The two-story building of Starry Pharmacy towered high, entirely constructed from white stone blocks. Its dazzling white color gave a strong visual impact. Exquisite patterns were carved on every column and beam, creating a surreal, dreamlike atmosphere. The interior decorations and counters were neat and elegant.
After a while, Niaobushengdan walked into the pharmacy from the entrance.
“Boss, I’m here.” Niaobushengdan paused slightly, looking around in awe. He couldn’t help but marvel inwardly—this was actually a level-two shop. He wondered who had opened it.
“Hmm, I have something to discuss with you,” Boss Nie signaled and said, “From now on, you will temporarily manage this pharmacy. I will assign some tasks to you, and as for compensation, if the pharmacy performs well, you will receive monthly bonuses. Of course, you won’t need to do much work. Your main task will still be leveling up as an alchemist. According to tradition, you will only receive the basic wage after reaching the Novice Alchemist level.”
“This pharmacy is yours?” Niaobushengdan couldn’t help but be surprised. He knew Nie was wealthy, but he never imagined Nie could be this rich. He had heard others say that buying a piece of land in the game Faith usually cost at least one or two gold coins. Upgrading shops reportedly required two gold coins for level one and five gold coins for level two. Such prices left most players in awe and discouraged many from even dreaming of opening their own shops, which seemed as distant and dazzling as clouds in the sky.
However, even managing a shop was already a great satisfaction for Niaobushengdan.
“Of course it’s mine, and you will be managing it from now on. A group of alchemists will come for interviews shortly, and I hope you can represent me in hiring them. I will tell you more details later—I don’t want to appear in person.”
“I understand,” Niaobushengdan nodded.
Niaobushengdan was quite perceptive and understood Nie’s intentions. For some unknown reason, Nie didn’t want others to know he was the owner of the pharmacy. Though curious, Niaobushengdan dared not ask further.
“Since you understand, I won’t explain more. This NPC, named Inselas, is the employee responsible for selling goods in this pharmacy. The second floor is the alchemists’ laboratory. I will grant you certain permissions, allowing you to withdraw some money from Inselas for purchasing herbs to stock the laboratory upstairs. Then, you should hand over the daily produced potions to Inselas for sale. You can consult me regarding the pricing of the potions. Additionally, there is a slightly tedious task—you must submit a weekly summary of expenditures and revenues to me. Since the system calculates it automatically, it shouldn’t take up much of your time.” Nie added more instructions as he thought of them.
Niaobushengdan recorded everything Nie said to avoid forgetting. It seemed his daily workload wouldn’t be heavy—just managing the alchemists.
Nie thought for a moment. With this setup, even without his direct management, the Starry Pharmacy could operate normally and orderly, without any loopholes in the system.
Niaobushengdan hesitated, as if wanting to say something.
“What is it? If you have something to say, just speak up,” Nie looked at Niaobushengdan and said.
“It’s just that… with so many applicants, many of them are already Novice Alchemists… why did the boss choose me?” Niaobushengdan hesitated for a moment but finally voiced his question. He would feel uneasy if he didn’t ask.
Nie smiled and said, “Nothing special. I just think you are more trustworthy than others—that’s all.”
“Trustworthy…” Niaobushengdan took a deep breath. It had been a long time since anyone had said that word to him. When one is poor, even dogs would despise them. He had chosen the name Niaobushengdan partly as self-mockery. Yet, having struggled this far, if he were to fear or retreat now, he would truly be a coward. When one has learned to trust no one, someone’s trust becomes the warmest thing. “Thank you,” Niaobushengdan said sincerely.
Nie smiled, explained a few more details about the pharmacy, and then said, “There are two alchemists you should pay special attention to—one named Discreet Nanan and the other named Shangxin Yijiu. Listen to the conditions they propose and send them to me. As long as their demands aren’t unreasonable, I will agree.”
“Okay, understood,” Niaobushengdan nodded, though he felt slightly uneasy inside. After all, both of them were already Novice Alchemists, while he was still just an apprentice. He felt a sense of urgency.
Niaobushengdan hadn’t yet experienced the feeling of becoming a master alchemist. At the moment, he was no different from any ordinary apprentice.
“How long do you think it will take for you to reach the Novice Alchemist level?” Nie asked.
“Probably… three or four days.”
Nie nodded and said, “Then work hard on your proficiency. Here is a formula for a basic magical resonance potion. After Discreet Nanan and Shangxin Yijiu sign on, give it to one of them and have them produce some immediately. This potion should fetch a good price now.”
“I will choose the one with the higher success rate,” Niaobushengdan felt somewhat discouraged. If he had already been a Novice Alchemist, Nie wouldn’t have given this profitable formula to someone else. Still, he wasn’t petty—he understood that everything depended on ability. Since he lacked the skill to take on the task, it was only natural for Nie to give the formula to someone else.
The relationship between alchemists and their employers was somewhat like a partnership with profit-sharing. Employers provided materials, formulas, and handled sales, keeping the majority of the profits while alchemists received basic wages and a smaller share. If alchemists obtained profitable formulas from their employers and their potions became bestsellers, they could earn more. If the potions didn’t sell well, their share would naturally be small.
“There will definitely be more and better potion formulas in the future. I have several anti-petrification potion formulas here. Let each Novice Alchemist learn one and produce more anti-petrification potions. I’ve also placed seven thousand sets of various potion ingredients in the laboratory upstairs, including two thousand sets for anti-petrification potions.” Nie continued. After a long period of acquisition, he already had a large stock of anti-petrification potion ingredients, potions, and formulas. He also had over eighty pieces of equipment with anti-petrification +7 or higher. Most of these items were purchased for no more than thirty copper coins, with the better ones costing up to fifty copper coins at most.
Unlike Black Fen potions, whose popularity would gradually decline because few monsters outside of the Werewolves in Sos Valley had the terrifying poison, anti-petrification potions would remain useful for a long time to come. Therefore, their prices continued to rise steadily.
Although Nie had acquired a large quantity of anti-petrification potions, the overall production remained high, and his stock was only a small portion of the total. While this would affect market supply and cause price increases, achieving a near-monopoly like with Black Fen potions was practically impossible. However, the price of anti-petrification potions could still rise by at least fivefold—500% profit, enough to make anyone ecstatic.
However, the Medusa’s Lair was known as the most profitable dungeon. Teams capable of entering the Medusa’s Lair could afford to use petrification potions.
Even more precious were the anti-petrification devices. Tomorrow, the Medusa’s Lair would open. While Medusa’s attacks weren’t particularly powerful, her petrification ability was a nuisance. Continuously using anti-petrification potions to undo petrification would lead to massive daily consumption. However, if one’s petrification resistance reached 14 points or higher, they could essentially disregard petrification effects.
For melee classes, if at least three members were equipped with anti-petrification gear, a team could save at least twenty silver coins per day in the Medusa’s Lair. However, melee classes couldn’t wear too much low-defense equipment. Wearing more than two or three pieces would significantly reduce defense, increasing the risk of a wipe. Thus, the value of equipment with anti-petrification +7 or higher became evident. Even if other attributes were poor, a piece of equipment with anti-petrification +7 could sell for at least ten silver coins. Just from this, Nie could earn about eight gold coins.
After finishing the instructions regarding the pharmacy, Nie was about to leave when a player in his mid-twenties, wearing a gray-white alchemist robe, walked in. He looked at Nie and Niaobushengdan before finally focusing on Nie.
“Excuse me, is the owner of this shop here?” the player asked tentatively. In his eyes, Nie looked more like the owner compared to Niaobushengdan, who wore an apprentice’s robe.
Niaobushengdan glanced at the player’s collar, where a purple jasmine flower pattern was embroidered with silver thread. A hint of envy flickered in his eyes. That purple jasmine flower was a dream he had yet to achieve—it was the honor badge of a Novice Alchemist.
Nie exchanged a glance with Niaobushengdan, after which Niaobushengdan stepped forward to meet the player.
“I am the owner of this shop. May I ask what brings you here?” Niaobushengdan asked without any sign of hesitation, exuding a genuine boss-like aura.
“It’s like this—I’m Discreet Nanan, and I heard you’re recruiting alchemists here,” the player replied to Niaobushengdan. Upon hearing Niaobushengdan claim to be the owner, he was genuinely surprised. Thinking about it, it made sense—wealthy people often dressed modestly.
“There are so many large guilds recruiting alchemists. As a Novice Alchemist, why would you come here instead of joining one of those big guilds?” Niaobushengdan countered, looking at Discreet Nanan.
Nie slightly nodded. He had previously instructed Niaobushengdan not to let in people with ulterior motives, and Niaobushengdan indeed showed caution, knowing he should ask such questions.
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