Cultivating Immortality Through a Hundred Lifetimes: I Possess the Heavenly Book of Merit

Yu Yan withdrew his gaze and stopped looking at Zhou Yan's tightly closed door.

He walked along the path, through the bamboo forest, and out of the gate of the Tianyuan Dojo.

The streets were even more bustling this morning than yesterday.

The monk vendors selling breakfast had already set up their stalls, and the steaming aroma wafted through the air.

Some cultivators sat leisurely on small stools by the roadside, drinking spirit rice porridge from bowls and eating spirit beast meat buns with great relish.

The mundane aspects of life have indeed appeared quite a bit among those who cultivate immortality.

Yu Yan did not linger and walked straight towards the square.

Since the Wanhuolou (万货楼) doesn't accept spirit talismans below the second tier, we'll have to take another approach.

Setting up a stall.

This is the most common trading method used by independent cultivators.

Although it's a bit troublesome and the price isn't fixed, the good thing is that the location isn't fixed either. If you find the right method, you can still sell the talisman.

However, before setting up a stall, you need to figure out what kind of talismans are popular in the city, what sells well, and what has a high profit margin.

Yu Yan walked through several streets and came to a wide alley.

This is the most famous trading area for independent cultivators on the third floor below Yunmeng Immortal City.

Baicao Lane.

Although it's called an alley, it's actually a wide street, about four or five zhang wide, with stalls densely packed on both sides.

The vendors either squatted or sat, with a cloth spread out in front of them, displaying various items on it.

Elixirs, monster materials, magic weapon fragments, talismans, pills, cultivation manuals on jade slips...

A wide variety of items, everything imaginable.

The streets were bustling with people, shoulder to shoulder.

There were simply dressed rogue cultivators, sword cultivators with long swords at their waists, Taoist priests holding whisks, and several cultivators who were clearly at the Foundation Establishment stage. Their auras were calm and steady, and wherever they passed, the crowd automatically made way for them.

Yu Yan walked forward with the flow of people, his eyes sweeping over the stalls on both sides.

There are quite a few stalls selling talismans.

He roughly counted, and there were seven or eight stalls displaying talismans in the first half of the street alone. Some were dedicated to selling talismans, stacked neatly in piles; others sold a few as a side item, mixed in with other things.

Yu Yan stopped in front of a stall.

The stall owner was a middle-aged rogue cultivator with a dark complexion and an honest, simple appearance. On the cloth in front of him were twenty or thirty talismans, some of them of low-grade first rank and some of mid-grade first rank.

"Fellow Daoist, would you like to take a look?" the stall owner greeted him warmly. "The talismans are all drawn by myself, and the prices are fair."

Yu Yan squatted down, picked up a Thunderfire Talisman, and looked at it.

The talisman paper was ordinary, the cinnabar was ordinary, and the talisman pattern was drawn in a standard, unremarkable way, but there were no major flaws either. It was the kind of item that was usable but lacked any distinctive features.

"How much is this one?"

"Twelve low-grade spirit stones," the stall owner said. "A Thunderfire Talisman, a mid-grade first-tier spirit talisman, this price is already very reasonable."

Yu Yan nodded, put down the talisman, and then looked at the Wind Travel Talisman next to him.

"What about this one?"

"Six low-grade spirit stones."

Yu Yan didn't say anything, stood up, and continued walking forward.

"Fellow Daoist, if you're not satisfied, the price is negotiable. Why don't you name a price, and we can discuss it?"

The voice of a middle-aged rogue cultivator came from behind him. Yu Yan did not stop and went to the next stall.

Eleven Thunderfire Talismans and five low-grade spirit stones for Wind Travel Talismans.

Next up, a Thunderfire Talisman costing six low-grade spirit stones, along with a set of cultivation techniques that directly lead to the third level of Qi Refining.

Yu Yan's eye twitched slightly.

roll.

Real volume.

When did a mid-grade first-level talisman become available for just six low-grade spirit stones?

He continued walking forward, his gaze sweeping over each stall.

The further you go in, the more talismans you find, and the more expensive they become. Some stalls even advertise "buy five, get one free," meaning you get one of the same rank for free when you buy five talismans.

Some vendors were even shouting at the top of their lungs: "Don't miss out! Top-grade Tier 1 talismans, only twenty-five yuan! You won't regret it for twenty-five yuan!"

Yu Yan paused in his steps.

A first-grade superior item, twenty-five pieces?

This price is ridiculously low.

He looked in the direction of the sound and saw a stall displaying a thick stack of talismans, all of them top-grade Tier 1. Golden Armor Talismans, Flame Burst Talismans, Lightning Strike Talismans—they were all there, priced from twenty to thirty yuan.

A crowd had gathered in front of the stall; some were picking and choosing, while others were already paying for their purchases.

Yu Yan narrowed his eyes and didn't go over to join in the fun.

At this price, either the stall owner urgently needs spirit stones, or there's something wrong with the talisman.

However, in Yu Yan's view, the former possibility is unlikely.

Who would desperately need money to drive the price down so low?

If we just sold it a little cheaper, it would have been sold out long ago.

The latter.

He looked away and continued walking forward.

What Yu Yan could understand, those who were scrambling for it must also understand. Perhaps in their eyes, the issue of those talismans was irrelevant.

After all, it is a first-grade high-quality spirit talisman.

As you walk to the middle of the street, the flow of people decreases slightly. The stalls on both sides are no longer so densely packed, but scattered sparsely.

Yu Yan's gaze was suddenly drawn to a stall.

The stall wasn't big; it was located in a corner of the street, in a secluded spot, and not many people passed by.

There were only seven or eight talismans on the stall. But each one was neatly stacked, the paper was white, the cinnabar was bright red, and the talisman patterns were smooth, clearly drawn with care.

The key is price.

Shrinking Earth Talisman, first-tier, mid-grade, twenty-five low-grade spirit stones.

Yu Yan raised an eyebrow slightly.

Having been exposed to the prices of the shops he had just encountered, he unconsciously began to apply those same prices to the market.

Twenty-five low-grade spirit stones, you really dare to ask for that.

It's more expensive than the first-grade high-quality talisman sold at the previous store.

No wonder nobody cares.

He stepped forward, squatted down, and reached for the Shrinking Earth Talisman.

I want to see why this stall is so expensive.

The moment my hand touched the talisman.

"Don't touch my talisman."

The stall owner sitting in front spoke, his voice sounding like he was deliberately lowering his throat, making it impossible to tell if he was male or female, or his age.

Yu Yan's hand froze in mid-air.

He looked up at the stall owner.

The person was completely wrapped in a large black robe, covering their head and face, leaving only their eyes visible. Those eyes were very ordinary, so ordinary that they had no distinguishing features, making them easily forgotten.

"Fellow Daoist, why do you set up your stall here to sell talismans without letting others see them?"

Yu Yan asked.

The man in black robes was silent for a moment, then reached out and took out a small porcelain bottle from his robes, handing it to Yu Yan.

"I'm not selling talismans, I'm selling pills, Rejuvenation Pills. Would you like one?"

The stall owner's voice was calm, but his words were startling.

"Three spirit stones each."

"Three low-grade spirit stones?"

"Of course, would I still want three mid-grade spirit stones from you?"

Wow, so cheap?

Yu Yan looked at the porcelain bottle but did not take it.

"I don't buy elixirs."

"You'd better take a look," the man in black said, his voice devoid of any emotion.

"My Spirit Rejuvenation Pill restores spiritual energy quickly and puts less strain on the body. Similar Spirit Rejuvenation Pills on the market cost at least ten spirit stones each. I only charge three here."

Yu Yan's gaze shifted slightly.

A Spirit Recovery Pill costs three low-grade spirit stones?

It's really cheap.

It's abnormally cheap.

He was about to say something—

"It's that unscrupulous businessman!"

A furious curse suddenly came from behind, sharp and filled with uncontrollable rage.

Yu Yan subconsciously stepped aside to make way for him.

A man and a woman rushed out from behind him and headed straight for the black-robed stall.

The man's face was deathly pale, veins bulged on his forehead, and the muscles in his face twitched constantly.

His breathing was rapid and erratic, his chest heaved violently, and his body swayed unsteadily, only able to stand with the support of the woman beside him.

Anyone could see that the spiritual energy within this guy's body was surging wildly and completely out of control.

He was clearly in danger of going astray.