He walked a few steps along the wall, made sure no one was around, then pulled a loose black robe from his bundle and draped it over himself.
With a thought, Blue Silver Grass surged from his body and wound tightly against his skin, layer upon layer wrapping around his limbs and torso.
The blue-green vines tightened and compressed. Supported by them, his originally slight body suddenly grew much taller, nearly reaching one meter eighty.
The vines also thickened his limbs considerably. With the loose black robe covering him, no one could possibly tell there was a seven-year-old child underneath.
Wang Xian tugged down his hood, hiding most of his face and leaving only a section of his chin exposed.
Notting City's Black Market lay east of the old district, in an abandoned warehouse area. There were few people during the day, but it became lively at night.
There were no signs and no lights, only a narrow alley leading inside. Two burly men stood at the entrance, warily scanning everyone who entered and left.
Wang Xian lowered the brim of his hood and walked between the two men. No one stopped him.
The alley was somewhat wider inside than outside, with old warehouses converted into storefronts on both sides.
A dim oil lamp burned outside every shop, its weak light making the expressions on people's faces hard to distinguish.
The ground was full of potholes, collecting filthy water left from who knew when and giving off a damp, moldy stench.
All sorts of people came here: those in cloaks, those wearing masks, and those hiding their faces with their martial souls. Not one showed their true face.
Wang Xian moved through the alley with practiced ease and stopped before a storefront.
The shop was small, with a dingy gray cloth curtain hanging over the entrance. There were no words on it.
He lifted the curtain and walked inside. There was a counter within.
A thin, dark middle-aged man sat behind it. He had triangular eyes, high cheekbones, and thin lips. When he smiled, he revealed a mouthful of yellow teeth, looking rather sinister.
Lowering his voice, Wang Xian asked, "Boss, has my merchandise arrived?"
The thin, dark man looked up and recognized the black robe. His face immediately broke into a smile as he pulled out a wooden box from beneath the counter and placed it on the countertop with both hands.
"It's here, it's here. Lord Soul Master, you came at just the right time. The goods arrived this afternoon."
He opened the wooden box and pushed it toward Wang Xian.
A layer of black velvet lined the box. At its center lay a palm-sized object, pale yellow and translucent, like amber polished by the passage of time.
Under the lamplight, it gleamed with a warm luster, and something seemed to flow slowly within it.
Whale Rubber, a thousand years old.
This was a special substance produced in the brains of whale-type soul beasts. It was extremely hard and yang in nature, a potent tonic.
Among Soul Masters these days, most people only knew of its aphrodisiac effects. It was generally purchased by nobles, and its price had been driven very high.
But Wang Xian knew that its true value went far beyond that. Consuming it could strengthen one's physique, allowing a Soul Master to withstand higher-aged Soul Rings during absorption.
He had fought at the Soul Fighting Arena for so many days, while also placing quite a few bets on himself, before finally gathering enough money to have the Black Market find this thousand-year-old piece of Whale Rubber for him.
Without changing expression, Wang Xian tossed out a bag of Gold Coins. It landed heavily on the counter with a dull thud.
The thin, dark man hurriedly caught it, untied the opening, and began counting. His fingers flicked through the Gold Coins, producing crisp clinking sounds.
After finishing the count, the smile on his face deepened. He respectfully closed the wooden box and handed it over with both hands.
"Lord Soul Master, please keep it safe. If you need anything else next time, come find me."
Wang Xian took the wooden box, tucked it beneath his black robe, and turned to leave the shop.
Logically speaking, Wang Xian had just pulled out such a large bag of Gold Coins, which was extremely dangerous in the Black Market. He had most likely already attracted attention.
Yet when he passed by the others, they all looked at him with wary eyes.
Because someone had previously coveted his money and tried to kill him and steal his goods.
But those people had all met miserable ends.
Now, whenever people in the Black Market saw someone wearing this black robe, none of them dared do anything out of line.
After leaving the Black Market safely, Wang Xian did not return to Notting Academy. Instead, he left Notting City and headed into the wilderness.
After all, even if anyone discovered that he had gone out at night, Wang Sheng and the others would cover for him.
Outside the city, Wang Xian found a secluded clearing. He gathered some dry firewood into a pile and lit it with flint. Flames licked at the wood with crackling pops, their orange-red glow illuminating his face and lighting up several meters around him.
He opened the wooden box, took out the pale yellow Whale Rubber, skewered it with a thin twig, and slowly turned it over the flames.
Before long, a strange fragrance drifted from the Whale Rubber.
The scent was strong, yet it did not spread in all directions. Instead, it seemed to condense into a cluster, circling only within about a meter of the Whale Rubber and refusing to drift farther away.
Wang Xian took a breath of it and felt his mind clear somewhat as his blood and qi churned without pause.
As the temperature rose, the Whale Rubber gradually softened. Its originally hard, amber-like texture began to melt, turning into a soft clump of pale yellow gelatinous substance.
Steam faintly rose from its surface, and it gleamed with an oily sheen beneath the firelight.
Wang Xian pulled out the twig, held the scorching gelatinous mass in both hands, gritted his teeth, and poured it directly into his mouth.
In an instant, an intensely burning sensation exploded in his mouth. It was like swallowing a mouthful of molten lava, burning from his tongue to his throat before rushing down his esophagus.
Wang Xian's entire face twisted. Veins bulged on his forehead, and a layer of fine sweat instantly beaded across it.
He did not spit it out. He clamped his mouth shut, forcibly enduring the burning pain as he activated the Soul Power within him to envelop the gelatinous mass and begin refining it.
Layer after layer of Soul Power wrapped around it. The medicinal energy was slowly stripped away, turning into streams of scorching heat that surged from his stomach toward his limbs and bones.
Wherever that heat flowed, his muscles, bones, and meridians felt as though they had been soaked in hot water, swollen and numb with a faint stabbing pain.
Wang Xian lowered his head and glanced at his arm. His skin had already turned dark yellow, as though it had been coated with something.
He could feel his body changing. His muscles were tightening, his bones hardening, his meridians widening. Every inch of skin became sturdier beneath the scouring of that heated current.
Wang Xian clenched his teeth and continued circulating his Soul Power, refining even the final trace of medicinal energy.
Time passed bit by bit. The fire gradually died out, leaving only a pile of dark red embers flickering uncertainly in the darkness.
Wang Xian sat where he was without moving. The dark yellow hue on the surface of his body slowly faded, restoring his normal skin color, though something seemed to faintly flow beneath his skin.
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