Chapter 124: Thinking of a Solution
Translator: StarveCleric Editor: Christopher Zhao
Zhang Xuan was on the verge of tears!
He thought that these things would cost a maximum of a few hundred thousand gold coins. With that fortune of a million gold coin that he possessed, spending a little slight amount more didn't mean much. Anyway, he didn't really work for the money. Yet, never in his dreams did he expect that the cost would total more than twenty million….
He prided himself on his wealth, but before such an outstanding sum, he wouldn't have enough money even if his wealth multiplied severalfold!
What kind of damned situation was this!
Initially, he was determined to awaken their bloodlines to make up for their weaknesses, thus causing their fighting prowess to soar. They would be able to astonish everyone with their strength at the Freshmen Tournament, and at the same time, Zhang Xuan would gain the image of an expert who cared not for money. Yet, never in his dreams did he expect that he would have to spend so much…. This was too much!
If he knew that he would need that much money earlier, he wouldn't have tried to act cool from the start!
"Why don't… I just forget it!"
Suppressing his bleeding heart, Zhang Xuan was conflicted.
He was far from the required sum, so he definitely couldn't buy these items. Yet, all of the effort he had put into this—taking the apprentice apothecary and full apothecary examination—was for these items. Could he allow it all to end in vain?
Accomplishing nothing at all in the end?
Furthermore… he had already bragged about it. Zhao Ya and the others knew that he was trying to look for ways to awaken their constitution. If he were to return empty-handed, how could he lift his head in front of them in the future?
"No, giving up just because it's too expensive isn't my way of doing things!"
If he truly gave up on these items, Zhao Ya and the others wouldn't be able to awaken their constitutions and it would merely be a dream to triumph over Lu Xun fourteen days later!
A transcender should not give up before even trying!
Furthermore, as Zhao Ya and the others' teacher, the one to point out their path for them, his sense of responsibility would not allow him to simply sit idly by.
Even though he had just become a teacher, he had chosen to take on the responsibilities that a teacher ought to shoulder.
If he didn't have enough money, he could just look for ways to earn more!
At this point, Zhang Xuan walked back up to him. Looking at Ouyang Cheng, he asked, "Cough cough, Guild Leader Ouyang. Is it possible for me to put those items on my tab first? I will find ways to repay this debt to you in the future."
"This… it can't be done!" Guild Leader Ouyang shook his head. "None of those in our branch can forge grade-3 pilsl, so we need to purchase it from the headquarters. As a result, I can't delay the payment for you…."
"But… twenty million, I won't be able to take it out within a short period of time…."
Zhang Xuan shook his head.
"There's no way around it. How about… you try to learn how to forge pills first? Given your knowledge in the field, there should be a lot of ways for you to earn money," Ouyang Cheng advised.
The young man before him had knowledge that surpassed that of all of the apothecaries in the entire branch. If he were to forge pills personally, even though twenty million might sound fearsome, for a high-level apothecary, it truly wasn't a huge sum.
"One can earn a lot of money from forging pills? That Meridian Soothing Pill that you all forged previously, how much could one be sold for?" Zhang Xuan couldn't help asking.
"The Meridian Soothing Pill isn't easy to forge. And as such, it's one of the more profitable pills among grade-1 pills. A single pill should be able to sell for fifty thousand or so. If you forge ten in a day, you will earn twenty million in less than two months!" Guild Leader Ouyang asserted.
Apothecary was an extremely lucrative profession. However, it depended highly on the market conditions and whether the supply of medicinal herb could keep up with production. Even though it was possible theoretically, even official apothecaries would find it difficult to forge pills every single day.
"Two months?"
Despair streaked across Zhang Xuan's face.
In two months' time, the Freshmen Tournament would have concluded and everything would be over.
If that's the case, he might as well work on their strength the conventional way. There was no point in him exerting so much effort here.
Besides, the reason why his theoretical ability was that impressive was because of the Library of Heaven's Path. If he were to forge pills personally… It wasn't a feasible plan.
Even though every single word of his was profound and logical, if he were to do it personally, he couldn't even complete the very first step of extracting essence from the medicinal herbs.
He had seen the others forging pills previously and without several dozen years of training and refining his skill, it was impossible for him to get to their level of expertise.
"Is there… any other better way of earning money?" He couldn't help but ask for an alternative method.
"Better way of earning money?" Guild Leader Ouyang shook his head. Just when he was about to shoot down the possibility, a thought popped into his mind. "The most lucrative occupation in this world is—without a doubt—master teacher. They can earn a hefty fee just by offering some guidance to others. Apothecaries aren't that bad either, but when compared to master teachers, there is still a huge gap between the two."
There were many occupations in the job. Appraisers and apothecaries could be considered as some of the more lucrative ones, but they still paled in comparison to master teachers.
Cultivators often find themselves reaching a bottleneck in their cultivation, unable to break through even till their last breath. However, a single pointer by a master teacher could possibly be the key for them to reach higher realms.
With a rise in the cultivation realm, not only would their lifespan increase, their ability to earn money also quickened. As such, most people were willing to dump all of their fortune just for a single pointer from a master teacher.
Indubitably, master teacher was the most lucrative job in the world, unmatched by any other occupation.
However, it wasn't easy for one to become a master teacher. One had to have students of their own, teaching experience, reputation, and on top of that, one had to go through numerous trials as well.
For example, Zhang Xuan with his Library of Heaven's Path was able to easily solve many problems. However, without students of his own, he couldn't take the master teacher examination.
"Can you pay in my stead first? I will search for a way to pay you within ten days!"
As Zhang Xuan said this, a bold idea emerged in his mind.
"Alright!" Ouyang Cheng was oblivious to his thoughts. However, seeing the grim look on his face, he didn't seem as though he was joking. So he nodded his head.
"I will be leaving first!"
After which, Zhang Xuan walked out.
"Since master teachers were good at earning money… if I pretend I am a master teacher… would I be able to earn money swiftly?"
At this point, Zhang Xuan started to analyze the pros and cons of the bold thought he just had.
Using ordinary methods, it was impossible to earn twenty million gold coins in ten days unless one robbed a bank!
However, if he pretended to be a master teacher, there might be a possibility of him earning the sum within the duration!
If someone tried to so and were exposed, it was highly likely for that person to be beaten to death on the spot. After all, a master teacher possessed vast knowledge, and it would be easy to give himself away especially when he said something flawed. However, Zhang Xuan was different!
With the Library of Heaven's Path and his ability to hoodwink others he gained in his previous life, it was truly a simple feat to scam others.
Of course, it wasn't really considered as a scam. After all, with the Library of Heaven's Path and his Heaven's Path Divine Art, he could see the flaws in others. Raising their cultivation realm would be something easy and pleasant.
"Alright, I shall do it that way!"
After analyzing the situation, he felt that he could do it and nodded his head in satisfaction.
If he wanted to help Zhao Ya and the others to grow stronger and win the bet he had with Lu Xun, those few items were a must. As such, he had to earn that sum of money.
This was the only way to earn twenty million within ten days.
"I have to prepare some things in advance. Given my current age, no one will believe me if I go around shouting that I'm a master teacher. I need to disguise myself. At the very least, I should look thirty."
Master teachers were just like apothecaries. If you said you were a master teacher when you didn't even look twenty, you would probably drown in the other party's spit before you could even finish your words.
No matter what, he had to disguise himself and alter his facial features. Otherwise, putting aside the fact that it would be difficult for him to induce trust in others, this might also bring him endless trouble in the future.
"Next, as a master teacher, I would need uphold my own identity and reputation. I can't possibly run to the house of others and offer to give them guidance. If so, they would just think of me as a scammer."
He lived in the information age previously, and even though he had not done such things in the past, he knew a thing or two about it from the news.
Given the esteemed position master teachers had in this world, it wasn't practical for him to run to other people's house to offer them pointers and demand money from them in return.
"What should I do?"
Since he couldn't run to others to offer his services, how could he look for clients? Without clients, how could he make money?
Zhang Xuan frowned.