Hide in the world of gods and demons

Chapter 30 Buying and Selling
Chen Li began excitedly planning how to use the money.

"Hmm, one... no, three mid-grade spirit stones should be kept for now and stored as ballast. There's still more than half left... I can eat as much monster meat and spirit rice as I want without limit. Oh, and I could buy some Qi-replenishing pills to aid my cultivation."

"Unfortunately, the abundant spiritual energy in these spirit stones cannot be directly absorbed."

Spirit stones are the hard currency and energy source in the cultivation world, equivalent to oil and coal on Earth.

Like oil and coal, these crystals of spiritual energy and minerals, accumulated over millions of years, are filled with various toxins and are mostly used for energy purposes such as formations.

Unless absolutely necessary, such as in an emergency, few people would use it to directly restore or increase their spiritual power.

Chen Li happily collected the spirit stones one by one and put them into his money bag.

He then took a stack of talismans that Qiao Guanyuan had given him.

There are six talismans in total: two protective talismans, three lightness talismans, and one flame talisman.

Chen Li was already very familiar with protective talismans and lightness talismans, but the blazing flame talisman was rare in the market and relatively unpopular. It was also a high-grade talisman for the Qi Refining stage, and its price was the same as that of the protective talisman, at three low-grade spirit stones.

However, generally speaking, talismans of the same level that can save lives are much more expensive and easier to sell than those used for attack. If the price is the same, then without a doubt, this talisman is of a higher level than a protective talisman.

However, it was clear that the opponent was killed before he could even use it.

"I'll keep this talisman to enrich my attack methods. As for its specific effects... I'll ask Lin Gui about it later!" Chen Li thought shamelessly, without any of the arrogance of a shantytown expert who could take on three opponents at once.

Then he suddenly remembered something, and his brows furrowed slightly:

"The artifact sect has withdrawn, and this place is now a no-man's-land. Can the market still operate normally?"

Thinking of this, Chen Li could no longer restrain himself. He stopped practicing his swordplay, picked up his money bag, and walked out the door, hurrying towards the market.

Just one night.

The entire shantytown looked as if it had been through a war.

Everywhere you look, there are bloodstains, severed limbs, corpses, and destruction caused by various magical artifacts, as well as burned-down houses.

Fortunately, the shantytown was much more peaceful during the day than at night, and at least no more killings were seen.

There were few pedestrians on the road, and most of them were in a hurry and looked wary.

Chen Li would sometimes see groups of three or five people gathered in front of a house, whispering to each other. When he approached, they would immediately stop talking and look at him with all sorts of ambiguous expressions.

Chen Li usually avoids such situations by keeping his distance.

If he couldn't avoid it, he would clutch the amulet tightly, secretly observing his surroundings out of the corner of his eye, mentally simulating how to dodge, how to counterattack, and how to kill everyone in the shortest time while protecting himself, all while walking past without looking to the side.

Before last night, he would never have dared to go out in such a dangerous situation, but today, apart from still being cautious and valuing his life, he no longer felt that excessive unease and fear.

His strength gave him confidence.

The killing gave him courage.

He adapted to this world very quickly!
Chen Li traversed the streets and alleys without incident, and soon entered the market town.

The market town, which had only recently been rebuilt by the Artifact Gate, was once again in ruins after yesterday's chaos. It was deserted and almost no one could be seen inside.

There wasn't a single stall inside.

Apart from a few large, well-established businesses that still have shops, the rest are completely empty. Even the brothels are deserted.

I wonder where those female cultivators who practiced evil secret arts went?
Chen Li looked around and then walked straight to a building, the Precious Medicine Pavilion.

……

"One bottle of Qi-replenishing pills costs 12 low-grade spirit stones, and ten bottles will cost a total of 120 low-grade spirit stones," the shopkeeper said.

"Isn't it always been ten low-grade spirit stones per bottle?" Chen Li was taken aback and quickly asked.

"This is the price now. Don't you know what the situation is like? Without our Baoyao Pavilion, you wouldn't be able to buy it here even if you asked for twice the price," the shopkeeper said arrogantly.

"Alright, one hundred and twenty!" Chen Li could only grit his teeth and agree.

He paid one mid-grade spirit stone, plus eighteen low-grade spirit stones.

Chen Li carefully tucked the small cloth bag containing the Qi-replenishing pills into his bosom and gently smoothed his chest. Fortunately, his robes were loose, so it was difficult for outsiders to notice.

"Prices have started to skyrocket. Luckily, I made a windfall, otherwise, I don't know what I would do with my savings." Chen Li shook his head, walked out the door, and suddenly stopped, a thought flashing through his mind:
"Wait a minute, prices are skyrocketing..."

The current situation is clearly not going to end anytime soon.

So what will see the fastest price surge during this period?
Is it Spirit Rice?
No!

Even if you don't eat the expensive spirit rice, you won't starve; you can use other foods instead. In fact, in this relatively primitive and wild world, it's really easy to fill your stomach; just take a walk in the wild.

Is it a ritual implement?
No, it's not!

The price of ritual implements is too high. Some of the independent practitioners in the shantytowns have them, while others don't have the money to buy them. Moreover, these are not consumables; a ritual implement can be repaired and used for a lifetime.

Is it a medicinal pill?
That's definitely not true!
This was a luxury for independent cultivators in the shantytown. Before this windfall, Chen Li had never even considered buying pills to aid his cultivation. He even sold the Qi-replenishing pills that Zhao Wanjun had given him to raise money.

The fastest price surge is likely to be seen in... moderately priced amulets and talismans.

Nowadays, everyone in the shantytowns is insecure and lacks a sense of safety. Don't you want to spend a little money to prepare a talisman or amulet just in case?

Even if you have one, do you really think you're safe?
Don't you want to prepare several, a dozen, or even dozens of copies just in case?

Thinking of this, Chen Li suddenly had a flash of inspiration and was enlightened. He immediately went to ask around at one shop after another, and finally found a shop that sold talismans. He found that the price there had not increased at all.

Indeed, after all, only one day has passed since yesterday's chaos.

Many people haven't realized it yet.

Chen Li made a decisive decision: after deducting the three mid-grade spirit stones he had reserved and the twenty-one low-grade spirit stones he usually used for pocket money, he used all the remaining spirit stones to buy talismans.

Each talisman is priced one spirit stone higher than the stall price, but this is a normal price. The talismans from the merchant are more effective and have a longer duration of magic power. Generally, it is difficult for independent cultivators to compete with the same price for their self-made talismans if they have not made a name for themselves.

Chen Li purchased a total of 63 Lightness Talismans and 64 Protection Talismans.

As I stepped out the door.

Chen Li let out a long breath, his face suppressing excitement:

"As long as I'm not greedy and act in time, I should be able to make a small profit... I never knew I had a talent for business. How come I never discovered it before?"

(End of this chapter)