Chapter Seventeen: Opening a Store

  Because it is for opening a Chinese medicine shop, the problem of the storefront must be solved first.

  Yuan Futong walked into the town, and headed towards the central building of the town marked with the logo of Liujiang Sword Sect. The Liujiang Sword Sect's residence in this town was a stone tower. On the large plaque above the entrance were written three characters "Jian Qi Tang", which were written in silver hook and iron painting, with an extraordinary momentum. A flying sword logo on the large flag beside the building was very eye-catching.

  Yuan Futong walked into the stone building and saw that the shelves inside were filled with all sorts of flying swords stored in jade boxes. Several servants were busy, and the shopkeeper sat behind the counter with his eyes closed, meditating. When he saw Yuan Futong enter, one of the servants came over, a young man of seventeen or eighteen years old.

  "What does the young master need?"

  "Oh, I'm here to find the person in charge of the Liujiang Sword Sect in this town."

  The servant listened to Yuan Futong's words and didn't dare to speak, looking at the shopkeeper instead. The shopkeeper opened his eyes, looked at Yuan Futong for a moment, and said: "I am, young master, what can I do for you?"

  "Oh, hello senior." Feeling the shopkeeper's cultivation, Yuan Futong didn't dare be rude and cupped his hands. "I want to open a store in this market, I don't know how to handle it, so I came to ask."

  "What business does the young master want to operate?"

  "I want to sell some medicinal pellets."

  "Oh, so the young master is an alchemist. Forgive me, forgive me." Upon hearing that Yuan Futong wanted to sell elixirs, the shopkeeper's attitude became somewhat more even-tempered.

  "I don't dare, my skills are far from good. I just want to find a stable place to sell some medicinal pellets and collect some medicinal materials. I don't know if it's convenient."

  "Heh heh, of course it's convenient. There aren't many in the market who sell dan medicine, I wonder which kind of dan medicine can you refine, young master?"

  "Some Qi-tonifying pellets, Spirit-nourishing pellets, and Huanglong pellets. Just earning some spiritual stones for cultivation."

  "Hehe, as expected of a young master with great talent. With your cultivation at the 7th layer of Qi Refining, you can refine a Spirit Nourishing Pill like this. You indeed have a natural gift for alchemy. I wonder how you plan to price it?"

  "I've never sold elixirs before, do you have any advice?" Yuan Futong didn't dare to speak carelessly anymore, after all he had no experience and didn't know what taboos there were.

  "There are also several people selling tonics in the town, and their prices are not uniform either. How to price it is up to you." The shopkeeper pondered for a moment.

  "Then I'll go ask around and set a price, okay?"

  "This is good, just in case there's a problem." The shopkeeper looked at Yuan Fu Tong and his expression became even more gentle. He took out a map from the Qian Kun bag, which was a distribution map of this street. "How about this? On the east side of the street, there is an empty shop, although it's a bit remote, but the place is not small, and the spiritual energy is also very good." The shopkeeper pointed to a corner on the east side and said.

  Yuan Futong took a look and thought the location was a bit off, but he didn't want to make trouble over the store's location again. Anyway, as long as the medicine worked, business would naturally come.

  "Good, just need a facade. Don't know how much it costs?"

  "300 spirit stones per year. This is the price for all the shops here. The minimum rental period is one year."

  "Alright, I'll rent it for a year first. Please take care of me from now on." As he spoke, Yuan Fugong took out 350 pieces of spiritual stones from his乾坤袋 and handed them over to the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper glanced at the spiritual stones and nodded in satisfaction.

  "Xiao Tong, take this young master to the shop at No. 32 East Street in Fang City. Also, help him buy some things he needs. This is a token of authority; with this token, any transactions you make in Fang City will be protected by our Liujiang Sword Sect. If anything happens, you can show this token and ask for help from the patrol team." The shopkeeper handed over the token to Yuan Futong while instructing him.

  "Thank you, sir." Yuan Futong turned around and followed the young man who had just greeted him out of the stone building.

  Xiao Tong led Yuan Fu towards the east of the city, and Yuan Fu followed slowly behind, observing the surrounding shops.

  "Master, do you need more manpower to open the Dan medicine shop?" Little Tong slowed down and walked beside Yuan Futong, asking.

  "Oh, I'm not ready yet, I just arrived here by cloud travel. Do you have any good recommendations?" Yuan Futong estimated that this miscellaneous servant had something to say and didn't refuse him. He was also unfamiliar with the local customs, and many things were inconvenient to do. If he had a local snake helping him, it would be much more convenient for himself.

  "I have a younger brother who has been wanting to come to the city to find work. If you need him, I can send him over to do some odd jobs in your store."

  "Oh, I see you also have martial arts skills. You should be able to make a good living at the foot of the mountain. Why come up the mountain to do odd jobs?" Yuan Futong asked with some doubt, blurting out the question.

  "Ah, young master doesn't know. My father coincidentally became a cultivator in the Qi Refining stage, and that's when we found out about the existence of cultivation in this world. Although my father died in a battle with someone else, once you know there's a path to immortality, no matter how difficult it is, you want to give it a try. So my brother and I both want to find a job in this town, earn some spirit stones, and continue our cultivation. Living at the foot of the mountain may be comfortable, but without a source of spirit stones, we can't progress on the path of cultivation."

  "How many spirit stones does it take to hire someone?"

  "Usually ten blocks a year is enough, if the young master is willing to hire my brother, eight blocks of spiritual stone per year will do." Xiao Tong hastily recommended his brother to Yuan Fu.

  "Haha, that's not necessary. But I do need someone to watch the shop if I'm going to open a medicine store. Bring your brother over and let me take a look. If he's suitable, I'll give him 10 spirit stones per year, and I won't treat him unfairly." Yuan Futong thought for a moment before agreeing with Xiao Tong. "What's your brother's name?"

  "My younger brother is Jiang Xiaotie, and I am Jiang Xiaotong. May I ask your honorable surname?" Jiang Xiaotong hastily replied after hearing Yuan Futong's response.

  "My surname is Yuan."

  "Thank you so much, Young Master Yuan. My brother is very diligent. Although he's only 16 years old, he's almost reached the late stage of postnatal cultivation. He might even enter the Qi Refining stage before he turns 20!"

  All the way, Jiang Xiaotong kept introducing his brother's strengths to Yuan Futong and thanking him nonstop. Listening to this, Yuan Futong got a bit annoyed, so he finally stopped talking. It turned out that they had already arrived at the store. There was a seal on the door. Yuan Futong took out his token and inputted his spiritual power into it, and the seal on the store's door was lifted. Upon entering the store, the interior space was quite large, about over 100 square meters in size. The room in the back was roughly the same size. The second floor was empty as well, with no items inside. Yuan Futong thought for a moment, deciding that the alchemy room could be set up upstairs, and the room in the back could be used for people to cultivate. The storefront was sufficient for use as well. However, they needed to buy some furniture now; otherwise, it would look empty and uninviting.

  After visiting the store, Yuan Futong and Jiang Xiaotong went out to buy furniture. To repay Yuan Futong's generosity, Jiang Xiaotong helped Yuan Futong purchase furniture with the most positive attitude. Yuan Futong almost effortlessly ordered all the necessary household items. The cost was very low, one spiritual stone could be used as five taels of gold, and if they didn't buy cultivation supplies, selling some spiritual stones would allow them to live a stable life for a lifetime.

  It took half a morning for Yuan Futong to select the furniture and sundries needed for the shop. He told them the location number of the shop, and someone would deliver them in the afternoon. After everything was arranged, it was almost noon. Jiang Xiaotong brought over a young boy, about 15 or 16 years old. His face was delicate, more refined than his brother's. He seemed a bit shy when he saw Yuan Futong.

  "Master Yuan, this is my younger brother Jiang Xiaotie. Quickly pay your respects to Master Yuan." Jiang Xiaotong also felt a bit anxious and urged his brother to speak up.

  "Nice to meet you, Master Yuan." Jiang Xiao Tie stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

  "You used to live there?" Seeing Jiang Xiaotong bring his brother over so quickly, Yuan Futong was even more curious.

  "It's in the mortal district just next to the Fantian Market, a place where my brother Huā Líng Shí rented for me."

  "Huh?" Yuan Futong was somewhat perplexed and turned his head to look at Jiang Xiaotong.

  Jiang Xiaotong hastily replied, "That's right, the market town has not only a trading area, but also a large area for the residence of ordinary people who serve in the market town. The place where we bought furniture is already in the mortal zone. The mortal zone is open to those with a pass to enter the market town, but they have to pay rent. Ten spirit stones per year for a small house. Although the spiritual energy is not as strong as inside the market town, it's better than being at the foot of the mountain. Moreover, there's also a chance to meet powerful cultivators and find a job in the market town."

  "Oh, I see. Xiao Tie, how much do you know about medicinal herbs?"

  "I've read the Hundred Herb Spectacle, it's all about medicinal herbs used by martial artists. The spiritual medicine was mentioned by my father when he was alive, such as Seven Leaf Grass, Lingzhi, and Nightshade Vine, just a few examples." Jiang Xiao Tie felt somewhat nervous, thinking his answer was too poor, but didn't dare to lie.

  "Then tell me about the uses and medicinal properties of this seven-leaf grass."

  Seven-leaf grass is a perennial herb. It takes a hundred years to grow seven leaves, at which time its medicinal function is best. It is mainly used to harmonize the medicinal properties of yang and yin drugs, preventing medicinal conflicts. It has some detoxifying effect.

  "En. Good." Yuan Futong nodded in satisfaction, "You come to me to work, I'll take you in. You can stay at the store tonight."

  "Thank you, young masters," the two brothers said in unison. Letting Jiang Xiao Tie stay in the shop was already a very high treatment. If they were to rent a place within the city, the price would be even higher.

  "Alright, let's do it this way. I'll treat you brothers to a meal and we can get to know each other better. Xiao Tong, also introduce me to the situation in Fang City."

  "Yes, we will follow your orders." The two brothers were overjoyed and hastily replied.

  Three people found a wine house in the city, two brothers did not want to enter this kind of hotel at first, but Yuan Fu Tong went in first and had no choice but to follow. This Drunken Immortal Pavilion is a place where consumption is made with spiritual stones, generally only those with a strong family background above the fourth layer of Qi training come to consume. The two brothers have never been here before, they only know that it's expensive enough to scare people to death.

  Three people entered the store and sat down, with the young boy bringing over the menu. As expected, the prices of the dishes and fine wines on the menu were all in spirit stones, which could be equivalent to a lifetime's income for ordinary people. Yuan Fu Tong saw that the two people were so reserved and didn't let them order. He ordered four dishes himself and asked for a pot of Fei Xian wine, using ten spirit stones, causing the two brothers next to him to stare in shock.

  The dishes arrived, and a fresh aroma wafted up. Yuan Futong, with his experience as a chef, picked up a piece of carp with his chopsticks and savored it carefully. The cooking technique was excellent, but not much higher than his own, yet the ingredients were top-notch - the fish meat had a spiritual energy that burst forth in his mouth, stimulating his taste buds, and he felt an unparalleled deliciousness. No wonder it was so expensive to buy, it seemed there was value for money after all. He looked up at the two brothers who hadn't dared to pick up their chopsticks, and invited them: "The flavor is good, you guys hurry up and eat. The money has been spent, if you don't eat it will be a waste."

  The two brothers just picked up their chopsticks and carefully started eating. As soon as the dish entered their mouths, they felt it was incredibly delicious. They repeatedly praised it.

  As the Fei Xian wine was brought up, Jiang Xiao Tong hurriedly poured a full cup for Yuan Fu Tong. At Yuan Fu Tong's signal, he also poured some for himself and his brother. Yuan Fu Tong took a sip, and the flavor was not bad. There were several kinds of spiritual medicine flavors inside, and there should be some medicinal effects in it. As soon as the wine entered his belly, a warm energy spread out, and indeed it was a spiritual wine.

  "You two drink some and practice your internal energy, it will be beneficial for your abilities."

  The two brothers drank down the wine and hurriedly worked on their internal energy. After a while, they opened their eyes and both revealed smiles.

  "This thing is effective the first time you drink it, but afterwards it has an effect, although not a big one." Yuan Futong said with a smile. Now Yuan Futong had become an alchemist, and with just one taste of this low-level spiritual wine, he knew its rough composition and efficacy, so he began to explain.

  "Thank you, young master." The two stood up and thanked him again. Yuan Futong waved his hand for them to sit down and asked about Jiang Xiaotong.

  "There are several places selling medicinal pills in this town."

  "There are four in total, one is near the downtown area of Fang City, which is relatively large, and the other three are not very big."

  "Is there a Huichun Valley venue?"

  "There are, because this town is already near the residence of the Liujiang Sword Sect, so the scene of returning to Chun Valley is not small either. The largest scale is that of Chun Valley, but in the town, there are also stalls selling elixirs, although they are all very low-level elixirs."

  "Which stores sell Nourishing Spirit Pills?"

  "It seems that only Baicao Pavilion in Chunyuan has it for sale, but the supply is limited and the price is very high."

  "Oh, I see. Is the Gathering Spirit Pill available for sale there?"

  "It's also just Baicao Pavilion."

  "Is the elixir business easy to do? In this street market."

  "Of course, it's easy to do. As long as there are elixirs, there will be a market for them. After all, there are few people in the Lijiang Sword Sect who can refine elixirs, and even fewer among the affiliated families and loose cultivators under their control. So, elixirs have always been in short supply. Young Master opening this shop is sure to make a profit."

  "Oh, then I'm relieved."

  After dinner, Jiang Xiaotong returned to the store, and Yuan Futong took Jiang Xiaotie for a walk. At a place called Tianxia Zhenqi, they bought a basic set of flags used for protecting the alchemy room. Then they returned to the store.

  After bustling about for the whole afternoon, arranging things properly, Yuan Futong put several kinds of medicinal pellets on the shelves, and thus ended a day's work. He had Jiang Xiaotie stay in the back room. This pellet shop was now ready, just waiting to open tomorrow.