Chapter 25: Alternative Plans One, Two, and Three for Leaving the Market

One only realizes the scarcity of friends when time is short.

This was Shen Lian’s most immediate feeling.

He gently shook his head, suppressing the thought. Weng He was different from Weng Xia, and the chances of success were slim.

The level of Qi Refining was still far beneath Foundation Establishment.

Moreover, Weng He was merely an outer sect disciple.

In the blink of an eye, half a year passed.

After six months of dedicated cultivation, Shen Lian had stabilized his realm at the sixth layer of Qi Refining, and was almost ready to take a Barrier-Breaking Pill to advance to the seventh layer.

The lockdown order on the marketplace showed no sign of lifting.

On the surface, the market seemed calm, but undercurrents surged beneath.

The wilds outside saw more frequent and fierce battles than before.

Rumors spread everywhere—there must be some great fortune outside the marketplace.

Everyone longed to be the chosen one who discovered it.

Bishui Sect made no statement about these speculations; their disciples scattered like wolves into the wilderness, roaming everywhere.

Chaotic news flew in all directions.

But whatever the message, it always revolved around ‘fortune’.

The seemingly tranquil marketplace gave off the sense of calm before a storm.

If things continued this way, Shen Lian’s previous plan—to go to the Tower of the World in Bishui Immortal City and purchase cultivation techniques—might be cut short.

Even if he broke through to the seventh layer of Qi Refining, he was not impatient to change his cultivation method, but feared the lockdown might last three or five years.

Worse still, if one day the hidden great fortune was revealed, causing widespread chaos.

Qi Refining cultivators were too weak to weather the storm, easily swept away.

For Golden Core cultivators, a mere Qi Refining ant—destroying you meant nothing.

“I must find a way to leave.”

Walking along the main street, he looked up at a spirit vessel rising from Yunmeng Mountain, flying toward the distant hills.

From six months of observation, it was as he suspected: Bishui Sect restricted rogue cultivators from leaving, but sect disciples were not similarly constrained.

Even the shops selling magical artifacts, pills, and other items had not raised their prices.

This indicated a stable supply chain.

Shen Lian had asked Weng Xia about it—the shops established by the major vassal families under Bishui Sect relied on the sect’s spirit vessels to transport resources.

The shops in the marketplace sold magical tools and talismans, but not all transactions were for spirit stones; a significant portion involved raw materials.

These needed to be sent back to their families for further processing.

There was no such thing as logistics in the cultivation world—every family wanted to hide their treasures.

All spirit materials received by the families were personally transported between the family and the marketplace by family members.

Yet, due to the lockdown order, these family cultivators were somewhat restricted.

Family cultivators traveling between the marketplace and Bishui Immortal City could only exchange storage bags with other family members upon arrival, then return on the spirit vessel.

During the entire process, Bishui Sect disciples stood by to supervise, and the contents of the storage bags were subject to inspection.

Having clarified these matters, Shen Lian formed a new idea.

Could he hitch a ride with the family cultivators leaving the marketplace?

As long as he neared the Chu Kingdom’s cultivation realm, he could always jump ship.

Of course, this was a last resort.

With Foundation Establishment cultivators stationed on the spirit vessel, he estimated that if he jumped off, his head might be severed by a spirit sword before he even hit the ground.

Still, it was worth preparing a fallback plan.

Compared to crossing the thousand-mile miasma mountain range alone, at least this method held some hope.

Having thought of this, Shen Lian began frequenting various shops in the marketplace, using the excuse of buying ordinary materials to observe the family cultivators in each store.

Firstly, the chosen family’s strength couldn’t be too weak.

A family with only ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators wouldn’t do.

Even Bishui Sect disciples played favorites.

A Foundation Establishment family lacked face; under the lockdown order, a weak family couldn’t hope to bring an extra person along.

After much consideration, families with False Core cultivators—above Foundation Establishment, below Golden Core—became his first choice.

False Core cultivators, second only to the sect’s Golden Core patriarchs, commanded respect from Foundation Establishment and even a measure from Golden Core elders.

Hitching a ride with False Core family cultivators returning to Chu Kingdom became Shen Lian’s third fallback plan.

He targeted the Lu and Qin families, both with False Core cultivators.

The Qin family’s shop sold sundries and various materials; the shopkeeper was an elderly Qi Refining seventh layer cultivator, and there was a thirty-something tribe member at the fourth layer.

The Lu family ran the pharmacy where he had twice purchased pills.

Besides the shopkeeper, there was the somewhat vain young woman, likely connected to an inner sect disciple of Bishui Sect.

To confirm his suspicions, Shen Lian visited both shops multiple times.

Through observation:

The two Qin family cultivators were steady-minded and sharp traders, squeezing oil from a stone.

The Lu family shopkeeper was also shrewd, squeezing rogue cultivators dry whenever possible.

But that young woman truly was... vain.

Shen Lian discreetly used a Divine Sense Talisman to observe her—she would eye the cultivators passing by outside, commenting endlessly.

That one’s ugly... that one’s even uglier...

...

With a third plan, naturally there were first and second options.

The second plan was to rely on Bishui Sect disciples to find a way out.

Shen Lian had already inquired about the Foundation Establishment cultivators stationed on the spirit vessels—two in total, surnamed Wang and Li, taking turns traveling between Chu Kingdom and the marketplace.

The Wang cultivator favored beauties of other families.

The Li cultivator was strict and unyielding, uninterested in idle affairs, wholly focused on the path to Golden Core.

Shen Lian hadn’t decided which to approach.

On the surface, neither could be bribed with spirit stones.

One sought pleasure everywhere, the other was unapproachable.

Difficult.

As for the first plan:

If you can’t beat them, join them.

If the situation truly deteriorated, he would attempt to join Bishui Sect.

Previously, he was weak and untalented, unworthy of the sect.

Now, at the sixth layer of Qi Refining, a top-grade talisman master.

If he displayed outstanding talent in the art of talismans, surely the sect wouldn’t turn him away.

Shen Lian was quite willing to contribute to the sect.

...

He made his way to Treasure Pavilion.

Shen Lian set aside his backup plans.

At present, things hadn’t descended into chaos; perhaps in another three or four months the lockdown order would be lifted.

“Brother, you’re here.”

Weng Xia, dozing behind the counter, snapped his eyes open at Shen Lian’s arrival.

When Shen Lian approached, Weng Xia leaned in and said, “There’s an internal auction coming up. Interested? Rumor has it there’s a Foundation Establishment level cultivation technique.”

“Really?”

“The word comes from the sect’s outer disciples. Only late-stage Qi Refining cultivators and first-grade artisans can participate. It shouldn’t be fake.”

This time, Shen Lian was intrigued.

Late-stage Qi Refining, first-grade artisans—this was a high-level auction for the marketplace.

But... could a rogue cultivator afford a Foundation Establishment technique?

Most likely, spirit stones wouldn’t suffice; it would require rare materials or other conditions.

“Do you know what attribute?”

“Not sure, only that there’s a Foundation Establishment technique.”

Weng Xia shook his head, then leaned in. “Brother, you’ve saved up quite a few spirit stones these past two years. Is it enough for a technique?”

“Others may not know, but you do—every spirit stone I earn goes back to Treasure Pavilion. I’m just a porter for spirit stones.”

Shen Lian shook his head.

“When is the auction?”

“One hundred li outside Yunmeng Market, at the foot of Cliff Valley Mountain. It’s two days from now.”

Shen Lian frowned. Why was it outside again?

The previous two black market exchanges he attended were organized by rogue cultivators to avoid sect interference, and so were held outside.

Since his collaboration with Weng He’s grandson to craft top-grade Miasma Dispelling Talismans, Shen Lian now only sold mid-grade ones to Treasure Pavilion.

Though the profit per talisman was much less, he produced ten to twenty mid-grade talismans a day.

The more he made, the lower the cost, reducing it by about one spirit stone per talisman.

Still, it was a hefty gain.

After selling off his talismans, Shen Lian asked, “Do you have any breath-concealing magical artifacts, preferably something that covers the face?”

“Yes, Black Cloud Gauze. Top-grade auxiliary artifact, isolates divine sense probing.”

Shen Lian looked—it was a triangular black cloth, clearly an accessory favored by assassins for illicit dealings.

Returning to his residence, Shen Lian packed.

He thought for a moment—times had changed.

With the lockdown indefinite, he couldn’t rely on purchasing techniques from the Tower of the World.

He prepared to attend the auction at Cliff Valley Mountain to see what was on offer.

Even if he couldn’t afford it this time, it would be valuable to learn the prices of Foundation Establishment techniques among rogue cultivators for future reference.

Before departing, he checked his equipment and brought all his accumulated assets from the past two years.

Inside his robe, between his legs and along his abdomen, Divine Sense Talismans were pasted; Speed Talismans adhered to his legs; Miasma Dispelling Talismans tucked in his sleeves.

He changed into a wide black cloak, donned a bamboo hat, and wrapped the new triangular cloth artifact around his face.

A disguise talisman was activated, sprinkling his body with points of spiritual light.

His figure changed, becoming plumper than before.

Go—

Cliff Valley Mountain was seventy li from the marketplace, with little miasma along the way.

Though the auction was two days away, Shen Lian set out early, intending to scout the terrain and prepare necessary contingencies in advance—lest he encounter a fellow cultivator eager to “liberate” him, and find himself unable to help them on their way.