Chapter 138: Purchasing the Formula

A soft murmur echoed through the quiet room. With a flick of his wrist, a storage ring—taken from Luo Long—appeared in Ye Cheng’s palm. He probed it with his spiritual sense, and the look on his face brightened into an even more radiant smile.

Inside the ring, there were only a few thousand-tael silver notes. It was reasonable for an expert like Luo Long not to carry a vast fortune in silver, as such worldly possessions were of little use to him. What truly delighted Ye Cheng was the presence of dozens of spiritual weapons. Sensing their fluctuations, he estimated them all to be at the intermediate level. If he traded these, he would have enough to purchase several potion formulas.

Beside the weapons sat twenty low-grade spirit stones and two medium-grade spirit stones. These were likely what Luo Long used for his cultivation. Considering that the Ye family could only mine about a hundred low-grade spirit stones a year, these two medium-grade stones and twenty low-grade ones represented a full two years’ worth of the family’s output. It was no wonder the young "pauper" Ye Cheng’s eyes were shining.

"A pity that after Luo Sen died, I never saw his ring." Ye Cheng sighed. Back then, Old Mu had taken control of his body and obliterated the man into a mist of blood with a single spear strike. He hadn’t bothered to retrieve the ring, and it had likely been collected by the elders of the Ye family by now.

Ye Cheng felt a pang of regret, but he had to let it go. In any case, the wealth in this ring would suffice for a while; if it truly wasn't enough, he could always ask the elders later.

He transferred the contents of his waist pouch into the storage ring. Although the ring only had a capacity of twenty cubic meters, it was significantly larger than his old pouch. The herbs he had scavenged from the ancient cave occupied only a small corner of the space.

"Time to head to the Treasure Pavilion." Once he made up his mind, he acted. Lacking blood cores for cultivation, Ye Cheng naturally turned to potions as his focus for the coming period.

Ye Cheng stood up and opened the door. A ray of sunlight spilled down upon him, warm and inviting. He had spent most of the past few days recuperating indoors with little chance to enjoy the sun, and he found himself greedily taking in deep breaths of the fresh air.

Leaving his room, Ye Cheng navigated through a few courtyards toward the main gate. Along the way, he encountered many Ye family disciples and guards. As they caught sight of him, they all cast looks of awe and reverence, to which he responded with a friendly smile.

Receiving such gazes left Ye Cheng feeling somewhat helpless. Even Ye Ming, who had been his closest companion, seemed less relaxed and more constrained when they met two days ago.

"Young Master Ye Cheng!" The guards at the gate were startled to see him and quickly bowed with respectful, wary expressions. Given Ye Cheng’s current lofty status, they dared not show the slightest sign of disrespect.

Reflecting on how, just half a year ago, he hadn’t even condensed a single blood line and was met only with disdainful sneers, he realized how much life had changed. Truly, the tides of fortune shift; what is on the east bank of the river today may be on the west bank tomorrow.

Ye Cheng smiled at the guards and, without lingering, headed straight for the Treasure Pavilion. In the entire Luoyang Town, the Treasure Pavilion was the only major merchant house of note, selling everything one could imagine. It was this that led Ye Cheng to suspect they would have potion formulas for sale.

This was not his first visit. The storage pouch he had been using was a gift from Manager Wei of the Treasure Pavilion when he had come to purchase his silver spear just a few months prior. In that short span, however, Ye Cheng’s reputation in Luoyang Town had undergone a heaven-shaking transformation. His feat of single-handedly slaying two Yuan-level experts from the Luo family was already well-known among all the major factions in town.

Emerging from a narrow alley, Ye Cheng spotted the sign of the Treasure Pavilion from afar. He didn't stop, walking straight toward the main entrance.

"Look, isn't that the Ye family genius, Ye Cheng, who recently slew those Luo family experts?" The heavily armed guards at the door recognized him immediately, their eyes filled with a new sense of awe. In this world, only strength could command respect.

Ye Cheng strode inside without breaking his pace. As he scanned the opulent, spacious hall, his eyes fell upon a female receptionist at the front desk, and a smile touched his lips—it was the same girl who had served him months ago.

"Welcome to—" The receptionist began her habitual greeting, but her voice faltered as her eyes landed on Ye Cheng.

"Young Master Ye Cheng!" She recognized him instantly. Having heard of his glorious deeds just two days ago, she hadn't expected to see him in person today.

Ye Cheng looked at her with a smile and asked, "I would like to see Manager Wei. Is he in?"

Seeing him smile at her, the receptionist blushed and quickly replied, "Yes, yes! Young Master Ye, please wait a moment. I will go get Manager Wei right away."

She hurried up the stairs. Shortly after, the sound of quick footsteps echoed back down; having received word of Ye Cheng’s arrival, Manager Wei was rushing to meet him. Ye Cheng was no longer the person he had been; fostering a good relationship with such a young powerhouse would undoubtedly benefit the Treasure Pavilion in the future.

"Haha, Young Master Ye Cheng! To think you still remember me, Wei, is truly an honor," Wei Chao said with a hearty laugh as he approached, the receptionist following closely behind.

"Manager Wei is too kind. I have come today simply to purchase some items," Ye Cheng said, cutting straight to the point.

"Oh? What is it that you require, Young Master Ye?" Wei Chao inquired.

"I need formulas for potions from the first to the fourth grade, two of each. I wonder if your pavilion has any for sale."

"Oh? Potion formulas?" Wei Chao’s expression shifted. The Treasure Pavilion in Luoyang Town had very little stock of such items, as there were no alchemists in this remote area. Since their pavilion was a large chain with branches across the Nanyang Prefecture, alchemists from other regions had no reason to come here to buy formulas. Consequently, the Luoyang branch only held a few first and second-grade formulas, which had remained unsold for years.

"What? Does your pavilion not carry them?" Ye Cheng asked, his brow furrowing at the man’s reaction.