This time, it was Zhang Yongfu who came to receive him again. It was naturally more appropriate for a familiar Taoist friend to discuss business than a stranger.
After taking a sip of spiritual tea, Zhang Yongfu spoke:
"Brother Hong hasn't been here for a while. If I hadn't heard that fellow Taoists were practicing in seclusion, I would have thought that Junior Brother Hong had gone to other places on Dongluo Island."
"how come?"
Hong Ming opened his mouth and smiled.
Hong Ming is not stupid. He has been in this area for more than ten years and is familiar with every aspect. He knows exactly who the people are and what their temperament is. If he were to change places, no matter how careful he is, he might be deceived.
What's more, during the Qi training period, the places are almost the same.
"But is it so easy to inquire about Hong's seclusion and practice?"
Hong Ming seemed to ask casually.
Zhang Yongfu was a little embarrassed after hearing this and asked about other people's whereabouts. This was not appropriate.
"Not really, it's just that I mentioned it at the last gathering of fellow Taoist Zheng Hao."
Having said this, Zhang Yongfu paused and couldn't help but admire:
"After all, Taoist Fellow Zheng Hao is quite famous now, and his reputation as a philanthropist is well known. Previously, Fellow Daoist Zheng organized forty or fifty fellow Taoists to hunt together, and even hunted down many monsters in the late stage of Qi training. He has an amazing reputation among casual cultivators."
"Oh? The Zhang family actually pays attention to Fellow Daoist Zheng."
Hong Ming was a little curious.
There are a lot of casual cultivators, you have to count them, because skills, spells, spells are easy to get, and elixirs can be searched for in the sea. In the Luo Star Islands, more than 90% of the monks in the Qi training period are casual cultivators.
The number of them is terrifying, but the status of casual cultivators is not high.
Loose cultivators who have achieved some success will eventually join the sect.
Whether it is the five major sects or a slightly smaller sect.
Some foundation-building monks will also establish families.
Therefore, the strength of family monks and sect monks far exceeds that of casual cultivators, and few sect and family monks pay attention to casual cultivators because they are not on the same level.
"Fellow Daoist Hong is joking. Not only the Zhang family, but also several other big families nearby are paying attention to this matter."
Zhang Yongfu said with a smile:
"This matter is not a secret. Fellow Daoist Zheng recruits casual cultivators in such a big way and prepares to establish a family or a small sect for some unknown reason. There will inevitably be some disputes. Each family needs to prepare in advance."
Hong Ming nodded.
According to Zhang Yongfu, Zheng Hao's ambition is more than that. He probably wants to form a small group, and to do so, he will definitely need a place to stay.
But on Dongluo Island, there is no free space.
If Zheng Hao wants to take root, he will inevitably have to conflict with his family.
You must know that the last person to do this was the Shogun family more than a hundred years ago. They relied on their numerical advantage and spent a huge price to surround and kill their opponents in the sea.
Finally, he occupied a spiritual vein.
"But it's okay for now. As long as Zheng Daoyou doesn't advance to the foundation building stage, everything is nonsense!" Zhang Yongfu laughed again.
Hong Ming nodded.
However, these are all anecdotes and can be used as entertainment, but they are a bit far for Hong Ming.
"Brother Hong is here this time. What do you need?"
After talking about other things, Zhang Yongfu looked at Hong Ming expectantly.
The Zhang family has always treated such wealthy monks with courtesy. After all, you would be a fool if you don't make money with spiritual stones.
Hong Ming smiled, took out five jade bottles from the storage bag and placed them on the table.
"Fellow Daoist Hong, is this...?"
Zhang Yongfu's expression condensed and became much more solemn.
"This is the elixir that I have worked so hard to refine recently. After four or five months of hard work, I have finally reaped the rewards. How much is it worth, fellow Daoist Zhang?" Hong Ming said casually.
"Elixir?"
Zhang Yongfu's face showed a look of ecstasy.
Unable to control his excitement, Zhang Yongfu stood up directly, picked up a jade bottle, poured out the elixir, and checked it.
There are ten pills in a jade bottle, and each pill is almost the same.
Zhang Yongfu doesn't know how to make elixirs, but as a deacon for so many years, he still has an eye for it. The color and fragrance of this elixir are richer than ordinary water dew pills.
You can tell at a glance that the elixir is of excellent quality.
After checking the elixir and putting it into the jade bottle, Zhang Yongfu checked the other four jade bottles. When he finished checking the four jade bottles, Zhang Yongfu took a breath and turned red.
Deep in his heart, Zhang Yongfu raised Hong Ming's importance one level after another.
Alchemist?
The Zhang family is so big, but they have only cultivated one over the years.
In this way, it can continuously bring benefits to the family and support 30% of the family's spiritual stone income, not to mention the various connections it brings.
An alchemist brings too much influence.
"I didn't expect that Brother Hong would become an alchemist. It's really surprising."
Zhang Yongfu had a slightly flattering smile on his face, and his body was lowered.
Hong Ming didn't seem to notice this situation, he waved his hand and said:
"What did Brother Zhang say? It's just good luck that allowed me to make a breakthrough. The only elixir I can refine now is this water dew pill. I really don't deserve the title of an alchemist."
"I see."
Zhang Yongfu breathed a sigh of relief. The elixirs that alchemists are good at refining are different. If they can only refine water dew pills, it is a bit more common. But even so, with the previous high-quality elixirs, Zhang Yongfu also knows the potential of Hong Ming.
Infinity, I'm afraid it's not far off to be able to refine the elixir for the middle stage of Qi training.
"I wonder if Brother Hong has any intention of refining the elixir for the middle stage of Qi training. Our Zhang family can provide the elixir, as long as Brother Hong divides eight pills from each furnace."
Zhang Yongfu persuaded again.
Hong Ming shook his head.
This treatment is very good. Finding elixirs is very troublesome. It often takes a long time to purchase and search, which wastes a lot of time. After refining, the elixir yield rate must be considered.
For every pill, the average alchemist can harvest more than ten pills.
Taking out eight pills saves you the trouble of searching for the elixir, which is a good deal.
However, Hong Ming still shook his head:
"Forget about the cooperation, but since there are flowers with elixirs, I will naturally consider Fellow Daoist Zhang's place first."
"That's good, that's good."
Zhang Yongfu finally felt more relieved. He took the five jade bottles and gritted his teeth and said:
"The Zhang family is willing to purchase this elixir at the price of 14 spiritual stones. I wonder what Brother Hong thinks."
"Can!"
Hong Ming was slightly surprised.
Water dew pills are among the weakest elixirs in the early stages of Qi training. Even if you buy them in a store, they only cost fifteen spiritual stones.
Although the elixir refined by Hong Ming is slightly stronger and of better quality, the purchase price of the fourteen spiritual stones is still a bit high.
However, Zhang Yongfu deliberately acted better, and Hong Ming did not refuse.
Seeing Hong Ming respond, Zhang Yongfu finally nodded:
"Brother Hong, if you need any other elixirs, my Zhang family will do our best to supply them to fellow Taoists."
"That's not necessary."
Hong Ming's words made Zhang Yongfu feel nervous, but the next phone call made Zhang Yongfu's expression become extremely solemn:
"In terms of elixirs and the like, I have some cooperation with another family and some casual cultivators. There is not much shortage. However, regarding the cultivation techniques and some means of self-protection, there are still some shortcomings."