Immortal Cultivation: Starting from a Pharmacy Apprentice

The carriage entered the city and was returned to the carriage house.

Bai Mo retrieved his deposit and walked through Immortal Arrival City with his companions.

Having lived outside the city for so long, the others barely remembered what Immortal Arrival City looked like, much less how much it had changed.

Xue Ning was visibly amazed by the unfamiliar, bustling city, gasping in admiration but not saying much.

Having received Bai Mo’s confirmation, the disciple from the Xuandao Sect had already returned to the city, fully satisfied.

At some point, a nine-story tower named Mountain View Tower had been erected in the city center.

Bai Mo had previously made inquiries and learned that inspectors from the sect had discovered the stationed Miaofa Sect disciples’ residence was far too extravagant.

Furthermore, the disciple managing Immortal Arrival City, Guo Lingjun, was a man of poor character, so the inspectors reported him to the elders upon their return.

Soon after, the residence with its rockeries and flowing water was razed, and Mountain View Tower was built in its place.

It now served as the Xuandao Sect’s administrative office.

"Ah! I was wondering why I couldn’t find you, Brother Bai. So this is where you were!"

A familiar voice called out. Bai Mo turned to see Xu Ruyuan running over, carrying a large porcelain bowl.

The owner of the noodle stall behind him merely glanced over, paid no mind, and continued pulling noodles.

Xu Ruyuan hastily slurped down a mouthful of noodles and said,

"It really has been a while, Brother Bai!"

’This old man used to run a street stall to get by, and he never had any decent goods.’

’Now that he’s running errands for me, he’s actually earning Spirit Stones and looks much more vigorous than before.’

’At least he holds his back straight now.’

Bai Mo gave him a proper look-over.

"It really has been a while. Thank you for all your hard work."

Xu Ruyuan shook his head.

"I’m on your payroll. No need for such pleasantries."

"I’ve already smoothed out all the supply routes for the medicinal herbs. With those three Pill Masters gone from the city, things have gotten a lot easier."

As he spoke, he looked toward Xue Ning and his companion.

"And these two are..."

Bai Mo introduced them.

"These are the people I’ve recruited. In the future, they’ll be responsible for producing a significant portion of the shop’s pills."

Xu Ruyuan nodded thoughtfully.

"So I take it the demand for medicinal herbs is going to be quite high from now on?"

He pulled Bai Mo aside, holding the porcelain bowl in one hand, and whispered,

"Those three counterparts of yours have vanished, but they left a lot of their people behind."

"Are you interested, Brother Bai?"

Bai Mo shook his head.

"Those three are ambitious men. They left to become the local tyrants in some other city."

"Knowing them, they wouldn’t have left any skilled people behind for us."

Xu Ruyuan finally understood what Bai Mo meant.

"That makes sense. Yes, that makes perfect sense."

Bai Mo looked at him with a smile.

"I hear you’ve become quite the big shot yourself, Xu Ruyuan. Do you have an entourage heralding your arrival wherever you go?"

Xu Ruyuan froze, looking baffled.

"Who started that rumor?"

He gave a bitter smile.

"The people who follow me are all poor folk with mud on their boots, or just unfortunate souls from Celestial Barrier Mountain. How could you call that an entourage?"

Be that as it may, Xu Ruyuan’s reputation had indeed grown considerably.

Low-level Loose Cultivators often had to seek his help, and through these entanglements of mutual interest, the beginnings of a loose faction had taken shape.

Bai Mo discussed the matter with him for a good while, setting the terms for future herb supplies before heading back to the shop.

At the shop, Wei An was very happy to see his new colleagues.

He welcomed them into the shop and began explaining the store’s layout and procedures.

"I’m often too busy to handle everything by myself, and I can barely finish the tasks the Shopkeeper assigns. Now that I have help, I’m overjoyed!"

Wei An said.

Xue Ning immediately spotted the Pill Books Wei An had placed on the counter, a few of which were rarely seen on the market.

An itch of curiosity grew in his heart, and he couldn’t help but glance at Bai Mo.

Bai Mo said casually, "You two can read them whenever Wei An isn’t using them."

"You two are the seniors here, so remember to give him plenty of guidance."

With permission granted, Xue Ning couldn’t resist picking up a volume. He opened it, and his heart leaped with even greater joy when he saw Bai Mo’s handwritten annotations inside.

Bai Mo then turned his head, took out some Spirit Stones, and gave them to Qin Wen.

"I remember there are a few courtyards for rent nearby. I’ll have to trouble you to run an errand and rent one, Brother Qin."

"A small matter," Qin Wen replied.

Qin Wen took the Spirit Stones and left immediately.

’I remember a distant relative lives around here. They’re an honest, simple person, and their courtyard has been up for long-term rent.’

’It’s not in a great area, though, so it’s often vacant.’

Having managed the shop by himself for a while, Wei An already carried himself like a long-term steward.

He explained the shop’s various matters to his new colleagues in a well-organized fashion.

Seeing that everything was in order, Bai Mo returned to his room. He carefully considered and wrote out a few Pill Formulas. After waiting for the ink to dry, he brought them out to Xue Ning.

"Study these carefully. If there’s anything you don’t understand, come ask me."

"Starting next month, you’ll be firing up the cauldrons for alchemy."

Xue Ning cradled the Pill Formulas as if they were priceless treasures, his expression solemn.

"I will not disappoint you, Pill Master."

Bai Mo waved his hand.

"From now on, just call me Shopkeeper, like Wei An does."

With that, he yawned.

"I’m a little tired. You all carry on, I’m going to get some rest."

’Having Wei An around really saves me a lot of energy.’

Bai Mo returned to his room, removed his outer robe, and took out the Pill Formula the disciple had given him for a quick look. Finally, he lay down on his bed and fell asleep.

He was unaware, however, that Qin Wen returned in less than an hour. Glancing into the shop and seeing only Wei An, he asked:

"Where are the others?"

Wei An replied, "They went to get something to eat. I could tell they had a lot on their minds and figured they had things to discuss privately, so I didn’t go with them."

"Besides, someone needs to watch the shop."

Qin Wen nodded.

"You did very well today."

"A Pill Master always ends up with a large operation. Otherwise, you can’t properly conduct the business of alchemy. He’s no ordinary pill apprentice, after all."

"Since you don’t have the talent for alchemy, you have to help by lightening his burdens and taking care of the miscellaneous affairs."

Qin Wen gave him a great deal of advice, and Wei An listened, nodding repeatedly.

But in less than a quarter of an hour, Xue Ning and his companions returned.

Qin Wen paused his instructions and distributed a few keys.

"This is the courtyard I rented for you. You’ll be living here from now on."

The new assistants were busy until dusk, but they finally got settled in.

Wei An closed the shop doors and continued briefing them on various odd jobs.

Normally, Qin Wen would have gone home by this time, but today was different. He needed to stay and keep an eye on things.

And that was how Qin Wen happened to be there when Han Meng arrived.

Han Meng was dragging a massive boar’s head, its bristles standing on end like steel needles.

"Huh! It’s crowded today!"

"Doing well, Brother Qin?"

"I am," Qin Wen nodded.

His gaze fell upon the boar’s head, his emotions a complicated mix.

"You all can hunt this level of Demon Beast now?"

Judging by its appearance and the exposed muscle, one could imagine just how ferocious the Demon Beast had been in life.

There weren’t many in any Demon Hunting Team who would have been confident enough to take it down.

Han Meng and the burly man helping him carry it let out a hearty laugh.

"It’s all thanks to Shopkeeper Bai’s pills."

"We took a risk, though. To bag an extra Demon Beast, our leader, Lanshan, suffered a backlash from a pill’s fumes and injured his lungs."

Despite what he said, he couldn’t hide the joy on his face.

"What happened to Lanshan?"

Bai Mo asked as he walked over, straightening his outer robe.

Han Meng quickly greeted Bai Mo with a bow.

"He was careless for a moment and injured his lungs from the Five Obstacles Pill’s backlash. Thankfully, it’s not serious."

Only then did Bai Mo reply, "The Five Obstacles Pill is not to be trifled with. Tell Lanshan to be extremely careful."

"We know."