The cold sword edge, under the afterglow of the setting sun, flashed a dazzling light, crystal clear. It made one involuntarily avert their eyes slightly.
The broken ancient sword, piercing the heart, exposed half of its blade, along with drop after drop of blood that shimmered in the sunlight.
Clang!
The ancient bronze saber, Zhao Yuwen’s most prized possession, fell to the ground powerlessly, making a sound of metal striking metal.
Wu Tao sheathed his sword and stood upright!
…
Wu Tao stood quietly in place, waiting for Zhao Yuwen to fall, or for his last words.
“Such a powerful sword!” A hoarse voice, like a cold wind whistling through leaves, Zhao Yuwen clutched his heart with both hands, but couldn't stop the bleeding. In a short while, his hands were completely stained with blood.
“This is impossible… I… why would I… lose?”
Zhao Yuwen asked weakly.
“Too weak!” Wu Tao replied expressionlessly.
Having received the final answer, a hint of despair flashed in Zhao Yuwen’s eyes, which gradually turned ashen. Finally, with a bang, he fell to the ground, becoming a cold corpse.
After dealing with Zhao Yuwen, Wu Tao found over four thousand spirit stones on him, as well as several top-grade magical artifacts.
Some ordinary five-element talismans, and naturally, some materials for refining artifacts, and some elixirs to enhance spiritual power, and so on.
Of course, the most precious were a Spirit-Connecting Blood Ganoderma Pill that slightly increased the chance of breaking through to the Core Formation stage, and that ancient bronze divine saber.
…
After a fierce battle, Wu Tao's spiritual power had been depleted by more than half. He found a safe place and sat in meditation for an entire day before finally recovering.
After flying with his artifact for another three days and two nights, Wu Tao arrived at Black Flag City.
Black Flag City was located ten thousand li from the Taiyi Immortal Sect.
Here lay a mountain range stretching for nearly three thousand li, known as the Wasteland Barrier Mountains.
The highest peak in the Wasteland Barrier Mountains was Qilizhu Lai Peak.
Qilizhu Lai Peak soared into the clouds, its summit covered in perpetual snow, and it was surrounded by many rare ores not found elsewhere. More importantly, within the mountain body was a large spiritual脉.
For reasons unknown, both the Taiyi Immortal Sect and the Demonic Heavenly Sect, the two dominant powers, viewed this place as a wasted effort and had never occupied it.
This, however, provided an opportunity for ambitious top-tier cultivators. After a series of competitions, it was occupied by a great cultivator in the late Nascent Soul stage, who then established "Black Flag City," the largest black market city in Qingzhou.
The governance of Black Flag City was extremely lax, and coupled with its status as a no-man's-land, it had become a haven and gathering place for powerful demonic cultivators, bandits, and brigands in the cultivation world.
Innumerable powerful demonic cultivators, bandits, and brigands gathered in this city, exchanging the hot commodities they had acquired through murder and plunder.
A significant portion of them also acted as middlemen, buying precious ores from Black Flag City at low prices and then selling them elsewhere at high prices, thus profiting from the price difference.
Materials like Gold Essence, Copper Essence, Iron Essence, Silver Essence, and Marrow Jade were highly sought after by cultivators.
Gold Essence, Copper Essence, Iron Essence, and Silver Essence could be used to forge magical artifacts with astonishing attack and defense capabilities.
And Marrow Jade, soft as feathers and crystalline in appearance, was even more miraculous and rare, possessing excellent compatibility. When added to the forging of magical artifacts, it could greatly enhance their offensive or defensive power.
In addition to various ores, Black Flag City also offered all sorts of treasures, making it incredibly rich.
Therefore, this attracted more cultivators to come here and try their luck.
One day, a man clad in a moon-blue silk robe walked towards the northern city gate of Black Flag City. This man was, naturally, Wu Tao.
The city gate of Black Flag City was entirely built from obsidian.
Standing at such a gate were more than forty cultivators.
They were all at the Foundation Establishment stage, with a cultivator in the early Core Formation stage leading them.
These individuals, with grim faces and expressionless countenances, were collecting entrance fees from cultivators entering the city.
Upon hearing that the entrance fee was ten luminous stones, Wu Tao gritted his teeth and muttered to himself, "Are they robbing people? It's so expensive."
Passing through the city gate and entering Black Flag City, Wu Tao didn't know how to describe it. The first impression he got was that it was very lively and very chaotic.
The city was filled with a deafening roar and utter clamor. There were rogue cultivators, family disciples, righteous path disciples, demonic path disciples – all sorts of people with all sorts of attire.
Strange and exotic items were everywhere, and people were shoulder to shoulder, bustling to and fro, making the main thoroughfares of the city absolutely packed.
The mingled scents of herbal medicine, foot odor, and cosmetics, along with the pungent smells of demon beast blood and human blood, created a peculiar aroma that was difficult to accept.
Wu Tao braced himself and walked forward. In the center of Black Flag City was a vast and open square.
Not only were there internal patrol teams from Black Flag City maintaining order in the square, but it was also relatively cleaner than other areas.
Therefore, most stall owners preferred to set up their stalls here.
At this time, the square was already crowded with people, and the ground was covered with all sorts of treasures: demon beast hides, demon beast bones, inner cores, talismans, ores, magical artifacts, spiritual herbs, and medicinal ingredients, and so on.
They were dazzling and varied, with everything imaginable, spread out densely and packed to the brim, leaving almost no room to stand.
As Wu Tao slowly moved through the crowd towards the square, his eyes lit up upon seeing the numerous stalls, and he silently encouraged himself in his heart.
“Let me see how lucky I am today, if I can find any treasures? It would be best if I could find an elixir for breaking through to the Core Formation stage, so I can go into seclusion and break through as soon as possible.”
Wu Tao’s purpose in coming here was not only to sell the ill-gotten gains he possessed but also to search for other treasures.
…
Wu Tao slowly wandered through the square, his eyes constantly scanning the treasures displayed on the surrounding stalls.
However, most of the treasures displayed in the square—demon beast hides, demon beast bones, inner cores, talismans, ores, magical artifacts, spiritual herbs, and medicinal ingredients—were of ordinary quality.
For him now, they were as tasteless as chicken ribs, useless to keep and useless to discard.
After wandering for more than half the day, seeing that he had covered more than half of the vast square, Wu Tao became greatly disappointed, having still found nothing.
He patted his head, feeling some regret.
“It seems I came to the wrong place. This so-called number one black market city in Qingzhou is all talk and no substance. There’s nothing good here.”
“That’s right. What good treasures could possibly be openly auctioned and fenced?”
…
Just then, a voice reached Wu Tao’s ears.
“Senior, do you need a guide? I only need one spirit stone.”
A lean and capable-looking middle-aged male cultivator approached Wu Tao and said.
He was at the tenth level of Qi Refining, tall and thin, but his eyes were very spirited.
“Take me to a place where I can buy good treasures!”
“Alright!”
Upon hearing this, the middle-aged male cultivator smiled and quickly walked ahead to lead the way.
“This is where valuable treasures are fenced, very popular with cultivators who like to engage in robbery and plunder. Senior, look beneath that wooden house; that is the underground black market of Black Flag City.”
The middle-aged male cultivator diligently explained and led the way.
“So, even Black Flag City has an open black market and an underground black market?”
Wu Tao nodded thoughtfully.
“Yes, Senior. Do you want to go? If you do, I’ll take you there right away.”
The middle-aged male cultivator replied.
…
Following the middle-aged male cultivator, Wu Tao proceeded towards the underground black market.
The middle-aged male cultivator expertly navigated the streets of Black Flag City, turning left and right, leading Wu Tao to a dilapidated small shop.
Without knowing, one would absolutely not notice that such a shop in the marketplace was the entrance to the underground black market.
Upon arriving here, Wu Tao readily handed over one spirit stone to the middle-aged male cultivator and then entered the underground black market.
…
The vast majority of those who frequented this underground black market were ruthless rogue cultivators and demonic cultivators. They were often brave cultivators who adventured through dangerous places and desperate situations, living on the edge of a blade and the brink of fire.
Demonic cultivators, after engaging in “black eat black” (betrayal and double-crossing), would usually try to sell off troublesome items they couldn't easily dispose of here after dealing with their targets.
Although the prices were slightly lower than the market price, at least secrecy and security could be guaranteed.
Wu Tao nodded to the hunchbacked old cultivator guarding the shop entrance and received a cloak and a mask from him.
This cloak and mask were not simple; they were inscribed with rune restrictions that could hide one’s identity and block divine sense.
Wu Tao put on the cloak and covered his face with the mask. It not only concealed his appearance but also prevented others from locking onto him with their divine sense. The only pity was that the cloak and mask could only conceal one’s identity but not one’s movements.
Beneath the shop was a basement, where a complex formation had already been etched.
Without thinking, Wu Tao knew that this was a short-distance teleportation array. The venue for the trading fair was a secret location.
Apart from the people within the underground black market, those attending the trading fair did not know the exact location.
Wu Tao inserted dozens of low-grade spirit stones into the formation. The hunchbacked elder activated the formation, and with a flash of white light, Wu Tao had vanished from the empty room.
Meanwhile, the hunchbacked elder slowly walked out of the room and into the shop, waiting for the next cultivator to attend the underground trading fair.
…
Wu Tao sold his accumulated inventory of over a dozen top-grade magical artifacts, dozens of high-grade magical artifacts, over a hundred mid and low-grade magical artifacts, and various other miscellaneous items to the负责人 of the underground black market.
He received a total of twelve thousand spirit stones.