When everyone arrived at the entrance of the general store, they saw quite a number of cultivators inside purchasing Spiritual Objects, with the vast majority buying Jade Spirit Pills.
With so many customers inside the store, it was impossible for them to enter, so they had no choice but to stand outside.
Fortunately, they didn't have to wait too long before the other clansmen gradually returned. Seeing this, Li Shilian spoke to Li Shiren and then led the clansmen towards the outskirts of the Marketplace.
With Li Shilian, a Foundation Establishment cultivator, leading the group, the journey was naturally smooth and they safely returned to Da Rong Island.
"You all return as well," Li Shilian said and then quickly strode off. He was in a hurry to report to Li Shiqing about the general store's business and to think of a solution for the demand outstripping the supply of Water Refinement Pills.
After bidding farewell to Li Zhirui and the clansmen, he headed alone toward his shaded courtyard. Upon entering, he immediately rushed into the mystical space.
Recently, a batch of Spiritual Medicines had matured in the space, and Li Zhirui had collected their seeds as well. However, since they weren't what he currently needed, he didn't plant any of them.
Now was the perfect time, as Li Zhirui had bought many Spiritual Medicine seeds that he previously didn't have, especially those needed for concocting Jade Spirit Pills and Spirit-Replenishing Pills, which he bought in the greatest quantity.
However, as soon as Li Zhirui entered, Da Qing approached him with its huge mouth open, hoping to be fed.
Even when times were tough, Li Zhirui had never neglected Da Qing, and now that he certainly wasn't short on Spirit Pills, he unhesitatingly fed it two Jade Spirit Pills, which was the most Da Qing could refine without overburdening itself.
"Go to the lakeside to refine the Spirit Pills," Li Zhirui patted Da Qing's oily-green head and pointed toward a huge rock specifically for Da Qing to rest on.
This was something Li Zhirui had deliberately placed in the space to give Da Qing a resting place close to the water, yet not submerged by it.
Although Da Qing's Spiritual Intelligence was not high, it was able to understand simple commands and slowly lumbered away, shaking its head.
After settling Da Qing, Li Zhirui began to cast spells to loosen the soil and summoned a Spiritual Rain, then meticulously planted each Spirit Seed.
After bustling around for more than an hour, Li Zhirui looked up and saw the heavy ears of grain nearby and muttered, "In a few days, these Spirit Grains should be ripe."
At this thought, Li Zhirui suddenly felt a bit of a headache. He initially planted Spirit Rice because he could directly eat it to accelerate his cultivation.
Now, with these ten-odd acres of Spirit Rice maturing, yielding over two thousand pounds, Li Zhirui no longer needed to consume several pounds of Spirit Rice daily, as he had done before, thanks to the assistance of the Jade Spirit Pills in his cultivation.
If it were just that, it wouldn't be too bad—he couldn't eat it all at once, so he could preserve it and eat it gradually.
But the issue was, these ten-odd acres of Spirit Rice were just the beginning!
In the coming months, several dozen more acres of Spirit Rice would ripen one after another.
"I'll just have to find an opportunity to go to the Marketplace and figure out how to sell the Spirit Rice," he thought.
Sell it to the clan? He couldn't possibly explain the source of the Spirit Rice. Eat it himself? When would he finish eating thousands of pounds of Spirit Rice?
Having made up his mind, Li Zhirui no longer worried about this matter. In the following days, he was either engaged in alchemy or in cultivation, completely unaware of the small dispute that had arisen among the clan's upper echelons because of him.
The cause of the dispute was simple: Li Shilian felt that since Water Refinement Pills were selling so well, the five hundred Jade Spirit Pills planned for the next month might not be enough. He hoped Li Zhirui could make more Spirit Pills each month.
This way, the clan could earn more Spirit Stones, and Li Zhirui could also make a profit while simultaneously improving his alchemy skills.
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Moreover, no one needed to make any sacrifices, as refining a batch of Spirit Pills took, at most, half an hour only, and even if Li Zhirui dedicated four hours to alchemy every day, it wouldn't delay his cultivation.
In this way, the family would acquire over a thousand Jade Spirit Pills each month, earning more Spirit Stones.
However, Li Shile and Li Shiqing disagreed because they felt this was pressuring Li Zhirui. Most importantly, as the family member most likely to break through to the Golden Core stage in nearly a hundred years, Li Zhirui should focus on his cultivation.
Watching the elders from both sides argue over this matter for days, Li Shiting, as one of the younger generation, had no choice but to step forward and say, "Uncle Qing, you won't reach a conclusion by arguing. How about we call Zhirui here and let him decide for himself? Would that be acceptable?"
"Agreed!" Li Shilian answered without hesitation. Although he had always been on Da Rong Island and had not been in contact with Li Zhirui, it didn't mean he didn't know about him.
In Li Shilian's view, Li Zhirui highly valued the family's interests and would definitely not refuse as long as it did not hinder his own progress.
So, just as Li Zhirui had been preparing to buckle down and focus on the Spirit Rice, he was suddenly summoned to the main hall, where Li Shiting explained the reason to him.
"Fine by me!" Li Zhirui agreed right after hearing it, without even considering it.
Seeing how readily Li Zhirui agreed, appreciation and affection filled Li Shilian's gaze as he looked at him.
"However, I have a condition; I hope the family can collect more Water Refinement Pill recipes and provide the necessary Spiritual Medicine for my practice."
After pausing for a moment, Li Zhirui added, "There's no need for too much Spiritual Medicine—fifty portions will suffice. If it exceeds fifty portions, I'll pay my own Spirit Stones and ask the family to help me purchase them."
Of course, Li Zhirui knew doing this would require him to invest more time in alchemy, but it would not hinder his cultivation!
Moreover, he could take this opportunity to make a proposal to the family, which, with such a condition, would allow Li Zhirui to openly use the Spiritual Medicine from his space to refine all manner of Spirit Pills in the future!
After all, in the eyes of his family members, he was already a genius in the realm of alchemy.
Li Shiqing had originally disagreed, but since Li Zhirui himself consented, what could he do?
"Have you thought this through?" Nonetheless, Li Shiqing still asked, giving Li Zhirui a chance to reconsider.
Warmed by the concern, Li Zhirui smiled and said, "Clan Leader Grandfather, rest assured. I will not lose the big picture over small gains."
"In that case, let's settle on this decision," he concluded.
In the end, Li Shiqing nodded his agreement but did not acquiesce to proceeding immediately, instead he suggested, "It's still uncertain how many Jade Spirit Pills can be sold at the Marketplace, and we shouldn't assume the current demand will continue indefinitely simply because they're a hot commodity now."
"So starting next month, Li Zhirui will first provide the family with a thousand Jade Spirit Pills, and if they don't sell out, we'll cut back the amount."
Li Zhirui intentionally interjected, "What if they sell out?"
"Even if they sell out, you'll only refine that many!" Li Shiqing glared at Li Zhirui, "With your high success rate in pill formation, the family will just buy from you when it's time.
"But if they don't sell out, you'll have to figure out what to do with the Jade Spirit Pills in your possession on your own." The family couldn't possibly keep buying Jade Spirit Pills from Li Zhirui if they hadn't sold all the ones they had.
"I'm aware," Li Zhirui didn't see any problem with that, he could easily sell them to other shops in the Marketplace or to the merchants resting at Yunqing Marketplace. After all, there would be no shortage of buyers.
Of course, to look after the family's own business, Li Zhirui would still draw up a contract disallowing the other party from selling in Yunqing Marketplace.
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