Zhou Kai mixed pressure with persuasion, leaving the young woman completely speechless.
She stared at the Chen family’s Guest Elder before her. His cultivation was clearly not high, yet he spoke like a seasoned rogue, slippery and shameless. Where was the aloof pride and upright bearing an alchemist should possess?
This was no lofty master of Alchemy. He was plainly a street rascal.
And yet… what he said seemed to make a bit of sense.
Her gaze lingered on Zhou Kai, then drifted to the bottle of Lock Yang Pills. Her thoughts raced.
Spirit stones were spirit stones. Who cared whether they were earned from selling Qi Gathering Pills or from selling… that kind of pill? As long as they could raise cultivation and buy resources, they were good spirit stones.
After convincing herself, the merchant’s instincts in Wang Qiaoqiao surfaced.
Her eyes brightened.
She cleared her throat and forced her voice to remain steady. “These mid-grade Qi Gathering Pills. Thirty of them, excellent quality. I’ll give you seven spirit stones each. That makes two hundred and ten spirit stones. How does that sound?”
It was the same price the assistant Zhang had offered earlier.
Zhou Kai nodded. “That’s fine.”
Wang Qiaoqiao’s gaze shifted again to the jade bottle that had made her blush. “How many Lock Yang Pills did you refine?”
“Not many. Just one hundred and fifty.” Zhou Kai pushed the bottle toward her. “This pill isn’t difficult to refine. It only requires precise control of heat. They’re all high-grade.”
“Two spirit stones each. Three hundred spirit stones.”
Wang Qiaoqiao quickly took out a spirit stone pouch, counted out five hundred and ten spirit stones, and handed them over. “Guest Elder Zhou, thank you for your business.”
Zhou Kai accepted the pouch and weighed it in his hand. Including the spirit stones he had taken earlier from searching corpses, his wealth had now surged to more than one thousand four hundred spirit stones.
“Miss Wang, I still have some matters to attend to. I’d like to purchase a few things from your Treasure Prosper Pavilion.”
“Oh? What does Guest Elder Zhou need? Just say the word. I guarantee you the most favorable price!” Wang Qiaoqiao’s eyes lit up.
“I need an alchemy furnace. A good-quality one,” Zhou Kai said.
“No problem. I’ll have someone fetch the best ones from the storeroom for you to choose from.”
Soon, several different styles of alchemy furnaces were carried in.
Zhou Kai examined them carefully and chose a crimson furnace engraved with a Fire Gathering Array. It felt warm in his hands, and spiritual energy flowed smoothly through it. Its quality was clearly excellent.
“This furnace is decent. It should barely suffice to attempt refining some second-grade pills. Does your pavilion have the pill formulas and materials for Spirit Gathering Pills and True Condensing Pills? If so, what are the prices?” This chapter is updated first at novelping(.)com.
“The Scarlet Sun Furnace…” Wang Qiaoqiao’s voice suddenly rose. “Spirit Gathering Pills and True Condensing Pills?!”
Spirit Gathering Pills were used by cultivators in the Late stage Qi Refining Realm to assist in cultivation. Though only the most basic among second-grade pills, anyone capable of refining them was unquestionably a genuine second-grade alchemist.
True Condensing Pills were high-tier healing pills among second-grade pills. They could repair a damaged dantian and were extremely difficult to refine, nearly on par with Foundation Establishment Pills.
He wanted the formulas and materials?
How could that be?
Around Hidden Beast Mountain, second-grade alchemists were rare. Each one was eagerly sought after by major forces. Even the Wang Family had only three second-grade alchemists.
She had heard of Zhou Kai. He joined the Chen Family ten years ago and reportedly had a damaged dantian and poor aptitude. He must have recently encountered some fortuitous inheritance. Otherwise, if he had the ability of an alchemist, he would have long refined True Condensing Pills to repair himself.
An alchemist with talent, about to repair his dantian, yet still obscure and low in cultivation.
What did that mean?
It meant enormous potential, immense wealth, and… a perfect investment opportunity.
“This man’s potential is immense. If I can win him over to the Wang Family. No. If he can become my support, Wang Qiaoqiao’s support, it will surely help when I attempt to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm. I must establish a deeper connection with him. I must make him unable to leave me, unable to leave the Treasure Prosper Pavilion,” Wang Qiaoqiao thought.
“May I ask, is Guest Elder Zhou a second-grade alchemist?”
“Just a stroke of luck,” Zhou Kai replied calmly.
“Master Zhou!” Wang Qiaoqiao immediately stood and bowed deeply. “Earlier, Qiaoqiao was rude and spoke out of turn. I hope Master will forgive me.”
Her attitude had changed so quickly it was as if she were a different person.
Zhou Kai accepted her bow calmly. The effect he wanted had been achieved.
“Miss Wang, you overpraise me,” he said, waving a hand as if pondering. “My identity is inconvenient at the moment. I am merely a minor Guest Elder of the Chen Family, and my cultivation is still low. If my status as a second-grade alchemist were exposed, it would likely bring unnecessary trouble. I hope Miss Wang can keep this confidential.”
Wang Qiaoqiao was quick-witted and immediately understood.
He was about to negotiate terms.
“Master Zhou, rest assured. I will absolutely keep this secret and never reveal it.”
“As compensation for confidentiality,” Zhou Kai said casually, “any pills I refine in the future, aside from those for my own use and for the Chen Family, can be given priority to the Treasure Prosper Pavilion. As for the price…” He deliberately dragged out his words.
“Master, don’t worry. The price will absolutely be fair. No. We will give you the highest price possible,” Wang Qiaoqiao assured him, patting her chest. Then her eyes shifted slyly. “These two pill formulas shall be my gift to Master as a meeting present. As for the materials for Spirit Gathering Pills this time, our Treasure Prosper Pavilion will cover the cost.”
“As for the materials for True Condensing Pills, they are too expensive. I can only sell them at a ten percent discount.” Follow the newest chapters on g.com.
Free pill formulas? Zhou Kai raised his brow. If it was free, why refuse? She was indeed perceptive.
As expected, Wang Qiaoqiao immediately added, “However, I do have one small request.”
“Oh? Go ahead.”
“If in the future Master can refine Foundation Establishment Pills, could you allocate some share to me?”
Wang Qiaoqiao’s ambition was not small. She was already planning for Foundation Establishment Pills.
Zhou Kai pondered briefly and nodded. “If that day comes, I will remember today’s favor from the Wang Family. Foundation Establishment Pills can be shared, but the exact distribution can be discussed then.”
“Thank you, Master!” Wang Qiaoqiao was overjoyed. She felt this investment was incredibly profitable. She quickly added, “Not the Wang Family’s favor. My favor. Wang Qiaoqiao’s favor.”
To bind Zhou Kai even more tightly, she offered another suggestion. “To better conceal Master’s identity, how about we tell others that Master is… a reclusive expert who specializes in refining Lock Yang Pills? That would explain the source of the pills without attracting too much attention. Others would simply think Master chose an unconventional path.”
Her thinking was sharp. Though somewhat strange, it was indeed a practical way to avoid attention for now.
“Very well,” Zhou Kai agreed.
After finalizing the transaction, Zhou Kai spent spirit stones to purchase a large number of talismans for protection, including Flight Escape Talismans, Fireball Talismans, Water Shield Talismans, and Swift Movement Talismans.
Finally, he used almost all his remaining spirit stones to buy materials for refining Lock Yang Pills.
When he returned to his small courtyard, Zhou Kai could not suppress his laughter. His heart was filled with the pleasure of a plan successfully executed.
Everything had unfolded exactly as he calculated.
He already knew of Wang Qiaoqiao and had thoroughly understood her character. She appeared warm and lively, but in truth she valued profit above all else. She was a high-risk speculator willing to gamble everything for gain, and her ambition was immense. Such a personality was tailor-made as his partner.
He had only intended to try his luck today. It was fortunate he saw Steward Wang being pulled away earlier, which allowed him to meet Wang Qiaoqiao directly. Everything had gone even more smoothly than expected.
As anticipated, merely revealing the bait of being a second-grade alchemist was enough to make Wang Qiaoqiao instantly change her attitude, even offering pill formulas and materials proactively in her effort to win him over.
In her eyes, this was a potential investment for her own future.
But how could she know that while she was calculating how to use Zhou Kai’s “alchemy talent,” Zhou Kai had already marked her as the next target of the [Confidante Interaction System].
A legitimate daughter of the Wang Family who controlled the resources of the Treasure Prosper Pavilion, pragmatic and bold enough to invest.
She was the perfect confidante candidate.
If he could fully win her over, he would not only gain real exchange points through the system to strengthen himself, but also use the Treasure Prosper Pavilion’s channels to acquire vast cultivation resources. He could even rely on her status to better conceal himself.
For him, this was the true investment that promised boundless returns.