Witch Clan Secret Market

Stepping onto the path paved with massive white beast bones, they found the dense miasma around them seemingly pushed aside by an invisible force, forming a relatively clear passage.

The beast bones beneath their feet were cold and hard, emanating a faint pressure. They had clearly been anything but ordinary in life.

Still shaken, Zhiwei followed closely behind Li Su and said softly, "Fellow Daoist Mo Xing, that was truly terrifying just now... Those Witch People, and that Old Witch Doctor—their auras were so frightening.

It seemed they let us pass in the end because of some 'Unyielding Intent' on you?"

Li Su's bamboo body swayed as his divine sense swept over the surroundings. Only after confirming that it was safe did he reply, "I do not fully understand it either.

Perhaps some encounters from my earlier years left behind traces of a special aura, which he happened to sense."

He did not explain the matter of the Bedrock Rune in detail. It was far too important.

Zhiwei seemed to understand, yet not entirely. Still, she did not press further. The way she looked at Li Su now held even more mystery and reverence.

The bone bridge wound deep into the marsh. Gray-black miasma churned on both sides, and enormous shadows occasionally swam through it, giving off heart-palpitating auras. Yet none of them dared approach the bone bridge.

From the pitch-black marsh water below, massive bubbles occasionally rose and burst, releasing an even stronger stench of decay.

The two traveled in silence. After walking for more than half a day, the miasma ahead gradually thinned, and the edge of the marsh could vaguely be seen.

However, at that moment, the miasma beside the bone bridge suddenly rippled slightly. A smaller figure emerged and blocked their path.

It was a Witch Person who looked like a human youth, with bronze skin and lively eyes. He wore less body paint and more refined leather armor, and held a bone dagger in his hand.

He curiously examined Li Su, especially the Mo Xing Bamboo Body, and said, "Hey! You bamboo spirit! Are you the outsider Grandpa Witch Doctor mentioned, the one carrying 'Unyielding Intent'?"

Li Su stopped. His divine sense swept over the youth, revealing strength roughly equivalent to the early Earth Immortal realm. His aura was pure, and he bore no ill intent. "That is correct. What guidance do you have, young friend?"

The young Witch Person scratched his head and said, "My name is Chi. Grandpa Witch Doctor told me to wait here for you and take you somewhere."

Li Su's heart stirred slightly. "Where? We still need to continue our journey."

"Don't worry, it won't delay you for long. It's a good place, very important to our Witch Clan. Outsiders can't enter at all! Grandpa Witch Doctor said you might be interested."

Chi's tone carried a hint of pride and mystery. "And there might be something there that you need."

Something he needed? Li Su pondered. The Old Witch Doctor appeared rough and uncouth, but he was actually meticulous. Since he had deliberately arranged for someone to wait here, there had to be a deeper purpose.

Perhaps it was a fortuitous opportunity? Moreover, the other party had shown goodwill. Rejecting him rashly might invite trouble.

"In that case, I will trouble you to lead the way, young friend." Li Su decided to take a look.

Chi grinned, clearly delighted. "Follow me!" He turned and plunged into the miasma beside them.

Li Su and Zhiwei followed close behind. Chi waved the bone dagger in his hand, and the miasma ahead naturally parted into a narrow path. He was clearly extremely familiar with this place.

After countless twists and turns, the view suddenly opened up ahead, revealing a vast, crude plaza built from enormous beast bones and black boulders.

The plaza was unexpectedly bustling! Many Witch People had gathered there, setting up stalls and exchanging all sorts of goods.

The goods came in every variety: beast bones and fangs radiating powerful blood and vitality, strange ores and herbs, and even some broken artifact fragments inscribed with ancient witch script.

The currency used for trade was mostly the blood essence and souls of Fierce Beasts, or special ores.

This was actually an internal trading market of the Witch Clan!

Seeing Chi bring in a bamboo plant and a Rabbit Demon, the Witch People in the market all cast curious looks their way. But after sensing the faint trace of "Unyielding Intent" on Li Su and noticing Chi, they showed no hostility, merely whispering among themselves.

"Chi, why have you brought outsiders in?" a burly Witch Person manning a stall asked in a deep, muffled voice.

Chi held his head high. "Grandpa Witch Doctor approved it! This bamboo friend bears 'Unyielding Intent' and is an honored guest!"

Upon hearing "Grandpa Witch Doctor" and "Unyielding Intent," the Witch People immediately became respectful. They asked no more questions and instead studied Li Su curiously.

Chi led Li Su through the market and said in a low voice, "This is our tribe's secret market. It is only open to our own people, though members of other friendly tribes occasionally come.

There are many things here that cannot be found outside. Grandpa Witch Doctor said you cultivate the power of stars, so perhaps you need this." He pointed toward a stall in the corner.

The stall owner was a taciturn old woman. Only several dark, unremarkable stones lay on her stall, but Li Su could sense that they contained incomparably pure stellar power! It was even purer and richer than the fragments of Stellar Crystal Stone he had obtained before!

"These are... Meteor Cores?" Li Su's divine sense stirred. He had seen similar records in the miscellaneous chapters of the Minor Chiliad Array Analysis. They were cores formed after fragments of extraterrestrial stars fell to the earth and were scoured by earth-vein baleful energy for hundreds of millions of years, shedding all impurities. They contained the most fundamental stellar essence and were exceedingly rare!

The old woman lifted her eyelids and glanced at Li Su. In a hoarse voice, she said, "Three drops of heart's blood essence from a Celestial Immortal-level Fierce Beast, or something of equal value."

The price was steep. Blood essence from Celestial Immortal-level Fierce Beasts was extremely difficult to acquire. Li Su had no such items on him, and the other party clearly did not want Spirit Stones.

After pondering for a moment, he took out an item—the jade slip of the Fiend Blood Spirit Refining Art that he had obtained from the short cultivator of the Fiend Blood Sect.

"This is a method for controlling blood-baleful power. Though it is not an orthodox path, it may offer your clan some reference in tempering blood and vitality and honing combat techniques. Can it be exchanged?"

The old woman accepted the jade slip and examined it briefly with her divine sense. A glint of light flashed through her dim yellow eyes. The Witch Clan did not cultivate primordial spirits, but they valued blood, vitality, and will. This type of method could indeed offer them a different line of thought.

She studied Li Su carefully, then sensed that trace of "Unyielding Intent" again. Slowly, she nodded. "It can."

The trade was completed. Li Su exchanged the useless jade slip for three Meteor Cores the size of pigeon eggs.

Holding the Meteor Cores, he felt the pure and vast power of stellar origin within them, making even his bamboo body tremble slightly. They were absolutely fine treasures! They would be of immense benefit to his cultivation of stellar divine abilities and the tempering of his bamboo body!

Once the trade was complete, Chi lowered his voice again. "Grandpa Witch Doctor also told me to tell you that if you keep heading northwest and pass the Wall of Sighs, you will see the lands of Kunlun.

But that place... has not been peaceful lately. There have been disturbances in the Fierce Beast tide, and... some bad shadows have been moving about. He told you to be extremely careful."

The Wall of Sighs? Bad shadows? Li Su committed the information to memory, feeling even more grateful toward the Old Witch Doctor. "Thank you, young friend. Please also convey my thanks to Senior Witch Doctor."

After leaving the Witch Clan secret market and returning to the bone bridge, Zhiwei finally let out a long breath only after they had left the Shadowed Marsh. Patting her chest, she said, "That was... far too exciting.

I never expected the Witch Clan to be like this inside." She then looked curiously at the Meteor Cores in Li Su's hand. "Fellow Daoist Mo Xing, these stones seem very impressive?"

"Yes, they are of great benefit to me." Li Su put away the Meteor Cores and looked toward the northwest. "Let us go. The road ahead seems even more unsettled."

The Wall of Sighs, the Fierce Beast tide, bad shadows... It seemed the road to Kunlun would not be smooth sailing.