"There’s a medicinal shop over there!" Zhou Qing suddenly pointed to a shop ahead.
Then the two hurried inside.
As soon as they stepped into the shop, a strong medicinal fragrance hit them in the face.
Inside, it was crowded with people, some selecting herbs at the counter, others chatting with the shop assistants.
"Good sirs, what can I get for you?" A smiling apprentice instantly rushed forward to ask.
Yan Xiaohu handed over a list and said, "Do you have these spirit medicines?"
The apprentice glanced at the list and then apologized, "We have all except for the ingredients for the Nascent Soul Formation Pill."
No way, for safety, I scrambled all the ingredients and added many other materials. How did you recognize these are for the Nascent Soul Formation Pill?
Moreover, you’re making me feel really awkward here.
"Forget it!" Yan Xiaohu cleared his throat, quickly snatched back the list, and left with Zhou Qing.
At this moment, the shopkeeper came over and asked curiously, "What were they looking for?"
The apprentice replied, "Shopkeeper, they were after the ingredients for the Nascent Soul Formation Pill, and they even mixed in some other materials thinking they’d be clever."
The shopkeeper "oh"ed, shook his head slightly, and said, "The formula for the Nascent Soul Formation Pill is public, especially in our spirit medicine business, it’s easily recognizable. Many people come to inquire about it daily, their caution is understandable."
"Exactly, hey there, good sir, what can I get for you?"
Seeing another customer come in, the apprentice quickly switched to a professional smile and went forward to greet them.
"No wonder it’s a big place, even the apprentices in a random medicine shop have such sharp eyes, it’s amazing!" After coming out, Yan Xiaohu sighed with admiration.
Zhou Qing laughed, "Yes, and they perfectly avoided giving the right answer we needed."
"Why rush, we just got here. We should be in the outskirts of Lingyun Mansion now, take it easy, and look around. Look, isn’t that a medicine shop over there? Let’s go!"
Soon, Yan Xiaohu saw a shop named ’Immortal Grass Workshop’, and the two quickly went inside.
This time, to be safe, they only reported two or three ingredients, and when they didn’t find them, Zhou Qing went in to ask for other herbs.
Unfortunately, they still found nothing.
"Are the ingredients for the Nascent Soul Formation Pill this scarce?" Yan Xiaohu scratched his head, somewhat in disbelief.
Zhou Qing, with a worried look, said, "Third Senior Brother, I noticed just now that the prices of the herbs here are generally high. We’re already short on money, and you left some for Niu Guangmo and the others. I’m afraid that even if we find what we need, we might not be able to buy it."
Yan Xiaohu, touching his rooster head, thought for a moment. "That’s indeed a problem. With the Nascent Soul Formation Pill, we could reach the Nascent Soul Realm. That’s considered top-tier power in a fourth-level cultivation country."
"Beyond the Nascent Soul is the Divinity Transformation, followed by Spirit Slash. So it’s understandable that this pill’s ingredients are rare. Actually, all the money I have might be enough to buy four or five plants at best."
"Four or five plants? I saw the Nascent Soul Formation Pill needs twenty-one plants!" Zhou Qing reminded him.
Yan Xiaohu looked a bit embarrassed, "Tell me about it! I was even considering getting you a set too. Though your talent is high, ultimately, you have a Human Dao Foundation Establishment. When the time comes to transition to the Nascent Soul, it might be even harder for you than for me."
Zhou Qing quickly said, "Forget about mine. You should focus on gathering your portion first. What do we do now?"
Yan Xiaohu then revealed a mischievous smile and whispered, "That’s why I agreed to bring you here."
"Why?" Zhou Qing suddenly felt uneasy.
Yan Xiaohu explained, "I now have the Nascent Fire, which, besides combat, can be used for alchemy or artifact refining. So I plan to refine some low-grade pills and sell them."
Zhou Qing looked puzzled. How does this relate to my keen nose?
Seeing Zhou Qing’s confusion, Yan Xiaohu continued, "Alchemy requires medicinal materials, but I didn’t expect the prices here to be so high. So, I thought of another idea: processing semi-finished products."
"Semi-finished products?" Zhou Qing looked even more confused.
Yan Xiaohu pulled Zhou Qing aside and whispered, "Before coming here, I did my homework. There’s an underground black market somewhere in Lingyun Mansion, dealing with all sorts of shady items."
"There, you can often find some decent quality pills, but they have flaws and impurities, kind of like failed alchemical attempts that the sellers can’t bear to throw away. After all, as you’ve seen, the materials for one pill are quite expensive, sometimes hard to gather even."
After hearing this, Zhou Qing instinctively looked at the old hen.
"You can’t be thinking..."
"It’s part of the plan, we can try it out. But mainly, I’ll buy them at a low cost, then refine them again. There might be a chance to upgrade their grade. This way, even if we sell them, we can make a profit from the difference, right?"
Yan Xiaohu said with excitement.
Zhou Qing finally understood the third senior brother’s plan but still had one thing unclear.
"What’s my role in this?"
Yan Xiaohu explained, "I’ll be relying on you. With your extraordinarily keen nose, help me smell which pills have fewer impurities and can be further refined. This way, the success rate would be higher when I reprocess them."
Zhou Qing nodded. This was feasible.
"I’ll give it a try then!"
Yan Xiaohu grinned with joy, "That’s the spirit! Once we brothers team up, the money will flow like a river. I’m sure you can help me earn a lot, as proven on our way here."
Then, Yan Xiaohu took out a map, compared it with the surroundings, and, carrying the old hen, pulled Zhou Qing towards a certain direction.