Chapter 3

He thought that once his lovely wife's body had fully recovered, he would begin crazily increasing his alchemy experience and advance his pill-crafting mastery to Rank 1 Intermediate as soon as possible.

By then, he could refine all the purchased medicinal herbs into pills and make a huge fortune.

In this way, the problem of the rising rent would be successfully resolved.

Once some time had passed and his savings were substantial, he might even be able to go to the Treasure Pavilion to buy a dual-cultivation technique to assist their cultivation, growing stronger together with his lovely wife.

After all, a mortal body of flesh and blood could not live long; at most, after a century, one would become nothing more than a skeleton wrapped in pink skin.

Chen An did not want his lovely wife to leave him prematurely. The longer she could live, the better, ideally remaining forever youthful.

"Ying'er, your husband needs to go out on a trip to procure alchemy materials. Stay safely at home and do not go out."

"Mn, your wife understands. Husband, you must be careful when you are out."

After giving a brief instruction, Chen An soon walked out of the house under the gaze of his lovely wife.

Along the way, he was extremely cautious.

Even if it meant taking a detour, he would stick to the main roads and would never cut through alleys just to save time.

As he walked, he kept his eyes on all directions and his ears alert, ready to defend himself at any moment.

This was because he lived in the cheap district of the Bamboo Leaf Forest.

In the cheap district, one could only be shielded from threats outside the forest, such as the horde of blood demons that had wiped out Qingshi Town.

However, dangers originating from within could not be guaranteed.

Incidents of killing, fighting, and robbery occurred from time to time.

It was somewhat akin to the slums of his past life.

If one wanted to live in peace and security, they had to move into the innermost core district to live.

The rent there was outrageously expensive, costing 1 spirit stone per month, which meant 100 low-grade spirit stones.

This was not something a low-tier cultivator like Chen An could afford.

Almost everyone living in the core district was a cultivator at the Qi Condensation (late) stage.

……

Bamboo Leaf Forest, market.

As soon as Chen An walked in, quite a few stall vendors greeted him.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, long time no see."

"I heard that Fellow Daoist Chen has taken a beautiful wife. I'm truly envious."

"The Dao path is difficult to walk. Taking advantage of your youth to enjoy more mortal pleasures is not a bad choice after all. I really must learn from Fellow Daoist Chen."

Facing everyone's bantering, Chen An just smiled without speaking, nodding slightly in response as he briskly walked toward the apothecary not far ahead.

The market where he was currently located had gradually developed and formed from the casual trade needs of rogue cultivators within the Bamboo Leaf Forest.

Many rogue cultivators would come here to set up stalls, and those with slightly better family circumstances would even open shops directly.

As an alchemist, Chen An frequently came here to set up a stall and sell pills, and as a result, he had gotten to know many cultivators who were also stall vendors.

Before long, Chen An arrived at the apothecary.

As usual, relying on his status as a regular customer, he bought a large stack of medicinal herbs at a ten-percent discount.

While the herbs were being packed up, he chatted casually with the shopkeeper.

As they talked, he inquired about the blood demon city-destruction incident that had happened this afternoon.

He later learned from the shopkeeper that some time ago, a sect called the Xuanhuang Sect had discovered a spirit stone vein in a barren mountain not far from Red Leaf Forest.

While mining, they had accidentally dug into a blood demon lair, leaving a massive horde of blood demons homeless and roaming everywhere.

When mentioning this, the shopkeeper could not help but condemn them.

He cursed the Xuanhuang Sect for acting inhumanely, releasing such a huge horde of blood demons and then washing their hands of the matter, causing several surrounding towns to be destroyed and indirectly costing him quite a bit of business.

Hearing this, Chen An felt somewhat indignant, but mostly helpless.

Mortals in this world truly had cheap lives; no one cared whether they lived or died, which made him—a transmigrator from a civilized society—feel somewhat sorrowful.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, I recently have a lucrative path here. I wonder if you might be interested?"

The shopkeeper, who had just been cursing away, suddenly changed his tune, looking at Chen An with a beaming smile.

"What kind of path?"

Chen An knew that pies did not fall from the sky; he was merely satisfying his curiosity.

The shopkeeper smiled and said, "Right now, there are blood demons everywhere outside. Although this is a disaster for mortals, for cultivators like us, it's actually an opportunity."

"As far as I know, quite a few rogue cultivators in the Bamboo Leaf Forest have already teamed up to go out and hunt blood demons."

"Just hunting one will net you at least 10 low-grade spirit stones. That's much faster than holing up at home painstakingly refining pills."

"Fellow Daoist Chen, if you also have the idea of hunting blood demons, I can introduce you to a team. I'd only need to charge a small referral fee."

Chen An smiled and politely declined, saying, "I don't have any such thoughts at the moment. When I do, I will definitely come find you for an introduction, Manager Zhang."

After all, he was someone with a system now; he should play it safe whenever possible and had no need to risk his life for money.

……

PS: Bowls out, begging for monthly votes and recommendation votes!

4, Rank 1 Intermediate Alchemist Leaving the apothecary, Chen An did not rush home.

Instead, he went to a street of stalls specifically selling women's accessories and took a stroll, carefully and meticulously choosing the cheapest hairpin.

No matter which world or era, there was no woman who did not like gifts.

This was one of the most powerful ways to enhance affection between a husband and wife.

Carrying the packaged hairpin and a few bags of medicinal herbs on his back, Chen An embarked on the journey home.

His luck today was quite good; he did not run into any trouble on the way out or on his return trip, and he smoothly arrived back in front of his house.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, went to the market to buy herbs back for alchemy?"

Just as Chen An was about to step forward and push open the door, an elderly man's voice came from the side.

Turning his head, he saw an old cultivator who lived next door.

His appearance was slovenly and unkempt.

He also exuded an unpleasant, sour, and stale odor.

One could tell at a glance that he had not bathed in a long time.

The old cultivator walked over, looked at the medicinal herbs strapped to Chen An's back, and shook his head, saying:

"Fellow Daoist Chen, how boring alchemy is! Working yourself to the bone for a month, at most you only earn those one or two low-grade spirit stones."

"You might as well come with me to the gambling den and spin around a couple of times. You could casually make a dozen or twenty low-grade spirit stones a day."

"That's way faster than you making pills."

Chen An glanced at the tattered clothes the man was wearing, and a wave of speechlessness washed over him.

If the gambling den made winning money so easy, how come you're still dressed in such ragged clothes?

A gambling addict is truly beyond saving!

Thinking this to himself, Chen An nevertheless maintained a pleasant attitude and said, "My luck isn't as good as Fellow Daoist Wang's. I've been dogged by bad luck since I was a child; if I went into a gambling den, I'm afraid I'd lose the very pants off my legs."

Upon hearing the word "bad luck," the old cultivator immediately backed away a few steps, signaling that he wanted to distance himself from Chen An.

However, he quickly stepped forward again and said to Chen An:

"Fellow Daoist Chen, I'm a bit tight on cash recently. Could you lend me a few low-grade spirit stones?"

"Once I win money, I'll pay you back double!"

Double?

Giving meat to a dog is more likely to see it returned than that!

Thinking this, Chen An declined politely, saying, "You're too late, Fellow Daoist Wang. I just spent all my savings on medicinal herbs and am currently penniless."

"Then how about this, Fellow Daoist Chen? You give all these herbs to me, and I'll take them to sell. When I go to the gambling den and win back dozens of low-grade spirit stones, I'll split half directly with you, how about that?"

"Still, no thanks."

With that, Chen An immediately walked into his house and closed the front door, unwilling to waste any more time entangling himself with the old cultivator.

Seeing this, the old cultivator immediately flew into a rage, cursing away and saying that Chen An only knew how to do alchemy all day long and deserved to stay this poor forever!

Arriving at the alchemy room.

Chen An dumped out all the medicinal herbs he had carried on his back, sealing and storing them properly in a specially made wooden box.

He figured he would wait until he advanced his pill-crafting mastery to Rank 1 Intermediate before coming back in to refine pills.

Stepping out of the alchemy room.

Chen An belatedly noticed that the house had been tidied up very neatly, spotless.

He knew this was most likely the work of his lovely wife.

"Husband!"

Song Huaying emerged from the room, and upon seeing Chen An standing outside, she immediately walked up to him with a face full of joy.

Today, from the conversation between Chen An and Manager Zhang, she had learned about Qingshi Town being wiped out, which left her with a complete lack of a sense of security in this world and worried that Chen An might go out and never return.

Fortunately, Chen An had finally returned safe and sound.

This allowed the heart that had been hanging in her chest to finally drop.

"Ying'er, what's wrong with your finger?"

Chen An noticed that a layer of cloth was wrapped around his lovely wife's left index finger, with tiny spots of blood seeping through the surface, and he asked with a look of concern.

Feeling her husband's care, Song Huaying felt sweet inside and softly explained:

"I accidentally cut it with a knife while cooking in the kitchen just now, but the wound is very shallow, it's nothing."

Hearing this, Chen An did not say much. He immediately took out a packet of powdered medicine he always carried from his tunic, gently unwrapped the bandage for his lovely wife, and carefully sprinkled a bit of the powder onto the cut.

The very next second, the wound on her index finger began to heal rapidly at a speed visible to the naked eye.

In just a short moment, it was restored to its original condition, leaving no trace of ever having been injured.

Song Huaying was shocked in her heart, thinking to herself: What kind of immortal medicine is this!Then, looking somewhat annoyed for a split second, she said: "Husband, such celestial medicine must be extremely precious. It's all my clumsy fault for making you waste it." "I'm an alchemist, I can brew as much of this medicine as I need, it's not worth much." Seeing his little wife's disappointed look, Chen An comforted her. Hearing Chen An put it that way, Song Huaying's mood improved considerably in an instant, and she adopted a virtuous expression instead: "Husband, I've just cooked a table of dishes, and they're keeping warm in the kitchen. Are you hungry? I'll go and bring them out." "I am a bit hungry, actually. Sorry to trouble you, Ying'er." Chen An wasn't actually hungry at all, but he didn't want to waste his little wife's thoughtful gesture. Soon, Song Huaying brought all the dishes out. Chen An glanced at how the dishes looked, feeling that they actually seemed quite appetizing. So, under his wife's watchful gaze, he picked up a pair of chopsticks and took a bite to try them. As a result of that bite, he was nearly sent straight to his ancestors on the spot! Good lord, how could these dishes taste so terrible? Even a dog would shake its head at them! As expected, he had overthought things. This little wife of his used to be a pampered young lady who had never lifted a finger, so how could she possibly be good at cooking? She was quite proficient in the zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting, though. "Husband, how does it taste?" Seeing that her husband was already using his chopsticks to eat, Song Huaying asked with an expectant look on her face. Chen An forced himself to say, "Delicious." After the meal, he took out the hairpin he had bought in the market and presented it to his little wife, gently putting it up in her hair and pinning it in place himself. Song Huaying liked the hairpin very much, and her affection for Chen An surged upward in her heart. [You gave your wife Song Huaying an exquisite hairpin. She likes it very much, marital affection +1.] …… In the blink of an eye, several days passed. Song Huaying, who had newly become a wife, had fully recovered her strength by this time. In fact, her physical constitution was even stronger than before. Because during this period, Chen An hadn't skimped on brewing soups for her to drink, loading them with all sorts of precious medicinal herbs. "Ying'er, it's getting late. It's time to go to bed and rest." "Mmm..." Song Huaying's face blushed shyly, knowing what was about to happen next. For several days in a row. Opening the interface to take a look. Alchemy experience had already broken through 100. [Name: Chen An] [Cultivation: Qi Condensation 3rd Layer] [Alchemy: Rank 1 Beginner (102/100)] [Spouse: Song Huaying] [Descendants: None yet] "Proficiency is enough; I can break through." Chen An put away the interface, unable to wait to be intimate with his little wife, and eagerly headed to the alchemy room to make his breakthrough. Arriving at the alchemy room, he skillfully set up the cauldron and started the fire. Picking a basic pill that was relatively easy to refine, he immediately began brewing to search for the feeling of a breakthrough. This breakthrough met with no obstacles at all. It succeeded instantly. [Alchemy: Rank 1 Intermediate (102/500)] Chen An was excited for just a short moment before quickly setting to work, taking out all the herbs in the specially made wooden boxes and diligently brewing pills. Song Huaying was very virtuous; during this time, she came over to knock on the door and ask if there was anything she could help with. Since the alchemy room was truly too stifling and a mortal body simply couldn't endure being inside, Chen An didn't let her come in to help. Although she couldn't go inside to help, Song Huaying didn't stay idle either, turning instead to do other housework around the house. …… 5. Making a Fortune In less than half a day, Chen An had finished refining all the medicinal herbs in the alchemy room. If this were in the past, it would have taken him at least two or three days to finish the job. And now, not only had his efficiency increased, but his pill success rate had also risen considerably. It had directly more than tripled compared to before. Previously he could only earn 1 low-grade spirit stone a month, but now he could earn over 3 a month. "The rent problem is finally solved." A long-absent smile appeared on Chen An's face, and he felt an unprecedented sense of relief. At this moment, his little wife's voice came from outside the door. "Husband, I've already heated the water for your bath. Please let me know when you're done with your work so I can attend to you personally." "I'm all done!" Unable to bother tidying up the messy alchemy room, Chen An immediately got up, pushed the door open, scooped up his little wife from outside, and carried her toward the bedroom to take a Mandarin duck bath together. After the span of an incense stick. [You and your wife Song Huaying engaged in deep communication and made efforts to spread branches and leave descendants, alchemy experience +1.] [Wife: Song Huaying] [Attribute: Grateful for the smallest favor, will repay it with a spring] [Affection: 1 Star (69/100)] [Alchemy experience provided so far: 99]"Our relationship level is not far from 2 stars."

Chen An felt a subtle surge of encouragement in his heart, and immediately resumed his role as a devoted husband to his little wife—doting on her in every sense of the word, pushing his devotion even further to deepen their marital bond as much as possible.

Time flew by.

In the blink of an eye, the following month's rent collection day arrived.

As punctual as ever, Manager Zhang came knocking door-to-door to collect the rent.

He collected 2 low-grade spirit stones from each household.

For the low-tier cultivators in the cheap district, 2 low-grade spirit stones were simply too much.

Many of them wore expressions of utter despair.

A few individuals, unable to pay the rent, were expelled from the Bamboo Leaf Forest on the spot by Manager Zhang, whose cultivation had reached the Qi Condensation (late) stage. Their figures looked thoroughly dejected as they walked away.

Seeing this, the remaining people were instantly gripped by immense pressure and overwhelming anxiety.

At this juncture, many austere cultivators who usually preferred to keep to themselves and shut themselves indoors were forced to come out and form teams with others, heading outside the forest to hunt blood demons in order to earn next month's rent.

Compared to these cultivators, Chen An, being an alchemist, lived a much more comfortable life.

Even more comfortable than before the rent increase.Because many cultivators were forced to venture outside to hunt blood demons to make a living, and injuries were inevitable during these hunts, pill prices had skyrocketed, soaring to several times higher than before. After all, in the world of immortal cultivation, there was no such thing as market regulation. Prices could be raised however the sellers pleased—take it or leave it. Chen An had profited handsomely from this massive surge in pill prices. In less than half a month, he had earned seventy-eight low-grade spirit stones. His income had multiplied by dozens, nearly a hundred times compared to before. After paying his rent to Manager Zhang, Chen An returned to his house to continue his deep communication with his lovely young wife, further strengthening their bond. Compared to when she first married into the family, Song Huaying now appeared much more mature and alluring. During their intimate moments, she was often very proactive, making it hard for him to keep up. However, Chen An did not find this troublesome; instead, he grew increasingly fond of and infatuated with his young wife. "Bang! Bang! Bang!" "Alchemist Chen! Are you home?" "I want to buy pills!" As Chen An was being affectionate with his young wife on the bed, a sudden series of knocks sounded outside the door, accompanied by a frantic shout. He had long grown accustomed to such shouting over this recent period.Even without looking, it was easy to guess that most of them were cultivators preparing to hunt blood demons and coming to buy pills. After all, injuries were inevitable during a hunt. Pills became extremely important at times like this. Basically, as soon as a batch was finished refining, it would be instantly swept clean. Many people who wanted to buy them were forced to seek out an alchemist's home to have them brewed on the spot. That meant the buyers would bring their own materials required for refining the pills and come to ask an alchemist for help with the refinement. Afterward, they would pay a processing fee. However, because these were special times, the processing fee was not cheap. "Pop!" Reluctantly, Chen An pulled himself away from his lovely little wife, quickly putting on his clothes and getting out of bed. He walked over and stopped by the window next to the door, conducting business with the cultivator standing outside. After a brief exchange, the two sides quickly reached an agreement. To refine these pills would take at least two hours. As for the processing fee, it was as high as 5 low-grade spirit stones. This price was quite reasonable, much cheaper than what other alchemists charged. Chen An preferred small profits and quick turnover. Well, that was what he said, but in truth, it was more out of fear that gouging customers too harshly would offend people. After all, this was not a society governed by the rule of law; if someone found you an eyesore, they could kill you at any moment. The more people you offended, the faster you would die. There was no need to make an enemy of the entire world just to cash in on this wave of profit. Otherwise, he feared he would make money with his life only to have no life left to spend it. …… Two hours later. Chen An finished refining the pills. He came out of the alchemy room and told the cultivator outside the window to toss the 5 spirit stones into the room first. After confirming everything was correct, he used a bamboo pole to extend the finished pills out to the other party. Throughout the process, he maintained a strict distance. He never got close to the other person. After all, as an alchemist, he had made a killing during this period. He had definitely made many people green with envy. For the sake of his own safety, while he had no intention of harming others, he could not let his guard down against them. In short, one should never overestimate human nature. "The day I earn enough money, I'm moving into the core district," Chen An thought to himself.