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Chapter 3
Introduction to the Mysterious Marvel Pill (1)
As the sun rose, the southwestern corner of the market district gradually became lively again.
Pill sellers, cultivators selling cultivation techniques, and vendors offering demonic beast meat filled every corner. Buyers—especially those hunting for cheap bargains—kept swarming in without end. Occasionally, disciples in long robes bearing the insignia of the Jade Cauldron Sword Sect could also be seen.
The moment they appeared, the wandering cultivators instantly raised their prices several times higher. Sect disciples were perfect targets—rich, inexperienced, and easy to exploit.
But none of that had anything to do with Na Jin.
Bigu Pills were basic necessities, sold everywhere and used by every sect. What he refined was the lowest-grade version—less like true alchemy and more like compressing Bigu Powder into pills. Even if his skill improved, there was no real competitive edge.
By noon, nearly all of Na Jin’s goods were sold out. Twenty bottles was not a large amount, but it represented nearly six or seven days of labor for him.
He felt frustrated at his low-tier status as an alchemist—neither formally trained by a sect nor blessed with proper inheritance, just a wandering cultivator struggling at the bottom.
With nothing left to pack up, he handed Jin Xiuping a few strips of leftover beef jerky before preparing to leave.
But Jin Xiuping called out to him while chewing.
“You planning to sell a new pill formula? Don’t tell me it’s that incomplete one you dug up last year. Don’t aim too high and stare at things beyond your reach. I’ve seen plenty of wandering alchemists ruin themselves trying to study new formulas and end up broke. You’re better off taking your spirit stones and buying a couple bottles of Qi Nourishing Pills from the Spirit Medicine Pavilion.”
It was surprisingly sincere advice coming from a miserly old man who usually loved squeezing profit out of others.
Na Jin understood the concern—but the original owner had already paid a far heavier price for that incomplete formula than Jin Xiuping realized. Naturally, Na Jin had no intention of repeating that mistake.
“You should be more careful at your age,” Na Jin said lightly. “Chewing too hard might break your teeth on that jerky.”
Jin Xiuping frowned and bit down anyway—then immediately winced as meat got stuck between his teeth.
“Get lost!”
Laughing, Na Jin slipped away through the crowd.
He arrived in another section of the southwestern market—the herb trading area.
Living and trading here often, he was already familiar with most transactions.
“Big sister Wang, did you just pick these herbs today? They’re still too fresh. Most buyers won’t like them like this.”
“Take ten jin for a good price, little brother.”
“This He Shou Wu looks less than ten years old. I’ll take it if you lower the price. Also, give me fifty jin of Jade Mountain Herb. I used to get twenty jin for one spirit stone—now it’s doubled, so lower the price a bit. Forget it, I’ll take it anyway. And add some Red Sandal Fruit, the bigger ones.”
He spent the entire afternoon circling the herb market, buying large quantities of medicinal materials.
Since all vendors here were wandering cultivators, product quality depended entirely on his own judgment, and prices were a matter of negotiation.
By the time his throat was dry from bargaining, he had finally gathered everything he needed.
Even so, he didn’t stop there.
The Spirit Medicine Pavilion stood as one of the six major stores in Great River Market City, located in the most prominent area of the central district.
It was a towering five-story building, adorned with murals, carved railings, jade steps, and roofs that seemed to soar into the sky. Its grandeur was unmatched.
However, it only sold finished pills, so it wasn’t Na Jin’s destination today.
Instead, he headed next door—to the Hundred Herbs Hall.
Unlike the majestic Spirit Medicine Pavilion, the Hundred Herbs Hall looked plain and unremarkable, as did the surrounding one-story shops.
As he approached, a strong medicinal scent hit him full force.
Na Jin calmly set down the large sack on his shoulder at the entrance.
The chubby shopkeeper narrowed his eyes at the bulky sack and sniffed slightly before shaking his head, but Na Jin paid no attention and walked straight to the counter.
“Sir, do you have Yao Zhu and Fire Hound Tendons?”
The fat shopkeeper smiled faintly.
“Young man, what do you need those for?”
Na Jin felt an inexplicable pressure from the man’s aura and instinctively became more respectful.
“Sir… my surname is Na. You can call me Xiao Na.”
The shopkeeper’s calm, refined aura made it clear—he was likely a Qi Condensation expert or above. Na Jin immediately treated him with caution.
The shopkeeper nodded.
“I do have those herbs, but not in large supply.”
As expected.
The Great River Market spanned vast lands, and these materials were rare imports. Still, as long as he could get some, it was enough.
“100 servings of Yao Zhu, and 10 Fire Hound Tendons,” Na Jin said.
“That quantity… won’t be cheap.”
The shopkeeper’s tone carried amusement—not mockery, but an evaluation of Na Jin’s financial ability.
“Price?”
“100 servings of Yao Zhu: 10 low-grade spirit stones.
10 Fire Hound Tendons: another 10.”
Na Jin’s eyes widened.
“That expensive?”
“Still buying?”
“I still need to purchase more in the future… can it be cheaper?”
“Our Hundred Herbs Hall has existed for five hundred years. Prices are fixed. No deception, no bargaining.”
“…Fine. Pack them.”
Reluctantly, Na Jin handed over twenty spirit stones.
In an instant, the shopkeeper snatched them away with frightening speed.
“Xiao Ling, bring the Yao Zhu and Fire Hound Tendons.”
With his goods in hand, Na Jin left the store, carrying his heavy herb sack once more.
Fortunately, it was still daylight, and no wandering cultivators tried to rob him on the way back.
By the time he finally reached home, exhausted, he stared at the pile of herbs on the ground and let out a long sigh.
He had spent nearly all the spirit stones he had accumulated over many years—fifty in total—just in a single day.
Especially those last two materials… twenty spirit stones gone in an instant.
“Damn that five-hundred-year-old shop… it’s basically a black market.”
But complaining changed nothing.
He forced himself to calm down.
“It’ll all come back. I’ll earn it all back—and more.”
He removed his robe carefully and folded it like something precious. Then he changed into shorts and walked into the stream nearby.
This place was remote, near the vast eastern wilderness, so no one would see him bathing.
Na Jin washed off the grime and stench from the day.
He knew cleansing techniques, but using them simply burned spiritual energy into dust—inefficient and unsatisfying. Water felt better.
After returning home, he changed into a gray cloth robe and pulled out a leather bundle from beneath the floor.
Inside were three items:
A yellowed bamboo slip containing his main cultivation technique, Eternal Spring Art, capable of reaching Qi Refining Stage 9.
A thin booklet.
And a sheet of beast-hide paper.
The bamboo slip contained his core cultivation method, obtained by chance in a cave relic. The incomplete pill formula was written on the beast-hide paper—he no longer cared much about it.
The booklet, however, contained something different.
The first pages described Bigu Powder in detail—its ingredients, proportions, processing methods, and even fire control techniques.
Because of it, the original owner had managed to survive in the market after several failures.
Na Jin had read it countless times.
Now, his focus shifted to page five.
The formula for Mysterious Marvel Pill:
A pill that harmonizes water and fire, balances yin and yang, stimulates vitality without damaging the foundation…
