Chapter 323: Observations of Jade Armillary City

While Master Ge was gone to forge Lu Xun's life-bound divine weapon, Lu Xun was not idle.

He prepared to visit Master Danyang, asking the other party to repair his Golden Toad for him.

The place where Master Danyang is located is also in Area 49.

This area is quite prosperous, belonging to the trade zone, and has the most skyscrapers in the whole Jade Armillary City.

"Lu Ban Building."

After more than half an hour, Lu Xun arrived at the Lu Ban Building where Master Danyang was located.

This building was constructed with some distinctive features; the whole edifice looks like a soaring mechanical bird with wings spread.

It is said that this building can indeed fly into the sky as a whole.

The building is named after Lu Ban, and naturally it gathers Eastern mechanisms and puppeteers.

Puppets and mechanisms are inherently one and the same.

Master Danyang, as a seventh-rank puppet master, holds a rather high status in Jade Armillary City.

From this, it is likely that the East still lacks puppet masters of eighth rank or above.

This is also normal.

The High Martial Era has only been around for a little over a hundred years.

Although during Lan Xing's ascension, everyone's growth on Lan Xing seemed to have been put on fast-forward.

However, mechanisms and puppets, which emphasize knowledge accumulation, actually require more time to study.

If one does not obtain a transmission or the like from the ancient route nodes, the required time becomes longer.

"Hello, I want to see Master Danyang."

After entering the Lu Ban Building, Lu Xun came to the front desk and handed over the name card given to him by Fu Yue.

"Master Danyang has been busy lately; many people want to see him, and there are already several people queued up ahead. Please leave your contact information, and we will get in touch with you when Master Danyang is free."

The beautiful woman at the front desk said.

So busy?

Lu Xun thought about it, but still left his contact information.

Master Danyang was not available, and Master Ge's side could not finish the forging for a while, so Lu Xun began to stroll around Area 49.

Not long after, he arrived at the liveliest street in Area 49.

This street is quite broad, with all kinds of shops lining it.

There are shops selling medicinal pills, weapons and armor, as well as talismans, puppets, mechanisms, precious clothing, and so on.

One could say it has everything one could need.

"The quality is ordinary, but it is two or three grades higher."

Lu Xun casually browsed and found that the items sold here are generally of higher quality than those sold in the shops on Liuyun Dao in the capital.

The prices are also higher.

Moreover, one cannot see any shops opened by large conglomerates that exist in the capital and on the surface of Lan Xing here.

For example, Jia's Medicinal Pills, which are present in every city, are absent here.

The Heavenly Craft Pavilion that Lu Xun had seen on Liuyun Dao also has no branch here.

Although Jia's Medicinal Pills is a colossus, it still cannot extend its reach into Jade Armillary City.

Here, it seems to have become a world of its own.

Some medicinal pills found in these medicine shops cannot be bought in the capital at all.

"Hello, how much does this Golden Core Pellet cost?"

In front of a shop, Lu Xun pointed at a medicinal pill and asked.

The Golden Core Pellet is a fifth-grade pill; its effect is exactly as the name suggests—it is used to form a Golden Core!

In other words, when using this pill during core formation, there is a greater chance of producing a golden-colored core!

This kind of pill is extremely rare, and its formula is an absolute secret, but Bai Ling happens to have it in her pill canon.

However, Lu Xun feels that this one is somewhat different; it might be made from another formula.

"Two hundred cubic units of Dark Energy, with a 50% price increase for non-residents of Jade Armillary City."

The beautiful saleswoman said.

The salespeople and shopping guides in these shops are basically all beautiful women with a certain level of cultivation.

They are quite pleasing to the eye to look at.

Of course, the beautiful women here refer to the ordinary kind; they definitely cannot compare to the peerless beauties like Murong Wan and Chu Youqing.

"So expensive."

This price is quite expensive.

Moreover, since I am not a resident of Jade Armillary City, the price is increased by another 50%, requiring three hundred cubic units of Dark Energy.

The cheapest fifth-grade pill costs only several hundred thousand units of Dark Energy, still less than one cubic unit. (One cubic meter of Dark Energy equals one million units of Dark Energy.)

For slightly better quality and rarer ones, it ranges from several cubic units to several tens of cubic units.

Even though the Golden Core Pellet is extremely rare, selling a fifth-grade heavenly-tier pill at this price is still outrageously expensive.

Selling at this price, could it be because the people of Jade Armillary City are too rich?

"If my refined medicinal pills could be sold here, they would definitely fetch more money."

Lu Xun pondered.

Pills of sixth grade and above have a limited market in the capital.

If placed in Jade Armillary City, they could certainly be sold at a higher price.

However, wanting to open a shop in Jade Armillary City is not easy; this place is a world unto itself, and as a non-resident, one fundamentally lacks the qualification to open a shop.

"Beauty, do you buy pills here?"

"Lu Xun thought of a compromise."

"Not buying."

"The beauty saleswoman glanced at Lu Xun, and her attitude instantly turned cold."

"She noticed."

"Lu Xun is not a resident of Armillary Sphere City."

"Fine."

"Lu Xun stopped boring himself and left directly."

"So many people."

"In front of another pill shop, the place was crowded with people."

"Though called a shop, it was actually a standalone small building."

The buildings on this street are basically standalone, occupying a considerable area.

"Brother, why are there so many people here?"

Lu Xun stepped forward and asked a middle-aged man.

"I heard a Saint-tier pill has appeared."

The man said.

Saint-tier pill!

Good fellow.

In Xuanji City, indeed someone has produced a Saint-tier pill.

"Is it that impressive? Who refined it?"

Lu Xun asked again.

The man glanced back, and when he saw that Lu Xun's clothes lacked the Xuanji City identification badge, his brows furrowed.

Out of politeness, he still answered: "Are you visiting Xuanji City for the first time? You don't even know Master Qiyuan? He's a ninth-rank alchemist, and the Saint-tier pill was refined by him."

Good fellow.

Ninth-rank Master Qiyuan!

Lu Xun indeed didn't know; it was his first time hearing about it.

The other party is a ninth-rank alchemist; regardless of rank, their expertise here likely includes a pill meridian, and as long as they can obtain a Saint-tier pill, studying it to reproduce it is no problem.

Lu Xun had anticipated this.

"Here they come, here they come."

The crowd stirred.

Someone walked out of the shop.

"Everyone, the Saint-tier pill refined this time by Master Qiyuan is the Saint-tier Sea of Qi Pill; those interested can go to the shop's second floor to participate in the auction..."

A man with the appearance of a supervisor shouted.

"Just a Qi Gathering Pill?"

Lu Xun overestimated the other party.

He thought the other party had at least produced a Saint-tier pill of third rank or higher.

Unexpectedly, it was only a second-rank Qi Gathering Pill.

This is a relatively ordinary second-rank pill, used to increase auxiliary cultivation and speed up the cultivation of second-realm immortal qi.

Thus, even if the other party is a ninth-rank alchemist, producing a high-grade Saint-tier pill is not easy.

"Indeed, even if he obtains a Saint-tier pill, the information that can be gleaned from a single pill is not much."

Lu Xun thought.

His alchemical prowess came too easily, so Lu Xun overlooked the difficulty of alchemy.

On Bai Ling's side, the reason she managed to produce a fourth-rank Saint-tier pill in over a year is inseparable from Lu Xun's wholehearted instruction.

Lu Xun taught her without reservation.

He even taught her hands-on.

Moreover, Bai Ling's alchemical talent is truly formidable, which is why she has made such progress.

Do not underestimate this.

This is the key factor.

Even Master Qiyuan, a ninth-rank alchemist, finds the Saint-tier realm entirely new to him.

Moreover, unlike Bai Ling, he has no one to teach him.

Being able to deduce anything from a single Saint-tier pill is already quite good.

"So it's just a second-rank pill after all."

"A second-rank one is not bad; if the price isn't high, we can buy it back to try."

When the surrounding crowd heard it was only a second-rank pill, they lost much interest.

In Xuanji City, the second realm is hardly anything.

Haven't you seen that even the drivers are second realm?

Lu Xun, having nothing else to do, went in to join the excitement and even spent ten thousand units of Dark Energy to bid on one.

"Not as good as mine."

Lu Xun bought it purely to have a look.

The second-rank Saint-tier Qi Gathering Pill refined by Master Qiyuan has only a single layer of colored pattern, far inferior to the one Lu Xun refined.

In terms of price, it's also cheaper than what Lu Xun originally refined.

Lu Xun's original Saint-tier Gathering Qi Pill fetched as high as 300,000 units of Dark Energy at auction.

Later ones were no less than 100,000 units of Dark Energy.

Of course, back then many alchemists bought them for research, and the Jia Clan Group drove up the price, so they sold for even more.

"In a short time, he should find it difficult to produce a higher-tier, rarer Saint-tier medicinal pill."

Lu Xun relaxed.

His Saint-tier medicinal pill can maintain its unique property for a long period.

Nowadays, not to mention Lu Xun, even the third-fourth tier Saint-tier medicinal pill refined by Bai Ling is not easily produced by Master Qiyuan.

Furthermore, Master Qiyuan's main business is in Celestial Mechanism City, so Lu Xun need not worry about them competing with the Lu Clan Group.

Moreover, Lu Xun even plans to sell his pills in Celestial Mechanism City.

This matter will be dealt with after the Lu Clan Group gets on track.

After auctioning the pills, Lu Xun continued strolling.

"Huh, a seventh-tier treasure clothing!"

As he browsed, Lu Xun found the seventh-tier treasure clothing he had been longing for.

"So expensive!"

This seventh-tier treasure clothing is indeed expensive; it is the treasure of a treasure clothing store.

Its price is exactly 5,000 cubic units of Dark Energy; even Six Realms cultivators would struggle to afford it.

Upon reaching the Six Realms, one's finances become more ample.

But how could an ordinary Six Realms cultivator simply produce 5,000 cubic units of Dark Energy to buy a seventh-tier treasure clothing?

If Lu Xun were to buy it, it wouldn't be 5,000 cubic units of Dark Energy, but 7,500 cubic units.

Looking at it this way,

Back when the secret realm examination ended, the reward Fu Xue secured for him was truly extraordinary.

The Eastern high-ups also certainly value him; otherwise, how could they produce a seventh-tier treasure clothing and a defective saint weapon?

However, the officialdom surely has dedicated treasure clothing makers; the treasure clothing they make themselves only costs the materials, certainly not as extravagant as the selling price.

The materials for making seventh-tier treasure clothing are extremely rare.

Since rarity brings value, treasure clothing stores will surely sell at high prices.

Even,

They might not even intend to sell it; they just place it here as a shop's signature item to boost the store's prestige.

Then they profit from selling treasure clothing of seventh tier and below.

That's why they set the price so high.

If someone actually buys it, they can still make a huge profit.

"Surely, the higher the grade, the more profit."

Lu Xun thought.

He didn't purchase this treasure clothing.

If he wanted to buy it, he couldn't do it himself; he would have Master Ge's people purchase it for him.

Unfortunately, the sixth-seventh tier treasure clothing refined by the Martial Manor and War Manor are not sold externally; they are basically used to distribute rewards.

Otherwise, if Lu Xun bought it through official channels, the cost would be much lower.

"Spirit talismans are also this expensive..."

Lu Xun also looked at some spirit talisman shops.

Celestial Mechanism City has plenty of spirit talismans available for purchase, even up to seventh tier.

For these spirit talismans, each increase in tier raises the price by more than tenfold.

Generally, a fourth-tier spirit talisman costs anywhere from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of Dark Energy.

A fifth-tier spirit talisman costs several million units of Dark Energy, which is a few cubic units.

At the sixth tier, the price of spirit talismans multiplies by ten again, reaching several tens of cubic units of Dark Energy.

A seventh-tier spirit talisman must be more than ten times more expensive, costing several hundred to even thousands of cubic units of Dark Energy.

It depends on the quality.

The higher the quality, the higher the price.

As for eighth-tier spirit talismans, they cannot be found in these shops.

Even in Celestial Mechanism City, eighth-tier items are rarely put up for direct sale.

Like spirit talismans, eighth-tier ones mainly correspond to the Seventh Realm.

Including treasure clothing, the same applies.

The advantage of treasure clothing over defensive spirit talismans is that it can be reused without deliberate activation, so its price is much higher than that of spirit talismans.

Although expensive, Lu Xun still decided to buy some.

He himself actually has no use for it.

With Lu Xun's current strength, even the Seventh Realm poses no threat to him.

Seventh-tier spirit talismans are mainly for dealing with the Sixth Realm; to Lu Xun they are useless.

But they can be given to Chu Youqing and the others for self-defense.

After strolling around, Lu Xun listed the needed items, then prepared to find Master Ge's subordinates to help him purchase them.

This way he avoids paying an extra 50%.