Chapter 5: Chapter 5: Selling
After chatting a bit more with Xu Zhengxiong, Fang Xing left the duty room.
As he stepped out of the County Yamen, Xu Le was standing at the entrance, waiting for him.
Seeing Fang Xing emerge, Xu Le strode forward with a curious look on his face. "What’d Uncle Xu tell you?"
"About the fugitive," Fang Xing replied.
"Huh? Did they find a trace of the fugitive?" Xu Le asked, looking astonished.
Fang Xing shook his head. "Not quite, but I did learn a bit more about the situation."
"Like what?"
Xu Le asked.
"It’s nothing, just that the fugitive is a member of an Evil Cult," Fang Xing said calmly.
"...?"
An Evil Cult!!
Xu Le’s eyes widened as he stared at him. "You... you’re not kidding, are you?"
"That’s what Uncle Xu said. I heard he’s a Cultist from something called the Fire Worship Sect."
"The Fire Worship Sect..." Xu Le’s brow furrowed, and he lowered his head in thought.
"You know of it, Brother Le?" Fang Xing asked, seeing him lost in thought.
Xu Le shook his head. "I’ve never heard of this particular Evil Cult, but Evil Cults are notoriously difficult to deal with. You need to be careful from now on."
Fang Xing gave a faint smile. "Don’t worry. The bigger the problem, the bigger the people who have to solve it. The higher-ups will naturally deal with the Evil Cult."
Xu Le nodded at his words.
’It’s true, dealing with an Evil Cult wasn’t something a couple of lowly Constables like them needed to worry about.’
The Great Jing Dynasty had specialized agencies to handle such matters.
"Come on, let’s get to our patrol," Xu Le said, not pressing the matter. He turned and left, with Fang Xing following close behind. The two of them soon vanished from the entrance of the County Yamen.
...
A Constable’s job was quite relaxed. Aside from those on rotating shifts guarding the County Yamen, everyone else was basically responsible for patrolling the city.
Fang Xing and Xu Le were assigned to patrol Anqing Square in the North City District.
The square was made up of four streets.
It was a place where people from all walks of life, both respectable and disreputable, mingled.
Gambling dens, brothels, and taverns were the most common sights.
Patrolling was also a prime opportunity for some off-the-books income. The local powers that be would usually offer them a little something to look the other way.
However, this was just a small cut. The lion’s share went to the head constables and their superiors.
This wasn’t unique to Qingshan County; it was the same throughout the entire Great Jing Realm.
You could find all sorts of people everywhere.
This was true not only in the current chaotic era but had also been the case during the Great Jing’s peak prosperity—perhaps even more so back then.
As long as these entrenched powers paid their dues, the Government Office would turn a blind eye.
...
At a quarter past the Chief Hour, the day’s patrol was complete. After finishing work and parting ways with Xu Le, Fang Xing went home, changed into a brown tunic and trousers, and left again.
About an hour later, Fang Xing arrived in front of a pharmacy in the south of the city.
Chen’s Pharmacy.
It was an old, well-established pharmacy in Qingshan County.
It had an excellent reputation.
The sky had grown dim, and the pharmacy was about to close. There were no other customers inside.
After a quick look around, Fang Xing stepped into Chen’s Pharmacy.
"What can I get for you, sir?" a girl in a green dress asked with a smile as she approached him.
"I’d like to sell something," Fang Xing said, getting straight to the point.
The girl in green smiled. "Our shop only buys medicinal herbs and related items."
Fang Xing nodded and took out a small vial. "These are Qi Blood Pills. Do you buy them?"
"Qi Blood Pills!"
The girl’s eyes lit up at the sight of the vial. She quickly composed herself and said, "Sir, we certainly purchase Qi Blood Pills, but I’ll need to have them appraised."
Fang Xing nodded. "Of course."
"Please wait a moment," the girl said before disappearing into the back room. Soon after, a middle-aged man in his forties or fifties emerged.
He wore a brown robe and had a neatly trimmed beard, his eyes sharp and shrewd.
The man crossed the room in a few quick strides and stood before Fang Xing.
After looking him up and down, the man smiled. "Young man, I’m the shopkeeper here, my surname is Chen. I hear you’re looking to sell some Qi Blood Pills?"
As he spoke, Shopkeeper Chen’s gaze fell upon the small vial in Fang Xing’s hand.
Fang Xing nodded and handed him the vial containing three Qi Blood Pills.
"Take a look, Shopkeeper Chen."
Shopkeeper Chen said no more, taking the vial and carefully inspecting the three pills within.
"The medicinal power is so pure... These are Upper Grade Qi Blood Pills!" Shopkeeper Chen’s eyes flashed as he examined the three pills. He quickly regained his composure, looked at Fang Xing, and said, "Young man, the quality of these elixirs is excellent. I’ll take them. As for the price... how does five taels of silver per pill sound?"
’Five taels...’
Hearing Shopkeeper Chen’s offer, Fang Xing quickly did the math in his head.
Qi Blood Pills on the open market usually sold for five or six taels of silver each, so this was already a decent price.
’No need to quibble over the details; the shopkeeper needs to make a profit too.’
’Besides, a single pack of Qi and Blood Powder could be enhanced into ten Qi Blood Pills. Aside from the time needed to accumulate Enhancement Points, it was an incredibly profitable venture for him.’
"Alright, it’s a deal," Fang Xing nodded.
A smile spread across Shopkeeper Chen’s face, and he promptly took out the silver.
For the three Qi Blood Pills, he received fifteen taels of silver.
Some of it was for his own use, and the rest was needed for daily expenses.
After all, the body’s previous owner had been living hand-to-mouth while practicing Martial Arts.
Training in the martial arts was an incredibly expensive endeavor.
After selling the Qi Blood Pills, Fang Xing spent three taels of silver to purchase three packs of Qi and Blood Powder before quickly leaving the pharmacy.
After Fang Xing left, Shopkeeper Chen gazed at the three Qi Blood Pills in the vial, his face alight with a brilliant smile.
"Uncle Chen, wasn’t that price a little high for Qi Blood Pills? Five taels of silver!" the girl in green said from the side, frowning slightly at Shopkeeper Chen.
Shopkeeper Chen chuckled. "Silly girl," he said, looking at her, "the price depends on the quality. These three Qi Blood Pills are all Upper Grade with exceptionally pure medicinal power. I could easily sell them for six taels of silver each."
"Oh, I see..." The girl nodded. She glanced in the direction Fang Xing had disappeared, then back at the shopkeeper. "Uncle Chen, that man must practice some Martial Arts, right?"
Shopkeeper Chen nodded. "Yes, he cultivates Martial Arts. His qi and blood are vigorous. He must have reached the Qi Blood Extreme."
"At his level, why wouldn’t he keep them for himself?" the girl asked, blinking.
"Elixirs are precious. You think just anyone can afford to use them casually? He must have sold them out of desperation. I just wonder if he’ll have any more in the future."
Shopkeeper Chen sighed.
He then put away the vial and looked at the girl. "Alright, it’s getting late. Let’s close up."
The girl nodded and began to close the shop for the night.
...
’I’ve used two and sold three, so there are five left. These dozen or so taels of silver should be enough for now. I’ll worry about more after my next breakthrough.’
Back home, Fang Xing took stock of his possessions and planned his next steps.
’I have the materials to enhance items, but I’m short on Enhancement Points.’
’Nothing works without Enhancement Points.’
Fang Xing considered trying to enhance silver, but the resulting pop-up prompt made him immediately abandon the thought.
It would cost a whopping five hundred Enhancement Points to enhance a single tael of silver.
That was an even bigger ripoff than actual robbery!
It wasn’t just silver; even enhancing a regular Great Money coin cost fifty Enhancement Points each.
’Is there some special rule for enhancing things like silver and Great Money?’
The thought flashed through his mind, but he couldn’t make any sense of it.
’This kind of enhancement is just absurd.’
’With that many Enhancement Points, I could enhance something far more useful than a tael of silver or a Great Money coin.’
Enhancing currency was clearly not a viable path.
Casting aside his distracting thoughts, Fang Xing took out a Qi Blood Pill and began absorbing its energy.
He couldn’t afford to slack on his Martial Arts cultivation.
A potent medicinal energy spread through his body, suffusing his limbs and skeleton.
He handled it much better now compared to the first time he had taken a Qi Blood Pill.
Having reached the Qi Blood Extreme, his physical constitution had improved dramatically.
He could now absorb the medicinal energy much more smoothly!
He went out into his courtyard. While absorbing the Qi Blood Pill’s energy through his Posture Stance cultivation, he began practicing the techniques of the Grapple Hand.
Thanks to his heaven-sent Comprehension, after only two days of practice, his execution of the Grapple Hand was completely transformed.
Every move was now infused with immense Power, each technique fierce and potent.
He had nearly achieved a Refined and Masterful state with every one of the Nine Grappling Techniques.
The benefits of his powerful Comprehension were on full display.
The same Martial Arts could unleash entirely different levels of power depending on who wielded them.
Even without the systematic tutelage of a master, his heaven-sent Comprehension had allowed him to grasp the techniques completely.
...
Fang Xing cultivated late into the night, practicing until his knuckles turned white. He only stopped once he had completely absorbed the medicinal energy of the Qi Blood Pill.
Steam rose from his head as bead-like drops of sweat rolled down his cheeks. He was panting for breath.
The boost from the Qi Blood Pill was immense. Several hours of practice and absorption had once again fortified his qi and blood.
’At this rate,’ Fang Xing thought as he felt the changes in his body, ’I might become a Martial Artist within a month.’
’Although my Root Bone is poor, my powerful Comprehension is a huge advantage.’
’Going from the Qi Blood Extreme to Bright Force... taking that step is like leaping through the first Dragon Gate of the Martial Dao!’
’But that’s only if I have enough resources.’
’Nourishing food, elixirs... these things make a huge difference!’
