12: Chapter 12 Setting up a stall in the Cloud and Mist Market

After figuring out the market prices, Baili Yunche decided to sort out the stall-setting procedures first.

He walked over to a stall selling Magical Artifacts. The stall owner was a stubbly middle-aged man who was wiping a long sword.

"Senior Brother, excuse me. This is my first time coming to Yunwu Market. May I ask what procedures I need to complete if I want to set up a stall here?"

The middle-aged man raised his head to look at him. Seeing that he was a young Utility Disciple, he didn't look down on him and said in a rough voice: "Go to the market management office, pay two Spirit Stones, and get a stall permit. The permit is valid for the day and becomes void afterwards."

"Where is the management office?"

"Walk north along this street, and you will see a three-story small building."

"Many thanks, Senior Brother!" Baili Yunche cupped his hands in thanks and turned to walk north.

Sure enough, after walking for about half the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, a three-story wooden building with flying eaves and upturned corners appeared before his eyes.

A plaque hung in front of the building, inscribed with the eight large, powerful characters: "Yunwu Market Comprehensive Enforcement Office".

Entering the hall, there were already seven or eight Cultivators waiting in line inside.

When it was Baili Yunche's turn, the deacon Disciple behind the counter didn't even raise his head: "What is the matter?"

"I would like to apply for a stall permit."

"Two Spirit Stones, valid for one day." The deacon Disciple handed over a wooden plaque,

"The permit cannot be lent to others, and you cannot set up a stall in non-designated areas. Violators will have their goods confiscated and be expelled from the market."

Baili Yunche handed over two Spirit Stones and took the wooden plaque.

The wooden plaque was the size of a palm, with "Stall Permit" engraved on the front and a small formation on the back, which should be an anti-counterfeiting mark.

With the procedures completed, he hurried back to the free stall area on the west side, found a relatively eye-catching yet not too crowded spot, and spread out a piece of coarse cloth.

He took out twenty jade bottles from his Storage Pouch and arranged them neatly in two rows.

The ten bottles on the left were Low Grade spirit gathering pills, and the ten bottles on the right were Medium Grade spirit gathering pills.

To attract attention, he even specially made a simple sign out of a piece of wood, which read:

"Low Grade spirit gathering pills, 50 Spirit Stones per bottle!"

"Medium Grade spirit gathering pills, 90 Spirit Stones per bottle!"

"Purchase three bottles or more and enjoy a 20% discount!"

"Only Spirit Stones accepted, no bargaining!"

This price was quite competitive at the stalls.

Especially the Medium Grade spirit gathering pills, which were at least 10 Spirit Stones lower than the market price, and with the multiple-purchase discount introduced, Cultivators were quickly attracted over.

The first customer was a thin man in black, whose cultivation base was around the eighth layer of Qi Refining.

He squatted in front of the stall, picked up a bottle of Medium Grade spirit gathering pills, pulled out the cork, and checked carefully.

Pouring out the Medicinal Pill, three clear pill patterns came into view.

He leaned in closer to sniff it; the medicinal fragrance was pure with no odd smells.

"It is indeed Medium Grade." The man in black nodded and said straightforwardly: "Give me four bottles."

"Alright!" Baili Yunche was overjoyed in his heart. This was a great start!

He nimbly took out four bottles of Medium Grade spirit gathering pills and handed them to the man in black.

The man in black took them and unclipped a gray cloth bag from his waist: "There are 288 Spirit Stones in here, count them."

Baili Yunche swept his spiritual sense across it, and the count was correct.

But only then did he discover a problem: he didn't have a Storage Pouch himself!

He couldn't possibly stuff these 288 Spirit Stones into his robes, could he?

He spoke somewhat awkwardly: "Senior Brother, I... don't have a Storage Pouch yet. I wonder if you can transfer this Storage Pouch of yours to me? I will buy it at market price."

The man in black was slightly startled, then laughed and said: "Sure. This is a lowest-tier Storage Pouch with a space of only half a cubic meter, and its market price is 100 Spirit Stones. I gave you 288 just now, so I'll just give you back 188."

He counted out 188 Spirit Stones from the cloth bag to return to Baili Yunche and handed over the emptied Storage Pouch:

"You can use it by dripping blood to claim ownership. However, the Restriction of this kind of low-level Storage Pouch is relatively simple, so it is best not to store anything too precious in it."

"Many thanks for the reminder, Senior Brother!" Baili Yunche took the Storage Pouch, bit his fingertip, and dripped a drop of blood onto it.

The moment the blood seeped into the cloth bag, he felt a faint connection establish itself. With a thought, he could sense the half-cubic-meter space inside the bag.

With the first deal successfully completed, Baili Yunche's confidence greatly increased.

He put the Spirit Stones into the newly acquired Storage Pouch and continued to wait for the next customer.

After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, a woman wearing the red attire of an Outer Sect Disciple stopped in front of the stall.

This woman was around eighteen or nineteen years old, with a pretty appearance and a hint of heroic spirit between her brows.

She first looked at the sign, then squatted down and picked up a bottle of spirit gathering pills to inspect.

Unlike the man in black, she inspected it exceptionally thoroughly. Not only did she look at the pill patterns and smell the medicinal fragrance, but she also scraped off a little bit of pill powder and tasted it lightly with the tip of her tongue.

"The medicinal power is pure, the Impurities are minimal, and the quality is very good."

The woman in red evaluated, then looked up at Baili Yunche with curiosity in her eyes.

"Junior Brother, may I make bold to ask... Are these Medicinal Pills refined by you?"

Baili Yunche's heart tightened, but he maintained a calm expression on the surface: "Senior Sister is joking, how would I know how to do Alchemy. These were entrusted to me by a Senior Brother to sell on his behalf."

"Oh?" The woman in red's eyes lit up. "I wonder what your Senior Brother's esteemed name is? Could you introduce us?"

"To tell you the truth, I am quite interested in the Dao of Alchemy and have always wanted to find a good teacher for guidance."

Baili Yunche secretly thought it was bad; this woman actually wanted to get to the bottom of it.

What Alchemist Senior Brother could he possibly have? It was all thanks to the creation divine cauldron.

"This... I'm afraid that's not very convenient." He feigned hesitation.

"That Senior Brother has a withdrawn personality and dislikes interacting with others. When he entrusted me to sell the pills, he specifically instructed me not to reveal his identity."

Hearing this, a look of obvious disappointment appeared on the woman in red's face: "Is that so..."

Seeing her expression, Baili Yunche's heart stirred, and he asked: "Does Senior Sister wish to purchase Medicinal Pills?"

"Ah, yes!" The woman in red snapped back to reality. "I want all of these spirit gathering pills of yours."

"All of them?" Baili Yunche was slightly startled. "Is Senior Sister certain? There are sixteen bottles here..."

"Certain." The woman in red's tone was affirmative. "I want both the Low Grade and Medium Grade ones. Calculate how many Spirit Stones it is in total, and give me a discount."

Baili Yunche quickly calculated mentally: "Ten bottles of Low Grade, original price 500 Spirit Stones; six bottles of Medium Grade, original price 540 Spirit Stones. A total of 1,300 Spirit Stones. Calculated at a 20% discount... 832 Spirit Stones."

"800 Spirit Stones, how about we round it up?" The woman in red bargained.

"This..." Baili Yunche hesitated for a moment.

32 Spirit Stones were not a small sum to him, but seeing that this woman was buying so many at once, she was clearly a big client. It would be better to do her a favor.

"Alright, 800 Spirit Stones it is." He nodded and agreed.

The woman in red smiled, unfastened an exquisite Storage Pouch from her waist, and counted out 800 Spirit Stones.

Piled together, these Spirit Stones flashed with spiritual light, drawing envious glances from several surrounding stall owners.

With the transaction complete, Baili Yunche packed up the sixteen bottles of Medicinal Pills and handed them over.

The woman in red took them, but did not leave immediately. Instead, she asked: "Junior Brother, can we exchange sound transmission talismans? If you have any more Medicinal Pills for sale in the future, can you contact me first?"

Baili Yunche thought about it; this wasn't a bad thing.

Having a stable client was always better than trying one's luck every time he set up a stall.

"Very well. However, my Senior Brother does Alchemy irregularly, so I don't know when we will have stock next time."

"No matter, just notify me when there is stock." The woman in red took out a palm-sized jade talisman: "This is my sound transmission talisman. You can use it by infusing it with spiritual power."

Baili Yunche also took out his own sound transmission talisman and exchanged it with her.

After the two exchanged sound transmission talismans, the woman in red turned and left, her figure quickly disappearing into the crowd.

Baili Yunche weighed the heavy Storage Pouch in his hand, feeling a wave of emotion in his heart.

In just a single hour, he had brought in over 1,000 Spirit Stones. A month ago, this would have seemed like an astronomical figure.

"Indeed, Alchemy is truly a super-profitable industry..." He muttered to himself.

Packing up his stall and standing up, Baili Yunche did not leave the market immediately.

He planned to use these Spirit Stones to purchase some items needed for Foundation Establishment. Although it mainly relied on the foundation establishment pill, auxiliary calming incense was also indispensable.

Walking down the bustling street, Baili Yunche suddenly had a wondrous feeling.

Ten days ago, he was still a Utility Disciple worrying over a few Spirit Stones. Ten days later, he was already carrying a fortune, about to undergo Foundation Establishment and shake off his identity at the very bottom of the Immortal Realm.