With that, Leo took out twenty-six Vitality Pills from his pocket and handed them to the old man.
The old man’s face lit up with joy as he received the Vitality Pills. With these pills, he estimated that he could advance another level in his cultivation within a year.
Satisfied with the transaction, the old man thought for a moment and said, “Young man, I’ve been running this stall for four or five years, and it’s rare to encounter someone as generous as you. How about you buy all the seeds on my stall for just four Vitality Pills?”
Leo considered the offer and agreed. These seeds could be used for alchemy even if he didn’t plant them, although their effects might be slightly inferior to those of mature plants.
With thirty Vitality Pills in hand, the old man was even happier. He glanced around and said, “It looks like I’ll be the first one to pack up and go home.”
This comment made Leo smile. He had unexpectedly purchased all of the old man’s items in one go. If other martial cultivators knew that Leo had spent over a thousand Essence-Building Pills in a flash, they might assume he came from a top-notch martial sect.
“Young man, ladies, farewell. I hope we have a chance to cooperate again in the future.” The old man packed up his belongings, content with his earnings, and departed.
Leo neatly packed the purchased items and then stored them in the designated storage area.
Violet couldn’t help but ask curiously, “Leo, did you make the Vitality Pills you gave to that old man?”
Leo nodded with a smile and took out one to give to Violet.
She eagerly accepted it and held it near her nose to smell it. Her eyes lit up as she said, “The aroma is rich, somewhat similar to the Essence-Building Pill. The main ingredients should be Energy Grass and Flowering Spirit Ginseng, without the addition of Bloodvine Grass and Dragon Bile Powder from the Essence-Building Pill. It’s quite challenging to blend Energy Grass and Flowering Spirit Ginseng without Dragon Bile Powder. Leo, your alchemy skills are impressive!”
Violet’s words caught Leo by surprise. “You understand alchemy?”
Violet tilted her head proudly and replied, “Of course, my grandfather taught me various knowledge about alchemy and herb identification when I was young.”
“By the way, what’s this Alchemy Research Institute that the old man mentioned? What kind of institution is it?” Leo inquired.
“Alchemy Research Institute is a specialized research institution jointly established by the top three martial sects. There are branch institutions in almost every regional city. Almost every alchemist will enter this Alchemy Research Institute to study and further their expertise. The institute’s functions include developing new varieties of pills and also storing, authenticating, selling, and exchanging various pills,” Violet explained.
Leo began to understand and asked, “Is pill storage similar to depositing money in a bank?”
“Yes, the institute is essentially the martial world’s bank. Because it’s inconvenient to carry pills around, many martial sects and families deposit pills in the institute. For a small fee, they can withdraw them at any time. They can even create online accounts for transactions,” Violet clarified.
“Additionally, it’s not just pills. Herbs, medicinal plants, and other items can also be entrusted to the Alchemy Research Institute for safekeeping,” she added.
Leo listened to all this information and couldn’t help but be amazed. It seemed that this Alchemy Research Institute was essentially a martial world’s version of a bank in the mortal world.
Leo then asked, “You mentioned that this Alchemy Research Institute is only set up in regional cities. So, East Town shouldn’t have one, right?”
Violet shook her head and explained, “Because East Town is the location of the Southwest Martial Market, the Alchemy Research Institute headquarters established a branch here.”
“Is that so? Where is it? I’d like to have my Vitality Pill authenticated,” Leo inquired.
Violet playfully snapped her fingers and said, “Follow me.”
Leo and Master Jennifer followed Violet out of the market and walked east along the street. It didn’t take long before they reached a large stone-built building.
This building was much larger than the surrounding structures, and a sign by the front door read, “Alchemy Research Institute East Town Branch” in bold golden letters.
Under Violet’s guidance, Leo and Master Jennifer entered the building.
The lobby was spacious with five service counters: Deposit, Sale, Exchange, Consultation, and Authentication, from right to left. Each counter except for Consultation and Authentication had three service windows.
Behind each window sat an attractive female attendant, ready to serve the martial cultivators who came in.
Leo glanced around and saw that there weren’t many people conducting business here at the moment. Most of them seemed to be using the Deposit, Sale, and Exchange counters. The Consultation and Authentication counters had almost no one waiting.
Seeing that Leo was looking at the Authentication counter, Violet guessed what he was thinking and explained, “Leo, the Authentication counter is usually not very busy. The appearance of a new type of pill isn’t something that happens easily.”
Leo nodded and walked directly to the Authentication counter.
Once at the counter, the staff member politely asked, “Sir, would you like to have a pill authenticated?”
“Yes,” Leo answered as he handed over a Vitality Pill from his pocket. “Could you please authenticate this pill for me?”
The staff member took a small jade box from a cabinet and placed the pill Leo handed over into it. She then attached a barcode.
Next, she handed Leo a form and said, “Sir, please fill in your name, contact information, the name and function of this pill. Once the authentication is completed, we will notify you via text message. Additionally, we will also post the results on our official website. If you have any doubts about the results, you can contact our customer service.”
Leo asked, “How long will it take to get the authentication results?”
The staff member replied, “Usually within twelve hours.”
Leo filled out the form and handed it back to the staff member. He also paid three Essence-Building Pills as the authentication fee.
After leaving the institute, the three of them continued to wander through East Town.
In order to fully cure the Evil Flame, Leo needed the Snowspirit Flower to refine a Snowspirit Pill. Since they couldn’t find it at the martial market, they would have to rely on tomorrow’s auction.
Under Violet’s guidance, the three of them arrived at a large square to the southwest of the town.
Violet said loudly, “Leo, Master Jennifer, tomorrow’s auction will be held in this square.”
The square was quite large, shaped like a funnel, and could easily accommodate over a thousand people.
Several men and women were currently distributing flyers about the auction in the square.
“Leo, didn’t you say you wanted a Snowspirit Flower? I’ll go grab a flyer to see if there’s one among the auction items tomorrow,” Violet said as she hopped off to approach one of the girls handing out flyers.