diskusbooks Chapter 148 - 130: Trip to the Black Market (2)
Chapter 148 - 130: Trip to the Black Market (2)
Fang Qingyuan nodded, allowing the flying shuttle to dock at the island’s pier. He then led Jinbao off the shuttle and stood waiting on the pier.
Jinbao’s massive form drew the gazes of many Cultivators the moment it appeared, but it paid them no mind. Instead, it stayed close behind Fang Qingyuan, ever-vigilant.
Fang Qingyuan glanced at the surrounding Cultivators and, noticing they were all Qi Cultivation Cultivators, signaled for Jinbao to relax. He didn’t need Jinbao to handle Qi Cultivation Cultivators; his own Scorpion-tailed Poison Bees would suffice.
After Shi Yuanzhe disembarked, he led the way. When the surrounding Cultivators saw him treating a Qi Cultivation Cultivator with such reverence, they understood that Fang Qingyuan was not someone to be trifled with. They quickly averted their gazes and turned to watch the next arriving flying shuttle.
After leaving the pier, Fang Qingyuan flew with Shi Yuanzhe for some time before arriving at their destination: a massive three-story building.
Inside, the layout was that of a familiar auction house. The only slight difference from the ones in White Mountain and the Southern Border was that some of the items auctioned here were taboo.
Perhaps because the Chaotic Star Sea Region was rather lawless, many of the items auctioned were meant for combat and killing. As for the water- and fire-element spiritual materials Fang Qingyuan hoped to collect, water-attribute ones were common enough, but fire-attribute items rarely appeared.
As the auction drew to a close, three drops of Profound Yuan Heavy Water were presented as the finale. The auction house craftily sold them one by one. After Fang Qingyuan won a single drop for three thousand two hundred Spirit Stones, he had no interest in being a sucker and overpaying for another.
Throughout the auction, including his purchase of the Profound Yuan Heavy Water, Fang Qingyuan spent nearly five thousand Spirit Stones. Adding this to his expenses from the last six-plus months, he had now spent over ten thousand Spirit Stones in a single year.
He had only been on Sea Gate Island for a year, yet over twenty thousand Spirit Stones had already slipped through his fingers. Although every Spirit Stone had been spent on something of value, Fang Qingyuan couldn’t help but feel a pang of anxiety.
’It’s about time I made some Spirit Stones. Otherwise, at this rate of spending, I won’t last ten years.’
After they left the island, Shi Yuanzhe watched Fang Qingyuan’s expression aboard the flying shuttle, looking as if he wanted to speak but was hesitating.
Fang Qingyuan knew exactly what Shi Yuanzhe’s behavior meant, so he pretended not to notice and instead focused on studying the newly acquired drop of Profound Yuan Heavy Water.
The drop of Profound Yuan Heavy Water was sealed inside a piece of amber. A bead of pure black water was embedded in the yellow gem, making for a beautiful sight.
But Fang Qingyuan knew that while the Profound Yuan Heavy Water looked harmless now, he would be engulfed by a vast ocean if it ever broke through its seal.
A single drop of Profound Yuan Heavy Water held the volume of an entire lake. Placed in a desert, this tiny bead would be enough to create a temporary oasis.
Fang Qingyuan planned to use this drop of Profound Yuan Heavy Water as the key spiritual material for breaking through the aptitude bottleneck of his Water Spirit Root, just as he had with the third-tier, low-grade Sea Purple Agarwood.
However, his Water Spirit Root aptitude was currently only at eighteen points, not even meeting the minimum threshold for a Middle-grade Spirit Root.
Many years had now passed, but Fang Qingyuan’s Spirit Root aptitudes hadn’t changed much. His wood and earth aptitudes remained at thirty, and his fire at fifteen. His metal, however, had risen by one point to its current thirty-two.
Once a Spirit Root’s aptitude reached the level of a Top-grade Spirit Root, every subsequent point of increase demanded even more resources and time.
The severe imbalance among his five elemental Spirit Root aptitudes posed a significant problem for the Cultivation Technique he was currently practicing.
’Whether it’s refining my Fire Spirit in sequence or Reverse Refining my Water Spirit, my aptitude in both elements is currently too poor. My Metal Spirit Root is strong, but if I transition from wood to metal, the amount of Spiritual Power I’d lose would be beyond my imagination.’
This was a problem he had to solve before Foundation Establishment. At his current cultivation speed, it would take him nearly another ten years to cultivate his Wood Spirit to the stage of Qi Cultivation Ninth-Layer Perfection.
While Fang Qingyuan was deep in thought about the issues with his Cultivation Technique and aptitudes, Shi Yuanzhe, who had been standing by his side, finally couldn’t hold back any longer.
"Fellow Daoist Fang, was the auction to your liking?"
Fang Qingyuan pulled himself from his thoughts, looked at Shi Yuanzhe, and smiled.
"It was decent, all in all, but still a little short of what I was truly looking for."
Hearing this, Shi Yuanzhe’s interest was piqued. He said mysteriously,
"Fellow Daoist Fang, you’ve accompanied me to these sorts of places many times now. It’s clear to me that you’re a man who has seen the wider world. These small-time affairs aren’t exciting enough for you. If you’re looking to buy something a little different, I have connections."
The smile on Shi Yuanzhe’s face was like that of a smug Tibetan fox. As for the "connections" he mentioned, Fang Qingyuan only had to think for a moment to know they involved business that couldn’t be done out in the open.
’However, this is exactly what I want to hear. The more clandestine the business, the fewer the buyers. And with fewer buyers, something originally worth a fortune might be had for a fraction of the price.’
At this thought, Fang Qingyuan said with keen interest,
"For example?"
Shi Yuanzhe leaned in and whispered,
"Seven days from now, a Black Market will be held on Nanming Island. All sorts of things you can’t find on the open market will be auctioned off. If Fellow Daoist Fang is interested in taking a look, I can make the arrangements for you."
Fang Qingyuan was tempted, but he maintained an impassive expression as he watched Shi Yuanzhe, signaling for him to continue.
Seeing he had Fang Qingyuan’s interest, Shi Yuanzhe continued,
"You don’t need to worry about safety. The Island Master of Nanming Island actually has deep ties to the Sea Gate Island Master. Think about it—the Black Market is held just a short distance from Sea Gate Island. How could it possibly operate without the Sea Gate Island Master’s permission?"