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For the next few days, Qin Zhou didn’t see Wen Jue again.

Instead, the pill business at the Qin family shop suddenly picked up.

The shopkeeper had initially thought the young master’s pills wouldn’t sell well. Yet, day after day, people came inquiring about the Qin family’s basic-level Spiritual Pill.

One, two, and within days, over a dozen Spiritual Pill had been sold.

That amounted to two years’ worth of the shop’s revenue!

The shopkeeper found it utterly baffling and promptly reported the matter.

Qin Zhou merely nodded slightly. “Were the buyers all wearing blue robes?”

The shopkeeper shook his head. “Their clothing varied, and their appearances differed.”

“Young Master, is there something wrong with the buyers?” The shopkeeper was confused.

“Nothing. Just put up a sign in the shop: ‘Premium Spiritual Pills – Limited to three per day,’” Qin Zhou instructed.

“Pack the remaining stock into bags.”

“Understood, young master.”

The shopkeeper didn’t grasp the reasoning, but instinctively swallowed his questions.

Ever since the Immortal Pill Gathering, he’d understood: when the young master acted, he had his own reasons.

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The next day.

At the crack of dawn, a customer arrived at the Qin family shop seeking pills.

The shopkeeper instantly recognized the man’s extraordinary presence.

Cultivators were different from ordinary folk. Even dressed plainly, their otherworldly features set them apart completely. Standing out like a crane among chickens—that was precisely the feeling.

The shopkeeper stepped forward. “What might I assist you with, sir?”

“Shopkeeper, bring me your lowest-grade Spiritual Pills for inspection,” the customer stated plainly.

Initially nervous, the shopkeeper had grown calmer with experience selling more pills and encountering more cultivators. He retrieved the pill box with measured movements. “Please take a look.”

The box itself was exquisite—a custom-made piece the shop had rushed to commission. It certainly looked far better than the cloth sack the young master had provided.

Yet no matter how beautifully carved the box was, the customer before him didn’t spare it a second glance.

His interest lay solely in the contents within—the legendary, precious Spiritual Pill.

The customer seemed unsurprised. After a single glance at the pills inside, he cleared his throat and asked, “Shopkeeper, how many do you have in stock? I’ll take them all.”

Shopkeeper:?

He’d seen big spenders these past few days—even those buying ten pills at a time—but this was the first time he’d encountered someone bold enough to demand the entire stock.

Suddenly, a thought struck the shopkeeper: How many pills did the young master actually give him? At the current price of 20 Spirit Stones per Spiritual Pill, if he sold them all…

That would be a fortune!

But the rush of excitement lasted only a moment. The shopkeeper remembered the young master’s words: only three pills could be sold per day.

Reason swiftly returned. A smile spread across the shopkeeper’s face as he pointed to the sign on the counter. “Sir, as you can see, our shop sells only three Spiritual Pill per day.”

Only three per day? The customer thought. Seems they’re running low on stock.

The customer didn’t get angry. He simply said, “Wouldn’t it be easier to just sell me the entire stock? I’m not short on money.”

The shopkeeper chuckled, “It’s a strict rule set by the proprietor. Please forgive us.”

“Understood. Then give me all three for today.”

“Certainly, sir. Just a moment.”

Soon after, the customer purchased the pills and immediately turned into a nearby alley.

The moment the buyer entered the deserted lane, he transformed his appearance, revealing his own blue-robed attire. Had anyone been present, they would have recognized that his blue robes were identical to those worn by the blue-robed cultivators who had appraised pills at the recent Divine pill Fair.

He strode deep into the alley, where someone was clearly waiting.

“Senior Brother, I’ve bought the Spiritual Pill.”

He immediately produced three pills.

“Only three? I told you to buy them all!”

“Senior Brother, it’s not that. The shopkeeper wouldn’t let me. He said there’s a limit of three per day.”

It turned out that all the precious Spiritual Pills sold in the shop recently had ended up in the pockets of the Yaoshan Sect disciples.

Several days prior, at the Immortal Pill Fair, the Yaoshan Sect disciples had suffered a humiliating defeat. The junior disciple had led a group to confront the pill master, but midway, something had happened. No one knew what transpired, and neither the junior disciple nor his two senior brothers could recall the events. When the senior disciple found them, they were outside the city, all on the brink of death.

The senior disciple surmised they had encountered someone they couldn’t afford to provoke.

He immediately led his men back to Yaoshan Sect. Yet the sect elders became intrigued by the precious Spiritual Pill the juniors claimed had bested the youngest disciple. Thus, they dispatched more men to purchase them from the Qin family shop. Unexpectedly, they succeeded.

A single entry-level precious Spiritual Pill surpasses five rare ones in potency.

Even if the higher-level cultivators couldn’t use them, there were still so many disciples in the sect. If each could take one… it could offset years of arduous mountain cultivation.

They didn’t know how the junior disciple and his two seniors had offended the Qin family’s alchemist to cause his amnesia, but since the other party had magnanimously spared their lives, it meant they weren’t holding a grudge. However, they dared not even think about befriending them.

While few knew the Qin family possessed such precious pills, they naturally came first to buy as many as possible.

But…

Suddenly, they announced they would only sell three pills per day.

“Senior Brother, I suspect their shop has run out of stock. Such precious pills aren’t easy to refine.”

It wasn’t that they were out of stock. More likely, they’d realized that all the buyers these past few days were from the same faction. This was a warning. Senior Brother frowned. “Let’s go back.”

Before we completely alienate the Qin family’s alchemists.

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Little did they know, this scene had been observed by someone sipping tea in the teahouse across the street.

“Those are people from Yaoshan Sect. It seems your family’s crisis has been resolved.“

”I learned from my wife’s letter that my son had received assistance from a benefactor. Now it seems, without this benefactor, it would have been my entire Qin family moving out of Ping City this time.“

”Between the lines, it sounds like you’re blaming us for arriving too late?“ said the younger of the two youths.

”Qin Haishan wouldn’t dare,” Qin Haishan sighed.

The speaker was none other than Qin Zhou’s father, who had just returned from the provincial capital.

He had personally pleaded with the Yaoyue Sect for his son’s admission into an immortal sect. Yet before that matter could be settled, the Zhang family had stirred up trouble in Ping City.

He urgently requested the elders of the Yaoyue Sect to accompany him to Ping City for assistance, but the sect responded with half-hearted excuses and half-hearted refusals, sending only two people.

By the time they reached Ping City, the Immortal Pill Gathering had ended several days prior.

Fortunately, midway through their journey, a letter from his wife informed him that the turmoil at home had subsided, allowing Qin Haishan to breathe a sigh of relief.

“We regret not being able to assist your family. Still, it’s for the best that matters are resolved,” remarked the older of the two middle-aged cultivators, stroking his beard. Turning to his junior disciple, he added, “Ruiming, you must show more courtesy to Mr. Qin in the future.”

The youth addressed as Ruiming paused, then reluctantly replied, “Yes, Senior Uncle.”

He had served as the Qin family’s alchemist for years, always respected by Qin Haishan. Now, because the Qins had gained a noble patron skilled in alchemy, he was expected to temper his own sharpness and instead show courtesy to Qin Haishan.

Ruiming felt bitter inside.

Moreover, with this alchemist benefactor now in the Qin family, they might no longer need him, an alchemist from the Yaoyue Sect. His easy job paying 150 Spirit Stones annually would vanish.

This thought left Ruiming feeling resentful. “Uncle Master, let’s go see the Spiritual Pill this benefactor has refined. Everyone in Yaoshan Sect is scrambling to buy them. I want to see them too.”

He wanted to see for himself just how ‘precious’ this benefactor was. Were the pills truly that exceptional?

“Thank you, Mr. Qin,” Ruiming’s master uncle addressed Qin Haishan. Truth be told, he, too, was eager to see the pills that had people from Yaoshan Sect losing their pills yet still sneaking back to Ping City to buy them.

Qin Haishan could see the anticipation and curiosity in both men, even a hint of envy and jealousy lurking beneath the surface.

A refreshing sense of pride welled up within him.

After the talent assessment, everyone declared his son unfit for an immortal sect—a failure. Qin Haishan absorbed every taunt and disdain, ensuring not a word reached Qin Zhou’s ears.

Alas, he couldn’t shield him completely. Thus, Qin Zhou returned to Ping City from the provincial capital, his spirit crushed.

Now, his son had befriended a benefactor. And weren’t these very cultivators still eagerly crowding around?

Who would dare call his son useless now?

Qin Haishan sighed with a smile. “I can’t guarantee an audience with that benefactor for you two, but examining the pills? That’s no problem.”

At this point, Qin Haishan remained unaware that the influential patron refining pills for the Qin family was none other than his own disgraced son, Qin Zhou.

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Learning of Qin Haishan’s return to Ping City, Qin Zhou had no choice but to leave the village and return to the Qin residence.

This was also Qin Zhou’s first encounter with the biological father of the ‘Young Master Qin’.

Qin Haishan was in the prime of his life, his features not coarse but refined, his demeanor scholarly yet carrying the sharp, crystalline gleam in his eyes characteristic of a shrewd businessman.

Seeing Qin Zhou approach with steady steps, Qin Haishan couldn’t wait. He immediately stepped forward, slapped his son on the shoulder, and asked with a smile, “How have you been lately?”

Qin Zhou found it hard to describe.

Qin Haishan was different from his father in that other world.

Back then, even when he returned home having achieved success, he couldn’t count on a warm welcome from his father. Even during his rare visits, he never heard a single word of concern from him.

Yet here was Qin Haishan. Despite the troubles facing the Qin family, his first words upon Qin Zhou’s return were simply, “How have you been?”

Qin Zhou felt a flutter in his heart before nodding. “Father, I’m well. How about you?”

Qin Haishan smiled. “I’m doing very well. It’s just that after being away so long, I inevitably miss you all.”

Suddenly, Qin Haishan lowered his voice. “This trip back—did the benefactor say anything?”

He feared his son’s sudden return might make it awkward to explain to that benefactor.

Qin Zhou: …

How could he explain to his father that he was that noble person?

“What are you talking about, son? Come eat first. By the way, do you still eat meals now?” Madam Qin emerged, holding her skirt hem, the dishes already laid out.

Qin Zhou: “Mother, I still eat.”

Qin Haishan frowned in confusion. “Why wouldn’t he eat? Why wouldn’t Qin Zhou eat?”

Madam Qin smiled. “Because our son is now a cultivator.” Isn’t that what they say about immortals? They abstain from food, nourishing themselves solely on the essence of heaven and earth.

Qin Haishan glanced at his wife, then at his son, who seemed somehow different. Wait—who could explain this? His son had become a cultivator so quickly? What had happened?

“But you,” Madam Qin asked in surprise, “why aren’t you accompanying that dignitary from Yaoyue Sect?”

As the family walked toward the dining table, Qin Haishan replied, “They’re studying the pills refined by the nobleman. I only meant to bring them to the shop for a look, but they got so engrossed they couldn’t tear themselves away. Those pills must be truly remarkable. They may not need to eat, but I certainly do.”

“What nobleman? There is no noble benefactor—the alchemist is your son.” Seeing no one nearby, Madam Qin revealed the truth. “But your son said to keep it confidential.”

Qin Haishan abruptly turned to Qin Zhou.

Qin Zhou sat down, silently picked up his rice bowl, and ate—keeping a low profile.

Qin Haishan:?