Picking Up a Bargain

After the night had passed, the remaining members of the Dragon Tiger Mercenary Group discovered something that filled them with terror: their two leaders, along with every elite mercenary in the group, had been slaughtered within their own headquarters.

Everyone fell into a panic. The Dragon Tiger Mercenary Group was nowhere near as upright as their second leader, Ge Hu, claimed. They had committed no shortage of atrocities in Black Stone City. Though calling it a city was giving them too much credit—it was only the size of a town. Otherwise, it would never have been their turn to throw their weight around.

What was more, the newly arrived Blood Saber Mercenary Group had been growing increasingly arrogant lately, provoking them time and again. Their chief's death might very well have had something to do with the Blood Saber Mercenary Group.

Under such circumstances, the remaining mercenaries of the Dragon Tiger Mercenary Group grew ever more terrified. Some fled, while others switched sides and joined the Blood Saber Mercenary Group. Those with more nerve even looted the valuables, gold, and silver from the Dragon Tiger Mercenary Group's former headquarters, setting off wave after wave of chaos there. As more mercenaries fled, even greater disorder spread through the town.

When Liu Xi got up that morning and stepped outside to see the chaotic town, he could only sigh at how truly lawless the Black Corner Region was. He no longer had any interest in hunting for bargains in Black Stone City and left alone for somewhere else.

In the Black Corner Region, all the evil within human nature seemed to have been unleashed. As Liu Xi ventured deeper into some of its larger cities, he gained a thorough understanding of the world's dangers.

Liu Xi had encountered several roadside robberies where people tried to kill him for his wealth; he had run into shady inns where they tried to poison him; once, in Yunfeng Town, he had nearly been lured into a honey trap; and as for pickpockets in crowds, he had encountered too many to count on both hands.

Three months later.

Under the blazing sun, Liu Xi walked down the road back to the academy, looking somewhat weary. When Black Stone City came into view again, he raised a hand and rubbed his brow, unable to help thinking.

"Finally, I'm back. These three months really weren't easy! Robbery, poison, theft—they kept me on guard even when resting. My mind is exhausted."

After the Dragon Tiger Mercenary Group in Black Stone City had been wiped out, the initial chaos had left Zhao Hai, the chief of the Blood Saber Mercenary Group, somewhat flustered when he received the news.

He knew that although he had always wanted to replace the Dragon Tiger Mercenary Group, he had not been responsible for this incident. He suspected that some mysterious expert had destroyed the Dragon Tiger Mercenary Group. If so, would that person turn around and wipe out his Blood Saber Mercenary Group as well?

Yet Zhao Hai remained unharmed. Then, seeing chaos erupt in the marketplace, inns, and shops formerly controlled by the Dragon Tiger Mercenary Group, he became excited. This was the best opportunity for them to replace the Dragon Tiger Mercenary Group and rule Black Stone City. Before long, Zhao Hai led his men to seize those places, taking over the Dragon Tiger Mercenary Group's former position.

After entering the city, Liu Xi saw such a scene: mercenaries constantly came and went from the inns and marketplace. They drank and bragged in the inns, erupting into roaring laughter from time to time. In the marketplace, they set up stalls and hawked their spoils—low-grade monster cores, herbs still carrying the scent of earth, weapons, and the like.

"Looks like order has been restored. I can take a look around the marketplace later. For now, I should find somewhere to stay," Liu Xi murmured as he watched the bustling scene.

Liu Xi casually found an inn, booked a room and a table of food and wine, settled his lunch, then picked up his sword and prepared to stroll around the marketplace.

Looking at the pile of junk on a stall, the young stall owner enthusiastically explained his heap of "treasures." Liu Xi kindly chose not to expose him, merely smiling before moving on to the next stall.

He had not found a single decent treasure even in some large cities. Those so-called treasures were not even as good as a Fourth-grade Pill he could casually refine! Things in a remote little town like this were naturally even worse. Liu Xi had already released his Spiritual Power to inspect them. Under his soul perception, the herbs and weapons displayed by those stall owners were dull and lifeless, without a trace of spirituality.

As Liu Xi pondered this, he suddenly felt the Spiritual Power he had spread out for perception become disturbed in one location. His brows tightened. "What's going on? Is there something wrong with my soul perception?"

Liu Xi stood up and looked toward the place where his perception had just been disrupted. The source turned out to be a Black Iron Scroll displayed in front of a burly man not far away.

Relaxing his brow, he walked over and pointed at the Black Iron Scroll as he asked the burly man, "Big Brother, what's the deal with this scroll? It's forged from iron and can't be opened. What could it possibly be used for?"

When the burly man saw a handsome youth carrying a sword approach and directly ask about the Black Iron Scroll he had picked up long ago and left gathering dust, he sensed an opportunity. Putting on an enthusiastic smile, he introduced it, "Young Master, this is a divine technique scroll passed down by my ancestors. Unfortunately, my family has fallen on hard times, and I still can't unravel the secret of the scroll. I have no choice but to sell it now, in the hopes that someone destined for it can uncover its secret."

"I've had it sitting here all this time, yet Young Master was the only one to notice it at a glance. Young Master must be the chosen one this scroll has been waiting for. If you can unlock the scroll's secret, you will surely become an expert one day."

"Big Brother, do I look that easy to fool?" Liu Xi looked speechlessly at the man spouting nonsense. That kind of story might fool a three-year-old child.

"Young Master, don't doubt me! This truly was passed down by my ancestors, a genuine secret divine technique," the burly man immediately retorted.

"Fine. How much is this divine technique scroll of yours?" Though Liu Xi did not believe a single word the man said, the scroll had disrupted his perception, so it might truly be something valuable. He decided to buy it and study it later.

"Young Master, this scroll is an invaluable family heirloom. It's only because I desperately need money that I have no choice but to sell it. Since we're so fated, I'll let you have it for 500 Gold Coins." Upon hearing him ask the price, the burly man wore a pained expression.

"Five hundred Gold Coins isn't expensive. I'll take it." Liu Xi raised a brow, took out 500 Gold Coins from his Storage Ring, tossed them onto the burly man's stall, and reached for the Black Iron Scroll.

"This guy clearly doesn't even know the scroll's true value. He's just naming an outrageous price. But no one in Black Stone City can hurt me anyway, so I can't be bothered haggling with him."

The burly man was completely stunned. He had merely named a price at random and never expected to actually sell it for that much. Only after Liu Xi put away the scroll and turned to leave did he come back to his senses. Excitedly, he gathered the Gold Coins from his stall. Once he picked up the last one, he raised his head to look at Liu Xi's retreating figure, his eyes filled with greed and cruelty.

Surprised that he had actually found a bargain in such a small place, Liu Xi kept his soul perception active as he walked through the entire marketplace. Yet under his soul perception, he found nothing else where spirituality had gathered.

Liu Xi was not disappointed. After all, opportunities were things one could encounter only by chance.

After returning to his room at the inn and closing the doors and windows, he released his Spiritual Power to check whether anyone nearby was following him.

Once he confirmed that no one was watching him, Liu Xi took out the Black Iron Scroll. Other than being forged from Fine Iron, it looked like an ordinary scroll. There were no patterns on it either, and there was indeed nothing unusual to be seen with the naked eye.

But since it could disrupt his perception, it should be related to the soul. Liu Xi sat cross-legged on the bed as Spiritual Power surged from between his brows and entered the scroll.

Boom—

When his soul entered the scroll, all he saw was darkness. Within it, a point of light flickered. Liu Xi chased after that point of light and flew toward it, only to find a sphere of light the size of a human head.

He reached out a finger and touched the sphere. To his surprise, the moment he made contact, the affected portion of his Spiritual Power became completely uncontrollable. The loss of control over his Spiritual Power immediately sent waves of dizziness through his mind.

Liu Xi gritted his teeth and quickly drew back the Spiritual Power that had not yet spread out. He condensed a sword and slashed at the sphere of light. That sensation of his soul scattering came again, but fortunately, Liu Xi's soul was far tougher than ordinary. After steadying himself, he put more force into the hand wielding the sword.

Bang—

Like an eggshell shattering, Liu Xi finally broke the sphere of light. The shattered sphere turned into points of light that gathered into golden words.

Liu Xi finally regained complete control over his Spiritual Power.

"Phew..."

Liu Xi let out a breath, then focused on the golden words and read, "Illusory Heart Technique."

After reading through it once, Liu Xi could not suppress a soft laugh.

The Illusory Heart Technique could be considered a high-level soul skill. It fused Spiritual Power into one's five senses and left no trace when activated. It acted directly upon the opponent's soul, pulling them into a lifelike illusion.

Once trapped in the illusion, unless the caster released them voluntarily, the only way to escape was through a soul that was tougher and more powerful.

Liu Xi had never expected such an opportunity to come his way. Obtaining this divine skill was completely beyond his expectations—though on second thought, perhaps it was only natural.

This soul skill had been sealed inside a Black Iron Scroll that could not be opened. To discover the scroll's special nature, one could only rely on Spiritual Power. In this era, those with powerful Spiritual Power were mostly High-level Alchemists, but no High-level Alchemist would come to such a remote little town.

That was why this soul skill, practically miraculous in nature, had remained undiscovered all this time—until Liu Xi sensed it.

Liu Xi spent the entire night excitedly studying it. Only at dawn the next day did he reluctantly put the scroll away. He stood, stretched his limbs a little, licked his slightly dry lips, and said, "Time to head back."