Black Market

"Why... did you drag me here?"

Ling Xin and Luo Jun arrived at a secluded corner near the Experiment Building. Ling Xin looked around and, finding no other students following, looked at Luo Jun somewhat awkwardly.

"Well..." Luo Jun smiled, leaned forward, and whispered, "Of course, we'll talk about things that others can't hear, hehe..."

Hearing this, Ling Xin's cheeks flushed red. She instinctively raised her hand, a golden, transparent blade materializing at her fingertips, which she held in front of Luo Jun: "Don't come closer. Say what you have to say over there..."

"Hey, watch out!" Luo Jun immediately raised his hands and took a step back. He had a deep impression of Ling Xin's Demon-Breaking Golden Edge. Although he had never actually experienced it, he was not sure if his own Gathering Origin Protective Qi could withstand the Demon-Breaking Golden Edge.

Seeing Ling Xin's resistance, he guessed that he was probably not very popular, but since he had already called her out, he decided to express his thoughts.

"What? You want to go to the black market?" Ling Xin blinked. "That's it? Nothing else?"

"Yeah, what else?" Luo Jun shrugged.

Ling Xin a sigh of relief, put away the Golden Edge at her fingertips, and looked at Luo Jun again. "Do you have something you want to sell?"

"My family's wealth is very meager..." Luo Jun waved his hand with a smile, "I mainly want to broaden my horizons."

"That's not a place to broaden your horizons!" Ling Xin said. "The black market is full of Cultivators from all walks of life, especially Rogue Cultivator. Although most Rogue Cultivator in Ningdong are law-abiding, there are still many unregistered members of the Yuan Cultivation Society who are not under official control. Dealing with them is risky!"

"It's alright, I'm such a well-behaved young man, I never cause trouble..." Luo Jun continued to persuade him.

"No..." Ling Xin shook her head and refused.

"It's not that you don't know, it's that you don't know." Luo Jun understood the implication in Ling Xin's words.

"What I say is always the same thing," Ling Xin insisted.

"Sigh, I should have known." Luo Jun hadn't held out much hope and said with some regret, "I was hoping to buy more equipment to participate in the Exchange Meeting, but it looks like that's out of the question..."

As he spoke, Luo Jun turned to leave, but was suddenly stopped by Ling Xin.

"You'd like to participate in the Exchange Meeting?"

"Yes." Luo Jun nodded. "However, at my level, it's too difficult to secure a spot through sheer strength, so I can only try to improve my equipment."

"This Exchange Meeting be held during the winter break, and all the participants will have to Training Camp together in a dormitory. There won't be any chance for a vacation." Ling Xin looked into Luo Jun's eyes. "Are you mentally prepared?"

Luo Jun spread his hands. "I was originally an orphan without a home, and I had nowhere to go during my vacation. This opportunity even includes room and board."

"But... items bought from the black market normally wouldn't pass inspection," Ling Xin continued.

"I have my own way of handling this." Luo Jun noticed that Ling Xin was very interested in the Exchange Meeting, so he continued, going along with her lead.

"Is that so..." Ling Xin thought for a moment, "Alright, considering how ambitious you are, I can take you to the black market..."

"Really?" Luo Jun was surprised that Ling Xin, who had so vehemently refused before, had finally agreed. Was she truly moved by his ambition?

"There's no need to go to all that trouble." Luo Jun seemed a little embarrassed. "Just tell me the date and location, and I'll go myself..."

"No!" Ling Xin shook her head and said, "You must come with me. Even in the black market, you can't wander off; you must stay by my side at all times!"

"Um... okay..." Luo Jun looked at Ling Xin: "Then when...?"

"Ningdong's largest black market only opens twice a month, once on the 1st and once on the 15th. Come find me at 6 PM on the 15th, and I'll take you there."

"The biggest black market? Is it in the West Suburbs?" Luo Jun recalled Tie Jingang mentioning it before.

"It seems you know quite a bit of information as well." Ling Xin nodded. "But don't try to go there on your own. Without my guidance, even if you know the location, you won't be able to find the entrance."

"Why is that?" Luo Jun asked, puzzled.

"That's not something you should be worrying about now. You'll find out later." Ling Xin waved her hand. "Remember, the 15th, see you there."

"Okay, thank you!" Luo Jun said sincerely.

After setting the date, Ling Xin turned and left.

"The 15th..." Luo Jun stroked his chin. "There's still about a week left. I definitely need to go to the black market, but if I'm with Ling Xin, I won't dare take any good stuff out, which would be pointless. I need to think of a way..."

In any case, he had found a way, and Luo Jun returned to his dormitory satisfied.

During the next few days of his holiday, he spent most of his time cultivating in his dormitory, preparing to break through to the next level as soon as possible.

Three days later, the Heinlein's Left Arm he had ordered also arrived. He tested it in the Experiment Building. The shield wasn't very strong, and the power of the energy cannon was just average, but it was good at both offense and defense, so it was still a useful piece of equipment.

Another noteworthy point is that in the past few days, Ningdong, and even Zhendan, have all come to the fore of a major event.

That is the Hell Creek Family, which has sent another delegation to Ningdong, and this delegation is led by a Peak Level elder.

However, this time they are not here for a friendly visit, but to demand an explanation.

According to the delegation, the entire team sent to Ningdong for exchanges had died Ningdong, and their purpose in coming was to investigate the cause of their deaths.

To be honest, the Yuan Cultivation Society had a premonition about this matter after the attack, so they made some preparations in advance. According to the rules, they naturally could not allow these foreign Cultivators to conduct investigations in Ningdong at will, especially since there was a Peak among the delegation this time.

Therefore, after being personally received by the Branch President Xu Pingfei, they were placed in the headquarters under the Victory Chocolate Factory. On the one hand, under the guise of hospitality, their movements were restricted, and on the other hand, it was promised that every effort would be made to find out the real culprit who killed Charles and others.

Of course, Xu Pingfei also mentioned the situation of the attacker who was suspected to be from the Hell Creek Family, but the delegation denied having any connection with that attacker.

While cursing these guys for their Crossing the River, Xu Pingfei was also secretly relieved that he didn't have to explain the fall of a Peak expert to the Hell Creek Family.

This incident, as major news, was featured on the front page of the Zhendan Cultivator Forum for several days. The stated purpose was to encourage Cultivators to provide clues to solve the case. However, the result was that a large number of Cultivators left comments below, angrily denouncing the arrogance of the Hell Creek Family and telling them to get out of Zhendan. Many also demanded that the Yuan Cultivation Society headquarters send people to deal with this delegation. Some even clamored that they would kill any member of the Hell Creek Family they saw in the future!

Upon seeing this, Luo Jun couldn't help but sigh, realizing that whether they were Cultivators or ordinary people, they were all the same on the internet.

No matter how powerful the Hell Creek Family, it's just a Lineage at best and can't represent the Federation. The Yuan Cultivation Society, on the other hand, can represent the Zhendan cultivation circle. It's already a great honor that a Federation Lineage came to Zhendan and a branch came to receive them. If the headquarters were to intervene, it would be beneath their status.

As for those clamoring to wipe out the members of the Hell Creek Family, that makes no sense at all. Luo Jun knows that the Hell Creek Family has been Kidnapping and attacking people in Ningdong, and they do deserve to be killed. But this information is not something that even the Yuan Cultivation Society may not have, let alone the general public.

Objectively speaking, from most people's perspective, it's simply a matter of a powerful cultivation Lineage sending an exchange delegation to Zhendan, only to have them all mysteriously wiped out. It's perfectly reasonable for the family to come looking for an explanation.

However, over the years, the cultivation circles of Zhendan and the Federation have been subtly competing. Although there has been no direct conflict, their relationship is definitely not good. Especially online, they look down on each other, and verbal battles have become almost daily occurrences. Under these circumstances, when someone stirred up trouble slightly under this news about the Yuan Cultivation Society, it immediately triggered a fierce reaction.

Luo Jun was also quite concerned about this news, mainly because he was worried that the investigation would fall on him. However, it seemed that Yuan Cultivation Society quite adept at playing the game of tai chi. No matter how strongly the Hell Creek Family condemned him, Xu Pingfei would just say "it's being handled" or "there are not enough clues," dragging things out as long as possible. As for the Hell Creek family, no matter how tough their attitude was, they ultimately didn't dare to cause trouble at the Ningdong branch and could only hide in the basement of the Victory Chocolate Factory, helpless.

Speaking of which, why haven't we heard anything from the Yuan Cultivation Society since they gave us those few vials of Eternal Virus Progenitor Fluid?

Luo Jun kept a close eye on the news, a sense of unease creeping into his mind. Developing an Eternal Virus capable of infecting different worlds—that alone was enough to label the Hell Creek Family a terrorist attack. If Yuan Cultivation Society produce those few vials of the virus's original solution, it would be a fatal blow. However, it seemed to have vanished without a trace, leaving no ripple whatsoever...

There must be some considerations above, which are not things that a mere student like Luo Jun should worry about. His most important task is to focus on cultivation and improving his strength.

Finally, as the days passed, the agreed-upon fifteenth arrived.

At six o'clock in the evening, Ling Xin arrived at the school gate and found that Luo Jun was already waiting there.

"Ling Xin, you're here?" Luo Jun's eyes lit up when he saw her, and he came to greet her from afar with a very attentive attitude.

Ling Xin nodded. "Have you prepared the things I asked you to prepare beforehand?"

Luo Jun nodded, and took out a mask and a large coat.

"Just ordinary clothes?" Ling Xin glanced at them. "These disguises are useless against Insight Faction Expert."

"Don't worry, with you here, no one dares to do anything to me!" Luo Jun subtly flattered Ling Xin.

Ling Xin glanced at him, nodded, and took out a mask, putting it on her face. It was the Zhang Jin mask she had worn before.

"Many people know about your mask, right?" Luo Jun asked curiously, "Isn't your concealment practically nonexistent?"

"I don't need to hide," Ling Xin said calmly. "I have some reputation in Ningdong's black market, and quite a few people know me. I wear a mask to prevent people from reading my micro-expressions during transactions."

"A true master is a master, skilled and daring!" Luo Jun gave a thumbs up.

"Don't flatter me." Ling Xin glanced at Luo Jun: "I look forward to the day when you won't need to hide your identity anymore."

"I believe that day will come!" Luo Jun nodded. "Thank you for your kind words!"

The two walked out of the academy gate, left Ningyuan Mountain, hailed a taxi, and headed towards the West Suburbs, completely unaware that an unseen figure was following them from a distance.

Ningdong West Suburbs is where the Ningdong Industrial Park is located. With the development of the city, many factories that were originally in the old city have moved to the western suburbs, making it the gathering place for Ningdong's wage earners. At this time, a large number of vehicles carrying people off work are heading from the western suburbs to the city center. Relatively speaking, the road to the western suburbs is relatively smooth, and the two of them arrived at their destination in no time.

Yuanqiang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd.., Ltd. is a well-established company with more than 30 years of history. Its owner, Zheng Yuanqiang, is a well-known entrepreneur in Ningdong and one of the wealthiest people in the country, frequently appearing in the financial sections of major newspapers and television.

"This is where the black market is located?" Luo Jun looked at the tall company gate and the clean, modern-looking park inside, and asked in surprise, "Is Zheng Yuanqiang a Cultivators?"

"What else did you think?" Ling Xin glanced at him. "He's not only Cultivators, but also one of the most famous Rogue Cultivator in Ningdong, and even Zhendan. Whether it's worldly wealth or his status in the cultivation world, he's not to be underestimated."

"So famous? Why have I never seen his name on the forum?" Luo Jun asked curiously.

"Because he's very mysterious," Ling Xin sighed. "Although this guy has a huge following, he hasn't made a move in a long time, and even the management of the black market is basically handled by his subordinates. Many people suspect that his worldly identity is just a decoy, and his real identity is nowhere to be found."

"Therefore, many people only know that Zheng Yuanqiang is a powerful Cultivators, but no one knows exactly how strong he is or what abilities he has. Many people suspect that he has reached his Peak, but it is just a suspicion. Because he hasn't made any major moves in recent decades, there is naturally very little discussion about him on the forums."

"Really?" Luo Jun frowned. "Even if he doesn't take action in the Main World, he can't just not participate in the Chaos Mission, right? As long as he has teammates on the mission, someone will see him make a move, won't they?"

"Regarding this, he might actually not have participated in any missions at all," Ling Xin said. "There are many ways to block the summoning of Chaos Mission, but they are all costly and difficult for ordinary people to maintain. But do you think someone like him would lack money and resources?"

"What about the treasure? If you don't participate in the Chaos Mission, you won't get the treasure..." As soon as he said this, Luo Jun noticed that Ling Xin was staring at him with a look that said he was an idiot.

"My brain!" Luo Jun slapped his forehead. "How could someone who owns an entire black market lack magical artifacts..."

"Don't worry about such a wealthy man," Ling Xin sighed. "Let's go, I'll take you inside."

As she spoke, she led Luo Jun toward the entrance of the pharmaceutical company.