Gu Changhuan silently took half a step back.

The old man looked embarrassed. "Forgive me, Fellow Daoist. Are you here to buy or to sell?"

"If you wish to sell items, you must pay a stall fee of three spirit stones. Of course, this covers a single day."

This stall fee was indeed rather steep. Gu Changhuan produced four spirit stones.

"Please find me a stall in a good spot."

Beaming with joy, the old man accepted the spirit stones, flipped through a ledger, and retrieved a jade token from beneath the table.

"You're in luck, Fellow Daoist. It's a little late, but a few good stalls are still available. Here is the token for stall one hundred and thirty. Keep it safe."

Gu Changhuan accepted the token, bade farewell to the old man, and soon located stall number one hundred and thirty within the market.

The location was indeed satisfactory.

Gu Changhuan inserted the jade token into a groove on the counter, and the protective Formation surrounding the stall instantly lowered.

From his Storage Bag, he withdrew the magical artifacts, spiritual talismans, and pills he had refined, arranging them neatly upon the stall.

He wrote a sign on a wooden board: "Priority given to trades for spirit wine recipes, pill formulas, and rare spiritual plant seedlings or seeds."

Having finished, he placed the wooden board in a prominent position, set out a chair, seated himself, and awaited customers.

Upon entering, he had already observed that very few vendors offered magical artifacts, pills, or talismans; the majority dealt in Demon Beast materials. To Gu Changhuan's mild surprise, however, a few Foundation Establishment cultivators were also operating stalls.

Yet they made no attempt to conceal their cultivation realms.

He was sure of finding customers. Talismans and pills always sold well. Artifacts might be less popular elsewhere, but the hunters here regularly ventured into the Hidden Dragon Mountains. They wore out their equipment far faster than ordinary cultivators.

The reason other stalls avoided such wares was simple: they lacked the capability. Ordinary rogue cultivators possessed neither the financial resources nor the guidance required to master these crafts. Among the four arts of pills, artifacts, talismans, and formations, talismans were the most accessible, requiring only diligence and modest capital. Yet even among rogue cultivators, those capable of drawing spiritual talismans were exceedingly rare, let alone practitioners of the other arts.

Before long, a passing cultivator noticed the distinctive goods displayed at Gu Changhuan's stall.

The first customer was a youth dressed in black. Fixing his gaze upon a bottle of Yellow Jade Pills, he inquired,

"Boss, may I open this bottle to inspect the pills?"

The young man seemed to have only just reached late Qi Condensation. Gu Changhuan smiled. "Of course."

Yellow Jade Pills, much like Spirit-Nurturing Powder, were First-Tier High Grade auxiliary pills designed to aid cultivation, though their efficacy was slightly inferior to the latter. They were suited for cultivators who had recently stepped into the late Qi Condensation stage.

The youth excitedly unstoppered the bottle. A wave of pure Spiritual Qi mingled with medicinal fragrance drifted out, invigorating his mind with a single breath.

"Boss, how many spirit stones for this bottle? I will take them!"

Gu Changhuan tapped the previously written wooden board with a small wooden stick.

"Fellow Daoist, please read this first."

Only then did the youth realize he had overlooked the conspicuous sign. He carefully perused its terms and promptly retrieved a spirit plant seedling from his Storage Bag.

"I found this in the Hidden Dragon Mountains. Would you take it as part of the payment?"

Gu Changhuan took the seedling and inspected it closely, recognizing it as a moderately rare First-Tier High Grade Bluebreath Grass seedling.

"Bluebreath Grass is fairly rare. Since you're a new customer, the seedling and fifty-five Spirit Stones will do. If you find any other unusual herbs, bring them to me first."

A bottle of Yellow Jade Pills typically commanded around eighty spirit stones on the market, while a First-Tier High Grade seedling was worth at most twenty. The valuation Gu Changhuan offered was remarkably favorable.

Astonished that a single seedling held such considerable value, the youth exclaimed, "Most certainly!"

After sending off his first customer, a second soon approached.

This patron lacked spirit herb seedlings, purchasing a bottle of pills and several talismans with spirit stones before departing in haste.

Within a short span, one-fifth of the goods on the stall had been cleared.

Running a stall was surprisingly profitable. In less than four hours, Gu Changhuan had taken in over four hundred Spirit Stones.

His material costs had been barely over one hundred.

His net profit exceeded two hundred spirit stones.

Such a sum was significant; an ordinary rogue cultivator risked life and limb to slay a beast of equal cultivation just to earn a little over one hundred spirit stones.

Truly, skilled artisans could earn a living wherever they went!

That principle held true in the mortal realm, and it held true in the cultivation world.

While he was entertaining these reflections, the black-clothed youth from earlier returned, accompanied by several companions.

"This is the stall! I told you! His pills are cheap, and he gave me a great price for my seedling."

He spoke quietly as they approached, but Gu Changhuan, a Foundation Establishment cultivator, could still hear him.

Gu Changhuan raised an eyebrow. So, the fellow had brought his friends along to milk the bargain for all it was worth?

He smiled. He would still make a profit, even if it was a little smaller. Selling more at a lower margin worked, too.

"Boss, I have brought my friends!" the youth called out, gesturing to a group of five.

Standing up from his chair with a welcoming smile, Gu Changhuan cupped his hands toward them and laughed heartily.

"Take your time, everyone. We can work out a good price."

Noticing that the goods on the stall had noticeably diminished since his previous visit, the youth held a newfound respect for the vendor.

The newcomers were four men and one woman. Including the youth, all six were at least at the sixth layer of Qi Condensation—strong cultivators among the rogue cultivators of that realm.

He guessed they were a beast-hunting team. Linyao Market had plenty of those.

Teams like this fought together, usually making detailed plans before they struck. They succeeded often and could be formidable, perhaps even strong enough to hunt second-tier demon beasts above their own realm.

The five browsed through the offerings, each ultimately selecting at least two spiritual items, with every member purchasing a bottle of pills.

"Fellow Daoist, do you happen to have any more Yellow Jade Pills or other First-Tier High Grade auxiliary pills?" asked an elderly cultivator at the ninth layer of Qi Condensation after acquiring two bottles of healing pills.

"I have Spirit-Nurturing Powder. It costs a few stones more than Yellow Jade Pills, but since our friend brought you, I can give you a discount." Gu Changhuan handed the elder a portion to inspect.

At these words, the black-clothed youth puffed out his chest with pride, while the elder offered grateful nods of thanks to both Gu Changhuan and the youth.

The youth modestly waved off the gratitude, claiming it was merely good fortune.

Once the transaction concluded, Gu Changhuan watched their retreating figures, felt the weight of over five hundred freshly acquired spirit stones in his possession, and began to consider whether it was time to pack up his stall.