Black Market

Not staying in the bustling Sales Department after the huge sum was finalized, Su Jie drove his BMW M8 to the Nanqiao Logistics Center on the outskirts, a warehouse he had recently rented.

Chen Yaoguang was already waiting there. Seeing Su Jie arrive in the BMW, he wasn't surprised at all.

After all, for a young man about the same age as his daughter to spend three million without batting an eye to buy his place, his financial resources were extraordinarily deep. Driving a BMW was perfectly normal.

"Old Chen, did you bring the goods I asked you to prepare?"

Su Jie parked the car steadily and walked towards Chen Yaoguang.

"Everything is here, Boss Su. Look, this small truck is filled with scorpions that I and a few workers caught this morning. There are thirty thousand in total."

Chen Yaoguang quickly opened the side panel of a small truck, revealing several neatly arranged boxes inside.

"Mm, unload the goods into the warehouse. From now on, you'll deliver fifty thousand scorpions to the warehouse punctually every day. I'll give you a key to the warehouse. Send me a message on my phone after you've loaded and unloaded."

Su Jie waved his hand. This warehouse was in a secluded location, suitable for the Thousand-Hand Centipede's feeding.

Chen Yaoguang unloaded all the scorpions from the truck into the warehouse without any unnecessary chatter.

Although he was curious about how Su Jie managed to sell the scorpions.

He wouldn't pry if Su Jie didn't say anything, lest Su Jie think he had ulterior motives.

After Chen Yaoguang drove away in his small truck, Su Jie closed the warehouse door and released the Thousand-Hand Centipede, which had long been hungry.

In an instant, tens of thousands of scorpions seemed to have encountered their natural predator, frantically scurrying around in the boxes.

After entering the rank, the Thousand-Hand Centipede's body length grew to 1.2 meters, and its appetite increased significantly. Seeing the scorpions, it excitedly twitched its antennae and entered a killing frenzy, swallowing the scorpions bit by bit.

Su Jie stood aside and watched quietly. Thirty thousand scorpions weighed over a hundred catties, enough to satisfy the Thousand-Hand Centipede's appetite.

Fortunately, this was on Blue Star. If it were in the Tianyuan World, even if Su Jie worked himself to death, he wouldn't be able to catch so many poisonous creatures.

Even though these scorpions were of low quality, their sheer quantity was enough to fill its stomach. Even the Gu worms cultivated by the inner disciples and elders of Ghost Ridge Palace probably couldn't fill their bellies.

The technology and productivity of modern society were evident here.

With a stable supply channel for poisonous insects, Su Jie spent the next few days immersed in cultivation.

Time flew by!

A week later.

Tianyuan World, Ghost Ridge Palace.

The autumn wind grew increasingly bleak, grass and trees withered, and most poisonous insects in the forests entered hibernation, their activity reduced.

Su Jie emerged from the ancient mirror and looked at the room, which had accumulated a lot of dust. He let out a long sigh and said, "My strength has been consolidated. Coupled with the low-grade first refinement Thousand-Hand Centipede, I now have a basic ability to protect myself among the outer disciples of Ghost Ridge Palace."

It took him a week, and thanks to the nurturing cultivation brought about by the Thousand-Hand Centipede's growth, Su Jie had thoroughly consolidated his newly breakthrough unstable foundation.

Sizzle.

The Thousand-Hand Centipede, perched on Su Jie's shoulder, raised its head and let out a joyful cry.

The spiritual energy-rich environment of the Tianyuan World made it feel comfortable and at ease.

"Good, good. I'll take you to the forest to play later."

Su Jie patted the Thousand-Hand Centipede's head. After being fed tens of thousands of scorpions daily for this past week, the Thousand-Hand Centipede had also grown considerably. Its body length had now exceeded 1.5 meters, making it look extremely imposing and ferocious.

Su Jie retracted the Thousand-Hand Centipede, coiling it around his waist. This way, it could serve as a biological protective suit and launch an attack at any moment if combat occurred.

Putting on the standard black robe of a Ghost Ridge Palace outer disciple, Su Jie pushed open the stone door of the kiln cave, which had been sealed for a week.

"Yo, Brother Su, you're out of seclusion!"

As soon as he stepped out of the kiln cave, Peng Shiwen, his neighbor, heard the movement and greeted Su Jie.

"Yeah, my strength was too weak, so I had to cultivate properly. I can't always be busy catching insects."

Su Jie replied with a smile. Seclusion was a common occurrence, but outer disciples had to busy themselves with survival and couldn't dedicate themselves entirely to cultivation.

"There's nothing wrong with catching insects. It's been difficult for me to catch insects recently."

Peng Shiwen gave a wry smile and pointed to his left leg, explaining, "I was bitten by a Tuotou Snake in Insect Valley yesterday. I can't engage in strenuous activity for a while, and it's inconvenient to go into the mountains to find insects."

"That's a bit unlucky. Aren't you going to find some medicine?"

"I'm about to head to the Black Market to get some medicine. Want to come along?"

"Sure, I'll go sell some poisonous insects too."

Su Jie went back into the house to prepare and soon came out with a bamboo basket on his back.

The two left the Ghost Ridge Palace encampment and walked along a winding mountain path for a distance.

Along the way, they occasionally saw other Ghost Ridge Palace disciples, all of whom were in a hurry or had gloomy expressions. Despite being fellow disciples, they were more indifferent than strangers.

A moment later, Su Jie and Peng Shiwen arrived at a market deep in the mountains.

The market was built on the spot using trees, with a very simple style, but there were many people inside.

Besides Ghost Ridge Palace disciples, there were also numerous merchants dressed in fine silks and satins, bringing their caravans in and out.

This was the Ghost Ridge Black Market. Ghost Ridge Palace was indeed a sect that everyone condemned as Devilish Dao, but whether it was in the Tianyuan World or on Blue Star, as long as there were sufficient profits, merchants were willing to take risks, even risking their lives.

For the sake of profit, merchants from the outside world continuously supplied Ghost Ridge Palace with various materials and, in turn, purchased resources produced by Ghost Ridge Palace at low prices.

With such low buying prices and high selling prices, the profits were enough to make anyone jealous.

Therefore, even though trading with Devilish Dao sects was strictly forbidden, a large number of merchants still flocked to conduct business.

Upon entering the Black Market, Su Jie and Peng Shiwen temporarily parted ways.

Peng Shiwen needed to find a pharmacy to get some medicine, while Su Jie was rushing to sell the poisonous creatures he had caught in Insect Valley some time ago.

The Black Market was much livelier than it appeared from the outside, with merchants hawking their wares. Ghost Ridge Palace disciples also lingered before cultivation items like spirit pills, magic tools, and spirit materials.

Especially in those tall, grand shops, they sold expensive items. The merchant guilds that could open such large stores were famous even in the outside world, with cultivators from the Secret Treasure Realm guarding them.

"Ninth-grade Tianji Spirit Gathering Pills, fifty Blood Marrow Crystals each. They can regenerate muscle and stop bleeding, rapidly healing injuries. Buying them is like gaining an extra life."

"Dragon Bitter Melon Soil, Dragon Bitter Melon Soil from Yunzhou, a favorite of burrowing Gu worms, 15 Blood Marrow Crystals per jin."

"Earth Melting Fruit, a ninth-grade spirit fruit. Gu worms with fire attributes can greatly increase their foundation for breaking through to Spirit Refinement after consuming it. Don't miss out!"

Servants handed out flyers by the roadside, making it seem like a bustling town at first glance, rather than a devil's den filled with cruel, evil cultivators.

Su Jie glanced enviously at the treasures radiating spiritual light, knowing they were beyond his reach for now.