Chapter 70: Chapter 70: Cheng Mengying
The Wild Bear’s talent was exceptional; in terms of his Demon Body’s toughness alone, he had already reached the Foundation Establishment Realm.
But his Demon Power was somewhat weaker, so he had yet to successfully achieve Foundation Establishment.
When a Foundation Establishment Great Demon attacked, the Wild Bear resisted with all his might. Coordinating with her methods, he managed to repel their foe, but his Spirituality was damaged in the end.
Unfortunately, the elixirs for restoring Spirituality had already been used up, and there were no skilled Alchemists nearby. She could only settle for the next best thing and use a Spirit Nourishing Pill to stabilize the Wild Bear’s injuries first.
Then, after returning home, she would use other elixirs to cure him.
Who would have thought that in this Lujiao Mountain Marketplace, there wouldn’t be a single Spirit Nourishing Pill to be found.
"Excuse me, miss. Has this esteemed guest’s Spirituality been damaged, requiring an elixir to mend it?"
Xu Chang’an, who was standing nearby, suddenly asked.
"Yes, the Wild Bear’s Spirituality has suffered a rather serious injury. He needs a Spirit Nourishing Pill to stabilize it."
The purple-skirted girl fixed her pair of bright, lively eyes on Xu Chang’an.
"If that’s the case..."
Xu Chang’an murmured to himself.
Then, he took out a Jade Bottle from his Storage Bag.
"I have some Healing Spirit Pills. I wonder if they might be of use!"
Healing Spirit Pills!
A Quasi-Tier Two Elixir!
It healed Spirituality and soothed discomfort.
Its effects were far superior to those of a Spirit Nourishing Pill!
The purple-skirted girl’s eyes lit up, and she immediately reached out to grab it.
"Hold on, miss."
Xu Chang’an twisted away, trying to evade the purple-skirted girl’s delicate hand.
But alas, his Cultivation was low. How could he possibly be a match for her?
Even though he turned to pull back, the girl was incredibly fast and snatched the Jade Bottle from him in an instant.
As their paths crossed during the snatch, the girl’s delicate hand unintentionally touched Xu Chang’an.
It was fair, delicate, soft, and smooth.
In that fleeting moment, a faint, pleasant fragrance drifted to him.
The purple-skirted girl snatched the Jade Bottle and opened it for a look.
Inside were several elixirs, which were, in fact, Healing Spirit Pills.
"Miss, is this highway robbery?!"
Xu Chang’an said, his tone tinged with anger.
"Relax. I’m an honorable person. You’ll get your Demon Stones!"
The purple-skirted girl gave a casual reply and handed the Jade Bottle to the Barbaric Bear Demon at her side.
"Thank you, Miss."
The Barbaric Bear Demon took the Jade Bottle and, without thanking Xu Chang’an, the actual owner of the elixirs, spoke to the girl in a gruff voice.
Then, he poured out a Healing Spirit Pill from the Jade Bottle and swallowed it.
’An injury to one’s Spirituality is best treated sooner rather than later!’
Seeing the Barbaric Bear Demon close his eyes and begin to recuperate, the purple-skirted girl finally shifted her gaze back to Xu Chang’an.
"Did you refine these elixirs?"
"I did."
Xu Chang’an replied, his face showing clear displeasure.
He was clearly still hung up on what had just happened.
The purple-skirted girl suddenly took a few steps forward and bent down, bringing her face right up to Xu Chang’an’s.
"To think you’re a Quasi-second-rank Alchemist. I underestimated you!"
’Looking at the exquisite face before him, Xu Chang’an felt completely unperturbed.’
On the outside, however, he put on an expression of indignation mixed with a hint of fear.
He perfectly acted out the conflicting emotions of being furious, yet not daring to act recklessly because he couldn’t gauge her background.
After staring at Xu Chang’an for a while, the girl finally straightened up.
"Alright then, how much are you selling these Healing Spirit Pills for?"
The Healing Spirit Pill was a Quasi-Tier Two Elixir.
Furthermore, it was a relatively uncommon type, specifically designed to heal injuries to one’s Spirituality.
Its price was naturally high.
Elixirs required for daily cultivation were always the cheapest within any given tier.
They were followed by healing elixirs, and then Enhancement Class elixirs.
And finally, there were Tier-Breaking Elixirs.
High-quality versions of any of these types would be worth a great deal more.
The Healing Spirit Pill fell somewhere between a healing elixir and an Enhancement Class elixir.
However, its status as a Quasi-Tier Two Elixir drove its price up significantly.
According to the market price, a single pill should cost around eighteen Demon Stones.
However, this was not a Demon City. Healing Spirit Pills were almost impossible to find on the market here, so selling them would surely command a hefty premium.
Xu Chang’an had refined a total of five Healing Spirit Pills in a single batch.
"Five elixirs, that’ll be ninety Demon Stones!"
Xu Chang’an quoted a fair price, without any premium.
’The raw materials for Healing Spirit Pills cost thirty Demon Stones at most.’
’One successful batch could earn me a profit equivalent to almost one-sixth of a Middle-grade Magical Artifact.’
This just went to show how quickly an Alchemist could accumulate wealth.
Elixirs weren’t like Magical Artifacts; they were true consumables.
As long as one cultivated, elixirs were indispensable.
And these were only Quasi-Tier Two Elixirs. If they were actual Tier Two Elixirs...
However, Xu Chang’an was currently living under another’s protection. The vast majority of his profits had to be turned over to Langlang Mountain.
"Alright, I won’t take advantage of you. We’ll call it one hundred Demon Stones for the five Healing Spirit Pills.
However, you must refine at least twenty more Healing Spirit Pills for me within three days."
A Spirit Nourishing Pill could only stabilize the Barbaric Bear Demon’s condition.
A Healing Spirit Pill, however, could repair the damage to his Spirituality.
However, a full recovery couldn’t be achieved with just one or two Healing Spirit Pills.
Given the extent of the Barbaric Bear Demon’s spiritual damage, he would need at least twenty Healing Spirit Pills for a careful and complete recovery.
At one hundred Demon Stones for five, twenty pills would cost four hundred Demon Stones.
An injury like the Barbaric Bear Demon’s, which wasn’t even considered especially severe, still cost four hundred Demon Stones in healing elixirs.
That was the price of a standard Middle-grade Magical Artifact!
For a more severe injury, even a thousand Demon Stones might not suffice.
For the vast majority of Demons with no backing or resources,
the saying—"wait out minor injuries, endure major ones, and await death with critical ones"—was no exaggeration.
Wealth, companions, cultivation methods, and location—the importance of "wealth" was clear to see!
And from this, one could also glimpse the arduous nature of the Demon Path!
"Miss, the Healing Spirit Pill is a Quasi-Tier Two Elixir.
I have only just become a Quasi-second-rank Alchemist. To refine twenty pills in three days... I’m afraid that...
...is beyond my capabilities!"
Xu Chang’an said, a troubled expression on his face.
"Twenty-five Healing Spirit Pills for five hundred Demon Stones.
If you can refine them within three days, I’ll throw in an extra one hundred Demon Stones! How about it!?"
The purple-skirted girl stared at Xu Chang’an, her spirited eyes fixed on him.
Her offer included a premium equivalent to five Low-grade Magical Artifacts.
You could tell at a glance she wasn’t someone who was short on Demon Stones!
"Miss, it’s not that I don’t want to earn these Demon Stones.
It’s just that I truly lack the ability, even if I have the will."
The look of difficulty on Xu Chang’an’s face grew even more pronounced.
However, despite his words, the impression Xu Chang’an gave was that he *could* refine them, but only at a great personal cost.
He seemed to only be wrestling with how great that cost would be.
The purple-skirted girl didn’t reply immediately, but instead studied Xu Chang’an for a moment.
"Do you have any idea who I am!?"
"Miss, it doesn’t matter who you are, I still can’t refine them," Xu Chang’an said helplessly.
"Eight hundred Demon Stones!
And one favor, as long as it isn’t too unreasonable!"
"And you are, miss!?"
"Cheng Mengying, from Lion’s Mane Cave!"
"Lion’s Mane Cave!?"
"The very same."
"Alright, I will do my best to try. If I should fail, I hope you won’t blame me, miss."
Xu Chang’an agreed through gritted teeth.
Upon hearing his agreement, the purple-skirted girl pulled a bag of Demon Stones from her Storage Bag and tossed it to Xu Chang’an.
"I’ll be back in three days to collect the elixirs!"
...
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