Longevity Begins With The Birth Of A Daughter At An Old Age

Chapter 7: Buying Books

Xu Mu exchanged ten of the twenty-seven low-grade spirit stones for the medicinal materials needed to refine Qi Gathering Pills. With the remaining seventeen spirit stones, he planned to buy some things.

He could directly purchase the medicinal materials at the Song Family Medicine Shop!

"Guest, take care!"

Although Xu Mu's transaction was small, the maid still politely saw him off.

Because they knew he was an alchemist, their attitude became much warmer.

After leaving the Song Family Medicine Shop, Xu Mu headed towards the market in Baishi Square, which was specifically used for setting up stalls.

"Black Scale Beast Meat! Two pounds for one low-grade spirit stone!"

"Talismans! Talismans! All high-quality talismans! If they don't work, they're free!"

"Ten Complete Replenishing Pills! One pill will make you vigorous for three days!"

The market was bustling with noise, shouting, and bargaining, much livelier than the shops.

Xu Mu used to be a regular here!

But in the past few months, he had been short on money, and he had to take care of his wife, so he hadn't come for a long time.

"Oh? Isn't this Old Xu? Haven't seen you in a long time!"

A short but sturdy meat seller looked surprised as Xu Mu approached.

"My wife has been staying at home because she just gave birth!" Xu Mu said with a smile.

This man, named Du Mao, was someone he had met when he used to set up his stall here.

"I see! Congratulations!"

Du Mao bowed to Xu Mu and expressed his joy.

"Thank you!"

Xu Mu returned the gesture.

He then asked Du Mao to help him cut two pounds of monster beast meat.

"It seems like you've struck it rich! You're willing to eat meat now!"

Du Mao skillfully cut off a rib and wrapped it in oil paper before handing it to Xu Mu.

While cutting the meat, it was clear to see that Du Mao's left hand was missing three fingers.

"My wife just gave birth, so I have to replenish myself!"

Xu Mu took the meat and handed over one low-grade spirit stone before bidding farewell and leaving.

He then went to the stall selling spirit rice and spent four low-grade spirit stones to buy twenty catties of spirit rice.

Together, they cost five low-grade spirit stones.

In the past, this would have been half a month's income for him.

And these things would only last for seven or eight days at most.

He would never have dared to be so extravagant in the past.

Next, Xu Mu went to the stall selling talismans and bought five sealing talismans.

These talismans could reinforce walls, and if pasted on a door, they could create a sealing force that made it difficult for people to open.

Buying sealing talismans was mainly for Ye Yingying's safety.

When he wasn't at home, she would have some means of self-protection.

In addition to the sealing talismans, he also bought three protective talismans, which he would leave for Ye Yingying's protection as well.

One sealing talisman cost one low-grade spirit stone, and two low-grade spirit stones were needed for one protective talisman. In total, it cost eleven low-grade spirit stones.

Adding the money spent on meat and spirit rice, Xu Mu was left with only two low-grade spirit stones.

"Spirit stones really don't last long!"

Xu Mu sighed in his heart.

Just as he was about to leave, he saw a stall selling books.

Unable to resist, he stopped and walked over.

He planned to buy more spells to practice when he returned. In the future, if he encountered any crises, he would have more options to improve and respond.

The books on the stall looked ancient and filled the small space.

[The True Explanation of Talismans], [The Eternal Life Technique], [The Detailed Explanation of Fasting Pills], [Thunderbolt Sword Art], [Complete Collection of Fire-based Spells], [Complete Collection of Qi Refining Stage Spells], [Summary of Qi Refining Stage Breakthroughs], [Ten Things Alchemists Should Pay Attention To]...

These books all looked impressive, but they were actually the most basic ones. However, the body cultivation sword art and the thunderbolt sword art seemed interesting.

Xu Mu used to be a regular at the market, and he didn't know how many times he had seen these books.

Without wasting time on those miscellaneous books, Xu Mu directly picked up [Complete Collection of Qi Refining Stage Spells].

"How much is this book?"

The book seller was an old man who was currently trimming his nails. His face was covered in age spots, and he was probably over ninety years old.

Upon hearing Xu Mu's question, he immediately extended five fingers.

"Five low-grade spirit stones!"

Xu Mu didn't say anything and just threw the book down and prepared to leave.

"Hey! Hey! Don't go! We can negotiate! How about two stones? One stone! One stone! I can't sell it any lower!"

Hearing the old man's words, Xu Mu stopped and walked back.

The books on the old man's stall had long been sold out. If Xu Mu wasn't bothered, he could easily find some cultivators he knew before and borrow a few books to read.

Relying solely on reading books, it was difficult to achieve success. He didn't know how many times he had been fooled in the past!

"I'll give you two Fasting Pills. Sell me this Thunderbolt Sword Art!"

"Damn! You're too stingy! Do you know how hard it is for me to copy a book? At least five pills!"

Copy a book?

Who would believe that!

Although there is no printing technology in this world, there is watermarking. It doesn't take much time to copy a book, the only trouble is binding.

"Two! If you don't sell, forget it!"

"Sell! With you, even the old man's underwear will be included!"

The old man complained, but he was very efficient in collecting things.

Xu Mu took the book, briefly flipped through it, made sure it was not damaged, and then put it into his storage bag before leaving the market.

Walking out of the market, Xu Mu took a deep breath and felt a sense of security that he had never felt before.

Because--

He made money!

But it's still not enough!

Just now, when he asked about renting a house in the market, he found that the rent had increased, and a high deposit was required, along with many conditions!

There was a feeling that they didn't want to rent to him, but Xu Mu didn't know if he was overthinking.

Leaves blew in from the distant Baihe Forest, covering the roads in the slum area, hiding the foul excrement.

It was fine in the market, where there were people responsible for cleaning.

But no one cared about the slum area, it relied on self-awareness and voluntary action.

So it was inevitable that some lazy cultivators would casually throw garbage on the streets.

It was autumn, approaching winter, and the weather was getting cooler, which made it slightly better. If it were the hot summer, it would be almost impossible to walk.

Fortunately, those who lived here were cultivators. If they were ordinary people, there would probably have been an outbreak of disease long ago.

"It would be nice to go to the mortal world!"

"But--"

"I can't afford the boat fare!"

The area where the Qinghe Sword Sect was located was mostly desolate mountains and wild ridges.

It wasn't that the Qinghe Sword Sect had any special preferences, but only these places had spiritual materials and spiritual energy.

The areas where mortals lived were mostly near the center of the continent, which had already been fully developed and had scarce spiritual energy and even rarer spiritual materials.

The few spiritual mountains and rivers had long been occupied by major sects. Only small sects like the Qinghe Sword Sect had to come to such remote places to develop and manage on their own.

It was extremely difficult for cultivators to survive in such places, let alone ordinary people.

So there were basically no ordinary people.

In this world, everyone could cultivate immortality, but the difference in talent between individuals was huge.

Someone with talent like Xu Mu's would not be accepted by any sect in the gathering areas of ordinary people.

Only in places like the Qinghe Sword Sect did they forcibly cultivate into immortals. As for those who couldn't make it, they had all died.

The nearest mortal kingdom to the Qinghe Sword Sect was tens of thousands of miles away, and the travel cost alone was ten medium-grade spirit stones.

So Xu Mu didn't even dare to think about it before.

Carefully avoiding the unidentified objects that occasionally appeared on the ground, Xu Mu quickly arrived at the entrance of his alley.

This place was a short distance from the Baishi Market and was in the middle of the slum area.

From here, it was a few miles to the Bahe Forest.

Many cultivators made a living by entering the Bahe Forest to hunt demons, collect medicinal herbs, mine, and gather resources.

In the entire Baishi Market, there were only a small number of people like Xu Mu who made a living by refining pills.

"Xu Fellow Daoist, we meet again!"

Sun Daocheng rushed out from a nearby alley and blocked Xu Mu's path.

His hair was messy, he looked disheveled, and his eyes were bloodshot.

"Xu Fellow Daoist, if it's about that matter, let's not mention it!"

A hint of hostility flashed in Xu Mu's eyes.

This old guy really didn't give up.

"Xu Fellow Daoist, you misunderstood. I was indeed reckless and spoke nonsense at that time! Let me apologize to you first!"

"No need! Just don't bother me in the future!"

Xu Mu took a step and tried to leave, but Sun Daocheng stopped him again.

"Don't be in such a hurry, Xu Fellow Daoist! I have good news for you!" Sun Daocheng said with a smile.

"Good news? What good news?"

Xu Mu frowned, finding it hard to imagine what good news someone like Sun Daocheng could bring.

"I recently met a big employer who wants me to refine a batch of Jade Marrow Pills. But I'm too busy to handle it alone, so I want to invite you to go with me! I can pay you two low-grade spirit stones per day, and I can also give you the pill formula and techniques for the Jade Marrow Pills!"

The price Sun Daocheng offered was extremely generous.

Not to mention two low-grade spirit stones per day, just the pill formula and techniques were already valuable.

The Jade Marrow Pill was a second-grade pill that improved cultivation aptitude and strengthened the physique. It was much more precious than the Qi Gathering Pill.

If it were in the past, as long as he was given the pill formula and techniques, Xu Mu would be willing to work for free.

But now...

A wolf can't be trusted to guard a sheep.

"No need! I still have to take care of my wife and daughter at home!"

Xu Mu refused without hesitation, walked past Sun Daocheng, and left, ignoring Sun Daocheng's shouts from behind.

"This bastard! He didn't take the bait!" Sun Daocheng's eyes filled with anger.

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If you have any questions, feel free to ask! I will make changes if necessary!

(End of this chapter)