Grade A honey might have a slightly higher premium, so Boss Gao also offered a price higher than 3 Spirit Stones for it, the same as Nan Jie's.
Qi Ping naturally accepted this.
One of the biggest advantages of trading with a boss is that it's simple and direct, without so much haggling and back-and-forth probing.
Qi Ping hated bosses who found a bunch of reasons to haggle over prices; arguing with them was particularly annoying.
"No problem! I've always trusted Boss Gao's offers the most."
"It's a win-win cooperation, everyone doing well together is the most long-lasting. Just frequent my small shop more in the future..."
"If you need to buy some valuable things in the future, you can also look for me. I'm familiar with Qing Shi Market and can find you the most cost-effective options!"
Boss Gao counted out Spirit Stones for Qi Ping while introducing his new business.
This service of helping people find and purchase high-value items was a new profitable venture Boss Gao had recently developed.
Because he was very familiar with Qing Shi Market and had some connections there, he was often able to buy things that were more cost-effective than what ordinary people could find.
This business was inspired a few months ago when one of his regular customers proactively asked him for help purchasing some items.
It hadn't been open for long, but it had already earned him a lot of Spirit Stones. Even after a lot of tributes, it was still very good for a Qi Refining sixth-level Cultivator like him, and crucially, it didn't affect his previous business.
He could earn double the money!
"I happen to need to buy something and wanted to trouble Boss Gao!"
Qi Ping had originally intended to discuss this with Boss Gao, but he brought it up himself.
Nan Jie had already told Qi Ping about Boss Gao's business on the way, which was why he had the idea of asking Boss Gao to help him inquire about Spirit Beast pets.
Because there were very few Cultivators who tamed beasts in Qing Shi County, there were no large trading companies specializing in selling Spirit Beasts, making it difficult to purchase a suitable Spirit Beast here.
It could even be said that Qi Ping might not find a suitable Spirit Beast even if he visited Qing Shi Market ten times!
Aside from the time spent, the risks on the journey to Qing Shi Market alone were unacceptable to Qi Ping!
"Really? That's quite a coincidence! What is Brother Qi looking to buy?"
Boss Gao's expression showed a slight surprise; he didn't expect business to come so soon.
"I'd like to purchase a Spirit Beast. I wonder if Boss Gao has any channels for that?"
Qi Ping wasn't sure if Boss Gao had resources in this area.
"A Spirit Beast?"
Hearing that Qi Ping wanted to buy a Spirit Beast, Boss Gao's expression became even more surprised.
Because taming a beast was not a simple matter!
Everyone knew that a powerful Spirit Beast could be of great help, and the method of Blood Contract was not difficult to find.
However, even with these conditions, very few people in Qing Shi County still chose to tame beasts, which showed the underlying problems.
There were two main reasons.
The first reason was that raising a Spirit Beast was almost like raising a money-eating beast.
The cost of raising most Spirit Beasts was often higher than the Cultivator's own Cultivation expenses, and this didn't even include the cost of purchasing the Spirit Beast.
For most people in Qing Shi County, their own Cultivation resources were squeezed out from between their teeth; how could they have extra resources to raise Spirit Beasts?
Any slight surplus of resources was far better used on oneself.
And Spirit Beasts that hadn't been nurtured to maturity lacked combat power; they weren't even worth a single chop.
The cost of resources alone blocked more than half of the Cultivators in Qing Shi County.
The other issue was the extremely high difficulty of taming beasts.
Taming a beast in imagination: After signing a Blood Contract with a Spirit Beast, after a short period of familiarization, it would be telepathically connected to its master, then it could fight alongside its master, and might even die for its master.
This was clearly wishful thinking!
Taming a beast in reality:
If the Spirit Beast doesn't agree, it's difficult to force a contract...
Communication is extremely difficult due to intelligence and language differences, especially for Spirit Beasts that are naturally unfriendly to humans...
During combat, they might slack off or even turn against you...
Very disobedient, often causing trouble if not watched carefully...
Too many problems!
For an ordinary Cultivator, encountering any one of these problems could mean the failure of beast taming.
Moreover, most Spirit Beasts were difficult to tame, and the stronger they were, the more so. Some even held an innate Bloodline hostility towards the Human Race.
That's why beast taming became a specialized Cultivation Dao, even requiring a dedicated Beast Taming Sect.
From how to choose a Spirit Beast, how to increase a Spirit Beast's favorability, how to Cultivate a Spirit Beast, how to train and fight with a Spirit Beast, and so on—all these issues required specialized knowledge and Cultivation Techniques!
A good beast-taming Cultivator could make an ordinary Spirit Beast grow to an extremely powerful level, possessing power beyond its inherent Bloodline.
This was why Boss Gao was so surprised to hear that Qi Ping wanted to purchase a Spirit Beast.
However, he had no intention of delving deeper. Overly questioning a customer's affairs was a big taboo for a merchant, and Boss Gao was well-versed in this Dao, so he naturally wouldn't be so foolish.
As long as Qi Ping had a need, he would provide a solution and earn Spirit Stones; that was enough.
So, after thinking for a moment, Boss Gao said to Qi Ping:
"Of course, there are channels. Although there are very few people who tame beasts in our Qing Shi County, I still know some friends who can get Spirit Beasts, and because there's less competition, the price of Spirit Beasts is even slightly lower than in many places."
Hearing this, Qi Ping couldn't help but feel a surge of joy; he had indeed found the right person!
"I wonder if Brother Qi has any requirements for the type of Spirit Beast?"
"Hmm, avian Spirit Beasts are best. For others, I can consider them if they are cost-effective. I prefer smaller Spirit Beasts..."
"What price range are you looking for?"
"Within two to three hundred Spirit Stones. If it's higher, I can consider it if the quality is good, but I'll need some time to figure out how to raise those Spirit Stones."
Qi Ping spoke rather conservatively. Two to three hundred Spirit Stones wouldn't be too surprising for him and Old Zhou to produce, but more than that would seem a bit much.
That's why Qi Ping said that for more, he would need to find a way to raise them, which was also to avoid missing out on some higher-priced but very cost-effective Spirit Beasts.
Boss Gao also understood Qi Ping's meaning: two to three hundred Spirit Stones could be produced, and a slightly higher amount could also be gathered. With this, he knew what price range of Spirit Beasts would be suitable for Qi Ping.
"Are there any requirements regarding the Spirit Beast's age?"
Generally speaking, the younger the age, the lower the difficulty of contracting and the more suitable for developing tacit agreement , so the corresponding price would be higher.
"Any age is fine. Adult Spirit Beasts are also acceptable as long as they are cost-effective, but the price must be lower!"
Afterward, Boss Gao asked several more questions, some of which Qi Ping hadn't even thought of.
It must be said that Boss Gao was too professional; in a few words, he grasped Qi Ping's specific needs.
"I understand. I'll find a few suitable Spirit Beast details and prices for you, and then you can see which one fits!"
"Alright, then I'll trouble Boss Gao!"
"No trouble at all, no trouble. Brother Qi and Nan Jie are willing to trust me; it's my honor, so I will do my best to fulfill your requests!"
Nan Jie, Qi Ping, and Old Zhou were all his long-term customers. Only to these customers would he proactively mention his purchasing service.
Otherwise, if Nan Jie didn't want the Spirit Fertilizer raw Materials he had prepared in advance, or if Qi Ping didn't want the several suitable Spirit Beast sellers he had painstakingly found, wouldn't that be a waste of his time earning Spirit Stones?
This purchasing service was based on his connections and information resources. Once a transaction was made, it benefited both him and Qi Ping.
But all of this had to be built on trust.
After Qi Ping and Nan Jie completed their transaction at Zhishi Trading Company, they bid farewell to Boss Gao, who immediately began searching for information on Qi Ping's Spirit Beast.
Qi Ping's order was not small; if he completed this commission, he could make a decent profit from it.
Earning money was not easy; every opportunity to earn Spirit Stones was worth cherishing, especially for something without much danger.
Moreover, he noticed that Qi Ping had mentioned "cost-effective" many times during their conversation, so if he could find a high-quality Spirit Beast that was difficult to sell for some reason, there was a high probability that Qi Ping would take a liking to it!
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