Cultivating Immortality: Starting from Ferrying Passengers

Chapter 63 Procurement and Purchase
When Fang Jingxuan arrived at the black market that Ding San mentioned, he was a little disappointed. It was a remote alley, foggy in the early morning, and there were not many people to be seen.

"Is this the black market you were talking about? I thought it was that."

"Which one?"

"It's the place that sells female cultivator furnaces."

Fang Jingxuan whispered the place he imagined, and Ding San quickly told Fang Jingxuan to stop.

"My Lord Fang, we are government servants, how can we go to such a place? Besides, what can we buy there with the few spirit stones we have? Without thousands of low-grade spirit stones, no one will take you there."

"From what you said, it seems you've been there before. You're so familiar with the place."

Fang Jingxuan stared at Ding San, which made Ding San look a little embarrassed. He waved his hand and said:

"I've only been there once, and a friend took me there. I didn't buy anything, I just looked around and broadened my horizons."

"Friend? You're not referring to yourself, are you?"

"Ahem, let's not talk about this anymore. Let's go quickly. If we wait until daybreak, the door will be closed."

Ding San changed the subject and took Fang Jingxuan inside. At this time, Fang Jingxuan rarely left Tu Yuan at the intersection and did not bring him in.

Because the alley was quite narrow, and considering Tuoyuan's size, after he entered, it would be difficult for the people next to him to even turn around.

Fang Jingxuan regained his composure. He had previously thought that Ding San was going to take him to the black market, and had been excited for half the night. He had not expected that it would be a flea market in the market town.

There are no formal shops here, and both parties involved in transactions must wear masks and cloaks to prevent being recognized.

There is a kind of silk thread on this cloak that can block the opponent's spiritual detection. Unless the opponent's cultivation is much higher than yours, as long as the opponent uses spiritual sense to check you, it will not only be difficult, but you will also know it immediately.

When buying and selling goods here, the whole process is based on your eyesight, and no one will take responsibility for the result afterwards, so if you don’t have real skills, you will be ripped off if you come here.

"Is the person you are looking for reliable?"

Fang Jingxuan couldn't help but ask. He was carrying a huge sum of money of 1,500 low-grade spirit stones, and Tu Yuan was not with him. Fang Jingxuan was afraid that he would be robbed.

If Ding Sangen had not been so knowledgeable and knew everything about the place, Fang Jingxuan would never have taken the risk of coming to such a place.

"Don't worry, we're an old friend. They'll pay a higher price for mid-grade spirit stones. Many Kuding have traded with them before. The spirit stones you have aren't that many."

As they were talking, Ding San took Fang Jingxuan around in the alley, and finally stopped at a closed door.

"Dang Dang!"

Ding San knocked on the door several times in a certain rhythm, and after a moment, the door opened.

After Fang Jingxuan went in, he discovered that there was a different world here. Although it looked shabby from the outside, the scenery inside was actually quite nice.

There are rockery, flowing water and secluded paths. Just by looking at the layout, you can tell the strength of its owner.

A few breaths later, a puppet walked out from the secret door. The puppet was in human form and spoke with a human voice.

"Want to exchange Spirit Stones? According to the current exchange rate, we can offer the following exchange rates."

Fang Jingxuan was a little shocked. He looked at Ding San and saw a smug look on his face.

Obviously Fang Jingxuan was frightened by this puppet, which was within his expectations.

Ignoring Ding San's little thoughts, Fang Jingxuan slowly exhaled. This Hongyefang is full of hidden dragons and crouching tigers.

Puppet masters all have this profession, which is very rare. Fang Jingxuan had only heard of it before, but this was the first time he saw a real puppet.

But this was not the time to explore. Fang Jingxuan listened carefully to the exchange rate and found that it was indeed one or two points higher than the prices in the shops on Fangshi Street.

Perhaps the puppeteer needs spirit stones of medium quality or above?

Fang Jingxuan didn't know, but he could earn more at this price, so he exchanged all his medium-grade spirit stones for low-grade ones.

Fifteen fist-sized medium-grade spirit stones were finally exchanged for a large bag of low-grade spirit stones. Fang Jingxuan counted them one by one and found a total of 1,564. No matter what, these extra 64 were the profit of Fang Jingxuan's trip.

For each errand, he could earn extra income of sixty or seventy low-grade spirit stones. No wonder working in the warehouse was such a lucrative job.

That’s not all. If you buy the talismans cheaply and pay the full amount, the remaining spirit stones will be the bulk of the profit.

After exchanging the spirit stones, Fang Jingxuan followed Ding San out. As soon as he went out, he looked back and found that the door that had just been closed was gone.

Apparently the puppeteer had set up a formation to hide the portal.

Fang Jingxuan took out four low-grade spirit stones from his storage bag, handed them to Ding San, and said:
"This is yours. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't be able to find this place. Don't worry, if I make a profit next time, you'll also get some benefits."

Ding San took the spirit stone with a smile on his face. He said politely:

"Brother Fang is so generous. You help me and I help you. That's what I said when we first met. When Brother Fang becomes successful in the future, just don't forget me."

After chatting and laughing with Ding San for a while, Fang Jingxuan found Tuoyuan. At this time, it was lying quietly in the same place, looking very quiet.

When he saw Fang Jingxuan, Tuoyuan quickly stood up and rushed to his side.

"Okay, okay, I won't leave you anymore. Let's go back."

Fang Jingxuan touched Tuoyuan's head and smiled proudly at Ding San beside him. Do you have such a well-behaved pet?

"Shopkeeper, buy a talisman!"

Fang Jingxuan brought Tu Yuan to the talisman shop where he had asked for prices at the beginning. Behind him, Ding San was still far away and had not entered the shop yet.

"I wonder what kind of talisman this fellow Taoist wants to buy?"

Seeing that there was business, the shopkeeper smiled, but when he glanced at Ding San, his face suddenly changed. He walked forward quickly and was about to close the door.

But at this time, Fang Jingxuan blocked it with his body and said:

"What are you doing? I haven't left yet. What? Are you trying to rob me?"

"Oh, no, fellow Taoist, please forgive me and let me go. I need to close the door for a moment. Hurry, it will be too late if you are late."

As they were talking, Ding San came to the door in a high-spirited manner and said loudly:

"Please help me with the purchase of talismans and treasury supplies, boss."

"It's over. What bad luck! You, you, you."

The shopkeeper's hands hung limply, like a deflated rooster. He looked at Ding San, wanting to scold him but not daring to, with a look of frustration on his face.

"Alright, boss, this is inevitable. Just cooperate with me and let me do my job well. You'll also save some money, and when the time comes for the assessment, you'll feel more relaxed."

Ding San took out the document and waved it in front of the shopkeeper.

The shopkeeper was stunned for a few moments, and finally came to his senses and had to accept his fate.

Fang Jingxuan, who was standing by, saw the miserable appearance of the shopkeeper and felt a little sad. It was difficult to do business in the market outside the market, but it was not easy to open a store inside the market either.

The term "和买" is a bit of a forced sale. Basically, the party being bought with "和买" will not make any money, and may even lose money.

But because this is a list from the warehouse, it belongs to the market and is compulsory to a certain extent, and the shopkeepers cannot refuse it.

Moreover, the market town also has corresponding compensation mechanisms, such as tax discounts, but even so, these shop owners are reluctant, so when they see Ding San, their acquaintance, they just want to close their shops.

But Fang Jingxuan came in early, causing the shopkeeper to suffer a loss and he had no choice but to be "merged".

Originally Fang Jingxuan felt a little guilty about this, but when he thought about how he was forced to lower his price when he wanted to sell the talisman, he became angry.

I worked so hard to draw a talisman, and you made more profit than me. How can this be tolerated? Are you trying to monopolize the market? This is what you deserve!
(End of this chapter)