After entering the clan, Lin Fan found an excuse to separate from Xun Er. Xiao Yan quietly left the clan, pondered for a moment, and then headed towards a small market town in the vicinity closest to the Jia Lie Clan's territory. Although he had no interest in helping the elders resolve their troubles, he hoped to provide some assistance to his father within his capabilities. To provide assistance, he naturally needed to know where to start, so Xiao Yan had to go and observe the market towns of the family's business district.
This small market town in the Jia Lie Clan's territory was located in a remote and secluded area. Normally, the number of people passing through was extremely small, but at this moment, when Xiao Yan entered the market town, the bustling crowds on the street were unbelievably dense, and the deafening noise also left him stunned. On both sides of the wide intersection, people were active. Some burly men with large arms were loudly inviting people to eat and drink on one side, while desperately shouting at the group of healers on the other. A faint smell of fresh blood emanated from these burly men, mostly from knife wounds, combined with the blood of the mercenaries themselves. They frequently faced death, so they had an almost obsessive fondness for healing medicines. After all, when venturing into a dangerous place, a little healing medicine might just save their life.
Standing at the entrance of the market town, Xiao Yan could see some mercenaries carrying wooden boxes from inside the market town, squeezing through the crowd, and then running out of the market town with joyful expressions.
"Does that box contain 'Hui Chun San'?" Xiao Yan muttered softly, then quickly moved to the intersection, pushing his way through the crowd with all his might. He spent one hundred gold coins to buy a box of "Hui Chun San."
Struggling to carry the box and escape the crowd, Xiao Yan finally let out a sigh of relief. Recalling the smug expression and impatient face of the previous medicine seller, he couldn't help but sneer inwardly. That's how a dog relies on its master's house.
Carrying the box out of the market town, Xiao Yan immediately opened the lid. Ten small bottles appeared before his eyes. The bottles were made of crude material, obviously only the lowest grade of jade, and using this type of bottle to store medicine made it very difficult to preserve the medicinal power.
He opened one bottle, revealing a pale green liquid, from which an extremely faint medicinal scent emanated.
"Master, is this what you call healing medicine?" A little surprised by the meager medicinal power contained in the liquid, Xiao Yan couldn't help but ask inwardly.
"Yes, this can be considered the lowest grade of healing medicine, effective for treating some minor injuries. Refining this simple healing medicine is not too difficult, and the ingredients are not hard to find. Moreover, it sells very easily, so only a First-Grade Alchemist would bother to make it."
"It is indeed very cheap. One hundred gold coins for ten bottles, which means ten gold coins per bottle. But for an alchemist, it's a bit embarrassing." Xiao Yan nodded slightly, then hesitated for a moment before saying, "Master, do you have a better healing medicine than this formula?"
"Quite a lot, but I rarely refine these low-grade elixirs." Yao Lao paused, then casually said, "Are you planning to refine them for the Xiao family? That's good, since you've already become a Dou Practitioner, you should try refining some medicinal ingredients."
"What? Me refine?" Hearing this, Xiao Yan was a little surprised.
"Do you really want me to do this kind of thing myself?" Yao Lao angrily barked, then instructed, "Go to the auction house and see if there's a better refining cauldron. Besides that, you'll need to buy a lot of low-grade medicinal ingredients. What a beginning alchemist lacks most is experience."
Xiao Yan licked his lips, a hint of eagerness on his face. He casually picked up the box and threw it towards the stream in front, then walked swiftly towards the central part of the city, entering the Mi Te Er Auction House.
As he approached the auction house, Xiao Yan finally concealed himself in a loose black cloak, then slowly entered the auction house.
As soon as Xiao Yan entered, the familiar staff of the Mi Te Er Auction House saw a figure slowly approaching in the distance, draped in a black cloak. They quickly sent someone inside the auction house to immediately inform Ya Fei and Gu Ni.
Upon hearing the subordinate's report, Ya Fei and Gu Ni immediately put aside their discussion and swiftly appeared at the entrance of the auction house. Finally, they chuckled and led Xiao Yan to the back lounge.
"I've come this time to ask for your help in finding and purchasing a good refining cauldron." After taking a light sip of tea nearby, the aged voice emerged from the black robe.
Ya Fei already knew the identity of the other party and was not at all surprised by this request. She smiled and nodded, then beckoned a maidservant, whispered a few words in her ear, and then waved her away.
"Haha, it's truly a coincidence that the old gentleman has arrived. This morning, our auction house just acquired a refining cauldron made from Flame Fire Star. This cauldron was crafted by a famous master of the Ma Jia Empire. Not only does it enhance flames and Dou Qi, but it also contains some metallic elements, which can increase the success rate of refining elixirs. This is one of the highest-grade refining cauldrons, very popular among alchemists of the Ma Jia Empire." Ya Fei said with a long laugh, her eyes constantly shifting, stirring the soul.
"Good." The old voice held a hint of satisfaction. After a slight hesitation, it continued, "Prepare another low-grade 'Storage Ring' for me, along with five hundred stalks of Blood Coagulation Grass, six hundred Bone-Forging Flowers, five hundred Poppy Flowers, five hundred boxes of Vitality Fruit..." Hearing these demands, Gu Ni, standing nearby, nearly jumped up. Even the lowest-grade Storage Ring cost seventy to eighty thousand gold coins. As for the medicinal ingredients, while not particularly rare, such a quantity would likely not be enough even with a hundred thousand gold coins. Moreover, according to Ya Fei, the Fiery Flame Star Cauldron that was brought out, if put up for auction, could fetch one hundred and fifty thousand gold coins. All these demands combined would certainly not be fulfilled without over three hundred thousand gold coins. Ya Fei was similarly stunned by these materials. After all, the auction house was not solely hers; most of the profits had to be transferred to the headquarters. Mobilizing three hundred thousand gold coins on her own, though not impossible, would certainly be noticed by her superiors.
Biting her red lips slightly, Ya Fei weighed the benefits a Fourth-Grade Alchemist could bring. She smiled faintly and said, "Elder, everything will be prepared in one hour."
"Haha, good..." The old voice echoed faintly, revealing a satisfied laugh for the first time in front of Ya Fei.
The black robe fell, and a fair hand pulled out a blue jade card from within, placing it on the table. Yao Lao smiled and said, "One last thing, I forgot to buy a few items earlier... but once the medicinal ingredients are sufficient, I'll trouble you to prepare a set of materials for crafting a Qi Gathering Powder."
Hearing this, Gu Ni's expression changed slightly. Materials for another Qi Gathering Powder? Wouldn't that cost another fifty thousand gold coins?
Ya Fei's small, rosy mouth opened slightly, and a hint of anger flickered in her heart. Although the other party was a Fourth-Grade Alchemist, how could he keep pushing his luck like this? Despite her inner frustration, Ya Fei maintained a charming and alluring smile on her face, but inwardly, she let out a bitter laugh. She hadn't expected to encounter such a difficult situation and could only sigh and nod.
"Haha, I think you two have misunderstood a little. This search for materials isn't for myself. I merely intend to help you refine a 'Qi Gathering Powder.' To ask you to find more materials would be going too far, wouldn't it?" The old voice said faintly.
Ya Fei's charming smile froze for a moment, then a look of joy quickly appeared. Shaken by the sudden surprise, she couldn't control herself. After a moment, Ya Fei's rosy, smiling face returned to normal. With a joyful expression, she exchanged a glance with Master Gu Ni, then spoke softly, a little nervously, "Then we thank the Elder in advance."