home

search

240. Selling Soul Wondering Pills

  As Meng Lin climbed up the stairs, she suddenly felt a shift in the atmosphere as her surroundings blurred before she found herself within a spacious room.

  The air was ripe with spiritual energy, and it looked quite similar to the first floor, where rows of wooden shelves lined the hall, each neatly arranged with jade bottles, scrolls, and small chests sealed with intricate talismans.

  Except this time, it was vastly bigger. Yet, what caught her attention the most were the figures standing in the mist.

  There were several of them—at least seven—but their forms were shrouded within a thin veil of white mist, making their appearances indistinct. It was as if an invisible barrier prevented anyone from truly seeing each other.

  Meng Lin’s eyes narrowed.

  She raised her hand to notice a layer of white mist had appeared on her body, likely the same as the one on the silhouettes within the room.

  "Did that take you by surprise?"

  Meng Lin turned her head slightly, her expression hardening. The voice belonged to the same man from before—the one in the deep blue robe.

  Even though the mist obscured his features, she could still recognize the easygoing tone in his voice, as well as the way his hands were held together.

  She didn’t respond immediately, instead sweeping her gaze across the room once again.

  The several other cultivators within the room were each going through the shelves, indifferent to the newcomer, Meng Lin.

  She felt their auras were restrained, but each was undeniably powerful. Some were at the Soul Wandering Realm like her, while two even carried the oppressive presence of the Nascent Soul Realm.

  Meng Lin’s gaze flickered as she returned her attention to the man with a frown. "What are you doing here?"

  The young man let out a small chuckle, his posture still relaxed despite Meng Lin’s wary gaze. "I'm here for the same reason as you—seeking something valuable."

  He said this before passing her, going through the shelves, his movements unhurried, as if he had all the time in the world.

  Meng Lin didn’t relax. The fact that he had approached her twice in such a short time was more than mere coincidence. The mist shrouding everyone’s identities should have made them all anonymous, yet he had met her before here.

  She watched him for a moment before shifting her attention to the jade bottles and scrolls arranged throughout the room. Then her mind began to turn.

  The Immortal Pavilion—the fact that there were Nascent Soul Cultivators here to buy things meant that the force behind the pavilion was powerful enough to remain neutral even with cultivators of such high realms interacting within its walls.

  She couldn't help but wonder what the connections were between this store and the Immortal Pavilion mentioned by the sect master.

  Even in a major city, it was rare to see Nascent Soul cultivators appearing so openly, let alone shopping in the same establishment as lower-realm cultivators.

  Meng Lin didn’t immediately browse the shelves. Instead, her gaze swept the room until she spotted a receptionist's desk, where a middle-aged man sat behind a table, his expression calm and businesslike.

  She approached with a steady stride and spoke directly. “I want to sell somethings.”

  The man’s eyes flickered slightly as he looked up, his gaze unreadable.

  Without a word, he waved his hand, causing a white misty barrier to rise around them.

  Meng Lin’s eyes narrowed slightly. It was the same mist that was covering all the figures on the second floor.

  “Is there a reason for this?” she asked, her tone calm but curious.

  The man didn’t seem interested. “Privacy,” he answered curtly before asking, “What are you offering?”

  Without hesitation, Meng Lin took out two Soul Wandering Pills and placed them on the desk.

  The man nodded slightly, taking one of the pills in his hand and inspecting it with his eye. “Rank 4 pills and top tier refinement?”

  Meng Lin met his gaze, her expression neutral. “Naturally.”

  The man turned the pill over in his hand, examining its luster and purity. After a brief moment, he gave a small nod. “Not bad. Who refined these?”

  Meng Lin didn’t answer immediately. “Does it matter?”

  The man chuckled lightly. “Not really. Just curious. High-quality pills aren’t easy to come by, even here.” He placed the pill back on the desk. “Five hundred medium-grade spirit stones per pill.”

  Meng Lin frowned slightly as she began to think. Soul Wandering Pills were high-grade resources, difficult to refine and sought after by cultivators aiming to break through bottlenecks.

  Even in the open market, a single one could fetch at least seven hundred medium-grade spirit stones—sometimes more, depending on urgency.

  The author's content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  But that was only the surface. Prices fluctuated based on demand, on competition, on desperation. She knew that well enough.

  She studied the man’s composed expression, her instincts telling her that this was a deliberate offer, not a careless one. He knew their value. He wouldn’t be sitting behind this desk if he didn’t.

  Her gaze flickered to the mist that still hung in the air around them. If Nascent Soul cultivators frequented this place, then the force behind it had to be strong enough to control the flow of resources. That meant they set the prices, not the sellers.

  She still had four more pills. Three weee reserved for the Xi sisters and De Sijie, securing their path forward. That last one was the one she planned to give to the old man from the Spirit Essence Hall.

  'Private buyers are risky and time-consuming, and an auction could guarantee profit, but too much exposure.'

  Her decision settled, and she finally expressed her thought. “That’s lower than expected. Even in a standard city, these start at six hundred.”

  The man met her gaze evenly. “They’re valuable, but not rare enough to drive a bidding war here. If you want more, find a desperate buyer. Otherwise, this is the best offer you’ll get—without attracting attention.”

  A fair point. She weighed her options, then gave a slight nod.

  “Fine.”

  With a wave of his hand, the man produced a storage pouch and slid it across the table. Meng Lin picked it up and scanned its contents before storing it away.

  The misty barrier around them dissipated.

  She glanced at the man. “I assume this isn’t the only place to sell high-grade pills?”

  The man smirked. “You’re free to try elsewhere, but not many places can guarantee safe transactions like we do. If you bring more in the future, we’ll be happy to do business again.”

  Meng Lin nodded. Without another word, she turned and made her way toward the shelves.

  She had come to the Immortal Pavilion to investigate; however, her curiosity had been piqued by the vast wealth of knowledge hidden within its walls.

  As she moved through the aisles, she scanned the various displays, some holding up high-grade weapons and techniques. One display, in particular, featured a series of demonic cultivation techniques.

  The methods described were cruel—focusing on the manipulation and consumption of mortals to rapidly enhance power. The price was high, but Meng Lin couldn’t help but feel a slight unease.

  Such techniques, while effective, left behind a trail of lingering problems. They could prove harmful if not used correctly.

  She quickly turned away, unwilling to linger on such disturbing methods. Her head ached at the thought of what such practices could do to a cultivator’s soul.

  On a shelf a little further down, a series of cultivation pills were displayed.

  Each one was carefully arranged in crystal vials, showcasing their pristine quality. One in particular made her raise an eyebrow—a vial containing three golden rank 4 pills labeled "Yang Essence Reinvigoration Pill."

  Meng Lin narrowed her eyes. The description attached to the vial read:

  "A rare pill refined using the Yang Spirit Herb and Orchid Spring Ginseng. Increases vitality, enhances the Yang Essence, and restores stamina. Particularly effective for male cultivators experiencing Qi deficiency."

  She almost scoffed. The description danced around the real purpose of the pill but the two ingredients were clearly aphrodisiac, most likely designed to boost a man’s performance.

  Meng Lin stared at the description for a moment before letting out a soft chuckle. Cultivation could push one to the peak of power, allow one to traverse the heavens, and yet… even the strongest sought out such trivial things.

  Shaking her head, she moved on, letting her gaze wander across the endless shelves of pills, artifacts, and scrolls.

  For the next hour, she browsed the Immortal Pavilion, occasionally stopping to examine rare and unique items. Some of which piqued her interest, but she didn't buy anything in the end.

  Eventually, satisfied with her exploration, she walked down the staircase, feeling a shift in space as she found herself at a random shelf on the first floor.

  Meng Lin's eyes flickered with understanding. "So that's how it works."

  The second floor’s entrance wasn’t just a simple staircase—it was a formation, a spatial mechanism designed to ensure that those who entered and left remained unnoticed by others.

  Glancing around, she confirmed that no one had reacted to her sudden reappearance. The other customers continued browsing, unaware that she had just spent an hour exploring a hidden section of the store.

  With nothing else catching her attention, Meng Lin turned and strode towards the exit.

  **

  Back in her courtyard, Meng Lin settled near the pond, a cool mist forming around her from the slight drop in temperature of the weather.

  Around her were three of the six faded books that she had gotten from the ruins in the Tempest Wind Domain.

  Moving the old, brittle paper, which had its words almost completely faded, Meng Lin carefully traced her fingers over the ancient text. The book she had spent the last four hours deciphering wasn’t just some obscure record—it was a guide.

  A slight guide to breaking through from the Nihility Realm to the Ascension Realm.

  Her eyes narrowed as she reread a particularly important passage:

  "Age, talent, cultivation base, Dao, and comprehension—these are the pillars upon which the path to Ascension is built. Without this balance, one will collapse before reaching the peak."

  It was a structured approach, laying out the factors that determined success in this crucial breakthrough. But what caught her attention most was the emphasis on the Dao.

  "System," Meng Lin said, bringing up the system panel as she began to think.

  [Meng Lin]

  [Soul Wandering Stage (late)]

  [Experience Points: 13%]

  System Coin: 540

  Immortal Jade: 4

  Taoist Gacha Wheel: unavailable

  Spiritual Roots: [Water > Fire > Gold > Wood > Earth]

  Variant Elemental Qi: [Mud] [Erosion] [Water] [Darkness] [Fire] [Gold 20%] [Ice 2%] [Wind 1%]

  [Heavenly Dao]

  [Death]

  [Comprehension 0.06%]

  Main Cultivation Method: [Elemental Qi Convergence Method]

  Side Cultivation Methods: [Basic Qi Gathering] [Formless Cultivation Method] [Brute Vortex Cultivation Method] [Black Tortoise Essence Art, 5th Layer] [Imperial Water Art]

  Techniques: [Celestial Moonlit Sword Art] [Hundred Unity Techniques] [Wrath of Thunder] [Physique Cleansing Sutra] [Vital Essence Exchange]

  Secret Techniques: [Stellar Soul Shield]

  Skills: [Immortal Flesh]

  Ancient Spirit Seal: Crimson Tortoise Dragon

  [Market] [Blacksmith] [Alchemy] [Daily Mission]

  Meng Lin’s gaze rested on the Heavenly Dao section of her system panel, her expression calm yet calculating.

  0.06% comprehension.

  A small fraction, but significant nonetheless. The Dao—a force that stood at the pinnacle of cultivation. Power, in its purest form.

  Yet, power without understanding was dangerous.

  "From what the Palace Master and this book said, cultivators that reach the Ascension Realm unlock their Dao Mandate, granting them unique divine abilities. However, I still need to understand what the Dao truly is in this cultivation world," Meng Lin said as her thoughts went into all sorts of possibilities.

  Every cultivation world had its own interpretation of the Dao. Some treated the Dao as the foundation of reality, others as an external force to be harnessed, and some as personal enlightenment unique to each cultivator. Was the Dao here the same.

  The Dao of Death was a mystery. Unlike Fire or Sword Daos, which were easier to understand, Meng Lin couldn't help but wonder what kind of ability a Dao such as this would give someone.

  She sighed and picked up another book, she had to decipher more words from these faded books, who knows what else she could find from them.

  Her eyes flickered over the worn-out pages of the book she was reading, while the faint mist of the pond surrounded her figure.

Recommended Popular Novels