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There were shops of all kinds in the Wind District, but my focus was on the low-rent areas. There were several small shops that didn’t have any employees. The owners of these stores would sleep in an apartment above the shop so that they just needed to walk downstairs each day instead of commuting across districts.

Many of these shops didn’t open at set hours. They would simply be open whenever the owner was home and awake. If that was in the middle of the night, the shop would be open in the middle of the night, but if the owner wanted to go for a stroll, the store could be closed at any time during the day. Because of this, planning a trip to any of these stores was very hit-and-miss.

I searched the streets for hours before stumbling upon a run-down shop that was covered in grime. Signs advertised herbs for sale, though, so I went inside.

The shop’s interior was a mess of broken floorboards and dust. Old herbs were wilting in wooden bins throughout the store, and an elderly man sat behind a countertop covered in stains. When I entered, he didn’t greet me. He just kept reading whatever he was reading and let me go about my business by myself.

Looking through the bins, I was disappointed with the selection, but not surprised. He only had common varieties that were available anywhere.

"Old man,” I said, approaching the counter, “got anything else for sale?”

He snorted at the question without looking at me. “Everything’s in the bins.”

I shook my head. There was nothing here I needed, but I still considered buying the lot. I could use them for studying how to mend medicinal energy, and the cost of so many worthless herbs should be minimal. The only thing that stopped me was that I didn’t want to haul around a cart full of herbs, and I doubted this guy had anyone to deliver them for me. If my storage space were bigger, I could just stuff them all in there.

I paused. Hadn’t the System mentioned something about common storage bags? Was that something I could just buy? I hadn’t noticed anything like that before, but I also didn’t pay much attention to the people and never went on random shopping trips, so I could have easily overlooked them. Storage bags couldn’t be too common though, right? I made a note in my journal to ask about it the next time I was in the Pavilion.

“Old man, any chance you know a place that sells cheap herbs for the secondary energy types?”

He breathed out heavily to make it clear how little he wanted to answer, “Go talk to Old Lady Mu.”

I wanted to ask, ‘Who the hell is Old Lady Mu?’ but my man had already started ignoring me again. I shook my head and left the shop. There had to be other people who knew who he was talking about.

I began walking to restart my search for low-cost precious herbs, but suddenly something in my belt pouch started vibrating. I opened it to find the small stone disk I received in the Pavilion going crazy. There must be something that needed my attention.

Giving up my exploration for the moment, I turned and headed back to the Water District.

I arrived back in the Alchemy Office to see what needed my attention. When the middle-aged woman who managed the place saw me, her eyes burst into fire. Literal fire. Fire qi wrapped around her head giving her a somewhat demonic appearance.

“You!” she shouted. “Get downstairs. LiPin, act as his mediator. Take him to conference room one. You have fifteen minutes to get ready.”

“What’s going on?” I asked with wide eyes, beginning to get worried.

“Move!” she shouted.

LiPin, one of the young female attendants, responded “We’ve… had a lot of requests for meetings with you. Once people saw your sample pills, they demanded an audience. It’s been a hectic day,” she said in a quiet voice.

I knew my pills were high quality, but I wasn’t the only Grandmaster Alchemist in the city, and if Alchemist Li, the man who graded my registration exam, was allowed to hand out three-star gold badges, he had to be capable of making pills of at least that level, right? So, why were people so eager to seek me out to make pills for them? Was it because I was the only one who could make Perfect pills?

The middle-aged manager saw my confusion and snorted. “You don’t get it, do you? You need to know this before you enter any negotiations, so I’ll try to keep it short. Why do you think people are so eager to talk with you after seeing your pills?”

I gave the only answer I could think of. “Because I can make Perfect pills.”

She shook her head. “No, there are a dozen alchemists in the kingdom that can do that, and you don’t see anyone beating down the doors in a rush to talk to them. It’s a rare skill, sure, but there are enough people with high enough affinities or special blessings that it isn’t unique.”

This stunned me. I had always considered my alchemy skills above what anyone could match, but the saying was true, there is always someone better.

The manager continued. “If I want to hire one of those alchemists to make me Perfect Rank 3 pills, what do you think it would cost? Let me tell you, it’s not a matter of gold. Those alchemists have hundreds of years of experience, and they are all long past the point where mere gold holds any value to them.”

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This was something I had found to be true in my last life. One of my Perfect Rank 3 Qi Gathering pills would sell for a minimum of 10,000 gold, and I was easily able to make at least half a dozen in a day. Without a fire seed, other alchemists couldn’t make them at the rate I could, but even if they were only making a single pill a week, with a decade of work behind them, they would have no need for money.

“If they don’t want gold, what does it cost, then?” I asked.

The manager looked at me with intent. “It depends on the alchemist. The Blue Wind Pavilion offers alchemists the opportunity to ascend to Lord if they work for us. Other powers can offer opportunities to improve affinities. These are among the most valuable offers you can receive, but they are most valued for those young enough to still advance. Some powers will simply offer a way to live the rest of your life in luxury. It all depends on what the alchemist wants and needs.”

“So, why were so many people eager to seek me out for pills?” I asked, returning to the original question. “Are they going to offer me the chance to raise my affinities for pills?” I was somewhat excited at the prospect.

The manager burst into laughter. “No, just no. These are bottom feeders, not the real power players. They know you are a bumpkin from the middle of nowhere who only recently advanced from Master to Grandmaster. To them, you are a poor kid who is looking to gain experience in hopes of advancing to Pill Lord.”

“So—” I started, but she cut me off.

“Where clans would usually need to hand over priceless items for a Grandmaster Alchemist’s assistance, you are someone they can hire at a bargain price as long as they act fast enough.”

I stood there considering the manager’s words. While I wasn’t as hard up for cash as some of the potential buyers might have assumed, I had several needs that the average alchemist didn’t that these minor powers could help with. I also hoped to compete with my more seasoned peers for the real prizes, like boosted affinities.

Not waiting for me to puzzle everything out, the manager gestured at the attendant, LiPin. “Get him downstairs,” she said, in a voice much calmer than it had been when I first entered.

It didn’t take long after LiPin and I sat down for my first client to walk in the door. I stood and cupped my fists in a martial salute. “Welcome.”

“Grandmaster Su,” he said, cupping his fists and bowing, “I am Steward Mao DingLiu of the Mao family. As you are new to the kingdom, you may not know, but the Mao family is one of the top families of West Marsh City.”

“Of course, Steward Mao,” I said with a nod, “I have long heard of the Mao family. How can I assist you today?”

“Grandmaster Su, are you aware of the duties and responsibilities West Marsh City bears?”

“It controls the Marsh District, correct? Its focus is on creative endeavors and schools for children?”

“Yes, we are responsible for nurturing the next generation of the kingdom. Alchemist Su, I have seen the quality of pills you can produce. If we could secure a source of Perfect pills, it would do wonders for improving our efforts.”

“You want pills for children? Are your charges older than sixteen? Or do cultivation resources have effects on younger children as well?”

Steward Mao gave a light chuckle. “You misunderstand. While your Rank 1 Qi Gathering Pills could be a nice incentive for our older children, we are more interested in pills to help them develop properly. Pills to maintain good nutrition, weight, energy, and, quite frankly, appearance, would all be extremely beneficial. You can think of these as Rank 0 pills. Only Perfect pills could be used this way since even High-Purity pills would risk damaging their futures by filling their bodies with needless toxins.”

“But,” I began slowly while thinking, “if these pills are ‘Rank 0,’ that should mean they are relatively easy to create. Aren’t there several alchemists in the city who can provide them?”

“Can? Yes. Will? No, not without costs greater than we can bear. Many of the pills will be used to nurture the less fortunate, and we can only depend on the goodwill of skilled alchemists to bear the cost.”

I fixed Steward Mao with a gimlet eye, but he didn’t show any signs of discomfort. He was blatantly trying to buy pills on the cheap, and he showed no shame in it. He must have done this song and dance many times to become so steadfast when asking for charity.

I tapped the table in thought then turned to the attendant who was serving as mediator for this discussion. “How much would a Perfect Rank 0 pill usually cost?”

“There is no set price,” she said. “Rank 0 is not a true class of pill, and several different types of concoctions fall into this category. Qi Gathering Powder can be considered a Perfect Rank 0 concoction, and its price is only two silver because almost anyone can make it. Nutrition Pills suitable for mortals, though, sell for closer to one gold on the open market, but there is no supply. The ingredients only cost a couple of copper, but a skilled Master Alchemist is needed to make them, driving costs beyond what nearly anyone is willing to pay, so they are typically only sold as a special commission at a high price. Rank 0 pills are either ones that everyone can make or ones that no one is usually willing to make. Simply put, they are pills the Blue Wind Pavilion does not sell.”

“If people aren’t producing enough, why not just raise the price?” I asked her.

Steward Mao winced at the suggestion, but Li Pin didn’t seem to notice as she explained. “Any higher and they won’t sell. Even stored in jade bottles, pills only have a limited shelf life, so the market price needs to be low enough that if we stock them, we can sell them before they lose effectiveness. The ‘Rank 0’ pills the steward refers to are ones that no alchemist will sell for such a market rate, so they are only sold through direct commissions at significantly higher prices.”

“Fine,” I said, turning back to Steward Mao, “I assume you are here for pills no one else is making. I’ll set a price at one gold for any Rank 0 pill you wish me to make, and I am willing to make any other higher-level pills you need at market rates, but you need to supply the ingredients.”

The steward winced at these prices. “That’s still a little too expensive for us.”

I wanted to laugh. The guy was really trying to get a bargain here. “That’s my selling price,” I said steepling my fingers. “Now let’s talk about how you can pay. I am in need of any technique or cultivation manuals for any skill or qi type. Any books related to professions, such as herbalism or formation mastery, would also be appreciated. I’m not willing to make a hundred thousand pills for a single Rank 3 manual, but if you provide me with mortal books, I will pay for them at market rate with Rank 0 pills. Give me Rank 1 manuals, and I will pay for them with Rank 1 pills. Your district is responsible for nurturing the youth, correct? You should have significant stores of knowledge that you can pay me with.”

“Yes—” he started.

“You don’t even need to sell them to me,” I interrupted. “I will accept loans of any manuals Rank 1 to 3 and pay for them with pills at market rates. That’s something the Pavilion can handle, right?” I asked, turning to the attendant.

“Yes, however, the Pavilion would normally take a percentage of any deal it facilitates. Since that is not possible with this arrangement, one of the parties must pay a transaction fee for our involvement.”

“I’ll handle the fee,” I said before Steward Mao could respond. “Just subtract it from my account.”

“I cannot authorize this,” the steward responded, “but I do not see any reason it could not work. I will discuss this with our elders and be in contact.”

“I understand, thank you for seeing me today, Steward Mao.”

The steward bowed and left, and I turned to the attendant. “Please make this same offer known to anyone who inquires. If my account begins to run a deficit, let me know and I will make a batch of pills for the Pavilion to cover any costs.”

“Yes, Grandmaster,” she said, making a note of my arrangements.

I had several more meetings to go, and hopefully at least one of them would be more profitable than this one.