At the Celestial Treasure Tower, Yang Jing sought out Wang Tong again and pushed a medicine bottle across the table to him.
Wang Tong opened the Medicine Bottle, his face instantly lighting up with excitement. Inside were twelve Water Cloud Pills. A faint warmth, a remnant of their forging, still clung to them, a clear sign they had been refined very recently.
"Eleven Lower Grade pills and one Middle Grade pill! Little Brother Yang, I never thought you'd actually have real Alchemy Talent. With this, Foundation Establishment is truly within your grasp! I can offer one Spirit Stone and five Spirit Crystals for each Lower Grade Water Cloud Pill, and three Spirit Stones for the Middle Grade one. This is the absolute highest price I can offer. Is that satisfactory, Little Brother Yang?"
"Thank you, Brother Wang."
Satisfied, Yang Jing accepted the Spirit Stones from the Maid.
"You haven't been by in a while, Little Brother Yang. I was starting to think you'd hit a wall with your Alchemy. I never expected you to bring me such a pleasant surprise."
Wang Tong flattered.
"If you keep this up, you might even rival that mysterious Alchemist who appeared in Huangyuan Marketplace."
"You're too kind, Brother Wang. You flatter me."
Yang Jing feigned an expression of overwhelming joy.
After exchanging a few more pleasantries, the two got down to business.
"Little Brother Yang, do you plan to specialize in just the Water Cloud Pill, or will you be refining other types of Elixirs as well? Water Element Techniques are a bit weaker when it comes to Magical Combat, so fewer people in the Chen Kingdom practice them. As a result, Water Cloud Pills don't sell very well. The Celestial Treasure Tower only buys about two hundred a month."
Yang Jing gave a carefree smile.
"Of course not. I can refine Cyan Ant Pills as well, it's just that my success rate isn't very high."
A look of delighted surprise instantly appeared on Wang Tong's face. Unlike Water Cloud Pills, Cyan Ant Pills were suitable for Cultivators with Wood Form Techniques to improve their Magical Power. The Celestial Treasure Tower would buy as many as they could get. He slapped his thigh.
"Little Brother Yang, you just focus on refining them. I'll sell you the Spirit Medicines for the Cyan Ant Pills at a ten percent discount. No matter how many you produce, I'll buy every single one for two spirit stones and eight spirit crystals apiece!"
Yang Jing nodded and immediately bought dozens of sets of the Spirit Medicines required for Cyan Ant Pills, Water Cloud Pills, and Blood Circulation Pills.
"On top of that, I'd also like to purchase a few Pill Formulas."
Tomes on Alchemy, like the Mica Pill Book, usually included a few of the most common Pill Formulas. But to learn more, one had to purchase them from a Great Trading House like the Celestial Treasure Tower.
However, assets like Pill Formulas were not something the Celestial Treasure Tower would sell casually.
A troubled look appeared on Wang Tong's face.
"Little Brother Yang, it's not that I'm trying to give you the runaround. It's a company-wide policy. Only Alchemists who have refined pills for the Celestial Treasure Tower for over a decade are authorized to purchase Pill Formulas."
Yang Jing had known about this restriction all along. He had spent so much effort befriending Wang Tong precisely because he knew he could obtain numerous Pill Formulas from him—even some that the Six Great Sects had explicitly forbidden from circulating.
"Does that apply to Pill Formulas for Body Refining Cultivators as well?"
"Elixirs for Body Refinement..."
Wang Tong mulled it over for a long moment before speaking.
"Little Brother Yang, why are you interested in a Pill Formula for Body Refinement?"
Yang Jing gave a bitter smile.
"My Spirit Root is poor, and I'm practicing a rudimentary technique like the Jade Water Skill. I bought a Middle Grade Cultivation Technique, but I'm finding it incredibly difficult to make any progress. There's really no future for me in Qi Cultivation. My only option is to try Body Refinement. I've heard that Body Refinement depends more on resources than talent, so I'm willing to take the gamble."
"You have great courage, Little Brother Yang!"
Wang Tong said, his expression one of admiration:
"As it happens, I do have one Pill Formula for Body Refinement. The pill is called the Bone Marrow Transformation Pill. It's a Tier One Middle Grade Spirit Pill. Consuming it nourishes the bone marrow, overcomes the limitations of insufficient Innate Qi Blood, and raises one's maximum qi and blood. With long-term use, it even has Body Forging effects, allowing one to develop a body as strong as steel."
Yang Jing suppressed the excitement in his heart. He truly hadn't expected Wang Tong to just offer up the Pill Formula for the Bone Marrow Transformation Pill.
Of course, the Bone Marrow Transformation Pill was not as simple as Wang Tong described. Due to an intentional blockade by the Six Great Sects, it was an extremely obscure Elixir. Moreover, it wasn't a Middle Grade pill, but an Upper Grade Spiritual Pill.
Demons valued qi, blood, and physical constitution far more than humans did. A single Bone Marrow Transformation Pill was worth around twenty Spirit Stones in the Inner Domain, but in the Demon Country, its price skyrocketed to over two hundred Spirit Stones. A tenfold profit margin was enough to drive some people to madness, causing them to completely abandon the defenses between humans and demons.
Wang Tong was exactly that kind of person. On the surface, he was merely the Third Shopkeeper of the Celestial Treasure Tower, but secretly, he was a mid-level figure in a smuggling organization.
Using his position at the Celestial Treasure Tower, he had roped in and sponsored a significant number of Alchemists in the Huangyuan Marketplace. Once he confirmed an Alchemist's reliability through various means, he would use a mix of threats and promises to drag them into his operation. They would then refine the Spirit Pills that were strictly restricted or even contraband in the Chen Kingdom, but were in high demand in the Demon Country.
'This case would come to light in fifteen years. Involving over two hundred Alchemists, several Marketplaces, and even Alchemists from the Cai Kingdom, it would quickly become a major scandal that shocked the entire Chen Kingdom.'
'The entire smuggling ring was unraveled, thread by thread. Twelve of the implicated Shopkeepers held positions in Great Trading Houses like the Celestial Treasure Tower, Taichang Trading Company, and Fukang Tower. The others involved also held high-ranking posts, including even an Outer Sect Steward from one of the Six Great Sects.'
'These people were executed, their bones ground to dust and ashes scattered. Even their Divine Souls were extracted to be burned day and night in Soul Lamps—a truly miserable end. The involved Alchemists, however, were let off lightly. Only a few who were deeply entangled in the Elixir smuggling received heavy punishment.'
'After all, too many people were implicated. If they had all been dealt with harshly, the Chen Kingdom's entire Elixir output would have suffered, which in turn would have destabilized the Six Passes Defense Line.'
'This was the safest opportunity Yang Jing had been able to devise to obtain a large number of Demon Pill Formulas. Brother Wang here would end up shouldering all the blame.'
'The mid-level managers of this organization were extremely secretive, preventing their subordinate Pill Masters from being poached by rivals. They alone knew the names on their lists. When Yang Jing wanted to get out, all he would have to do was eliminate Wang Tong.'
"How many Spirit Stones for this Pill Formula?!"
He asked, feigning excitement.
"Since it's you, Little Brother Yang, how could I possibly charge you Spirit Stones? Just give me ten finished Bone Marrow Transformation Pills when you succeed. I'll buy them from you at market price, and the Pill Formula for the Bone Marrow Transformation Pill will be yours. However, before you successfully refine the pills, you'll need to sign this Spirit Contract. If you can't provide ten finished Bone Marrow Transformation Pills within six months, you'll have to compensate the Celestial Treasure Tower one thousand two hundred Spirit Stones."
Wang Tong's terms were quite generous, and he wasn't the least bit afraid of Yang Jing taking the Pill Formula and running. He had already thoroughly investigated Yang Jing's background. Someone who could afford to settle down in San Yuanli wasn't about to become a fugitive over a single Pill Formula.
"This..."
Yang Jing's expression flickered. He was clearly hesitant about the one thousand two hundred Spirit Stone penalty.
"Don't worry, Little Brother Yang. Even if you can't produce the finished pills by then, you can just buy ten Bone Marrow Transformation Pills from another trading house to fulfill the contract. But I'm confident that with your Talent, you'll definitely be producing them within six months."
Wang Tong said nonchalantly.
"In that case, can I just buy ten Bone Marrow Transformation Pills now?"
Yang Jing asked tentatively.
Wang Tong's face darkened for an instant.
"Little Brother Yang, surely you don't think everyone at the Celestial Treasure Tower is a fool."
Yang Jing cupped his hands and put away the Pill Formula.
"A joke. It was just a joke."
'Watching Yang Jing gleefully put the Pill Formula away, Wang Tong felt the thrill of a hunter whose prey had just taken the bait. No Alchemist with even a shred of ambition could resist the temptation of mastering more Pill Formulas.'
Before leaving, Yang Jing bought ten sets of the Spirit Medicines required for the Bone Marrow Transformation Pill from Wang Tong.
Wang Tong retrieved the Spirit Medicines from his personal Storage Bag with a broad smile and handed them to Yang Jing. In his eyes, there was no way Yang Jing could successfully refine a Bone Marrow Transformation Pill in just six months. When he failed, it would be even easier to get him under his thumb.
What he really wanted Yang Jing to refine wasn't the Bone Marrow Transformation Pill, but the Evil Exorcism Pill.
In his five years at the Huangyuan Marketplace, Wang Tong had roped in some twenty Alchemists, and not a single one had yet managed to refine the Bone Marrow Transformation Pill.
A Demon's Demon Power is sustained by breathing in turbid, malevolent qi. Because of this, Demons with inferior and murky Demon Power are easily corrupted, their minds polluted until they devolve into irrational beasts. They can cause immense destruction within the Demon Country and need to consume human hearts to keep their nature in check.
The Evil Exorcism Pill is an Elixir refined from Human Heart's Blood. Its effects surpass that of a human heart, and it has the added advantages of a long shelf life and being usable at any time. For Demons, it is practically a necessity.
Best of all, the Evil Exorcism Pill was merely a Tier One Lower Grade Elixir. Any Alchemist with a modicum of skill could refine it, allowing Wang Tong to earn a massive amount of Spirit Stones from it each year.