Everyone was slightly taken aback by his words.
The dark-skinned Jing Ren offered a piece of advice:
"Shopkeeper Bai, is it something urgent? If not, it would be better to go later."
He had heard that several Demon Hunting Teams were planning to enter the mountains together, possibly because the Li family's Mountain Entrance Map had been leaked.
Some of the larger and smaller groups that made their living off Celestial Barrier Mountain were also planning to take advantage of the situation and head into the mountains to see if they could make a profit.
The herb gatherers and miners, in particular, were getting restless.
"The next two months will be a great time for business."
Hearing this, Bai Mo felt a pang of regret.
"I have no choice. The Pill Master certification is about to begin, and time waits for no one!"
Pill Master!?
An abrupt silence fell over the courtyard.
"Pill Master!?"
"Shopkeeper Bai, you want to get certified as a Pill Master!?"
"Good heavens! Has your Alchemy Skill really reached such a high level?"
Everyone started clamoring at once.
Lanshan fell silent. He thought of the Qi Blood Pill he had taken.
The Pill was personally refined by Bai Mo, and Lanshan himself had never seen a Pill with such efficacy on the market in Immortal Arrival City.
He didn't know much about Pill Masters, but thinking about it this way, he truly felt that Bai Mo might succeed.
'A thirteen-year-old Pill Master?'
Lanshan was in a bit of a daze.
Composing himself, Lanshan came back to his senses.
"Alright. I'll arrange a spot for you with a merchant caravan. It's just a matter of adding one more person, after all."
After they settled on a time, Bai Mo took his leave.
The entire Demon Hunting Team was deeply invested in the matter of Lanshan's sister joining a sect, and with him present, they couldn't relax.
Seeing Bai Mo get up, Lanshan remembered something.
"Oh, right. Shopkeeper Bai, you didn't take anything that night besides a Pill Book."
"We also looted some Spirit Stones. Do you want some to help you out?"
Bai Mo looked at him in surprise.
"Senior Lanshan, surely you aren't underestimating the Pill Book? In the hands of a Pill Master, this thing could very well be more valuable than your Mountain Entrance Map."
Bai Mo hadn't expected him to be so careless, so he offered a reminder:
"You all also have a ledger. That thing is probably worth quite a bit, too. Don't go wasting it."
With that, Bai Mo picked up the Climbing Vine and casually strolled away.
Long after he had left the courtyard, the members of the Demon Hunting Team were still in a daze.
"A Pill Master? A Pill Master this young?"
"Can he really do it?"
"Based on that Qi Blood Pill, I doubt even those old fossils in the city could refine something like it. And even if they could, they'd charge an arm and a leg and brag about it all over town."
"Right, what about that ledger…"
...
Bai Mo returned home under the cover of night.
'I wonder what level of Alchemy Skill is required for the Pill Master certification.'
'Based on the experiences of those who came before, it shouldn't be too difficult for a Pill Disciple who can refine a great pill to be certified as a Pill Master.'
He poured out the Climbing Vine and began deftly sorting and trimming it.
His hands moved with the speed of an old master with decades of experience. Before long, a layer of dead branches and dirt covered the floor at his feet.
'I've never had a master; I've learned everything by myself through trial and error. I probably don't even know some of the most basic, common-sense things.'
'All of these could be obstacles for me.'
'However, if I can thoroughly grasp thirty percent of the Jia Chen Alchemy Skill during this time, I'll be completely confident.'
A smile appeared on Bai Mo's face.
[Pill Master: Bai Mo]
[Realm: Qi Refining Second Layer]
[Status: Pill Disciple (0/900)]
[Aptitude: One glimpse reveals the whole picture; comprehension begins to manifest.]
'With my comprehension, it shouldn't be a problem. I'll set a new goal: master fifty percent.'
His mind now at ease, Bai Mo finished processing the Climbing Vine. He then dragged over a wooden chest and carefully placed the Climbing Vine inside.
They were all aged and of high quality. The Pills refined from them would probably be much more potent than usual.
After finishing all this, Bai Mo washed up briefly and fell straight asleep.
His body had not yet recovered from the exhaustion, so he slept very deeply.
...
「The next day, late in the morning.」
Sunlight streamed through a crack in the window, feeling warm and pleasant on his skin.
Bai Mo opened his eyes.
His body craved more sleep, but Bai Mo forced himself out of bed with great willpower.
'Exceptional talent isn't enough. Diligence is the true key to a Pill Master's success!'
Following his usual routine, Bai Mo opened the shop.
He chatted for a while with the street vendors who, rather than setting up stalls, wandered around like ghosts peddling their wares, and lamented how hard it was to make a living.
Watching them disappear into the distance with their bundles of goods, Bai Mo was about to head back into his shop.
"Shopkeeper, are you still looking for someone to test Pills?"
It was the middle-aged man with the handcart. He was still wearing a mask, and the exposed parts of his face were covered in sores.
Bai Mo turned, went inside, and brought out a worn-out bag containing the discarded parts from processing the Climbing Vine last night.
"Where did you hear that from?"
The masked man eagerly took the bag from him and placed it on his cart.
"I heard it from your neighbor, the one who sells Talismans."
Bai Mo shook his head. "I've never hired anyone to test Pills here. I don't make much to begin with, so where would I get the spare money?"
Seeing the masked man's disappointed expression, Bai Mo asked curiously:
"You still take on jobs like that? You'll ruin your own body!"
"Just to make a living." The masked man pointed to his face.
"Shopkeeper, with a face like mine, do you think I'm afraid of a little more ruin?"
Bai Mo could only nod awkwardly.
Seeing that Bai Mo had nothing else for him, the masked man started to push his cart toward the next stop.
Suddenly, he seemed to remember something and stopped.
"Shopkeeper, is this stuff from today poisonous?"
"No, but it's all useless scraps."
The masked man was instantly delighted.
"Scraps from a Pill Shop can be worth a lot of money!"
Bai Mo shook his head and went back into his shop.
In this city, everyone had their own way of surviving.
Perhaps because making a living was so difficult, business at the shop had indeed improved a bit, just as Jing Ren had said.
But it wasn't a significant improvement.
Bai Mo saw customers come and go, and among them was the wiry man from before.
Seeing him again, Bai Mo's eyes narrowed involuntarily.
Though it had only been a few days, the man's qi was much more volatile, and he had fresh scars on his body.
Having seen plenty of customers from Demon Hunting Teams in his shop, Bai Mo knew what wounds inflicted by Demon Beasts looked like.
The wounds on this man did not look like they came from a Demon Beast.
The wiry man had most likely participated in the Li family's grand event that night.
"I'll have Evil Exorcism Pills in a few days. Would you like to reserve some?"
Bai Mo remembered the man had asked about Evil Exorcism Pills before, so he spoke up.
The wiry man's eyes lit up. "Yes!"
"I went to the Miaofa Sect's shop, and they raised the price of their Pills again…"
He took out five Spirit Stones and placed them on the counter as a deposit.
Bai Mo accepted the Spirit Stones and added a reminder:
"I'll be going on a long trip soon, so the shop will definitely be closed for a while. Would you like to stock up in advance?"
The wiry man paused. "How long will you be gone, Shopkeeper?"
"It's hard to say."
Hearing this, the wiry man gritted his teeth.
"Give me a few days. I'll gather some more Spirit Stones."
This man was clearly a powerful figure in a Demon Hunting Team who operated around Celestial Barrier Mountain, yet he always seemed to be short on cash.
Bai Mo found it strange but didn't ask any further.
"My little shop doesn't just accept Spirit Stones. I also take waste pills. If I find them acceptable, they can be used to offset a good number of Spirit Stones."
"I know." The wiry man asked instead:
"You've switched to a different Pill Book today, Shopkeeper. It must contain Pill Formulas. For an ordinary Pill Master, a dozen or so Pill Formulas should be more than enough."
"Why do you still need waste pills?"
Bai Mo casually closed the Pill Book.
"You wouldn't understand. It's about putting knowledge into practice. When I break down waste pills, I get to both learn and apply my skills at the same time. Isn't that wonderful?"