「In Tai Ming’s home.」

Tai Ming’s wife set the food on the table. Seeing the grave expressions on their faces, she remained silent and ate by herself.

Huan Xiyi, somewhat puzzled, asked,

"Why did you agree to Alchemist Bai’s offer?"

"The city is so unpredictable right now. This isn’t the time for us to get involved."

"If we just stick to the plan and work hard for a few more years, we can save up enough to get a medicinal field for our children to make a living from..."

Tai Ming sighed, his head aching.

"You don’t go out much, so you don’t know."

"It’s getting harder and harder to earn Spirit Stones out there. We have to find other ways."

He explained his reasoning.

"Besides, didn’t I buy us a month’s time?"

"We can test the waters first, ask around about this Alchemist’s reputation..."

Huan Xiyi listened and nodded repeatedly.

"You’ve thought this through, brother. And here I was thinking you were just being impulsive!"

"Not really." Tai Ming fell silent for a moment before whispering,

"This time... I almost didn’t make it back. The things in that swamp are highly venomous..."

Hearing this, Tai Ming’s wife, who was holding her rice bowl, froze. After a moment, she silently placed more food in his bowl.

"Life is so unpredictable. If it weren’t, our ancestors would never have moved to the city in the first place."

"Maybe I am getting a bit desperate, not as cautious as I used to be."

Huan Xiyi clinked his cup against his and downed it in one gulp.

"Whatever. With our friendship, there’s no way I’m letting you do this alone."

"So let’s give it a shot!"

"By the way, my wife’s away, so I’ll be staying here with you for a few days..."

Tai Ming’s wife nodded.

"I’ll go check on them tomorrow. Your wife isn’t well, and it must be hard for her to take care of both our families’ children alone..."

...

Bai Mo returned home.

The stars and moon hung high in the sky, a welcome change from the oppressive black clouds of the past few nights.

’My good neighbor’s house is pitch-black. To go out carousing while still injured... that man is truly unbelievable!’

Bai Mo mused to himself.

’First, I’ll fire up the furnace for a few batches to handle business for the next few days.’

’Once I take over Li Hu’s business, I really won’t be able to cope.’

’I need to find a sharp assistant.’

’That way, I can focus more of my energy on cultivation and the Alchemy Dao.’

The simplest method would be to pull some strings and buy a few Dao slaves.

Such people are useful, obedient, and inexpensive.

However, Bai Mo disliked the idea of treating people like livestock, so he dismissed the thought.

’They’d need to know a bit about the Alchemy Dao and be able to identify medicinal ingredients. That kind of person isn’t so easy to find.’

As his thoughts churned, he had already set up the Pill Furnace and a bronze pot.

Flames blazed, and smoke drifted upward, escaping through the vent.

...

Young Master Wei watched the smoke rising from Bai Mo’s residence, his expression shifting like clouds on a windy day.

His left eye was bruised, and his friend, Young Master Wang, was carefully dabbing it with a cloth soaked in cold water.

"Careful, don’t move."

"The physician said if you’re not careful, you could be disfigured."

Young Master Wei was uncharacteristically impatient.

"Don’t listen to that quack’s nonsense. It’s just a small bruise, how could it disfigure me!?"

Young Master Wang muttered, "Still, it’s better to be careful."

After saying that, his anger suddenly flared up. He jabbed hard with the cloth, making Young Master Wei flinch in pain.

"I mean, how could those people be so barbaric?!"

"You were a customer, for crying out loud! It makes no sense!!"

Young Master Wei snatched the cloth from his hand.

"Here, I’ll do it myself."

As he recalled the evening’s events, a thoughtful look appeared in his eyes.

"That’s not how businessmen act."

"I remember when I ran into them, they were furious and looked pretty roughed up..."

"I came to their door seeking Pills. Maybe I said the wrong thing, or maybe I just walked right into the line of fire."

Seeing him in this self-reflective mood only made Young Master Wang angrier.

"Pathetic! Truly pathetic!!"

"You got beaten up for no reason! There’s no way I can just let this go!"

Young Master Wang paced about anxiously for a moment, then a question suddenly occurred to him.

"Why are you so fixated on that Pill? Does your uncle have... some kind of unspeakable ailment?"

Back home, even if they were to buy such a Pill, they would typically send a servant to do it.

Going yourself is just too humiliating!

Young Master Wei sighed.

"It’s not that my uncle is sick. It’s that his Qi Guiding technique has reached a critical juncture."

"The problem is, he lost his primal yang long ago. I have several cousins, after all."

"Right now, he desperately needs something to replenish his primal yang, to prevent the yin and yang in his body from falling out of balance so he can achieve a breakthrough."

"Besides, the culture in this city seems different. I’ve seen plenty of profligates who don’t seem to care about losing face..."

Young Master Wei said this with a hint of lament.

"He’s been plagued by this for half his life. I absolutely will not make the same mistake!"

Seeing him continuously glancing toward Bai Mo’s residence, Young Master Wang grew suspicious.

"What are you thinking of doing?"

Young Master Wei squinted one eye.

"Tell me... since they’re in the same business, do you think Shopkeeper Bai could get his hands on that rumored Pill?"

Young Master Wang was horrified.

"Are you insane? You can’t go to one Alchemist and ask about another’s Pills! What kind of customer does that?"

"What if it’s something made by one of his rivals? You’d be making an enemy of him!"

"It’s only a rumor. No one has actually seen the Pill. It might just be a scam..."

he urged earnestly.

"As for your uncle, just let your aunt figure something out. Don’t get yourself too tangled up in this."

Much later, the smoke from Bai Mo’s residence finally dissipated, and the glow from his fire died out.

Only then did Young Master Wei finally give up.

"Forget it, it’s better not to offend Shopkeeper Bai."

"He seems like a decent person."

The night deepened, and everyone finally went to rest.

The night passed in the blink of an eye.

「The next day.」

"Brother Bai!" 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Bai Mo was still groggily washing up when he was suddenly met with Xu Ruyuan’s excited greeting.

Bai Mo spat out the water in his mouth and beckoned Xu Ruyuan into the house.

"What happened?"

"I found a ton of medicinal ingredients," Xu Ruyuan said.

"I paid a visit to the shopkeeper of a failed business, and it turns out he still has unsold inventory."

"And in it are many of the ingredients you’re looking for."

Bai Mo nodded.

"Is the other party willing to sell?"

"He is!" Xu Ruyuan said. "Once he clears out his warehouse, he’ll be free to pack light and retire to the countryside as a wealthy man!"

"You should be able to handle the price negotiations yourself, Brother Bai. It shouldn’t be too difficult."

Bai Mo gained a new appreciation for Xu Ruyuan’s connections and efficiency. He nodded and said,

"We’ll talk about this matter later."

"Huh?" Xu Ruyuan was slightly stunned.

Wiping his face, Bai Mo offered Xu Ruyuan a sesame flatbread.

The flatbread had been delivered by an attendant not long ago. Its crispy, fragrant aroma was incredibly enticing.

"Fellow Daoist Xu, I have a new job for you. Are you interested?"

"Do it well, and you’ll earn much more than you do foraging in the mountains."

A sharp glint appeared in Xu Ruyuan’s eyes.

"That depends on what Brother Bai needs me to do."

"I can handle running errands, but I’m not cut out for anything too high-profile."

Xu Ruyuan was very self-aware.

He knew that at an Alchemist’s level, many tasks were beyond the capabilities of a nameless, powerless Loose Cultivator like himself.

Bai Mo took a sip of tea to wet his throat.

"It’s nothing too difficult. You’ll still be gathering medicinal ingredients for me."

"This time, however, we’re moving beyond small-time jobs."

"My research on Pills consumes a massive amount of ingredients. I need someone dedicated to procuring them for me."

Xu Ruyuan seemed thoughtful.

Seeing this, Bai Mo struck while the iron was hot:

"Spirit Stones will be settled every ten days, calculated based on the quantity and quality of the ingredients. How about it?"

Xu Ruyuan finally showed a look of interest.

"In that case, of course I..."

Bai Mo raised a hand. "Hold on."

"Before we go any further, you have to tell me about yourself."

"We’ve known each other for a while, yet I don’t even know where you live."