First achieve immortality, then cultivate immortality.

There are two ways to buy things in the market.

One method is to purchase items through the treasure pavilions set up by sects. The prices are lower, and the advantage is that it's convenient, as the items can be sold directly.

The second option is to set up a stall and sell your goods yourself. You need to pay a stall fee of 30 talismans. If you can't sell your goods, you will lose a lot of money.

Xu Mu observed the market and determined that the medicinal herbs he possessed were of high value.

The Spirit Gathering Fruit has always been in short supply, and despite the fact that major sects cultivate it, its price remains high.

Moreover, he not only had Spirit Gathering Fruit, but also the auxiliary medicines needed to refine Spirit Gathering Pills, which would surely attract customers. Therefore, he immediately gave up the sect's purchase price.

After paying the 30 talisman coins for the stall fee, he only had two coins left, enough for just two pots of tea.

Fortunately, the first customer arrived soon after, took a liking to his Spirit Gathering Fruit at first glance, and examined it in his hand.

"The quality is a bit poor, and the spiritual energy is insufficient," the man said in a deep voice.

"It's just a minor flaw, nothing to worry about," Xu Mu said calmly.

"Heh, if the Spirit Gathering Fruit can't gather enough spiritual energy, its effect will be diminished. 40 each, will you sell it or not?"

"60," Xu Mu replied calmly.

"Hey, you old Taoist priest, with your quality, how dare you try to negotiate a higher price with me?" The man glared at him fiercely.

"Buy it or not, just put it down." Xu Mu rolled his eyes.

A second-grade elixir for only 40 talismans? That's a pipe dream!

The man frowned and looked at the other medicinal herbs on his stall.

"I have the main and auxiliary ingredients. With a few more spirit stones and some adjustments, I can refine the Spirit Gathering Pill myself... Here's what I'll do: 50 Spirit Gathering Fruits, and the rest at market price. I'll take one portion."

The Spirit Gathering Fruit is quite expensive; the others are all first-grade spiritual herbs and not worth much money.

"Spirit Gathering Fruit, 60, no bargaining. If it weren't for the slightly lower quality, I would have charged you at least 80," Xu Mu sneered.

"Even if you can't afford it, there are plenty of other people who will."

"I can't afford it?" The other party was so angry that he took out 60 talismans and threw them on the stall.

"You old bastard, you just wait." He pointed at Xu Mu's nose, his words full of threat.

Xu Mu ignored him, waved his sleeve, picked up the 60 talismans on the ground, and let him take the Spirit Gathering Fruit.

Although he always tried to avoid trouble, you can't be polite when doing business in this marketplace, or you'll suffer losses.

He used to see people haggling on Pear Blossom Mountain in the Qinglan Sect, and the prices were only slightly better than here.

Cultivators value the word "competition," and those who are not well-off with resources are even more meticulous. Therefore, they don't need to care about their attitude towards this first customer.

Soon, a second and a third customer arrived.

All the customers wanted to haggle, and their tone was very tough. Some threatened by showing off their spiritual power, some brought up their names, and others tried to get close to them by saying things like "let's be friends," "it's good for independent practitioners to help each other," or "I'll protect you."

Xu Mu was unyielding and stuck to his price.

Don't let his current poverty fool you; he's far superior to these rogue cultivators.

He has his own medicinal herb fields, and with the fertilizer he developed, he can grow spiritual herbs even in places like the mortal world. He is not a poor farmer at all, but a small landlord who controls assets and has bargaining power!

Moreover, those who come to him to buy spiritual herbs are mostly skilled in alchemy and are generally wealthier than ordinary rogue cultivators.

In other words, he is at least two levels higher than the average rogue cultivator.

No matter what names these people claim, they are nothing but a load of rubbish.

……

As dusk fell, the moonlight and starlight shone brightly.

No one was closing up shop because this was the cultivation world, where spiritual energy was abundant, and cultivators didn't need much sleep. Only shops run by mortals would close down.

There were actually more people in the street vendor area, with many cultivators browsing around.

Before long, Xu Mu had sold all eight Spirit Gathering Fruits, and most of the other materials were also sold. The remaining materials were left unsold.

These auxiliary medicines were supposed to be sold together with the Spirit Gathering Fruit, but they were formulated by Xu Mu himself. Other alchemists might not need them, and given their poor quality, it's normal that no one bought them.

That's fine.

Xu Mu finally decided to pack up and close the stall. He did a quick mental calculation and realized he had sold a total of 549 talisman coins, making a small fortune.

This is about the same as his annual income when he worked as a pharmacist in Yulongtian.

This signifies that he can be self-reliant without relying on a sect.

If we look into the details...

The Spirit Gathering Pill is the main elixir for Qi Refining stage cultivation, and the cost of one Spirit Gathering Pill is about 100 talismans.

The price within the sect is closer to the cost price, while the price outside is much higher.

Ordinary Qi Refining stage cultivators, that is, those who can only become outer disciples after entering a sect, basically use all their income to buy Spirit Gathering Pills, and spend relatively little on cultivation techniques, sword techniques, and alchemy.

When Xu Mu was farming in the outer sect of Qinglan Sect, his annual income was only enough to buy one Spirit Gathering Pill. With such income, it was impossible to establish a foundation before the age of 81.

But he did the opposite.

He never bought any Spirit Gathering Pills in the sect. He used all his talisman money to buy cultivation techniques, alchemy skills, spiritual herbs to practice alchemy, and spiritual herb seeds to grow his own crops. He only bought necessary storage bags as magical artifacts.

Relying on his long lifespan, he never rushed to improve his realm, but only accumulated his knowledge and supernatural abilities, until now, when he has finally made his mark.

The harvest he is enjoying now is the result of his accumulation and cultivation, which makes him feel satisfied from the bottom of his heart.

Farming can lead to immortality!

……

Under the cover of night, Xu Mu found an inn to sleep in. The cheapest one cost 15 talismans per night, but its advantage was safety, as it was said to be watched over by a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Foundation Establishment cultivators don't need to sleep; they are guaranteed a worry-free night.

Xu Mu, carrying a large sum of money, needed this service and could sleep peacefully.

The next morning, he went to the person in charge of the stall area and got a refund for the stall fee.

The stall fee was 30 coins, calculated as 12 hours. From setting up the stall to closing it, it took less than 6 hours. However, the rule was that refunds could not be made within the first two hours (寅卯), so he could only take a nap. It has been 8 hours since then.

In the end, they refunded 5 coins.

After settling the stall fees, Xu Mu went shopping and entered the Treasure Pavilion set up by the Guihe Sect.

Guihe Sect, also known as Guihe Sect, is named for its association with longevity.

The reason I chose this place is because I heard the name yesterday, so I came to check it out. There's no particular reason.

After entering the Treasure Pavilion, Xu Mu inquired about the Youth Preservation Pill. One pill cost 180 talismans, which was significantly more expensive than the price inside the sect.

The internal price of a sect is generally 30% to 40% lower than the market price. This is considered a benefit provided by the sect to its outer disciples, and a blessing for them.

Xu Mu asked for two Youth Preservation Pills, totaling 360 talismans.

As a second-grade pill, this is already considered cheap, only slightly more expensive than a first-grade Spirit Gathering Pill.

I have 181 talisman coins left, just enough to buy two low-grade spirit stones.

A standard low-grade spirit stone weighs ten taels and is worth 80 talisman coins.

Xu Mu's self-prepared Spirit Gathering Pill requires one or two ounces of spirit stone powder, but the Spirit Gathering Fruit he grows lacks sufficient spiritual energy, so he should add a little more, up to two ounces.

In other words, one low-grade spirit stone can only be used to refine five Spirit Gathering Pills.

He already had one low-grade spirit stone on him, so he now had three low-grade spirit stones, enough to refine fifteen Spirit Gathering Pills, which should be enough to cover next year's harvest.

He doesn't plan to sell next year's Spirit Gathering Fruits; he intends to refine them into pills for his own cultivation.

After all, it has been six years since I returned to the mortal world from Qinglan Sect, and my cultivation has not improved at all. I have been stuck at the sixth level of Qi Refining. It is time for me to start cultivating again.

I had 21 talisman coins left, which I had to save as entrance fees for the next time I came back to sell goods.