Immortal Soaring Blade

There were many cultivators inside Qing Cang City. Like they did in other villages and towns, they didn’t deliberately hide their cultivation. Everyone had their cultivation released, and Zhao Jiuge could feel that they were not very strong. He wondered if the mortals were used to seeing cultivators here. There was a formation around the entire city that prevented flying, but it was unknown if people were allowed to fight inside the city.

Qing Cang City was too vast. Even after Zhao Jiuge had wandered around for a long time, he couldn’t find any auction houses. This made him want to ask the nearest cultivator for directions. However, auction houses were rather exclusive, so not just anyone could get in. Sometimes, only powerful cultivators were allowed to enter, but Zhao Jiuge didn’t think the auction house here was at that level.

“What are you looking for? We have wandered around for half a day!”

Seeing the anxious expression on Zhao Jiuge, Pei Su Su couldn’t endure it anymore and no longer wanted to continue this cold war. She asked him out of concern and helplessness. How had a little miss from a powerful family like her fallen for someone like him?

San Wu remained silent while following Zhao Jiuge and Pei Su Su. The only difference was that he would occasionally swallow the saliva in his mouth. His desire for food was showing. This late stage Nascent Soul Realm genius of the buddhist faction was a foodie!

“I’m looking for the auction house. Qing Cang city is too complex. I can’t even find a place to get information. I don’t think it’s a good idea to just ask any random cultivator. After all, it's not good to draw too much attention.”

Zhao Jiuge looked around and seemed rather lost. The surroundings were filled with people and beautiful buildings, but there was no sign of any auction house.

Pei Su Su let out a gentle snort and angrily glared at Zhao Jiuge. She helplessly said, “An auction house would generally be held in a secret location. How could it possibly be built out in the most public place in the city? It’s usually in some hidden place because people fear being targeted after buying something. The more advanced the auction, the better the security, so it's not a place the average person can find.”

“Then doesn’t that mean I won’t find the auction house? What should I do? I need to head to the auction house to find the Chilling Fire Flower. I can’t just go into the mountains and try out my luck. My luck can’t always be good like the Seven-Colored Flowing Light Grass.” Zhao Jiuge couldn’t help but look disappointed after hearing Pei Su Su’s words.

Pei Su Su paused for a bit and then slowly said, “Just find someone to ask for directions. Money can even make ghosts move, there is nothing money can’t do. Such a large city must have a pretty good auction house. When we first met in Dong Yang City, even that small city had an auction house, so there must be one here.”

Pei Su Su was lively and clever, with a good family background. She loved to sneak out to play and had seen the light and dark sides of the world, so she was very clear about how these things operated. However, every time she thought she had secretly snuck out, Old Yang was secretly following her.

“The problem is, I don’t know who to ask. I know money can even make ghosts move, but if I can’t find the right place, even with the money, what can I do?” Zhao Jiuge muttered softly with his eyes wide. Since yesterday, Pei Su Su had been somewhat different, so Zhao Jiuge had to tread carefully around her.

Pei Su Su laughed from anger. She looked at Zhao Jiuge with disdain and said, “Don’t you know how to look? You’re so dumb, you’re not even worth of being a block of wood!”

“Did you guys find something delicious?” At this moment, San Wu suddenly interjected.

Zhao Jiuge and Pei Su Su both turned toward San Wu and shouted, “Go eat your big head!”

Then, under Pei Su Su’s leadership, they walked through twists and turns into an ally. The alley was a bit deserted and seemed separate from the main street.

“Every place has their own circles, and each circle has its own rules. In general, everyone’s ultimate goal is to gain something for themselves. If spirit stones can solve the problem, people usually don't resort to force. Cultivators often work very hard for spirit stones, and such a place is the location to get information. It might be expensive, but at least the information is accurate.

Pei Su Su seemed to see the confusion in Zhao Jiuge and San Wu’s eyes, so she patiently explained it to them. She was naturally headed to a place where she could get information. As the local snakes, there was no way they wouldn't know what was going on in their own nest.

Zhao Jiuge nodded. He was not stupid, but he didn’t have much experienced as he had spent all his time cultivating in the sect. Zhao Jiuge had an idea of where Pei Su Su was going—either it was a place where treasures were made or some hidden place with spirit force fluctuations. Normally, the best place to get information were inns run by cultivators, but those were not very secure and you might get your own information leaked instead. As a result, the best place was this kind of sketchy alley. With their strength, as long as the old monsters or elder-level figures didn’t appear, no one could cheat them. However, San Wu walked behind them, still depressed that they hadn’t bought any food for him.

Soon, the three of them arrived in the deepest part of the alley, where there was no path left. It was clear no one had come here in a while, but the spirit force fluctuations revealed that this was where cultivators lived. However, they weren’t very strong, and they were likely eager for spirit stones.

Seeing that there was no path left, Zhao Jiuge casually walked up to one of the doors and then looked at Pei Su Su. After getting her confirmation, he casually knocked. The reason he had chosen this door was because there was a total of six cultivators inside. They were all between the Spirit Transformation Realm and the Foundation Realm.

Knock, knock, knock.

The heavy knocking broke the silent atmosphere, and the sound was rather unpleasant. After the sound dissipated, there was no movement, and Zhao Jiuge frowned. There were clearly six people inside, but they hadn’t moved at all. Even Pei Su Su’s eyes narrowed as she stared at the door.

Knock, knock, knock.

Another series of knocks echoed, but this time they were a lot faster, as if to show that Zhao Jiuge was in a rush.

Zhao Jiuge carefully listened to the movement inside, and after a moment of silence, he was about to lose his patience. Just as he was going to shout, there was movement inside.

A soft noise came from the house, followed by footsteps. Finally, a somewhat hoarse and alarmed voice answered.

“Who is it?’

Hearing someone finally answer, Zhao Jiuge relaxed and quickly responded, “Open the door, I have some matters to discuss.” 

After Zhao Jiuge spoke, there was another terrifying silence. It seemed like they were hesitating about something, and Zhao Jiuge seemed used to the reactions of the people inside. There was whispering behind the door before it finally swung open.

The moment the door opened, a head peaked out. The person looked to be around 30 years old and had shifty eyes. He put his guard up when he saw that Zhao Jiuge was an unfamiliar face, then he was attracted by Pei Su Su immediately after.

A voice from inside the house broke him out of his trance, and he cautiously asked, “Who are you and what do you want?”

Just when Zhao Jiuge was about to speak the truth, Pei Su Su suddenly made a move. She grabbed Zhao Jiuge’s arm and threw a shining stone toward the man. Then she coldly said, “Throwing a stone to ask directions.”

The moment the spirit stone appeared, the caution on the man’s expression turned to greed, but he covered it up very well. He silently caught the spirit stone and then looked at the three youths before him once more. In particular, he took an extra few looks at Pei Su Su before he said, “Come inside.”

After he finished speaking, he opened the door to allow Zhao Jiuge and company inside. He then carefully glanced around the alley once more to make sure no one was following.

After being in Qing Cang City for so long, he knew what to do and who to talk to. These youths were usually descendants of some forces or powerful cultivators. If he were to offend him, he wouldn’t even know how he died. Others would have lost themselves and stared at Pei Su Su, but he had only taken a few moments to recover.

Zhao Jiuge went inside first with Pei Su Su following him, then San Wu entered behind them and the shifty-looking man entered last. Only after entering did Zhao Jiuge notice that this man was wearing clothes that exposed part of his chest.

Once everyone entered, the man closed the door and the little bit of light that had entered disappeared. The room was plunged into a brief moment of darkness.