low profile?’
At this, Sun Qiao leaned forward and lowered his voice.
"I heard the Miaofa Sect disciples in the city have started to pull out. Did you know, Shopkeeper Bai?"
"It was only a matter of time," Bai Mo said, unconcerned.
Sun Qiao grinned slyly.
"But there’s something else you’ll definitely find interesting."
"Oh?" Bai Mo shot him a sideways glance.
Sun Qiao continued, "You know how they turned Immortal Arrival City into this awkward, lukewarm place."
"This whole setup was just an experiment, something they planned to implement in other cities."
"Now that they’re pulling out, all those messy rules and tiered systems are going to be scrapped."
He gave Bai Mo a meaningful look.
’If things could go back to how they were, that would be fantastic.’
’Business was easier back then. And besides, Bai Mo isn’t the same as he was before. The Pill Shop he’s opened is a natural draw for customers.’
’For me to be right next door, basking in his reflected glory and getting a little taste... that shouldn’t be too much to ask, right?’
Bai Mo’s interest was piqued.
"It is, after all, backed by Celestial Barrier Mountain. It’s not some barren wasteland, so it’s a convenient place for business."
"With the Demon Hunting Team around now, the whole dynamic of the street is bound to change."
"The Xuandao Sect is taking over. What do you think the future holds, my friend?"
Sun Qiao mulled it over for a moment but couldn’t come up with anything concrete.
They weren’t a local major sect, after all. Besides some general impressions, nobody really knew their specific style of governance.
"Hard to say."
He said, "But no matter. Once the Xuandao Sect disciples get into town, I’ll bring a gift and go pay them a little visit."
"You might not know this, Shopkeeper Bai, but a lot of Xuandao Sect disciples are a bit simple and straightforward. They’re the easiest ones to get information out of..."