Chapter 90: Having Eyes, but Failing to Recognize Gold Inlaid with Jade

“Yeah, it’s strange. With Senior Sister Luo Jinhua’s ability, refining a Qi-Circulating Pill would be easy. And she’s not short on resources. Why would she need to sell powder here?”

The whispers reached Luo Jinhua’s ears, and her fair face flushed crimson all the way to her neck. While her strength wasn’t yet top-tier among the sect’s disciples, she had excellent aptitude, was doted on by her master, and was quite beautiful, making her the object of many admirers. A good number of people in the sect knew who she was.

Qin Haoxuan’s shouting finally attracted their first customer—though “heckler” would have been a more accurate term. He walked up to their stall and eyed the packets of powder with a critical gaze. “How much for your powder?” he asked nonchalantly.

Qin Haoxuan turned to consult with Pu Hanzhong and Xu Yu. Watching their serious discussion, Luo Jinhua couldn’t help but scoff internally. It’s just Qi-Circulating Powder. All seven packets together would be worth one or two third-tier spirit stones at most. What’s there to discuss? She had no desire to join their huddle, but when she overheard the price they decided on, she nearly had a seizure.

“One hundred and fifty low-grade, third-tier spirit stones a packet. What do you think?” Qin Haoxuan had said earnestly.

Pu Hanzhong coughed and shook his head. “I think that’s too low.”

“Then let’s sell it for two hundred,” Xu Yu chimed in.

Both Qin Haoxuan and Pu Hanzhong nodded in agreement.

Two hundred spirit stones for a single packet of powder? And the suggestion had come from Xu Yu! After her initial shock, Luo Jinhua shot a venomous glare at Qin Haoxuan and Pu Hanzhong. These two fools, she fumed. It’s bad enough that they’re unreliable, but how dare they lead Xu Yu astray as well? Even for her, a Twentieth-Leaf cultivator with good land, after all her expenses—cultivation resources, living costs, sect contributions, and her Attendants’ wages—she could only save about a hundred spirit stones a year. This powder cost two years of her entire income.

She thought she must have misheard. But then Qin Haoxuan picked up a piece of charcoal and added a few more words to the sign: “One Packet of Qi-Circulating Powder, 200 Low-Grade, Third-Tier Spirit Stones!”

The customer rubbed his eyes and stared at the sign. “How much did you say?” he asked in disbelief.

“Two hundred low-grade, third-tier spirit stones per packet,” Qin Haoxuan replied patiently, his expression perfectly serious.

“What? Two hundred for a pathetic packet of powder?” The customer, who had come over intending to mock them, leaped back as if his rear end was on fire. “Are you people insane?” he shrieked in a high, duck-like voice. He had run out of his own powder and, not wanting to wear out his furnace by making more, had been looking to buy some. Seeing a stall selling something as low-grade as Qi-Circulating Powder at a major market like Yixiantian had been too amusing to pass up. He had come over half-seriously, half to heckle, only to be met with this astronomical price. For an ordinary disciple like him, two hundred spirit stones was three or four years of income.

Qin Haoxuan just shook his head. “It’s a very fair price. The powder refined by our Junior Sister Xu is absolutely unique. Its effects are far superior to a Qi-Circulating Pill.”

“You’re mad, all of you! This isn’t a price, it’s robbery! Even armed bandits aren’t as shameless as you!”

His shouts drew the attention of passersby, who gathered around to watch the show. Two hundred spirit stones for a packet of powder? They must be crazy.

A strange expression crossed Luo Jinhua’s face. She couldn’t watch anymore. This wasn’t selling powder; this was public humiliation. She leaned in and whispered to Xu Yu, “No one is going to buy it at that price.”

Xu Yu just smiled. “Senior Sister, you don’t understand how good this powder is.”

By now, a large crowd had formed. The duck-voiced customer, emboldened, shouted, “Everyone, come and be the judge! Two hundred spirit stones for a packet of trash. Have you ever seen anything like it?”

“They must be insane!”

“A Qi-Circulating Pill is only worth three or four stones. This junk? You could buy four or five packets for a single stone!”

“Ignorance is bliss, I suppose. They must think spirit stones grow on trees.”

“I used to think I was naive when I first joined the sect,” another chimed in. “But compared to them, I feel a sudden sense of intellectual superiority.”

The crowd erupted in sharp, derisive laughter. The commotion had turned their unremarkable corner into the busiest spot in the entire stall district, though everyone was there to laugh, not to buy.

Just then, Qin Haoxuan spoke. “Talk is cheap. Seeing is believing. You’ll know how good the powder refined by my Junior Sister Xu is after you watch me take a packet!” He was about to sit down and demonstrate, but Xu Yu quickly stopped him.

“Brother Haoxuan, let me,” she said. “The spiritual energy in this powder is too strong, and the crowd might disturb you.”

He realized she was right. If an Uncolored Seed like him were to handle such a massive influx of energy, it would surely arouse suspicion. He let her take his place.

The small, seemingly delicate girl sat down cross-legged, picked up a packet of powder from the stall, and poured it into her mouth. It dissolved into a hot current that flowed into her Dantian. Luo Jinhua tried to stop her but was too late. She shot a venomous look at Qin Haoxuan and Pu Hanzhong. Xu Yu was an Unsurpassed Purple Seed. Every day of her cultivation was precious. Taking a powder meant she couldn’t take a pill, which was five times more effective. This would set her back.

The crowd fell silent, their mocking eyes fixed on the girl, waiting to see what this two-hundred-stone powder could do.

A surge of spiritual energy emanated from Xu Yu’s body. The onlookers were just starting to look for the vortex in her Dantian when a violent spiritual fluctuation occurred above her head. In an instant, a massive, basin-sized spiritual vortex erupted into existence, and the spiritual energy from all directions began to pour into it like an endless flood.

Luo Jinhua’s jaw dropped. The other spectators, who had come to watch a joke, stared with wide, incredulous eyes.

Is… is that really Qi-Circulating Powder? they thought. Isn’t that something even more powerful than a high-grade pill?

“My heavens, what kind of treasure was used to make this? The effect is insane! A Qi-Circulating Pill can’t even compare!”

“Damn! If I had a packet of that, with that much spiritual energy, I could finally break through to the Tenth-Leaf Realm! I’ve been stuck at the ninth leaf for half a year!”

“Me too! I’ve been stuck at a bottleneck. With a push like that, I’m sure I could break through! Two hundred spirit stones for that… it’s absolutely worth it!”

Just as the crowd was buzzing with excitement, a sharp-eyed observer raised a point. “Don’t get too excited. A normal powder lasts for an hour. This one is powerful, but if the effect is short-lived, it’s a huge waste of money.”

The others realized he was right and forced themselves to wait, their eyes glued on Xu Yu to see how long the effect would last. Half an hour passed, and the vortex above her head was still spinning frantically. Many in the crowd, now convinced, began to run off to gather spirit stones or tell their friends.

Qin Haoxuan watched her, pleased. A Purple Seed was a Purple Seed. Her rate of absorption was even a little faster than his. This only made for a more perfect demonstration. He knew that when they learned the effect lasted for three hours, there would be a mad rush. With the proceeds, he could buy another packet of Meridian Protecting Powder for her and refine some of the super-pills for them both.

Three hours later, the vortex finally faded. To Xu Yu, it had been a blissful period of frantic cultivation. To the crowd, it had been an agonizing wait. The original seven packets were now down to six. The crowd was now a tense mob of eager buyers, including many high-level cultivators who had been drawn by the news. Two hundred stones was not cheap, but for a chance to advance one’s cultivation, it was a price many were willing to pay.

(End of Chapter)