Raise a sword!

Jiang Peng quickly packed up her stall and left the northeast corner without any hesitation.

Qian Laosi followed along.

Having sought refuge with the Song family, Qian Laosi no longer expects to earn any income from his stall; he's here simply to maintain his relationship with Jiang Peng.

With Jiang Peng gone, he naturally had no reason to stay any longer.

"These gangs have never dared to go this far before. They mostly rely on casinos and loan sharking to survive in the market... There are many families in the market, and Cangshan Pavilion is in charge. How could they have the right to occupy territory?"

Qian Laosi said in a low voice, "This matter is probably not as simple as it seems on the surface. There should be someone else behind that Iron Wolf Gang."

Jiang Peng knew that Qian Laosi was reminding him not to act impulsively.

However, Jiang Peng had no intention of making enemies with the Iron Wolf Gang.

There is more than one market in the northeast corner of the market, but the northeast corner is the most prosperous.

...

After saying goodbye to Qian Laosi, Jiang Peng went to Baicaotang to buy spiritual materials in preparation for his alchemy.

"The ingredients for the Qi Condensation Pill and the Rejuvenation Pill should be the same as last time..."

Before Jiang Peng could finish speaking, the shop assistant behind the counter interrupted, "I'm sorry, Alchemist Jiang, but due to the recent beast tide, the price of spiritual materials has skyrocketed, and the owner has decided to stop selling them to outsiders."

Upon hearing this, Jiang Peng frowned immediately.

Before and after the beast tide, the price of raw materials for alchemy had increased three or four times.

Now, the price of Qi Condensation Pills sold by Jiang Peng has increased from three spirit stones each to six spirit stones, almost doubling.

This price is also comparable to that of Baicaotang's pill-making products.

This matter was originally of no concern to Jiang Peng, because the price increase actually increased his profits.

But now they're not even selling the spiritual materials for alchemy... So, money is what drives people's hearts? The profits from low-end pills have become so great that even a traditional merchant like Baicaotang can't sit still anymore?

Thinking of this, Jiang Peng didn't linger and turned to leave.

The materials for the Qi Condensation Pill are not complicated; only first-tier spiritual plants with sufficient spiritual energy are needed, and they are highly replaceable.

There are other shops in the market besides Baicaotang that sell spiritual materials. If you can't find the complete set, you can try to buy them separately.

However, just as Jiang Peng was about to leave Baicaotang, a voice suddenly called out from behind her.

"Master Jiang, please wait."

Jiang Peng turned around and saw Wu Qian, the manager of Baicaotang, walking out from the back room.

Wu Qian quickly approached Jiang Peng and said with a smile, "I heard the commotion in the back hall just now, and I knew it was Alchemist Jiang... Did Alchemist Jiang come for the spiritual materials?"

"Could it be that you're here to buy Qi Condensation Pills?" Jiang Peng made a lame joke.

Wu Qian laughed loudly, "Master Jiang is joking. Nowadays, everyone knows that Master Jiang's alchemy skills are excellent, and the pills he produces are of a higher quality than those sold by our Hundred Herbs Hall."

Jiang Peng shook his head and said, "That's because the best quality ones were all sent to the Cangshan Sect."

As she spoke, Jiang Peng looked at Wu Qian, who was all smiles, and immediately realized what he meant.

"Manager Wu, I'm a straightforward person, so please just say what you have to say."

Upon hearing this, Wu Qian said, "Let's bring up the old matter again and invite Master Jiang to join my Hundred Herbs Hall."

Jiang Peng shook his head without hesitation and said, "If I wanted to join, I wouldn't have refused in the first place. Since I refused, there's no reason for me to go back and agree."

Although he was rejected to his face, Wu Qian was not angry.

"Master Jiang, you shouldn't speak too definitively... You haven't heard the conditions offered by our Baicaotang yet."

Jiang Peng raised an eyebrow slightly.

"for example?"

Wu Qian said, "For example, whatever you need for cultivation in the future, Master Jiang, my Baicaotang will cover it all."

Jiang Peng remained silent.

The resources consumed in the Qi Refining stage of cultivation are Qi Condensation Pills.

He has so much of this stuff that he can sell it all; he doesn't need anyone else to pack it for him.

Wu Qian observed Jiang Peng's expression and, seeing that he did not react, said, "We can also provide Master Jiang with a residence in the city, at least a Class C residence... Of course, Master Jiang will have to pay the rent himself, but ordinary people cannot rent Class C residences. Baicaotang is happy to serve Master Jiang in arranging this matter for Cangshan Pavilion."

After saying this, Wu Qian saw a slight change in Jiang Peng's expression and thought that she had finally fallen for him.

He added, "Bai Cao Tang is also willing to provide Alchemist Jiang with a channel to the Upper Sect. Although we cannot directly allow Alchemist Jiang to join the Cangshan Sect, we can at least allow Alchemist Jiang to go to the Upper Sect's Pill Hall to broaden his horizons."

After hearing the conditions offered by Manager Wu, Jiang Peng was at a loss for how to respond.

The other party's intention to recruit him was genuine, but Baicaotang's impression of him seemed to be stuck two years ago when he first came to the market.

That makes sense.

He was just a rogue alchemist; there was really no need for him to pay too much attention to a force like Hundred Herbs Hall that specialized in alchemy.

Jiang Peng put on a polite smile.

"I have other matters to attend to, so I'll take my leave now."

Watching Jiang Peng walk away, Wu Qian narrowed his eyes slightly and snorted, "Heh, doesn't know what's good for him."

...

Jiang Peng probably knew that after rejecting Baicaotang's offers twice in a row, his relationship with Baicaotang would likely come to an end.

However, Jiang Peng didn't really care.

Baicaotang cannot monopolize the market's elixir and spiritual material business. At worst, they can just buy spiritual materials from another shop in the future.

After leaving Baicaotang, Jiang Peng quickly found another medicine shop in the market.

To Jiang Peng's surprise, he received the same answer at the new store.

"Sorry, we do not sell spiritual materials; we only sell finished pills."

As Jiang Peng stepped out of the shop, she suddenly realized that something seemed to have happened quietly.

The shop I just visited runs the exact same business as Baicaotang. I chose Baicaotang simply because it was on my way.

"Something's not right." Jiang Peng frowned. "Either a few shops are colluding to inflate prices and make a killing, or the Cangshan Sect has issued an order for some reason, and the market has no choice but to comply."

Jiang Peng felt that it was more likely the former.

After all, the materials for the Qi Condensation Pill are not rare, and the Cangshan Sect is too high and mighty to be interested in such a small profit.

With that in mind, Jiang Peng visited all the relevant shops in the market in one go.

As he had predicted, all the shops stopped selling spiritual materials.

Not only the matching spiritual materials, but even the spiritual materials sold individually have disappeared.

The shops only sell pills, and even those are limited in quantity.

"Someone is manipulating the market." Jiang Peng's suspicions were confirmed, but the matter still needed to be resolved.

Jiang Peng's income comes entirely from alchemy. If he were to stop alchemy, he would immediately find himself living off his savings.

After much deliberation, Jiang Peng finally arrived at Cangshan Pavilion and met Liu Quan.

After explaining her desire to purchase spiritual materials, Liu Quan did not agree on the spot, but instead told Jiang Peng to go back and wait.

This wait lasted for half a month.