After cultivation class ended, he had a few more basic theory classes in the morning.
After eating lunch at school, a short break followed.
Gu Ming didn't rest. Instead, he left school and headed to the nearby community shop to volunteer.
He could have quit his volunteer position. After all, the college entrance exams were far more important, and the meager pay was negligible.
But right now, he didn't have many ways to earn Spirit Stones. Cyan Treasure had gone out searching for Spirit Stones three times and had come back empty-handed each time.
The Old Grouper Fish was cultivating in its Fish Tank, listening to scriptures. It was good news that it could bring back Small Spirit Stones, but it couldn't find them every time.
Besides, in the system, Gu Ming had been warned by "Elder Ruan" that it was best to enter seclusion until his strength was sufficient for self-preservation.
Gu Ming felt he couldn't let the Grouper Fish out of his sight for too long; he was afraid an accident might happen.
When he returned to the shop, Manager Ruan Jing was a little surprised to see him.
"How was your first day of school?"
"It was alright. We practiced a Cyan Pine-type Spiritual Technique. By the way, Sister Ruan, I saw the shop sells Soul Reviving Elixirs."
Gu Ming asked, and as he spoke, he took out an elixir. "Do you buy back elixirs here?"
"Let me see? Huh, the quality is this good?"
Sister Ruan was a Three-star Beastmaster and had consumed countless elixirs.
She hadn't even taken the elixir yet, but just a single glance from a distance told her it was of superior quality, not some shoddy product.
She took the elixir with interest, held it to her nose, sniffed, and let out a long, drawn-out "Mmm—."
"Mmm—, not bad, not bad. This Soul Reviving Pill is high quality. But since I'm buying it back, the most I can give you is 450 yuan."
Sister Ruan put down the elixir and resumed her usual lazy expression.
These elixirs were of no use to her anymore. A Three-star Beastmaster consumed a different, more expensive set of elixirs.
She bought elixirs to conveniently sell them to the Beastmasters who came to the shop to buy Pet Beasts.
They didn't trust those private, big-name stores and felt more at ease buying medicine from a small, state-run shop.
In reality, their suppliers were more or less the same. It was just that her prices were all at the market rate; she didn't mark them up, nor did she offer extra discounts.
Whatever price the state set, that's what she sold it for. The profit in between all went to the state.
If she bought Gu Ming's elixir, she could resell it privately and pocket the difference from the market price.
Gu Ming had already checked. The market price for a Soul Reviving Pill was 530 yuan apiece.
Even though Gu Ming's elixir was better than those sold on the market, it wasn't a rare type. Since it was a resale, the fact that Sister Ruan wasn't cutting the price in half was already a favor.
Gu Ming thought for a moment and decided to sell it.
'I have another plan in mind.'
In reality, Ruan Jing was the manager of a community shop.
But in the system, Ruan Jing was an Elder at an office for a Hidden Sect.
'Her salary payments are in Spirit Stones. So if I sell the elixir to her, could it be converted into Spirit Stones for me?'
With this idea in mind, Gu Ming pushed the elixir across the counter and said, "Alright, I'll sell it."
"Okay, here's four hundred and fifty in cash," she said.
As she spoke, she took cash from the drawer and handed it to Gu Ming.
But Gu Ming took out an empty red envelope and passed it to her.
Sister Ruan gave him a strange look, but then she understood. 'He must be trying to help me be discreet, since I'm using my position to make a profit.'
"You don't have to be so cautious. A lot of managers at the community shops do this. As long as there's nothing wrong with the medicine, no one will come looking for trouble."
Although that's what Sister Ruan said, she still took the red envelope, stuffed the money inside, and handed it back to Gu Ming.
What she didn't say was that anyone who could become a manager of a community shop already had connections. Someone would have to be incredibly bored to cause trouble for them.
"No, it's not that. I just like receiving money in red envelopes," Gu Ming said insincerely. As he took the envelope, he squeezed it hard.
'It feels like cash, not Spirit Stones.'
The midday work shift ended quickly. He was only there after school in response to the national call for work-study programs; he didn't need to stay at the shop all day.
After Gu Ming left, Sister Ruan toyed with the elixir in her hand, then brought it to her nose and sniffed it again.
'The scent is quite nice. A little intoxicating, even.'
'Maybe I don't have to sell this. I could keep it as an Aroma Pill and take a sniff once in a while. That wouldn't be bad.'
...
「You have completed a transaction with Elder Ruan, exchanging a second-hand Soul Reviving Pill for three Spirit Stones at a reduced price.」
「Elder Ruan looks down on these low-level elixirs and has hinted that you should not offer such low-level elixirs next time. Bring some high-level goods.」
「However, you are just a novice Beastmaster and cannot meet Elder Ruan's demand for elixirs. Perhaps the next transaction will be a long time from now.」
Gu Ming opened the red envelope. Inside lay three crystal-clear Spirit Stones, all of them proper Spirit Stones, overflowing with Spiritual Qi.
When the Little Cyan Snake saw them, its eyes went wide. It impatiently burrowed into the red envelope to begin its Cultivation.
It decided to make the red envelope its nest for the day and didn't want to go anywhere else.
In five days, Cyan Treasure had already consumed Gu Ming's entire stock of Spirit Stones. So now that new Spirit Stones had arrived, it immediately dove in to cultivate.
This was the direct reason why Gu Ming had wanted to trade for Spirit Stones.
He didn't lack money right now; on the contrary, he was desperate for Spirit Stones.
Three Spirit Stones wouldn't last long, maybe a day and a half at most. Cyan Treasure's consumption Speed was very fast.
After exchanging for Spirit Stones with Manager Ruan, Gu Ming realized he didn't have to wait for his monthly salary. He could choose to trade products with Manager Ruan for Spirit Stones.
For example, the bottle of Sea of Consciousness Expansion Medicine at home had a market price in the tens of millions. On the second-hand market, it went for eight or nine million, and occasionally the price would drop to seven million.
'If I sold that Spirit Medicine, I could probably get a lot of Spirit Stones in return.'
However, he had seen the plot progression in the system. The next transaction couldn't be done with a simple Soul Reviving Elixir.
Maybe the real-life Sister Ruan would still accept a Soul Reviving Pill.
But the plot in the system was heading in a different direction.
Gu Ming couldn't ignore the system and force a trade, or else he would only receive real money, not the future's Spirit Stones.
'What kind of High-Level Elixir does Sister Ruan need?'
Gu Ming pondered this as he returned to school and attended another half-day of classes.
In the afternoon, back at the shop for his volunteer work, Gu Ming casually asked Manager Ruan what kind of elixirs she wanted.
"Just sell whatever you have. It's not like you can get your hands on any high-level goods, can you?"
Sister Ruan chuckled. She didn't think Gu Ming could find any high-level goods through other channels.
Gu Ming was just starting out. His Pet Beast was still a Zero-star Little Cyan Snake. Even if its Cultivation was fast, he didn't have the strength to earn more advanced elixirs.
The elixir Gu Ming sold at noon was a common sight at school. It was obviously a sample elixir given to him by a teacher, which he had then resold to the shop.
She had figured out most of the story at a glance, so she didn't expect Gu Ming to come up with any amazing elixirs.
Gu Ming indeed lacked the ability, but his Spirit Medicine could be exchanged for money, which could buy elixirs. He could then find a way to have the system turn them into future versions of those elixirs, making them valuable enough to sell.
'At that point, the elixir will become something Sister Ruan needs.'
"I just wanted to ask. After all, the Three-star Realm is still a long way off for me," Gu Ming said with envy.
"At my stage, what I need isn't Spiritual Elixirs, but a better Cultivation Technique. You can't reach the Four-star Realm just by chugging elixirs," Sister Ruan said, shaking her head.
After saying that, she realized that a Cultivation Technique was too lofty a concept for Gu Ming and amended her statement, "Of course, if you have any rare elixirs with special effects, I'll take those too."