Chen Jiuyang could not help but react. 'Shi Le' was already an Immortal King, but there were many Dao fruits here. She wanted to reach a higher level here, preferably the Immortal Emperor realm.
'Shi Le' said, "Open your Immortal Platform. This Palace will reside within your Immortal Platform."
Chen Jiuyang slightly circulated his Martial Dao Furnace and opened his Immortal Platform.
A majestic and terrifying pink Dao force immediately entered Chen Jiuyang's Immortal Platform.
With Princess 'Shi Le', a living Immortal King, as his helper, things should be much smoother from now on...
Chen Jiuyang stood in place and said, "I am before 'Eternal Slumber'."
Immediately, his figure disappeared from his original spot and appeared in the 'Eternal Slumber' room of the Du You ship.
"I am ready for the second attempt to break free from the nightmare," Chen Jiuyang said to 'Eternal Slumber'.
He wanted to see if 'Eternal Slumber' could see through Princess 'Shi Le' hidden within him.
Since 'Zhuang Wu' and 'Eternal Slumber' were plotting against him, he could naturally plot against them in return.
'Eternal Slumber' pointed a finger at Chen Jiuyang from afar:
"Try to break free from the nightmare."
Chen Jiuyang's figure immediately retreated, like an ordinary person drowning in the vast ocean, unable to resist. A terrifying sense of suffocation swept over him.
"Here it comes..."
Chen Jiuyang's vision went black.
...
"If you can read, start by identifying and processing herbs in the drying room," Wu Shuang'er said expressionlessly. "As for those who cannot read, go to the receiving room to sort the medicinal materials."
The drying room had hundreds of types of herbs, each with its own appearance, properties, age, and usage. In total, it amounted to at least tens of thousands of characters that needed to be memorized and familiarized.
Chen Jiuyang felt a prickle of dread. He had transmigrated, and now he still had to memorize.
No fighting at the tip of a blade, no scheming, just quiet development.
Chen Jiuyang spent half a day in the drying room, mostly assisting, observing the rules, and getting to know people. As dusk approached, Wu Shuang'er, the owner of the pharmacy, said, "You may go back. Come again tomorrow at noon. Within a month, you must memorize all the knowledge in the drying room to continue staying at the pharmacy. We don't keep useless people here."
After doing odd jobs for half a day without even getting a meal, this was the harsh reality of the lower class in Qingyao City.
As they walked out of the pharmacy, Zhang Qiao, who was also an intern from the medicinal field, asked, "Chen Jiuyang, how do you feel?"
Chen Jiuyang's forehead was covered in sweat. "I'm not very familiar with the rules yet."
Zhang Qiao smiled slightly. "Have you memorized the effects of any herbs?"
Chen Jiuyang said, "Three... five kinds!"
Zhang Qiao nodded slowly. "I'm about the same as you. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Alright," Chen Jiuyang nodded, then headed towards the direction of the city gate to collect steamed buns.
Zhang Qiao watched his retreating back, a hint of smugness in his eyes. "Memorizing three to five kinds in half a day, it seems this Chen Jiuyang was just lucky to be chosen by the pharmacy... I can rest assured now."
"I memorized thirteen kinds in half a day."
A good place like Yikang Pharmacy, if someone hadn't been lost, how could they easily let others in? But even so, the spots were extremely limited. On the surface, everyone was an intern apprentice, but in reality, they were all competitors.
However, Zhang Qiao was, after all, a genuine teenager, and his thoughts were too shallow.
On the way to collect steamed buns, Chen Jiuyang also deeply felt the difficulty of establishing himself in Qingyao City:
"In half a day, I've recorded information on seventy types of medicinal herbs."
"Hundreds of medicinal plant information, it will take several days of rote memorization."
...
Diary:
'In the morning, I watched over the medicinal fields. At noon, I started working as an apprentice at Yikang Pharmacy. A month passed very quickly.'
'Today was the formal assessment. A total of six people were kept by Yikang Pharmacy to be taught the 'Qingmu Changjing Gong'. I was one of them.'
'After mastering the cultivation technique and becoming a third-rate master, I can shed my identity as a medicinal field laborer and settle in Qingyao City as a formal long-term worker of the pharmacy.'
'I finally have a chance to establish myself in Qingyao City.'
After writing the diary, Chen Jiuyang placed the paper under his bed and began to circulate the 'Qingmu Changjing Gong'.
Only when his vision swam with golden stars and he was extremely drowsy did he finally fall asleep.
The next day, Chen Jiuyang went to the medicinal fields as usual to tend to them. At noon, he went to Yikang Pharmacy and found that the other five people looked as if their bodies had been hollowed out, appearing sickly, with pale faces and sunken eyes.
"Hmm," Wu Shuang'er of the pharmacy glanced at them. "As expected, their minds are still quite agile. They... can basically circulate the 'Qingmu Changjing Gong' overnight..."
"The path of martial arts is divided into external training of tendons, bones, and skin, and internal training of breath."
"Why do martial artists have the realm of Innate Grandmasters? Because their physical bodies are pure."
"Ordinary people are innately flawless in their mother's womb. However, after birth, due to various reasons, their spiritual consciousness becomes tainted, and their physical bodies are gradually filled with the impurities of heaven and earth."
"Therefore, the essence of martial arts training is to strengthen the body, step by step expelling the impurities within, gradually clearing the spiritual consciousness, until becoming an Innate Grandmaster without flaws, supplementing the spiritual roots to impact the immortal path."
Wu Shuang'er of the pharmacy paused here, her tone proud:
"Our Yikang Pharmacy has been in Qingyao City for two hundred years and has produced four immortal cultivators, all thanks to this 'Qingmu Changjing Gong' and this medicinal porridge..."
As she reached the end of her sentence, someone presented six bowls of medicinal porridge, emitting a fragrant aroma, causing the six young boys and girls, who usually had to make do with steamed buns for meals, to breathe rapidly.
"Working for Yikang Pharmacy, we will not mistreat you. Drink up." Wu Shuang'er of the pharmacy observed the greedy gazes of the young boys and girls, smiled slightly, and sat down in a chair.
Except for Chen Jiuyang, who chewed and swallowed each mouthful slowly, the other five young boys and girls wolfed down their food.
Afterward, their complexions visibly improved, and a wisp of white smoke emanated from their bodies.
"This medicinal porridge is too miraculous. If taken for a long time, it not only compensates for the physical damage caused by martial arts training but also benefits martial arts... Yikang Pharmacy has produced four immortal cultivators. If one works for Yikang Pharmacy with absolute loyalty and eats this medicinal porridge every day—"
"How can I not have the chance to become the next immortal cultivator?"
Only Chen Jiuyang did not experience such a transformation. Instead, he felt much more comfortable, feeling that he might not need to eat anything else today.
Chen Jiuyang carefully observed the changes in the other five people, and a thought suddenly struck him. He seemed to have discovered a crucial point.
Immediately after, Wu Shuang'er of the pharmacy took out six contracts and placed them before Chen Jiuyang, Zhang Qiao, and the other six.
They were all literate, and as they read the contents of the contracts, their faces changed drastically. This was a deal where one was devoured without even spitting out the bones.
Becoming a third-rate master would allow them to shed their identity as medicinal field laborers and settle in Qingyao City as free individuals. However, by signing the contract with Yikang Pharmacy, they would be slaves to Yikang Pharmacy for life, unless they became immortal cultivators.
It was truly a meticulously crafted trap.
The pharmacy owner remained silent.
The first person to sign this contract was a young girl with outstanding looks.
Chen Jiuyang narrowed his eyes slightly, and then Chen Jiuyang was the second to sign the contract.
After the contracts were signed, Wu Shuang'er revealed a smile. "Good. If you become a third-rate master, you can have one bowl of this medicinal porridge per month. If you become a second-rate master, you can have one bowl per week. If you become a first-rate master, you can have it once every three days."
"If you become an Innate Grandmaster, one bowl a day."
"If you become a Grandmaster of Innate Perfection, three bowls a day."
"The path to seeking immortality is arduous, and youth is fleeting. Time waits for no one, so you must seize the opportunity and work hard."
"Our Yikang Pharmacy has a receiving department, a drying department, a decocting department, and a martial illness department. Whoever is the first to complete the process in these four departments and pass the assessment will become a pharmacy physician, and the pharmacy will issue a salary."
The reason for calling it the martial illness department was that the people who could afford to see a doctor in Qingyao City were not ordinary people. In other words, the poor would die before they even reached the stage of seeing a doctor.
Those who could come to see a doctor were all martial artists.
The pharmacy did not cater to the poor; it only catered to the path of wealth for the rich.
"From today onwards, you six will begin in the receiving department, then proceed to the decocting department and the martial illness department."
At this moment, the first girl who signed the contract trembled slightly and was immediately replaced by Princess 'Shi Le'!
Cheating has begun!