Immortality and Cultivation: I Have Three Times the Lifespan

Chapter 62 Profits from Inferior Grade Pills

This pill was darker in color than a normal Marrow Cleansing Pill, and its patterns were also blurry, but the medicinal power it contained was very pure, without much of a poisonous aura.

It was even purer than many of the so-called inferior pills he had seen.

"A substandard Marrow Cleansing Pill... its medicinal power is pure, but the residue is approximately... 40%?"

The old shopkeeper's tone carried a hint of surprise and admiration that were barely perceptible.

"There are also substandard Rejuvenation Pills and Spirit Nourishing Pills? The purity is quite good." He checked them one by one, his movements noticeably more careful.

"Not bad, it's a good product. Young friend, your alchemy skills have improved quite a bit."

The old shopkeeper put down the last bottle of pills, looked at Yang Changsheng, and a rare smile appeared on his face, as if he had seen a big customer.

A skilled alchemist can often produce two to three or more pills in one batch, and if the skill is good, the success rate of producing genuine pills is usually quite high.

What remains are substandard and waste pills. The fact that the loss of this pill was controlled so well is enough to prove that the other party's refining skills are extraordinary, and he is very likely to become a first-grade high-quality alchemist soon.

"It's even better than the batch you sold last time. With this quality, we get a lot of repeat customers."

He squinted, his gaze sharp, and a strange smile appeared on his face.

Yang Changsheng's heart sank suddenly. He hadn't expected that this sharp-eyed old shopkeeper had already recognized him as the imposter.

Despite the mask and cloak obscuring his features, the other person seemed to have memorized some of his characteristics—perhaps his build and gait, or perhaps the subtle details of his knuckles that were inadvertently revealed when he picked up an item…

A chill crept up Yang Changsheng's spine.

"I was careless! I still need to be careful from now on..."

He was secretly alarmed; in the treacherous market, especially when handling such special supplies, the consequences of his identity being exposed would be unimaginable.

"Shopkeeper, you flatter me. It was just a lucky break. Will you accept this batch of goods? What's the price?"

Yang Changsheng's voice was still hoarse, but he relaxed slightly, realizing that the other party had misunderstood something—that they hadn't discovered his ability to purify waste pills.

Indeed, once the pill is formed, its quality cannot be improved. This is the law of alchemy, which even alchemy masters cannot break. Who would have thought that a mere Qi Refining cultivator like him could accomplish it?

"Yes, of course we'll accept!"

The old shopkeeper was all smiles, clearly indicating that even this batch of high-quality but substandard pills was a valuable source of goods for him.

"The inferior-grade Marrow Cleansing Pill has only 40% of the medicinal effect, and is priced at one spirit stone plus twenty spirit pearls per pill."

"A low-grade Qi-restoring pill, only half the effective dose, priced at one spirit stone per pill."

"A mid-grade Spirit Nourishing Pill, only 35% of its original efficacy, priced at one spirit stone plus fifty spirit pearls per pill, how about it?"

The price this time was quite good, slightly higher than Yang Changsheng's own expectations.

He quickly calculated in his mind that the cost of a substandard Marrow Cleansing Pill was about thirty spirit pearls, and the selling price was one spirit stone, or twenty spirit pearls, with a profit of ninety spirit pearls per pill. The profit margins of other pills were also quite considerable.

"Okay." Yang Changsheng nodded again.

The old shopkeeper was clearly prepared; the abacus beads clicked rapidly, and his calculations were extremely fast.

"Thirty low-grade Marrow Cleansing Pills, priced at thirty-six spirit stones."

"Ten low-grade Rejuvenation Pills, valued at ten spirit stones."

"Three mid-grade Spirit Nourishing Pills, second-best quality, priced at four spirit stones plus fifty spirit pearls."

"A total of fifty spirit stones, plus fifty spirit beads."

The old shopkeeper announced the total amount and pushed the spirit stones in front of Yang Changsheng. Together with the 220 spirit stones from the previous sale of stolen goods, the total was more than 270 low-grade spirit stones.

Looking at the pile of spirit stones in front of him, Yang Changsheng felt little joy. Instead, he was overshadowed by the possibility that his identity might be exposed.

But he knew this was not the time to hesitate, so he quickly put the spirit stones into his storage bag.

"Young friend, if you have any goods in the future, feel free to send them over. The quality is good, and the price is negotiable," the old shopkeeper added with a smile, his tone full of meaning.

Yang Changsheng did not respond, but simply nodded slightly, turned around and quickly left Tongchen Hall.

Only after walking quite a distance, circling several alleys, and confirming that no one was following them, did they finally breathe a sigh of relief.

Back in the courtyard of Tingchao Lane, Yang Changsheng activated the array plate to open the restrictions, and only then did he truly feel a sense of security.

Yang Changsheng placed the heavy storage bag on the stone platform in the workshop and began to carefully review the efforts and gains of the past five months.

He had almost no rest time during those five months.

Aside from the daily, unwavering practice of Qi cultivation and body tempering techniques, all the remaining energy was devoted to two things.

The first thing, naturally, is to purify waste pills and transform inferior pills, which is currently the most crucial source of revenue.

He used the life force of the ancient tree imprint to purify the waste pills, which consumed a great deal of his mental and spiritual energy.

In the initial large-scale attempts, the failure rate was not low and the process was slow. As his proficiency improved, he can now reliably process about fifty waste pills per month.

This was almost the limit of his divine control; any more and he would feel a stinging pain in his sea of ​​consciousness, affecting his foundation.

In the past five months, he has processed a total of about 250 defective pills, including 120 substandard Marrow Cleansing Pills and 85 substandard Rejuvenation Pills...

Aside from a small amount of losses from failures, he kept some mid-grade Marrow Cleansing Pills and substandard Spirit Nourishing Pills for his own cultivation.

The total income is about 161 spirit stones, which is equivalent to 32 spirit stones and 20 spirit pearls per month.

It wasn't that he didn't want to deal with more; the main reason was that the source of the waste pills was unstable, and his own processing capacity had a limit.

Moreover, although the life force of the ancient tree imprint is consumed less when used to purify pills than when stimulating spiritual plants, it still takes time to recover.

The second thing was to make puppets. Taking advantage of the workshop, the speed was faster and the skills were slightly improved.

In five months, he produced and successfully sold three puppets, which, after deducting costs, brought him a stable income of thirty-nine spirit stones.

"I currently have 420 spirit stones on hand, which is enough to pay off Xiaoying's debt, and I still have a few dozen spirit stones left over."

Yang Changsheng squeezed the storage bag, and the tension in his heart finally eased.

He had never been in debt in either of his two lifetimes, let alone such a huge sum. He felt uneasy and even gave up his usual practice of relaxation and tranquility in spiritual cultivation.

These past five months have felt like a return to a past life, where I've become a tireless corporate slave, working non-stop for twelve hours straight, constantly toiling away.

It can be said that without the powerful physique of the Longevity Body, any Qi Refining cultivator would have suffered a mental breakdown.

"There's no need to rush anymore. The profits from refining the waste pills will be enough to easily cover the rent, and life will get better and better."

Yang Changsheng stretched and lay on the floor, revealing a long-lost smile.

After resting for a quarter of an hour, he got up, took out a spirit stone bag woven from ice silkworm silk, put 340 spirit stones into it, and prepared to return it to Liu Xiaoying.

At the same time, I wondered if the other party would be surprised or suspicious if they knew that I could pay off my debt so quickly.

But I quickly dismissed the thought; there should always be some trust between people.

Then, he took out the jade talisman that Liu Xiaoying had used to send messages.

"Buzz!"

A faint light flashed at his fingertips, and a brief divine thought was injected. The jade talisman transformed into a stream of emerald light, passing through the window and disappearing into the interwoven spiritual light barrier above the market.