Chapter 26: Old Ginseng

【Library Points: 1242】

Jiang Ding glanced at his phone.

After adding the animal specimen option, the specimen collection pace sped up again; every day he received several hundred to over a thousand specimens, with the proportion of unknown flora and fauna roughly around one or two tenths.

'At this rate, two to three months will be enough to save up ten thousand points.' Jiang Ding felt a touch of joy.

Ten thousand Library Points allow the Central Array Spirit Computer to tailor-make a cultivation method, greatly improving a cultivator's compatibility with a given method and speeding up cultivation.

Of course, ten thousand points correspond to techniques at Foundation Establishment realm and below, and the grade of the technique is also limited.

'In at most three months, should I deduce the Young Eagle Takes Flight Sword Art, or the Great Sun Seed Sword Refining Method?' Jiang Ding hesitated.

The Young Eagle Takes Flight Sword Art had already reached minor completion, with progress every day; spending ten thousand points on it would be a bit of a waste.

But although the Great Sun Seed Sword Refining Method was certainly good, the materials it required were too rare; whether the 'Celestial Sound Stone' that the Golden Blade Sect had seized was truly the legendary 'Supreme Clarity Divine Iron' was still uncertain.

"I'll decide when the time comes."

Jiang Ding sighed and rested his hand on his sword hilt.

"Boss!"

"Boss!"

In the front hall he hadn't visited in a while, the busy clerks and shopkeeper rose to greet him; Jiang Ding waved them off and casually took a seat in a corner.

It had been over half a month since the shop opened, and word had gradually spread; many people nearby knew a peculiar boss had appeared on Broken Board Street who bought everything from flowers, plants, birds, and insects, but only one of each kind, never a duplicate.

Counting Huang Deyou and Han Lin, the shop had four people in total, serving the steady stream of herb gatherers, mountain folk, and the occasional child or woman from the city who had heard the news.

"Flower Snake Vine, Toad Grass—you wanted these yesterday, so why won't you take them now? All my hard work was for nothing?!"

A weather-beaten herb gatherer slammed the counter, furious.

The clerk Han Lin's little face shrank back.

"Old Li, our shop set its rules long ago—first come, first served." Huang Deyou hurried over, his manner slightly haughty, and with a mix of soft words and firm push managed to smooth the gatherer's anger, sending him off with an apologetic smile.

Soon another mountain dweller kicked up a fuss over being refused for a finger-sized insect that had broken one thin leg; he ran off to handle that too.

Jiang Ding observed carefully and found that Huang Deyou didn't always adopt a high-handed attitude.

When dealing with someone who might be a relative of a minor Wild Wolf Gang boss, or a distant relation of some Constable, his manner became much gentler; even if the goods didn't meet the standard, he'd pay out a few coins for tea from the 'special expenses' account, all smiles and kind words.

No matter who he faced, he could always lead them to act as he wished, ensuring business carried on normally.

"Impressive…"

Jiang Ding sighed inwardly.

"If you put me and Huang Deyou in a world without spiritual energy, he'd live far better than me."

……

Four Seas Trading House.

Jiang Ding was led by a maidservant into a private room on the second floor; tea steamed, its fragrance filling the air, filtered through a thin layer of true qi over his nose.

It wasn't any cultivation method or martial technique—the Young Eagle Takes Flight Sword Art, compared to other mortal internal arts, came with an innate, extremely fine control, almost instinctive; in a sense, it was 'immune to a hundred poisons.'

"Young Master Jiang's visit brings great honor to my humble establishment." Long Three trotted over, laughing from afar.

"Shopkeeper Long, you're too kind."

Jiang Ding gave a slight bow in greeting.

After the usual pleasantries, Jiang Ding got straight to the point, taking out a box containing seven artificial luminous pearls, each the size of a thumb, whose glow could last over a hundred years.

In low-technology planes, they held extremely high luxury value.

"Shopkeeper Long, what's your price?"

Long Three was startled.

Pearls again?

Could this lord have raided some river clam spirit's nest—where else would he get so many glowing pearls?

"This…"

Long Three's face showed hesitation.

"What, Four Seas Trading House won't take them?" Jiang Ding smiled and asked.

"Of course not, it's just that your goods are too valuable; I was momentarily lost for words." Long Three steadied himself: "You and I have been through thick and thin together, so I'll speak plainly."

"Will you be selling more of these in the future? You may not know, but if there are too many, the price will drop somewhat."

That didn't sound much like a merchant's words—far too honest.

But Long Three was certain the man before him wouldn't deceive him, at least not over a bit of silver.

After a moment's thought, Jiang Ding gave his answer.

"I will."

As an effective barter item, he was too lazy to change it, but he also wouldn't flood a single market and cause its value to drop too much.

"Then how about seven hundred taels per pearl?"

Long Three considered and said.

"Agreed. Try to exchange them for old ginseng."

……

Leaving Four Seas Trading House, Jiang Ding weighed the bundle of ginseng boxes in his hand, wrapped in black cloth.

One ninety-year-old ginseng root, three seventy-year-old ones, seven fifty-year-old ones, and the remaining twelve were twenty to thirty years old—totaling two thousand two hundred taels of silver, with another two thousand seven hundred taels in banknotes tucked into his clothes.

He'd essentially swept Four Seas Trading House clean of old ginseng; they wouldn't be able to restock for at least half a year.

"At least enough to sustain a month of high-intensity training…"

Jiang Ding thought silently, walking back toward Rotten Board Street, ignoring the occasional martial arts marriage tournaments, monkey shows, juggling acts, and temple fairs along the way.

He felt the life he had now was quite good.

For nearly a month, he had only gone out twice, never leaving without reason, never getting involved in any trouble, quietly cultivating.

Actually, it wasn't that there was no way to obtain better old herbs — even century-old ginseng, which only circulated among the great powers, could be obtained.

He could just go pick them in the East Spirit Mountains. Even if fierce beasts guarded them, even with drones monitoring the surroundings and searching in all directions, he wasn't incapable of picking them.

It's just — danger. He was unwilling to go.

Jiang Ding's footsteps paused, his brow furrowing.

"No wonder the books say order outside the borders is generally chaotic."

"This is still a city governed by capable and upright ministers who hold military power — broad daylight, what are they trying to do?"

Drone perspective.

There were three people dressed differently — a beggar, a merchant, a peddler — who had followed him the whole way. They went about begging and hawking their wares as normal, only occasionally glancing this way from the corners of their eyes. Extremely professional.

If not for the drone, he wouldn't have noticed at all.

"This is what they call jianghu experience."

Jiang Ding's expression cooled slightly. He silently memorized the movements of those three people, planning to rewatch the footage later and study it carefully.

Drones aren't omnipotent either. If he encountered a Foundation Establishment cultivator or a Qi Refining cultivator who practiced eye techniques, they would be able to see a drone a thousand meters up in the sky.

If he couldn't obtain a more advanced drone in the future, everything would have to rely on himself alone.

Letting out a cold laugh, Jiang Ding walked into Rotten Board Street as usual, returning to his shop on his own.

Those three didn't stop him. After confirming the address several times, they exchanged a glance, then turned through seven or eight corners and entered the back courtyard of a magnificent grand residence in the east of the city.