Chapter 874: Celestial Pearl in the Omphalos (2/2)
“Excuse me, where are the Sovereign Shops under Sovereign Salas?” Han Shuo stopped a random stranger in the Omphalos and asked smilingly.
“Salas? Hehe, ever since he disappeared, the remaining Four Sovereigns have taken over his Sovereign Shops. Sovereign Tyre took four while the other three Sovereigns took two each. You might not know this but even Salas’ right-hand men must now pay the fees to enter the Omphalos!” snickered the random stranger.
Han Shuo stared blankly for a moment. He thought, Damn, they do act fast, don’t they?
Han Shuo hesitated and weighed in his mind on whether he should seize those Sovereign Shops with brute force. But after seriously considering his options, Han Shuo decided not to do so, at least for now.
Having recently stepped into the Skybreak Realm, Han Shuo was confident that he could defeat any one of the Sovereigns. However, if all the Sovereigns joined hands against him, Han Shuo did not think that he could handle it for long. Most concerningly, Han Shuo had not met the strongest Sovereign, Tyre, who was described as possessing unfathomable power if the legends were to be believed. Han Shuo thought that the risks outweighed the rewards.
After spending some time pondering, Han Shuo decided to not be hasty and to take down the Sovereigns one by one. Han Shuo then went to the Sovereign Shop that Ossora ceded to him. Ever since Han Shuo took over the shop, he had set it up as yet another branch of the Celestial Pearl Pharmacy.
Han Shuo had managed to move some pharmacists from his Ethereal City branch to the Omphalos. They easily made more than enough medicines to fill the racks. But as Han Shuo had been busy with the Pandemonium, he did not produce and sell his pelleted medicines in this Celestial Pearl branch. Therefore, the business wasn’t doing that well.
The Celestial Pearl was very popular in other cities because they sold the special, miraculous medicines that Han Shuo refined. But every medicine sold in this branch could be bought in other pharmacies. They were average and nothing exciting. It was only to be expected that those in the Omphalos weren't spending much there.
Besides, there were all kinds of pharmacists and toxin-makers all over the Omphalos. They were mad chemists and pharmacists from every corner of Elysium with the same but strange fascination towards producing toxic substances. These poison makers were extremely good at what they did. The medicines they refined were much more useful to the Fringedwellers than those common medicines sold by the Celestial Pearl.
Though it was outlawed in the Divine Dominions, the use, production, and research of poisons were completely unrestricted in the Fringe. Those common medicines sold by the Celestial Pearl were nothing compared to the medicines that could be found in the Omphalos. If not for the fact that the workers of a Sovereign Shop were exempted from paying the costly fees and taxes, the business might not have survived.
The first thing Han Shuo noticed after his arrival at the Sovereign Shop was how massive it was. The shelves were filled with a dazzling lineup of medicines but there were very few patrons. It was plain to see that the items sold here were not that interesting to the Fringedwellers.
To maintain a strong footing in the Fringe, one must have wealth, power, and reputation. It was necessary for Han Shuo to have all three of them.
Han Shuo’s arrival made the Celestial Pearl pharmacists extremely excited. They had heard about Han Shuo defeating Salas. They were very proud that their boss was such a mighty existence.
Han Shuo did not talk much with the pharmacists. Soon after his arrival, he went to the medicinal material storehouse, collected the rare materials he needed, notified the pharmacists, and closed himself in a secluded gymnasium.
All kinds of medicinal materials and herbs were thrown into the Nine Tessellation Cauldron. Strands of demonic yuan then started circulating along the channels on the surface as blazes gently licked the Cauldron. Soon, the sweet fragrance of the medicines started emanating…
Han Shuo vested his full attention on producing pelleted medicines. Using his demonic yuan energy, he broke down the medicinal ingredients before reforming the energies contained within. Suddenly, he realized that not only had his strength and realm state improved, but his efficiency at producing medicines had also improved.
The pelleted medicines that Han Shuo previously needed one or two months to produce now took him just a few days. Furthermore, the quality of the medicines had not reduced, but were in fact even more potent than before.
Additionally, when Han Shuo stopped worrying about everyday matters and focused on producing medicines, his demonic yuan could circulate very smoothly and slowly increase. Han Shuo realized that if he could clear his mind and cultivate, the growth of his demonic yuan would be quite a bit faster than usual.
Ten days later, Han Shuo successfully produced more than two thousand pelleted medicines. They were as round, as smooth, and as lustrous as pearls. The heavy fragrance they emanated would cause anyone to salivate.
“Master, there is a large group of people lining outside. They noticed the fragrance and they want to buy your medicines. Also, many Fringe-pharmacists have gathered outside to watch!” a pharmacist hastily reported as soon as Han Shuo emerged from the gymnasium.
“Just in time!” said Han Shuo with a big smile.