In the opulent and quiet VIP room.

Ling Changqing’s eyes were downcast as he silently sampled the Spirit Tea and Snacks on the table beside him, not saying a word.

The one receiving them was a dignified and beautiful young woman in a blue dress. Her Cultivation had already reached the Peak of the Ninth Level of Qi Cultivation, just one step away from Foundation Establishment. A Spiritual Light shimmered around her, a clear sign of her considerable wealth.

But this was hardly surprising. For a Cultivator to hold the position of a Powerful Steward at an Elixir Medicine Shop for years, the perks must be quite substantial.

After a short while, Ling Qiyue gracefully set down her teacup. Her gaze fell upon the serene young woman opposite her as she spoke softly,

"Your shop has always offered fair prices, and this isn’t our first time working together. The quantity of Elixirs is a bit larger than in previous years, but for a business of your scale, it shouldn’t be much of a problem, right?"

The young woman in blue smiled and nodded, her voice soft and gentle.

"Fellow Daoist Ling, this is hardly your first visit to our shop, so you’re well aware of the market rates. There’s no need for unnecessary words. How about we use the same price as our last transaction?"

Ling Qiyue pondered for a moment before nodding in satisfaction.

"Fellow Daoist Yun is indeed straightforward. Then it’s settled! In the future, when I have more resources, I will give you priority, Fellow Daoist Yun."

As she spoke, she retrieved more than ten exquisite Jade Boxes from her Storage Pouch and placed them on the adjacent table.

Neatly arranged inside the Jade Boxes were numerous Pill Bottles, all filled with Elixirs personally refined by Ling Qiyue. There were over ten different types, including Beauty Pills, Bone Marrow Condensing Pills, and Qingyuan Cloud Dew Pills, all in considerable quantities.

Several Maids came forward, took the Jade Boxes, and presented them to the young woman surnamed Yun. Only after she had inspected them one by one did they take them away again.

"Fellow Daoist Ling truly lives up to her reputation as a Second Rank High Grade Alchemist. The quality of these personally refined Elixirs can be classified as top-tier. It seems you are not far from the Pseudo Core stage."

The young woman surnamed Yun sighed in admiration. She had been doing business with Ling Qiyue for more than a couple of years. The rapid speed of this female Pill Master’s Cultivation improvement and the obvious progress in her Alchemy Mastery were truly rare and outstanding.

Therefore, as long as it didn’t harm the shop’s interests, she didn’t mind giving the other party a few extra discounts to foster a good relationship.

A short while later, a Maid walked in carrying a magnificent gold-inlaid, jade-embellished tray and bowed slightly before Ling Qiyue.

On the tray sat a beautiful Storage Pouch with a red base and gold patterns, filled to the brim with Middle grade Spirit Stones. The value of this batch of Elixirs was clearly extraordinary.

Ling Qiyue smiled but didn’t take the Storage Pouch. Instead, she continued, "This time, I also plan to purchase a batch of resources to take back with me. So, there’s no need to give me the Spirit Stones just yet. How about we settle the bill all at once after I’m done shopping?"

The young woman surnamed Yun smiled and nodded. "No problem. Feel free to ask for whatever you need, Fellow Daoist. As long as our shop has the resource, I can give it to you at the most favorable price."

With that, she had a Maid present a palm-sized Jade Talisman. It was a Magical Artifact that recorded thousands of types of Cultivation Resources, with detailed descriptions of their names, quantities, effects, and uses.

Ling Qiyue took it and scanned through it quickly, letting out a small sigh of relief.

Most of the auxiliary resources needed to complement the Soul-Devouring Blood Soul Fruit were in stock on this list.

’As for the missing ones, I should be able to gather them by visiting the other shops, right?’

As for the other development resources the Ling Family urgently needed, nearly half could be found on the list, and the prices were very fair.

Compared to all previous transactions, this time’s harvest was certainly not small.

"...Alright, I’ll take all of these resources. Could I trouble Fellow Daoist Yun to calculate the total? I will cover the difference with Spirit Stones."

Ling Qiyue said with a smile to the young woman after making her selections.

The young woman surnamed Yun took the Jade Talisman and scanned it. Her eyes glimmered as she said meaningfully, "It seems Fellow Daoist Ling is also far-sighted, with no small ambition."

"Mm, all these resources can be provided as requested. Fellow Daoist Ling, you just need to make up the difference of five thousand five hundred Low grade Spirit Stones."

Ling Qiyue nodded. "No problem. I will remember this favor, Fellow Daoist Yun!"

This Steward Yun had indeed given her a significant discount, which was why Ling Qiyue had expressed herself this way.

The young woman smiled demurely. "With that promise from you, Fellow Daoist Ling, I can rest assured."

With her insight, she could roughly guess some of Ling Qiyue’s intentions. However, since these matters didn’t conflict with her own interests, she was happy to feign ignorance.

In any case, she was running a business. Did it matter who she sold the resources to? As long as the shop’s profits were guaranteed, nothing else was important.

At her command, it wasn’t long before a Maid entered carrying another magnificent gold-inlaid, jade-embellished tray, upon which sat an exquisite, large-capacity Storage Pouch.

Ling Qiyue reached out, took the Storage Pouch, and opened it. With the Divine Sense of a Foundation Establishment Cultivator, she inspected the contents in just a few breaths.

"Excellent. When I come again next time, I will still choose to work with you, Fellow Daoist Yun."

Ling Qiyue looked satisfied. With these resources, the raw materials for many types of Elixirs could now be gathered.

The two women exchanged a few more pleasantries before Ling Qiyue rose to take her leave. The young woman surnamed Yun personally saw her out the door.

"...Senior Sister Yue, where are we going next?"

Ling Changqing asked in a low voice, looking at the bustling, lively street teeming with people and carriages.

Tang Qiu Yao said, "Let’s find an inn to settle in first. Then we can go check out the other shops and markets, and the auction house too. It’s a rare trip here, so we ought to get as many resources as we can before heading back."

So, the three of them chose a high-end inn in a prime location within the Marketplace and rented a private courtyard.

In the lavish and exquisitely decorated bedroom, Tang Qiu Yao took out nine dark Array Banners and set up a circular Shielding Array Restriction.

When away from home, one had to be cautious about everything. After all, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Ling Qiyue took the resources out of the Storage Pouch and carefully inspected and inventoried them one more time before finally feeling at ease.

"As long as we can gather the remaining materials on the list, I can start Opening the Furnace and Refining Pills once we get back,"

Tang Qiu Yao said, "When the new Foundation Establishment Pills are ready, what will the Wu Family’s meager strength amount to?"

"It’s still too early to say,"

Ling Qiyue frowned in thought. "The remaining materials are no ordinary resources. The other merchant guilds and auction houses might not have them. I just hope our plan doesn’t fall through!"

Tang Qiu Yao glanced at the handsome, purple-robed youth beside her, her eyes brimming with a smile.

"There’s nothing to worry about. With the help of Ling Changqing’s Luck and Fortune, I refuse to believe we’ll return empty-handed this time."

"You’re right,"

Ling Qiyue’s face broke into a smile. "This guy’s performance has always exceeded our expectations. I imagine this time will be no exception, right?"

Ling Changqing felt a little speechless. "Senior Sister, please don’t flatter me. I’m just a newcomer at the Qi Cultivation Stage. How could I possibly guarantee something like this?"

"Don’t sell yourself short,"

Tang Qiu Yao wrapped an arm around his waist and said with a grin, "Little Junior Brother, your true use far exceeds your own estimations. Your Cultivation is still low right now, but you’ll understand in the future."

"I hope so. I’m happy as long as I can help you, Senior Sister."

Ling Changqing said impassively. He actually understood what was going on, but with his current lack of strength, it was best to keep a low profile and hide his abilities.

After a moment of thought, Ling Changqing asked again, "Senior Sister Yue, once we’ve purchased all the necessary resources, can we head back?"

Ling Qiyue said, "Of course. However, I have a few good friends here I plan to visit. It won’t take too long."

Ling Changqing grew thoughtful. As the Patriarch, Ling Qiyue was bound to have her own secret connections and various under-the-table resource partnerships.

If she didn’t even have that much backing, the Ling Family’s foundation would have been devoured long ago.

Looking around, Ling Changqing continued, "Senior Sisters, I’ll go rest in the next room. Shall we head out together tomorrow morning?"

Night had already fallen, so it was clearly not a good time to continue wandering outside.

"Mm, go on. We’ll call you if anything comes up."

Tang Qiu Yao said, watching the purple-robed youth leave the room.

Glancing at Tang Qiu Yao’s expression, Ling Qiyue asked casually, "Don’t you have some ideas about that guy? Why don’t you go sleep with him?"

Tang Qiu Yao was taken aback, and clouds of red flushed her snow-white, jade-like face. "What nonsense are you talking about? When have I ever had ideas about him?"

"Hah, still denying it?!"

Ling Qiyue suddenly reached out and playfully grazed her plump, full bosom, teasing,

"You think you can hide those little thoughts from me? Besides, from the way that guy looks at you normally, it’s like he can’t wait to pounce and strip you bare. You’d better not let him succeed by accident, you hear?"

"You..."

Tang Qiu Yao’s beautiful face turned crimson with embarrassment. She slapped away Ling Qiyue’s mischievous jade-like hand and gritted her teeth.

"Don’t just talk about me, what about you? I can see that audacious lecher has no intention of letting you go in the future!"

"Hmph, he’d dare?!"

Ling Qiyue scoffed. "He can talk once he’s strong enough to beat me. For now, he can only be suppressed by us!"

"You can’t be so sure. With Ling Changqing’s Luck and Fortune, he’s growing so fast. Never mind Foundation Establishment, I doubt even the Golden Core Realm will be his limit, right?"

Tang Qiu Yao’s dark brows furrowed slightly. Although she hadn’t spent much time with Ling Changqing, she had a deep sense of the extraordinariness of this youth.

Ling Qiyue didn’t disagree much with this. "Let’s hope that day comes. But if it really does, I’m afraid the Ling Family won’t be able to keep him."

"Why not?"

Tang Qiu Yao pinched Ling Qiyue’s smooth, firm waist and said with a grin,

"As long as you’re willing to condescend to marry him and make him your Dao Companion, you’ll naturally be family. Would you still have to worry about him running off then?"

"..."