Sword Sovereign of the Celestial Emperor

Of course, just now Chu Ming didn't use his full strength with that punch, otherwise, with the strong man's physique, even ten lives wouldn't have been enough.

Thud thud thud!

Ignoring the strong man, Chu Ming turned around and left, entering Black Mountain City. The most pressing matter was to find a place to stay first.

There weren't many inns in Black Mountain City. After a whole incense stick worth of time, Chu Ming finally found a small inn in a secluded corner.

"Yuelai Inn!"

Looking at the signboard, Chu Ming gave a faint smile and stepped into the inn slowly.

The inn's lobby was extremely quiet, with only a few scattered guests whispering at the tables in the corners. In fact, in a sinful city like Black Mountain City, without a background or powerful strength, no one would dare to openly operate an inn.

Entering the lobby, Chu Ming immediately saw the shopkeeper dozing off at the counter.

"A room!"

Chu Ming tossed a small bag of Lower Grade Spirit Stones onto the counter. In Black Mountain City, since everyone was a Martial Artist, Spirit Stones were used as currency.

"Upstairs, please."

The shopkeeper opened the bag, glanced at the Spirit Stones inside, and instantly beamed with joy. He bowed his body, making a welcoming gesture with his right hand, and led the way for Chu Ming.

Chu Ming followed lightly behind him, but his eyes couldn't help but glance at a few Martial Artists in the corner.

"Have you heard? The finale item at this auction is actually a fist-sized Black Nether Stone."

A gray-robed Martial Artist whispered to the others at his table, a hint of fervor in his eyes.

"A fist-sized Black Nether Stone? That's really a treasure. A finger-sized piece is enough to purify our Spiritual Power by ten percent. A fist-sized Black Nether Stone can at least double our combat power."

"Hehe, ordinary Black Nether Stones are hard to come by. Do you think we could even touch a fist-sized Black Nether Stone?"

His companion's words were like a cold bucket of water poured over his head. Indeed, although Black Mountain City produced Black Nether Stones, the annual production wasn't high, and most of it was controlled by the City Lord's Mansion.

The Black Nether Stones that circulated outside were very few, and each piece was incredibly expensive, sometimes even priceless.

"I heard that for this Black Nether Stone, even the Killer Eagle from Beiming Domain arrived in Black Mountain City yesterday."

"Killer Eagle? You mean that maniac from the Blood Saber Sect?"

"That's right. Killer Eagle Jiuxue, I heard that even at the Ninth Layer of the True Dao Realm, he could fight head-to-head with Guiyuan Realm Fourth Layer experts. He's a candidate for this year's Profound List of the Tea Dao Assembly."

"Tsk tsk tsk, I really want to see what a grand spectacle the auction will be in two days."

Chu Ming's Soul Power was extremely strong, and he heard all of their conversation without missing a word.

Killer Eagle Jiuxue, before leaving the Celestial Travel Sect, he had carefully studied the information on the geniuses of the Eastern Hundred Domains, which included Killer Eagle Jiuxue.

Jiuxue was a peerless talent of the Blood Saber Sect in the Beiming Domain. He had once single-handedly challenged dozens of mountain strongholds. Although he wasn't part of the Demon Dao, his hands were stained with the lives of tens of thousands of people.

Moreover, Killer Eagle Jiuxue's most notable trait was his arrogance and disregard for reason. He would kill people at the slightest disagreement, when he was in the mood, or even when he was bored.

In the Beiming Domain, even well-known Guiyuan Realm experts didn't dare provoke Killer Eagle.

"An auction in Black Mountain City in two days?"

Chu Ming subconsciously asked.

"You must be new to Black Mountain City. In two days, there will be a large-scale auction hosted by the City Lord's Mansion. To boost its reputation, they reportedly took out a fist-sized Black Nether Stone as the highlight."

The shopkeeper explained, his face filled with wonder when he mentioned the fist-sized Black Nether Stone, clearly very envious.

However, he was aware of his own status. A fist-sized Black Nether Stone could sell for at least four hundred thousand Middle Grade Spirit Stones in the market. With his wealth, all he could do was look from afar.

"What qualifications are needed to enter?"

Chu Ming asked indifferently, not believing that all Martial Artists could enter.

The shopkeeper's expression remained unchanged. Chu Ming's interest in the auction was completely normal to him. If Chu Ming wasn't interested, he would have been surprised.

"To enter the auction, you must pay a fee of one hundred thousand Lower Grade Spirit Stones."

The shopkeeper responded.

Chu Ming nodded slightly. One hundred thousand Lower Grade Spirit Stones was equivalent to the entire net worth of an ordinary Ninth Layer True Dao Realm Martial Artist. This would filter out at least ninety percent of the Martial Artists, leaving those entering the auction to be mostly Guiyuan Realm Martial Artists.

"I'll leave you to it. If you need anything, just call me."

The shopkeeper opened the room door, his face full of smiles.

"Hmm!"

Chu Ming nodded, entered the room, and closed the door. The guest room was quite spacious, with a beam of sunlight shining through the window, making it seem comfortable and peaceful.

Sitting cross-legged on the bed, Chu Ming took out a Top Grade Profound Spirit Pill from his Storage Ring and placed it in his mouth. Although he had come to Black Mountain City on the way, his heart also harbored a desire for the Black Nether Stone. A single Black Nether Stone could at least boost his combat power by a layer.

Although Black Nether Stones were precious, Chu Ming had over a million Middle Grade Spirit Stones in his Storage Ring and nearly seventy million Lower Grade Spirit Stones. As long as nothing unexpected happened, buying the Black Nether Stone would be no problem.

Slowly refining the Spirit Power in the Profound Spirit Pill, Chu Ming decided to stay in Black Mountain City for two more days.

A single Profound Spirit Pill could only support Chu Ming's cultivation for one night. To continue cultivating, he would need to take another Profound Spirit Pill.

The time of Martial Artists always passed very quickly. In the blink of an eye, two days had passed. In the morning, after having breakfast, Chu Ming walked towards the auction house.

On the way, three or four Martial Artists walked side by side, all discussing the auction.

"Yesterday, I saw Killer Eagle Jiuxue at a weapon shop."

A gray-clothed Martial Artist said to the people beside him.

"How strong is he?"

Everyone couldn't help but ask.

"Unfathomable. In front of him, I couldn't even muster the thought of resisting."

The gray-clothed Martial Artist said wistfully. Thinking of yesterday's scene, a trace of fear emerged in his eyes as he recalled seeing a Guiyuan Realm Fourth Layer expert angering Killer Eagle Jiuxue and being slain by him in three strikes.

Chu Ming quietly listened, his expression unchanged. Although Killer Eagle Jiuxue was fearsome, he wasn't enough to scare Chu Ming.

Before long, Chu Ming arrived at the entrance of the auction house. A Black Armor Guard blocked Chu Ming's path, his face serious.

"To enter, you must pay one hundred thousand Lower Grade Spirit Stones!"

Chu Ming already understood the rules and was about to take out the Lower Grade Spirit Stones from his Storage Ring.

At this moment, the crowd suddenly panicked and dispersed. A terrifying Sword Momentum, as if tearing through space, rose behind Chu Ming and spread in all directions.

Thud thud thud!

The sound of footsteps slowly resonated, heavy as if striking in everyone's heart.