Stealthily cultivating in the chaotic world of demons and martial artists
Chapter 172 - 171: Pill Tool Pavilion (Congratulations to the Silver Alliance!)_1

Chapter 172: Chapter 171: Pill Tool Pavilion (Congratulations to the Silver Alliance!)_1

Bi Bo Cave.

Fang Xi stretched contentedly.

"Fang, Xingling has a suggestion."

Ruan Xingling was dressed in casual clothes, her hair bun loose and casual, adding a sense of laziness to her demeanor.

"Oh? What might that be?" Fang Xi asked casually.

"Since achieving Foundation Establishment, Xingling’s ’Mysterious Sound Skills’ have made slow progress... According to the Skills text, someone with a high-grade Spiritual Root could spend thirty to forty years just in the early stages of Foundation Establishment, and if unfortunately they encounter a bottleneck, it might take sixty or seventy years to advance to the middle stage."

That was still rather fortunate—the lower and ordinary grade Spiritual Roots, even if they managed Foundation Establishment by luck, if they lacked special opportunities or medicinal pills to assist them, would likely spend their entire lives lingering in the early stages of Foundation Establishment.

In the neighboring three kingdoms, most of those who reached Core Formation were from Earth-grade or even Heaven-grade Spiritual Roots, or else the cultivation sects wouldn’t place such importance on the quality of Spiritual Roots.

Scarce resources meant one could only rely on innate talent, right?

Ruan Xingling’s fine brows were slightly furrowed, an air of worry about her.

"Although one can still consume pills to bolster Magic Power," Fang Xi sighed, "spirit medicines that are hundreds of years old are exceedingly hard to find... and certainly not something one can use on a daily basis."

Indeed, the cultivation resources in the surrounding three kingdoms were quite meager.

Even for him, wielding a wealth of Spirit Stones, it was not guaranteed that he could purchase enough pills for a dramatic improvement in Magic Power during the Foundation Establishment period.

"Mmm... To speed up cultivation, accumulating resources is a must," Ruan Xingling agreed wholeheartedly.

"Oh? Could it be that Xingling has found a solution? Don’t tell me it’s hunting monster beasts in the Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range... or exploring ruins and the like..."

Fang Xi would not engage in such activities, as they were fraught with too high a risk.

"Naturally not..." Ruan Xingling laughed, "Xingling and Fang are both craftsmen, so naturally we gather resources through our crafts... However, just waiting in the dongfu for customers is indeed a bit too slow, why not... start a shop together?"

"Start a shop? This could work..."

Fang Xi fell into deep thought.

Indeed, the cultivators trusted businesses with shops more, and being open for business every day also meant more transactions.

Seeing that Fang Xi was not opposed, Ruan Xingling became more spirited: "Xingling has already scouted and found that the land rent in the Inner City is expensive and competition fierce... We, as two Foundation Establishment cultivators, would find it hard to make our stand there, but in the Outer City, our strength is more than enough for a shop..."

After all, behind such shops as Ten Thousand Seas Tower and Mingqing Loft were only Foundation Establishment powers anyway.

In terms of second-tier inheritances, they might not even be superior to Fang Xi and Ruan Xingling.

"Of course, the land price is expensive for a shop, but we don’t have to buy it straight away. We can rent a place... Our simple magical artifacts and pills might not match those established brands, but selling them together will be quite a draw, and occasionally releasing some exquisite treasures for sale, the earned Spirit Stones should help to cover the daily cultivation expenses for both of us..."

Ruan Xingling smiled cunningly: "Furthermore... we can have Ruan Dan, Wang Xiaohu, and a few others work as shop assistants to save some expenses."

"Not a bad idea."

Fang Xi weighed his options and felt there was no major issue: "Since you dare to suggest it, Xingling, you must have a few suitable locations in mind, right?"

"Exactly!" Ruan Xingling’s eyes shone, "When Fang is free, why not join Xingling for a stroll to inspect the locations?"

"Very well, let’s do it today."

Fang Xi had nothing urgent, so he agreed.

After all, he too desired to earn more Spirit Stones, and seeing as the progress of the ’Green Wood Longevity Skills’ was rather slow, he should occasionally prepare some medicinal pills to consume and enhance his Magic Power.

...

Three days later.

Baize Immortal City, Outer City.

Little Talisman Hall.

This shop, situated among the commercial properties on the streets of the Outer City, was in a rather remote location, primarily selling talismans and dealing with talisman materials and cinnabar.

Originally owned by a Foundation Establishment family ’Dongmen Family,’ but after the Foundation Establishment ancestor passed away, the business had gradually declined.

After inspecting several days, Fang Xi and Ruan Xingling chatted with a few store owners and eventually took a liking to this place.

"I am Dongmen Ying, and I pay my respects to the two seniors," said a young cultivator inside Little Talisman Hall, neither servile nor overbearing as he greeted Fang Xi and the other.

He was a handsome young man with striking features, full of youthful vitality.

Moreover, his cultivation had reached the late stage of the eighth level of Qi Refining, quite the prodigy indeed.

"Young friend Dongmen, we are quite satisfied with this shop, but regarding the rental terms... A one-year lease is too short, how about changing it to ten years?"

Ruan Xingling sipped her Spiritual Tea as she haggled slowly.

Although Dongmen Ying spoke respectfully, he stood straight with confidence.

After all, his Dongmen Family had been natives of Baize Immortal City for generations, with many connections, and furthermore, the city also prohibited fighting for power.

"Although my shop is not doing well, it can still sustain itself... To be honest, if I was not focused on cultivation and did not wish to invest time in running the business, I would not lease it out so readily..."

After some negotiation, they agreed to sign a five-year lease with an annual rent of one hundred lower-grade Spirit Stones and to pay half up front.

Once the contract was registered with the official records of Baize Immortal City and the Spirit Stones were exchanged, the people of the Dongmen Family began their relocation.

Fang Xi and Ruan Xingling stood in front of Little Talisman Hall, looking up at the faded and weathered signboard.

"It’s time for a new name, Fang, why don’t you pick one?" said Ruan Xingling with a smile.

"Considering we’ve decided to sell pills and magical artifacts, let’s call it ’Pill Tool Pavilion’..."

Fang Xi named it rather unimaginatively, prompting a secret eye roll from Ruan Xingling.

...

As Pill Tool Pavilion was preparing to open, Wei Yixi and Wang Xiaohu were very active.

According to Wei Yixi, it was finally time to stop being dependent on Uncle’s generosity.

Wang Xiaohu kept silent, yet he worked with great diligence.

Obviously, as Wei Yixi was after all Fang Xi’s niece, he, an outsider, felt even more awkward and could only work himself to the bone.

As for Ruan Dan and Jin Ling, they lacked a bit of drive.

However, Fang Xi did not hold them to very strict standards.

In the Cultivation World, all one needed was cultivation levels, and there wasn’t any customer-first policy.

On ordinary days, it sufficed to have Ruan Dan sit in the store; with her Qi Refining late-stage cultivation, she could easily intimidate individual cultivators.

Many Cultivation powers’ dynamics were directly determined by the activities of the one with the highest level of cultivation, influencing the family’s grand schemes for the future.

Take Dongmen Ying of the Dongmen Family, for example.

In fact, within that small family, many did not agree to rent out Little Talisman Hall, as it was essentially the goose that laid golden eggs.

Yet, Dongmen Ying was set on his decision to cease his involvement in worldly affairs and enter closed-door cultivation to seek a breakthrough, leaving no one able to stop him...

Who could do anything about it, given that Dongmen Ying was not only the family leader but also the one with the highest talent and cultivation levels?

"In Pill Tool Pavilion, we still need to refine a batch of pills and magical tools..."

Ruan Xingling looked at the rows of brand new wooden shelves and calculated, "The profit margins for low and medium-grade pills and magical tools are not high and require too much effort, so we can give up on them... We should focus on high-grade pills and tools, occasionally releasing exquisite items... and also accept pre-orders for second-tier low-grade products."

"Excellent, you take charge of these matters, and just show me the ledger at the end of each year," Fang Xi said, sipping Spirit Wine with the air of a detached shopkeeper. "Apart from that... I am not planning to sell those special array patterned tools that you proposed last time... We have to keep some secrets up our sleeve."

Ruan Xingling was speechless about Fang Xi’s caution.

...

For cultivators, time always flew by quickly.

If one were wholly devoted to closed-door cultivation, years might pass in the blink of an eye.

Spring passed and autumn came, autumn went and winter arrived.

In the blink of an eye, a year quietly slipped by.

Peach Blossom Pavilion.

Fang Xi finished his daily cultivation routine and stepped out of his closed-door cultivation room.

In the courtyard were several wooden horses and mechanical tigers that he had crafted. They appeared rather crude but all had the aura of around first-order.

"Puppet skill is profound and vast; I seem to have more talent in crafting wooden puppets..."

Compared to the exceedingly complex art of puppetry, Fang Xi indeed preferred simplicity. Whether it was for cultivators or monster beasts, he could control them with just a seed.

Of course, while the puppets produced this way were both cheap and numerous, they could only be indirectly manipulated via the Monster Tree Tattoo, which was admittedly somewhat inflexible.

According to Fang Xi’s experiments, among the eight major beast puppets, he could operate two main battle puppets to defeat the remaining four or five wooden ones!

"Perhaps I should give up on the most difficult part of crafting puppets and just focus on learning how to repair them, as well as mastering the controlling techniques..."

While contemplating, Fang Xi walked towards ’Pill Tool Pavilion.’

This modest shop had a low-key beginning, with dismal business for the first few months, but it had started to turn around recently.

Thanks to the word-of-mouth amongst Qi Refining cultivators, ’Pill Tool Pavilion,’ which occasionally featured little gems, was gradually gaining some fame.

When Fang Xi entered the shop, he saw Ruan Dan resembling an iceberg, standing behind the counter.

Wei Yixi was organizing the shelves of pills, while Wang Xiaohu was moving around magical tools.

"Uncle..."

Seeing Fang Xi arrive, Wei Yixi’s eyes brightened, and Ruan Dan and Wang Xiaohu also promptly saluted.

"Hmm, you continue with your tasks, I’ve just come to take a look..."

Fang Xi casually picked up the ledger, did a quick calculation, and was speechless.

’Pill Tool Pavilion has been in business for a year, and after deducting various materials and labor costs... it has barely earned over a hundred Spirit Stones?’

’Although there have been store-opening promotions, which led to reducing prices to capture the market and thus giving up profits, this is still... dismal!’

’Taking out the annual rent of a hundred Spirit Stones, it’s almost like working for free...’

’Fortunately, from next year on, profits should start to rise, eventually stabilizing at the level of several hundred Spirit Stones...’

Seeing Fang Xi’s troubled countenance, Ruan Dan and Wang Xiaohu couldn’t help but feel anxious.

It was Wei Yixi who was quick-witted, seizing Fang Xi’s arm and sharing numerous amusing stories.

"Ever since the shop opened, I’ve indeed made quite a few friends."

"There are also some cultivators who always come up to network, then boast about their abundant gains from hunting adventures in the wilderness."

"Xixi has always remembered what uncle taught me, and I never step out of Baize Immortal City!"

Wei Yixi remembered the stories Fang Xi told about ’luring dogs out to kill them’ very well.

As a result, she only showed her innocent and lively side in front of Fang Xi and was naturally wary of other cultivators.

"Oh, today we actually have the pleasure of seeing Mr. Fang in the store, quite a rare occurrence indeed..."

A Prime Taoist entered ’Pill Tool Pavilion,’ dressed in a snow-white crane robe with three strands of long beard hanging down, his complexion ruddy and carrying an air of Taoist grace.

"It turns out to be Prime Taoist Huahe!"

Fang Xi slightly bowed, recognizing this Foundation Establishment cultivator.

"How fortuitous, Mr. Fang, I wish to custom order a batch of second-tier pills..."

Prime Taoist Huahe chuckled as he discussed business, with both parties signing a contract and paying a deposit...

After all was busy with these matters, Prime Taoist Huahe invited, "Mr. Fang... Outside, I have discovered a senior’s Dongfu, but its prohibitions are rather formidable, too difficult to enter alone... Are you interested?"