"Why are there so many people?"

「The next day.」

When Chen Che arrived at the shop, he was stunned to find more than twenty people waiting outside.

"I didn’t expect this either."

Hu Yao was also a bit stunned. He had only taken a stroll through the Market yesterday, spreading the word that the shop was looking for a waiter.

"They’re all here to learn a trade!"

Ding Fei whispered, "If we announced this in the mortal world, we’d get eight hundred, maybe a thousand people, easy!" 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

Chen Che instantly understood. He had underestimated the power of knowledge.

Most of these Loose Cultivators were at the bottom rung of the Cultivation Realm.

For them, the shop’s hiring was a golden opportunity. If they were lucky enough to catch the owner’s eye and learn a skill or two, they’d have the means to secure their future.

"I grew up in the mountains; I know all sorts of herbs."

"I’ve had a stall in the Market for years and have traded many Pills. I have a basic understanding of pharmacology."

"Owner, I..."

These people, realizing Chen Che’s status, immediately began to speak over each other, eager to prove their worth.

"Who do we pick?"

Hu Yao whispered.

He watched for a long time but couldn’t figure out who to pick.

Ding Fei was also unsure.

The two exchanged a look, both favoring the younger candidates in the crowd.

’I don’t just need an apprentice, but someone who can eventually take over my Alchemy. That means I need someone absolutely loyal, and people like that are usually trained from childhood...’

With a whole world to draw from, he couldn’t let himself be tied down by a single Pill Shop.

Looking at the crowd before him, Chen Che mulled it over for a moment before an idea struck him. He announced loudly, "Take a step forward if you live in the Market. Take another step forward if you have parents and siblings. And take one more step forward if you have children."

The crowd, though confused, did as they were told.

With each command, several people stepped out of the crowd. In the end, only a single elderly man with graying temples remained, standing before Chen Che.

"What’s your name? How old are you?"

"Greetings, Owner. My name is Zhao Deyou, and I’m fifty-seven this year."

"What do you know about Alchemy?"

"Not much, only identifying Medicinal Herbs," Zhao Deyou didn’t dare to exaggerate and answered honestly.

"That’s... not great."

Chen Che frowned.

’Fifty-seven years old, and his Alchemy skills are worse than a bunch of youngsters.’

A bitter look crossed Zhao Deyou’s face.

Shops usually hired young, capable people. At his age, he was considered utterly worthless.

Just as he was about to give up, Chen Che suddenly said:

"The rest of you can go. You stay!"

"Huh?"

The crowd was stunned. They clearly didn’t understand why Chen Che would choose the seemingly useless Zhao Deyou.

Little did they know that having lived two lives, he had a profound understanding of human nature despite his young age:

It is easy to add flowers to brocade, but hard to deliver charcoal in the snow.

Someone in Zhao Deyou’s position—with a family to support and stuck at the bottom of the Cultivation Realm—was like a drowning man. Give him one chance, and he would grab it for dear life, proving more loyal than anyone else.

"Thank you, Owner! Thank you, Owner!"

Zhao Deyou was ecstatic.

Chen Che said impassively, "Don’t thank me yet. I still need to verify your claims."

Hearing this, Ding Fei hurried out of the shop.

A moment later, he returned and said with a serious expression:

"I’ve asked around. His story checks out."

"Zhao Deyou’s family has lived in the Market for three generations. He’s known as a decent man and has a good reputation."

"Five years ago, he was injured and his foundation was damaged. He felt his cultivation path was severed, so he married a mortal woman. They have two sons at home, the youngest is only three. Life has not been easy for them, and he’s even started selling off his family’s possessions."

After hearing the report, Chen Che understood everything.

’The man’s background is even cleaner than I thought. I can use him without worry.’

"From now on, your tentative salary will be five taels of Spiritual Sand a month. You’ll start as a Waiter in the shop. Besides following Ding Fei’s orders, you will also be my assistant. Come to the backyard with me now; I’ll start by teaching you how to process Spirit Grass."

Chen Che walked towards the backyard.

"Yes, Owner!"

Zhao Deyou quickly followed.

Ding Fei and Hu Yao glanced at the pair disappearing through the back door, then tacitly averted their gazes.

They clearly knew Chen Che was about to teach his craft and that, by convention, they should make themselves scarce.

...

Chen Che was a bit surprised.

Zhao Deyou wasn’t as dull as he’d imagined; on the contrary, he was quite bright. Furthermore, with an extra person at the shop, not only did Chen Che save a lot of Heart Power, but even Ding Fei and Hu Yao were freed from the shop’s tedious chores.

Hu Yao had to focus on his Cultivation, after all, and couldn’t be bothered with such trivial matters.

While Ding Fei excelled at trading and haggling, he was not skilled in identifying Medicinal Herbs. Consequently, the Spirit Grass he purchased would sometimes be missing stems or leaves, causing the shop to take a loss.

For a time, although the shop’s income didn’t see a significant increase, the three of them found themselves with a great deal more free time.

During this period, Ding Fei even made a trip to the Red Water River and brought back a Profound Ink Turtle for Chen Che.

However,

half a month later, Chen Che suddenly realized that Zhao Deyou was a bit *too* clever. No matter how difficult the Spirit Grass was to process, he could quickly get the hang of it, as if he had rehearsed it a thousand times.

The same thing happened today. He had only given a simple explanation once, yet the man had already finished processing the Spirit Grass.

"Did you learn Alchemy from someone before?" Chen Che narrowed his eyes.

"Owner, no!" Zhao Deyou’s face filled with panic.

"Then why..."

Chen Che remained expressionless.

’Being slow didn’t matter; he could teach him patiently.’

’But he couldn’t tolerate being deceived—that was a cardinal sin. Zhao Deyou’s current performance didn’t align with what he’d claimed when he was hired: that he could only identify Medicinal Herbs.’

"Owner, I learned everything from this Pill Book," Zhao Deyou said, respectfully handing over a yellowed book.

"Let me see!"

Chen Che took it.

The three words "Thousand Herbs Scripture" were written on the cover. The book looked quite old.

Its corners were badly frayed, a sign it had been read countless times.

After a few minutes of flipping through it from cover to cover, Chen Che had a good grasp of the situation.

This Pill Book was incomplete and tattered. It had missing pages and damaged sections, and some of its content contained major errors. As for the valid information, it was roughly equivalent to a third of the material in a first-semester, first-year textbook on Pills.

"This book was passed down by my parents. Working in the shop, I dared not be idle, so I study it every day. I hope you can see the truth of it, Owner..."

Seeing Chen Che finish the Thousand Herbs Scripture and remain silent for a long while, Zhao Deyou spoke up, his voice laced with anxiety.

"Starting next month, your salary is increased to ten taels!"

’Chen Che mulled it over. The man had studied this for most of his life. His fundamentals were solid, but he’d been fumbling around like a headless fly. My occasional pointers were like helping him find the starting thread in a tangled mess. That’s why he was picking things up so quickly.’

"Study hard. In the future, I’ll teach you a few things. You might even become a master artisan in this shop. Even your children could have a place here."

A Pill Shop had not only a Shopkeeper and Waiters, but also a master artisan who specialized in Alchemy. In some shops, the master artisan’s status was second only to the owner’s.

And Chen Che’s promise was something many Loose Cultivators dreamed of.

This was tantamount to a job for life.

"Thank you, Owner! Thank you, Owner!"

Ecstatic, Zhao Deyou bowed again and again.

Chen Che was noncommittal.

In the days that followed, Zhao Deyou became even more diligent.

And Chen Che, now freed up, even personally went to the Red Water River and brought back a Red Water Fish.

Although the Red Water Fish was not as precious as a Profound Ink Turtle, this one was clearly on the verge of becoming a Demon Beast, and its nourishing effects were no weaker than the Profound Ink Turtle’s.

"The next time we recruit apprentices, we can pick them from the mortal world."

Ding Fei suggested.

Mortal commoners have no backing and are uneducated, making them easy to bring under control.

Raise them for a few generations, and they’ll become completely loyal to the family.

"Agreed."

Chen Che didn’t object; he’d had the same idea.

This was the foundational growth model for many cultivator factions. It’s not easy to rely on just one person.

"By the way, when I was coming back from the Red Water River, I noticed a lot more cultivators around recently. Did something happen?"

Chen Che asked curiously, "Or has another great cultivator’s tomb appeared?"

Ding Fei shook his head.

He’d noticed the same thing today and had even asked around, but the rumors were all over the place, with no clear answer.

Just as the two were speculating, Hu Yao, who had just returned from the valley, brought firsthand news.