Time passed quickly. Almost in a blink of an eye, Luo Chen unknowingly sold out all the fasting pills and Myriad Wonders pills he had, and it was only noon.

Without much effort, using his Spirit Eyes, Luo Chen only needed a glance to know how much he had earned today. The fasting pills brought in hundred spirit stones, and the Myriad Wonders pills four hundred fifty. It didn't seem much, but considering it was only half a month's earnings and the cost was just two hundred spirit stones, it was remarkable!

In other words, Luo Chen had almost netted a profit of three hundred fifty! Just half a year ago, he was a poor rogue cultivator barely making five spirit stones a month. It could only be said that his improved skills had paid off and being an alchemist was just that incredible and lucrative!

Of course, Luo Chen was clear about his profits. What mattered more to him was his current wealth, which, combined with his previous savings, had soared to eight hundred low-grade spirit stones. This was truly a peak for him!

Oh, selling the Flying Swallow Sword didn't count as unexpected fortunes weren't sustainable. What he earned himself felt the most reliable!

After briefly calculating his assets, Luo Chen started planning where to browse next. With so many visiting cultivators in Dahe Market, there were plenty of new stalls. He wanted to explore unique cultivation resources from other regions to see if any could benefit him.

It could only be said, when a man had money, he gained confidence. Previously, he would rush to buy raw materials and hurry home to continue refining pills. But not anymore. With his head held high, his gaze swept over the bustling rogue cultivator market. Luo Chen felt as if he were looking down at a sea of paupers.

However, when his eyes landed on the Old Man Chen Xiuping, his aura instantly shrank by a third. He saw Chen tidying up his stall, busily packing up sacks and ropes.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, business seems good today, selling out so early," Luo Chen said.

"Heh, nowhere near as good as yours, Fellow Daoist Luo!" Old Man Chen sneered.

Old Man Chen mockingly said, "I work day and night, barely making a few hundred talisman skins to earn three or four hundred spirit stones. But you, Daoist Luo, vanish for half a month and return with five or six hundred! I pale in comparison, truly pale!"

Why did it sound like he was mocking me?

Luo Chen gritted his teeth, reluctantly pulling out fifty low-grade spirit stones, stuffing them into a small pouch, and handing it to Chen Xiuping.

"Uncle Chen, the path of cultivation is tough. Thank you for your support," he said sincerely, despite the pain in his heart.

Taking the pouch and feeling its weight, Chen Xiuping fell silent for a moment. His silent, emotional demeanor, with reddened eyes from sleepless nights crafting talisman skins, made Luo Chen uneasy.

Uncle Chen, don't be so sentimental! I can't handle this!

But unexpectedly, Chen Xiuping sighed and revealed something Luo Chen hadn't anticipated.

"We're leaving."

"Ah!" Luo Chen was stunned. "Where are you going?"

Chen Xiuping gently patted his granddaughter Chen Shuyi's head and said, "In a month, we'll be traveling with the cultivators from the Divine Talisman Pavilion to the Divine Talisman Domain."

Looking at the elderly man and the young girl, a guess surfaced in Luo Chen's mind. Luo Chen couldn't help but ask, "Has Little Shuyi been accepted into the Divine Talisman Sect?"

"Brother Luo Chen, not yet. But I'm very confident I'll pass the trials!" Chen Shuyi lifted her chin, her innocent face brimming with youthful confidence.

Chen Xiuping packed up the miscellaneous bags and sat down on the bluestone slab.

"It's true she hasn't been accepted yet, but I've made arrangements with some cultivators from the Divine Talisman Pavilion. When they return to their sect, they'll take me and Little Shuyi along.

"Next year! Next year is when the Divine Talisman Pavilion opens its gates to recruit disciples. Shuyi is only thirteen, has spirit roots, and has been taught the basics of talisman crafting by me. She has a good chance of passing the entry test."

These few words carried a tinge of bittersweet emotion. Standing before him, Luo Chen couldn't help but feel emotional.

He had endured hardships these past years, but so had the Old Man Chen. Although the Old Man Chen earned more in the past, he also had to raise a granddaughter, supporting her cultivation and teaching her the basics of talisman crafting.

For cultivators, mastering the four arts of cultivation was a bottomless pit of resources. Typically, only major sects invested in nurturing new talent, yet Old Man Chen, with only a sixth stage Qi-Refining cultivation, had undertaken this himself. It was unimaginable how difficult it must have been.

On top of that, he had to scrape together enough spirit stones to fund this journey. Just thinking about it, traveling from the remote Dahe Market in the Jade Cauldron Domain, crossing Tianfan and Medicine King Domains to reach the Divine Talisman Domain, was an incredibly long journey.

Most Qi-Refining cultivators might never venture so far in their entire lives.

For Old Man Chen to secure the agreement of the Divine Talisman Pavilion cultivators in Dahe Market to take him and his granddaughter along likely required a significant sum of money and that was just the first expense. There would also be travel expenses after setting out and a year of living expenses once they arrived in the Divine Talisman Domain.

Even if Little Shuyi failed to enter the sect, they'd need to figure out how to survive. If she succeeded, supporting her cultivation would require even more resources—all of which had to be taken into account.

Just thinking about the total cost was staggering. Even if Luo Chen was adept at earning spirit stones, he couldn't amass such a sum in a short time.

Yet all of that had been painstakingly earned and saved by the old Daoist bit by bit.

Amid the bustling marketplace, at the now empty bluestone stall, the elderly man, the young man, and the little girl exchanged silent glances. Chen Xiuping and Luo Chen were caught up in reflections of their struggles, while Chen Shuyi was brimming with hope for the future.

"This bluestone slab—I hauled it back from the mountains years ago to distinguish myself from other rogue cultivators and make my stall stand out.

"Once I'm gone, go to the Jade Cauldron Sword Pavilion's market office and change the name on the stall. I'm leaving you this bluestone slab.

"Of course, you'll have to start paying one full spirit stone as the monthly stall fee."

As he said this, the Old Man Chen chuckled softly.

Luo Chen tugged at the corner of his mouth, taking a deep breath as he looked at the well-worn stone slab.

"Old Man Chen, we part today, but it's not life and death. Why so sentimental?

"Come, let this grand mid-stage Qi-Refining cultivator Luo Chen treat you to a farewell banquet!"

Chen Xiuping froze for a moment, then seemed to recall something.

He stroked his beard and burst into laughter. "Then I must take this chance to make you pay for a feast!"

Luo Chen waved his hand grandly. "It's just a few spirit stones. Let's go to Zhongding Restaurant for a banquet. Today, I'll treat!"

***

"Do not worry about having no friends on the road ahead; the world is vast, and surely you will find kinship." Luo Chen said.

"Well said. In my life, I haven't had many friends, but you, Little Luo, are one of them. Let's drain this cup! If someday things don't go well for you, come to the Divine Talisman Sect. By then, Little Shuyi will surely have reached Foundation Establishment and can look after you."

"Hah, are you underestimating me? Who says I won't reach Foundation Establishment?"

"Come on, your spirit root aptitude is worse than mine."

"Say that again? Say that again, and you're footing the bill for this meal!"

"Fellow Daoist, you have the potential of a Golden Core cultivator. Clearly, my old eyes have failed me."

By afternoon, Luo Chen bid farewell to the old man and the girl and made his way home alone. His expression was twisted in annoyance.

"Unscrupulous merchants! Damn it, all unscrupulous merchants!

"A two-person meal, one jar of wine, and two plates of meat, and they dared charge fifty spirit stones!

"Whoever said Zhongding Restaurant doesn't make money? Jade Cauldron Sword Sect must be swimming in profit!"

Grumbling as he walked, Luo Chen's brows suddenly furrowed. Without breaking stride or turning around, he passed a corner where a small wooden armadillo puppet scurried nimbly into the shadows. Behind him, two figures followed at a steady pace.