CHAPTER 386: CHAPTER 386: ADDING BRICKS AND TILES TO THE SMALL COURTYARD

"Venerable Family, where did you get these Demon Cores?!" Bai Yunqi came by attracted by the scent, and upon seeing the colorful Demon Cores in his palm, he was overjoyed, "Are there Demon Beasts appearing near our home?"

It was Wan Mingchuan’s first time seeing Demon Cores, and he asked curiously, "What a rich Spiritual Energy. Can Demon Cores be eaten directly?"

Yun Mo gently patted him with his wing and laughed, "Greedy cat, why do you want to eat everything? These Demon Cores are the source of power for Demon Beasts that have been around for years, equivalent to a cultivator’s Golden Core, naturally rich in Spiritual Energy. Demon beasts, relying on their strong physiques, can indeed swallow them directly, but refining them into an elixir can make them more effective."

"These Demon Cores are well handled, they must not be freshly hunted." Hu Zhile, ever meticulous, took one look and guessed roughly, "Venerable Family, did you have any encounter while traveling to Carefree City with Fellow Daoist Xie?"

"Not really an encounter, but today I witnessed the city over the wilderness, that Carefree City mainly engages in hunting and selling Demon Cores..."

Jiang Yuan described the journey briefly, then asked, "I think it’s necessary to open a spirit medicine shop in Cloud City, with this we can have a continuous supply of elixirs. How do you think we should plan so as not to hinder cultivation?"

Hu Zhile’s eyes instantly lit up, "Venerable Family, let my younger sister go to Cloud City to manage the store! She’s not that focused on cultivation anyway and loves tinkering with small businesses in the Market; going to Cloud City to collect spirit medicine would be very convenient.

I and Senior Bai are more inclined to head to Carefree City to hunt Demon Beasts. Firstly, cultivation itself requires practical combat, and we can hone and confirm the cultivation techniques during battles; secondly, demon cores are expensive, and if we can hunt enough of them, it will fortify our small courtyard!"

Hu Jiu, the girl?

That gossip-loving little fox?

"But running back and forth between the Market and Cloud City doesn’t quite fit, it’s too far." Jiang Yuan pondered for a moment and shook his head, "Moreover, I was thinking of negotiating with her to open a branch in Wo Hu Temple Market.

The cultivators there are generous, requiring Immortal Jade quite often, I’ve seen their Money Shop doesn’t provide Immortal Jade exchange services.

Coincidentally, I have a channel to exchange Immortal Jade, offering a Spiritual Stone for Immortal Jade business to gain the spread, letting Hu Jiu mainly operate around Wo Hu Temple Market, which should be more to her advantage."

Immortal Jade?!

Hu Zhile’s furry large ears perked up instantly at the mention.

Venerable Family is so trusting towards the younger sister, willing to hand over such a secretive channel for exchanging Immortal Jade for her to manage!

Looks like the little girl’s efforts weren’t in vain, just having taken over the sales work from the small courtyard’s miscellaneous productions, she’s already shown her value to Venerable Family, and now being entrusted with significant responsibility!

"Sir, let me go if managing the store doesn’t interfere with Talisman Painting!" Yun Shu volunteered, "I could collect spirit medicine while selling Talismans, didn’t you say the folks in Cloud City are honest? I wouldn’t have to worry about getting cheated."

Wan Mingchuan also raised his hand indicating, "Master, apart from lecturing on the Supreme Divine Technique to everyone each morning, I’m left with cultivation, so I can absolutely manage the store in the evenings!"

Yun Mo raised his large wing, expressing his willingness to contribute to the small courtyard.

"Let Yun Shu try first, our acquisition shop doesn’t need to be open daily. Offering slightly higher purchasing prices and consistently opening for acquisitions a few days each month will suffice, so as not to delay your cultivation." Jiang Yuan contemplated and eventually made the decision.

Hu Zhile was sent to Cyan Fish Mountain Market to negotiate with the younger sister about moving to Wo Hu Temple Market; Bai Yunqi was sent to the new residence in Carefree City to acclimate himself before considering participating in hunting demon beasts;

Then Jiang Yuan seized the time to harvest and sow in the farmland; he examined the workshop thoroughly before rushing into a new path for exploration.

Currently holding sufficient money, Yu Hu warriors played a significant role in the Wo Hu Mountain battle, he decided to expand his backpack to gather all the warriors encountered for his use.

The cold wind howled, and the world always seemed forever colored in black.

"Clang! Clang!"

The barren Great Black Mountain burned with blazing torches illuminating the simple and rough caves, children, under the elders’ guidance, awkwardly stitched animal skins using bone needles; young men and women, holding rudimentary tools made from stones, chipped away stones from the wall, then transported them out.

"The deities granted us warm and delicious food, torches, wood, and everything needed for survival, but we cannot become parasites, sitting here every day waiting for divine mercy for food and water."

The tribe leader, while drawing simple lines on the black stone wall with a stone, encouraged, "We have hands capable of excavating caves for warmth, thus eliminating the need to consume large amounts of wood for heat. I’m thinking about praying for some seeds from the deities next time they grant us delicious food, we must find ways to live by ourselves."

A young man vigorously carving more space for the tribe wiped his sweat, panting, "But there’s no water source, we searched many places and dug deeper, only to find nothing but black sand, there’s no water, then how can we grow plants?"

An elderly person by the fire chimed in, "Let’s see if the heavens bring rain, if it rains, we’ll have water and plants can grow. If it doesn’t rain, relying on water from praying to the gods will likely struggle to grow any crops."

"It’s all sand, no soil, even with water it might not work."

"Continue digging further tomorrow, maybe we’ll hit the soil layer..."

...

The people in the tribe were quietly discussing, trying to discuss a future path.

A young woman raised her handcrafted stone pickaxe high and smashed a stone, and then there was a loud "clang" as the pickaxe touched something shiny and hard, splitting the stone tool in half and making her retreat a step backward.

"Look, what is this?" The woman dug out the ’culprit’ from the pile of black stones—a shining stone the size of an infant’s fist.

"Never seen it before, this stone looks nice!"

"To break ordinary stones, this must not be an ordinary item, could it be a Black Gemstone?"

"What’s the use of Black Gemstone? It’s not edible or drinkable, and being this small, serves no purpose."

...

The working crowd gathered around briefly and scattered quickly, though hard, it was practically useless due to its size. The woman planned to offer it as a toy for the children, but the tribe leader took it.

"Although we don’t know what it is, it’s one of the best things we’ve found yet. Keep it, and if more is found..." His voice hadn’t even finished when someone else hit upon a Black Gemstone, two identical shining black stones gleaming together beautifully.

The leader placed them upon the rudimentary altar, "During these difficult times, we’ve been praying to the gods for assistance and besides sincere faith, we have little to offer. Today we’ve found these two gems, useless though they are, they are the most magnificent things we have, let’s pray together and offer them to the gods, as our token of devotion!"

The cave was filled with people humbly kneeling, devoutly imploring the gods to accept this heartfelt gift.

[You have a new order, please check it]

Meanwhile, Jiang Yuan, who had just returned from the new path intending to clear his Storage Bag before proceeding to strive, heard the Floating Market order alert.