The fairy forced me to marry into her family, so I retorted by throwing myself into the Pool of Fate

After returning from the territory of the Well of Chance, Li Ping sat at the table, his gaze fixed on the prescription, and remained silent for a long time.

The two items, Zhu Sui Xuan Zhi and Qian Si Qian Ji Mu, cost him a full two thousand spirit stones.

This doesn't even include the favors Mu Yan and Mu Fangxu have done for them.

But the result?

They only produced one piece of paper.

It would be a lie to say I wasn't disappointed.

Li Ping looked at the prescription over and over again several times, and finally sighed softly, suppressing the disappointment in his heart.

There's no point in dwelling on it now that things have come to this.

The most important thing right now is to find a way to recoup the investment.

He unfolded the prescription again and examined it carefully, word by word.

According to the recipe, only two materials are needed to refine the Returning Cloud Pill: Polygonatum and Spirit Gathering Grass.

The main ingredient is Polygonatum sibiricum, and the auxiliary ingredient is Gathering Spirit Grass. Each refining requires one piece of Polygonatum sibiricum and three Gathering Spirit Grass plants.

"There aren't many materials." Li Ping raised an eyebrow slightly.

Although he didn't know how to refine pills, he still knew about the common spiritual herb, the Spirit Gathering Grass.

This is a basic auxiliary material for refining Qi Gathering Pills. It is known for its large scale and output, and five plants only cost one spirit stone, which is very cheap.

The cost of auxiliary materials is almost negligible; the key lies in the herb Polygonatum sibiricum.

"Looks like I'll have to go to the pharmacy myself."

Li Ping carefully put away the prescription and closed his eyes to regulate his breathing.

The next day, as dawn broke, Li Ping left home early.

The exploration of the underwater cave is in full swing, and the market town is noticeably quieter.

At this hour, the bluestone street would usually be bustling with activity, but now, looking around, there are only a few scattered figures.

Li Ping glanced around and found that the people on the street were either old men who were afraid of death and dared not go to the cave, or people with low cultivation levels in the early stage of Qi Refining.

Heading west, they stopped in front of Li Ping's pharmacy.

The medicine shop has a small storefront, with an old wooden plaque hanging above the door that reads "Chen's Medicine Shop".

Li Ping lifted the curtain and went inside.

The shop was dimly lit, with three walls lined with floor-to-ceiling shelves of medicinal herbs, and countless drawers.

Each drawer has a label with the name of the medicinal herbs written on it.

But... why is there no one behind the counter?

Li Ping was puzzled when he suddenly heard a rustling sound coming from behind the counter. Then, a small head popped out from behind the counter.

The little girl looked to be around ten years old, with a round face and two patches of rosy cheeks from years of sea breeze.

She stood on a low stool, gripping the edge of the counter with both hands, her dark eyes looking at Li Ping, showing no stage fright whatsoever.

"What would the customer like to buy?"

Seeing this, Li Ping softened his tone: "Young friend, how much is the Spirit Gathering Grass?"

The girl tilted her head and thought for a moment, then said in a clear voice, "Three plants and one spirit stone."

"Wasn't it five spirit stones for one spirit stone before?" Li Ping frowned. "The price has gone up?"

The girl smiled, revealing two shallow dimples: "If the customer came two months ago, that price would indeed apply."

However, with the recent opening of the underwater cave, the supply of elixirs in the market has fallen short of demand, causing the prices of these raw materials to rise significantly.

"I see," Li Ping said, suddenly understanding.

With the underwater cave now open, cultivators entering must prepare ample amounts of medicinal pills. As market demand increases, the price of raw materials naturally rises.

This is the most basic principle of buying and selling, but he had been preoccupied with other things lately and hadn't paid attention to it.

He hesitated for a moment, then asked, "What about Polygonatum? How much does it cost?"

The girl said, "The price of Huangjing (Polygonatum) has also increased. It used to be twelve spirit stones a piece, but now it's fifteen spirit stones a piece."

Upon hearing this, Li Ping silently did some mental calculations.

To refine one batch of Returning Cloud Pills, you need one piece of Polygonatum and three Spirit Gathering Grasses.

Based on current market prices, the total cost would be sixteen spirit stones.

If the efficacy of the medicine in the prescription is true, the selling price of Huiyun Dan should at least be on par with Huangya Dan.

A bottle of Huangyadan sells for fifty spirit stones. Even if we calculate it at forty spirit stones, the net profit per bottle is twenty-five spirit stones.

"There was some profit to be made."

Thinking of this, Li Ping smiled and immediately said, "Three pieces of Polygonatum and ten Spirit Gathering Grass, wrap them up for me."

"Okay."

The girl responded, quickly climbed down from the low stool, and then stood on tiptoe to reach the drawer on the shelf.

However, she was too short and had to stand on tiptoe to reach the medicine drawers on the shelf.

The little figure stood on the edge of the counter, trembling as it reached out to pull out a drawer, which startled Li Ping.

"Do you want me to help you?" Li Ping quickly asked.

The girl, while straining to reach the drawer handle, turned back and smiled at him: "Don't worry, guest, I can manage."

As soon as she finished speaking, she hooked her finger on the drawer handle, gently pulled, and steadily slid the drawer out.

He took out the Polygonatum rhizome and then turned to another drawer to get the Spirit Gathering Herb.

The whole process was efficient and smooth, clearly something she was used to doing.

Seeing this, Li Ping stopped going forward, but couldn't help glancing at the little girl a few more times.

At such a young age, she was already standing alone at the counter, speaking with maturity and working efficiently, which reminded him of Li Yan.

Compared to the girl in front of her, Li Yan's personality is much more unrestrained.

That girl was always bouncing around, unlike the calm and composed girl in front of me.

But deep down, both of them were hardworking girls who took over the family shop early on and became managers.

"Judging by the time, Li Yan should have already had her spirit tested by now."

"I wonder if that girl has spiritual roots, and whether she will be able to cultivate in the future."

Li Ping couldn't help but feel a little worried.

In two more months, my mission will be over. I'll go back and visit then.

"Guest, your medicinal herbs." The girl had already placed the oil paper package on the counter and called out in a crisp voice.

Li Ping paid with the spirit stones, put away the medicinal herbs, and turned to leave the pharmacy.

With the medicinal herbs prepared, the next step is to understand the market.

Ultimately, these elixirs need to be sold.

Knowing the cost alone is not enough; you also need to know the market price of similar pills to determine whether the deal is worthwhile.

Most of the medicine shops in the market are concentrated on East Street, numbering seven or eight in total.

Li Ping walked along the street and soon arrived at the door of a medicine shop.

The storefront was much more impressive than the previous pharmacy, with two large vermilion doors wide open and a signboard hanging at the entrance bearing the three characters "Danxiangtang".

As you step inside, a rich aroma of herbs wafts towards you.

Behind the counter sat a gaunt old man, flipping through an account book.

Li Ping stepped forward and asked directly, "Shopkeeper, what kinds of pills are available to restore mana?"

The old man looked up, glanced at Li Ping, and slowly took out two small porcelain bottles from under the counter and placed them on the counter.

"Qi Gathering Pill or Yellow Sprout Pill, which one would you like, fellow Daoist?"

Li Ping glanced at the two porcelain vases but did not reach out to take them.

"Is there anything more effective?"

"Even better?" The shopkeeper picked up the porcelain bottle of Yellow Sprout Pills and shook it. "These Yellow Sprout Pills are the best. One pill can restore nearly 20% of your mana. Isn't that enough?"

"Didn't anyone recover even 30%?" Li Ping pressed.

"Thirty percent?" The shopkeeper looked him up and down with a strange expression. "Are you kidding me? What Qi Refining stage pill can restore thirty percent of your mana?"

Li Ping persisted: "Really not?"

Seeing his serious expression, the shopkeeper realized he wasn't there to have fun, so he stopped smiling and said slowly, "Yes, we do have some, but those are for Foundation Establishment stage seniors."

"Don't even mention a whole one, even half a one would be too much for your dantian to handle. Don't blame me if your meridians are severed."

It really does.

Li Ping's eyes brightened slightly, but his expression remained unchanged: "Could you take it out and let me see it?"

The old man gave him a strange look, as if he were looking at a naive and ignorant fool.

"Fellow Daoist, if you're not going to buy any pills, don't make fun of me."

He waved his hand, indicating that Li Ping could leave.

Li Ping wasn't annoyed. He took out five spirit stones from his pocket and gently placed them on the counter.

Upon seeing the spirit stone, the old man's previously impatient expression immediately softened considerably.

He calmly put away the spirit stones, and his tone became more polite: "Since you are so sincere in asking, then I will say a few more words."

"In this area of ​​the eight islands in the outer sea, spiritual energy is scarce, and there are only a handful of Foundation Establishment cultivators in total."

The elixirs they used were not available in ordinary shops.

Throughout the entire outer sea, only the Lin family's medicine shop sells it, and they only have one type of medicine that restores mana, called the Jade Dew Pill.

"Only one type?" Li Ping frowned.

"Yes." The shopkeeper nodded. "If you want something better, you'll have to go to Qingfeng City."

There are many Foundation Establishment cultivators over there, and the variety of elixirs is also complete. As long as you can afford the spirit stones, you can buy any kind of elixir.

Li Ping silently noted it down, then cupped his hands in thanks.

The shopkeeper waved his hand repeatedly and smiled as he saw Li Ping out of the shop.

Walking down the street, he didn't rush back, but instead visited several more medicine shops.

One company after another asked the same two questions.

First, besides Qi Gathering Pill and Yellow Sprout Pill, are there any other pills that can restore mana?

Second, how many pills are in one bottle of Huangyadan?

After walking around the circle, the answer gradually became clear.

There are indeed only two types of pills for restoring mana during the Qi Refining stage: Qi Gathering Pill and Yellow Sprout Pill.

All the shops gave the same answer; none of them mentioned Huiyundan.

This suggests that either Huiyun Dan has never appeared in the outer seas, or it is an ancient formula that has long been lost.

Scarcity gives a company the power to set prices.

Li Ping felt a little more at ease.

The second question is to confirm the quantity and calculate the profit.

The net profit he calculated from the twenty-four spirit stones was, in fact, inaccurate.

The selling price of forty spirit stones is the price of ten spirit stones, but the cost of sixteen spirit stones is the price of one batch.

The number of pills produced in a single batch directly determines the level of profit.

If a batch of pills yields exactly ten Returning Cloud Pills, the net profit will be twenty-four spirit stones, which is roughly the same as the previous estimate.

However, if only six or seven grains can be produced from one batch, the cost will be much higher, and the net profit will shrink significantly.

The prices of Huangya Dan from different vendors are almost the same, but the profits vary drastically, mainly due to the success rate of producing the pills.

Those with a high success rate can produce twelve or thirteen pills per batch, resulting in surprisingly low costs.

The success rate of pills is low; only five or six pills can be produced from one batch, resulting in pitifully thin profits.

And what about yourself?

I've never refined pills before, and I've never even touched a pill furnace.

How many pills can be produced from one furnace?

Maybe not a single one will come out.

Thinking of this, Li Ping couldn't help but sigh, feeling somewhat worried.

Alchemy is a technical skill, and not everyone can do it.

Talent, experience, and technique are all indispensable.

He doesn't even understand the most basic pharmacology. If he rashly buys a furnace to start refining pills, he'll most likely ruin the materials.

Instead of wasting spirit stones, it would be better to find a few books on alchemy to read first.

If you can't even understand the alchemical texts, it means you don't have the talent for it. You should give up early and not waste your time on it.

If you can understand it, then consider the next step.

Having made up his mind, Li Ping no longer hesitated and went to buy the alchemical book.