Cultivation Starts with Rejuvenation

Chapter 51: Chapter 17: Joining the Pill Shop

A Pill Master needs not only to condense their own Pill Fire but also to guide it with their Divine Soul.

The Pill Formation Success Rate and the quality of the pills are closely related to the Pill Formula, experience, comprehension, and the quality of the medicinal ingredients.

Half of the cultivators with aspirations in Alchemy get stuck at the hurdle of condensing Pill Fire, and of the rest, nine out of ten are tormented by the hurdle of the Divine Soul until they wish they were dead.

Even those who overcome these basic hurdles often fall at the subsequent stages of accumulating Alchemy experience and understanding, ultimately becoming the lowest level of Pill Masters and merely getting by.

It is mainly because, besides one’s innate abilities, the path of Alchemy requires frequent hands-on practice, personal insight, experience accumulation, and high demands on comprehension and talent in the Alchemy Dao.

This practice process requires consuming a large amount of medicinal ingredients, which is very costly.

Li Ji’an already understands these situations.

Even though his Divine Soul is strong, his comprehension is remarkable, and he has ten years of experience meticulously studying medicinal ingredients at the Martial Arts Academy’s Medicine Shop in his previous life, he is not very confident about how far he can go on the path of Alchemy in this life.

More than anything, it’s about accumulating for future lifetimes.

For all the paths where experience accumulation plays a significant role, his advantage becomes more apparent.

If he can’t achieve it in one lifetime, then two lifetimes, and if needed, ten lifetimes or a hundred lifetimes, he will eventually succeed.

Gathering sand into a tower, collecting fur into a robe, trickles of a stream into a mighty river, one lifetime will eventually lead to becoming a mighty force in the Alchemy Dao.

Of course, for now, it is also the most suitable means of livelihood for him.

”Tier One Pill Furnace, twenty Spirit Stones, no negotiation!”

”Ancestral Fasting Pill Formula, simplified order sequence, low-cost ingredients, only five Spirit Stones.”

”Qi Nourishing Pill refined product, high quality, low price, high Pill Formation Success Rate, thirty Spirit Stones.”

...

After quietly remembering the prices, Li Ji’an showed no disappointment on his face, as he did not originally intend to lock himself away to refine pills on his own.

This visit was merely to gain understanding.

Lacking qualifications, scarce resources, starting from zero, one would have to be out of their mind to start off shutting doors to work behind closed doors.

Chen Qingling looked at Li Ji’an and was once again disappointed; it was still that calm and serene face, which made him even more irritated.

”Now have you given up?”

”Hmph, I told you it was wishful thinking, being a Pill Master is not that easy. Even if you have the talent, without assets of a thousand Spirit Stones, don’t even think about entering the door.”

”Look at how much effort those cultivation clans must put into cultivating a Pill Master candidate, and what’s the result? How many clans have successfully trained one? Don’t they all end up inviting Pill Masters as tributors!”

Li Ji’an was indifferent, smiling slightly: ”Where are the places recruiting Pill Children?”

”...”

”Uncle! You’re already thirty, and you still want to be a Pill Child?”

”Do you think there are few people wanting to learn alchemy this way? Let me tell you, the disciples under some truly senior Pill Masters are overcrowded with Pill Children, can you imagine what people go through to become a Pill Child?”

”Some Pill Masters have higher requirements for recruiting Pill Children than some sects!” Chen Qingling was instantly even more astonished.

Used to his attitude, Li Ji’an remained unbothered and spoke calmly: ”No need to find senior Pill Masters, and I don’t necessarily need to be a Pill Child; just doing miscellaneous tasks is fine.”

”You... you really are too naive! Not to mention assisting a Pill Master, even as a Pill Child you’d have to do miscellaneous tasks for three years, serve for five before getting slight guidance from a Pill Master, you’re thirty now, even if you learn a bit, by the time you can really earn Spirit Stones from refining pills, it would be at least another twenty years, by then... does it still matter?” Chen Qingling was somewhat at a loss for words.

”Does it matter? Of course, it does!” Li Ji’an smiled without answering, still looking seriously at him.

Chen Qingling was dumbfounded by his look.

”You... you’re really going to be a servant for a Pill Master?”

”Yes.”

”...”

Chen Qingling felt he had spelled everything out clearly.

”Enough, enough, as you wish, I’ve really done my best, in the future, if I try to persuade you again, I’m a fool.

But remember, if you regret it later, don’t blame me for not warning you, this was your own choice, I’ve been as considerate as possible...” For a moment, it wasn’t clear whether he was moved by Li Ji’an’s tenacity or if he’d truly given up hope.

He had a vague feeling that perhaps this fortuitous older man would really never return to the mundane zones.

”Don’t worry!” Li Ji’an nodded with a smile.

”If you’re truly determined to be a servant under a Pill Master, then don’t look here at the market. The Pill Masters here look for Pill Children, that too if you serve wholeheartedly like a devoted son without expecting any remuneration, head to South Street.” Chen Qingling turned and walked away feeling numb.

”South Street?” Li Ji’an remembered that South Street was filled with family-owned and other influential outlets’ branches.

”Only the family pill shops on South Street recruit servants.”

”Here the Eight Great Families have not been established long enough; only one has cultivated an in-house Pill Master, the families involved in the pill trade generally employ external Pill Masters as tributors, and it’s common to see notices posted for recruiting servant roles for the Pill Masters.” Chen Qingling explained weakly.

As for the reasons, he naturally didn’t think deeply.

However, Li Ji’an quickly caught several key points from his words.

”Tributor.”

”External Pill Master.”

”Recruiting Servants...”

After seven steps, Li Ji’an slightly raised his eyebrows, having grasped the situation.

Previously with an incomplete understanding of some foundational knowledge about the Cultivation Realm, he couldn’t make the right judgments, thinking that with so many members in the cultivation clans, there wouldn’t be a lack of people to work.

But hearing something from Chen Qingling, he understood.

Tributor Pill Masters naturally want to enjoy being a tributor for a long time.

Families want to reduce this expenditure and certainly hope to cultivate their own in-house Pill Masters.

Amidst a natural conflict, a harmonizing method naturally arises, like the tributor Pill Master promising to take on apprentices, but with a limited number, and they surely wouldn’t impart the most safeguarded knowledge lightly.

And for various menial tasks, the Pill Masters would rather hire outsiders than involve family members.

Because some critical aspects of Alchemy Skills might be hidden in tiny details.

”Alright! Head to the South Street Pill Shop!”

In this context, his older age and poor qualifications, on the contrary, became an advantage.

Indeed, among the three shops on South Street recruiting servants, their main role was to assist the Pill Masters. Two of them had age requirements, seeking individuals obviously unlikely to become Pill Masters, those above thirty.

It seemed tailor-made for him.

”Spirit Pearl Mountain’s Yan Family... monthly salary one Spirit Stone plus fifty Liang of Spiritual Sand.”

”Purple Bamboo Valley’s Wei Family... monthly salary one Spirit Stone.”

”Silver Sand Lake’s Wang Family... monthly salary one Spirit Stone.”

All three were family pill shops, and the Pill Masters were external tributors of course.

The Yan Family’s tributor was a Tier One middle-level Pill Master around forty years old.

The other two families had Tier One late period veteran Pill Masters of older age.

After a comprehensive consideration, Li Ji’an chose the Yan Family’s pill shop.

”Li Chang’an? From the Desert gathering zone, thirty years old... Qi Cultivation 1st Layer... Mm, good, good.” At the Yan Family pill shop on the second floor, the steward and Tributor Alchemist Mo met with Li Ji’an together.

Alchemist Mo was very satisfied.

Steward Yan let out a sigh of relief.

As someone outside being granted the Yan surname, along with being valued by the Elder and placed in charge of the Market Pill Shop, he felt a lot of pressure.

Especially when dealing with Tributor Alchemist Mo, he dared not slack off one bit.

Today finally managing to recruit a suitable servant to Alchemist Mo’s satisfaction, it resolved an urgent need.

”Chang’an, from now on, you will be assisting Alchemist Mo, work hard, the shop will not shortchange you; if Alchemist Mo is pleased with you, there is potential for your monthly salary to increase further.”

Li Ji’an cupped his hands: ”Thank you, Alchemist Mo, thank you, Steward Yan.”

Both parties signed a Divine Soul Contract, establishing an employment relationship.

Except under special circumstances, Alchemist Mo would start the Pill Furnace once every five days, each session lasting less than two hours. Li Ji’an needed to arrive two hours early to prepare medicinal ingredients, clean the Pill Furnace, and handle post-alchemy tasks according to Alchemist Mo’s instructions.

In this way, Li Ji’an was barely able to gain a real foothold in the Market, at the very least able to afford the annual rent.

He was a bit surprised when that very evening, while he was cultivating, Yan Tong paid him a visit...