White Dragon Mountain Black Market

The largest Black Market near Guiyun Marketplace was White Dragon Mountain. Located more than a thousand li northwest of Guiyun Marketplace, it was controlled by several Foundation Establishment Rogue Cultivators. The White Dragon Mountain Black Market opened once a month, and it was said to contain many things that could not even be found in Guiyun Marketplace. Many cultivators from around Guiyun Marketplace went there to purchase spiritual items.

After all, the Black Market dealt in many things that could not bear the light of day. It never concerned itself with the origins of the goods being sold; Rogue Cultivators, bandits, and all sorts of people gathered there. It had always been scorned by the righteous sects, and the Carefree Sect expressly forbade its disciples from going to such places.

"Senior Shi, when I was in the Marketplace, I heard from a friend that Foundation Establishment Pills were sold in the Black Markets near Guiyun Marketplace. Do you know whether that is true? Does the White Dragon Mountain Black Market have such a spiritual item?" Seeing that the atmosphere had been prepared well enough, Song Qingming casually asked the question he had been meaning to ask.

"Foundation Establishment Pills? Old Man does not know whether such a thing is real or not. I have heard people say before that Foundation Establishment Pills were auctioned at White Dragon Mountain, but I have never seen one with my own eyes, so I do not know whether it was true. Many such rumors are deliberately spread by those people to lure cultivators there. Even if they do have them, it has nothing to do with people like us, does it?"

Shi Mofeng was somewhat surprised to hear Song Qingming ask about Foundation Establishment Pills. He gave Song Qingming a meaningful look. In the eyes of a Rogue Cultivator like himself, he would probably never even have the chance to smell a Foundation Establishment Pill in his lifetime. How could he have expected Song Qingming to ask him about news of one?

Seeing Shi Mofeng's confusion, Song Qingming hurriedly explained, "This junior merely heard of it and asked in passing. The news is probably false. Sigh, I had thought I might be fortunate enough to see a Foundation Establishment Pill."

"That is hard to say. You are still young, and you may encounter such an opportunity in the future. However, if we are talking about where a Foundation Establishment Pill might appear near Guiyun Marketplace, then only White Dragon Mountain is likely to have one. But the Black Market does not welcome strangers. If you want to go, you can ask Old Ghost Feng from the team to take you along and serve as your guide. Whenever someone from our side wants to go, they ask him to lead the way. He is familiar with that place and goes there at least two or three times a year. It is safer with him leading you. You must be exceedingly careful in a place like that. Many Bandit Cultivators wanted in the Marketplaces appear there, and if you are not careful, it is easy to catch someone's eye. Old Ghost Feng is somewhat stingy, but he is still righteous enough. As long as you do not treat him poorly, there should not be much of a problem with your safety."

Song Qingming repeatedly nodded after hearing this. "Thank you for your guidance, Senior. If this junior goes in the future, I will certainly be careful."

The Old Ghost Feng mentioned by Shi Mofeng was a Sixth Layer of Qi Refining cultivator in their team. He had received that nickname only because his appearance was rather ugly. Yet his Metal-element Cultivation Method was exceptionally powerful, and he also had a puppet to assist him in battle. His combat strength was quite formidable, and he sometimes even dared to fight High-grade Demonic Beasts.

Song Qingming's impression of Old Ghost Feng was fairly good. The man was indeed somewhat petty by nature, but once, while Song Qingming was on a mission, he had been pursued by several Mid-grade Demonic Beasts. Old Ghost Feng had happened to be nearby. Every member of the Flying Cloud Guard carried some spiritual items for seeking aid. If they became entangled with Demonic Beasts during a mission, they could release these distress signals, and fellow cultivators nearby were required to come to their rescue.

When Old Ghost Feng saw Song Qingming release the distress signal, he was the first to arrive at the scene, being closest to him. After the two expended some effort, they finally managed to escape. Later, Song Qingming went to thank him in person, but Old Ghost Feng insisted that Song Qingming compensate him with two Spirit Talismans, claiming that he had used them to rush over and save him. Song Qingming had no choice but to give them to him. Though he knew Old Ghost Feng might have been making it up, the man had saved him once after all. How could a few Spirit Talismans be more important to Song Qingming than his own safety?

Shi Mofeng and Song Qingming chatted for a while longer. Seeing that it had grown late outside and that he had nothing more to ask, Song Qingming rose to take his leave. Yet when he reached the door, Shi Mofeng stopped him.

"Young Friend Song, I heard that you are also a Formation Master. Some time ago, I happened to refine a magic robe, but I have yet to find a Formation Master to inscribe formations upon it. If you have the time, I would like to ask you to inscribe one or two formations on it. Do not worry, the reward will certainly not be lower than what you would receive in the Marketplace."

"Senior Shi has resolved many of this junior's doubts today. How could I dare speak of compensation for such a small matter? This junior will certainly do my utmost in inscribing the formations. Please rest assured, Senior."

After speaking, Song Qingming deliberately took out a packet of Spirit Tea and pressed it into Shi Mofeng's hands. Having learned so much from the old man today, Song Qingming naturally did not wish to take advantage of him for nothing.

Shi Mofeng smiled and nodded upon hearing this, then left Song Qingming's residence in satisfaction.

The next day, Old Man Shi truly brought over a magic robe. It gleamed with golden light and was clearly a High-grade Magic Robe. Song Qingming had never expected that Old Man Shi, who looked unremarkable and handled matters with such smooth finesse, was actually a High-grade Artifact Refiner. This surprised him somewhat.

He immediately regarded him in a new light and felt an additional measure of respect. Even among the Flying Cloud Guard, a High-grade Artifact Refiner possessed a highly sought-after skill.

At first, Song Qingming had only known that he was an Artifact Refiner. He had not expected his Artifact Refining skill to be so high.

These people spent every day amid the Floating Cloud Mountain Range, where Demonic Beasts appeared and disappeared. Though their superiors had explicitly decreed that, in order to avoid unnecessary trouble, they were only responsible for scouting information on Demonic Beasts and were forbidden from taking the initiative to attack them, lest they draw Level 2 Demonic Beasts to harass the camp.

However, most members of the Flying Cloud Guard paid little heed to this rule. People often attacked Demonic Beasts directly outside the camp, and among the Demonic Beast Materials they obtained, Artifact Refiners and Talisman Masters had the greatest opportunity to put their skills to use.

Leaders like Lu Yunfei also turned a blind eye to such matters. So long as no Demonic Beasts were drawn into attacking the camp, they could not be bothered to interfere.

Song Qingming had been here for two months and had acquired quite a bit of Mid-grade Demonic Beast blood essence. Unfortunately, when he arrived, he had known nothing of these circumstances and had made no preparations in that regard. He had not brought any blank Talisman Paper with him, nor could he obtain any in this place.

The Flying Cloud Guard rotated out only once every three months. Even if he wanted to return to Guiyun Marketplace, he would have to wait another month. For these two months, this Mid-grade Talisman Master had been completely unable to display his abilities.

It was precisely for this reason that Song Qingming had readily agreed to help Shi Mofeng inscribe formations on his magic robe.

Inscribing formations onto a magic robe was much like drawing spells into Spirit Talismans. It meant embedding originally existing spells into these magic artifacts through the patterns of formations, allowing the artifacts to automatically release certain spells and somewhat enhancing their effects. However, these were mostly small and common spells, and the improvement they brought to magic artifacts was very limited.

After spending three days, Song Qingming finally completed the formations on Shi Mofeng's magic robe. This time, he had inscribed two low-grade formations. One was the Water Repelling Art, which had only an auxiliary effect. It allowed the cultivator wearing the magic robe to automatically ward off rainwater, and even when walking through water, their clothes would not become wet.

The other was the Golden Light Shield, which could automatically release a Metal-element light shield to block a single attack when faced with a surprise assault. However, this spell was not of a high grade and could only withstand offensive spells from the Early Qi Refining Stage. Against opponents in the middle or later stages of Qi Refining, the shield could only serve to delay them, giving the owner of the magic robe a little more time to react.

Over the past few years, Song Qingming's Formation Skill had also improved greatly. After comprehending the Liu Family's Formation Canon, his Formation Skill had reached the brink of a breakthrough. With another year or two of steady accumulation, he was confident he could attempt to become a Mid-grade Formation Master. Inscribing two low-grade formations now was no difficult task for him.