Immortality Martial Arts: I Started with the Five Animals Health Fist

“Speak, what is it you want?” Su Changkong stared at the man, who had been sneakily following him the whole way, clearly up to something shady.

The man coughed and introduced himself, “My name is Sun Yun. Sun Fu is my younger brother, and Sun Yiyear is my grandfather.”

“A person from Precious Pill Residence?”

Su Changkong nodded slightly. This Sun Yun bore a resemblance to Sun Fu whom he had met before, but their temperaments were entirely different. Sun Fu had the look of an upright person, whereas Sun Yun had the look of someone who was decadent and overly indulgent in wine and women.

After introducing himself, Sun Yun’s eyes darted around, “You just came to Precious Pill Residence to ask my grandfather for help with alchemy, right? I’m not very skilled, but I have also studied alchemy for a decade or two. I can offer you a discount!”

Su Changkong found this rather amusing as he trusted Sun Yiyear even less, let alone this Sun Yun. Sun Yun’s alchemy skills were certainly inferior to Sun Yiyear’s. Asking for his help in alchemy would be foolish. Even if it were free, he wouldn’t want it—he’d just be throwing his money away!

“Forget it. If there’s nothing else, I will be taking my leave now.” Su Changkong outright refused.

“Wait a minute! I heard you want to learn alchemy?”

But Sun Yun immediately called out to Su Changkong.

“Hmm? You can teach me alchemy?”

Upon hearing this, Su Changkong stopped in his tracks and turned back to look at Sun Yun.

This Sun Yun, being Sun Yiyear’s grandson, had learned alchemy from Sun Yiyear since he was a child. Since Sun Yiyear no longer took on disciples, learning alchemy from Sun Yun wasn’t out of the question!

However, Sun Yun replied with a sheepish smile, “My skills are limited, and I don’t have the patience to be a proper teacher, but… I can provide you with a book on alchemy. You can learn by following the book.”

As he spoke, Sun Yun pulled out a thick book, half a palm’s width, from his chest and said with a smile, “This is the ‘Precious Pill Record’ compiled by my grandfather. It records some common pill medicines and their methods of refinement and also details the basic techniques of alchemy. It’s the book my grandfather used to teach us disciples alchemy. If you want to learn alchemy, just follow the instructions.”

Something stirred in Su Changkong’s heart. Indeed, having a book on alchemy would be just as good!

“How much do you want?” Su Changkong was intrigued and asked directly.

It was clear to him that Sun Yun came to sell this book for money.

“Mr. Li is straightforward! Ten thousand silver taels and the ‘Precious Pill Record’ is yours!”

Sun Yun saw how Su Changkong seemed eager and immediately broke into a beaming smile, stating the price outright.

And without doubt, Sun Yun asked an exorbitant price, promptly requesting ten thousand silver taels!

Su Changkong’s face was expressionless, “Are you joking with me?”

Alchemy for ten thousand silver taels? It wasn’t as if he was offering a guaranteed apprenticeship, just a book for self-study, yet he wanted ten thousand taels for it?

Sun Yun still smiled and quickly said, “If it’s too expensive, we can make a discount, 9000 taels!”

Su Changkong didn’t respond, and Sun Yun gritted his teeth, “8000 taels! This book is the result of my grandfather’s decades of hard work. Outsiders hardly even get a glimpse of it, and it’s definitely something you can’t buy even with money!”

“7000 taels! I can’t go any lower!”

Sun Yun called out.

But Su Changkong remained unmoved, simply looking at Sun Yun and saying, “I’ve earned my money with my life on the line. This ‘Precious Pill Record’ at best is just a guide for beginners in alchemy, without any expert guidance. I might even fail to understand it if I buy it. I do have some interest in alchemy, but if the price is too steep, it’s not worth it!”

Sun Yun reluctantly and somewhat deflated said, “Then how much are you willing to offer?”

“2000 taels, not a tael more!” Su Changkong thought it over and ultimately offered his final price.

Back at the Zhao Family auction, a remarkably exquisite ‘Red Fire Skill’ book sold for just over a thousand silver taels. Rarity makes treasure valuable. While books on alchemy are hard to come by, 2000 silver taels were already the price Su Changkong was willing to pay for it!

“Alright… alright, you drive a hard bargain… 2000 taels then. If it weren’t for my need for money… I wouldn’t sell it to you. And you mustn’t tell anyone it was I who sold it to you—if my grandfather finds out, he’ll break my legs!”

Seeing Su Changkong’s attitude of walking away if they couldn’t reach a deal, Sun Yun eventually relented with a downcast face, weakly gesturing his agreement and repeatedly admonishing Su Changkong not to disclose their transaction to others.

Sun Yun was Sun Yiyear’s grandson, but known for his idleness and lavish spending. He had accrued a significant amount of debt and didn’t dare to tell his grandfather. Today, after eavesdropping on Su Changkong’s conversation with Sun Fu outside the door, Sun Yun got the idea to follow him, hoping to sell the ‘Precious Pill Record’ for a handsome sum to pay off his debts.

But Su Changkong didn’t care about any of this. He just wanted to get his hands on the ‘Precious Pill Record’, study it thoroughly, and if he could learn alchemy, he’d be self-sufficient, no longer at the mercy of others, or being taken for a fool!

Su Changkong produced 2000 silver taels from his chest and handed them to Sun Yun, who in turn handed over the ‘Precious Pill Record’. Sun Yun quickly covered his bases, “If you can’t learn alchemy from this ‘Precious Pill Record,’ that’s not my fault! It means you just don’t have the talent!”

Su Changkong couldn’t be bothered with a lengthy discussion with Sun Yun. If there was nothing amiss with the ‘Precious Pill Record’, not learning it would surely be his own fault. But if he found out that there was any trickery involved, that he had paid both money and effort for nothing, Su Changkong certainly wouldn’t let Sun Yun off lightly!

Having completed the transaction, Sun Yun slunk away, looking around furtively as he left the alley, then collected himself, straightened his clothes, and strolled away from there.