Chapter 34 - 341 Don’t Mind Giving Myself to
Translator: 549690339
“Hmm, do you want it or not?”
As Gu Caiyi was drinking the tea Luo Chen had poured for her, her willow-leaf eyebrows involuntarily scrunched up.
What kind of tea is this? It’s far too bitter!
Across from her, Luo Chen’s eyes were shining bright, his heart pounding much faster than usual.
The Purple Cloud Bronze Furnace was a standard Pill Refining furnace from the Wanbao Pavilion.
Its grade was not high, only a lower grade first order, but it had extensive applicability.
Most of the various pill refining techniques commonly used in the Immortal Cultivation World could be accommodated by this furnace.
Furthermore, this furnace was engraved with a Fire Gathering Array, which was quite unique in terms of temperature control.
Newbie Pill Refiners often struggled with controlling the temperature, resulting in the destruction of well-processed raw materials.
But, with this array, as long as the appropriate amount of Spirit Power was injected beforehand, the furnace would effortlessly adjust itself, regardless of how great the external heat might be.
The Fire Gathering Array, amenable to gathering and dispersing spirits — was indeed a smart essential for Pill Fire.
Do you ask if Luo Chen wants it?
He certainly does!
If he had a pill-refining furnace like this, he wouldn’t be stuck to refining a single pot of Allure Pills per day.
In terms of efficiency, he could refine at least two pots of Allure Pills a day! With heated eyes, Luo Chen looked at Gu Caiyi, and suddenly extended his hand, clasping her slender palm in his own in surprise.
“Sister Caiyi, are you giving one to me?”
“I may, as long as you give it to me. Even if it means I have to offer myself in return, I’ve no complaints!”
Gu Caiyi froze for a moment before abruptly withdrawing her hand from his sturdy grip.
“Get lost!”
“Who said I was offering myself! Shameless!”
She rolled her eyes and stated seriously, “If you want it, you’ll have to buy it with Spirit Stones.”
“Is that so…” Luo Chen sighed sorrowfully, “If only I could afford it, I would have bought it a long time ago.”
“I wasn’t referring to buying it from the Wanbao Pavilion.” Gu Caiyi couldn’t bear Luo Chen’s rapid change of expression. She said, “The top courtesan Lady Xiangxiang from the Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion is also a pill refiner. She has an idle Purple Cloud Bronze Furnace. I’ve asked, and if you want, she might be willing to sell it to you at a lower price.”
Of course, he knew the courtesan Xiangxiang,
She was not only beautiful but also knowledgeable. She had a deep understanding of water techniques and the Dao of Alchemy.
And the most famous thing about her was her status as an inner-sect disciple of the Hehuan Sect.
But her beauty and status meant nothing to him.
What he cared about most was the price!
“A lower price? How much cheaper?”
“Three hundred Lower Grade Spirit Stones.”
A delighted expression flashed across Luo Chen’s face, but he acted distressed on the outside. “That’s quite expensive. A second-hand one would cost only around two hundred.”
“Then why don’t you buy one?” Gu Caiyi chuckled lightly, “Don’t play poor with me. She’s only offering this price because you’re my neighbor. Let me know if you’re really interested in buying it.”
Indeed, the price was reasonably fair.
The so-called second-hand price Luo Chen mentioned was the recycling price offered by Wanbao Pavilion.
As everyone knows, Wanbao Pavilion is the most cunning when it comes to business.
A brand-new Purple Cloud Bronze Furnace was priced at four hundred and fifty.
It was only a bit cheaper than a Defensive Magic Tool, far exceeding other Lower Grade First Order Offense Magic Tools.
Moreover, due to this being an Alchemy Equipment rarely encountered by Rogue Cultivators, it’s seldom available on the market.
Now that he had the chance to get one at such a cheap price, Luo Chen naturally wouldn’t miss it.
Luo Chen smirked and hurriedly said, “I’ll buy it for sure, but not right away. I need to save up first.”
“Are you really that poor?” Gu Caiyi looked at Luo Chen in confusion. “Do you actually make any Spirit Stones from your pill refining?”
She seriously wondered if, three months later, her neighbor would be kicked out of the Inner City for not being able to pay the rent.
“You don’t need to worry about that. I assure you that I’ll have the Spirit Stones on time!” Luo Chen said confidently.
In truth, he could afford to pay three hundred Spirit Stones.
Without further ado, he had more than four hundred Spirit Stones in his pocket right now!
After selling the Flying Swallow Sword for one thousand and one, and deducting the cost of the Qi Nurturing Pills and the five techniques, he was left with four hundred.
Apart from these, he had a few more spare ones totaling around twenty.
One could say that Luo Chen wasn’t really poor in this point in time.
The reason he hadn’t bought the pill refining furnace yet was mainly because he didn’t need it for the time being.
His current batch of raw materials had been specifically processed according to his own iron pot.
If he used a pill refining furnace to process the remaining materials, not only would he need to adjust his technique, but the wood for the fire and time for pill formation would also need full preparation.
Therefore, he planned to first exhaust all these raw materials, recoup all the investments, then consider buying the pill furnace.
Such Misfortune!
If only there were interest-free large-scale Spirit Stone loans for aspiring rogue cultivators.
This Immortal Cultivation World, controlled by the sects, is too indifferent to us rogue cultivators!
Days passed one by one in a well-organized schedule of pill refinement, medicine intake, and technique studying.
Luo Chen adjusted the timing and frequency of his technique practice.
He had previously retained his habit of practicing techniques sparingly every day, a habit from living in Outer City.
It wasn’t until recently that he realized he was in Inner City now, which was quite safe. There was no need to maintain peak Qi Power all the time.
So, he could consume more Qi Power to master those newly learned techniques.
In his spare time, he would chat with Gu Caiyi about the matters in the Immortal Cultivation World.
Actually, he found it strange that he had never seen Gu Caiyi cultivating.
After Gu Caiyi explained, it dawned on him.
It turned out that Gu Caiyi usually went to Heavenly Fragrance Pavilion to cultivate, where there was a Gathering Spirit Array was set up to intensify the Spirit Qi density.
Of course, the Spirit Qi intensity of a First Order Spirit Vein is limited. Some people gather Spirit Qi, naturally, others do not get the density they should. Well, the latter refers to rogue cultivators like Luo Chen.
Yu Ding Sword Sect was such a big swindler. Where were the quality rooms they promised with a First Order Spirit Vein?
Turns out the Spirit Qi they absorb was all that was left after others filtered it. Occasionally, he would encounter Bai Meiling, the small round-faced woman. Not many times, it seemed that Hundred Herbs Pavilion was very busy. People from Medicine King Sect came to check the inventory and were planning to transport a batch of Spirit Medicine collected by Hundred Herbs Pavilion. As for the other inhabitant in the courtyard, Luo Chen had never seen them.
“Fu Xiuxiu is the manager of Shen Fu Pavilion. She usually stays there. It’s also said that her Fu (amulet) making skills are very high. There’s a good chance she’ll be accepted into Shen Fu Sect.”
This was what Gu Caiyi told Luo Chen.
After hearing this, Luo Chen was extremely envious.
Being able to join a sect, that was an Immortal Fate that many rogue cultivators begged for.
He did not know whether he would have the opportunity to join a powerful sect.
He didn’t have high demands, something like Hehuan Sect would do.
When he was at the marketplace, he would tell anyone he encountered that Ascendant Master Yun He was his idol.
In this way, Luo Chen toiled day and night until all the materials at hand were depleted just before the large market gathering.
The final results made him very satisfied!
Out of the last twenty-five batches of raw materials, he successfully refined five.
This meant that his success rate in refining Allure Pill has risen from one in ten to two in ten!
From a cost control perspective, it was a qualitative improvement.
Initially, fifty Spirit Stones of cost could be refined into ten pots, successful for once, sold for fifty, neither loss nor gain.
Oh, that’s not right; actually it was a loss.
A few months’ time, if used to refine Fasting Pills, could gain dozens of Spirit Stones.
So, he had indeed made a loss back then.
Now, or say in the future.
With the same cost of fifty Spirit Stones, he could succeed twice in ten pots, translating into a sale of one hundred Spirit Stones, with a net profit of fifty.
With such a profit rate as long as he’s willing to invest, Luo Chen would end up counting Spirit Stones until his hands got tired.
“And this is only at the proficiency level. What about when I reach mastery level, perfection level, or even grandmaster level?”
Luo Chen was full of anticipation.
So, one bright morning, just like a vegetable-farmer up early in the morning, he went straight to the southern city rogue cultivators market.
Today will be a day full of harvests!