Chapter 38: Damn Monopoly Dogs (Requesting Follows)

Dressed in black clothes and pants, with a black veil over his head, Luo Chen stepped into the courtyard gate, cautiously looking behind him.

The dim and quiet alley was silent.

Luo Chen walked to the back of the door and stood silently for a while.

"No one is following me."

Luo Chen, confirming that no one had followed him home, couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief.

The concealment techniques of low-level cultivators were actually quite limited, and their tracking methods were even more pitiful, often requiring the use of talismans or magical artifacts.

Therefore, as long as one was careful, it was quite easy to notice if someone was following.

Since he had already been noticed by the people of the Da Jiang Gang, Luo Chen resolved to be extra cautious when entering and leaving in the future.

Just as he turned around, Luo Chen suddenly stiffened, his hair standing on end.

In the corner, a figure with long hair reaching her waist, dressed in white, stood quietly.

Luo Chen swallowed hard, wondering if it was a ghost!

But soon, he relaxed.

It's a person!

"Why hasn't it sprouted after two months?"

The woman in white seemed to be talking to herself.

"Could it be that the herbalist gave me fake Ziyang flower seeds?"

"Cough, cough."

The sound of a cough came from the door, and the woman turned around.

"Luo Chen Daoist?"

"Fu Xiuxiu Daoist?"

"Um."

It's the neighbor from the east wing!

Luo Chen walked over to her and asked curiously, "What are you doing?"

Fu Xiuxiu said in distress, "I bought Ziyang flower seeds for one spirit stone and planted them two months ago. I thought I would see seedlings when I came home, but there's nothing."

Following her gaze, Luo Chen looked suspiciously at the area in the corner.

Isn't this where I usually practice Fireball and Entanglement spells?

Seeds?

He had changed the soil and stones dozens of times!

Laughing dryly, Luo Chen said awkwardly, "Maybe it's just not suitable for the soil and water here!"

Fu Xiuxiu sighed and could only nod helplessly.

"The yin energy here is a bit heavy. The few plants I've grown aren't doing well. Plus, I'm often away, so they're almost dead."

Luo Chen blinked, "Is that so?"

"It's probably because of that. I should take them out to get more sunlight more often." Fu Xiuxiu said helplessly.

Skipping over this topic, she looked curiously at Luo Chen's attire.

"Luo Daoist, where have you been?"

"Just call me Xiao Luo! I didn't do much, just wearing black is a habit."

Being called "Daoist" by a ninth-layer Qi Cultivator made Luo Chen a bit uncomfortable.

Seeing that Luo Chen didn't want to talk about it, Fu Xiuxiu didn't press further.

She looked at the night sky and extended an invitation to Luo Chen.

"I rarely come back, so I plan to invite the neighbors for dinner. Xiao Luo, would you like to come?"

Someone inviting him to dinner? What a good deal!

Luo Chen would certainly not refuse!

Sitting on a child-sized swing in the courtyard, Luo Chen, now in different clothes, waited for Fu Xiuxiu to prepare dinner while planning his next steps.

The raw materials costing four hundred spirit stones were his biggest investment to date!

This time, failure was not an option.

So before refining the pills, he needed to consider every aspect carefully.

First, the new pill-refining equipment—the Ziyun Copper Furnace.

The difference between refining pills in a spirit iron pot and a magical artifact furnace was significant.

He needed to familiarize himself with the Ziyun Copper Furnace to avoid making mistakes during the refining process that he couldn't correct in time.

Second, the processing of some raw materials.

He couldn't use the old methods anymore.

The spirit iron pot was small and couldn't withstand high temperatures, so he could only use a slightly lower flame, which meant a longer refining time.

During the long refining process, the processing of the herbs was more conservative.

But the Ziyun Copper Furnace had no such concerns, as its quality could withstand intense heat.

This meant he could be more daring in processing the raw materials.

Finally, the construction of the pill-refining room.

Yes, Luo Chen planned to partition a room in the house he rented for pill refining.

The Ziyun Copper Furnace took up a lot of space, and when burning wood, it needed a dedicated fire pit with heat-insulating bricks to prevent heat loss.

The walls around it should be made of Yunsha bricks with good ventilation.

Otherwise, if there was a leak of medicinal vapor, it could be toxic and potentially fatal.

Thinking about all these matters, Luo Chen felt a bit overwhelmed.

There was a lot to do!

"Hey!"

A petite figure suddenly jumped in front of him.

Luo Chen greeted her helplessly, "Miss Bai Meiling, you're off work?"

Isn't that obvious, since she's right here?

But in reality, greetings often go this way.

When someone is eating, you say, "Are you eating?"

When someone is off work, you say, "You're off work!"

It's annoying when you meet a friend in a public restroom, and they say, "Are you pooping?"

Duh, why else would you be squatting in a toilet?

Bai Meiling, of course, didn't think about all the nonsense in Luo Chen's head. She extended her white, tender hand.

"What are you doing?" Luo Chen asked curiously.

"Where are the pills you refined? Let me see if they're demonic pills!"

"You're really nosy!"

Bai Meiling put her hands on her hips, "As a seventh-layer Qi Cultivator neighbor, can't I keep an eye on you?"

Damn, he hated being pressured by cultivation levels!

Luo Chen took a deep breath and reluctantly took out a pill.

Bai Meiling curiously took it, "A Spirit Grain Pill? No, it's a Spirit Grain Powder. The quality is good, it's even an upper-grade."

She looked at Luo Chen for a while and nodded.

"You're a quiet one, but you seem pretty capable. It's a pity, though. If you had the formula for the Spirit Grain Pill, you could make a living from it."

Luo Chen had originally planned to just fool around with this woman.

But hearing her words, he became interested.

He knew that the Spirit Grain Pills he refined were actually just Spirit Grain Powder.

Otherwise, why would five bottles of Spirit Grain Powder, fifty pills in total, only sell for one low-grade spirit stone?

A genuine Spirit Grain Pill was a first-stage pill, no less valuable than a Qi Nourishing Pill.

A bottle of ten pills sold for a hundred spirit stones, making it a highly profitable business!

If he could refine genuine Spirit Grain Pills, wouldn't he be rich?

"Do you have the formula for the Spirit Grain Pill?"

Facing Luo Chen's eager gaze, Bai Meiling shrugged.

"I definitely don't have it! Such formulas are controlled by major sects. How could I have it?"

Luo Chen rolled his eyes, "Then why did you say that?"

He wasn't too disappointed.

Or rather, he had never had high hopes for the formulas of mainstream pills.

Not only in the Da He Market, but even throughout the entire Yuding Region and the six easternmost regions, the formulas for mainstream pills were strictly controlled.

Any leakage would result in sect cultivators using various means to retrieve them.

Buying, stealing, or recruiting pill refiners who knew the formulas.

Luo Chen's evaluation was, "Monopoly dogs, they deserve to die!"

He could understand the actions of these sects.

In a world with abundant resources, whether in human territories or the wilds inhabited by beasts, there were countless treasures.

With the inability to restrict raw materials, controlling the formulas became the best method.

This way, mainstream pills could only be refined, distributed, and sold by sects.

Thus, major sects could ensure their profits far exceeded those of cultivation families and independent cultivators.

If not for this, how could major sects provide such good benefits, giving disciples free magical artifacts, robes, and even precious storage bags?

"Xiao Ling, Xiao Luo, it's time to eat."

A gentle voice called out, and Luo Chen hurriedly entered the east wing, which was Fu Xiuxiu's home.

Bai Meiling followed behind, but after a few steps, she felt something was off.

"Can Fire Dog Whips be used to refine Spirit Grain Powder?"

(End of Chapter)