Chapter 20: Reaching for the Mountains

Fifty-five bottles of Grain-Bigu Pills, thirty bottles of Myriad Wonders Pills.

This was Luo Chen's achievement for one month.

He only refined fifty bottles of Grain-Bigu Pills; the extra five bottles were the legacy left by that short-lived guy.

And the thirty bottles of Myriad Wonders Pills were a bit of an unexpected joy.

This time, he actually succeeded in three cauldrons, and the quality was all low-grade.

Placing the elixirs on the bluestone slab, Luo Chen put his hands on his hips, quite expectant of today's big market.

Old Daoist Chen still arrived a little later than him.

Seeing Luo Chen, his old eyes were full of resentment.

Fifty spirit stones!

They had just been collected last time, and this kid had borrowed them back again.

He had already made up his mind that no matter how Luo Chen tried to talk his way out of it today, he would definitely collect that loan!

Definitely!

"Little Luo, your alchemy skills have improved again!"

The corner he had previously shared with Luo Chen had never been full.

But today, it was densely packed with jade bottles, at least fifty or sixty of them, almost filling the space.

From this, it could be seen that Luo Chen's alchemy skills had inevitably improved again.

Luo Chen chuckled. "This is all thanks to your generous help, Fellow Daoist Chen; otherwise, I wouldn't have had the capital to refine more elixirs."

"Hmph, it's good that you know, kid." Old Daoist Chen snorted, then said righteously: "Lending to you before was because I was kind-hearted, but today you must return that spirit stone loan no matter what."

"Definitely, definitely!"

Luo Chen looked like someone who would return what he borrowed.

Old Daoist Chen's expression finally looked better; with debt outside, he really couldn't eat or sleep well!

Suddenly, he gave a light "eh."

"Eh!"

"Little Luo, are you at the fourth layer of Qi Refining?"

Luo Chen was curious. "How did you know?"

"I have practiced the Spirit Eye Art; observing Qi and checking spiritual energy is just a small trick." After being smug, Old Daoist Chen was a bit puzzled. "Aren't you of five-spiritual-root aptitude? How could you break through to the mid-stage of Qi Refining at this age?"

Spirit Eye Art, a low-grade spell, could use spiritual energy to make one's vision clearer, while also possessing the ability to observe Qi and check spiritual energy.

Among low-grade spells, it was known as one of the five must-learn spells of the Qi Refining stage, along with Fireball Art, Wind-Riding Technique, Traction Art, and Healing Art.

Unfortunately, except for Fireball Art, Luo Chen didn't know any of the other four.

Entanglement Art and Fireball Art were both obtained by the original owner by chance.

Cleaning Art was just one of the trashiest spells; he had traded a bottle of Grain-Bigu Pills for it at the market back then.

Old Daoist Chen looked at Luo Chen, his expression a bit strange.

He probably hadn't expected that one day, Luo Chen would be a mid-stage Qi Refining cultivator just like him.

Mid-stage and early-stage cultivators didn't have any earth-shattering changes, but in terms of the upper limit of spiritual power in the body, it could directly double!

Various combat means could also be calmly employed.

Early-stage cultivators were just the bottom layer in this Dahe Market.

If they didn't have a special skill, they could only engage in odd jobs and be at the beck and call of others.

But mid-stage was different; they could fully join various forces and receive all kinds of well-paying tasks.

It could be said that mid-stage Qi Refining cultivators truly had the capital to live in the Dahe Market.

Facing the old man's puzzlement, Luo Chen just smiled and said it was good luck.

In fact, this was just as it should be.

A bottle of Qi-Nurturing Pills had provided him with a large amount of spiritual energy, pulling his progress bar directly to 96/100.

The remaining spiritual energy required was obtained through his day and night hard cultivation over these twenty-plus days, utilizing the perfect-level Evergreen Technique and the calming incense.

Breaking through to the fourth layer of Qi Refining was a matter of course.

Helping Old Daoist Chen arrange the talisman paper, Luo Chen pointed to the spot where Wang Yuan usually set up his stall with some doubt.

"Hasn't Brother Wang come to set up his stall recently?"

"Don't you know about the big event that happened in the outer city area recently?" Old Daoist Chen looked at him strangely.

Luo Chen was completely confused.

"That's right, you live too far away; if you don't pay attention, it's really possible you wouldn't know."

Old Daoist Chen explained to himself, then said meaningfully: "Recently, the Dahe Gang and the Lianyun Alliance have formed an alliance."

"Isn't that very normal?"

The Lianyun Alliance was a loose cultivator force famous in the Yuding Domain, with industries spread across markets large and small in the Yuding Domain.

Their main business was transporting and selling treasures from all over the place, earning the price difference.

This inevitably involved transportation business.

As mentioned before, storage bags weren't something ordinary loose cultivators could own, and to do such big business, a few storage bags wouldn't be of much use.

Therefore, the Lianyun Alliance had always had a good cooperative relationship with the local Dahe Gang.

The Dahe Gang made a living around the Lancang River in this area of the Dahe Market.

Since ancient times, in China and abroad, water transport had been one of the most profitable businesses, and the industrial chain involved was countless.

The Lianyun Alliance choosing to form an alliance with the Dahe Gang for deep cooperation was truly the most normal thing.

Old Daoist Chen shrugged. "But the Dahe Gang has the heart to reach into the business in the mountains, which isn't normal."

"Business in the mountains?" Luo Chen asked in surprise: "Isn't that the territory of the Mountain-Breaking Gang?"

*Snort! *

Old Daoist Chen snorted. "What Mountain-Breaking Gang? The million mountains of the Eastern Wasteland are the territory of demonic beasts; even the six great upper sects of the Far East wouldn't dare say it's their business."

"Uh..."

"Let's put it this way: the Dahe Gang has taken a fancy to the few safe routes the Mountain-Breaking Gang has explored over the past hundred years."

Old Daoist Chen liked to tell gossip and liked to listen to gossip; after all, these things weren't worth money.

Sometimes, when meeting high-grade cultivators from outside, these pieces of news could even be taken out to earn a few spirit stones.

He had inquired very clearly; the Dahe Gang was playing for real.

Initially, they sent people to explore safe routes into the mountains themselves, and suffered heavy losses.

Later, they set their sights on the routes the Mountain-Breaking Gang had stepped out.

The Mountain-Breaking Gang was naturally unwilling, and then there were all kinds of conflicts.

A month ago, the magic artifacts Wang Yuan sold were spoils of war seized by Mountain-Breaking Gang cultivators who killed Dahe Gang people in the mountains.

Now the conflicts are intensifying, and the fighting between the two sides is no longer limited to the mountains.

In the outer city area at night, battles between the two gangs occur from time to time.

Listening to this gossip, Luo Chen's mind moved.

"You specifically mentioned the alliance between the Lianyun Alliance and the Dahe Gang earlier; could it be that the Dahe Gang's actions were instigated by the Lianyun Alliance?"

After asking this question, Luo Chen's mind turned even faster.

"Right, the various treasures and demonic beast flesh hunted by the Mountain-Breaking Gang are all sold at high prices to major forces. The Lianyun Alliance is not a sect force; they naturally wouldn't be satisfied with those prices."

"Now forming an alliance with the Dahe Gang is also to raise a rival to compete with the Mountain-Breaking Gang for food."

"If they really succeed, the cost of acquiring resources in the future will be much smaller."

Old Daoist Chen grunted.

"You kid aren't stupid; I thought so too. Otherwise, why would the Dahe Gang, which hadn't moved early or late, set their sights on the big mountains around the time of the alliance?"

After agreeing, there was a deep sigh.

The two gangs messing around like this made the already unsafe outer city area even more chaotic.

There were even more loose cultivators mixed in, taking advantage of the fire to rob, and those honest and upright loose cultivators would suffer.

"Wang Yuan has been very famous recently, guarding the mountain road, killing five or six mid-stage cultivators, and even beheading an eighth-layer Qi Refining cultivator of the Dahe Gang."

"It's normal that he didn't come today."

Old Daoist Chen shook his head. "If it continues to be this chaotic, I plan to move into the inner city."

"Little Luo, what about you?"

Luo Chen fell into silence.

The place where he lived was in the most remote southwest corner, adjacent to the Howling Moon Mountain Range, which was quite far from the Ancient Plains Mountain Range and the Great Snow Mountain where the Mountain-Breaking Gang mainly operated.

If there were conflicts, it shouldn't affect him there.

But he was afraid of the "what if!"

"I'll see; the rent for living in the inner city and the deposit for renting a house are not small amounts."

Living in the market is not easy.

Living in the inner city is even less something an ordinary loose cultivator can afford.

Sighing, he settled his mood, and Luo Chen squeezed out a smile to welcome today's guests.

"Fellow Daoist Zeng, good morning, want some?"

"Want some!" ===== CHAPTER 21 =====