Demoness, Stop! - Chapter 27 - Chapter 27 – Ways to Make Money

Back at his own place, Li Yu couldn’t wait to open the booklet.

No wonder it was the alchemy insights of a first-tier alchemist—this booklet recorded many details that the disciple assigned to teach them hadn’t even mentioned. From the purification of raw materials to controlling the heat, to the techniques of liquid separation and pill condensation, everything was described in detail.

The first few pages of the booklet even explained the grading system for pills.

Li Yu read aloud quietly, “Five pill markings, top-grade pill…”

He looked down at his hands. To think that on his very first attempt at pill refinement, he had produced a top-grade pill—he didn’t even realize he had this kind of talent.

Come to think of it, he had indeed had an inseparable connection with herbs since childhood. When he was very young, he had climbed mountains to gather herbs to support himself. His entry into the cultivation world was even caused by a fall from a cliff while gathering herbs…

Besides the basic knowledge about pill refinement, the booklet also contained some other pill formulas, including the “Qi Recovery Pill” and the “Fasting Pill.” These two were the most common first-tier pills. In theory, they could be refined at the Qi Refinement stage, but because they required many materials and the process was complicated, a single mistake could cause an explosion. Very few Qi Refinement disciples could handle them; only at the Foundation Establishment stage did they become manageable. Wu Tong was a textbook example of how not to do it.

Li Yu even found the formula for the “Qi Gathering Pill” at the end of the booklet.

Although the Qi Gathering Pill was for disciples at the Qi Gathering stage, its ingredients were very precious, and the refinement process was extremely difficult. It was a solid second-tier pill—even Elder Han himself couldn’t produce it.

Such pills were not hard to find within Kunlun Sect, but outside, they were extremely rare. One Qi Gathering Pill was worth at least 500 spirit coins.

Li Yu flipped to a new page. This page recorded another pill called the “Meridian Clearing Pill,” also a second-tier pill. This pill was even harder to refine than the Qi Gathering Pill, and inside the sect it was priced at 1,000 spirit coins each.

There was a reason for the high price: one Meridian Clearing Pill could open a single acupuncture point on a spirit vein. With one Qi Gathering Pill plus seventy-one Meridian Clearing Pills, a normal person could, in just a few days, cultivate up to the peak of the ninth layer of Qi Refinement.

Whether it was the Kunlun Seven Prodigies, or the young Foundation Establishment disciples inside the sect, or prodigies from other sects, this was how they advanced in cultivation. So many disciples in Kunlun risked everything to take missions and earn spirit coins—all for the chance to get a Meridian Clearing Pill.

Staring at the white pill in the book, Li Yu was deeply tempted.

One pill was worth four months of hard cultivation. Who could resist such an allure?

The problem was, the price of the Meridian Clearing Pill was simply too high—1,000 spirit coins per pill. Counting the 100 spirit coins given to him as a starter, his total assets still didn’t even reach 300 spirit coins. He couldn’t even afford half a pill.

Disciples of Danding Peak sacrificed their cultivation time to study alchemy hard and contribute to the sect, so they had certain benefits. Starting this month, the sect would grant them 100 spirit coins every month for free. In less than a year, they could exchange that for one Meridian Clearing Pill.

But even so, it was still far from enough for Li Yu.

The sooner one established their Foundation, the sooner one could form their Core. Some Foundation Establishment cultivators had missed their breakthroughs by just a few years—give them a few more months, and they might have succeeded. But in the end, all that awaited them was dust and ashes.

If, at the Qi Refinement stage, they had taken one or two more Meridian Clearing Pills, they wouldn’t have left a lifetime of regret behind.

For Li Yu right now, the most important thing was to make money.

There were many ways to earn spirit coins within the Kunlun Sect. Disciples from every peak, after completing their own duties, could take on sect-wide missions to earn additional income.

In addition, trading between disciples within the sect was also a way to acquire spirit coins.

For example, some disciples assigned to dangerous missions who needed large quantities of hemostasis pills but found the sect’s prices too high could purchase them from disciples of Danding Peak. Generally, this could save them about 10% to 20% of the spirit coins.

Similarly, when buying talismans, one could choose to buy from apprentice talisman makers, whose prices were more affordable than purchasing directly from the sect.

Li Yu still had materials for nine batches of hemostasis pills. For new disciples just starting to learn alchemy, the sect was quite generous: for every ten batches of materials, as long as they could produce ten hemostasis pills with pill markings within a month and hand them over to the sect, they could keep the remaining materials to handle as they wished.

Disciples with average talent suffered more material loss during refinement, so ten batches might not even be enough for them. But Li Yu could make ten pills from one batch of materials, meaning the remaining nine batches belonged to him.

If everything went as smoothly as it did today, he could produce ninety hemostasis pills from those nine batches.

The normal sect price for a bottle of superior hemostasis pills—ten pills per bottle—was 100 spirit coins.

He figured selling one bottle of his top-grade hemostasis pills for 100 spirit coins shouldn’t be unreasonable.

Of course, that all depended on every batch going as smoothly as today. Without hesitation, Li Yu put down the booklet and went to the underground alchemy room.

Once raw, twice cooked—Li Yu skillfully crushed herbs to extract juice. Everything went smoothly and quickly. After putting the spirit liquid into the alchemy furnace, Li Yu looked at the flickering flames beneath the furnace, his expression once again dazed.

A moment later.

Li Yu opened the furnace and saw ten top-grade hemostasis pills inside. Several big question marks appeared in his mind.

He only remembered zoning out for a while—and then the pills were done.

Five pill markings, ten top-grade pills.

The last time might have been a coincidence, but this time, Li Yu refused to believe it.

His gaze turned toward his chest, suspiciously asking, “Was it you?”

No one responded—no one could respond.

Li Yu touched the incense burner mark on his chest with his spiritual power, and his consciousness once again sank into that mysterious space.

The huge incense burner still stood there without any change. In these past few months, Li Yu hadn’t handled any spiritual herbs or encountered any ghosts, so naturally there was nothing for it to absorb. The cracks on the incense burner were dense, as if it might shatter at any moment.

Li Yu withdrew his consciousness from that space, pondered for a moment, then prepared the third batch of materials.

One day later.

Nine pill bottles, ninety top-grade hemostasis pills, were neatly arranged on the stone table in front of Li Yu.

Li Yu’s internal spiritual power had been exhausted and restored multiple times, squeezed dry again and again.

He stared at the pills, lost and dazed.

He had refined nine consecutive batches, each process the same without exception. Whenever he prepared the materials and began refining, he would inexplicably lose focus—and when he snapped back to awareness, the pills were already finished, each one flawless and top-grade.

It was as if every time he started refining pills, another consciousness would take over his body.

Li Yu looked down at his chest again. Needless to say, the problem had to be with that incense burner—no, the alchemy furnace.

That thing was an alchemy furnace that could refine pills by itself!

Li Yu stood there stunned for a moment, then quietly put the pill bottles away. After all, he had already experienced something as absurd as transmigration. A mysterious pill furnace inside his body? That was just another oddity in the mix. Even if stranger things came along, there was no need to overreact.

He just had to get used to it.

…

Kunlun Cave Heaven.

Feilai Peak.

At the very top of the peak was a spacious platform, where disciples dressed in Kunlun uniforms flew up and down constantly.

Where there are people, there is trade—and the cultivation world is no exception. Feilai Peak was the trading spot for Kunlun’s lower-tier disciples. Here, one could often find good items at very low prices. If someone had unused goods, they could also trade them with other disciples here.

On the wide platform, many figures sat cross-legged.

Most wore cloaks and covered their faces with scarves. Even though this trading was inside the sect, they still needed to avoid drawing the attention of anyone suspicious.

Cloaks and scarves were sold right below Feilai Peak.

In front of these people were white cloths spread on the ground, on which all sorts of items were placed—talismans, pills, magical tools, spiritual herbs, and more. Other disciples wandered among these stalls, stopping occasionally to ask about prices.

“The price for this Qi Replenishing Pill—could it be any cheaper? Four hundred ninety spirit coins per bottle is way too expensive. The sect only sells them for five hundred, and the quality is guaranteed…”

“Sorry, the pills at this stall are fixed price. Take it or leave it.”

“This hemostasis pill only has one pill marking, and the quality is really poor. Will it even work if I take it?”

“That’s why it’s cheap—only three spirit coins each. Pills with two pill markings cost twice as much…”

“How much for that Flame Burst Talisman?”

“I want that spirit herb, but I don’t have enough spirit coins. Can I trade a Qi Replenishing Pill for it?”

…

There were quite a few people on Feilai Peak, but the atmosphere was surprisingly quiet. Mostly, stall owners and buyers were speaking softly, not disturbing one another.

Suddenly, a loud voice rang out from a corner.

“Fellow disciples, come take a look! Top-grade hemostasis pills, only one hundred spirit coins per bottle! Don’t miss this deal! Originally priced at two hundred spirit coins, now only one hundred! Limited quantity, first come first served…”