He arrived at the Hundred Treasure Tower in Daze Fang City, his gaze sweeping over the shelves, quickly noticing two types of elixir pills: the First Rank top-grade elixir "Green Wave Pill" and the Second-tier Lower Grade elixir "Jiuli Pill".
These two are among the many elixirs, relatively precious ones that can enhance cultivation.
The former corresponds to the late stage of Qi Refinement, each priced at eighty spirit stones, while the latter corresponds to the early stage of Foundation Establishment, each costing one hundred and fifty spirit stones.
The magic cultivation pills are not as expensive as the martial cultivation ones, yet they are still quite pricey. For Chen Sansi, saving where he can is crucial.
So, he only bought one "Green Wave Pill" and then softly asked the female cultivator in charge of the shop: "Fellow Daoist, I wonder if you could let me examine the quality of the ’Jiuli Pill’?"
"Of course, you can."
The female cultivator said, taking out an elixir pill and suspending it in the air with mana: "Fellow Daoist, rest assured, even the second-tier elixirs we have here at the Hundred Treasure Tower come with absolute quality assurance, and anything below premium quality will never be put on sale."
"Hmm, indeed not bad."
Chen Sansi nodded slightly, having already deciphered and memorized the pill recipe for the Jiuli Pill in his mind. He then asked: "May I ask, fellow Daoist, does your establishment sell Foundation Establishment Pills? Could you let me have a look, so I can prepare in advance?"
"Ah, so Senior is preparing for Foundation Establishment cultivation, no wonder you’re purchasing second-tier elixirs."
The female cultivator showed more respect: "It’s just that Foundation Establishment Pills are hard to come by, and we currently don’t have any in the building. If we do in the future, I’m afraid there will be competition."
"Alright, thank you, fellow Daoist. I shall take my leave for now."
After leaving the Hundred Treasure Tower, Chen Sansi repeated his technique, touring several other shops within Daze Fang City.
He would always buy the cheapest elixir first, using the pretext of examining the quality to inspect the rest. In less than half a day, he collected over twenty pill recipes of various types.
From now on, even among the second-tier alchemists of the Sky Water Continent, the number of recipes Chen Sansi possesses is definitely significant.
Moreover, most of these shops are backed by the forces of Guiyuan Sect and Shengyun Sect, better to have than not.
Having completed this, he then headed to the Steward Hall.
Still managing the miscellaneous affairs was the familiar Xu Youliang, with a young man beside him, who referred to him as Master in conversation.
This was just like the time when he first came to the ends of the earth, flaunting a big bag of spirit stones around, the mortal boy was unexpectedly taken as a disciple.
"A second-tier cave mansion?"
After hearing the requirements of Emperor Tian Wu, Xu Youliang couldn’t help but become serious: "Fellow Daoist, are you a Foundation Establishment senior?"
"I am still a Qi Refining cultivator."
Chen Sansi had long used [Hidden Qi] to conceal his martial arts cultivation, only displaying the late stage of Qi Refinement: "Leasing a second-tier cave mansion is merely to quickly elevate my cultivation to perfection. I wonder if your Square Market has any?"
Xu Youliang explained: "In the Li Family Square Market, there are only first-rank supreme spirit veins, but near the main vein, some cave mansions have Spirit Gathering Arrays installed inside, allowing the temporary elevation of the cave mansion’s spirit vein rank to second-tier at the cost of spirit stones, and when available, they are also used for external rental."
"However, as for the price, naturally it is more expensive than ordinary cave mansions."
"It requires four hundred spirit stones annually, and the cost of activating the formation must be borne by yourself. I wonder what fellowship intends?"
A top-grade cave mansion costs one hundred per year, while a pseudo-second-tier is four times that.
Currently, Chen Sansi is not short of spirit stones, having seized a large sum from the Array Master, Dan Liangcheng.
But he knows the saying "wealth should not be exposed", so he acted as if he was quite distressed, hinting during bargaining that he is a second-tier alchemist to establish credibility.
In the end, unable to reach a bargain, after stepping away from the Steward Hall a few paces, he gritted his teeth and returned upstairs, resolutely deciding to lease the cave mansion.
"Why be so stingy, fellow Daoist? After all, you are a second-tier alchemist, surely this amount of spirit stones can be earned back!"
"Furthermore, if fellow Daoist is willing to take a position in the Square Market, you can also receive some exemptions."
Chen Sansi politely declined: "That won’t be necessary, I am just a first-tier loose cultivator, used to freedom like a wandering cloud, and simply wish to cultivate in peace."
"Alright then, let’s sign the contract."