Acquisition of Rare Treasures

Chapter 13 Acquisition of Rare Treasures

It seems that the true purpose of the Divine Incense has not yet been discovered in this world, perhaps because it has no effect on battle qi or magic power.

If I had known earlier that I could buy Refining Incense at the pharmacy, my Qi circulation would have been much faster. After three days, I might have even opened up my second Yang meridian.

Having just transmigrated, he encountered an imminent crisis of duel and was so focused on cultivation that he didn't even come out to check things out.

"Is this Higram grass very rare?" Alphonse asked.

"It's not produced much in the mountains around here, but you should be able to find it at the pharmacy in the city. It's not that rare," the pharmacy owner replied honestly.

Perfect timing! I'm going to the city tomorrow, and if all goes well, I can buy some things.

Alphonse had made up his mind. He gripped the herbs in his hand tightly. "I'll take them all!"

"Do you have money?" Mia asked coldly. She knew very well that Alphonse went out drinking all day and usually paid in advance, and the Baron's mansion had to settle the bill afterwards. He squandered all the allowance his wife gave him every month.

"Isn't it because you're here? Lend it to me first, I need this herb." Alphonse smiled brightly at Mia and held out his hand.

As her mother's personal guard knight, she was paid a salary and must have been wealthy.

I was planning to put it on credit first, and pay it back later when I made a profit.

The pharmacy owner, eager to get rid of this pest as quickly as possible, hurriedly said, "It's nothing valuable, young master, just take it if you need it, no money required, no money required!"

"Hey, boss, you're so nice!" Alphonse grinned and pointed at Mia. "But she's here. She won't let me take your herbs without paying."

After saying that, he started acting like a rogue towards Mia, "I'm taking the herbs no matter what, whether you pay me or not. You have to pay for them first, then I'll consider it an obligation."

Alphonse could hear Mia snorting heavily, and his eyes widened slightly, but despite her anger, she still asked the pharmacy owner, "How much?"

"80 copper coins will do," the pharmacy owner said with a forced laugh, having no choice but to quote the price.

Alphonse was shocked when he heard the price of the Higram Grass. In this other world, the "Divine Incense" that was so rare and hard to come by was actually so cheap.

Could it be that this world is exceptionally rich in spiritual energy, making it suitable for the growth of such rare herbs?

Thinking about the state of his cultivation and energy circulation, he wondered if that was also spiritual energy that had been drawn into his body.

But I've only just begun cultivating and haven't yet connected with heaven and earth, so how could there be such an anomaly? Besides, in my previous life, when I cultivated to the Five Qi Gathering Realm, the spiritual energy I drew from heaven and earth wasn't like this.

Alphonse was puzzled. While he was pondering this, Mia reached into her pocket, pulled out a silver coin, and handed it to him.

They immediately noticed something: they hadn't heard the sound of coins clinking when Mia reached into her pocket.

She can't be that poor, can she?

Is the salary of a Baroness's personal guard knight very low?

Or is there another reason?

She also serves as the Baron's treasurer now.

Oh well, she'll just keep it in the ledger and reimburse me herself.

Soon I will be the lord of Coldwind Territory, so spending some money is normal.

I casually checked the other herbs, but found nothing. However, I did see some lavender. The pharmacy owner kept explaining that lavender can also be used to make ointments. It can be taken internally to treat headaches and insomnia, and applied externally to relieve pain.

There wasn't a single herb available for tempering the body.

It's unknown whether it exists in this world, or if it's called by another name; there's no way to find out.

After all, the pharmacy owner, Hawke, was only a doctor with a smattering of knowledge. In the words of his previous life, calling him a barefoot doctor would be an understatement. He could only treat minor ailments; for serious injuries and illnesses, one had to go to the city.

After instructing the pharmacy owner to deliver any herbs he found while gathering herbs in the mountains to the Baron's mansion, Alphonse led Mia out the door.

Alphonse was overjoyed to have obtained the rare herb "Refining Spirit Incense," and his steps became much lighter.

It's fortunate that the people in this other world treat this Divine Refining Incense as an ordinary herb, otherwise, how could we have obtained it so cheaply?

The true way to use this herb is to air-dry it, cut it into small pieces, and burn it in an incense burner. The smoke emitted is the magic elixir that accelerates the flow of qi and blood.

The pharmacy owner only wanted to crush it, mix it with honey and sesame oil to make cold medicine pills, which was a huge waste of its efficacy.

The task of drying these precious herbs cannot be delegated to others; it must be done by myself.

Even if there are no herbs to temper the body, there are other cultivation methods to choose from, but they take much longer.

"What kind of experiment do you want to do with these herbs?" Mia suddenly asked with a serious expression, determined to get to the bottom of it.

It seemed impossible to get away with this without giving her a reason, so Alphonse had no choice but to explain, "That magical bard taught me a prescription that requires this Higram grass, which can enhance physical strength."

Mia frowned slightly. She had just heard from Mr. Hawke, the pharmacy owner, that Higram grass had a stimulating effect, and the mention of stimulants made her wary. "You'd better avoid strange prescriptions. I've heard that some decadent nobles use hallucinogens to enhance their pleasure. If you take drugs indiscriminately and become addicted, causing Madam distress, don't blame me for disciplining you!"

"How could it be a hallucinogenic drug?" Alphonse laughed. "You heard it from the pharmacy owner; it's just a cold medicine to refresh you."

Mia snorted and stopped talking.

Indeed, that's what Mr. Hawke said, but there's no guarantee that adding other drugs won't produce strange effects. We still need to keep an eye on him to avoid upsetting his wife.

"We're going to be working together tomorrow, can't you trust me a little?" Alphonse said with a grin and a shrug.

"Based on your past behavior, you are not worthy of trust."

Mia's tone remained cold, and Alphonse had no other options. He wanted to please her, but he didn't know how. He could only try to get to know her better gradually.

Now she just needs to leave it alone.

This is at the Lord's manor in Swood.

"What did you say? You already told him you're breaking off the engagement?" Baron Swood looked at his beloved daughter with her head down and felt a surge of anger rising in his head.

Monica rubbed her skirt with both hands, hesitated for a moment, and finally mustered up her courage to look directly at her father. "I... I also want to follow your wishes, but you know how bad Alphonse's reputation is. I really can't marry such a... such an unrespectable person."

"Monica!" Baron Swood roared at his daughter, "I thought you were a smart girl, but how could you do such a thing? Baron Tartarus has only been dead for a short time, and we've already broken off the engagement. If word gets out, do you know how much damage this will do to our family's reputation?"

(End of this chapter)