War Starts

Poor. So poor.

A low rank flying sword was worth hundred Low Grade Qi Stones. A single formation banner cost five hundred Low Grade Qi Stones.

Wei Ren only had two.

His father gave him these two Qi Stones. He probably could have given his son a lot more, but building wealth is also an important skill for cultivators. They have to buy weapons, pills, and other essentials. It would be better if Wei Ren learnt this skill on his own.

Serpent Valley Marketplace was an open place for trade and commerce meaning cultivators who didn't belong to the Serpent Valley Sect could also come to conduct business. This increased the sect's profit. Disciples opened up their own shops and stores. Rogue cultivators were frequent customers. Sect Elders, disciples also had many reasons to come here regularly to sell pills and treasures.

Wei Ren only had one thing that was worth selling, his White Root Pill Potion. Selling a Pill Potion with 80 percent potency was too suspicious. So he diluted his Pill Potion and reduced the potency to only 60 percent. Still this was unheard off. He wanted to go to a place that would buy his Pill Potion. This was the only way he could think of to buy enough ingredients to make Pill Potions for himself. He decided that he would use the Pill Potion with 80 percent potency only for himself and sell the diluted Potion here.

After thirty minutes of trying to find a place, he saw an old shop with a shabby appearance. The shop had no signboard or a name. There was a single brown cloth hanging at the door that said, "We buy all kinds of alchemy ingredients and Pills".

This was exactly what he wanted. A famous Alchemy store is bound to have ties with many people. It would be easier than killing a fly for them to find out everything about him. His father made sure that his identity is not revealed in the sect before he can become strong enough to protect himself.

A secluded shop like this might offer a lower price than other lavish stores, but it was a necessary loss.

He walked into a dark alley and put on a long black robe and a big straw hat and walked into the shop.

It was very ill lit. There was no one in the shop. A long table made of a hundred year old mahogany was the most special thing about the shop. There was not even a hint of medicinal aroma in the entire shop.

"Does this place really buy alchemy ingredients?" He wondered in his heart. A small bronze bell hung on a wooden stand on the long mahogany table. He rang the bell twice and waited.

No one came. He doubted that no one worked here. The owner must have left the shop open. He was about to turn around and leave when suddenly fast footsteps sounded in the little shop.

A two feet tall old man wobbled into the shop from behind. He didn't even spare Wei Ren a glance. As he walked behind the mahogany table, he slowly became taller and taller. There was a staircase behind the table, he climbed it and reached Wei Ren's eye level.

The old dwarf looked at Wei Ren as if he had irritated his precious sleep.

"What do you want to sell?" He asked bluntly and didn't bother with introduction.

"Uh…this Pill Potion. Senior, please take a look." Wei Ren handed one vial of diluted White Root Pill Potion to the old man.

The dwarf grabbed the vial, opened it and sniffed the contents. Wei Ren was creeped out by the way he sniffed his Pill Potion because the old dwarf thrusted half of the vial into his nose while sniffing.

Wei Ren didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"60 percent potency!" The old dwarf said with a solemn voice. His face showed interest as he scrutinized the Pill Potion.

"Esteemed guest, did you prepare this Potion yourself?" He asked with a bow. This sharp change in behaviour almost made Wei Ren vomit.

"Yes." He didn't deny.

"May I ask the esteemed guest's name?" The old dwarf asked so respectfully that it became extremely obvious that he was being pretentious.

"Bei Piao." Wei Ren replied calmly. His name in the sect was already fake. So he had to use another fake name to conduct business.

"What price is esteemed guest thinking for this Potion." The old dwarf tightly gripped the vial as if unwilling to return it to Wei Ren.

"I came here to get an appraisal. If Senior can give me a good price, I would be willing to sell it to you." Wei Ren didn't want to haggle. If he was given a reasonable price, then he would not waste his time arguing.

"Brother Bei, it's common knowledge shared by all alchemists that Pill Potion can only hold half the potency of a pill. Still it is better than wasting all the ingredients during a pill concoction. In all my years I have seen Pill Potions with potency higher than 50 percent only five or six times. One of the people who sold me one such Potion is a senior from Serpent Valley Sect. He accidentally added one extra ingredient while concocting a pill. This small change in pill formula resulted in 55 percent potent Pill Potion. I don't dare to ask how Brother Bei made this, but I know that such a Pill Potion is very precious. It is almost comparable to an actual pill and also cheaper than it.. One White Root Pill costs two Low Grade Qi Stones. One White Root Pill Potion cost only one. I can pay one and a half Low Grade Qi Stones for this."

"Done." Wei Ren didn't argue in the slightest. He had already expected this price. But he was surprised by the old dwarf's words. Other people have also concocted Pill Potions with higher Potency. His accidental success must have been caused by an unknown complication. He couldn't wait any longer to try the Pill concoction again.

"I need ingredients to concoct more of this Pill Potion. Right now, I have three more vials on me. Senior can have all of them if you can furnish me with the ingredients for White Root Pill Potion." A shop like this must have the ingredients he wanted. He wanted to trade the Potions for ingredients.

"No problem. Brother Bei, I assume that you recently developed the formula for this Pill Potion. Considering that you need more ingredients, I am thinking you want to sell more of this Pill Potion. If Brother Bei is interested we can enter a business deal." The Old dwarf didn't want to let this big fish slip by.

"What kind of business deal? Can Senior please elaborate?"

"I can provide as many ingredients as Brother Bei needs. I can even provide a Concoction Chamber with a pseudo karmic flame and a Pill Cauldron. Brother Bei only needs to deliver fifty such Potions by the end of the month."

The words Concoction Chamber and pseudo karmic flame captured Wei Ren's interest. A Concoction Chamber is a special room built just for Pill concoction. It prevents any sort of disturbance during a Pill concoction like noise, temperature loss, wind etc. And a pseudo karmic flame is a special flame that has properties of an actual Karmic flame which only River Formation experts and above can use. This flame is ignited using Beast Cores that are found in rare and incredibly powerful Magical Beasts. His chances of successfully concocting a pill will also increase several times with this flame.

He pondered for a while and then decided to agree. There was no downside to this.

"Would Brother Bei be interested in seeing the Chamber tight now?" The Old dwarf went down the stairs behind his table and wobbled to the back door.

"Sure." There was no need to worry that Wei Ren might get swindled. Rules in Serpent Valley Marketplace are very strict. Any type of violence is prohibited including robbing and fraud.

Wei Ren followed the dwarf into the back of his shop. They passed some storage rooms and a small medicinal garden.

"Here we are." The old dwarf said while looking at a strange round metal door. He tapped the door twice and it swung open.

The old dwarf showed the Concoction Chamber with pride.

"The Chamber walls are made of Firestone, so no heat is leaked out during a Concoction. The Pill Cauldron for your use is the famous Thousand Leaf Pill Cauldron. It's ranked 368 on the Top Pill Cauldron List issued by the Serpent Valley Sect." He waited with self confidence for Wei To praise his Concoction Chamber.

This Concoction Chamber is definitely ten times better than his immortal cave. But he didn't want to act like an amateur. So he glanced inside the Concoction Chamber only once and then looked away.

"It's good. I shall take my leave for today. I will come back tomorrow and start the Pill Concoction. I hope Senior can excuse me." He bowed and immediately turned around to leave. Showing very little interest is the best way to act mysterious and properly hide his identity.

The old dwarf was surprised to see him leave so fast. But he didn't say anything to offend this golden egg laying goose.

"I will be waiting for Brother Bei's arrival. All the ingredients will be prepared for you in advance."

Wei Ren nodded gently and then swiftly left the shop. He settled things much better than he imagined. He wouldn't have to worry about buying ingredients anymore. But there was still one thing that worried him. What if the Pill Concoction was not the same as before. It is possible that the two Pill Potions he made were just accidental successes.

"I will worry about that later. At most I will tell that old dwarf that I can't make the Pill Potion for him anymore.

He left the marketplace. It was almost noon by the time he reached the inner parts of the sect. Strangely a group of disciples crowded together in front of a notice board.

Students got their monthly tasks from this place. Wei Ren's cultivation was too low right now so he was allowed to avoid these missions for now. He had arrived at this place several times before but this was his first time seeing so many disciples at once.

He joined the group to find the cause of such a huge gathering.

"It's truly unfortunate."

"I hope this ends soon."

He could hear some whispered talking between the disciples. Finally he got close enough to read the news that attracted so many people.

The report said, " This is from the Sect Master Lu Bing. Due to constant sneak attacks and damage to our lands, Emperor Wei Yan has issued the Royal Decree to start the war against the Golden Crow Kingdom. This to encourage disciples to earn battle credit by taking part in this war. Disciples of the Serpent Valley Sect can join Grand Healer Lu Sheng and his disciples in helping the wounded and providing support to our kingdom's warriors. Rewards will be given to those with the highest contributions. Our Blue Rose Kingdom has the upper hand in this war and we shall maintain this lead by taking the initiative. These tough times can serve as an eye opener for many. Blue Rose Kingdom is our home. If we can't even protect our home then what is the point of walking the path of cultivation? Immortality is granted to those with strong minds. Dear disciples, it is time for us to shoulder the burdens of our kingdom."

"A WAR?" It was like a hammer had hit his head. Wei Ren knew that everyday scuffles with the neighbouring kingdoms were very common. But an all out war against another kingdom is an entirely different level of conflict. Secondly, only the Emperor can give the order to start a war. He knew his father. He avoided conflicts at all costs. An Emperor is supposed to avoid wars and not start them. Something terrible must be happening at the borders.

He wanted to leave the sect and head to the border. Commanding an army is his forte. Cultivation can wait.

"I have to find an excuse to leave the sect."