Chapter 4116 — Settling in the Middle Island

"Heh, but a man like that is a bungler who spoils more than he accomplishes. Even if he never becomes a true threat, he is still a danger—Brother Tian, you would do well to keep half an eye on him," Wei Zhao warned.

"Rest easy, Brother Wei Zhao. I know how to handle this," Di Xingdao said with an unconcerned smile, then turned toward the two women chatting warmly off to the side and asked, "Speaking of which, what do you plan to do about those two? Surely you do not intend to keep living here at the Five Elements Merchant Guild forever?"

With Cai Zhongxuan's protection, staying on at the Five Elements Merchant Guild was not out of the question. But Di Xingdao could tell that living under another's roof was not Wei Zhao's style, and the guild was, at bottom, still a part of the Pill Hall—which would run counter to the original aim of letting Tianchan break away and stand on her own.

"I have been turning that very question over myself. Do you have any suggestions, Brother Tian?" Wei Zhao asked.

"If you wish to settle the three of you here on the Middle Island, there are only two paths: throw in your lot with some sect, or stand entirely on your own. But since you would not even consider the Pill Hall, I take it you have no mind to join any sect?" Di Xingdao replied.

"Naturally. Both Tianchan and Xueli suffered bullying and oppression within their own sects before. If they joined another, there is no telling it would not happen again, so I have no choice but the latter," Wei Zhao said with a nod.

"In that case, Brother Wei Zhao, you might consider going into some small business. An ordinary man would find it near impossible to gain a foothold on the Middle Island, but with the rest of us at your back, you are hardly without connections. If it is only a small venture, gaining a solid footing should be no great difficulty," Di Xingdao suggested.

"That could work." Wei Zhao's eyes lit up. It would solve the problem of settling the two women and earn him some spirit jade at the same time—two birds with one stone. He stroked his chin and mused, "But what sort of business would be best?"

"The two best-selling goods on Cloud Terrace Island are pills and natural treasures. The latter depends heavily on supply channels, so getting it onto a proper footing in the short term would not be easy. Pills, however, are in absolute and perpetual short supply—and as it happens, Tianchan is an alchemist. If you need stock, you can even purchase from young Cai here. I think that would be a fine road to take," Di Xingdao analyzed for him.

Why did the Middle Island's Pill Hall hold such transcendent status today? Why did the Five Elements Merchant Guild sit so firmly on the throne of the merchant alliance? In the final analysis, it all came down to the immense influence of pills.

Across the five great islands of the Heavenly Tier, pills were a harder and more reliable currency than even spirit jade. No power and no person ever complained of having too many pills—especially pills of superior quality.

"In that case, we really could open a shop specializing in pills!" The more Wei Zhao thought about it, the more sound the path seemed. If they truly opened one, they would not even need to source stock from Cai Zhongxuan—Tianchan was an alchemist, and so was he, and in terms of quality, his work was absolutely first-rate.

They would have Tianchan refine the common pills, while Wei Zhao himself would concentrate on crafting a few top-grade pills to serve as the centerpiece—that ought to be more than enough to meet the shop's needs.

Over at one side, Tianchan and Xueli had heard Wei Zhao and Di Xingdao's conversation and came over, nodding eagerly in agreement. "Wonderful! The three of us opening a pill shop together—that is a fine idea!"

"Since you both approve, then it is settled." Wei Zhao was not a man to dawdle; seeing this, he made up his mind on the spot, then added, "But to open a pill shop, the first thing to settle is the matter of the storefront."

The quality of a storefront's location often determined outright how brisk the business would be. Yet here on the Middle Island, where dragons coiled and tigers crouched, for an ordinary person to secure a storefront in a prime location was as hard as climbing to heaven. Without powerful backing and support, it was sheer wishful thinking.

"The storefront is no problem. I will look up some old friends and ask a favor—it is a single word from me, nothing more. Brother Wei Zhao, you need only scout out a good location first," Di Xingdao said, thumping his chest. He was, after all, a deputy island lord of the Middle Island in his own right; even after all these years of injury, that much influence remained—and now his wounds had fully healed besides.

Just then, Hou Guanqi and Cai Zhongxuan happened to return from errands of their own. Hearing of Wei Zhao's plan to open a pill shop, both voiced their approval.

"Young Hero Lin, there is really no need to go looking for a location at all—this old man happens to have a ready-made shop on hand," Cai Zhongxuan said once he had heard the whole of it.

"A ready-made shop?" Wei Zhao and the others were taken aback. "Senior Cai, you surely do not mean for us to open it here at the Five Elements Merchant Guild?"

"How could that be! With the influence of the Five Elements Merchant Guild, Young Hero Lin, never mind opening inside it—even opening merely on this same street, you would struggle to draw any customers at all," Cai Zhongxuan said with a laughing shake of his head.

With the Middle Island's Pill Hall at its back, the Five Elements Merchant Guild had ridden the pill trade alone to an undisputed first place among the merchant guilds. If Wei Zhao truly opened a pill shop right beside it, he would likely never see a single customer come through the door.

"Then where is it?" Wei Zhao asked.

"The shop is not too far from here—just four streets away. The location is not exactly the core of the bustling district, but it is already quite good," Cai Zhongxuan explained. "It used to be a weapons shop, but the owner ran it poorly and could no longer keep his head above water. I have met the man several times, so I had thought of buying it up and opening a small clinic—only I have been busy preparing for the auction these past weeks and have had no leisure for it. Now it happens to be a good chance to transfer it to you."

"That... would that not be robbing a man of what he loves?" Wei Zhao said hesitantly.

"Ha, Young Hero Lin, you worry too much. I am, after all, a deputy steward of the Five Elements Merchant Guild. Opening a clinic was merely a personal hobby, a passing whim. If I truly went through with it, I would have to think twice about whether people might gossip," Cai Zhongxuan said with a wave of his hand and a smile.

"Young friend Wei Zhao, do not hesitate. He absolutely has no time to open any clinic—better that the good water flows into our own fields than elsewhere. My junior brother Cai here has never been one to concern himself much with business matters, but that is only because he takes no interest in them; in truth, his eye for business is exceptionally sharp, and even our master has praised him to his face. If that storefront could catch his fancy, it must be sound." Hou Guanqi put in with a smile from the side.