Several older Cultivators entered the shop, only glancing around quickly without staring.

They were also careful as they walked, trying their best not to bump into the shelves.

They looked quite honest.

A far cry from the street vendors, they lacked the slickness of seasoned hagglers.

"Alchemist Bai, the few herbs you’re looking for aren’t rare on Celestial Barrier Mountain, but they’re all found at least thirty li deep."

"We old brothers did the math. If you need a large enough quantity, we can give you a better price..."

They tentatively quoted a few prices, trying to gauge Bai Mo’s expectations.

Bai Mo nodded to himself.

’The prices they quoted were fair, not much different from the market rate.’

Then he looked at Xu Ruyuan next to him. That old man was a different story; he’d never had any principles when it came to business.

The price of medicinal herbs was always fluctuating.

Seeing Bai Mo look his way, Xu Ruyuan leaned in.

"Alchemist Bai, these men aren’t schemers. They’re genuine old hands at this..."

"Don’t try to haggle them down. Every major merchant guild keeps a few people like this on retainer."

Bai Mo raised a hand, cutting Xu Ruyuan off. He wasn’t one to be ungrateful.

"Then it’s settled."

"For the herbs on the list, we’ll do six Spirit Stones for a full set. Any leftovers or miscellaneous herbs can be traded at market price. How does that sound?"

Seeing that Bai Mo was easy to talk to, the old Cultivators all breathed a sigh of relief.

They had thought they’d have to do a lot more talking.

"Fair, very fair..."

"Then it’s settled. We old brothers will head up the mountain in the next few days. We won’t delay!"

The men stood up, ready to leave.

Bai Mo was startled and quickly stopped them.

"There’s no rush. Let me talk to you gentlemen about the quality of the herbs..."

The two parties spoke for a while, and Bai Mo saw that the old Cultivators knew the appearance of the herbs and the terrain where they grew like the back of their hands.

This put Bai Mo’s mind at ease.

As he saw them out, he added a reminder:

"Please take extra care with this. In the future, when my shop expands and reopens, I’ll invite you all over to help celebrate..."

Bai Mo’s words left the old Cultivators feeling both flattered and overwhelmed.

Xu Ruyuan, standing beside them, was also taken aback.

With this, in the eyes of others, a bond of mutual obligation was now considered to exist between Bai Mo and them.

It allowed a few Loose Cultivators to bask in the glow of a Pill Master.

The old Cultivators’ minds were in a slight turmoil. They even began to regret their earlier quote, wondering if they had priced it a bit too high.

But Bai Mo paid this no mind, simply seeing them off with kind words.

This put the old Cultivators’ minds at ease. Feeling quite appreciative, they all extended their chapped, old hands, clasped them in a farewell salute, and then departed.

After watching them walk away, Bai Mo turned his head to Xu Ruyuan.

"Where on earth did you find these men?"

’Even though they don’t practice the Alchemy Dao, the scent of herbs and soil on them is stronger than that of some apprentices.’

As he spoke, Bai Mo casually handed over a Qi Absorption Pill.

’The man ran errands for me and used his own reputation to do it. I can’t let him be short-changed.’

"You should focus on taking your pills and cultivating. Don’t work your old bones to the point of breaking." 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Xu Ruyuan sniffed the Pill’s Fragrance, a look of intoxication on his face, and tucked the Qi Absorption Pill into his sleeve.

"It wasn’t actually me who sought them out."

"With my status, they wouldn’t even give me the time of day."

Xu Ruyuan chuckled. "Perhaps it’s because I spread the news far and wide, and they just happened to have some stock on hand they wanted to get rid of."

"That’s how we made the connection!"

As he spoke, he took out a sheet of paper and handed it to Bai Mo.

"I’ve already looked into the backgrounds of these men."

"The few of them had a long-term partnership with a small merchant guild, gathering herbs in the mountains. It was just enough to support their families."

Bai Mo looked at the scattered information on the paper while listening to Xu Ruyuan’s explanation.

"But that small merchant guild offended the enforcement squad, and now they’ve been shut down."

"So those fellow daoists have fallen on hard times!"

Hearing this, Bai Mo was reminded of something.

Before entering Celestial Barrier Mountain, Lanshan had borrowed two books from a friend as a precaution.

They were valuable heirlooms, recording methods for laying out and maintaining medicinal fields.

Now, those two books were still in his possession. He didn’t know if Lanshan had forgotten, or if he just thought it was okay to let him borrow them for a while longer.

’How remiss of me.’

’And here I was, thinking about visiting those two Cultivators.’

"Even with the old hands searching for herbs in the mountains, please don’t neglect acquiring herbs in the city."

"After all, things in the mountains are unpredictable. There are no guarantees."

Xu Ruyuan nodded solemnly.

"I understand. For this Qi Absorption Pill alone, I’ll have to put in the effort!"

With that, Xu Ruyuan took his leave.

Bai Mo took out the two books on medicinal fields and quickly skimmed through them.

"No time like the present. I’ll return the books tonight."

"This way, I won’t get in the way of their business either!"

...

Another day passed without incident.

「That evening.」

Bai Mo took stock of his Pills, getting a clear count in his head. Then, with the two books tucked in his robes, he closed up shop and headed out.

When he hurried over to Lanshan’s place, he found Lanshan just dropping a stone lock he had been lifting.

Steam was rising from his body. The muscles on his arms were bulging, and the thick tendons standing out were extremely intimidating.

"Shopkeeper Bai!"

"What brings you here?"

Lanshan clapped his hands together and quickly ushered Bai Mo inside.

Bai Mo walked in and looked around.

"Just you, Brother Lanshan?"

Lanshan nodded.

"After several days of heavy rain, everyone went back to their own homes. It’s a rare break, so they have to visit friends and family. And there are some family matters that can’t be ignored."

"Even that kid Han Meng has been running off outside the city all day. I have no idea what he’s up to."

Bai Mo nodded and took the two books out from his robes.

One look and Lanshan immediately understood.

"Ah, so it’s about this."

"I still have some face. Borrowing them for a few more days is no big deal!"

"Have you finished reading them, Shopkeeper Bai?"

Bai Mo said, "I’ve gone through them several times already."

"I was actually hoping to pay a visit to the two owners!"

Lanshan let out a soft "mm."

"At this time of day, they should be home."

"Let me just rinse off. Wait for me, Shopkeeper Bai!"

In less than a quarter of an hour, a refreshed Lanshan appeared before Bai Mo.

As the two walked out, Lanshan asked casually:

"Shopkeeper Bai, you seem interested in those two. Don’t tell me you want to be like the great clans and keep a few herb gatherers on retainer?"

Bai Mo shook his head.

"How could I possibly have those kinds of resources?"

"I just want to get acquainted. That way, if I need them in the future, I’ll know where to find them!"

Lanshan laughed heartily, drawing the gazes of passersby.

"You’re too modest, Shopkeeper Bai!"

The two of them passed the pedestrians, turned into an alley, and walked through its winding twists and turns.

The alley was very narrow, and Lanshan, feeling cramped, seemed quite uncomfortable.

The sound of children playing could be heard from time to time; it seemed quite a few families lived in the alley.

After passing many doorways, Lanshan finally stopped before a house with a bluestone threshold.

BANG! BANG!

Lanshan pounded on the door.

"Tai Ming, are you in there, Tai Ming?"

he yelled in his rough voice.

"Who is it? Coming, coming!"

CREAK. The wooden door opened.

A woman with a cloth wrapped around her head opened the door. At the same time, a strange smell from the courtyard washed over them.

Lanshan frowned immediately.

Bai Mo, on the other hand, was used to such smells, but he still raised an eyebrow.

"Is someone injured?"

Amid the scent of herbs, he had detected the smell of a medicinal plaster.

Coincidentally, Bai Mo knew the formula for this type of plaster.

Lanshan’s heart skipped a beat. "Tai Ming, is he..."

The woman wiped the corner of her eye.

"It’s nothing, just a small injury. Please come in, Brother Lanshan."

But Bai Mo secretly shot Lanshan a look, and Lanshan gave a nearly imperceptible nod.

’An injury that requires that kind of medicinal plaster is no small matter.’

’You’d only use such a potent, tiger-and-wolf-like medicine for a broken bone or severe bleeding.’