Lady Cultivator

A few days later, Mo Tiange finally finished concocting medicinal pills.

Of course, she hadn’t completely spent the hundreds of portions worth of materials she purchased. After more than a hundred pill-concocting experiments, she now began to have more control over the entire process. She was also able to obtain about five to six finished pills from the concoction process.

Although a 5% success rate was low, achieving this rate was typical if the fact she was a beginner was taken into account. Even great Concoctions Masters only had a 50-60% success rate when they concocted medicinal pills. On the other hand, ordinary Concoctions Masters could only achieve a 30% success rate.

However, this result still made Mo Tiange feel dejected. It was no wonder that nobody from Ye Clan was proficient in pill-concocting; if this kind of performance was compared to people in cultivation groups, it would certainly land her in the “completely talentless” category.

Understanding that her talents were no good, Mo Tiange’s goals weren’t high. It’d be enough for her if she could achieve the 20-30% success rate of normal Concoctions Masters. Now, she already had a preliminary understanding about concocting pills and pr2wesumably, after she depleted these 700-800 portions of materials, her success rate could reach up to 30% and she could move on to studying slightly more difficult pill recipes.

From what she saw from its recipe, this Constitution-Enhancing Pill was a type of medicinal pill that was quite difficult to concoct. The hand seals were complicated and the control over her Dantian Fire also had to be absolute; it wasn’t a medicinal pill that could be concocted successfully in one try.

Once she carefully calculated the costs, Mo Tiange realized she had been too optimistic. She had been concocting the most common medicinal pills just to familiarize herself with the concocting process, yet she spent almost 200 spirit stones. If she wanted to concoct a slightly more difficult pill, her remaining 3,000 spirit stones probably wouldn’t be enough to buy the materials needed. Furthermore, based on her current success rate, selling the produced medicinal pills to buy the materials so she could continue concocting was simply a pipe dream.

Additionally, the materials for Constitution-Enhancing Pills weren’t at all cheap. Merely the two 500 years old plants, the Purple Ganoderma and Black Eagle Fern, combined together would perhaps cost more than 1,000 spirit stones. Even if she was lucky enough to master the art of pill-concocting using her remaining 3,000 spirit stones to the point where she could begin concocting Constitution-Enhancing Pills, she wouldn’t be able to afford the materials needed.

After a momentary headache, Mo Tiange regained her composure. She couldn’t help but mock herself for her unfounded worries. Right now, she had just started to learn; it was unclear how many years would pass before she could concoct the Constitution-Enhancing Pills. In any case, she no longer needed to work as hard as she did when she had to cultivate. If she continuously made money for several years, one day, she would have enough.

Besides, even if she managed to obtain a Constitution-Enhancing Pill, she still wasn’t sure she could succeed in building her foundation on her first attempt.

If she failed, she would have to fight for another Foundation Building Pill ten years later. If that still didn’t work, that would add on another ten years… She was only twenty years old now, and she still had about a hundred years left. There was nothing for her to be afraid of.

With this thought, Mo Tiange freed herself from endless pills-concocting.

There was less than half a month before Tiandao Sect’s Immortals Assembly began. The number of people in town at the foot of this mountain continued to increase. Fortunately, she rented a hut several days ago. Otherwise, if she waited until now, she would’ve ended up spending her nights out in the open.

As she headed to the street and watched cultivators coming and going, Mo Tiange decided to follow the stream of people. At the moment, she had reached the peak stage of the Aura Refining realm, her odds in foundation-building were promising, and she was even quite rich. Everything was indeed satisfactory… except for the fact that Second Uncle was about to pass away. But this was a matter she had no chance of changing.

Cultivators’ lifespans were related to their cultivation level and how they took care of their health. Among these, the most important was naturally the cultivation level; the higher their cultivation level was, the longer their lifespan would be. A breakthrough to the next realm would, at the very least, add 100 years to their lifespan.

For example, the lifespan of Aura Refining cultivators was between 100-200 years. The life spans of cultivators whose cultivation level was below the fourth layer of the Aura Refining realm would only reach what the mortals considered a long life – 100 years. However, after breaking through the fourth layer, they could live until they were about 150 years old. In the event their cultivation level was extremely profound and they reached the peak stage of the Aura Refining realm, they could basically live until they were 200 years old.

Nevertheless, if they made a breakthrough from the Aura Refining realm to the Foundation Building realm, they would get an additional 100 years!

Second Uncle’s cultivation level was in the middle stage of the Foundation Building realm. Had he taken good care of his health, he would’ve been able to live another fifty years at least. Since the injuries he suffered in the past few years were too severe, his lifespan was already close to being completely exhausted as he was about to turn 300 years old.

Since Second Uncle had no prospects of advancing to the next realm, his lifespan could only be extended by taking Longevity Pills. One Longevity Pill would increase the user’s lifespan by 100 years, but it had been several hundred years since Longevity Pills last appeared. Even if they appeared, many Nascent Soul cultivators would fight over one, so there was no way Mo Tiange could get her hands on it.

With a dejected smile, Mo Tiange walked up the mountain, following the stream of people. They were nothing but small cultivators; they definitely wouldn’t have a share in those unique spiritual pills. Hence, they could only accept their fates.

Tiandao Sect’s main gate indeed lived up to its name as the greatest cultivation group in Kunwu. The entire main gate was carved from a huge piece of spiritual jade. When sunshine fell on it, it reflected light in seven colors that made it look bright, dazzling and vibrant. The flowing clouds in the surrounding area actually made passersby feel like they had walked into a fairyland.

Mo Tiange couldn’t help but sigh. No wonder Tiandao Sect’s symbol was the Immortals’ Gate and auspicious clouds; from the moment one saw Tiandao Sect’s gate, it’d be hard for them not to think of this view.

Since the Immortals Assembly hadn’t started yet, visitors who weren’t Tiandao Sect disciples couldn’t pass through its gates. Just like the other sightseers there, Mo Tiange turned around to go down the mountain and return to her hut.

Mo Tiange didn’t really have much admiration towards Tiandao Sect. Even though Yunwu Sect was far more inferior compared to Tiandao Sect, cultivation groups were all the same in the end; it was just that Tiandao Sect disciples got slightly better treatment.

Of course, she wasn’t belittling cultivation groups. Although she had long planned to leave Yunwu Sect, her reason behind it was to separate herself from disputes. At the moment, she still had to find another group to provide shelter for her. It was for no other reason aside from seeking protection from the group’s power and influence, reducing many of the troubles she might encounter.

Once she returned to town, Mo Tiange recalled that she had run out of Restorative Panaceas and went to the Hall of a Hundred Grasses.

Inside the Hall of a Hundred Grasses, the counters were still fully surrounded by mobs of people. Not wanting to squeeze past them and thinking that Restorative Panaceas were common enough that they would be the same wherever she bought them, Mo Tiange prepared to leave.

Just as she was about to turn around, she happened to see the old man who sold her materials and pill recipes still sitting in the corner. He was currently waving at her.

En, he’s calling me, right?

Upon seeing that Mo Tiange stopped in her tracks, the old man waved his hand even more enthusiastically.

Mo Tiange walked towards him doubtfully and asked, “Are you calling me?”

The old man smiled and cupped his hands towards her as a greeting. He said, “Indeed. What does Fellow Daoist need to buy today?”

Mo Tiange answered, “I just want to buy some Restorative Panaceas.”

“Oh?” the old man watched her attentively before asking, “Did you perhaps come to participate in the Immortals Assembly?”

Instead of answering, Mo Tiange asked, “Why did Fellow Daoist call me over?”

The old man revealed a smile as he narrowed his eyes. “Nothing. It was just that we were fated to meet. When this old man suddenly saw you, he wanted to say hello. Anyway, does Fellow Daoist need anything? You can tell me – maybe I can help.”

Mo Tiange vigilantly cast a glance at him. She only came to buy some Restorative Panaceas; there was nothing remarkable about her request. Why does this man seem like he wants to suck up to me?

The old man was an experienced person. Once he saw her expression, he hastily waved his hand and said, “Fellow Daoist, please don’t misunderstand. The old man simply has some news that may be useful to you.”

News? Mo Tiange stared at him doubtfully.

The old man handed her an animal skin paper which he retrieved out of nowhere and said meaningfully, “Is Fellow Daoist interested perhaps?”

Mo Tiange took the paper and saw that there was only one sentence written on the topmost corner: ‘Hu Clan Shop’s Market Gathering Manifest.’

She raised her head and stared at the old man before her, waiting for an explanation.

The old man leaned closer and said, “Hu Clan is the largest cultivation clan in our Tiandao Sect. In this town, aside from several shops that belong to the sect, Hu Clan’s shops are the most influential ones. This Market Gathering offers the stockpiled highest-quality goods.”

Mo Tiange asked with bewilderment, “Since they’re highest quality goods, how can they be stockpiled?”

The old man said with a smile, “Fellow Daoist, there are too many kinds of spiritual plants and spiritual objects in this world. Some things, despite being rare and high-quality, might be left unsold for a long time. Large shops that have been in business for a long time will definitely accumulate this type of highest-quality good. If the shop wants to sell these things, it wouldn’t be good to sell them directly on the counter. Even if they were arranged on the counter, I’m afraid there wouldn’t be enough counter space for all of them. However, if the shop doesn’t put them up for sale, they would overlap with many of the shop’s assets.”

“Because of that, some large shops clear out their stockpiled goods every three, five, or ten years by holding a Market Gathering. At that time, all items for sale are exhibited, so people can choose freely. However, since the items are all highest-quality goods, the people invited to the Market Gathering aren’t ordinary cultivators – each one is trustworthy and has passed a careful selection process.”

His last sentence surprised her. She said, “That being the case, why are you telling me about it?”

The old man cast her a glance before revealing a cunning smile. “Because I see that Fellow Daoist is quite rich, has very steady behavior and has a passable cultivation level. Therefore, I think you ought to be qualified for this Market Gathering.”

“Oh?” Mo Tiange raised her eyebrows and asked, “May I know the identity of Fellow Daoist to be able to decide who’s qualified for the Market Gathering?”

The old man grinned with a rather content expression. “Although this old man isn’t a high-level cultivator, I’m from Hu Clan. Every cultivator in Hu Clan is entitled to recommend one or two people to the Market Gathering.”

“I see…” No wonder this old man had pretty good connections despite his low cultivation level – turns out he had a backing.

Upon seeing that Mo Tiange hadn’t given a proper answer, the old man blinked his tiny eyes and asked, “Don’t tell me Fellow Daoist doesn’t want to go? You should know there’s a huge possibility of getting easy profits there.”

Mo Tiange was still looking over the animal skin paper. With neither slow nor quick movements, she shifted her gaze towards the old man and asked, “What kind of benefits will Fellow Daoist get from recommending people to the Market Gathering?”

The old man was stunned. Soon afterward, he stroked his beard while smiling treacherously, “Correct! If a guest buys something, the person who recommended that guest will get 0.1% commission. Although it isn’t much, it’s a fee for our hard work in any case.”

With one glance, Mo Tiange could already see that this old man wasn’t telling the truth. The benefit was definitely not the one he told her about. Nevertheless, Mo Tiange was too lazy to delve into this trivial matter. She was still taking her time to slowly examine the list of items to be sold.

Seeing her behaving like this, the old man felt a bit anxious. He couldn’t help but ask, “Fellow Daoist, do you want to go?”

After reading through the entire list, Mo Tiange said with a smile, “I’ll go and take a look. It won’t matter if I don’t buy anything, right?”

The old man finally heaved a sigh of relief once he heard her answer. He smiled and nodded, “You’ll just need to pay two spirit stones as an admission fee and it’s done.”

“Two spirit stones?”

The old man once again revealed that rather cunning smile of his. He said, “Fellow Daoist, please don’t say you can’t afford it. This old man has quite a good eye in seeing through people. Although Fellow Daoist may not look exceedingly rich, you ought to have a certain amount of property and belongings. Besides, with so many highest-quality goods, two spirit stones aren’t much even if you’re only there to watch the bustling scene.”

Since he had been hiding his identity in this town, this old man indeed had sharp eyes. Mo Tiange nodded with a smile before answering, “Alright, thanks. When will this Market Gathering begin? Is there any password?”

Upon hearing her question, the old man took out a wooden tablet and gave it to her.

Mo Tiange took the tablet and examined it. It was made with a common material. One side was engraved with the word “Hu” while the other side was engraved with the numbers “125.”

The old man said, “This is your identification number. In the Market Gathering, you can only make a purchase if you have this in your hands. Moreover, there might be gifts presented, so you absolutely can’t lose this. When the Market Gathering is over, Hu Clan will retrieve this from you.”

Mo Tiange nodded.

The old man continued explaining, “The Market Gathering will be held tomorrow evening at the hour of the dog ¹ . At that time, if Fellow Daoist goes to Cool Breeze Pavilion not too far from here, someone will come to assist you.”

“As for the transaction rules, you’re free to buy anything – it’s on a first come, first served basis. Fellow Daoist doesn’t need to be worried about running into conflicts with other people.”

Mo Tiange felt very satisfied. While waving the animal skin paper in her hand, she asked, “Is it possible to let me keep this?”

With a beaming smile, the old man answered, “Of course. Since Fellow Daoist is participating, this is naturally for you. But please keep it confidential.”

“Sure. That being the case, I’ll take my leave first.”

The old man exhibited an inviting gesture and said, “Please.”

Mo Tiange once again cupped her hands toward the old man as a farewell and left the shop.

As she walked on the street, she lifted the paper in her hand and smiled.

Among this list of items, there was one line that caught her eye: “Hundreds-Of-Years-Old Purple Ganoderma.”