“Well, I haven’t joined any guild yet. It’s just that joining a low-tier guild offers no future. I’m currently looking for a better one. I noticed your recruitment ad for alchemists, and thought you must be affiliated with a top-tier guild or a big corporation, given your impressive financial resources. After all, you’ve already opened an alchemy shop just a few days after the server launch, while many top guilds haven’t made any moves yet. So I decided to give it a try,” said Nan Nan modestly, speaking frankly. His words were direct. Truth be told, all that talk of admiration is just pretense. The reality is exactly as he described.
It’s only been a short time since the server launch—just half a month at most—yet a level-2 shop has already been established. How could that not draw attention?
Bird Bu Sheng Dan nodded at Modest Nan Nan and asked, “We offer a 10% profit share. Do you still want to stay?”
“What? That’s too low! Other guilds offer at least 20%, plus a basic salary,” Modest Nan Nan frowned. This salary was clearly not competitive at all, not even as good as some smaller guilds.
Even Nie Yan was surprised after hearing this. He had delegated full authority to Bird Bu Sheng Dan to hire alchemists, as long as the profit share was under 30%. Bird Bu Sheng Dan could make decisions independently. Modest Nan Nan and Shang Xin could also provide additional benefits. Nie Yan hadn’t expected Bird Bu Sheng Dan to offer such a low price. How could he retain those alchemists? Holding the belief of trusting those he employs and employing those he trusts, Nie Yan decided to continue observing.
Bird Bu Sheng Dan calmly replied, “We don’t offer basic salaries because the basic wage is negligible. What we do offer is an unlimited supply of raw materials and a good sales platform. If you want to earn more, there are countless raw materials upstairs—you can work from morning to night. There are also many exclusive laboratories for alchemists, and each person can be assigned one. Our shop will soon upgrade to level 3, then level 4 and 5. Every day, we will recruit more alchemists, and this place will become the largest pharmacy in Carol City. If you generate enough profit for the pharmacy, we will consider giving you an additional 10% bonus.”
Hearing Bird Bu Sheng Dan’s exaggerated claims, Nie Yan couldn’t help but smile. Thinking about it, it actually made sense. Human nature is such that sometimes overly generous conditions make people take things for granted. Bird Bu Sheng Dan’s approach might actually be more persuasive. However, in the future, they still needed to provide sufficient benefits to these alchemists to make them genuinely willing to stay. Entrusting the pharmacy to Bird Bu Sheng Dan, Nie Yan felt reassured. With Bird Bu Sheng Dan’s capabilities, he was fully qualified for this job. Even if Bird Bu Sheng Dan wasn’t an alchemist anymore, he might still succeed as a business operator.
Qualities like perseverance, patience, and focus are prerequisites for success. With these qualities, as long as a good development platform is provided, success is guaranteed. Some people possess these excellent qualities but still don’t succeed, perhaps not due to a lack of talent, but simply because they lack a platform. Providing a platform might uncover many outstanding individuals from humble beginnings.
Therefore, when seeking promising talents, one shouldn’t only look among those who were successful in the previous life. Of course, those famous figures from the past are ready-made candidates. From Nie Yan’s perspective, why not go for the readily available options?
Modest Nan Nan pondered for a moment and asked, “Can I take a look upstairs?”
Bird Bu Sheng Dan glanced at Nie Yan and, seeing Nie Yan’s approving expression, nodded and said, “Sure, follow me.”
Nie Yan privately messaged Bird Bu Sheng Dan, “I’m leaving first. The pharmacy is entrusted to you. As you said, we will continuously upgrade the pharmacy and recruit alchemists. Dozens are too few, and even hundreds won’t be too many.”
“I understand, boss. I’ll handle everything here properly.”
Nie Yan had sufficient funds for investment. He could accurately judge which potions would be popular in the future and which had greater appreciation potential. Under his guidance, the future operation of Star Pharmacy was absolutely secure.
Moreover, Nie Yan intended to make Star Pharmacy a dominant force in the industry, the ultimate destination for all aspiring alchemists.
Besides acquiring raw materials and formulas through auctions, Nie Yan also needed a stable source of raw materials and formulas. Otherwise, the pharmacy’s operations would be too susceptible to market fluctuations. In the future, if someone targeted Star Pharmacy, its market adaptability would be very low.
Nie Yan thought of the Holy Roman Empire. If he could get the Holy Roman Empire to help gather raw materials, he wouldn’t have to worry about the source of raw materials. Through cooperation, he could gradually tie the Holy Roman Empire’s interests to his own.
Previously, Cao Xu had consolidated five guilds, including Triumph, to secure his dominant position. Nie Yan understood that to establish a solid foothold, he couldn’t rely solely on himself or completely on others.
The days since his rebirth had been steady for Nie Yan. His personal strength was growing stronger, and his economic power was expanding. However, he understood that his time was limited. Once the in-game currency exchange opened, he would have to face numerous enemies. The road ahead would not be smooth.
Thinking about this, Nie Yan felt a sense of urgency. He had to work very hard.
Taking out twenty-five gold coins from Star Pharmacy, Nie Yan walked out and headed toward the auction house. He gathered all the anti-petrification potions and purchased a large number of potion formulas and raw materials that might appreciate in the future. He mailed everything related to potions back to Star Pharmacy and acquired all the equipment and items that might appreciate in the short term, storing them in his personal warehouse.
After finishing his shopping at the auction house, Nie Yan checked his personal warehouse. It was densely packed with various items worth about nine gold coins. These items had a very good prospect of appreciation.
After finishing his shopping, Nie Yan still had sixteen gold coins left. He headed toward the teleportation array and entered it.
System: “Are you sure you want to teleport to Feinian City, Hildilock? This is an inter-city teleportation and will cost 1 gold coin.”
The distances between cities were quite far. Due to the high cost of inter-city teleportation, players from different cities rarely interacted.
Yes!
A few seconds later, a charming city, dreamlike and surreal, appeared before Nie Yan’s eyes.
In fact, it was a city in the forest. Towering trees reached high into the sky, sheltering the city in green shade. These trees were lush and verdant, like jade, complementing the white buildings below with an astonishing sense of harmony and beauty. Patches of dappled light danced across the scene, creating a dazzling spectacle.
The streets were bustling with people, but the population here couldn’t compare with Carol City.
Hildilock was the sixth-largest city in Gelinlan. However, its real estate had the most potential for appreciation. Because Hildilock had many high-level maps, its population would grow increasingly in the future. At the same time, Hildilock was the city with the least available land. Only a dozen or so plots were available for sale. Currently, Hildilock wasn’t attracting much attention, but in the future, it would become a place where every inch of land was as valuable as gold. Its commercial prosperity couldn’t match Carol City, but its land prices would be exorbitantly high, dozens of times higher than Carol City.
Nie Yan had precisely targeted the appreciation potential of Hildilock’s real estate. He had to buy the most valuable and appreciable golden real estate to maximize the use of his money.
Nie Yan headed toward the city center’s administrative hall in Hildilock. The administrative hall was a crystal palace, magnificent and beautiful, with fountains and beautiful gardens on both sides. Various gorgeous flowers competed for beauty, stunningly beautiful.
“Respected Governor Karon, hello.”
The governor of Hildilock was a slightly overweight middle-aged man, with a sturdy build and a gentle expression.
“Hello, adventurer from Carol City. What do you need?”
“I want to buy real estate in Hildilock.”
“Please follow me,” Governor Karon said, leading Nie Yan into the palace.
Inside the palace, a model of the city appeared before Nie Yan, fully displaying the original appearance of Hildilock City.
“There are a total of 12 plots for sale here, located here, here, and here… We provide the best service for Hildilock merchants, with a complete legal system to protect the interests of merchants from infringement. However, since you are from Carol City, there is a regulation here. If residents from other cities come here to purchase commercial shops or real estate, they must pay an additional 60% fee. A substantial transfer fee is also required when reselling,” Governor Karon explained.
Nie Yan looked at the prices of the 12 plots. The cheapest was 2 gold coins, and the most expensive was 26 gold coins. In addition, an extra 60% fee was required. It would be better if he could find a native of Hildilock to help purchase the real estate, but Nie Yan didn’t have anyone he could trust in Hildilock.
Nie Yan quickly locked onto a plot on the map. It was located at the south gate of Hildilock, at a crossroads, priced around 8 gold coins. The land was quite large, enough to accommodate a large auction house. Paying an additional 60% was still worth it.
In the future, the southern region of Hildilock would become the most prosperous area. Major future instances such as the Golden City would traverse the post road outside Hildilock. Players from numerous cities would gather at the south gate plaza to form teams for instances, and the development potential was beyond imagination.
“I want to buy this land,” Nie Yan pointed to the plot.
“The price of this land is 8 gold coins. You need to pay 12 gold coins and 80 silver coins for it.”
Nie Yan paid 12 gold coins and 80 silver coins and smoothly received the deed from Governor Karon. Holding another piece of land in his hands, he felt a sense of security. As someone who had once lived a wandering life, he understood that only real estate was the safest.
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