The young man’s name was Meng Chao.

He usually set up a stall here as well, but he had overslept today. When he finally arrived, he found no spots left.

As he wandered around, a spot happened to open up. However, seeing someone else about to claim it, he simply kicked the weakling—an early Qi Refining cultivator—out of the way and seized the spot for himself.

“What? You got a problem?” Meng Chao sneered, looking at the man with disdain.

Qin Lu climbed to his feet. Gritting his teeth, he spoke in a low voice. “I was here first. What gives you the right to take this spot?”

“What gives me the right?”

Meng Chao raised a fist, his expression turning vicious. “This fist gives me the right! Now get lost!”

The commotion drew the attention of many nearby cultivators. They all turned to look, their faces lighting up with the eagerness of people ready to watch a show.

Qin Lu stared at the young man who had stolen his spot, his blood boiling with anger.

Countless impulsive thoughts flashed through his mind, but in the end, reason prevailed.

He could sense that this person’s cultivation had reached the late Qi Refining stage. If a fight broke out, he definitely wouldn’t gain the upper hand. In fact, he would likely suffer even greater humiliation.

A wise man doesn’t fight when the odds are against him! In this chaotic world, one must be cautious and prudent…

Muttering this to himself, Qin Lu didn’t linger any longer. He picked up his black cloth and quickly left the area with his head down.

Just before leaving, however, he committed the young man’s appearance to memory.

I’ll definitely get even when I get the chance! Hmph! Don’t bully the young for being poor… no, wait, don’t bully the middle-aged for being poor!

Qin Lu cheered himself on inwardly.

His cowardly display elicited sneers from Meng Chao and the onlookers, who pointed and whispered at his retreating back.

After his humiliating retreat, Qin Lu continued searching the market for a suitable place to set up.

Soon, he found an empty spot in a remote corner. After carefully observing the surroundings, he quickly stepped forward and laid out his black cloth.

He placed the Water Qi Shield talismans he had crafted onto the cloth one by one, using small stones to weigh them down against the wind.

Finally, he took out a wooden sign from his bundle and placed it beside his wares.

[Water Qi Shield. Two Spirit Stones each. No haggling!]

With his preparations complete, Qin Lu finally let out a sigh of relief. He glanced at the unfamiliar cultivator setting up a stall nearby. After a moment of thought, he offered a warm greeting.

“Fellow Daoist, sharing a spot to set up stalls today… looks like fate brought us together, eh?”

His voice caught the cultivator’s attention. The man turned his head, took one look at the talismans Qin Lu was selling, and immediately snorted with disdain. He turned away without uttering a single word.

The cold response left Qin Lu feeling incredibly awkward, his smile freezing on his face.

Tch, what a snob, he cursed inwardly.

Seeing this attitude, Qin Lu decided not to invite further contempt. He stopped trying to make conversation, found a comfortable position to sit on the ground, and began waiting for customers.

The market was bustling, the foot traffic immense. Even though Qin Lu’s stall was in a remote corner, quite a few passersby walked past.

Before long, a cultivator approached.

It was an elderly man, appearing to be in his sixties or seventies. Despite his age, he had a ruddy complexion and appeared full of vigor. He glanced at Qin Lu’s stall and spoke directly.

“What, you only have Water Qi Shields here? No other talismans?”

“No, this is the only one I know how to make,” Qin Lu replied.

“Tsk tsk. You might be the only one in the entire market selling just a single type of talisman. So weak. How do you even survive like this?” the old cultivator teased with a laugh.

Qin Lu was speechless.

This old codger. If you want to buy, buy. If not, move along. Why all the unnecessary talk?

He wanted a diverse range of talismans too, but his skills simply weren’t up to par yet!

Qin Lu gave an awkward smile. “Still practicing, still practicing…”

The old cultivator shook his head helplessly. “Alright, give me one Water Qi Shield. Looking at the brushwork, your fundamentals seem fairly solid.”

Qin Lu’s eyes lit up. He hurriedly picked up a talisman and handed it to the old cultivator with both hands.

The old man didn’t waste any more words. He took the talisman, tossed down two Spirit Stones, and walked away.

Feeling the two Spirit Stones in his palm, Qin Lu’s heart beat faster.

This was his first sale!

And he had even received recognition!

It made him feel that the intense grinding of the past few days had been meaningful. These two Spirit Stones were the reward for his hard work.

“The road to wealth begins with a single step! Hehe!”

Qin Lu pretended to glance casually at the stall owners on either side. Seeing that no one was paying him any attention, he quickly slipped the two Spirit Stones into his robes.

Patting his chest, a sense of satisfaction welled up within him. The earlier frustration of having his spot stolen eased considerably.

With the first sale complete, Qin Lu was officially open for business. He didn’t have to wait long before his second customer arrived.

The setting sun gradually descended toward the horizon.

The noisy market slowly quieted down as the crowd began to thin, with many people hurrying home for dinner.

After an afternoon of effort, Qin Lu had only three talismans left. He had sold a full nine talismans, earning eighteen Spirit Stones!

The reality was just as Qin Lu had suspected. Life-saving talismans sold much better than utility items like Cleaning Talismans or Soundproofing Talismans. After an afternoon of observation, his conclusion was solid.

This gave him a clear direction for his future talisman crafting: focus on combat and defense!

“These last few probably won’t sell today. Better come back tomorrow…”

Qin Lu murmured to himself, rubbing his stomach. He had come to set up his stall without eating lunch, and he was now ravenously hungry.

He packed up his things, closed his stall, and headed home.

“Earned eighteen Spirit Stones. Calculating the costs, the materials were only about seven or eight Spirit Stones. A net profit of ten Spirit Stones in just a few days. This really is a good venture.”

Qin Lu was in a cheerful mood. Passing by a few stalls, he generously spent a few Spirit Stones to buy some beast meat and spirit fruits.

Then, with light steps, he headed toward the rice shop.

The spirit rice at home was running low and needed replenishing immediately.

Fresh beast meat could generally be found in the market. Many cultivators without specialized skills risked their lives entering the East Head Ridge to hunt beasts, exchanging the materials for Spirit Stones. So, fresh meat was available almost daily.

But spirit rice was different.

It required spirit fields and the careful tending of Spirit Plant Masters. Generally, it was only produced by major sects and powerful factions. Rogue cultivators couldn’t get involved in the trade.

Among the many spirit rice shops in Wuji Market, eight out of ten were run by the Wuji Sect. They essentially held a monopoly here.

Arriving at the rice shop, Qin Lu felt a pang of phantom pain looking at the price sign on the pile of spirit rice.

[Wuji Sect Premium Spirit Rice—One Spirit Stone for four jin.]

Based on my current appetite, I eat one jin of rice a day. One Spirit Stone only lasts four days. These damn capitalists really know how to bleed us dry…

Qin Lu cursed inwardly. The prices were truly exorbitant.

But spirit rice was a necessity. After thinking for a moment, Qin Lu took out five Spirit Stones.

“Give me twenty jin of spirit rice!”

“Hmm.”

The shop assistant replied indifferently. Taking the Spirit Stones, he began slowly filling a bag with rice.

Watching the man’s sluggish movements, Qin Lu was speechless, but he didn’t dare voice any complaints.

Because it was a Wuji Sect shop, the assistants were usually Wuji Sect disciples sent to manage the business. They were generally arrogant and haughty by nature. Wuji Market was practically their territory, so Qin Lu didn’t dare cause trouble.

Fortunately, the disciple didn’t give him a hard time. After slowly filling the bag, he handed it over.

With the spirit rice in hand, Qin Lu visited the talisman shop again, spending five Spirit Stones to buy a good stock of talisman paper.

On the way back, he passed by a magical robe shop. With his funds so tight, he only glanced at the display a couple of times before reluctantly walking away.

After that, he hurried home with light steps.

Aside from being kicked once, today could be considered a satisfying victory.