Things unfolded far more smoothly than Chen Yang had anticipated.
The demon cores at his stall seemed to have become some kind of hot commodity.
Not only did inquiries come in a steady stream, but the pace of transactions was astonishingly fast.
The pile of first-rank Shadow Wolf demon cores went without saying.
Even the second-rank demon cores sold out shortly after being put on display.
When the last demon core — a deep crimson one reeking of blood, belonging to a Blazing Flame Tiger — was purchased by a broad-shouldered Outer Sect Disciple...
Chen Yang stared at the now-empty stone table before him, almost unable to process what had happened.
Just like that... sold out?
He instinctively reached down and felt the Storage Bag at his waist, which was noticeably heavier than before.
Inside were six hundred and seventy-three gleaming low-grade spirit stones, freshly earned.
This was far quicker than he had estimated.
He'd struck it rich!
A few disciples who had gathered around afterward, clearly still hoping to buy demon cores, saw the stone table completely bare and couldn't hide their disappointment. They pressed him:
"Senior Brother, do you have any more demon cores in stock? When will you be back?"
Chen Yang shook his head and answered honestly:
"No more, that's all I had. Next time... maybe in a few days."
He was calculating inwardly as well.
Although his Storage Bag still held quite a few duplicated demon cores, he didn't want to be too conspicuous...
It seemed this market business was indeed worth continuing.
The disciples, hearing this, could only click their tongues in regret and turn to browse other stalls.
As Chen Yang packed up, he found himself mulling things over.
This didn't quite match what he had learned back when he was a laborer.
The word back then was that demon cores were far less popular than Pills — they were difficult to absorb and carried hidden risks, so they often sat unsold for a long time and had to be discounted before anyone would buy them.
Yet today's experience had been almost the complete opposite — they were in high demand.
After he named his price, even when buyers tried to haggle, as long as he held firm and silently met their gaze without budging, those disciples would always end up looking conflicted — as if summoning great resolve — before finally producing their spirit stones.
"Could it just be my luck? Or perhaps... after the demon beast rampage, disciples have a greater need to strengthen themselves and stockpile resources?"
Chen Yang pondered quietly.
Or perhaps...
He simply had a knack for business!
Trading at the market was truly like a young horse crossing a river — you'd never know how deep the water was until you waded in yourself, no matter how much you heard from others.
Today's smooth opening had given his confidence a considerable boost.
Carrying that feeling of mild relief mixed with a touch of puzzlement, Chen Yang left his stall and headed toward the market entrance, ready to make his way home.
Just as he was about to exit the market grounds, his gaze happened to sweep across a corner near the entrance.
There.
Two young disciples in plain clothing — their identities impossible to discern — had just completed a transaction.
One of them passed a small jade vial to the other, while the other handed over a bulging pouch of spirit stones.
Chen Yang's sharp ears caught fragments of their exchange:
"...One hundred and fifty low-grade spirit stones, correct?"
"Counted and confirmed, the amount is right. Pure Origin Pills are getting harder and harder to come by these days..."
Pure Origin Pills?
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One hundred and fifty spirit stones?
Chen Yang's footsteps came to an involuntary halt.
He remembered it clearly.
The Pure Origin Pill, being the most basic and widely used cultivation Pill for Outer Sect Disciples, had long maintained a stable going rate of around one hundred low-grade spirit stones at the market.
That standard price...
How had it suddenly jumped to one hundred and fifty?
One hundred and fifty.
That number pricked at him like a tiny thorn.
Thinking back to how unusually smoothly he had sold his demon cores today, and the expressions on those buyers' faces — conflicted, yet ultimately willing to pay...
A vague sense that something was off quietly surfaced in his mind.
He instinctively wanted to step forward.
To ask those two disciples who had just finished their transaction what was going on — why the Pure Origin Pill had gone up in price.
However.
He had barely taken two steps.
The two disciples, having apparently settled their exchange, gave each other a nod, then each launched into motion — magical weapons flaring beneath their feet — and took to the air, flying off in different directions.
Chen Yang looked up, watching their figures rapidly recede into the distance. He opened his mouth, then ultimately closed it helplessly.
He still couldn't perform aerial flight, so chasing after them to get answers was simply impossible.
"What's going on..."
He let out a soft sigh and shook his head.
What was done was done; dwelling on it would do no good.
After all, today had been quite a harvest — over six hundred spirit stones. For someone who had once had to stretch every single spirit stone as far as it would go, this was already a considerable fortune.
And it had served as a reminder: from now on, whenever he came to the market, he should pay closer attention to price fluctuations across all kinds of goods.
"It seems I really should come to the market more often over the next couple of days," he resolved quietly.
On one hand, he could continue selling demon cores; on the other, he could get a better feel for market conditions.
Demon cores came from scattered sources and were difficult to trace — they were truly a fine avenue for earning spirit stones.
Setting aside his slightly vexed yet somewhat enlightened mood, Chen Yang walked out of the market grounds.
Standing at the market entrance.
He glanced around to get his bearings, and a thought suddenly struck him.
Crimson Glow Peak was already quite close from here.
Since he was in the area, why not drop by and visit Senior Sister Zhuxiu and Senior Brother Zhou Shan?
Senior Brother Zhou Shan had been gravely wounded by the thirty-meter crocodile while holding the valley entrance — he had lost a leg — and Chen Yang had no idea how his recovery was going.
By any measure of decency, a visit was in order.
And Chen Yang had another thought lingering in his mind...
He remembered it vividly: on that day, Zhou Shan had been struck by the thirty-meter crocodile's tail and left barely breathing, in a situation where survival seemed nearly impossible.
And yet.
Zhou Shan had struggled to produce a jade vial and swallowed a Pill.
After taking it, his rapidly fading life force had been forcibly stabilized.
The effect of that Pill had left an extraordinarily deep impression on Chen Yang.
It was undoubtedly a miraculous Pill capable of clinging to life at the very threshold of death!
Though Chen Yang could guess that a Pill taken under such desperate circumstances must carry severe side effects — likely burning through one's potential or leaving hidden injuries that were difficult to heal.
But when faced with a true life-or-death crisis, surviving was all that mattered!
He urgently wanted to obtain one or two such Pills as a last-resort lifesaving measure tucked away for emergencies.
Crimson Glow Peak specialized in alchemy — perhaps Senior Sister Zhuxiu or Senior Brother Zhou Shan would know where to acquire such a Pill.
His mind made up, Chen Yang set off toward the foot of Crimson Glow Peak.
Before long.
The familiar silhouette of Crimson Glow Peak came into view.
However, unlike the bustling scene Chen Yang remembered — with people coming and going, and especially Menial Disciples filing in and out with medicine baskets on their backs — the area at the foot of Crimson Glow Peak today was strangely quiet.
Only a handful of disciples in the pale-red robes distinctive to Crimson Glow Peak were moving about, their faces carrying an air of hurry and fatigue.
The laborers who would normally be lined up waiting to hand over medicinal materials were also nowhere to be seen.
Chen Yang felt a flicker of puzzlement but kept walking, heading straight for the medicine hall run by Zhuxiu and Zhou Shan.
This medicine hall primarily served Menial Disciples, purchasing the low-grade spirit herbs and spirit medicine they gathered from various medicine gardens and the wilderness.
At this hour on a normal day, such a medicine hall should have been bustling and noisy.
Yet today, though the medicine hall's door was open, only Senior Sister Zhuxiu and Zhou Shan were inside.
Senior Sister Zhuxiu sat behind the counter, head bowed, working an abacus as she tallied the accounts.
Zhou Shan sat to one side in a specially made wooden chair.
One of his trouser legs hung empty and flat. His complexion, though somewhat better than a few days ago, still carried the pallor of someone recovering from serious injury.
"Senior Sister Zhuxiu, Senior Brother Zhou Shan."
Chen Yang stepped into the medicine hall and called out in greeting.
At the sound of his voice, Senior Sister Zhuxiu and Zhou Shan both looked up at the same time.
Seeing that it was Chen Yang, a flash of surprise crossed both their faces, quickly giving way to warmth and a barely perceptible delight.
"Junior Brother Chen? What brings you here?"
Senior Sister Zhuxiu set down her abacus and rose to her feet, a smile spreading across her face.
Zhou Shan also smiled and called out:
"Junior Brother Chen, come in and sit down."
Chen Yang walked closer, his gaze falling on Zhou Shan's empty trouser leg. He asked with concern:
"Senior Brother Zhou Shan, how is your injury... coming along?"
At the question, a shadow of sorrow passed over Zhou Shan's face, but it was quickly covered by an easy smile. He patted his remaining good leg, keeping his tone as light as he could:
"What can I say? Lost is lost — this leg is gone for good. Unless I can form her golden core someday, there might still be hope for regrowing a lost limb. But that realm... is far too distant for someone like me..."
His voice carried an unavoidable trace of bitterness as he finished.
Foundation Establishment was already a thousand hardships away...
Let alone Core Formation?
That was practically an unreachable legend.
Chen Yang's heart sank as well. Knowing there was little comfort to offer, he could only say:
"Senior Brother is a man of good fortune — better days will come. As for Core Formation, no one can say what the future holds. There is always hope."
Even as the words left his mouth, Chen Yang felt how hollow they sounded.
Zhou Shan clearly understood as much, and simply smiled without responding.
He evidently had no wish to dwell on such a heavy subject.
Seeing this, Chen Yang smoothly changed the topic. His gaze swept across the quiet medicine hall, and he voiced the question that had been on his mind:
"Senior Sister Zhuxiu, Senior Brother Zhou Shan — when I came by today, I noticed that the area around Crimson Glow Peak seems much quieter than usual. Has something happened?"