Wang Hao left the Four Seas Commercial Alliance and slowly walked back to his shop. After a while, he realized he was being followed. With a subtle thought, he turned into a small alley.
A young man, about twenty years old, who had been discreetly following Wang Hao, hesitated for a moment, but then, with determination, decided to follow.
Wang Hao didn't hide but waited at the end of the alley.
— "You've been following me for quite some time. What do you want?" — Wang Hao spoke in a calm tone. After all, he knew that here, in the center of the market, any commotion would attract a crowd.
The young man's face showed a trace of fear, and in his haste, his aura fluctuated from the third to the fifth level of Qi Refinement!
— "Oh? A method to conceal cultivation? Interesting! Want to sell it?" — Wang Hao looked at the young man with interest. — "I'll pay three hundred spirit stones!"
The young man let out a sigh of relief and saluted with his hands: — "The rumors were true, Manager Wang is indeed generous!"
Seeing that there were still people passing by on the nearby streets, Wang Hao said calmly: — "You didn't follow me just for that, right? If you trust me, we can talk at the Miao Dan Pavilion."
— "I... trust you!"
— "Then come!"
Wang Hao quickly led the young man to the Miao Dan Pavilion, they climbed to an empty room, and activated a sound-isolation formation.
He gestured to a chair: — "Sit. Now you can tell me."
The young man sat down and took a sip of tea to calm his nerves. Wang Hao immediately realized he was a novice, likely someone who had just left home. An experienced errant cultivator wouldn't show such nervousness. Of course, it was also possible he was pretending. If so, his acting was superb.
— "Manager Wang, I have a pill formula. I don't know if you'd be interested."
— "Hm?" — Wang Hao's heart raced, and he almost let his excitement slip. A pill formula? This was the perfect opportunity! — "Of course I'm interested. But I need to see what it is. The Wang Family already has many formulas, and I'll only pay for those we don't already have."
— "That..." — The young man hesitated. After all, once someone saw the formula, they could copy it. But he had already heard of the Wang Family's good reputation, especially Wang Hao's generosity, which was much appreciated by errant cultivators. And now, seeing Wang Hao in person, he seemed like a good-hearted man, not a cunning merchant.
— "Refusing won't help!" — Wang Hao smiled. — "And just because we don't sell something, doesn't mean we don't have it!"
— "Alright then!" — The young man took out an old leather book, hesitated, and handed it to Wang Hao. — "This is my family's ancestral pill formula. The secrets alone are worth over a thousand spirit stones!"
Wang Hao opened the book and indeed found several pill formulas. He quickly verified the authenticity of the ones he knew and skimmed through the index before closing it. All done in front of the young man.
— "I'll offer you two thousand spirit stones for the formula and the method of concealing cultivation. But you'll have to swear by your Dao Heart that you won't sell this formula to anyone else within the Qingyuan Sect's sphere of influence."
The young man's eyes lit up at the mention of "two thousand," but he soon hesitated at the restriction.
— "My condition isn't harsh. Outside the Qingyuan Sect's sphere, you're free to make deals. But if you want to sell it to several families at once, I'm not foolish." — Wang Hao chuckled and offered an alternative: — "If you don't want to, I can pay two hundred spirit stones. How about it?"
— "Two hundred? That's too little!" — the young man protested.
— "If the formula were already spread everywhere, would it still be worth anything?" — Wang Hao countered with a smile. — "Besides, holding a treasure without protection only attracts thieves. With your current strength, selling to many will only increase your chances of being killed and robbed."
The young man shuddered at those words, realizing the real danger. If not for desperation, he wouldn't have risked it. But Wang Hao truly had a good reputation.
— "Alright! I'll sell under these conditions. But Manager Wang also needs to swear not to reveal that I sold the formula."
— "No problem!" — Wang Hao smiled. The young man was smart and cautious. They made their oaths, and the deal was completed: two thousand spirit stones for the information.
With the formula book and a jade slip containing the concealment method, Wang Hao immediately examined them with his spiritual sense:
— "Hidden Spirit Art! It can alter aura, conceal cultivation, and, when mastered, even deceive cultivators a whole realm above!" — He was very satisfied.
— "The deal is done, friend. Good luck!" — Wang Hao bid farewell.
The young man thanked him and hurried away. Wang Hao returned to his room, took a deep breath, and began to carefully analyze the Pill Formula Book.
This was the greatest gain he'd had aside from cultivation techniques. The Xing Family's Pill Formula Book contained twenty-five formulas, thirteen of first-level and twelve of second-level. The first-level ones were known to Wang Hao, except for two that surprised him: the Spirit-Gathering Pill, which could increase a cultivator's divine sense by 30% (though it only worked on the first dose), and the Spiritual Nourishment Pill, used to nurture first-level spirit beasts!
With this pill, his spirit beasts—like the Golden-Eyed Duck—could finally evolve faster!
Among the second-level formulas, there were six of low grade, three of mid grade, and three of high grade. Some, like the Qi Replenishing Pill and the Foundation Establishing Pill, were already known. Actually, the formula for the Foundation Pill wasn't as precious as one might think; the real challenge lay in acquiring key ingredients, such as the Yuan Condensing Fruit and a Third-Order Demon Core.
The true treasure of the book lay in the refining experience of the Xing Family's ancestor, who was at least a high second-order alchemist. Those insights were worth a fortune!
The remaining formulas were valuable: four low-grade second-level formulas (Barrier-Breaking Pill, Qi Replenishing Pill, Meridian Protector Pill, and Nourishment Pill for Beasts) with practical applications, and others even rarer, of mid and high grade.
With this, Wang Hao not only acquired a fortune but also secured fundamental materials to advance his alchemy skills!