Divine Transcendence

Three days later, on a clear morning.

Yuan Ming casually accepted a task to find spiritual materials at the Execution Hall. He then took leave from Fang Ge and left the Bi Luo Cave Mountain Gate, heading in the northeast direction.

After he had distanced himself from the mountain gate, he muttered some words, and a stream-like green light emerged around his body. He became extraordinarily light, and with a slight touch on the ground, he could leap several feet forward.

This was the Wind Agility Technique he had obtained from Hu Huo. He had practiced it a bit during his spare time in the past two days and had already grasped the basics.

People generally wouldn’t spend time mastering such techniques. They would gradually improve their proficiency by using them in their daily travels.

With this technique, Yuan Ming’s travel speed was much faster than before. He could cover nearly three hundred miles a day. At night, he would find a nearby mortal town to stay and meditate.

Several days later, at noon, he arrived at a secluded valley about a hundred miles away from the nearest mortal town.

The valley was lush and green, with a white mist lingering at the entrance. Perhaps the mountains on both sides were too high, blocking the sunlight. From a distance, the valley was always shrouded in a huge shadow. Apart from this, there was nothing remarkable about it.

Yuan Ming arrived at the entrance of the valley, paused for a moment, then walked forward, plunging into the white mist.

After only half an incense stick’s time, the view in front of him suddenly cleared, and a large town appeared before his eyes. The mist that had been lingering had long since dissipated.

The buildings in the town were all made of a kind of black rock. At first glance, they seemed a bit chaotic, but they subtly formed a circular shape around the valley, like a giant black rock.

Seeing this, a smile appeared on Yuan Ming’s face.

This was the Black Rock City mentioned by Wu Lu. It was not an ordinary mortal town, but a city for cultivators. The mist outside the valley was to prevent ordinary mortals from accidentally entering.

Before he set off, he had spent some time in the Gui Cang Pavilion to look up some records about this city. He knew that the city was in a special location, at the intersection of the territories of the Bi Luo Cave, Qing Yan Meeting, and Black Fire Gate. It was also not too far from the other two sects, so it was originally established for the convenience of cultivators from all sects.

Over time, cultivators from the Southern Region and Central Plains, as well as some rogue cultivators, came here, and the town gradually prospered, becoming a famous market in the Northern Region.

It was said that this market was not controlled by any of the five sects in the Northern Region, but belonged to an ancient cultivation family, which appointed a city lord to govern it.

This family was very mysterious and low-key. Few people in the Northern Region knew where its territory was, but none of the five sects dared to disrespect it, and they all did business in the city honestly.

At this time, Yuan Ming was not wearing the disciple’s uniform of Bi Luo Cave, but a set of ordinary clothes from the Southern Region. He also wore a hat with a veil to cover his face.

Black Rock City was a mixed bag, so most of the people, especially the rogue cultivators, dressed like this. He was just following the crowd, and it also helped him avoid some trouble.

At the entrance of the town, there were two guards, one tall and one short, both wearing black armor. They both had a breath of mana and their cultivation was not low, both above the fourth level of Qi Refining.

"Are you entering the city? Please pay an entrance fee of one spirit stone," said the short, round-faced guard in black armor on the left, politely stopping Yuan Ming.

"Why is there an entrance fee?" Yuan Ming frowned slightly.

He didn’t have many spirit stones on him. He hadn’t seen anything yet, and he had to give out a spirit stone.

"Recently, the number of cultivators coming and going has increased. To reduce the chaos caused by idle people in the city, we temporarily require an entrance fee. If you are unwilling, please return the way you came," said the tall, thin guard in black armor on the right, indifferently.

"Just take it, it’s only one spirit stone." Yuan Ming snorted, took out a fire attribute spirit stone, and handed it to the round-faced guard.

The guard took the spirit stone, stepped aside, and let Yuan Ming into the city.

Once inside, Yuan Ming felt the unique hustle and bustle of Black Rock City.

Ahead was a slightly empty wide black stone street, wide enough to accommodate three carriages side by side in the mortal world. The black stone houses on the side of the street were simple in design, with small doors and windows, like small fortresses.

These seemed to be shops, mostly selling mortal goods, such as rice, flour, and insect food from the Southern Region. Many people were busy inside, but they were all ordinary people without mana.

From time to time, beast carts could be seen leaving from in front of a shop, carrying various ingredients and heading into the city.

Yuan Ming was not surprised by this. Cultivators were essentially physical beings. Before reaching the stage where they could practice Inedia, they also needed to eat, drink, and relieve themselves. Especially for low-level cultivators who had just reached the tenth level of Qi Refining, even if they wanted to practice Inedia, they could only maintain it for a month or so.The ordinary people on the street seemed accustomed to the presence of cultivators, paying no mind to Yuan Ming’s arrival and continuing with their own affairs.

Yuan Ming walked to the end of the black stone street, where a wider road appeared ahead.

On both sides of this road were numerous shops, much larger than those at the entrance. The proportions of the doors and windows were more normal, and at first glance, all the goods sold inside were for cultivators.

There were many cultivators coming and going, but the wide street did not seem crowded. The sounds of conversation and hawking rose and fell, forming waves of noise that stimulated the ears.

"Come and take a look! Black-backed lizard’s brain, one spirit stone per bottle!"

"Selling green jade, two spirit stones per pound!"

"Blood-winged bat liver, enhances eyesight when consumed, only two spirit stones per pound!"

Almost every shop had a clerk standing at the entrance, hawking their wares, no different from the merchants in the mundane world.

Yuan Ming curiously observed everything around him, especially the goods in the shops on both sides.

He had been in the Bi Luo Cave for some time, and during this period, he had gained some opportunities and obtained books like "Collection of Hundred Herbs" and "Record of Strange Stones". He was quite confident in identifying spiritual materials, but the variety of goods in the Black Rock City market was so diverse that many items were still unheard of. This journey had greatly broadened his horizons.

"It seems that I should visit these markets more often in the future, even if it’s just to broaden my knowledge." Yuan Ming thought excitedly.

"Selling spirit beasts! Flying spirit beasts, water-walking spirit beasts, all kinds available! Don’t miss out as you pass by!" A voice like a broken gong came from ahead, full of enthusiasm, attracting the attention of the people nearby.

"This voice..." Yuan Ming’s expression froze as he looked over.

Not far ahead, a large shop appeared. It occupied a large area, with white walls and green tiles, standing out among the surrounding shops.

Through the open door, he could see part of the shop’s interior, where many cages were placed, containing various fierce beasts. The young man hawking at the entrance of the shop was a round-faced youth with thick eyebrows and big eyes. It was Yuan Ming’s old acquaintance, Zhao Tong.

"Is that him? What is he doing in Black Rock City?" Yuan Ming was quite surprised.

His gaze then moved upward to the plaque hanging above the shop’s door, which read "Bi Luo Shop" in golden characters on a white background.

"Bi Luo Shop? They’re selling spirit beasts, and Zhao Tong is soliciting business here. It seems this shop is an official business of Bi Luo Cave?" Yuan Ming thought, his heart still not settled.

He had known for a long time that there were businesses of Bi Luo Cave in Black Rock City, but he never expected that they would be selling spirit beasts.

Bi Luo Cave was famous in the Northern Region for its beast taming. Spirit beasts could be considered the foundation of Bi Luo Cave, and they were willing to sell them in Black Rock City?

The current Yuan Ming naturally didn’t know that the daily expenses of the sect were quite large, and the various resources and spiritual materials required were not small. Bi Luo Cave couldn’t be completely self-sufficient and needed to interact with the outside world regularly. The shops set up in various markets were one of the important channels and sources of income.

In the face of absolute benefits and needs, it was normal to sell spirit beasts, which were the foundation of the sect, as long as the price was not cheap.

The spirit beasts of Bi Luo Cave were quite popular. From time to time, people were attracted to go in, and most of the people who came out had smiles on their faces and an extra spirit beast bag around their waists.

Yuan Ming already had a Black Toad and had no intention of buying more spirit beasts. Under such circumstances, he had no plans to catch up with Zhao Tong, so he walked past as if nothing had happened.

After passing a few medium and small shops, another large shop appeared ahead. The entrance was deserted, and a plaque hung above it, reading "Black Fire Pavilion" in large characters.

"Black Fire Pavilion? Could it be like Bi Luo Shop, a business of the Black Fire Sect in this city?" Yuan Ming looked into the Black Fire Pavilion.

The layout of the Black Fire Pavilion was quite different from ordinary shops. From the entrance, one could only see a few counters and couldn’t tell what the shop was selling.

Yuan Ming activated his divine sense and quickly scanned the inside.

The layout of the Black Fire Pavilion was similar to that of the Bi Luo Shop, with many sealed cages and cabinets inside. However, instead of spirit beasts, they contained various refined corpses and ghostly entities.

Seeing this, Yuan Ming had no more doubts.

The Black Fire Sect was a sect known for controlling refined corpses and raising ghostly entities. This Black Fire Pavilion must be a business of the Black Fire Sect.

"Bi Luo Cave and Black Fire Sect both have shops here. The other three sects in the Southern and Northern Regions, the Hundred Poison Cave, Beast King Sect, and Green Rock Association, probably all have shops here too." Yuan Ming thought.

According to the information about the Five Sects of the Northern Region that he had crammed before leaving, the Black Fire Sect, known for controlling corpses and driving ghosts, was the strongest, and the other four sects were not much different.

The Hundred Poison Cave was good at using poison, especially controlling various poisonous insects, which had some similarities with the beast taming of Bi Luo Cave.

The Beast King Sect was skilled in totem tattooing techniques, which could enhance physical strength and was good at close combat.As for the Qingyan Society located in the Kas Clan, it’s rather unique. This sect occupies the largest spirit stone mine in the northern region of the Southern Frontier, making it the wealthiest among the five sects.

The Qingyan Society is the youngest sect, originally a large-scale commercial guild. It has maintained long-term trade relations with sects like the Biluo Cave. After establishing the sect, it expanded the spirit stone business to other areas of the Southern Frontier, and even to the Central Plains of the Great Jin.

In terms of cultivation methods and secret techniques, the Qingyan Society doesn’t have any unique features. The cultivation methods practiced by the disciples within the society are all based on spirit stones, either purchased or learned from the other four sects. Since they started trading with the Great Jin, they have also learned the spells of the Central Plains, making the sect a melting pot of various techniques.

Although the other four sects are not pleased with this, they all need the spirit stones from the Qingyan Society, so they have to turn a blind eye. Over the years, they have managed to coexist peacefully.

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