When Qi Ping entered Qing Shi Market this time, it had undergone a significant change.
When Qi Ping appeared in Qing Shi Market disguised as a middle-aged man, the desolation was chilling.
Qi Ping had expected it to be much quieter, but he hadn't anticipated it would be this deserted!
Most of the shops were closed, with only a handful still open.
The street vendors who used to hawk their wares had all disappeared.
Even the patrol teams that always appeared on the streets were nowhere to be seen this time.
"How could it be this desolate?"
This scene truly made Qi Ping's heart pound. If it weren't for his Natural Perception not signaling any danger, he would have already run away.
"Could it be that all the shops will completely close down in a while?"
"No. I must find reliable channels for selling and buying things, otherwise, where will I get or sell my goods?"
Qi Ping truly hadn't expected things to progress to the point where even trading places were gone. It seemed the situation was indeed gradually becoming severe.
"I hope this time I can finalize a stable cooperation method with Boss Gao and Meng Yan."
He lacked too many things: Immortal Dao Spells, Foundation Establishment Cultivation Techniques, and Advanced Spirit Medicines, all of which needed to be obtained through a good channel.
And now, the most likely way for Qi Ping to establish connections was through Meng Yan. If it were anyone else, Qi Ping would find it difficult to give enough trust.
The idea of leaving Green Stone had also crossed Qi Ping's mind, but he quickly dismissed it.
Currently, it was estimated that Qingtian Domain and the nearest Tianhuo Domain would not be too peaceful. Not to mention the unknown risks of going to those places, crossing domains was the most dangerous thing.
Besides the risks, he would also lose all his connections, and bringing Old Zhou would be even more inconvenient.
Therefore, under these circumstances, it would be best to cooperate with trustworthy and well-connected individuals within the Qingyuan Sect, which could solve many problems. It might even offer a better chance to acquire truly powerful Immortal Dao Spells and Advanced resources than Qing Shi Market itself.
In addition, Qi Ping considered taking advantage of this opportunity to acquire more plots of land in the Cloud Mist Mountain Range to accelerate his development, which was an advantage difficult to obtain elsewhere.
"Anyway, as long as I can sort out the trading channels!"
Walking to Boss Gao's Zhishi Trading Company, Qi Ping saw the door was ajar, and his heart immediately sank.
Fortunately, after he quietly sent a Bee inside and found Boss Gao merely sleeping, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"Knock, knock, knock."
"Knock, knock, knock."
After Qi Ping knocked on the door for a while, Boss Gao, with sleepy eyes, opened it.
Upon seeing Qi Ping's unfamiliar face, a look of confusion appeared on his face.
It wasn't until Qi Ping softly uttered the five words "Facial Disguise and Bone Shrinking Technique" that Boss Gao realized, and he quickly invited Qi Ping in.
"Brother Qi, so it was you! I was wondering who it was!" Boss Gao said while making tea for Qi Ping.
"For safety's sake. Speaking of which, what happened in the past two months? Why has the outside become like this?"
"Sigh, don't even mention it. In the past two months, a large number of Demon Insects appeared from who knows where, and many people died! Then I heard that the Disciples of Qingyuan Sect, Heavenly Fire Pavilion, and robber cultivators—several forces—fought again over something, and many more people died. Anyway, business can't be done now!"
"That serious? I was going to find you to do some business!"
"Now it depends on what kind of goods it is. General goods are really hard to sell, and many things can't be bought at a suitable price anymore!"
"Is this easy to sell? How many Spirit Stones can it be sold for now?"
As Qi Ping spoke, he took out a portion of essence nurturing honey from his Storage Pouch and handed it to Boss Gao.
Boss Gao took the essence nurturing honey, first smelled it, then used Spiritual Qi to wrap a portion of the essence nurturing honey and swallowed it, closing his eyes to carefully sense it.
A moment later, Boss Gao suddenly opened his bright eyes.
"Good stuff, Brother Qi! The Spiritual Qi is pure, and it also has the effect of nurturing Spiritual Qi and slightly enhancing Physical Body strength. Among first-tier low-grade Spiritual items, it's considered quite top-notch. This portion can probably sell for around eight or nine Spirit Stones now..."
"That high?"
Qi Ping was stunned when he heard this price. He had thought it would be at most six or seven Spirit Stones per portion!
"Hehe, Brother Qi, this is a special period. Such Spiritual items that can improve cultivation are in high demand. It's normal for them to be 10% to 20% higher than before. If it's something like Spirit Beast cubs, they won't sell for much. If you buy Spirit Beasts now, they'll definitely be cheap, because buying them consumes resources and doesn't serve much purpose."
After listening to Boss Gao's explanation, Qi Ping suddenly understood.
Good news! essence nurturing honey increased in price, and Spirit Beast cubs decreased in price—it couldn't be more suitable for him!
"Then is this stuff easy to sell now?"
"Brother Qi, let me tell you, this stuff is suitable for both Qi Refining Early Stage and Qi Refining Middle Stage cultivators right now. Basically, you can sell as much as you have! I can easily sell tens of thousands of Spirit Stones worth of goods for you, completely clean!"
Hearing this, Qi Ping immediately felt relieved. This way, the sales of essence nurturing honey would no longer be a problem!
Next, only the channels for purchasing materials remained.
"Alright then!"
Saying that, Qi Ping took out all the essence nurturing honey from his Storage Pouch and placed it in front of Boss Gao.
And when Boss Gao saw so much essence nurturing honey, his expression froze for a moment—another considerable business deal!
However, Qi Ping's next sentence stunned him even more.
"From now on, I'll have about three thousand Spirit Stones worth of goods every month. Boss Gao should be able to handle all of it, right?"
Three thousand Spirit Stones every month!
Good heavens!
Now he could make money!
So he quickly said:
"Don't worry! I can handle that! How about I calculate this batch of goods for Brother Qi at eight hundred Spirit Stones?"
"No problem!"
Soon, Qi Ping and Boss Gao reached a consensus on the details of future transactions regarding essence nurturing honey.
This included where Qi Ping should find him if Boss Gao was no longer there, and so on.
And looking at the smile on Boss Gao's face, Qi Ping knew that he would also earn a good sum from it.
However, Qi Ping was not unhappy about this. The price of this essence nurturing honey had already exceeded his expectations, and it was Boss Gao's ability to have the channels to sell all these things.
It was also due to the connections he had cultivated throughout his life that he could achieve this. If it were Qi Ping, whether he could sell them at a suitable price would be one thing, and the risks involved would be an even greater problem.
Moreover, Qi Ping firmly believed that only a win-win situation could ensure the business continued stably. Qi Ping didn't care much about minor gains; he cared more about sustainability and stability.
However, when Qi Ping expressed his desire to purchase Spirit Beasts, Advanced Spells, and Spirit Medicine, Boss Gao shook his head.
"Brother Qi, I am truly powerless in this regard now. Given the current situation in Qing Shi County, I can't find many channels for these things... However..."
Boss Gao changed his tone and added:
"However, Brother Qi could actually try to find Meng Yan. He has extensive connections within the Qingyuan Sect, and finding these things for you would certainly be no problem. The Qingyuan Sect also has its own trading market."
"He even specifically inquired about you recently because of the Fire Crow incident. With the Fire Crow, Lord Meng Yan should agree to help you. However, we can also proactively offer Spirit Stones, after all, the essence of a long-term relationship is mutual benefit," Boss Gao said frankly.
As Boss Gao spoke, he took out a [Medicinal Pill Notes] and a [Compendium of Spirit Medicine Properties] from his Storage Ring and handed them to Qi Ping.
"These are notes I copied while doing business. Consider it a favor from me to Brother Qi, celebrating our new cooperation!"
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