Chapter 225: Black Market Transaction

"It's actually a fragment of a magical treasure!"

Gu Qingzhao's eyes widened in shock; after examining it carefully for a moment, she hesitated slightly before asking, "This item... isn't it that half-piece of the bronze mirror fragment that caused such an uproar in Yunze Xiancheng a few days ago?"

"Rumor has it that Daoist Long took possession of it; how did it end up in Fellow Daoist Qin's hands?"

"Mm, that's correct; I also acquired it from Fellow Daoist Long."

"He came to me to refine pills and used this fragment of a magical treasure as payment," Qin Ming said without batting an eye or letting his heart skip a beat.

Gu Qingzhao nodded gently. "No wonder... but even if the other half of the bronze mirror fragment is found, I'm afraid Fellow Daoist Qin still won't be able to restore it into a true magical treasure, after all, the formations inside have been completely destroyed."

"I'm afraid that even if a third-tier Artifact Refining Grandmaster were to take action, success wouldn't be guaranteed, let alone the fact that there are no third-tier Artifact Refining Grandmasters within the borders of Wei State."

"The price Fellow Daoist Qin paid this time seems somewhat unworthy."

"It doesn't matter; I'm merely somewhat interested in this object and don't expect to fully restore it," Qin Ming said.

"Very well, I will secretly dispatch people to keep an eye out and search for it."

Gu Qingzhao immediately took out a shadow-recording wall and copied both sides of the bronze mirror.

She then returned the bronze mirror to Qin Ming.

"Since Fellow Daoist Qin has come, why not stay a few more days?" Gu Qingzhao urged.

Qin Ming smiled faintly. "Hehe, I promised Xue Zhili that I would go to attend the black market transaction at Fangcun Mountain."

"Oh~ so that's what this is about; I've also heard about the matters at Fangcun Mountain. If I weren't tied up, I too would want to go and see it for myself, especially since it's said that cultivators from all four states have arrived," Gu Qingzhao said with sudden understanding.

Afterwards, Qin Ming engaged in further deep conversation with Gu Qingzhao before leaving the Mirror Jing Xue Ge.

Three days passed.

Qin Ming left Canghai Xiancheng and first transferred his three spirit beasts into a newly purchased second-tier upper-grade spirit beast bag.

He then mounted his Silver-Yin Yi Shuangfeng and headed toward the Fangcun Mountain market.

"Ai! Now this is more like it! This is simply incomparably more spacious than before; much more comfortable," Shi Tian Shu's voice came from within the new spirit beast bag.

A little over an hour later.

Qin Ming, riding the Silver-Yin Yi Shuangfeng, arrived near the Fangcun Mountain market.

He recalled his spirit pet, then leaped down to land.

This time, Qin Ming did not disguise himself but appeared in his true form; after all, he had been invited by Xue Zhili, so there was no need for excessive concealment.

Upon reaching the entrance of Fangcun Mountain, he gazed at the market, which had changed drastically, and sighed with emotion for a moment.

The buildings and collapsed ruins here had all been cleared away and rebuilt.

It no longer possessed the grandeur it had when managed by Lei Yuanzong.

Everything consisted of makeshift, crude sheds with scattered stalls set up here and there.

As for the formation surrounding the market's perimeter, it had been replaced by a second-tier middle-grade formation; its defensive capability was actually quite acceptable.

Today, due to the black market transaction, the number of cultivators coming to the market had increased; cultivators from all walks of life appeared in various forms, and glows of different colors descended one after another outside the market.

Inside the market, traffic was heavy with carriages and horses, while outside, a long line of cultivators stretched out.

Nearby cultivators, upon seeing a Foundation Establishment cultivator arrive, consciously made way.

The Immortal Realm maintains a strict hierarchy; now, added to the fact that this place has become a lawless zone, if one accidentally provokes a great Foundation Establishment expert, one could die without even knowing how.

Qin Ming did not stand on ceremony and strode directly into the market.

Following the address Xue Zhili had previously told him, he arrived at the location where Lei Yuanzong had once operated the Cloud Fire Pavilion.

Things had changed while the people remained different; the luxurious pavilion of those days had vanished, replaced by an artifact refining shop.

Qin Ming strode directly into the shop, then proceeded to the courtyard at the rear.

Just as he entered, he saw two guard cultivators stationed there; when Qin Ming slightly probed their cultivation, he was surprised to discover that both were mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators.

It seemed that this time Xue Zhili had spared no expense; even the guards merely guiding people from the outside possessed such cultivation.

"Does this fellow daoist have an invitation token?" one of the guards asked politely.

Hearing this, Qin Ming immediately took the black mystic iron token given to him by Xue Zhili from his storage bag and handed it over.

After inspecting the token, the two guards once again spoke politely to Qin Ming: "Fellow daoist, please enter!"

Subsequently, one of the cultivators led Qin Ming into a room.

He cast several spells toward the ground. Boom—rumble! In an instant, an underground tunnel wide enough for two people to pass through appeared on the ground.

"This..." Qin Ming looked at this scene somewhat dumbfounded.

He hadn't expected that the location for the black market transaction would feature such a hidden place.

The guard led the way ahead; after passing through a long tunnel, Qin Ming's vision suddenly brightened.

A huge underground trading market appeared before his eyes, resembling a small underground city.

This place was decorated magnificently, not inferior in the slightest to the outside; the dome above was illuminated by countless gems emitting fluorescent light, making the interior brilliantly lit.

Qin Ming roughly scanned the area and saw that there were already over a hundred Foundation Establishment cultivators here, each having set up a stall and begun displaying their items for trade.

He merely released his divine sense to take a glance and immediately knew the cultivation levels of these cultivators; most were at the early stage of Foundation Establishment, those at the middle stage were fewer, numbering only a dozen or so.

There were seven or eight at the late stage of Foundation Establishment, and three at the perfect circle of Foundation Establishment.

It seemed that Xue Zhili had made quite a spectacle this time, actually managing to gather so many Foundation Establishment cultivators at once.

This was likely also due to the outbreak of the beast tide, which had caused many cultivators to come to Canghai Xiancheng.

However, what surprised him even more was that this underground market seemed to be shrouded by a rather sophisticated formation; even Qin Ming's divine sense, comparable to that of the Jin Dan stage, was rebounded.

"Yo! Fellow Daoist Qin has arrived!"

Today, as the organizer, Xue Zhili wore a red brocade robe with a white base and golden threads, appearing extremely festive; upon seeing Qin Ming arrive, he hurriedly came forward to welcome him.

As soon as he spoke, nearby cultivators all came over to greet them.

"Greetings, Fellow Daoist Qin!"

"I didn't expect that even Master Qin would come."

"I wonder if Master Qin has any high-grade spiritual plants or spiritual pills for sale."

"We have long heard of the great name of Daoist Qin from the State of Wei!"

"Now that Daoist Qin has arrived, naturally there will be no shortage of good treasures."

"Daoist Xue is truly remarkable to have actually managed to invite Daoist Qin here."

"Daoist Qin, are you still selling the spiritual energy Rice? This old man wishes to purchase some."

"..."

For a moment, numerous cultivators all crowded around, enthusiastically greeting him and speaking words of flattery and polite courtesy.

There were also cultivators from other countries whose attitude toward Qin Ming was neither cold nor warm; after all, his reputation was not as great elsewhere as it was in the State of Wei.

"Daoist Qin, you may wander around on your own for a while, or if you are interested, you may set up a stall; I believe many cultivators would be willing to trade with you," Xue Zhili said with a smiling expression.

"A little later, we will also hold an auction trade here."

"If Daoist Qin has any needs, this old man can also bid on your behalf; I only charge a ten percent commission."

Qin Ming nodded, then took out a bottle of Yu Xuan Dan and one Five Elements Primordial Qi Spiritual Peach, handing them over to the other party.

After all, Xue Zhili had worked hard to assemble such a large gathering; he should not work for nothing, so earning a little was only proper.

"Th-this, th-this..."

Xue Zhili took the two items handed over by Qin Ming, his voice trembling, so excited that he could barely speak clearly.

This was also the first time he had ever seen these legendary objects.

"Yu Xuan Dan... Five Elements Primordial Qi Spiritual Peach..."

As for the Yu Xuan Dan, even within the Xuanxi Valley, the hegemonic sect of the State of Liang, few alchemists were able to successfully refine it; it could increase the magic power of cultivators at the late and perfect stages of Foundation Establishment, making it almost rarely seen in the outside world.

This pill was certainly an item that high-stage Foundation Establishment cultivators would compete fiercely to snatch up.

As for the Five Elements Primordial Qi Spiritual Peach, there was no need to say much; consuming it directly could not only increase cultivation base, but more importantly, it possessed the effect of extending lifespan.

If this were released to the public, those False Golden Core Yunxi Laozu would probably fight until their heads bled.

After all, the Dao path of a False Golden Core Yunxi Laozu stopped at this point; they could no longer cultivate to the subsequent realms, so lifespan had instead become their most important possession.

Aside from the ones traded to the Mirror Jing Xue Ge.

This single one produced by Qin Ming was likely the first of its kind in the Immortal Realm of the State of Wei in a hundred years.

(End of Chapter)