Immortal Cultivation: Starting from a Pharmacy Apprentice

Chapter 191: Chapter 191: Thoughts

"The sect has Spirit-Breaking Smoke, which destroys Spiritual Restriction Skills. It’s a powerful tool for breaking restrictive arrays."

A senior brother behind Qi Yang chuckled.

"But it’s so expensive that using it on people would be a waste. It has to be used where it counts the most."

As he spoke, his expression turned serious.

"Junior Brother’s Five Obstacles Pill is very similar to Spirit-Breaking Smoke. Besides its much lower efficacy, it has almost no other flaws."

"To be honest, a pill like this appearing in Immortal Arrival City is somewhat inappropriate. It could disrupt the balance of power among the various factions."

"Junior Brother, you should be careful when selling it. Try not to get entangled in any karmic ties."

The few senior brothers Qi Yang brought with him were all cultivators who had honed their skills in the Outer Sect for a long time.

Although they weren’t as astonishingly talented as Mo Tianshu and his peers, they were definitely outstanding individuals. Their experiences in the outside world had sharpened their judgment.

Bai Mo trusted their judgment.

"Don’t worry, Senior Brothers. I know what I’m doing."

After speaking, Bai Mo asked with concern:

"Where are you Senior Brothers headed this time?"

Qi Yang chuckled and said:

"We’re off to hunt down a group of rogue cultivators. Heaven knows where we’ll end up."

"It’s not as peaceful as Junior Brother Bai’s life."

Bai Mo wanted to invite them for a cup of tea, but they didn’t even sit down. The dust of their journey hadn’t yet settled, and they were ready to leave immediately.

Helpless, Bai Mo could only walk them out and see them off.

"Farewell, Senior Brothers."

After Qi Yang and the others left, Wei An and Qin Wen came over.

"Were those the shopkeeper’s fellow sect members?"

Wei An was a little curious.

"They seemed very powerful."

He had dealt with many customers in the shop, all with varying levels of vigor and spirit.

But the soaring spirit of the shopkeeper’s sect brothers was the most intense Wei An had ever seen.

It was just a feeling; he couldn’t describe it specifically.

Qin Wen nodded beside him, his expression grave.

"Very strong people. Their auras are perfectly contained, with almost no visible flaws, yet they give off a piercing sense of danger."

"Even a Demon Beast that survived a hundred battles in the Celestial Barrier Mountain couldn’t reach this level."

Bai Mo didn’t understand matters of combat, so he just nodded.

"The atmosphere within the Xuandao Sect is excellent. The senior brothers inside are all brave and diligent individuals. Their skills are second to none!"

Wei An said with a hint of pride:

"Even cultivators as powerful as them traveled a thousand li just to buy pills from the Shopkeeper!"

Bai Mo chuckled.

"It’s just a coincidence that I have some rare pills."

Beside them, Qin Wen’s expression changed slightly. He had just overheard the conversation between Bai Mo and the others and had a rough idea of what the delivered pills were for.

’When did Immortal Arrival City get pills like these?’

In the past, all sorts of strange pills and Spiritual Artifacts would only appear when one heard tales about the wider Cultivation Realm.

But now, Immortal Arrival City actually had them too.

The cultivators of Immortal Arrival City, who prided themselves on being close to the Celestial Barrier Mountain range and its abundant resources, suddenly felt like frogs in a well.

"Shopkeeper, you’ve come out of seclusion. Will you be returning to your quiet cultivation later?"

Wei An asked.

Bai Mo shook his head.

"Cultivation is about balancing work and rest. I haven’t been around Immortal Arrival City for a while, so I was just about to go out for a stroll and see what’s changed."

Wei An nodded repeatedly.

"Of course, of course."

"In the shop, I’m always hearing customers talk about the changes in the city. I’ve heard it so often my ears are growing calluses."

But he wasn’t familiar with Immortal Arrival City, so he had never actually gone out to see for himself.

"Enough about that. Go prepare some food!"

With a wave of his sleeve, Bai Mo sat down behind the shop’s counter, flipping through the account books while waiting for Wei An to call him.

Qin Wen came over carrying a teapot, the thick calluses on his hands allowing him to ignore the heat of the pot.

’Even someone as taciturn as him knows to brew a pot of tea for me.’

Bai Mo was rather impressed.

So he drank and read, feeling quite content.

Before half a cup of tea’s time had passed, and before Wei An had called for him, someone else arrived at the door.

Han Meng, leaning on a crutch, entered the shop, scanned the room, and then approached Bai Mo.

He was holding a sealed letter.

Bai Mo raised an eyebrow, not understanding why he had suddenly shown up.

"Shopkeeper Bai, a letter for you!"

Han Meng walked up to the counter, handed the letter to Bai Mo, and finally let out a sigh of relief.

"A letter delivered specially for me?"

Bai Mo said, finding it strange.

Han Meng waved his hand.

"Brother Lanshan and the others went into the mountains. My leg is bad, so they didn’t take me."

"I was enjoying some rare leisure time, just wandering around the city, when someone shoved this into my hands."

As he said this, he too found it quite novel.

"The person said the sender of the letter is one of your colleagues in the city."

Understanding dawned on Bai Mo, followed by a hint of confusion.

’I haven’t seen my three counterparts in a long time. Why send a letter all of a sudden?’

After opening and reading it carefully, a look of astonishment appeared on Bai Mo’s face.

"Such boldness! No wonder those few managed to build such a fortune!"

Han Meng quickly asked, "What is it?"

Bai Mo put down the letter and pondered for a good while before saying:

"Those counterparts of mine are withdrawing from the Immortal Arrival City market."

"According to them, they’ve already secretly sold off most of their businesses in the city."

Han Meng was momentarily stunned.

"Huh?"

Qin Wen also turned his gaze toward them.

Before Bai Mo appeared, cultivators from Demon Hunting Teams like them, aside from buying expensive pills from the Miaofa Sect, would get their pills from the businesses of those few.

The former would skin them alive with their prices, while the latter were more conscientious, but their pills were of lower quality and efficacy, with their only advantage being a wide variety.

Many apprentices in the city worked for them, and the pills they produced were... hard to describe.

But during difficult times, it at least gave loose cultivators like them another option.

After being stunned for a good while, Han Meng finally said:

"But they support so many people, don’t they?"

"Such a good market, and they’re just giving it up like that?"

Bai Mo shook his head.

"According to the letter, they will be taking all of their own people with them."

"As for the peripheral businesses, the people struggling to survive within them aren’t really being supported by them, but by the entire market of Immortal Arrival City."

"As long as the businesses still exist and someone takes over, those people’s lives will go on as before."

Han Meng was lost in thought.

"Such a huge enterprise... to just give it up. Where are they going?"

Bai Mo read the letter one more time, folded it, put it away, and said casually:

"To an Immortal City in the south. It’s said to be smaller than Immortal Arrival City, but still has a large population."

’To withdraw with such a clear purpose, those three Pill Masters must have had this planned for a long time.’

’They’re only just now using this escape route.’

"What happened to make these three counterparts make such a drastic decision?"

Qin Wen, who was standing nearby, thought for a moment.

"After the setback in the Celestial Barrier Mountain, I was looking for work everywhere and noticed a lot of new faces among the merchants in the city."

"Perhaps after your sect took over, cultivators from all directions flocked here, impacting the original power and profit structure..."

’That might just be it.’

Bai Mo agreed with this explanation.

Compared to the current situation in the city, if the three counterparts could completely control the Alchemy Dao in that small southern city, the profits would be much greater.

As Bai Mo thought about this, his mind drifted to a waterway outside the city.

The Azure Dragon River.

Who knows how many people’s livelihoods depended on that winding waterway.

It wasn’t just herbs and ores from the Celestial Barrier Mountain that traveled along it, but also passing cultivators who docked at the various village wharves.

Previously, the Azure Dragon River was controlled by one of the counterparts, whose strongmen held a firm grip on the waterway.

With their withdrawal, an idea suddenly sparked in Bai Mo’s mind.