While sitting in the room, a beautiful young woman suddenly entered from outside the door, holding a small silver tray in both hands. On the tray lay a pale red ring.
Accepting the silver tray and dismissing the maid, Ya Fei personally carried it to Xiao Yan, smiling, "Esteemed elder, all the medicinal ingredients and items you need are inside this 'storage ring'."
Reaching out to take the ring from the center of the silver tray, Xiao Yan rotated it in his palm, a hint of satisfaction on his face. Yao Lao's voice also perfectly transmitted, "Good. After the Qi Gathering Powder is successfully refined, I will return it to you."
A flicker of joy appeared in Ya Fei's beautiful eyes, and she quickly nodded.
"Alright, that's enough. You don't need to see me off. I'll go out by myself."
Waving his hand, Xiao Yan put the storage ring on the glove covering his finger. Then, without looking back, he walked towards the outside of the reception room. The blue jade card on the table was not taken back; he felt he owed them quite a bit of favor, so he resolutely left it behind.
Watching that figure gradually disappear behind the door, Ya Fei bit her red lips and walked forward step by step, taking the blue jade card into her hand. Her expression was slightly pensive for a moment, and she softly asked, "Uncle Gu Ni, the success rate for refining Qi Gathering Powder doesn't seem to be very high, does it?"
"That's right. I heard that Grandmaster Gu He, the Pill King, only has a success rate of about seventy percent for refining Qi Gathering Powder. An ordinary fourth-grade alchemist probably wouldn't achieve this result; reaching fifty percent is already very good," Gu Ni said in a deep voice.
"But this... esteemed elder, succeeded on his first attempt..." Ya Fei's willow-like brows furrowed tightly.
"Who knows? Maybe his luck was good?" Grandmaster Gu Ni shook his head, not paying too much attention. After all, when a grandmaster alchemist refines pills, success also requires quite a bit of luck. If their luck is good, they might succeed several times in a row without any failures.
"Could he be... not a fourth-grade alchemist?" After a moment of hesitation, Ya Fei softly said.
"Ah, ah, how could that be? Fifth-grade alchemists in the Jia Ma Empire can be counted on one's fingers. Those who reach this level, even powerful forces like the Empire or the Yun Lan Sect, would treat them as honored guests. How could they come to our place to auction pills?" Gu Ni said with a laugh.
Hearing this, Ya Fei also nodded slightly, then sighed, forcing a bitter smile, "It seems I still lack experience. Our previous hesitation, I'm afraid, has significantly reduced this... mysterious alchemist's good impression of us."
"You can't be blamed. That was a very large sum of gold coins; even I wouldn't have dared to agree immediately. What you've done to this point is already very good. As for the relationship, we can slowly cultivate it later. As long as he doesn't develop ill will towards us, that's good enough," Gu Ni comforted her.
Nodding with a bitter smile, Ya Fei sat down on the chair, her graceful curves revealed. Her eyes were half-closed, half-open, and with a hint of doubt, she softly said, "Why does he need so many low-grade medicinal ingredients?"
"These medicinal ingredients all have the effect of stopping bleeding and mending bones. I wonder if he intends to refine healing medicine." His voice seemed pensive, and Elder Yao frowned, similarly somewhat puzzled, saying, "With his status, why would he stoop to refining these low-grade healing medicines?"
Hearing this, Ya Fei's beautiful eyes narrowed, her slender, jade-like fingers lightly tapped on the table. After a moment, she softly said, "It seems that this... venerable old gentleman, appears to be very considerate of the Xiao family..."
Frowning, Gu Ni looked surprised, "Are you saying he's refining healing medicine to supply the Xiao family?"
"Recently, I heard that the Jia Lie family somehow managed to invite a first-grade alchemist capable of producing 'Hui Chun San' (Spring Return Powder), which has spread to more than half the people in the market district. If the Xiao family doesn't come up with a plan soon, I'm afraid they will face the embarrassment of having no merchants in the district." Ya Fei's eyes shifted, and she said calmly, "Last time, that... venerable old gentleman mentioned that if there was an opportunity, he would cooperate with the Xiao family. And these ingredients he just bought are for making large quantities of healing medicine. In fact, his objective is self-evident."
"Heh, it seems the Xiao family has made a huge profit this time, and the Jia Lie family will encounter a lot of trouble." Hearing Ya Fei's analysis, Gu Ni smirked, a hint of admiration on his face. To have the assistance of a fourth-grade alchemist, one cannot deny... the family has received special treatment. You are reading this story at – http://xtruyen.vn
Nodding slightly, Ya Fei chuckled, "Recently, we've also had some contact with the Xiao family. Adding icing to the cake is certainly good, but if there's a little gift or special treatment, it will further strengthen the relationship between both parties."
Gu Ni nodded in agreement. With a fourth-grade alchemist backing the Xiao family, they were indeed worthy of their attention.
Leaving the auction house, Xiao Yan pretended to be strolling, carefully circling for half a day. After a long while, he turned into a secluded, deserted alley and changed his clothes.
Turning the light red "Na Jie" (Storage Ring) in his hand, Xiao Yan was somewhat delighted. This kind of... Na Jie is made from a rare material called "Na Shi" (Storage Stone), containing a special small space within it that can store inanimate objects. It is an extremely useful item. However, "Na Shi" is very scarce, so "Na Jie" is also extremely precious. The one in Xiao Yan's hand was only the lowest-grade "Na Jie," containing a space about three to four zhang square. Nevertheless, even so, this ring was worth over a hundred thousand gold coins. In the Xiao family, Xiao Yan had only personally seen his father and the Great Elder possess such a Na Jie.
Playing with the Na Jie for a bit, Xiao Yan hesitated for a moment, then took it off his finger and carefully hung it around his neck. This kind of... ring was not easy to obtain. If his father and the others accidentally discovered it, it would be very difficult for him to explain where it came from.
Only when the ground beneath his feet was completely dark did Xiao Yan carefully emerge from that secluded, deserted alley, then hurried along the road back towards his family.
Along the small path through the family compound, passing the Deliberation Hall, he heard his father's angry shouts coming from inside. His eyelids twitched, Xiao Yan lightly stepped onto the threshold, and quietly entered through the door.
"All the objectives of the Jia Lie Clan... were thought up by that old bastard. I can't believe they dared to brazenly steal our business." In the main hall, Xiao Zhan cleared his throat, his face full of anger, and slammed his hand on the table, causing the tea in the cup to splash out.
"Now, in the Xiao Family's market, the population has dwindled significantly. The remaining merchant associations in the market are also in a state of panic. Quite a few have secretly fled to the Jia Lie Clan's market. If this continues, in less than half a month, I fear we'll have to close our market." Sitting below was the Second Elder, who at this moment also spoke with a grim expression, gritting his teeth.
"What if... I send the elites of our clan to secretly 'deal with' that First-Grade Alchemist?" The Third Elder's eyes flashed with a fierce light as he spoke coldly.
"Currently, that Alchemist is continuously protected by two Great Dou Masters. It won't be that easy." Xiao Zhan waved his sleeve, speaking helplessly.
"But if we keep going like this, our losses will be too great. In the past, our clan held the largest share of profits from the markets in Wu Tan City!" The Third Elder said unwillingly.
Xiao Zhan's mouth twitched. At this moment, he truly hadn't thought of any solution.
"On that day at the auction, didn't that... mysterious Alchemist say that if there was an opportunity, he would cooperate with us? Given Gu Ni's respectful attitude, his grade must certainly not be low. If he assists us, I'm sure the Jia Lie Clan won't be able to hold on for much longer." The Great Elder, who had been silent, suddenly spoke softly.
"Sigh, who knows if he was serious or just saying it casually? This kind of... high-level character, if he cooperates with us, what benefit would he gain from us? Regarding profits, how much would he take?" Xiao Zhan smiled bitterly and shook his head, sitting down on a chair with a sigh.
The three Elders also fell silent. Indeed, with a character of that caliber, the Xiao Family would truly find it difficult to reach such heights.
"Alright, let's wait a few more days and see. If the Jia Lie Clan still doesn't know what's good for them, then don't blame us for 'the fish dying and breaking the net'." Licking his lips, Xiao Zhan clenched his hand, a fierce glint appearing in his eyes.
Outside the door, hearing this, Xiao Yan shrugged slightly, his hand touching the storage ring on his chest, a hint of coldness appearing at the corner of his mouth as he slowly retreated.