Rise in Douluo Continent with the help of bean buns

After autumn arrives, the wind in Tiandou City carries a refreshing coolness, and the locust trees on both sides of the streets shed golden leaves, covering the bluestone pavement with a soft layer.

Half a year has passed since the four Soul Kings joined the ranks.

In the past six months, Qinghetang has grown like a blue silver grass soaked by spring rain, striving to take root deep and grow tall.

The market foundation laid by previous business battles, the new track opened up by soul guide materials, and the external environment stabilized by the offering of the Soul King have all contributed to the release of these three benefits, leading to a surge in growth across the three major business lines.

The first to see significant growth was in the wholesale of conventional medicinal herbs.

Previously, Qinghetang made its name by using exclusive medicines, while regular medicinal materials were only used as a sideline.

Now that the distribution network has been expanded and the upstream and downstream links have been connected, Lin Chen has taken the opportunity to turn the wholesale of conventional medicinal materials into an independent business line.

Leveraging the cost advantage of its own planting bases and stable supply capabilities, Qinghetang's medicinal herb wholesale business quickly expanded from the city to surrounding towns.

Old Chen led his sales team for three months and successively secured the supply rights for medicinal herbs in fourteen surrounding towns, and signed long-term agreements with more than twenty large-scale pharmacies in the area.

From the most basic licorice and poria cocos to the commonly used cultivation herbs such as mind-calming grass and body-tempering vine, Qinghetang can supply all commonly used medicinal materials at prices that are half a percent lower than those of local wholesalers, while maintaining more consistent quality.

"Boss, the agreements for the three towns to the west were finalized last week. That brings the total number of towns in the surrounding area with which we have formal cooperation to sixteen." Old Chen stood in front of Lin Chen, pointing to the red dots circled on the map, his tone full of accomplishment. "Further beyond that lies the kingdom's border, where large local trading companies are based, making it difficult to approach for the time being. But with just these dozen or so towns, the monthly turnover of medicinal herbs can easily exceed 50,000 gold."

  

Sixteen towns, a market of over 100,000 people, were firmly in their grasp.

Qinghetang is no longer a small business that relies on just a few medicines, but has become a significant medicinal herb wholesaler in the southern area of ​​Tiandou City.

Even more aggressive than the wholesale of medicinal herbs is the exclusive pharmaceutical business.

After the third-generation Body Tempering Potion and Mind Concentration Potion were certified by the Soul Master Guild, their reputation spread like wildfire throughout the Soul Master community.

Low-level Soul Masters buy them to build a foundation, mid-level Soul Masters buy them for daily training, and even Soul Hunting Teams prepare dozens of bottles when entering Star Dou. The effect is 20% stronger than similar products, while the price is only 10% higher, making the cost-effectiveness ridiculously high.

Previously, demand exceeded supply, but now orders are piling up.

"Boss, this month's potion orders have exceeded our orders by 30%. Even with two shifts working, the workshop can't keep up. We're already booked until the middle of next month." Old Li, who was in charge of production, looked both happy and worried. "Many old customers are urging us every day, and quite a few new Soul Hunting Groups are coming to us wanting to sign long-term supply agreements."

The word-of-mouth has exploded.

In the Soul Master circles of Tiandou City, everyone now gives a thumbs up when Qinghetang's potions are mentioned.

"The body-tempering potion is really effective! I've used it for three months, and my physical strength has increased by almost 10%!"

"With focused concentration, distracting thoughts are reduced by half during cultivation, resulting in significantly faster progress."

"It's much better than those flashy but impractical things at Huichun Pavilion, and the price is reasonable too."

Even the Soul Master Guild's logistics department increased its orders, including Qinghetang's potions in the official recommended list.

Exclusive medicines have become Qinghetang's strongest brand and its most stable cash cow.

The real driver of the profit leap is the new track of soul-guided materials.

Six months ago, there were only two varieties and seven cooperative workshops, but now it has expanded to five core categories and has more than thirty cooperative Soul Guide workshops.

The optimized Spirit Silk Vine, Spirit Gathering Grass, Spirit Guiding Wood, Tough Hemp, and Mind Concentration Flower are all essential raw materials for the production of Soul Guidance Devices. The quality of each of them far surpasses that of ordinary goods on the market. Key indicators such as spiritual energy conductivity, purity, and toughness are on average more than 30% higher.

In Tiandou City, everyone in the large and small soul-guiding workshops knows that Qinghe seedlings are excellent in terms of their materials.

"Zhang's workshop has placed another order; they need to double the amount of Ling Si Teng."

"The large soul guide workshop in the west of the city sent someone over to negotiate, wanting to sign an annual exclusive supply agreement, and they offered a very high price."

"There are also merchants from the north who want to take our materials and resell them in other kingdoms."

The speed of business growth even startled Lao Chen.

Even more astonishing are the profits.

The gross profit margin of soul guide raw materials is as high as 70% or more, which is four or five times that of ordinary medicinal materials and more than twice that of medicines.

As production capacity ramps up, this production line accounts for an increasingly larger share of profits, becoming Qinghetang's strongest growth engine.

The three business lines are advancing in tandem, like three horse-drawn carriages, propelling Qinghetang forward at breakneck speed.

On the day the final accounts were tallied at the end of the month, the accountant's hands were trembling as he held the abacus. He checked the accounts three times before daring to present them to Lin Chen.

"Master...this month's net profit is 316,000 gold coins."

Old Chen stood to the side, taking a deep breath.

Three hundred and one thousand gold coins.

Six months ago, Qinghetang's monthly income of 10,000 gold coins was already a cause for great joy; three months ago, a monthly income of 50,000 gold coins was considered rapid growth; now it has more than doubled, breaking through the 300,000 gold coin mark.

This number would have been unimaginable just six months ago.

"Wholesale medicinal herbs contributed 60,000, exclusive medicines contributed 120,000, and soul-guiding materials contributed 136,000." The accountant's voice trembled as he reported the details. "After deducting all expenses for the planting base, workshop, and personnel, the net profit is this amount."

Lin Chen flipped through the account book, his expression calm, showing little surprise.

With all three major businesses working together, the high profit margin of Soul Guide Materials combined with economies of scale makes breaking 300,000 units a foregone conclusion.

This size, placed within the entire Tiandou City's medicinal materials and supplies industry, already firmly ranks among the top five.

The scale that established businesses took decades to achieve, Qinghetang accomplished in less than two years.

The entire business community of Tiandou City had to take this dark horse that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere seriously.

The name "Qinghetang" is becoming increasingly well-known.

In the South City, West City, and North City, anyone involved in the production of medicinal herbs or soul-guiding materials has heard of Qinghetang.

Everyone in the industry is discussing the origins of this suddenly appearing business.

Some say the owner is backed by imperial nobles, others say he has the support of a reclusive sect, and still others say the owner is an old medicine merchant who has lived for decades and is now starting a second business under an assumed name.

There were all sorts of guesses, but no one could give a definitive answer.

Lin Chen maintained an extremely low profile.

He almost never attends any chamber of commerce banquets, never makes public appearances, and even when the managers of the three major medicinal herb merchants come to visit, he only lets Old Chen receive them, never showing himself.

All the outside world knows is that Qinghetang has a mysterious owner who is shrewd, insightful, and young.

The title of "mysterious little boss" spread from the herbal medicine circle to the soul guide circle, becoming more and more mysterious, which added to the unfathomable nature of Qinghetang.

Even Baicaotang and Huichunge, which had previously targeted them at every turn, have now calmed down and dare not make any more small moves.

Qinghetang has grown significantly, with ample cash reserves and a Soul King serving as its regent. It's no longer the small, inexperienced merchant it once was, easily manipulated. If things really come to a head, the outcome is uncertain.

The market landscape is quietly changing, and Qinghetang has firmly secured its place, truly achieving widespread fame.

With business experiencing explosive growth, production capacity and supply chains must keep up.

Taking advantage of the momentum, Lin Chen decisively launched a second round of expansion.

First, there's the planting base.

The original 300 mu of land in the south of the city was already saturated, so he acquired two more plots of land in the south and east of the city, bringing the total to 800 mu.

The 1,100-mu planting base is divided into areas according to product categories: 400 mu are planted with conventional medicinal herbs to ensure wholesale business; 300 mu are planted with core raw materials for pharmaceuticals to ensure exclusive products; and 400 mu are specifically allocated to soul-guiding materials to cultivate special plants.

All seedlings were personally optimized and cultivated by Lin Chen before being sent to the base for planting.

"The base manager is only responsible for daily operations. Seedlings are distributed uniformly from the main workshop. Seeds must not be kept for further cultivation." Lin Chen specifically instructed Lao Li, "After each batch is harvested, the next batch of seedlings must be obtained again."

This is the first line of defense in maintaining secrecy.

Although the optimized plants exhibit superior traits, the second-generation seeds show phenotypic segregation and a significant degradation in quality. Even if someone steals the plants, they will not be able to grow materials of the same quality.

The possibility of technology leakage was eliminated from the source.

Secondly, the workshop was expanded.

The old workshops in the southern city were no longer sufficient, so Lin Chen bought a complete large workshop outside the city near the planting base, dividing it into three independent factory areas: primary processing of medicinal materials, production of medicines, and processing of soul-guiding materials.

The number of workers has increased from thirty to one hundred and fifty. They have been divided into shifts according to the work process, and the production line is more complete than before, with efficiency more than doubling.

Most importantly, the confidentiality mechanism has been upgraded.

Lin Chen disassembled the entire production process of all core products.

The pharmaceutical production process is divided into seven steps, with each team responsible for only one step: some are only responsible for sorting the herbs, some for coarse grinding, some for boiling, and some for packaging. Workers at each stage do not know the complete formula and have no access to the materials used in other steps.

The most crucial step of extracting the raw material is done in a sealed workshop next to Lin Chen's private quiet room, where he personally prepares the mixture before dispensing it according to dosage and sending it to the production line.

No one knew the complete formula and extraction process except for himself.

The same principle applies to the processing of soul-guiding materials. Only Lin Chen knows the method for the core activation and curing process; the workers only perform the initial harvesting, drying, and rough processing.

"All core workshops are under strict control; no unauthorized personnel are allowed to approach." Lin Chen's tone was calm, yet carried an undeniable force. "All materials entering and leaving must be registered. Anyone who dares to smuggle raw materials or blueprints out will be dealt with according to the rules."

The entire confidentiality mechanism is layered and secure, covering everything from raw materials and seedlings to processes and formulas in a closed loop.

Even if someone infiltrates the workshop as an inside agent, they can only get a glimpse of the product and cannot replicate it at all.

This is Qinghetang's true moat—the core technology is firmly in Lin Chen's hands, and others can only imitate the surface, not the essence.

As long as his Blue Silver Grass martial soul and Doubao's deduction ability remain, this barrier will never be breached.

On a late autumn afternoon, sunlight streamed through the window into the quiet room, casting dappled shadows on the floor.

Lin Chen sat cross-legged on the futon, surrounded by a faint scent of grass and trees.

Current status:

Soul Power Level: Level 28.

Soul power refinement level: 261%.

Total mental energy: 52% higher than at the beginning of the year; in-depth analysis time: 22 minutes; daily high-intensity calculation limit: 22 times.

Knowledge Base: Millennium Soul Beast Encyclopedia 68%, Plant Classics 94%, Basic Pharmacology 87%, Soul Guiding Materials Science 53%.

His business expansion barely interfered with his cultivation practice.

With a mature management system, a sound confidentiality mechanism, and each position having its own responsibilities, he only needs to grasp the overall direction and core technologies, and doesn't need to worry about daily trivial matters at all.

He spent most of his time honing his soul power, tempering his mental strength, and expanding his knowledge base.

Level 28, just two steps away from level 30.

At this pace, we can reach the peak of level 29 before the end of the year, and challenge for the third ring around the beginning of spring.

"That's about it." Lin Chen slowly opened his eyes, a flash of blue light disappearing in his pupils.

A monthly profit of 300,000 gold coins is enough to support him in doing anything.

With its planting base, workshops, distribution channels, and security all in place, Qinghetang's foundation is rock solid. Even if he leaves for a period of time, it can still operate normally.

Next, it's time to focus all your efforts on reaching level 30 and acquiring your third spirit ring.

His goal was clear—the five-thousand-year-old Ten Thousand Resilient Star Vine.

Only by acquiring his third soul skill and possessing sufficient self-protection capabilities could he have the confidence to venture deep into the core edge of the Star Dou Great Forest to complete the long-planned interception.

The wind outside the window swirled fallen leaves across the eaves, rustling softly.

Lin Chen stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the endless rooftops in the distance.

Qinghetang has established itself and gained a reputation.

But this is far from the end.

Becoming famous throughout the world is just the first step.

His path lies in the depths of the distant stars, in Shrek City, and on the vast Douluo Continent.

A faint, sharp glint flashed across the young man's gentle features, disappearing in an instant.

Everything is proceeding according to plan.

Three Rings, Starry Sky, Electrolux.

With each step, we get closer and closer.