Chapter 458 - 431: 3-State Trade Route

Chapter 458: Chapter 431: 3-State Trade Route

After finishing his cultivation, Li Yuan took stock of the items in his storage bag.

The permanent activation condition for the Void Stone was to absorb one hundred thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones, a process that could be gradually advanced during his daily routine. Right now, it was more important to exploit the resource price differences between the Three States and rapidly increase his Spirit Stone reserves.

He began by procuring a large batch of goods from the market warehouse and Yunyang Market.

After packing everything up, Li Yuan used a Teleportation Array to reach Mozhou. From Mozhou, he crossed a high mountain range, taking a path through the Spiritless District to enter Jingzhou.

「White Mirror Market.」

This largest free-trade market in Jingzhou was as bustling as ever. Li Yuan suppressed his aura to that of the Late-stage Foundation Establishment realm as he entered the city gates, heading straight for the trading area.

Liangzhou’s Condensing Evil Pills had almost no competition in Jingzhou. These pills, refined from Evil Qi Spiritual Materials, were extremely useful for Cultivators practicing Evil Element Cultivation Techniques. And while there were not many Evil Element Cultivators in Jingzhou, their purchasing power was immense. Li Yuan listed thirty bottles of Condensing Evil Pills at one and a half times the market price, and they were snatched up in less than half a day.

The Golden Body Armors were also in high demand. It was a Tier Two defensive Magical Artifact that he had optimized using the folding concepts from a Tier Three diagram fragment. Its defensive capabilities were ten percent higher than comparable products from the local Artifact Refiners in White Mirror Market. In actual combat, that ten percent was the difference between life and death. All ten pieces of Golden Body Armor sold for double the market price.

The profits from Spirit Grass and Spirit Medicine were more stable. Several types of Middle and Low Tier Spirit Grasses abundant in Liangzhou were also in demand in Jingzhou. Even with a fifty percent markup, they were quickly bought up by apothecaries and Loose Cultivators.

After selling all the goods from Liangzhou, Li Yuan did some reverse procurement in White Mirror Market, buying a batch of Jingzhou’s specialty products.

Jingzhou’s superior products were concentrated in Array consumables, High Tier talisman paper, and refined Spiritual Ink. The three major sects of Jingzhou had far greater expertise in talisman crafting and the Array Dao than those in Liangzhou. Consequently, the quality and variety of related materials were much richer, and the prices were actually about thirty percent cheaper than in Liangzhou.

Li Yuan filled his storage bag with these materials from Jingzhou, left White Mirror Market, and headed south to Shuizhou.

Crossing the Spiritless District, he made landfall at Luoxia Port, then followed the coastline straight to Nanyuan District.

Two large sailboats from the outer seas were docked at the pier in Nanyuan District. Their hulls were painted with totems Li Yuan did not recognize. The sailors on deck wore short, dark blue tunics made of merfolk hide, their skin tanned a deep bronze from the sea wind and salt water.

’Merchant ships from the island factions.’

Li Yuan entered the market’s trading area and placed the Array consumables and refined Spiritual Ink he had purchased in Jingzhou onto the counter designated by Zhou He.

These terrestrial materials caused quite a stir in Nanyuan District.

Array consumables were a practically untapped market in Shuizhou, and refined Spiritual Ink was a dream ingredient for talisman crafting that sea-faring Cultivators coveted. In less than an hour, more than a dozen Cultivators had gathered in front of his counter, including sailors from those two outer-sea sailboats.

They sold for triple their procurement cost in Liangzhou.

After selling the terrestrial materials, Li Yuan again engaged in reverse procurement in Nanyuan District, buying a batch of marine Spiritual Materials and Water Element pills. Jade Tide Sand, Merfolk Scales, Deep Sea Coral powder, and finished Tide Heart Pills—all were prized goods that were rare and highly sought-after on the mainland.

After completing a full trade loop, the profits were staggering.

The goods, purchased in Liangzhou for about eight hundred Mid-grade Spirit Stones, had been traded through Jingzhou and Shuizhou. After deducting travel expenses and transaction losses, the net profit had nearly doubled.

And this was only the first run. As he gained a clearer understanding of the supply and demand between the Three States, the profit margin would only grow larger.

After the transactions were complete, Li Yuan met with Zhou He in a stone chamber on the highest level of Nanyuan District.

"Good stuff." A cup of tea sat before Zhou He, his tone laced with satisfaction. "Especially that batch of refined Spiritual Ink. The clients from the outer seas are fighting over it. Can you bring more next time?"

"I can. Doubling the quantity is no problem."

Zhou He nodded and took a sip of his tea.

After setting down the cup, he took something out of his sleeve and placed it in the center of the stone table.

A palm-sized, square jade box.

The box was a vibrant green and covered in extremely fine Spirit Patterns. The flow of the patterns was completely different from that of ordinary Magical Artifacts, possessing a kind of folded structure that Li Yuan had only ever seen before in spatial Magic.

"See if you’re interested in this." Zhou He pointed to the jade box. "A portable grotto-heaven. I obtained it in the depths of the outer seas when I was young and have used it for decades. It contains a space the size of a stone chamber and has its own miniature Spirit Vein branch, so you can cultivate inside it."

He paused for a moment. "But this thing has a flaw. Its Spiritual Power can only be replenished by absorbing Spiritual Qi from external Water Element Spirit Veins. If it’s away from the sea for too long, the Spirit Vein inside will dry up. I have my own territory now, so I have no use for it. If you’re interested, I’ll give you a low price."

Li Yuan’s gaze fell upon the green jade box.

The trait perception within a three-foot radius triggered. A blue trait.

Li Yuan looked up at Zhou He.

’This portable grotto-heaven is quite good, yet Zhou He is willing to sell it at a low price.’

’The reason is simple. The grotto-heaven’s Spirit Vein is of the Water Element and needs to periodically return to the seaside to absorb energy from a Water Element Spirit Vein. This is not a problem for a Golden Core cultivator who spends all his time by the sea, but for a cultivator from the inland, it means having to make frequent trips back to Shuizhou.’

’As long as Li Yuan holds onto this portable grotto-heaven, he will have to return to Shuizhou regularly to replenish its Spirit Vein. And each time he comes to Shuizhou, he will naturally complete another round of trade.’

But Li Yuan did not care about that.

He had already planned to operate the Three States trade route long-term, so regular trips to Shuizhou were part of the plan. The portable grotto-heaven’s blue trait was an unexpected bonus; even without Zhou He’s scheme, he would have bought it without hesitation.

"How much?"

"Three hundred Mid-grade Spirit Stones." Zhou He held up three fingers.

A friendship price was indeed a friendship price. A portable grotto-heaven with its own Spirit Vein, even a restricted Water Element one, would be worth at least a thousand Spirit Stones or more on the open market. Three hundred Spirit Stones was a seventy percent discount.

"Done."

The Spirit Stones were exchanged. Zhou He formally handed the jade box to Li Yuan.

"The Spirit Vein is currently full. It should last for at least three months. Remember to come back and replenish it after that." Zhou He picked up his teacup. "Bring more Spirit Grass next time you come. The clients from the outer seas are getting impatient."

Li Yuan put away the portable grotto-heaven, stood up, and took his leave.

After leaving Nanyuan District, he sat down on a secluded reef by the coastline and once again held the green jade box in his palm.

A panel appeared.

[Detectable equippable item: Portable Grotto-Heaven (Complete)]

[Equipment Trait Preview: Spirit Vein Refinement (Blue)]

[Effect: Can refine miniature Spirit Veins or Water Element Spirit Vein branches, incorporating them into your own equipment for cultivation. Refined Spirit Veins can be carried with you, unrestricted by geographical location.]

[Permanent Activation Condition Preview: Successfully refine three different Spirit Vein branches (0/3)]

[Current equipment slots are full (5/5). Replace a current piece of equipment?]

’A blue trait.’

The effect was extremely powerful. It could refine miniature Spirit Veins or Water Element Spirit Vein branches and incorporate them into his own equipment for cultivation. The refined Spirit Veins could then be carried with him, unrestricted by location.

This meant he could carry a Spirit Vein around with him.

No matter where he was, even in a Spiritless District, as long as he had a refined Spirit Vein in his equipment, it was like sitting on a Spirit Vein to cultivate anytime, anywhere. Combined with the purple trait of Spirit Vein Nurturing and the green trait of Earth Vein Resonance, his cultivation efficiency would reach a terrifying new height.

The permanent activation condition was to refine three different Spirit Vein branches. The coast of Shuizhou had numerous underwater Spirit Vein branches, and Nanyuan District itself was built on one. The underground Spirit Vein branches in Mozhou were even more numerous, almost countless.

’Three Spirit Vein branches. Not difficult.’

’A blue trait. Refine a Spirit Vein and carry it with me.’

The strategic value of this piece of equipment far exceeded its market price. Once permanently activated, he would be completely free from his dependence on fixed Spirit Veins, able to maintain peak cultivation efficiency in any environment.