The thought that the participants would have to follow additional rules that weren't even told to them was an absurd thought for Alex.
Paying 20 Immortal stones for what everyone else was going in without paying even a few Saint stones made him feel angry enough that he imdiately wanted to head on over to another city sowhere else.
However, he didn't want to do that. There was no way in hell Alex was going to leave this place now that he was finally here. He would instead go around to the forest and gather the better ingredients, then sell it to people in the crowd. "I just want to ask, how did you know I was a participant?" Alex asked.
The man pointed at Alex's chest.
"Tsk!" It seed the knowledge of their dallion had passed far and wide. If the man was correct, then every city would know about his dallion. "I can't just go to whatever city I want, can I?" Alex asked, sighing.
"Not all cities follow the sa rule," the guard said. "Most shouldn't even have one."
Alex nodded. "And does that an I have to pay 60 Immortal coins in total?" he asked.
"No, 20. Your disciple, your beast, whatever else you have registered in the competition can go in without paying," the guard said.
"Oh, that's a little better," Alex said. "I shall co back in a bit then."
Alex had a few spirit stones, but even together, it would co to around 3 Immortal spirit stones, let alone 20. He needed to earn so more.
On his way back, he saw a few people with dallions on their chests appear worried. Alex told them what was up, but those people still wished to go to the front to figure out whether that was the truth or not.
"What now, brother?" Pearl asked.
Alex looked around. There were houses outside of the gates too, but there wasn't anything of importance around here. "Go and stand by those guards. I don't feel safe taking Momo to the forest given how many deadly things roam there."
Pearl nodded. "I will stay with her then," he said. "We will stay close to the guards in case sothing cos up."
Alex nodded and went to the forests in the mountains. Even walking in, he could already tell sothing was wrong with this forest.
Most of the plants he saw didn't have the items that were necessary to make the pills he needed to make. All of them had been plucked or cut away before he could co.
He found a few other participants who were in a similar situation as him and left searching for ingredients in a place where no one could find them.
Alex asked those who he t if this forest was always like that, or if it recently beca like that. Everyone he t told him that it had been like this since 3 days ago when they arrived here. They had no idea what they were supposed to do, so they continued searching through the mountains. Alex understood that to an that there was nothing to search for in the other mountains either. At least, nothing substantial.
That was not to say there were no ingredients at all. There were so, and what there was was enough for him to earn a bit. At least, enough to go inside and make so proper sales of his pills.
"Stuck searching for ingredients, huh?" an older man asked Alex in passing. He too wore a dallion on his chest, signifying his participation.
Alex shrugged. "You too, brother?" he asked.
The man shrugged as well, shaking his storage bag a little. "There have been quite a few people here already. You will have to be quite lucky to find the useful things." Then he left.
Alex didn't let the man's words affect him. Sure the more important ingredients that would fetch a higher price even without being made into a pill were more or less already taken away from the forests, but there was still quite a bit of other ingredients. He could make use of those.
Alex took what he could find and walked back to the city gates, before standing to the side of the crowd, watching the passing people and vehicles. "I'm selling so ingredients if anyone would be interested in buying," Alex said out loud. A few heads turned but they didn't pay any attention.
He even heard soone mutter the word 'another?' before walking away.
Alex couldn't help but grimace a little at that reaction. Just how many others had done what he was doing?
A man ca up. "Uhh, I saw that you want to go into the city. Here are so spirit stones," he said, pulling out around 50.
"Thank you, senior. But I can't take it," Alex said.
"Huh? Are you not trying to go into the city?"
"We are," Alex replied, "But I still can't take it."
The man didn't know what to do at the refusal.
"Would you like to buy so of my ingredients?" Alex asked.
"No, that's alright. I hope soone else cos along," he said, returning to the line.
Alex cringed on the inside, thinking about how close he was to getting in. But he couldn't take handouts. He couldn't take gifts or discounts. Every single thing he got, he either had to find it himself or buy it for a full price off soone else.
Unless the man was okay with buying a few things here, he would have to wait for soone else instead.
Alex tried to sell the ingredients, but it did not work. It appeared he would have to sell a pill, no matter what.
He took a deep breath and went to look through his storage bag to see what ingredients he had. He thought about the multiple-pill recipes he knew and realized he was close to having all the ingredients for one pill.
'I'm missing one,' he thought. He couldn't rember seeing that ingredient around the forest, so he had to search for sothing else.
'I need to make a substitute,' Alex thought. That was the only way he could think of. He closed his eyes to think of what ingredients he could use to make the substitute.
He had enough experience by now that he could figure out exactly what he needed in less than an hour.
While Alex had his eyes closed, Pearl and Momo began calling to people in hopes that they would buy the ingredients.
A few people ca by and asked to see the ingredients. After seeing it, they asked about the quality. The quality was sothing neither Pearl nor Momo could answer.
Alex tried to answer where he could, but they neither had the reputation nor the backing to claim that they were being truthful about the quality. As such, not a single cultivator who ca by wanted to buy those ingredients.
They weren't the only ones. The other participants that were around the outside of the city were all in a similar situation and most of them were planning on making pills as well.
Alex finally opened his eyes, having found the necessary ingredients for his substitute.
"Stay here for a while," he said. "I'll be back in a bit."
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