Early the next morning.
The first hint of dawn had just appeared on the horizon when Chen Mu got out of bed.
He put on his animal-skin clothes, slung a cloth bundle and the Rune Gun wrapped in coarse hemp cloth over his back, and walked out of his home.
Perhaps because his recent cultivation had borne fruit and he had plenty of nourishing food, he had grown much taller than he had been half a year ago. His build had also become much stronger, and he was no longer as scrawny as before.
"A Mu, stop dawdling! We need to get on the road."
Chen Zihu called out when he spotted Chen Mu coming out from a long way off.
"Okay! Coming..."
Chen Mu hurriedly quickened his pace.
Only Chen Zihu and Chen Shanxiong were at the village entrance. The market was a long way off, and traveling light was most important.
After Chen Mu joined the two, Chen Shanxiong greeted him with a smile. Without saying much else, they immediately set off.
The three ran all morning. Only when noon came did Chen Shanxiong lead them to rest beneath a large, shady tree.
They had just run more than ten kilometers. It was Chen Mu's first time going so far from Chen Village, and he had seen plenty of new things along the way.
"Here!"
Smiling, Chen Shanxiong broke the coarse wheat flatbread in his hand in two, giving half to Chen Zihu and half to Chen Mu.
"Little Mu, I've really had my eyes opened.
"Yesterday, Zihu told me you'd developed a pattern that could make an ordinary person's body as strong as a martial artist's. I thought he was exaggerating. But after coming all this way, you're not even red in the face or short of breath. It really is amazing."
Chen Mu touched his nose, feeling a little guilty, and laughed. "No, no. It only has this effect because I used it on myself. There's no way to use it on anyone else."
Chen Shanxiong nodded. In his mind, talisman masters became even more mysterious.
"This kind of pattern is too important! Once the village has developed in the future, you must find a way to use it on other people too. When everyone in our village has the strength of a martial artist, who would dare mess with us? Haha..."
Chen Mu thought about it. This approach was actually rather impractical. For one thing, Demonic Patterns placed a heavy burden on the human body, and the strength they could add was limited. Ordinary people would have great difficulty controlling it.
Moreover, the materials used to draw Demonic Patterns were extremely precious. The Demonic Pattern on Chen Mu's body was actually incomplete and had little effect. Drawing a complete Demonic Pattern would be extremely expensive.
Still, he didn't want to dampen Chen Shanxiong's spirits. In any case, it was a matter for the distant future.
"Of course! I'll work hard at it."
Chen Shanxiong was very gratified by Chen Mu's answer.
The three rested for about half an hour, replenished their vigor, and resumed their arduous journey.
By evening, the three finally reached their destination.
Wuyan Market lay in the middle of the Wuyan Mountain Range, atop a low mountain. The terrain was flat and covered a vast area, making it the largest market in the entire Wuyan Mountain Range.
Before they reached the market, Chen Mu spotted a cluster of buildings high on the mountain from afar. Towering stone walls surrounded it, and its defenses were clearly much stronger than Chen Village's wooden stakes.
"Good! We're here a little earlier than I expected. Looks like we can get a good rest tonight."
Chen Shanxiong seemed delighted as he led the three to the market entrance.
"Little Mu, once we enter the market, make sure you keep a low profile. Most of the people who come here aren't ordinary folk. People like us from small tribes can easily come off worse."
He paused, then added, "But if someone bullies you, you don't need to be afraid.
"Wuyan Market was built jointly by several of the strongest medium-sized tribes in the Wuyan Mountain Range. Fighting isn't allowed inside. Anyone who breaks that rule will be arrested by the guards, so as long as we behave ourselves, we don't need to fear anyone else."
Chen Mu nodded obediently and followed Chen Shanxiong into Wuyan Market.
"Sir, there are three of us."
Chen Shanxiong warmly produced three coins that looked like both copper and iron, and handed them to the guards at the entrance.
These were Wilderness Coins, jointly minted and issued by several of the strongest large tribes in the Wilderness. They were the currency used throughout the Wilderness.
After accepting the Wilderness Coins, the guards gave the three an expressionless glance and let them in.
By now, the sky had begun to darken. Lanterns had been lit along the streets, illuminating the surroundings as brightly as day.
All kinds of shops lined both sides of the street. Like a curious child, Chen Mu looked around, fascinated by everything here.
"Everyone, hurry up. Let's find an inn and settle in first. If we're any later, I'm afraid there won't be any suitable rooms left."
Chen Shanxiong urged them on loudly, striding as swiftly as if he were flying. Chen Mu had no time to look around and could only hurry after him.
Chen Shanxiong knew the place very well. After winding through several turns, they entered an old inn in no time.
"Innkeeper! Please get me a standard guest room."
The innkeeper was a man approaching seventy. He looked Chen Shanxiong and the other two over a few times, then nodded. "Twenty for the deposit, eighteen a night. How many nights are you staying?"
"One night!"
Chen Shanxiong breathed a quiet sigh of relief. He had been afraid the standard rooms would all be taken. This was the cheapest inn in the entire market, and its standard rooms were usually in short supply. If they were full, they would have had to spend many more Wilderness Coins, and he couldn't bear to part with them.
Lodging in the market was extremely expensive. If he hadn't been carrying valuable things and feared it would be unsafe to sleep outside, he would never have wasted the money.
After paying, Chen Mu and the other two settled into a cramped guest room without trouble.
Many trading houses didn't open at night, so Chen Shanxiong wasn't planning to go out. Only Chen Zihu intended to explore the market with Chen Mu.
For Chen Mu, who had seen cities of a technological civilization, the market wasn't enough to leave him awestruck, but he still found it wonderfully novel.
Most of the businesses open at night dealt in food, drink, and entertainment. But neither Chen Mu nor Chen Zihu had any money, so they could only watch from afar. They didn't dare get close, afraid someone would come over and charge them.
There were teahouses, taverns, pleasure boats, acrobatic acts, and more. It felt very similar to ancient Huaxia. The liveliest places were the taverns, bustling and noisy with people coming and going.
"A Mu, come with me. I know a good place to broaden your horizons."
Chen Zihu pulled Chen Mu along to a night market full of street stalls. They sold a vast assortment of things, just about anything one could imagine. It was an eye-opening sight.
Chen Mu was drawn to a general-goods stall piled with books and stopped.
There were many books here, and some would be very helpful to him, such as books on herbs, geography, and history.
He also spotted a book on the basics of runes. He skimmed a few pages, and the contents were quite good. However, it contained no cultivation method for the divine soul, so it couldn't help someone become a talisman master.
"Young brother, if you're interested, you can ask the adults in your family to come buy some.
"None of my books are expensive. Five Wilderness Coins apiece, all the same price. I cheat neither young nor old."
The bookseller was a plump young man who smiled constantly and looked very friendly.
"All right. Unfortunately, I don't have any money on me right now. Tomorrow, once I've sold something at the Myriad Treasures Pavilion and have money, I'll definitely come back and buy a few books from you."
Chen Mu had spent a long time looking through the books at the stall and felt embarrassed to keep reading them without buying anything. After speaking, he reluctantly stood up, ready to leave.
"Oh? The Myriad Treasures Pavilion? What are you planning to sell there?" The plump young man was a little curious when he heard Chen Mu.
"Well..."
Seeing Chen Mu's troubled expression, he immediately realized what was wrong and hurriedly explained with a smile, "You see, I buy things here too.
"If what you're selling happens to be something I can use, I can buy it from you at a higher price.
"After all, the Myriad Treasures Pavilion is notoriously stingy with its buying prices. Who would sell to them unless they had no other choice?"
Chen Mu nodded in understanding. He had heard the same thing before.
But Chen Village was a small tribe, and the total value of the goods it sold each time was never very high. It was usually hard to find a better trading channel.
The Myriad Treasures Pavilion, on the other hand, bought everything, was well known, had a good reputation, and didn't make arbitrary offers to cheat people. So, to avoid trouble, they always sold their goods directly to the Myriad Treasures Pavilion.