When Ye Jiuge returned to the Zilin Residence, she began to make preparations for the Medicine Refinery Valley. Although the competition would only take three days, she was going to stay there for at least seven days.
Qing Mama had prepared a carriage of things to ensure that her Eldest Miss could live comfortably outside the residence. When Ye Jiuge saw the heap of stuff, she sighed involuntarily.
It would be much easier if she had a Magical Bottomless Satchel. However, a Magical Bottomless Satchel was too costly and could be not bought anywhere in the Lei Kingdom. It was only available in larger Spiritual Cities. According to what she had heard, she needed Spiritual Coins instead of gold to purchase a Magical Bottomless Satchel. With her current level of cultivation, this was merely wishful thinking.
Apart from the necessities, Ye Jiuge also brought the small bronze cauldron and the Black Fat Rat along with her. Ever since their return from the deep lake, the rat had seemed depressed. It curled up in Ye Jiuge’s pocket and remained sullen. Ye Jiuge felt ashamed, and she inwardly told herself to compensate the Black Fat Rat in the future if an opportunity arose.
On the day of her departure, Ye Yuxuan personally sent them off. Su Yufeng, on the other hand, claimed to be unwell and did not exit the residence. Although Ye Yuxuan was upset with Ye Jiuge, he still treated Ye Ruyi well. He dispatched ten guards under the leadership of a Spiritual Practitioner whose last name was Pan to protect them on their journey.
Ye Jiuge and the rest left early in the morning, and they arrived at the Medicine Refinery Valley in the evening.
The Medicine Refinery Valley was nestled in the plains between two small mountains. The royal family had funded the construction of a city in the Medicine Refinery Valley, and they had also appointed someone to manage it.
Ye Jiuge looked out of the horse-drawn carriage’s small window.
She saw a magnificent-looking castle that stretched across the mountain ridge. The gray castle walls were about a hundred meters tall, making the castle look like a group of tall buildings.
“Eldest Sister, why did the Emperor build a castle here?” Ye Ruyi asked curiously.
“I heard that there is a third-grade Spiritual Land behind the Medicine Refinery Valley. Many different types of expensive Spiritual Medicines are grown there, which is why the Medicine Refinery Castle was built here.” Ye Jiuge had heard this from Bai Songling.
Third-grade Spiritual Lands were scarce in the Lei Kingdom. Naturally, the royal family treated these lands as a treasure.
The Medicine Refinery Valley was seldom open to the public. It only welcomed outsiders during the period of the Alchemy Convention.
“Oh.” Ye Ruyi nodded, not fully comprehending.
She was only able to produce low-grade pills at the moment, and she could not yet understand why a piece of land would be so valuable that it required a castle’s protection.
Ye Jiuge wanted to increase Ye Ruyi’s knowledge. She got off the horse-drawn carriage and pulled Ye Ruyi’s hand and lead her into the Medicine Refinery Valley.
It was already evening, but the city was still bustling with noise and excitement. In the streets, there were many shops selling medicine, Pill Production Furnaces, and minerals. Many outsiders had even placed pieces of cloth on the ground and laid out goods to sell.
“My esteemed guests, please don’t miss the chance to buy something as you pass by!”
Anything could be found in these street stalls. Apart from the common Spiritual Herbs, there were minerals and beast skeletons. Some stalls even sold rocks and roots.
Many people came and went along the streets. Some wore bizarre-looking clothes, as they’d clearly come from other kingdoms.
This was the first time that Ye Ruyi had seen such a lively sight. Her face turned red with excitement, and she seemed eager to buy something.
“Eldest Miss, should we head to the Medicine Refinery Building to settle down first?” Captain Pan asked respectfully.
All the participants of the Pill Production Tournament had been assigned accommodation at the Medicine Refinery Building, which had been prepared by the Dongfang Clan.
“There’s no hurry.” Ye Jiuge wanted to shop around as well.
Ye Jiuge and Ye Ruyi visited a few stores. After they purchased a few things that could be used to produce pills, they headed toward the Medicine Refinery Building.
When they passed by an old, shabby miscellaneous goods store, an unusual feeling suddenly arose in Ye Jiuge’s heart. She stopped automatically.
Zi Shang’s voice rang out: “Go in.”
“Is there a treasure inside?” Ye Jiuge was excited. She had felt that there was something strange about this store.
“Indeed. Something very useful to me. If you don’t act soon, I’ll have to do so personally.” There was a rare urgency in Zi Shang’s voice.
“My king, please behave yourself!”
If Zi Shang were to show himself, Ye Jiuge feared that the entire Medicine Refinery City would go crazy.
“Eldest Sister, what’s wrong?” Ye Ruyi raised her head curiously and asked.
“Come. Let’s go in and have a look.” Ye Jiuge pulled Ye Ruyi with her and headed inside the small store.
As the store was tiny, Captain Pan and the guards could not enter, so they stood guard outside the entrance.
The store owner was an old skinny man with silvery hair. His face was covered with wrinkles, and he wore a dirty gray shirt. He was dozing off on his stool and did not even open his eyes when customers entered the store.
“Which one of these is the treasure that you speak of?” Ye Jiuge opened her Spiritual Eye to examine everything in the miscellaneous goods store.
The things inside were messy and had no trace of Spiritual Energy at all. Ye Jiuge had no idea which one was the treasure.
“The rock that is placed under the shelf near your feet,” Zi Shang said.
Ye Jiuge looked down and saw a rectangular-shaped gray brick under the shelf. A thick layer of dust covered the top of the brick, and it looked connected to the shelf. It was difficult even to notice it.
“This is a treasure?” Ye Jiuge was speechless. She did not know that Zi Shang had a hobby of collecting bricks.
“That is no ordinary brick. You wouldn’t understand, anyway. Hurry up and buy it,” Zi Shang said in an unquestionable tone.
It was a difficult task.
If she were to buy the brick without any reason, Ye Jiuge feared that it would arouse the store owner’s suspicion, and he would likely raise its price.
The best method was to purchase a few decent things and request the brick as an add-on. However, the small store was very shabby. Nothing in it seemed valuable!
“Eldest Sister, what’s this?” Ye Ruyi pulled out a box of small, pale green beads from the messy pile of goods in the corner.
Ye Jiuge’s eyes swept the box, and she said, “That is a Wooden Bead. It is useful for Wooden Elemental Spiritual Practitioners, but the spirituality inside has completely run out.”
“Is that so? I think it is quite pretty.” Ye Ruyi held the little Wooden Bead. She seemed to like it too much to part with it.
Ye Jiuge had an idea immediately. It would raise suspicion if she were to buy the brick. However, it would be a different story if the customer were a child, like Ye Ruyi. After all, children had the privilege of willfulness.
Just as Ye Jiuge was thinking of asking Ye Ruyi to help her purchase the brick, she suddenly realized that she had no control over her own body.
“That’s too troublesome.” Zi Shang was too impatient, and he began to control Ye Jiuge’s body.
He extracted the brick from underneath the shelf, threw it onto the table, and said coldly, “Quote a price!”
The old store owner slowly raised his drooping eyelids. His cloudy eyes swept the gray brick, and he raised a palm. He said unhurriedly, “Five thousand taels.”
Before Ye Jiuge could say anything, Ye Ruyi’s eyes widened in surprise. She exclaimed, “What? You want five thousand silver taels for a brick?”
“No.” The old man shook his head and said calmly, “Not silver. Gold.”
Ye Ruyi’s mouth widened as she stared in shock at the old man. Then, she turned her head toward Ye Jiuge, as if to say, “You are not really going to buy this, are you?”
Ye Jiuge knew that the old man would ask a sky-high price. She would be crazy to buy a brick for five thousand gold taels.
