3: Chapter 3 The Way to Get Rich

The annual quota for each Bug Catcher is Poisonous Insects worth 40,000 coins, calculated based on species, quality, size, and other standards, with live ones worth double that of dead ones.

There are a few types of Poisonous Insects with the highest value, all of which are capped at 40,000 coins.

The fist-sized Five-colored Scorpion is one of them.

Just one is enough to meet the quota; everything else is pure profit.

Once the quota is met, they are paid for however many they catch.

A Bug Catcher's annual income ranges from four or five thousand coins to over ten thousand coins.

Farmers could work themselves to death and still not earn two thousand coins by the end of the year!

However, a Bug Catcher's annual expenses are also significant.

To ensure physical strength, everyone must practice martial arts and eat well.

Entering the mountains requires all sorts of equipment and medicine, which is a huge expense; if one can save one or two thousand coins a year, that is already very good.

Bug Catchers use many common medicines, such as calamus water, which is brewed from various herbs and is very bitter; it is drunk to enhance the body's resistance to toxic miasma.

Insect-repellent powder is sprinkled around oneself to form a protective circle.

In addition, for common Poisonous Insects like snakes, scorpions, centipedes, and spiders, each requires a specific antidote.

In Dawu Mountain, there are too many large Poisonous Insects, and everyone has been bitten at least once; as long as the face hasn't turned black and the antidote is taken in time, there is a chance of survival.

These prescriptions are taught by the Gu Bureau, but they are not free; each prescription costs five hundred coins.

Besides these, there are also medicines made by each family themselves.

Xia Shaoxin now had the Shangqing Profound Mirror and did not want to bother with the ordinary medicines mentioned above.

He decided to make the miraculous "miasma-repelling pill"!

The situation in Dawu Mountain is complex, and the toxic miasma is elusive; sometimes, large amounts of toxic miasma gather suddenly, and ordinary medicines cannot disperse it, so one must rely on the miasma-repelling pill to save one's life.

The miasma-repelling pill is a high-grade medicine, said to be close to the level of a Sect's "Medicinal Pill"; after taking it, one is immune to all poisons for twelve hours, allowing one to roam Dawu Mountain freely.

Bug Catchers always carry one when entering the mountain, just in case of an emergency.

This medicine is sold exclusively by the Gu Bureau for five thousand coins per pill.

The prescription is not expensive, selling for only fifteen hundred coins.

When Xia Shaoxin's grandfather was young, he was high-spirited and once wealthy; he spared no expense to buy it, but when he looked at it, he was dumbfounded—he couldn't afford to use it at all.

Among the ingredients, there are two: Daqi Sanghuang, which comes from the Qi State, and the Spirit Deer, which is a Spirit Beast and exceptionally precious.

Wanting to make the miasma-repelling pill yourself and use it throughout your time in the mountains is completely uneconomical.

The miasma-repelling pill in Xia Shaoxin's home was used up in the mountains last year; he had intended to buy one this year, but now he didn't need to.

With the Shangqing Profound Mirror, he could turn one into a hundred; no matter how expensive the medicine was, he could lower the cost significantly.

Xia Shaoxin thought, "If I can take the miasma-repelling pill, wouldn't the deepest part of the mountain, where no Bug Catcher has ever set foot, become my territory?"

He took all his money and went to Li Family Hollow again.

He didn't go to the Gu Bureau, but instead went to the pharmacy in town.

This place was near the area filled with toxic miasma, so business at the pharmacy was very good, and Xia Shaoxin went to the largest one.

He asked for Daqi Sanghuang and Spirit Deer blood as soon as he opened his mouth.

"What are you buying these two ingredients for?" the shopkeeper asked, very surprised.

"What, I'm buying medicine, and you still want to investigate my purpose?"

"No, no." The shopkeeper revealed a knowing smile, "You wouldn't be trying to make a miasma-repelling pill, would you?"

Xia Shaoxin kept a straight face and said, "Do you mean to say these two ingredients have no other uses?"

"Used separately, they naturally have other uses, but combined, they are only for the miasma-repelling pill."

Exposed, Xia Shaoxin couldn't be bothered to answer, "Are you going to sell them or not?"

"Of course I'll sell!"

The shopkeeper nimbly took out a box, "I have ready-made miasma-repelling pills here."

Xia Shaoxin leaned in to look; the color was yellowish-pink, and it had a fragrant scent; the quality seemed even better than the Gu Bureau's.

"How about it? Ten pills to a box; you give me forty-five thousand coins."

Xia Shaoxin hastily retreated, keeping his distance.

The shopkeeper said with a grin, "Little brother, it's a good deal, cheaper than what the Gu Bureau sells."

Xia Shaoxin waved his hand in disgust, "Take it away. I'm asking you, how do you sell Daqi Sanghuang and Spirit Deer blood? Don't just make up a price!"

The shopkeeper said seriously, "To make ten miasma-repelling pills, you need seven qian of Daqi Sanghuang, priced at fifteen hundred coins per qian. You need five qian of Spirit Deer blood, at two thousand coins per qian. The cost for just these two ingredients is twenty thousand, plus other herbs—you can calculate it yourself."

Xia Shaoxin smiled slightly, "Fine, give me seven fen of Daqi Sanghuang and five fen of Spirit Deer blood."

This was the amount to make one miasma-repelling pill.

"Kid, making Medicinal Pills is very difficult. Do you think just gathering the ingredients is enough? There are many indescribable techniques involved; if you try to make one, it will very easily fail."

Xia Shaoxin couldn't be bothered to argue, "If you won't sell, I'll go to another shop; you're wasting my time."

The shopkeeper had no choice; he put away the finished miasma-repelling pills, took out a small scale, and sold him seven fen of Daqi Sanghuang and five fen of Spirit Deer blood.

The other ingredients were all here, so Xia Shaoxin didn't go to another shop and had them weighed together, all just enough for one miasma-repelling pill.

As the shopkeeper weighed the medicine, he said, "I don't know whose kid you are, but you're just wasting money. Different trades are worlds apart, do you know that?"

Xia Shaoxin turned a deaf ear, looking like a prodigal son squandering his parents' money.

He thought to himself, "Just this little bit of stuff cost me over two thousand—enough for one foot of a wife."

After buying the medicine, he hurried home, locked the door, sat on the bed, placed all the medicine in front of him, closed his eyes, and quickly calmed his mind.

He entered meditation, and the Shangqing Profound Mirror gradually became clear in his consciousness.

With a trance-like feeling, his perspective shifted to that of the bronze mirror, and he could actually see the things on the bed despite his eyes being tightly closed.

He recited the incantation silently in his heart—he didn't know what those pronunciations meant, but he had learned them inexplicably.

A beam of light shot out from between his eyebrows, and the Daqi Sanghuang disappeared.

Various knowledge regarding the identification, origin, and medicinal properties of Daqi Sanghuang miraculously passed through his mind.

He was greatly surprised; it turned out that for every medicinal herb sacrificed, he could obtain all the knowledge about it. Given time, he would be a physician with vast knowledge.

"I sacrificed seven fen of Daqi Sanghuang, and I can only convert seven qian of Daqi Sanghuang each time. So the effect of the Shangqing Profound Mirror is to increase it tenfold."

New knowledge kept emerging in his mind.

It turned out that each type of medicine only had one chance for sacrifice. Since he sacrificed seven fen of Daqi Sanghuang this time, he could only convert seven qian each time in the future.

"This is troublesome. It will be difficult when I encounter times that require larger amounts."

His expression relaxed, the Shangqing Profound Mirror faded from his consciousness, and he instinctively opened his eyes.

"Forget it, I'll deal with future matters later."

He readjusted his mood and entered meditation again.

Calmly, he finished sacrificing the dozen or so medicines.

He suddenly thought that this world allowed for cultivation; he had heard that Sect Disciples, besides refining Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi themselves, could also take Medicinal Pills. Now that he had the Shangqing Profound Mirror, could he walk this path?

He didn't know anything about which Sects were in the Yue Kingdom.

The villagers of Liushu Ao never talked about this because the Sects were too far away.

The imperial court had relations with the Sects, but unfortunately, few people in Li Family Hollow talked about cultivation Sects.

He would deal with this later; first, he had to make the miasma-repelling pill, go into the mountains to make a fortune, raise enough money to remove his name from the registry, and leave Dawu Mountain.

"Sacrifice complete; it's time to let the Shangqing Profound Mirror convert the medicine for me."

He would start by converting the expensive ones.

What was similar to Spirit Deer blood was naturally pig blood, duck blood, or chicken blood.

He would go to the village immediately and buy a chicken from a villager.

In terms of living conditions, the Xia family was the best, and basically, all the chickens in the village were sold to the Xia family to be eaten.

But these farmers were unwilling to marry their daughters to the Xia family.

They would even double the bride price.

Xia Shaoxin bought the chicken and returned home; the kitchen had already been knocked down, so he slaughtered it in the courtyard.

He got a bowl of blood, too lazy to deal with the chicken, threw it on the ground, and quickly ran back to his room, concentrated, meditated, and the Shangqing Profound Mirror appeared in his mind.

He recited another completely incomprehensible incantation, and a beam of light shot out from between his eyebrows, spreading into the bowl.

A bowl of blood was at least half a jin, and only a small lump in the middle turned into Spirit Deer blood, separating itself from the surrounding chicken blood.

He carefully picked up the five qian of Spirit Deer blood; the color and smell were exactly the same.

"Haha, it worked!"

He quickly used another bowl to store it.

Suddenly, he felt dizzy, nausea surged, and he collapsed onto the bed.

He didn't wake up until midnight.

"So, the bronze mirror can only convert medicine once a day, and it consumes my Qi and blood."

His body was extremely weak, he couldn't get up, and he gradually drifted back to sleep until dawn.

When he woke up, the Spirit Deer blood in the bowl emitted a strange fragrance; he quickly stored it away.

He took out the mirror from home and looked at himself in the daylight; his lips were dry and pale.

He went to the courtyard; the chicken was still on the ground, so he hurriedly picked it up.

Having been outside all night, it didn't smell fresh anymore.

There was absolutely no reason to waste it; after roasting it, it was still very fragrant.

He wolfed it down, replenishing his Qi and blood.