Greenwood Market

Greenwood Market.

Greenwood Market was a marketplace in the Outer Sect of Greenwood Sect, built jointly by several elders.

The market covered a vast area and had two streets, East Street and West Street, each with its own distinctive character.

East Street was lined with buildings, including towering multistory pavilions. Most of them belonged to the sect elders.

These pavilions dealt in essential cultivation supplies such as Elixir Pills, Dharma Artifacts, Spiritual Medicines, and Spirit Talismans.

As for West Street, it had very few buildings. It was mostly filled with stalls where sect disciples could set up freely, while the marketplace charged them stall fees.

The wares at the stalls were a hodgepodge, and the prices were quite reasonable, though their quality was hard to guarantee.

Upon entering Greenwood Market, with four Spirit Stones in his pocket, Zhao Huaian naturally headed straight for West Street.

There was no other reason...

He was simply poor...

West Street was teeming with people.

Large numbers of Outer Disciples passed through, looking here and there as they searched for what they needed.

Overall, Zhao Huaian got the impression that these people weren't very advanced in cultivation.

Most of them were around Qi Refining Layer Two to Qi Refining Layer Four.

That was easy enough to understand. With insufficient cultivation, it was surely difficult to earn Spirit Stones, so they could only linger on West Street.

Those with deeper cultivation naturally roamed East Street, buying higher-quality goods and enjoying the attentions of those young female cultivators.

As he walked along West Street, Zhao Huaian's eyes swept over one stall after another.

He had few Spirit Stones, just four, so he naturally had to think carefully before spending them.

"Senior Brother, how many Spirit Stones for a bottle of Grain Abstinence Pills?"

After browsing several stalls, Zhao Huaian finally squatted down in front of one selling pills and pointed to a bottle of Grain Abstinence Pills.

The stall owner was an elderly cultivator at Qi Refining Layer Six. Judging by his age, his aptitude wasn't very good.

At the sound of Zhao Huaian's voice, the old man looked up at him and grinned, showing a mouthful of yellow teeth. "A bottle of Grain Abstinence Pills costs one Low-grade Spirit Stone. There are thirty pills inside, enough to last three months. Would you like a bottle, Junior Brother?"

"Mm, I'll take one!"

Zhao Huaian nodded.

He had checked the prices at several stalls, and they were all about the same.

But Zhao Huaian didn't rush to hand over the Spirit Stone. Instead, he looked with interest at the other pills on the stall and said, "Are there any pills here that can increase cultivation speed? Tell me about them, Senior Brother..."

"Of course, of course!"

Seeing that Zhao Huaian was interested in buying other pills, the old man's wrinkled face broke into an even broader smile.

He pointed out several pills that could help increase cultivation speed and explained them, then gazed eagerly at Zhao Huaian. "Which one catches your eye, Junior Brother?"

"Qi Nurturing Pills, I suppose... I don't have many Spirit Stones, so I'll just take one bottle!"

After hesitating for a moment, Zhao Huaian finally pointed to the Qi Nurturing Pills, which cost three Low-grade Spirit Stones.

After all, Qi Nurturing Pills increased cultivation speed. They were only suitable for cultivators in the early stages of Qi Refining, but Grain Abstinence Pills couldn't compare.

And a bottle didn't contain thirty pills, either—just the standard ten.

After handing over all his worldly possessions, four Low-grade Spirit Stones, Zhao Huaian left the market with empty sleeves and a pained expression.

Money gone, peace of mind!

With two bottles of pills tucked away, he didn't dare linger on the road and hurried toward the Residential Area.

By the time he returned to the Residential Area, the rain had passed and the clouds had dispersed. Sunlight shone down, and a seven-colored band floated across the horizon.

Looking at the brilliant rainbow in the sky, Zhao Huaian touched the bottle of Qi Nurturing Pills in his robe and let a smile tug at his lips.

On the path of cultivation, aside from so-called aptitude, the most important thing was resources.

Now he had at least a few resources of his own. He wanted to see how much faster he could cultivate after taking the Qi Nurturing Pills, compared to when he had none.

His heart full of anticipation, Zhao Huaian was about to push open the door and enter his room when someone suddenly came out of the neighboring house.

It was Liu Bohu.

"Brother Zhao..."

Liu Bohu was beaming and greeted him with a hearty laugh.

"Brother Liu!"

Zhao Huaian smiled and clasped his hands in greeting. But when he noticed Liu Bohu's cultivation, his brows lifted in surprise. "Brother Liu, have you broken through to Qi Refining Layer Two?"

"Hahaha, Brother Zhao, you have a good eye. A few days ago, I ran into a cousin from my family at the market. He took a liking to me and gave me two bottles of Qi Nurturing Pills. I secluded myself for half a month and, by sheer luck, broke through to Qi Refining Layer Two."

Liu Bohu answered with considerable pride.

With his aptitude, he would have needed at least another month to reach Qi Refining Layer Two.

But with those two bottles of Qi Nurturing Pills, worth four Low-grade Spirit Stones, he had managed to break through ahead of everyone else.

Just as Liu Bohu was basking in his pride, the corner of his eye caught Zhao Huaian's cultivation.

"Brother Zhao... have you also broken through to Qi Refining Layer Two?"

Seeing Zhao Huaian at Qi Refining Layer Two, Liu Bohu was just as surprised.

Zhao Huaian nodded modestly, a smile on his lips. "I bought a bottle of Qi Nurturing Pills a few days ago and, by sheer luck, broke through last night."

"This... Brother Zhao, you really are gifted!" Liu Bohu drew in a sharp breath, and the pride in his heart vanished in an instant.

After all, he had used two bottles of Qi Nurturing Pills and four Low-grade Spirit Stones, while Zhao Huaian had so far used only one bottle.

And even under those circumstances, Zhao Huaian had gotten ahead of him, breaking through to Qi Refining Layer Two just last night.

It was clear that although they both had Three Spiritual Roots, Zhao Huaian's aptitude was considerably better than his.

Someone with such talent was certainly worth befriending deeply.

"Brother Liu is no slouch either. With your cousin supporting you within the sect, you might even reach Qi Refining Layer Three before I do."

Zhao Huaian smiled faintly, feeling a little envious of Liu Bohu's support.

"Hahaha, may we both strive toward that goal!"

At that, Liu Bohu thought of his cousin and laughed heartily.

"May we both strive toward it!"

Zhao Huaian clasped his hands slightly, a faint smile on his lips, then opened the door and returned to his room.

Mission Hall.

"Senior Brother Lei, here's the proof of my mission. Please inspect it."

Lin Zihao, looking somewhat exhausted, took a hundred low-grade Spiritual Medicines from his Storage Bag and respectfully presented them to Lei Yangwen, who was on duty.

Over the past month or so, he had used the mission as an excuse to leave the sect. He had originally intended to find out who had wiped out his entire family, and to retrieve that one Ice Grass as well.

But in the end, it had all been in vain.

He had not only wasted a great deal of time, but had failed to uncover even the slightest truth. As for that Ice Grass, it had vanished without a trace—obviously taken by the culprit who had massacred his family.

All these turns of events had left Lin Zihao mentally exhausted, his frustration and fury pent up to the breaking point.

"Mm... not bad. These Spiritual Medicines are all quite good. You'll receive an extra five Low-grade Spirit Stones, making thirty Low-grade Spirit Stones in total with the mission reward."

After carefully inspecting the Spiritual Medicines and confirming they matched the mission description, Lei Yangwen nodded in satisfaction and took thirty Low-grade Spirit Stones from behind the counter.

"Thank you, Senior Brother Lei."

Lin Zihao forced a faint smile, then took five Low-grade Spirit Stones from the pile and respectfully offered them to Lei Yangwen. "This is just a small token of my appreciation. I hope you'll accept it, Senior Brother."

"Mm, if a suitable mission comes along, I'll keep an eye out for you!"

Lei Yangwen glanced at the five Low-grade Spirit Stones, and a smile appeared on his face.

Although five Low-grade Spirit Stones wasn't much, even a mosquito was meat. Naturally, Lei Yangwen didn't turn them down.

As for keeping an eye out for missions, it was no trouble at all. If Lin Zihao knew how to show his appreciation in the future, Lei Yangwen would surely get another cut from the missions he found for him.

"Thank you, Senior Brother Lei!" Lin Zihao clasped his hands respectfully.

Seeing that Lei Yangwen had no intention of speaking to him further, he made his way toward the Mission Hall exit.

"Brother Lei, congratulations! With your rosy complexion, you must be close to breaking through to Qi Refining Layer Nine."

"Hahaha, not at all. It's just that someone gave me an Ice Grass when the sect was recruiting disciples this time, which helped me suppress the fire poison in my body to a great extent."

"..."

Hearing Lei Yangwen talking with another cultivator, Lin Zihao stopped dead as he stepped out of the Mission Hall. His whole body began to tremble.