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Indeed, Wan Xun understood Su Changkong’s meaning, and he said, “I have heard others say that near the Black Stone Bay of the Blue Rain Sea, on a specific day each month, there will be ships docking, inviting guests aboard to hold a trade meeting.”
Wan Xun, as the manager of Wanling Pavilion, came into contact with clients of all sorts on a daily basis and was exceptionally well-informed, beyond comparison to ordinary people!
“Then, I thank Manager Wan for the information.” Having learned the location near Ink Forest Prefecture City’s Ghost Market, Su Changkong did not continue to stay and took his leave from Wan Xun.
Upon returning home, Su Changkong briefly waited, for tomorrow was the middle of the month, the day when the Ghost Market opened!
The next day, as dusk fell, Su Changkong packed and prepared before leaving Ink Forest Prefecture City, heading towards Black Stone Bay.
Black Stone Bay, a bay along the shore of the Blue Rain Sea, was usually deserted.
The Blue Rain Sea, the nearest sea area to Ink Forest Prefecture City, connected the three prefectures of Dafeng State; many conducting business had to pass through the Blue Rain Sea, where the most notorious power near Ink Forest Prefecture City was the Giant Whale Gang.
Merchant ships passing through this sea region all had to pay tribute to the Giant Whale Gang!
In the evening, Su Changkong, dressed in black with a sabre upon his waist and wearing a monkey mask, arrived at Black Stone Bay.
Black Stone Bay was calm, with the occasional reef surfacing. Anyone daring to steer their ship here without familiarity would meet with the ruin of vessel and loss of life!
“Are there others? Also guests for the Ghost Market?”
Su Changkong noticed that there were people waiting nearby at Black Stone Bay who, like him, were mostly masked and concealing their identities, likely also participants in the Ghost Market transaction.
Su Changkong waited quietly, and when stars began to rise in the sky, a large ship in the distance gradually approached.
This ship was dozens of meters long, antiquely styled, filled with an air of the passage of time.
The great ship docked at the edge of the bay.
The other guests who were waiting all stood up, heading towards the docked ship.
Seeing this, Su Changkong also followed the crowd aboard. At the gangway, there was a boatman wearing a Ghost Face mask maintaining order, and others from the ship, all equipped with swords, exuded no ordinary aura.
“Each person must pay 50 taels of silver to board,” the boatman said in a hoarse voice.
This Ghost Market of Ink Forest Prefecture City was not something you could participate in or board for free—the entrance fee was 50 taels!
This threshold was undoubtedly quite high, but considering the Ghost Market organizers put out a ship, there were costs involved. Those who came to the Ghost Market were hardly ordinary, understood the rules, and all paid the entrance fee to board.
Su Changkong also paid the fifty taels.
“No wonder this is Ink Forest Prefecture City; even the Ghost Market is so prestigious!”
Seeing this scene, Su Changkong could not help but sigh. The Ghost Market of Clearwater City was held in desolate mountain villages, showcasing bleakness, while the Ghost Market of Ink Forest Prefecture City was held on this great ship, resembling a gathering of high society, not in the same league!
Su Changkong boarded the ship and found that there was food and drink on offer, although most people did not partake.
On the ship, more people took out their own items for sale, waiting for others to come over and inquire.
Su Changkong was not new to such ghostly markets. He too took out the five bottles of Pill Medicine from his bosom and wrote “For sale: Vivid Qi Pills” on a wooden sign in front of his stall.
The Vivid Qi Pill, with its effect of quickly restoring the spent True Qi, was quite useful for Martial Artists.
Soon, a man wearing a sheep mask came to inquire, “Is this the Vivid Qi Pill? How much is it for sale?”
“One pill for 50 taels of silver, one bottle of ten for five hundred taels, no separate sale,” Su Changkong responded.
In the marketplace, the price of a Vivid Qi Pill was around 70 taels each, but considering that his own were produced during practice and the quality was slightly inferior, he had to offer a more competitive price to make a sale, hence Su Changkong priced them at 50 taels each.
At the same time, Su Changkong felt a pang in his heart, “Pill Medicine worth 30,000 taels of silver to produce could at most recover a capital of 3,000 taels… a serious depreciation!”
But Su Changkong didn’t think too much of it. Alchemy at its initial stages was a money burning endeavor, and once his Alchemy skills improved, he would reach a break-even point and even profit from Alchemy!
“May I examine the merchandise?” the sheep mask man asked upon hearing the offer.
“Certainly.”
Su Changkong naturally did not refuse and handed over a bottle of Vivid Qi Pills; the sheep mask man took it, unscrewed the cap, and sniffed.
After pondering for a while, the sheep mask man took out a silver note and said, “Then I’ll buy one bottle.”
The sheep mask man also noticed that the scent of Su Changkong’s Vivid Qi Pills was not as strong as those on the market, probably just barely qualifying in quality, but the substantial discount made up for it, saving him two hundred taels of silver for the bottle!
“Alright.”
Su Changkong was inwardly pleased—there went one bottle sold!
The fact that Pill Medicine was rare and precious proved true; Su Changkong’s five bottles were sold out within an hour, bringing in 2,500 taels of silver.
“If I can manage to produce an average of two Vivid Qi Pills per batch, I can maintain a balance of expenditure and income. Surpassing two would mean a profit,” Su Changkong calculated in his mind. With some progress in his Alchemy, he should be able to achieve this.
The large ship slowly wandered on the sea, with some guests still selling their goods and others resting in the cabins, waiting for the ship to dock, marking the end of the Ghost Market venture!
After wandering the ship for a while, Su Changkong too rested in a private box in the ship’s cabin, waiting for the vessel to make landfall..