Living steadily in the world of gods and mystery

Chen Li began to excitedly calculate how to plan this money.

"Hmm, out of it... no, three mid-grade Spirit Stones must be set aside as ballast and not used, and with what remains, I can eat Demon Beast Meat and Spirit Rice without any limit. Right, I could also buy some Qi Replenishing Pills to aid in cultivation."

"Unfortunately, the abundant spiritual energy contained in these Spirit Stones cannot be directly absorbed."

Spirit Stones are the hard currency of the Cultivation World and also its energy source, akin to the petroleum and coal on Earth.

And just like petroleum and coal, these crystalline bodies formed from the sediment of spiritual energy and minerals over millions of years are filled with various toxins, mostly used as an energy source for formations and the like.

Unless necessary, such as in an emergency, few would use them directly to restore and grow their spiritual power.

Chen Li gleefully collected the Spirit Stones one by one and put them into his money pouch.

He then picked up the stack of talismans sent by Qiao Guanyuan.

There were six talismans in total, two Amulets, three Featherweight Talismans, and one Fiery Flame Charm.

Chen Li was already quite familiar with the Amulets and Featherweight Talismans, but the Fiery Flame Charm was seldom seen in the market and was rather niche. It was also a high-level talisman of the Qi Refinement Realm, priced the same as an Amulet, at three low-grade Spirit Stones.

However, in general, talismans of the same level that protect life are more expensive and sell better than those used for offense. The same price, without a doubt, meant this talisman was a higher level than the Amulet.

Clearly, the opponent hadn’t had the chance to use it before being killed by him.

"I’ll keep this talisman as a way to enrich my attacking methods, as for the specific effects... I’ll inquire with Lin Gui when the time comes," Chen Li thought shamelessly, without a shred of the pride of someone who’d just defeated three opponents single-handedly in a slum.

At that moment, something else occurred to him, and he frowned slightly:

"The Artefact Sect has withdrawn, and now this place is lawless. Can the market still operate normally?" 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

With this thought, Chen Li could no longer contain himself, and, setting aside his sword practice, he grabbed his money pouch and dashed out the door, hurrying towards the market.

In just one night’s time.

The entire slum seemed to have gone through a war.

Everywhere he looked, there were bloodstains, severed limbs, bodies, and the destruction caused by spells and magic artifacts, and burned houses.

Fortunately, the slum during the day was quite a bit more peaceful than at night, with at least no killings in sight.

There were very few pedestrians on the streets, all hurrying along with vigilant expressions.

Every now and then, Chen Li would see small groups of people whispering at the entrance of a house. When he approached, they immediately stopped speaking and looked at him with inscrutable eyes.

In such cases, Chen Li would take a wide berth.

If he couldn’t avoid them, he would hold his Amulet tightly while discreetly eyeing his surroundings, mentally simulating how to dodge and counter in case of conflict, and how to kill cleanly in the shortest amount of time while preserving himself, all while walking past without a sideways glance.

Before the night before, he would never have dared to venture out in such dangerous circumstances, but today, aside from still being cautious about his life, he no longer had that excessive unease and fear.

Strength had given him confidence.

Killing had given him courage.

He was quickly adapting to this world!

Chen Li made his way through the streets and alleys without incident and soon entered the market.

The market, recently rebuilt by the Artefact Sect, had returned to a state of disrepair after the chaos of the night before, desolate and nearly void of people.

There were no vendors to be found.

Except for a few large shops owned by powerful merchants that were still open, the rest were completely empty.

Even the brothels had been abandoned.

Where did those female cultivators who practiced unorthodox secret techniques go?

Chen Li looked around and then walked straight towards a building, the Treasure Medicine Pavilion.

...

"Twelve Qi Replenishing Pills for twelve Low-grade Spirit Stones a bottle, and a total of one hundred and twenty Low-grade Spirit Stones for ten bottles," the shopkeeper began.

"Hasn’t it always been ten Low-grade Spirit Stones a bottle?" Chen Li was startled and quickly asked.

"This is the price now, don’t you see the current situation? Without our Treasure Medicine Pavilion, you couldn’t buy them here at twice the price," the shopkeeper said, looking down his nose with a cold attitude.

"Fine, one hundred and twenty it is!" Chen Li could only grit his teeth and agree.

He paid with one Mid-grade Spirit Stone, plus eighteen Low-grade Spirit Stones.

Chen Li carefully stuffed the small cloth bag containing the Qi Replenishing Pills into his chest, gently smoothing out his robe; fortunately, the robe was wide, so it was hard for others to notice.

"Prices are beginning to soar. Lucky I came into some unexpected wealth; otherwise, I wouldn’t know what to do with the savings I have," Chen Li shook his head, walked out of the doorway, then suddenly stopped, a thought striking him:

"Eh, wait, if prices are starting to skyrocket..."

The current situation clearly wasn’t going to end anytime soon.

What would be the fastest to rise in price during this period?

Spirit Rice?

No!

The expensive Spirit Rice isn’t essential for survival; there are other foods that can replace it. In fact, in this relatively primitive and savage world, filling one’s stomach is all too easy; a stroll in the wild is sufficient.

Magic Artifacts?

Again, no!

Magic Artifact prices are high, and those Loose Cultivators in the slums who can afford them already own them. Those who can’t afford them, well, they just can’t. Moreover, Magic Artifacts are not consumables; with patching and repairing, one could potentially use a Magic Artifact for a lifetime.

Pills?

Even less so!

These are luxury items for Loose Cultivators in the slums; before coming into this windfall, Chen Li had never even thought about buying pills to aid in cultivation. He even sold the bottle of Qi Replenishing Pills given to him by Zhao Wanjun to make money.

The prices that will skyrocket the most can only be... the moderately priced Featherweight Talismans and Amulets.

Nowadays, everyone in the slums feels endangered, lacking a sense of security. Wouldn’t you spend a little money on a Featherweight Talisman or an Amulet, just in case?

Even if you have one, do you feel safe?

Wouldn’t you want to keep a few extra, maybe ten or even dozens, just in case?

At that thought, Chen Li felt an epiphany, as if he had been enlightened. He hurried to one shop after another, and finally found one selling talismans that hadn’t raised its prices at all.

After all, it had only been one day since yesterday’s chaos.

Many people hadn’t yet realized it.

Chen Li made a decisive decision. Excluding the three reserved Mid-grade Spirit Stones and the twenty-one Low-grade Spirit Stones for daily expenses, he used all the remaining Spirit Stones to buy talismans.

Each talisman was one Spirit Stone more expensive than the street vendor’s price; however, this was the normal rate. Shop talismans had better effects and longer-lasting mana. It was hard for a Loose Cultivator’s homemade talismans to compete in the same price range unless they were well-known.

Chen Li bought a total of sixty-three Featherweight Talismans and sixty-four Amulets in all.

As he walked out the door,

Chen Li took a deep breath, his face suppressing excitement:

"As long as I’m not greedy and sell at the right time, I should be able to make a tidy profit... I never realized I had a talent for business. How come I never noticed that before?"