“`
Peng Yue Mountain, Cold Moon Pond.
On both sides of the Cold Pond, Twin Peaks Mountain had been hollowed out into hive-like caves.
One of the caves at the lowest level, closest to the Cold Pond.
Mo Wuzhou sat cross-legged on a soft couch, with two wooden boxes placed on a low table in front of him.
He reached into the left-hand box and pulled out a circular Jade Disk.
With the disk cradled in his right hand, he slowly closed his eyes.
Hiss hiss hiss…
A series of sounds, like acid corroding material, began to echo.
Within the white disk, silver-grey threads rapidly grew, spreading throughout the jade like lightning tearing through the sky, swift and decisive.
Hum!
A low vibration emanated from the jade.
Mo Wuzhou opened his eyes and nodded in satisfaction, “The thirty-second one.”
“It’s a pity it still needs to be nurtured in an Earth Vein.” Mo Wuzhou looked toward the right-hand wooden box.
Inside were seventy or eighty White Jade Coins.
Unlike regular White Jade Coins, the silver threads inside these circular white jades were a silvery-grey color, making them appear somewhat dull.
Only after being placed in an Earth Vein to absorb enough Earth Spirit Vital Energy, lighting up all the silvery thread stars, would they become real White Jade Coins.
“What a pity only one-fifth of them are mine.” Mo Wuzhou sighed.
I’m short of money!
“Over twenty a day, just over seven thousand a year.”
“It wouldn’t be enough even in ten years!”
The Condensing Aperture Technique is simply too expensive.
“I wonder when I can return to the Upper Court.”
He had barely begun his apprenticeship, not having had the chance to learn his master’s alchemy skills, when he was sent down to the Lower Courtyard.
Immediately afterwards, the Zhongshan Path invasion happened.
The Upper Court was sealed, the Lower Courtyard scattered.
Luckily he had learned the Golden Bead Talisman, enabling him to refine White Jade Coins, otherwise he could only risk adventuring in the mountains and forests.
“Hopefully, Sect Master Dong Li returns soon.”
Just as he thought to continue refining White Jade Coins, he suddenly remembered an earlier notification about an old acquaintance visiting.
Mo Wuzhou’s face was expressionless, but inside he felt a touch of irritation, “Since when do I have so many old acquaintances!”
Ever since he became adept in Spiritual Light and returned to the Lower Courtyard, he seemed to have gotten many ‘old friends’ out of nowhere.
“Forget it, let’s see who it is.” With a sigh, Mo Wuzhou got up and walked back.
…
Beneath Cold Moon Pond, above Cold Moon Lodge.
A two-story wooden residential area had been built alongside the mountain amidst the trees.
In one of the wooden buildings, on the first floor of the living room.
Mo Wuzhou sat at the head of the table, his face stiff and expressionless, but his eyes full of surprise, “These two hundred White Jade, you’re really just giving them to me?”
“You didn’t use my name for anything bad, did you?”
Suspicion flashed in his eyes.
Two hundred White Jade.
He had been nestled in Cold Moon Pond refining White Jade Coins, only earning five to six hundred a month.
An unexpected addition to one-third of his income, how could he not be surprised?
“We really are selling Insect Repellent Incense.” Shang Huan guaranteed with a wry smile on his face.
“What kind of Insect Repellent Incense sells that well?” Mo Wuzhou was skeptical. He was skilled in cultivating and preparing medicines himself, and knew that disciples from the Lower Courtyard all had some homemade insect repellents.
But as for their effectiveness… it was just so-so.
“Don’t tell me you took batch goods and then used my reputation to coerce sales?” Mo Wuzhou glared at Shang Huan.
You’re full of crap!
Shang Huan’s face turned beet red.
He, Shang Huan, had never done business without pulling some tricks.
But this was the first time he did nothing shady, and Mo Wuzhou was actually doubting him?!
That was seriously too damn aggrieving!
His eyes bulged with anger, not caring about Mo Wuzhou’s reputation or identity, and said fiercely, “Brother Mo is free to ask around!”
“If anyone says there’s any fakery in my Insect Repellent Incense, I’ll twist off my head and use it as your night pot!”
Mo Wuzhou’s stiff face remained expressionless, but inside he felt somewhat embarrassed.
It seemed there was no issue with the merchandise after all.
Hmm… it’s time to pay Old Hao a visit, can’t just take Shang Huan’s word for it.
However, if there’s really no problem with this business, then this is quite a pleasant surprise.
“Insect Repellent Incense is actually that profitable?”
Slogging away at Cold Moon Pond refining White Jade Coins, have I been on the wrong path all this time?
“Think about it, in the wild, with various insects everywhere, one can’t even sleep peacefully at night.”
“If there were such a dish of Insect Repellent Incense, costing only one Jade Coin a month, would you buy it if you were them?” Shang Huan looked a bit more spirited now, grinning again.
He was quite proud of himself for seizing this business opportunity.
“That makes sense.” Mo Wuzhou nodded calmly, filled with regret.
“`
Why hadn’t I thought of that myself? I have my own insect repellent incense formula too.
“Making money is also a science,” Mo Wuzhou lamented. “If I had your brains, I wouldn’t have to work so hard.”
Shang Huan’s heart skipped a beat.
Senior Brother Mo is really in need of money!
He was just about to bring up the matter of the Wood Spirit Boy, and now the opportunity had presented itself!
“Senior Brother, I happen to have a good money-making opportunity here, would you be interested?”
Interested? Explore more adventures at empire
I couldn’t be more interested!
Mo Wuzhou was immediately delighted.
…
Two hours later.
Clip-clop, clip-clop…
A little black horse pranced around in the living room.
Shang Huan watched the wooden horse curiously, having not taken a close look since he got it last night.
Mo Wuzhou also watched the wooden horse, unaccustomed to the multiple perspectives flooding his mind.
Neither of them spoke, and for a while, the only sound in the living room was the dull thud of wooden hooves on the wooden floor.
After a long while, Mo Wuzhou came back to his senses.
“You really are suited for business,” Mo Wuzhou remarked.
This thing is as good as insect repellent incense for blazing trails and exploring.
“It’s Gongsun Sheng, isn’t it?” Mo Wuzhou narrowed his eyes at Shang Huan.
The insect repellent incense is one thing, a mere common pharmaceutical fabrication.
But the Wood Spirit Boy is a Magic Artifact.
How can someone without mana craft a Magic Artifact?
Having dealt with Shang Huan and possessing mana, Gongsun Sheng was the first person he thought of.
“Yes,” Shang Huan didn’t intend to hide it. “Mr. Gongsun wants to use your name to sell the Wood Spirit Boy, offering you a twenty percent share of the profits.”
“Twenty percent of the profits?” Mo Wuzhou snorted coldly.
“Do you know the cost of creating a Wood Spirit Boy?”
Shang Huan looked blank. He really didn’t know.
“You don’t know, I don’t know—only Gongsun Sheng knows.”
“And yet, twenty percent of the profits.”
“If he says the profits are only ten White Jade Coins, is twenty percent a lot?” Mo Wuzhou retorted.
“I’m okay with using my name, but I want to negotiate with him personally,” Mo Wuzhou snorted coldly.
Think you can deceive me? No chance!
Without satisfying my price, don’t even think about using my name!
…
At night, under the moonlit sky.
In the dense forest, a whirlwind suddenly swept through.
A mass of dark clouds soared into the air, penetrated the half-space, and vanished abruptly.
Chen Mu clutched the glider’s control bar, his body shrouded in invisible swirling black smoke.
Breaking through the faint mist above the forest and dragging a roaring current, he flew rapidly toward Peng Yue Mountain.
In Yiyou District.
Chen Mu descended from the sky, retracted his glider, and glanced at the overgrown, yellowing leaves of the Yellow Bud Rice fields, shaking his head.
“What a waste…”
This season’s Yellow Bud Rice won’t yield much of a harvest now.
He was about to command the Five Ghosts Yin Spirit to clean up when he suddenly stopped.
“Can’t become a target.”
After more than a month away, the floor of his wooden hut was covered with a thin layer of dust.
The musty, moldy smell filled his nostrils.
The black smoke billowed, rapidly cleaning the room. Chen Mu then lifted a corner of the floorboard and dove into the secret chamber below.
…
An hour later, in the secret chamber.
Chen Mu opened his eyes.
Switching to the perspective of the Five Ghosts Yin Spirit, he checked on the condition of the team clearing the wilds.
Apart from two night watchers dozing by the campfire, everything was normal.
Looking again at his mana, which had increased by nearly a tenth, Chen Mu nodded in satisfaction.
This was much faster than cultivating in the wilderness.
No wonder everyone flocked to the Upper Court training grounds—the high concentration of Earth Spirit Element truly accelerated cultivation.
“Even considering the consumption, it will take at most half a month to fill the Jade Seed,” Chen Mu calculated briefly and immediately felt elated.
“Time to sleep, time to sleep!”
“I still have to get up early for work tomorrow!”