Chapter 123
The Young Prodigies could hardly take their eyes off the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill resting on the palm of her hand.
It was understandable, as they were seeing a spiritual elixir they had only heard rumors of with their own two eyes.
Baek-Cheong took her time, pretending to put the pill back into the jade bottle.
“The more valuable the item, the more you have to make them anxious for it.”
There was no merchant anywhere who would readily hand over an expensive item.
As her hand slowly withdrew the jade bottle, the Audience naturally began to Stir.
“W-Wait a moment!”
The one who raised her voice urgently was none other than Seo Ju-A.
It seemed all her attention was focused on the pill, and she forgot all about avenging her defeat.
Having shouted without realizing it, she must have felt awkward, as she let out a couple of dry coughs.
“Ahem. This Lady will take a look at the Inscribed Pill. With the discerning eye of the Hosan Seo Clan, I should be able to determine its authenticity for you.”
Her words were grand, but she was just as unable to take her eyes off the pill.
Baek-Cheong held back a satisfied smile inwardly.
“Easy, so easy.”
As expected, since her chest was big, she was easily swayed.
Baek-Cheong took out a single Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill from the jade bottle and gently offered it to Seo Ju-A.
“Then take a look for yourself. A pill engraved with an inscription isn’t something you see every day, after all.”
Seo Ju-A accepted the pill, pretending she couldn’t refuse.
Then she brought it to the tip of her nose to sniff its scent, and channeled spiritual energy into it to feel its medicinal properties.
She made quite a plausible show of evaluating it.
However, she couldn’t hide the fact that her cheeks were flushed red.
‘An inscription on a 1st-Grade Low-Tier Pill. And it doesn’t even have pill toxicity…?’
Seo Ju-A was born and raised in the prestigious Hosan Seo Clan.
Even though she had consumed her fair share of valuable spiritual elixirs, she had only ever heard rumors of pills bearing inscriptions.
She couldn’t possibly be unaware that it was an item that would elevate one’s status just by carrying it around.
“T-This much is… passable.”
Seo Ju-A tried hard to act haughty, but her voice trembled slightly.
“If you like it, shall I give you a few pills? Grandfather Yak-seon crafted them himself so there aren’t many left, but for Fellow Daoist Seo Ju-A, I’ll specially share some.”
Baek-Cheong could see right through her, but pretended not to notice.
And she made a provocation disguised as goodwill, as if to stimulate her pride.
Sure enough, Seo Ju-A’s eyes trembled slightly.
Triggered by the word 'specially', her pride stealthily reared its head.
If she showed any hesitation here, it would be a detriment to the name of the Hosan Seo Clan.
“Hmph, there’s no reason This Lady can’t buy it. Just name your price.”
Seo Ju-A raised her head stiffly for all to see.
As if she had been waiting for this, Baek-Cheong shrewdly stated the price.
“Ten Mid-Mid-Grade Spirit Stones per pill.”
The Audience stirred.
Because it was an absurd price for a 1st-Grade Low-Tier Pill.
Among the cultivators Whispering about the high price, a person who seemed to have quite a discerning eye abruptly interjected as if to argue.
“Wait. As far as I know, the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill that went up for auction at the Baeksang Pavilion in the past was twenty Mid-Mid-Grade Spirit Stones for a single jade bottle containing three pills. But at ten for one pill, aren’t you asking for too high a price?”
With three pills in one jade bottle, the price Baek-Cheong called was actually more expensive than the price at the auction.
The gaze of the Audience focused simultaneously on Baek-Cheong.
Baek-Cheong didn’t bat an eye and slyly replied.
“Your calculations are accurate. But that’s a story from a long time ago. Grandfather Yak-seon no longer releases Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills into the market. They won’t even go up for auction again, so it’s a bit disappointing if you calculate it using the price from back then.”
At the words that it would be difficult to get their hands on it ever again, the Scions swallowed dryly without realizing it.
Baek-Cheong didn’t miss the opening and drove the wedge in.
“For something like this, ten Mid-Mid-Grade Spirit Stones a pill is actually being given cheap to you.”
Sure enough, Seo Ju-A flared up and shouted.
“Just one pill! Are you looking down on This Lady? This Lady will buy a whole bottle!”
Seo Ju-A gave a look to her maidservant.
The maidservant politely held up a spirit stone pouch.
Seo Ju-A counted out the Mid-Mid-Grade Spirit Stones from the pouch and paid the requested price.
She didn’t try to haggle, nor did she show any sign of finding it a waste.
“For an item of this caliber, it is only right that one receive this much.”
It was a different attitude from the cultivator who had been arguing about the price just moments ago.
Baek-Cheong handed over a jade bottle and received the spirit stones.
“As expected, your discerning eye is extraordinary.”
At that small word of praise, Seo Ju-A’s shoulders rose in a shrug of pride.
She carefully tucked the jade bottle into her robes.
She looked as satisfied as if she had obtained a Precious Treasure.
While doing so, she glanced at Baek-Cheong, exuding confidence.
“Not a chance.”
Baek-Cheong noticed the well-endowed monster’s gaze and sneered inwardly.
Even if she got her hands on the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill, there was no way Seo Ju-A could beat her.
Her saying that it would have been hard to win was just something she said to sell the goods, after all.
“G-Give me a bottle too!”
“I will buy two bottles!”
“Here is a High-Grade Spirit Stone! To me first…!”
There was no way the Young Prodigies, who had watched the sight of someone buying a whole bottle, would stay still.
The preciously raised Scions lost their composure, pulling out spirit stones and scrambling to reach out their hands.
The more they were Scions of Prestigious Clans, the more they couldn’t help but know the true value of an Inscribed Pill.
In particular, the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill was a peerless pill that wouldn’t easily appear on the market.
“The spirit stones are pouring in.”
Baek-Cheong was on the verge of humming a tune as she watched the surging crowd of buyers.
However, she had no intention of just selling them off cheap.
“Everyone, wait a moment. As you can see, there isn’t much left.”
As she hugged the jade bottles to her chest, the complexions of the Young Prodigies grew urgent.
“Grandfather Yak-seon went through a lot of trouble to craft these for me, so I don’t really want to sell them to just anyone.”
She trailed off, showing a troubled expression.
Upon hearing that the quantity was small, the eyes of the Scions grew even more heated.
The more precious an item was, the harder it had to be to obtain for people to want it even more.
“I-I’ll pay whatever price you ask! Twenty Mid-Mid-Grade Spirit Stones per pill! No, I’ll give you thirty!”
“I will pay forty!”
The murmurs about the price being absurd had vanished without a trace.
The Scions began to argue among themselves, calling out higher prices.
Baek-Cheong sold the jade bottles one by one, pretending she couldn’t refuse.
“Is this why people get a taste for business?”
Mid-Mid-Grade and High-Grade Spirit Stones piled up high, and High-Mid-Grade and High-Grade Spirit Stones were often mixed in.
As she swept the spirit stones into her Storage Platform, she recalled her original purpose.
“This is enough of a justification.”
With this, even if she scattered spirit stones to her heart’s content at the auction, she wouldn’t be suspected by her uncle.
The preparations to sweep up fortuitous encounters in earnest were complete.
The Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills she had just released were a little over ten bottles.
Because she pretended to be stingy, saying there wasn’t much left, she didn’t bring out any more.
Even with just that much, what came into her hands was worth five High-High-Grade Spirit Stones.
She added the High-High-Grade Spirit Stones she had gathered from the Nameless Forum and the miscellaneous spirit stones she had received.
Before she knew it, the High-High-Grade Spirit Stones she counted amounted to fifteen.
So even if she used about half of them, it wouldn’t be noticeable.
“Just how much is all this?”
It was an amount that an average Foundation Establishment Cultivator would barely be able to touch even if they neglected their Cultivation and dedicated their entire life to it.
But she had earned it in an instant with just a few bottles of pills, so a smile naturally bloomed on her lips.
“The Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill is a real cash cow.”
.
.
.
The Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill commotion that had swept through also died down gradually.
The Young Prodigies, who had been throwing spirit stones in a frenzy just moments ago, also came to their senses one by one.
It was funny seeing them act dignified, coughing dryly as if nothing had happened.
“Looks like they all want to save face.”
Just as the atmosphere was softening, a certain Young Prodigy changed the subject.
“By the way, has everyone prepared for the Cloud Sea Secret Realm?”
At the mention of the Cloud Sea Secret Realm, the Pavilion stirred once again.
Among the Young Prodigies gathered here, there were quite a few who had advanced to the main competition.
It meant there were that many who had earned the qualification to enter the Cloud Sea Secret Realm.
It was noisy all around as everyone added their words about preparations and companions.
Baek-Cheong also stealthily listened in.
Just then, someone answered her curiosity.
“I heard the Cloud Sea Secret Realm, just as the name suggests, is a sea made of clouds.”
“They say you have to personally wade through the Cloud Sea to salvage rare treasures and spiritual elixirs.”
“Does “A Sea of Clouds” mean we have to swim?”
“That’s not the case. It’s different from a real sea, so there’s no hindrance to moving your body, and you won’t suffocate, or so I’m told.”
However, there was one nasty aspect to it.
Inside the Cloud Sea, you couldn’t trust your eyes, your ears, or any of your five senses at all.
“Since the clouds blur the five senses, they say the only thing you can rely on in the end is your Divine Sense.”
It meant you had to feel your surroundings with your Divine Sense to find treasures and use your Divine Sense to discern danger.
The situation was different from the outside, where people’s five senses were perfectly fine.
Furthermore, there was a spooky story going around.
“Although no one has actually seen them, there are rumors that there are demonic beasts wandering inside the Cloud Sea.”
“I heard that the deeper you go, the higher the rank of the ones lurking there.”
It meant that the deeper the place, the more precious the treasures sleeping there, but the risk of encountering fierce demonic beasts also increased accordingly.
A Young Prodigy who was listening to the story sent a glance stealthily to the cultivator next to him.
Soon, the two agreed to enter the Cloud Sea Secret Realm together.
It would be a disaster if they ran into a demonic beast while wandering alone, so it was wise to find a reliable partner.
As the Young Prodigies watched companions being decided, their gazes gathered stealthily on Baek-Cheong.
Everyone seemed curious about who the Top Ranker, who had swept the entire Qi Condensation Group without drawing her sword even once, would pair up with.
Seo Ju-A also glanced over, and some even showed signs of being anxious to ask her to accompany them.
‘Isn’t this a Secret Realm made completely for me?’
Baek-Cheong herself had no interest in the all the gazes.
Because in the situation where the five senses couldn’t be trusted and Divine Sense was important, she was cheering inwardly.