Immortal Cultivation: Starting from a Pharmacy Apprentice

Chapter 277: Chapter 277: A Change of Seasons

After changing hands and weathering many storms in the past year, Immortal Arrival City had finally settled down.

Under the governance of the Xuandao Sect, the prevailing principle was to let the people rest and recover.

With no one stirring up trouble, life was naturally peaceful and prosperous.

After a period of such good days, once the initial adjustment was over, people inevitably grew comfortable and a little complacent.

"When people’s lives get better, do they really lose their drive?"

Wei An asked Qin Wen, who was beside him, a hint of confusion in his voice as he put away the account book.

Just moments ago, he had seen several customers out.

They were all hardy members of Demon Hunting Teams, but when discussing hunting in the mountains, their talk was filled with phrases like "play it safe," "we’ll test the waters again," and "let’s find some other beast."

Their former ferocity was nowhere to be seen.

Qin Wen smiled, unsurprised.

"They’re just men of flesh and blood. When they finally get some peaceful days, are they supposed to keep fighting to the death instead of taking a break?"

"Aside from the ambitious ones, everyone now is just trying to find a wife and raise their kids."

Those who were ambitious and familiar to them, like Lanshan and his ilk, were actually even more settled down these days.

They were all preparing for the matter of the Jade Plate Secret Realm, spending their days building up their strength and eating heartily.

"It’s gotten easier to make a living in the city. Nowadays, even if you just find a way to resell some Demon Beast pelts, you won’t starve."

The two continued to chat.

Soon, the people busy in the Alchemy Room came out. Two were young boys, apprentices under Xue Ning and the others.

As for Hou Cheng, after days of studying the notes Bai Mo had left behind and getting plenty of hands-on practice in the Alchemy Room, he could now hold his own.

He just wasn’t as seasoned as Xue Ning, however.

Wei An quickly welcomed them.

"You’ve all worked hard. Come, sit down and have some tea first."

Some standing and some sitting, they casually took the teacups from Wei An.

The warm tea running down their throats finally pulled them back a little from the smoke-filled heat of their work.

Xue Ning was a little confused.

"Why are there no customers?"

"We alchemists actually have some downtime. Has business gotten slow?"

Wei An laughed. "Not at all."

"The shop’s income is the same as always, a minimum of fifty Spirit Stones a day."

"It’s just that people have a bit more money on hand now. They aren’t buying piecemeal anymore, so they don’t come in as many times a month."

"Your skills have been improving, and our Pill production is more than enough to meet demand. If you have free time, you might as well use it to further study your Alchemy Skill."

This was exactly what Hou Cheng was thinking.

He had come to the shop precisely for the sake of its Alchemy Skill.

But as they were talking, he remembered something else.

"My uncle said that the Xuandao Sect has already started preparing for the Jade Plate Secret Realm. It’s apparently a huge affair."

"The Shopkeeper should be able to do a lot of business right now, with good profits, since the customers are all Sect Disciples."

"But now..."

Xue Ning waved his hand.

"How can temporary business be more important than cultivation?"

"Don’t worry, the Shopkeeper definitely knows what he’s doing!"

...

’Seems it’s about time to go out.’

Bai Mo began to rise, a frown on his face.

’How long has it been? Three months? Or maybe longer...’

He stood up completely.

On the lit candle beside him, the thin, blue-gray sliver used for timing had mostly burned away, leaving only a small, charcoal-black nub.

Bai Mo retrieved a wooden box meant for Pills and placed the remaining half of the Wooden Silkworm and this blackened nub inside.

It was thanks to this item, in coordination with the Jade Flower Pill, that his cultivation had reached its current level.

Stretching, Bai Mo felt a sense of comfort spread throughout his entire body.

’If I hadn’t run out of Jade Flower Pills, I could have broken straight through to the Qi Refining Ninth Layer with just another half a month of cultivation. What a pity...’

BOOM!

The door to the quiet room was pushed open.

Bai Mo strode out. Everything in his home was unchanged.

Arriving in the rear courtyard, Bai Mo felt a sense of openness wash over him—whether from his good mood or from finally escaping the confines of the quiet room, he couldn’t say.

Then, he saw two figures dressed in brocade walking past outside, deep in conversation.

The two were none other than Young Master Wei and Young Master Wang. They wore swords at their waists and carried packs on their backs.

Bai Mo was surprised and couldn’t help but call out.

"You two, are you finally leaving?"

These two young masters, who had been idle and aimless in their families, had known Bai Mo for a long time and had a fair number of dealings with him.

Seeing them about to depart, Bai Mo suddenly felt a wave of emotion.

Hearing Bai Mo’s voice so suddenly, Young Masters Wei and Wang were startled.

"Shopkeeper Bai! It’s been a long time."

"Are you finally out of seclusion?"

Bai Mo pushed open the courtyard gate, stepped out, and nodded.

"Are you two returning to your families?"

"That’s a good thing. Being cultivated by your families is better than wandering around on your own."

Young Master Wang immediately shook his head.

"No way!"

"We’ve taken a long-term lease on the courtyard out back. The original owner went back to the countryside to live, and we don’t even know if he’ll ever return."

"We’re on our way to the foot of Celestial Barrier Mountain to train, on our instructor’s orders. Look, our packs are filled with life-saving tools!"

Young Master Wei sighed.

"Our families said we’re old enough now and have established a foothold in the city. We can stand on our own two feet, so we’ll probably be making our living here in Immortal Arrival City from now on."

Bai Mo was stunned. Upon asking, he learned that the two had already established a business in the city.

They often associated with Wei An and the others at the shop, where they had gotten to know many Cultivators from the Demon Hunting Teams.

When they recently saw the business of reselling Demon Beast parts starting to boom in the city, they jumped in on a whim.

They knew the best pelts were out of their reach, so they only collected the decent ones to sell in distant towns.

And as it turned out, by leveraging their parents’ connections, they had actually managed to make a success of it.

Young Master Wei cupped his hands in a salute.

"The instructor our mothers hired is waiting for us, so we must take our leave."

"We’ll treat you to a drink when we’re free!"

With that, the two hurried away.

Bai Mo watched them go, finding the situation rather amusing.

Back when they were full of ambition, they hadn’t accomplished anything in the city, just spending their days eating, drinking, and idling away their time.

Yet now, after jumping in casually, they had actually made a successful business.

Bai Mo shook his head, then washed up and went out to the storefront.

Qin Wen, who had been resting with his arms crossed and eyes closed, opened his eyes. Seeing it was Bai Mo, he immediately stood up.

He shook his head, clearing away the grogginess, and said:

"Shopkeeper, you’re out of seclusion."

He tried to gauge Bai Mo’s cultivation progress, but all he could perceive was a blur; he couldn’t make out a thing.

Bai Mo stepped over the threshold and let out a breath.

"Yes, I’m finally out."

"It seems your progress was excellent?"

"I’m just one step away from the Qi Refining Ninth Layer."

Qin Wen froze for a moment, then quickly cupped his fist.

"Congratulations, Shopkeeper! You’ll be ready for Foundation Establishment in no time!"

Bai Mo laughed.

"One can only hope."

With that said, he glanced around the shop.

"Where is everyone?"

Qin Wen ducked down to look for something behind the counter.

"I heard someone hunted a few rare Demon Beasts, and the medicinal herbs that grew alongside them in their lairs were brought back as well."

"Wei An took a few people to go take a look. I don’t know anything about alchemy, so I stayed here to watch the shop."

He took out a stack of papers.

"The Xuandao Sect’s Jade Plate Secret Realm is about to open, and several of your fellow sect members came by to request your alchemy services."

"These are the orders they left."

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