Chapter 448: Home Medicine Shop

The shop opened quickly and silently, called 'Home Medicine Shop'. Yan Buji didn't come to make money, so he didn't go to the market to inquire about prices or conduct detailed market research; he sold only ordinary Spirit-Increasing Pills, Peaceful Heart Pills, and Detox Pills. However, to attract some potential fellow cultivators, he put out a bottle of Twelve Threefold Transformation Heavy Spirit Pills, each very expensive at 1,500 Spiritual Stones.

Hmm, I still need to hire a few people.

Thinking about it, Yan Buji went to the talent market to bring a few people over.

In the cultivation world, valuing dependents is far stricter than among ordinary folk; putting aside other matters, almost anyone who can go to the talent market must be a cultivator eligible to reside permanently on Jade Balance Island.

Moreover, contract signing requires notarization by the City Lord's Mansion; after it takes legal effect, it must be reviewed by the Guard Squad, and these expenses naturally fall on Yan Buji.

So Yan Buji set the wages low—only ten Spiritual Stones per month—and hired only the most ordinary Qi Refinement cultivators.

Boss.

Yan Buji looked at them and nodded: 'The shop just opened; for the first month, all pills are at a 10% discount, no haggling. After a month, prices return to normal. If a customer makes a bulk purchase, check inventory in advance. If a Core Formation or Golden Core cultivator comes by, have them leave contact information—I'll personally handle it.'

Yan Buji explained the sales model, and the shop assistants memorized it right away.

As for food and lodging, you may stay in the shop and use the backyard kitchen and miscellaneous items, but all expenses must be submitted to me as reports; if I find you profiteering, don't blame me for not warning you beforehand." Yan Buji said lightly.

Yes, boss!

That'll do for now.

Afterward, Yan Buji went out.

The shop assistants looked puzzled: 'Boss, you're a Core Formation cultivator—why did you pick this shop name?'

Home Medicine Shop?

Are you afraid you'll actually make money?

Ah, never mind—we're all workers; just do whatever the boss says.

I still have debts to pay; if I hadn't been attacked in the Outer Sea a few years ago, I wouldn't have had to sell myself into labor.

This is called working; what's with the 'selling oneself' talk? It's so harsh.

After a while.

Because the shop just opened, Yan Buji's pill prices are slightly higher than the market's, and he doesn't haggle; consequently, aside from the decent foot traffic during the opening month, there have been hardly any customers since.

The same reasoning: if their pills are cheaper, why not buy from them?

The key effects are roughly the same.

Aside from that one bottle of Heavy Spirit Pill, the other pills are mostly in stock, but repeat customers are rare.

The shop assistants' days are also comfortable; they just stay in the shop all day and take turns minding the store.

But that day, two customers came in.

A man and a woman had just entered and were looking around.

'This Home Medicine Shop is really unique—don't you want to make money?'

'Even if the name is ordinary, the décor is so plain I'd think I'd walked into a general store.'

Seeing them, the shop assistant hurried over and smiled: 'What do you two need?'

'Just browsing.'

'Sure, sure—if you need anything, just speak up.'

Although the shop isn't big, it has three assistants; I don't know what the boss is thinking, hiring so many people for what?

Could he be certain the shop's business will boom?

'Hey, Chen brother, look.' The young woman pointed, and there, behind the counter, was the sole bottle on display—a Heavy Spirit Pill.

'Heavy Spirit Pill?'

'You two have sharp eyes!' The shop assistant came over and introduced: 'This is a bottle the boss specially ordered—a Threefold Transformation Pill that can greatly boost spiritual awareness in a short time, even enough to cross a minor realm.'

Huh?!

The two frowned and said, 'You brat, don't talk nonsense. We've seen pills that boost spiritual awareness before, but never one that can raise it by a whole minor realm.'

'Ah… the boss said that,' the assistant replied awkwardly, 'Golden Core cultivators who take it will see a large increase, while Core Formation cultivators will reach the spiritual awareness of a Golden Core cultivator.'

He hasn't even tried it himself—he just repeats whatever the boss says.

'Arrogant!' the woman frowned, about to shake her hand and leave.

The man waved his hand: 'Let me have a look.'

'Sure.'

The shop assistant took down the Heavy Spirit Pill and placed it in front of the man.

The man picked up the pill, opened the stopper, and gave it a sniff.

Huh?!

The man's expression changed; he quickly capped the bottle and asked, 'How much for this pill?'

'Sincerely, 1,500 Spiritual Stones per pill!'

'I'll take the whole bottle.'

?

The shop assistant froze, then broke into a delighted smile: 'Thank you, sir, thank you!'

The woman also sensed something off and asked, 'Chen brother…'

The man waved his hand: 'I'm Chen Zhen, also an alchemist. Is the owner here?'

'He's not here right now,' the assistant replied. 'If you want to see our boss, come by the end of the month; if your schedule is tight, leave your contact details and we'll have the boss find you.' The assistant said this strangely, but followed Yan Buji's instructions.

'Alright, I'll come again at month's end.'

'Welcome back next time!'

Seeing the two leave, the assistants wondered, 'Alchemist Chen Zhen? Could he be the city's Fourfold Transformation Alchemist?'

'Then the fairy beside him must be Hua Xianzi? And the one running the city's Welcome Medicine Shop as a Threefold Transformation Alchemist?!'

But the fact that these two could come here to buy pills shows the boss is no ordinary figure either.

On the street.

Huaxuan Xianzi looked at Chen Zhen and asked, "Brother Chen, is this Heavy Spirit Pill?"

It is indeed as that shop assistant said, having the medicinal power to instantly increase spiritual awareness. Moreover, the pill bears patterns, indicating it is top-grade, showing that the shop owner's alchemy skill is not low.

Chen Zhen took out a Heavy Spirit Pill, crushed it directly, placed it in his palm, and carefully sensed it.

It actually didn't use Fourfold Transformation Spiritual Material as the main ingredient, but was refined using Threefold Transformation combined with Twofold Transformation?!

"Ah?" Huaxuan Xianzi's face changed; as an Alchemist she naturally knows the higher the transformation count of a pill, the better, but if one could control the pill's Spiritual Material to refine a top-grade pill, how difficult that would be.

This is enough to see that the shop owner's alchemy skill is terrifying, on par with or even surpassing her own.

Although this pill has been refined to top-grade, its medicinal power seems not fully unleashed. If I were to refine it..." Huaxuan Xianzi glanced at the medicine powder in Chen Zhen's hand, knowing this was his unique method of recognizing spirit pills; although she couldn't do it, she had picked up a few tricks through exposure.

Precisely for this reason, she could also see that something was off about this pill.

It seems that during refinement, the fire was deliberately restrained, meaning a Threefold Transformation Alchemist?" Chen Zhen thought for a moment and nodded.

Amazing, it looks like the shop owner's cultivation hasn't reached Golden Core; otherwise, with this method, refining ordinary Fourfold Transformation pills wouldn't be difficult either.

Now, Jade Balance Island has gained an extraordinary fellow Daoist." Chen Zhen laughed.