Selling Like Hotcakes
The pavilion known as Cheong-unru was a separate building within Bohwawon where Qi Condensation cultivators gathered among themselves. Following what she had heard from Jinwi, Baek Cheong pushed through the crowd and stepped straight inside the pavilion.
Cheong-unru was packed with either very young or freshly matured cultivators. After all, the Qi Condensation participants who had gathered for the New Spring Exchange were all late-stage juniors without exception. A few older cultivators could be seen here and there, but they were a tiny minority, perhaps mindful of the atmosphere.
‘It’s pretty spacious.’
Cheong-unru had its main building in the center with several annexes attached, making it quite expansive. In each annex, cultivators clustered in small groups, chatting pleasantly or setting up stalls and haggling noisily.
Yet the moment Baek Cheong set foot inside, murmurs rippled through the crowd from every direction.
“Th-that’s…!”
“It’s the Baek family’s young lady from the lower generation.”
“The one who swept an entire Qi Condensation group without even drawing her sword…?”
The cultivators recognized Baek Cheong and lowered their voices to whisper among themselves. She had made such a spectacle at the Magic Tournament that her face was apparently known everywhere now.
‘Well, for today at least, that’s not a bad thing.’
In her spatial pouch were dozens of bottles of Danmun Chwiryungdan that she had refined in her spare time. The higher her reputation from the tournament, the easier it would be to sell the Danmun Chwiryungdan to the Qi Condensation cultivators here at Cheong-unru. She even planned to launder some suspiciously sourced spirit stones by mixing them in.
‘Gotta make a proper killing today.’
Since this was her first time at Cheong-unru, however, she had no idea where any particular exchanges were taking place. Baek Cheong was glancing around the annexes and observing her surroundings when a quick-witted cultivator swiftly approached and stuck close to her side. He was an unaffiliated Qi Condensation rogue cultivator who belonged to neither a major sect nor a prominent family, and his appearance was quite plain.
“Lady Baek Cheong! Is this your first time at Cheong-unru? If you need a guide, this humble one will gladly escort you!”
The rogue cultivator kept bowing and scraping, clearly trying to get on her good side. It seemed he wanted to make an impression on Baek Cheong, whose name had risen so dramatically at the tournament.
‘Oh, perfect timing.’
Having a guide would save her the trouble of wandering around, so there was nothing for her to lose. Baek Cheong gave a small nod of approval.
“Then I’ll be in your care.”
The rogue cultivator’s face lit up with joy the moment his offer was accepted, and he took the lead. He then began excitedly listing all the various exchanges happening throughout Cheong-unru.
“In this annex over here, the late-stage juniors are currently holding a gathering to build friendships. They share tea, compose poetry, and exchange insights on spiritual medicines and cultivation methods.”
At the word “friendship,” Baek Cheong openly lost interest. A gathering where they drank tea and recited poems had zero chance of producing even a single spirit stone.
‘What are they, pretending to be adults?’
Noticing Baek Cheong’s lukewarm expression, the rogue cultivator quickly changed the subject.
“Ah, it seems you have no interest in friendship gatherings! In that case, how about a trade fair or an auction?”
His sense of timing was truly exceptional. At the mention of trade fairs and auctions, Baek Cheong’s ears perked up. However, after listening to his explanation, she found the auction unappealing. The items Qi Condensation cultivators put up were bound to be unimpressive, and more importantly, she couldn’t dump dozens of bottles of Danmun Chwiryungdan all at once in an auction. After all, auctions were places where people competed over a single rare item.
‘Auctions won’t work if I want to move volume.’
A trade fair, on the other hand, was a different story. She could negotiate directly with multiple people, so if she set her mind to it, she could easily offload about half of her stockpile of Danmun Chwiryungdan. Moreover, since this was the Biun Sect’s New Year event, quite a few heirs from prestigious families had likely gathered. The more deep-pocketed patrons there were, the better for selling the Danmun Chwiryungdan at a high price.
‘Might as well go where the money is.’
As if he had read her mind, the quick-witted rogue cultivator spoke first.
“Someone of your caliber, Lady Baek Cheong, would naturally fit in with the gathering of heirs from prestigious families. There happens to be just such a trade fair right now—allow me to escort you there!”
The rogue cultivator eagerly took the lead as though he had been waiting for this. After passing several annexes, they arrived at a pavilion situated in the most scenic spot within Cheong-unru. As soon as she entered the pavilion overlooking the lotus pond, the atmosphere was indeed on another level.
Everyone present was either an heir from a noble family or a late-stage junior hailed as a heavenly genius by their sect. From their attire to the magical treasures they wore, nothing about them was ordinary. To others, this place would have felt like a dragon’s lair or tiger’s den where one dared not tread lightly.
Of course, to Baek Cheong’s eyes, it simply looked like a gathering of fat wallets all in one place.
‘Oh, every single one of them looks loaded.’
Baek Cheong decided to pay the guide his due. She rummaged through her spatial pouch and pulled out a jade bottle of Chwiryungdan that she had received long ago. Though it was supreme-grade, it lacked even a single pill vein, so to her it was nothing more than a useless item taking up space.
“Thanks for guiding me. Here, take this.”
The rogue cultivator who accepted the jade bottle casually opened the stopper and his eyes widened like saucers.
“I-isn’t this a supreme-grade Chwiryungdan?! To give something like this just for guiding…!”
To a Qi Condensation rogue cultivator, a jade bottle of supreme-grade Chwiryungdan was a treasure he might not touch even after rolling around for months. The man bowed repeatedly while shouting his endless gratitude.
“Th-thank you, Lady Baek Cheong! This humble one will never forget this kindness!”
Then, perhaps afraid that lingering any longer might cause her to take the treasure back, he quickly made himself scarce.
‘Why go that far…’
Baek Cheong watched the man’s retreating figure with a slightly sour expression. She had only given him a piece of junk, yet his gratitude seemed rather excessive.
The moment the rogue cultivator left, every eye in the pavilion turned toward her. It was only natural—the topic of the hour, the one who had swept through an entire Qi Condensation group at the Magic Tournament without even drawing her sword, had suddenly appeared in their pavilion.
Brushing off the pouring gazes as if they were nothing, Baek Cheong slowly looked around the pavilion. Then one familiar face caught her eye. Sitting in what could be considered the seat of honor was Seo Jua, dressed in a brownish-red robe. True to her status as a daughter of the Hosan Seo family, she had two maids attending her, making her stand out even more within the pavilion.
The instant Seo Jua spotted Baek Cheong, she shot to her feet.
“Baek Cheong! This lady has not yet settled the score with you…!”
Seo Jua held her head high and puffed out her chest. Her defeat at the Magic Tournament had clearly stung, but her spirit remained unbroken. She glared at Baek Cheong with fiery eyes, as if ready to exact revenge at any moment.
‘Oh?’
Upon recognizing Seo Jua, however, Baek Cheong’s face brightened instead. There was no better patron to offload her Danmun Chwiryungdan onto than Seo Jua. She recalled how the girl had casually consumed supreme-grade Chwiryungdan in the middle of their spar. An heir who carried such precious medicine as emergency rations would certainly have the means to purchase Danmun Chwiryungdan.
‘Not a bad first sale at all.’
Whether Seo Jua stood there with her chest thrust forward and glaring or not, to Baek Cheong she simply looked like a walking spirit stone purse. Baek Cheong approached Seo Jua without hiding her delighted expression. Then she whispered softly so that only Seo Jua could hear.
“You know, if you had taken Danmun Chwiryungdan instead of that supreme-grade one back then, even I would have had a hard time winning.”
The fierce momentum Seo Jua had been radiating instantly crumbled. Revenge and everything else forgotten, she now looked utterly confused by the unexpected whisper.
“Danmun… Chwiryungdan…?”
Seo Jua unconsciously repeated the words. A rumor that had once reached even the Hosan Seo family came to mind—one whose truth could not be confirmed, claiming that Baek Cheong carried Danmun pills refined by Yakseon. Recently there had also been talk that she had consumed Danmun Chwiryungdan at Jebu Peak.
“That’s right. These are Danmun Chwiryungdan personally refined by Grandfather Yakseon.”
Seeing her chance, Baek Cheong raised her voice. The eyes of every late-stage junior gathered in the pavilion instantly focused on her. She continued with an innocent, nonchalant tone as if she hadn’t noticed.
“They’re perfect for replenishing spiritual energy during training, and in emergencies, there’s nothing better for refilling a dried-up dantian.”
Baek Cheong drove the point home even further.
“And best of all, because they have pill veins, there’s absolutely no pill toxicity.”
A stir spread through the late-stage juniors like ripples. Normally, the cheaper a spiritual medicine was, the more pill toxicity would accumulate upon consumption, damaging the meridians and dantian. The mere claim that there was no toxicity at all made it clear that Danmun pills were no ordinary item. Since they were all accomplished late-stage juniors, they seemed to have some vague knowledge about Danmun pills. However, their rarity was beyond words, so none of them had ever seen one in person.
At that, Baek Cheong reached into her spatial pouch in front of everyone watching. She then opened the stopper of the jade bottle she pulled out and let the Danmun Chwiryungdan inside spill onto her palm. On the lustrous surface of the pill, faint pill veins could be seen engraved.
Perfectly formed pill veins. Zero pill toxicity. Ideal for rapid qi recovery during training or emergencies.
“Th-that’s a pill with pill veins…!”
“Pill veins on a 1st-rank low-grade pill…?”
“To see the legendary Danmun pills with my own eyes…!”
The late-stage juniors poured out exclamations of admiration. Every one of them stared at the pill resting on Baek Cheong’s palm as if beholding a heavenly treasure. Even Seo Jua had forgotten about revenge and was staring at the pill with her mouth slightly open.
Listening to the flood of gasps, Baek Cheong smiled with satisfaction in her heart. The bait had been cast. Now it was time for the fat wallets to bite the hook themselves.
‘I’m going to clean them all out.’