“Yes.”
Li Feng nodded. The old man’s lack of outright refusal sparked hope in him. If he could buy thousand-year ginseng, that was good. If not, he’d have to search in untouched places like caves, snow mountains, swamps, deserts, ice fields, small islands, or jungles where such herbs might still exist.
But those places were too dangerous. Take China’s Heizhugou, for example. Even in his era, it hadn’t been fully explored. With his current strength, entering Heizhugou would mean certain death.
“Besides thousand-year ginseng, what other herbs do you need, young friend?” the old man asked.
Li Feng was momentarily stunned but didn’t think much of it and replied, “Thousand-year lingzhi, Tianshan snow lotus, cordyceps…”
Li Feng listed over a dozen herbs, each one extremely rare and valuable.
The old man looked at Li Feng meaningfully, “Young friend, this pharmacy doesn’t have the herbs you need.”
Hearing this, Li Feng’s heart sank with disappointment. Wenjun Pavilion Pharmacy was Tianhai City’s largest Chinese medicine store. If they didn’t have these herbs, it would be nearly impossible to find them in Tianhai City.
The old man observed Li Feng’s expression and said, “However…”
Li Feng didn’t listen further. Without the herbs he needed, what was the point of staying?
“Sigh, young people these days have no patience at all. This pharmacy may not have those herbs, but this old man can help you get them,” the old man sighed.
“What did you say?” Li Feng, who was already at the door, turned back with joy, rushing to the old man’s side like lightning, “You can get me those herbs?”
In his excitement, Li Feng didn’t hold back his strength. His speed was almost as fast as a car at full throttle. Yet the old man wasn’t surprised by Li Feng’s speed, only a brighter glint appearing in his eyes.
“Young friend, are you trying to take this old man’s life?”
Li Feng realised he had grabbed the old man’s arm in his urgency and quickly let go, “Sir, can you really get me those herbs?”
“This old man says he can get them, so he can. Would I deceive you?” the old man glared, slightly displeased.
Li Feng hurriedly shook his head, “Sir, I didn’t mean it like that.”
“But a single thousand-year ginseng costs at least two million. Can you afford it?” the old man asked, looking at Li Feng.
“Don’t worry, sir. As long as you have the herbs, money is no issue,” Li Feng said, though he felt uncertain. He knew thousand-year ginseng was expensive, but he hadn’t expected it to be this costly. Two million for one ginseng? His monthly salary was only fifty thousand. Buying one would take four or five years of living without expenses.
The herbs he used for his previous training cost just over a hundred thousand, not even a fraction of the price of thousand-year ginseng. Adding thousand-year lingzhi, Tianshan snow lotus, cordyceps, and others, wouldn’t that cost tens of millions?
He had less than ten thousand yuan left. Today, he came to Wenjun Pavilion Pharmacy to check prices and prepare to raise funds, but he hadn’t expected the herbs to be so expensive.
They say martial arts make you rich, while literature leaves you poor. This was true. By Li Feng’s calculations, continuing his training with these herbs to reach the tenth level of physical refinement would cost billions. The price was staggering.
Li Feng couldn’t help but think of his previous life. With the discovery of new life-bearing planets, those planets had giant beasts that ordinary soldiers couldn’t approach, and thermal weapons were useless. Supported by ancient martial families, martial arts flourished. To develop those planets, the state had to support a hundred thousand martial artists, with unimaginable daily herb consumption.
Back then, though he didn’t train his body like now, the herbs used for his Nine Heavens Heart Sutra were even more extensive. But as a soldier, the state covered those costs. Thinking about it now, the state had spent an enormous amount on him.
In truth, Li Feng didn’t know that two million for a thousand-year ginseng wasn’t expensive. A year ago, a Changbai Mountain thousand-year ginseng sold at auction for seven million Chinese yuan.
“Young man, you’ve got spirit,” the old man praised, pulling out a calculator. “Thousand-year ginseng, thousand-year lingzhi, cordyceps, Tianshan snow lotus… a total of thirteen million two hundred ten thousand. I’ll round it down to thirteen million for you, young friend. How’s that?”
“No problem. But when can I get these herbs?” Thirteen million was an astronomical sum, but Li Feng didn’t argue. These herbs were too important to him. Even if he had to steal or rob, he’d get them.
“Come back in three days, and you’ll have them,” the old man replied.
“Great. I’ll come back in three days. Sir, do you need a deposit?” Li Feng asked. For such a large transaction, a deposit was normal, but thinking of the few thousand yuan he had, he felt uneasy.
“No need. I trust you, young friend,” the old man said.
Li Feng quietly breathed a sigh of relief, “Thank you, sir.”
As he watched Li Feng leave Wenjun Pavilion Pharmacy, the old man muttered to himself, “Which family does this young man come from? So young yet so capable. It looks like Tianhai City is about to get lively.”
“Thirteen million. I need to find a way to get it fast.”
Leaving Wenjun Pavilion Pharmacy, Li Feng muttered to himself. He couldn’t ask Hu Yuanyuan for such a sum, or he’d truly be a kept man. As for company dividends or building rent, those wouldn’t come until year-end, so that was out of the question.
“Looks like I’ll have to sell a piece of technology to get that kind of money.”
Sitting in his QQ car, Li Feng made up his mind. He had no other way to make money except by leveraging the technology he knew. Even something as basic as martial techniques in his eyes was cutting-edge in this era, like the intelligent chip.
With that, Li Feng didn’t hesitate. He took out his laptop and started coding.
What Li Feng was working on was a computer operating system. In his previous life, digital warfare in the military had reached its peak. As a soldier, mastering computer technology was basic. Even though that era used biological computers far more advanced, he was no stranger to these outdated systems. Writing an operating system for an old computer was child’s play for him.
In less than fifteen minutes, Li Feng finished coding the operating system. It had simple intelligence, slightly more advanced than current systems. In his memory, this kind of system was developed a decade later.
Li Feng planned to sell it to Microsoft in the US, who would invent it ten years from now. He was just bringing it forward a decade.
After tweaking the system, Li Feng sent it to Microsoft via email. If Microsoft’s people had any vision, they’d surely send someone to discuss buying it.
He was confident in his system. It could sell for hundreds of millions, solving not only the herb money but also funds to start a security company. Then he could focus on his own matters without financial worries.
With that thought, Li Feng’s mood lightened.
