In the dead of night, Chen Mu returned to his cellar in the mountain hollow with a face full of helplessness.
In the underground market, many stalls were selling Calming Pills. Each one offered discounts, each one had counterfeit pills.
His relatively authentic Calming Pills actually attracted no buyers?!
“Bad money drives out good,” Chen Mu shook his head.
It was always him using inferior products to snatch business from the genuine goods of Hundred Herbs Hall.
Now… it was retribution.
“This way, I won’t be able to break even,” Chen Mu frowned.
Originally, he could have earned money and gathered experience calmly.
But unexpectedly, so many sellers of fake medicine sprang up out of nowhere.
…
Low Hill Courtyard.
Under a wooden shed, on a square table, lay a feast of roasted skewers, boiled meat slices, fishball soup, Yellow Bud Rice balls, and lots of delicious pies from Old Qi’s family.
“Your cooking skills are too good for just farming,” Old Hao praised as he bit off half a pie with audible relish.
“Whatever you want to know, just ask,” Old Hao glanced at Chen Mu and cheerfully said.
After being acquainted for some time, he was all too familiar with this routine.
“When is the Ghost Ship coming next?” Chen Mu asked directly.
“That’s the spirit!” Old Hao laughed, “You can’t just stay here farming all day, like an old man.”
“You’re young; you should be full of curiosity, ready to go out and see the world!”
Curiosity? Going out to see the world?
I wouldn’t dare!
The world is so dangerous; a small mistake could be fatal!
“Going by the schedule, the Ghost Ship should arrive in another seven or eight days,” Old Hao contemplated and then said, “When the time comes, you can follow me, and I’ll show you around.”
“Thank you, Old Hao,” Chen Mu smiled.
Unable to sell Calming Pills at the underground market,
he had no choice but to try his luck aboard the Ghost Ship.
If that wasn’t secure enough, he would have to resort to Heavenly River Water Mansion, as mentioned by Old Hao.
“Damn those counterfeit medicine sellers!” Chen Mu seethed internally.
The stable life he enjoyed had been disrupted.
…
The next day, Chen Mu got up early in the morning.
After breakfast, he began processing the medicinal herbs.
He took a handful of root-like herbs cut into small sections and placed them on his palm, then rotated and rubbed them slowly and firmly with both hands.
Puff puff puff!
Accompanied by a series of muffled sounds, the tough wooden herbs instantly became a small pile of fine powder.
Following the same method, Chen Mu ground all the herbs into powder with his hands.
After mixing them in proportion and sifting them through a fine mesh, he poured them into a dark ceramic basin.
Then he added a binder, mixed it evenly, and finally squeezed it into pills using a wooden mold.
This process was repeated continuously, and under the wooden shed, baskets of Calming Pills were slowly produced.
He then placed the Soul-Calming Stake nearby, allowing the Calming Pills to dry out slowly in a dry, low-temperature environment.
Only then did Chen Mu sit back in his rocking chair to rest.
He was preparing Calming Pills for his trip on the Ghost Ship.
“It’s a pity that I can only use genuine True Pills with the Tube Eggplant Night Grass as the core.” Those who bulk-buy pills could certainly tell the difference.
“The last batch of 1.0 version Calming Pills I made can only be sold slowly to Shang Huan.”
Suddenly, he thought of something: “Could Shang Huan’s sales channel also be impacted?”
Chen Mu’s brow furrowed at the thought. Would his monthly income decrease?
Did he need to increase the quantity sold on the Ghost Ship?
Instinctively, he shook his head.
“For now, let’s limit it to twenty bottles.”
He must not disregard risks for the sake of temporary difficulties.
The Five Ghosts Black Smoke churned, and in an instant, the sieve, ceramic basin, and wooden mold were cleaned thoroughly.
After slowly sipping his cool tea, Chen Mu got up and left his home.
…
Behind Low Mountain, in a small hollow.
Chen Mu sat cross-legged on a millstone-sized rock.
He raised his right hand in front of his eyes, and a little black pill the size of a peanut, covered with black and red flame patterns, emerged.
He casually glanced at a head-sized brown rock seventy meters away.
His Throwing Ability’s passive effect triggered—lock-on!
With a thought, the black pill vanished instantly, leaving only a streak of black and red in his line of sight.
Thud!
A small hole suddenly appeared on the rock.
Chen Mu’s lips curled up, a feeling of satisfaction rose irresistibly in his heart.
The frustration caused by the rampant counterfeit medicine dissipated significantly at once.
“Again!”
Five seconds later, an elixir pill appeared in his right hand.
Pop!
Next to that small hole in the rock, a clear round hole suddenly appeared.
biubiubiu…
Pop pop pop…
Chen Mu, armed with his Bigu Pills, played the entire afternoon away in the small mountain hollow.
As dusk approached, Chen Mu looked at the grey wall’s proficiency with satisfaction.
Sand Containing Technique: 8670/10000/Third Rank;
“Almost there,” Chen Mu said, full of anticipation.
He could now perform the Sand Containing Technique thirty-two times in a breath, higher than his previous limit.
Was it the experience gained that reduced the consumption each time?
Or did the Hundred Intentions Spirit Light Technique silently upgrade the Jade Seed level?
“It’s probably a bit of both,” Chen Mu realized.
…
In the Shang Huan residence.
A simple and honest man sat opposite Shang Huan.
“Can it be a little cheaper?”
Shang Huan raised an eyebrow, incredulous, “Brother Zhang, think about it, are ten White Jade Coins really that expensive?”
“This is a formula that can perfectly mimic the taste of Calming Pills, it could easily pass off as the real thing!”
“With it, how many White Jade Coins can’t you earn?”
“But… after all, this is a counterfeit medicine,” the honest man hesitated.
Shang Huan said earnestly, “Brother Zhang, did you know that using Calming Pills consecutively can lead to resistance?”
“We mix in some incense to ease the mind and reduce the pill usage frequency. Isn’t this for their own good?!”
“You must remember, we who add counterfeits are not doing it for money, but to help them cultivate better!” Shang Huan waved his right fist, full of conviction.
“I’ll buy it!” said the honest Brother Zhang, resolutely.
“That’s the spirit!” Shang Huan immediately beamed with joy.
Old Hao, who had been listening on the side, was dumbfounded.
After sending the honest man away, he was still trying to process it all, “Aren’t you afraid of trouble selling this way?”
“I’m only selling an incense formula; if others want to sell it as Calming Pills, what does that have to do with me?” Shang Huan retorted confidently.
“Such a profiteer!” Old Hao shook his head, sighing.
“Then you shouldn’t take a cut of this profiteer’s earnings,” teased Shang Huan cheerily.
“Ahem… I know someone else, should I get in touch?” Old Hao pretended not to hear the teasing.
“Of course!” Shang Huan’s eyes gleamed, “I’ve only made twenty-three sales so far. That’s hardly anything!”
“Once I sell fifty, I’ll go buy the best Spiritual Light Method there is!” Shang Huan confidently declared.
Outside the courtyard, Chen Mu, who had just arrived to deliver goods to Shang Huan, was speechless…
A whole half-day’s turmoil, this counterfeit medicine scandal, was actually stirred up by this damn fatty?! Was this guy at odds with fraud or what?
How long had it been since they last met? He was like a mad dog, rushing headlong down this no-return path.
Staring at that slyly grinning fat face, Chen Mu felt an overwhelming urge to strangle the bastard!
It was this son of a gun who had shattered his peaceful life!
Thud!
With a muffled sound, the two people in the room immediately hit the floor with their faces.
Fatty, just you wait!
…
Seven days later, at noon, on the docks of Tongtian Square.
A bruised and swollen Old Hao led Chen Mu to the banks of the Tongtian River.
Alongside them was Shang Huan, his face as swollen as a pig’s head.
Chen Mu glanced at the other’s eyes, swollen to slits, and felt as sweet as if he’d drunk honey.
There was plenty of time; they would settle this score slowly!
Soon, a ghastly pale and hideous creature emerged from the bottom of the Tongtian River.
“A Ghost Ship? It must be the work of Bai Lu,” Chen Mu realized.
In his understanding, a Ghost Ship meant the black market, all sneaky and undercover.
He had been puzzled why Old Hao had brought him here at noon.
But now everything became clear to him.