Chapter 122
Cheongunru was a Pavilion within Bohwawon where Qi Condensation Cultivators gathered separately.
Just as she had heard from Jin-Wi, Baek-Cheong pushed through the crowd and stepped straight into the Pavilion.
Cheongunru Pavilion was filled with Cultivators who had youthful faces or were in the prime of their youth.
This was because the Qi Condensation Cultivators gathered at the New Spring Exchange Gathering were all Young Prodigies.
Occasionally, older Cultivators could be seen, but they were very few in number, perhaps feeling out of place.
“Quite spacious.”
Cheongunru Pavilion was quite spacious, with the Main Building in the center and several annexes attached to it.
Each annex was bustling with Cultivators gathered in small groups, chatting or setting up stalls to haggle over prices.
However, the moment she stepped inside, a Stir arose from all around.
“O-over there…!”
“It’s the Scion of the Yeonha Baek Clan.”
“The one who swept the entire Qi Condensation Group without even drawing her sword…?”
The Cultivators recognized Baek-Cheong and lowered their voices to whisper among themselves.
Because she had made such a scene at the Martial Arts Competition, it seemed her face was now known wherever she went.
‘Well, for today at least, that’s not a bad thing.’
Inside her Storage Platform, dozens of bottles of Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills that she had crafted in her spare time were piled up.
The higher the reputation she had built at the Martial Arts Competition, the easier it would be to sell the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills to the Qi Condensation Cultivators in Cheongunru Pavilion.
While she was at it, she planned to mix in and launder the high-grade Spirit Stones whose origins were hard to explain.
“I need to make a proper fortune today.”
However, since it was her first time at Cheongunru Pavilion, she had no idea where or what kind of exchanges were taking place.
Baek-Cheong was peeking into the annexes and looking around.
A quick-witted Cultivator swiftly approached and stuck to her side.
He was a Qi Condensation Cultivator, a Rogue Cultivator who belonged to neither a Great Sect nor a Clan, and his Attire was modest.
“Fellow Daoist Baek-Cheong! Is this your first time at Cheongunru Pavilion? If you need a guide, This Humble One will escort you!”
The Rogue Cultivator bowed repeatedly as if trying to get on Baek-Cheong’s good side.
It seemed he intended to at least make an impression on Baek-Cheong, who had made a name for herself at the Martial Arts Competition.
“Oh, perfect timing.”
Having a guide would save her the legwork, so there was nothing for her to lose.
Baek-Cheong gave a small nod of agreement.
“Then I’ll leave it to you.”
The Rogue Cultivator’s face lit up as his offer was accepted, and he took the lead.
He then excitedly began to list the exchanges taking place all over Cheongunru Pavilion.
“In this annex, a gathering for Young Prodigies to build friendships is in full swing. They share tea, compose poetry, and exchange insights on spiritual medicines and Cultivation Methods.”
Baek-Cheong openly lost interest at the word 'friendships'.
A gathering where people drank tea and recited poetry wouldn’t yield a single Spirit Stone.
‘It’s not like they’re playing grown-ups.’
Noticing Baek-Cheong’s unenthusiastic expression, the Rogue Cultivator quickly changed the subject.
“Ah, it seems you have little interest in social gatherings! Then how about a trade fair or an auction?”
His tact was certainly out of the ordinary.
Baek-Cheong’s ears perked up at the mention of trade fairs and auctions.
However, after hearing the Rogue Cultivator’s explanation, the auction didn’t seem appealing.
Items put up by Qi Condensation Cultivators were bound to be unimpressive, and more importantly, even if she put the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills up for auction, she wouldn’t be able to unload dozens of bottles all at once.
An auction was a place to bid on a single Rare Item, after all.
“If I want to offload them in bulk, an auction is out of the question.”
A trade fair, on the other hand, was a different story.
Since she could haggle directly with multiple people, she felt she could easily get rid of about half of her stockpiled Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills if she set her mind to it.
Furthermore, since it was the Biun Sect’s New Year’s Banquet, it was likely that quite a few scions from prestigious Clans had gathered.
The more deep-pocketed buyers there were, the better it would be for selling the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills at a high price.
“If I have a choice, I should go where the money is.”
As if reading her mind, the quick-witted Rogue Cultivator spoke first.
“For someone like you, Fellow Daoist, a gathering of Scions from prestigious Clans would be the most fitting. There happens to be such a trade fair, so This Humble One will escort you there!”
As if he had been waiting for this, the Rogue Cultivator took the lead himself.
After passing several annexes, they arrived at a Pavilion located in the most scenic spot of Cheongunru Pavilion.
Upon entering the Pavilion situated by a pond, they found the atmosphere was indeed extraordinary.
Those seated were all either pampered scions of Clans or Young Prodigies revered as Heavenly Talents in their Sects.
From their Attire to the dharma treasures draped over their bodies, nothing about them was ordinary.
In the eyes of others, it was a place akin to a dragon’s pool or a tiger’s den, where one would not dare to set foot carelessly.
Of course, in Baek-Cheong’s eyes, it merely looked like a gathering of deep-pocketed buyers.
“Oh, they all look like they have some money.”
Baek-Cheong decided to pay the price for the guidance.
She rummaged through her Storage Platform and pulled out a jade bottle of Spirit Gathering Pills that she had received a while ago and had shoved into a corner despite it being top-grade.
Even if it was a Top-grade Spirit Gathering Pill, it didn’t even have an inscription carved into it, making it nothing more than a nuisance that took up space for her.
“Thank you for guiding me. Please take this.”
The Rogue Cultivator, who received the jade bottle, absentmindedly opened the stopper, and his eyes widened.
“I-isn’t this a Top-grade Spirit Gathering Pill?! To give something like this just for a simple guide’s fee…!”
For a Qi Condensation Rogue Cultivator, a jade bottle of top-grade Spirit Gathering Pills was a Precious Treasure that would be hard to come by even after months of grueling work.
The Rogue Cultivator shouted his boundless gratitude and bowed repeatedly.
“Th-thank you, Fellow Daoist Baek-Cheong! This Humble One will never forget this favor!”
Then, perhaps afraid that the Precious Treasure might be taken back if he lingered unnecessarily, he took his leave tactfully and swiftly.
‘What’s with the overreaction?’
Baek-Cheong looked at the Rogue Cultivator’s retreating back with a bewildered expression.
She had only given him a nuisance, yet his gratitude was somewhat excessive.
As soon as the Rogue Cultivator withdrew, the attention of all the Young Prodigies in the Pavilion shifted entirely to her.
It was understandable, given that the much-talked-about Top Ranker who had swept the Qi Condensation Group at the Martial Arts Competition without drawing her sword even once suddenly appeared in the Pavilion.
Brushing off the pouring gazes as if they were nothing, Baek-Cheong slowly looked around the Pavilion.
And a familiar face caught her eye.
Seo Ju-A, wearing a dark brown daoist robe, was seated in a prime spot that could be considered a Seat of Honor.
As befitted a Scion of the Hosan Seo Clan, the sight of her accompanied by two maidservants stood out prominently even in the Pavilion.
As soon as Seo Ju-A spotted Baek-Cheong, she sprang up from her Seat.
“Fellow Daoist Baek-Cheong! This Lady has not yet finished our match…!”
Seo Ju-A held her head high and puffed out her chest.
Although her defeat at the Martial Arts Competition had been quite frustrating, her spirit was not broken.
She glared at Baek-Cheong with fire in her eyes, as if ready to avenge her humiliation right then and there.
“Oh?”
On the contrary, Baek-Cheong was delighted to recognize Seo Ju-A.
There was no better target than Seo Ju-A to offload the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills onto.
She recalled how Seo Ju-A had unhesitatingly consumed a Top-grade Spirit Gathering Pill during their spar.
If she were a Scion who carried around spiritual medicines for emergencies that others had to make a huge resolve just to obtain, she would certainly have enough purchasing power to buy Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pills.
“Not a bad choice for my first sale.”
In Baek-Cheong’s eyes, whether Seo Ju-A puffed out her chest and glared or not, she merely looked like a walking pouch of Spirit Stones.
Baek-Cheong approached Seo Ju-A without hiding her joy.
Then, she whispered softly so that only Seo Ju-A could hear.
“You know. If you had taken an Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill instead of a Top-grade Spirit Gathering Pill back then, it would have been hard for me to win, too.”
Seo Ju-A’s fiercely sharpened momentum crumbled.
Considering whether to avenge or not, she looked as if she couldn’t understand the meaning behind the unexpected whisper.
“An Inscribed… Spirit Gathering Pill…?”
Seo Ju-A unconsciously chewed over the words.
She remembered a rumor that had once flowed all the way to the Hosan Seo Clan.
It was a story whose Veracity couldn’t even be determined - that Baek-Cheong carried around inscribed pills crafted by Yak-seon.
Recently, there were also rumors circulating that she had consumed an Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill at Je-bu-bong Peak.
“That’s right. It’s an Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill personally crafted by grandfather Yak-seon.”
Thinking this was her chance, Baek-Cheong raised her voice.
The attention of the Young Prodigies gathered in the Pavilion simultaneously focused on her.
Pretending not to notice on purpose, she shamelessly continued speaking.
“It’s perfect for replenishing spiritual energy during Training, and there’s nothing better for filling a dried-up Dantian in an emergency.”
Baek-Cheong went a step further and drove her point home.
“Above all, there are no pill toxins, thanks to the inscription carved into it.”
A Stir spread among the Young Prodigies like ripples on water.
Originally, the cheaper the spiritual medicine, the more pill toxins would accumulate upon swallowing, inevitably damaging one’s meridians and Dantian.
But to have no pill toxins at all - just from those words alone, one could tell that an Inscribed Pill was no ordinary thing.
Since they were all capable Young Prodigies, they seemed to have a vague understanding of Inscribed Pills as well.
However, the rarity of an Inscribed Pill went without saying, so people simply had never seen one in person.
At this, Baek-Cheong reached into her Storage Platform in front of everyone watching.
She then opened the stopper of the jade bottle she pulled out and dropped the Inscribed Spirit Gathering Pill from inside onto her palm.
A faint inscription was carved onto the surface of the radiant pill.
“Th-that’s a pill with an inscription carved into it…!”
“An inscription formed on a 1st-Grade Low-Tier Pill…?”
“To see an Inscribed Pill, which I’ve only heard of in words, in person…!”
The Young Prodigies each poured out exclamations of awe.
As if they were facing a Heavenly Treasure, every one of them couldn’t take his or her eyes off the pill resting on Baek-Cheong’s palm.
Even Seo Ju-A forgot about her revenge and stared at the pill with her mouth slightly agape.
At the outpouring of gasps of Admiration, Baek-Cheong smiled inwardly with satisfaction.
The bait had been cast, so it was now time for the deep-pocketed buyers to bite the hook on their own.
‘I’m going to fleece them all.’