Fourth update of the day is complete. Updates will resume tomorrow morning at eight o'clock! Zifu has now been out for over a month and is no longer on the New Book chart. We can only hold fast to the Overall Recommendation chart, so we strongly request votes!

The following day, the long-awaited Medicine and Medicinal Herb Convention hosted by the Medicine King Sect finally opened grandly in Zhuqi County, plunging the entire town into its busiest and most bustling period of trade. This convention would feature dozens of separate events spanning half a month, during which the vast stockpiles of medicines and herbs accumulated by the Medicine King Sect over the last decade would be sold off in staggered transactions.

Depending on the vendor, the scale and tier of the medicine and herb exchange varied.

The absolute top-tier convention took place in the county's most luxurious venue, the Yongfu Restaurant. This location had been specifically chosen by Elder Huang, the Golden Tiger of the Treasure Seeking Gang, who had successfully hosted several smaller treasure exchanges there recently with good results.

The top-tier trade held at Yongfu Restaurant was exclusively for the highest echelons of Pingzhou’s Ten Great Gangs—Gang Leaders, Deputy Leaders, Chief Elders, and a select few top-tier expert guests. Only they were qualified to attend, and the items sold were the rarest and most supreme medicines and herbs.

A slightly lower tier of exchange was set up in the trade market in the northwest of the county, primarily catering to the high-ranking members of mid-sized gangs. Among the hundreds of gangs, the spacious market area was suitable for these transactions, where high-grade medicines and herbs were offered.

The standard medicine and herb convention targeted the hundreds of small gangs and individual buyers within Pingzhou. Because the participants were so numerous, they had to cordon off a large area—dozens of hectares—on the barren open ground outside Zhuqi County to set up stalls for trading, dealing mostly in mid-grade and low-grade medicines.

The standard conventions commenced early in the morning.

The top-tier convention at Yongfu Restaurant, jointly hosted by the Medicine King Sect and the Treasure Seeking Gang, was scheduled for the evening.

During the day, Yongfu Restaurant was still being prepared, and the esteemed guests from the Ten Great Gangs had yet to arrive. Only dozens of the Medicine King Sect’s Embroidered Uniform Enforcement Disciples from the Herb Gathering Hall, alongside several dozen burly men from the Treasure Seeking Gang, stood guard and patrolled inside and outside the establishment.

As dusk fell and the lamps began to glow.

On the main streets and alleys of Zhuqi County, in the inns and shops, and before the gates of the manor houses of every family, nearly all hung a large red lantern distributed by the Medicine King Sect, illuminating the entire county brightly and amplifying the profound atmosphere of celebration.

In front of Yongfu Restaurant, ten imposing banners representing the Ten Great Gangs of Pingzhou were planted.

The main thoroughfare within several hundred zhang had been completely cleared; all loiterers were strictly forbidden from approaching. The Embroidered Uniform Enforcement Disciples from the Medicine King Sect’s Herb Gathering Hall, led by Xie Yun, stood at guard before the building, their armor gleaming, swords sheathed on their backs, heads held high, hands clasped behind their backs.

Sect Master Li the Great Beneactor, Deputy Master Ma, and Deputy Master Ji of the Herb Gathering Hall, acting as hosts for the Medicine King Sect’s local branch, personally stood at the entrance to welcome the arrival of the high-ranking figures from the Ten Great Gangs and specially invited guests.

"Haha, Brother Li, long time no see. Your internal qi seems significantly purer!"

"Not at all, Brother Zheng, your internal arts are far more refined! Your Grand Profound Art has reached the stage of flawless perfection! Our Medicine King Sect Leader is already waiting upstairs for the esteemed arrival of Gang Leader Zheng of the Nine Shepherds Gang and all you brothers. Please, come upstairs!"

"Lead the way!"

The leader of the Nine Shepherds Gang, Zheng, and his three elders, representing the lowest-ranked of Pingzhou’s Ten Great Gangs, were the first to arrive at the convention ground in their luxurious carriages. After exchanging brief pleasantries with Li the Great Beneactor, they strode confidently onto the third floor of Yongfu Restaurant.

Half an hour later, the Gang Leaders, Deputy Leaders, and Great Elder-level executives of the Ten Great Gangs of Pingzhou began to arrive in succession, escorted by the formidable strongmen of their respective factions.

The Fire Cloud Gang, the Cao River Gang, the East Yang Salt Gang, the Black Iron Gang, the Treasure Seeking Gang, and the Nine Shepherds Gang—each of the Ten Great Gangs had roughly four or five top figures in attendance. The spacious exchange hall on the third floor of Yongfu was already filled with at least forty to fifty of the strongest core figures from the Ten Great Gangs of Pingzhou. The number might not have seemed large, but every single person present was a monumental figure whose mere stomp could shake the entire Pingzhou martial world.

Furthermore, every Gang Leader had brought at least a hundred first-rate experts as accompanying guards, stationed within a li radius surrounding Yongfu Restaurant, bringing the total number of first-rate experts to well over a thousand.

In Pingzhou, the number of Peerless Experts could be counted on one hand. The majority of Top Experts were the high-ranking officials within the various gangs, and their numbers were also extremely limited; even a large gang would consider having a dozen or twenty Top Experts a significant asset.

The backbone of a gang was its first-rate experts. The sheer count of first-rate experts truly represented the strength of a faction. It could be said that this massive contingent of over a thousand first-rate experts gathered at Yongfu Restaurant had the collective power to annihilate any single large gang in Pingzhou overnight.

At dusk.

In a private courtyard in the southeast district of the county.

A faint, smoke-like figure moved swiftly across forty wooden stakes in the small yard. The figure’s toes lightly brushed one stake, effortlessly leaping three zhang into the air, before lightly touching the next stake. In almost a single breath, this wisp of smoke circled the entire courtyard. This rapid movement continued for the duration of several incense sticks burning. Anyone with poor eyesight glancing over might have mistaken the movement for a wispy, drifting phantom. This person was Ye Qin.

Suddenly, Ye Qin stopped, standing still upon a wooden stake. He opened his right hand, gazing with a peculiar expression at the piece of yellow spirit stone he clutched.

The spirit stone emitted a faint coolness, which traveled along his palm, entered his arm meridians, and flowed into the channels within his body. His body's meridians felt as though parched earth had finally received nourishing rain, bringing a sensation of profound satisfaction.

After more than two months of practice, Ye Qin had become quite proficient in the Wind Control Art. However, he was not practicing the Wind Control Art at this moment; instead, he was testing a phenomenon he had discovered by accident—spirit stones could replenish the magical power he consumed while casting spells.

Up until now, he had treated spirit stones merely as fertilizer, using them in his Zifu to cultivate and grow Dew-Collecting Grass, which he would then refine in his alchemy furnace into Dew-Collecting Pills. Consuming these pills would convert the essence into Yuanqi, enhancing his Primordial Spirit cultivation.

But yesterday, while practicing spells with a spirit stone kept in his robes, he unexpectedly discovered that the stone was automatically replenishing his spent magical power.

This discovery surprised him greatly.

Spirit stones have the efficacy of restoring magical power?

When he had free time this afternoon, he deliberately tested the rate at which the spirit stone in his hand replenished his power. He found the replenishment to be slow, but it was undeniably a continuous process. In about an hour, he could recover the magical power that would normally require five or six hours of seated meditation to restore.

Holding the spirit stone while casting the Wind Control Art, he could replenish his depleted magical power almost anytime, anywhere. As long as he had enough spirit stones, he believed he could maintain the Wind Control Art continuously, running for a month without issue.

Discovering this new application for spirit stones brought an unexpected surge of delight to Ye Qin.