Hunyuan Immortal Sect

Chapter 403 The Force Behind the Scenes
Donghai District is located in the eastern part of the Muhe Grassland, spanning 30,000 li (approximately 15,000 kilometers), and its territory is even larger than that of Xijiang County.

Tianxing City and Dongluo City are both its subordinate towns. As one of the largest city-states in the eastern part of the Muhe Grassland, it naturally has a large number of cultivators gathered there.

Ziyuanfang is the largest market town in the East Sea District, renowned far and wide. Inside, the market town is crisscrossed with lanes and towers, and the streets are bustling with people.

It is May, a time of pleasant weather. Outside the market, willows are green and flowers are red, a scene full of vibrant life.

In the distance, a beam of light shot down, revealing the figure of a broad-shouldered, burly man. The newcomer was none other than Song Xian, but he looked quite different now, with deep-set eyes, a high nose, and thin lips, resembling a man from the Mukh grasslands.

This is not disguise, nor is it wearing a human skin mask; it is the use of a shape-shifting talisman.

The Shape-Changing Talisman is a second-tier superior talisman. After use, it can change a person's facial features and appearance, which can last for one day. During this period, the person can only maintain this appearance. After one day, the person will return to their original appearance.

Unless one possesses a supernatural ability similar to having two eyes or a treasure that can see through illusions, even if one's cultivation level is higher than the user's, one will not be able to detect the flaw.

Song Xian changed his appearance to hide his identity and avoid being targeted.

It's not unusual for a Qin cultivator at the sixth level of Foundation Establishment to participate in an auction in the Muhe Grassland region, but those with ulterior motives might question his purpose.

He went straight into the market and came to the shop of Xingquan Chamber of Commerce, the largest chamber of commerce in Donghai District. Its shop was located in the central area of ​​the market and was extremely large.

After entering the inner room, a steward quickly came forward to greet them.

Song Xian first inquired about the scarce second-tier high-grade puppet materials, but the shop manager replied that they were unavailable and suggested that he participate in the auction in a few days.

He then subtly inquired about what items would be available at the auction, such as any rare items that had appeared in previous years.

The market auction was being handled by the Xingquan Chamber of Commerce. The shop managers were well-informed and mentioned the rare items that usually appeared at the auction, but they didn't mention the ghost crystal core. Song Xian was afraid of arousing suspicion, so he didn't ask directly.

He then bought a number for a private room at the auction through the shop and left. A few days later, the auction was held as scheduled. Song Xian arrived at the venue early with his room number and entered a private room on the second floor.

As time went by, many cultivators entered one after another. He could clearly see the entrance from his private room, and everyone coming and going was within his sight. He immediately remembered the faces and locations of several suspects.

At four quarters past 5 PM, a man and a woman came out from backstage, and the auction officially began.

As items were brought to the platform one by one, the atmosphere at the auction gradually heated up.

"The next item in this auction is the Black Gold Bloodstone." The woman's melodious voice, as sweet as a nightingale's, rang out again. As she lifted the red cloth on the jade plate, a stone with a shiny black exterior and a blood-red interior was revealed.

"Some of you fellow Daoists may not be familiar with this item. Black Gold Bloodstone can only be obtained from depleted volcanoes. It is formed by the solidification of magma at the bottom of the volcano and various minerals in the mountain. It takes decades of soaking in magma and a series of coincidences for it to be formed."

"This object is hard on the outside and soft on the inside. It can be used to refine needle-shaped magic weapons, high-level array flags, and also has corresponding uses in some special fields."

"This piece of black gold bloodstone weighs eighteen jin. The starting price is eight thousand spirit stones, and each bid must be at least five hundred spirit stones higher. Fellow Daoists who are interested, please place your bids."

Inside the private room, Song Xian's eyes lit up upon hearing the name "Black Gold Bloodstone." This was one of the materials he lacked for crafting a second-tier high-grade puppet. He was currently missing three materials, and Black Gold Bloodstone was one of them.

Over the years, he ordered his disciples to search everywhere, but they found no clues. Unexpectedly, after searching high and low, they found him here.

Therefore, it's always good to participate in the various market auctions whenever possible.

After the woman finished explaining the origin and uses of the black bloodstone, the auction hall fell silent, with only whispers among the attendees; no one made a bid.

"Things are valued for their rarity. Black gold bloodstone is something you can only come across once in a lifetime. Even if you don't need it now, it still has extremely high collectible value." The woman was still trying her best to promote it, but no one was buying it. As she counted down, a deep voice finally rang out.

Song Xian looked in the direction of the sound and saw that it was someone from room number six.

He didn't rush to make a move. He waited until the woman counted down again before asking for a price, directly raising the price by two thousand spirit stones to ten thousand spirit stones.

However, the other party did not raise the price further. As the woman announced the sale, he flashed to the high platform of the venue and took away the black gold bloodstone.

As each item was placed on the table, Song Xian finally saw what he wanted to see.

A jet-black, translucent ghost crystal core. According to the man in charge of the auction, this item is the crystallization of a ghost general with a mid-Foundation Establishment cultivation level. It contains a huge amount of Yin energy and is useful for those who cultivate certain Yin and evil techniques.

In addition, it can also be used in certain special high-level formations, and the final starting bid was 10,000 spirit stones.

Song Xian kept his eyes fixed on the actions of the crowd in the venue. He was certain that the ghost crystal core was bait released by the owner of the bead, waiting for him to take the bait.

"Ten thousand." After a long silence, a slightly aged voice rang out.

"The senior in room number ten has offered ten thousand spirit stones. The Ghost General Crystal Core is a rare item in the cultivation world. It represents the cultivation level of ghosts and is equivalent to the demon core of a demon beast. It has extremely high value." The man on the platform immediately shouted loudly.

Song Xian looked in the direction of the sound and saw that room number ten was to his left. There, sitting on the windowsill, was a gaunt man wearing a large gray robe and with a pale face. He was probably wearing a human skin mask or something similar.

After he made his bid, no one else placed a bid.

Although ghost crystal cores are rare items, their uses in the cultivation world are limited. Ordinary cultivators have no use for them, so they don't fetch high prices and few people would buy them.

In the end, the gray-robed man in room number ten got the item.

Before the auction was over, Song Xian left the room first. He went outside, found a secluded spot, took out a concealment talisman, and stuck it on his body.

Soon, his figure disappeared from sight. There was only one exit from the auction, so he found an open area and stared at it from afar, waiting for the cultivator in room number ten to come out.

Before long, the auction ended, and the cultivators inside came out one after another. When he saw the gray-robed man come out, he did not rush to follow him, but continued to wait.

As he expected, there was another person following behind the gray-robed man. Although the person had concealed their figure, they were clearly visible to Song Xianzhen.

Sure enough, someone was watching!
Song Xian sneered inwardly. The furtive figure behind the gray-robed man must be the one who had set the trap for him.

Clearly, they didn't know who their target was, so they released the ghost crystal core, making anyone who bought it a suspect.

The gray-robed man was suspicious in his appearance; he wore a loose gray robe, a human skin mask, and had even bought the ghostly crystal core. The person behind him would certainly not let him go easily.

After leaving the auction venue, the gray-robed man went straight out of the market, seemingly unaware that someone was following him.

He probably didn't think that much about it, and didn't expect that just buying a ghost crystal core that nobody wanted would make him a target.

The three of them left the market one after the other. The furtive figure followed far behind the gray-robed man, while Song Xian followed behind the hidden person, maintaining a distance of several hundred feet.

The gray-robed man was a Foundation Establishment cultivator in the early stage, while the cultivation level of the person following him was unknown.

Song Xian dared not probe with his divine sense for fear of being discovered, but judging from his behavior, his cultivation level should not be very high, at least he was definitely not a Golden Core cultivator.

There were no Golden Core cultivators present at the auction; the most powerful were at the late Foundation Establishment stage.

Moreover, if he were a Golden Core cultivator, he would definitely have noticed that he was following behind.

Song Xian didn't actually care where the gray-robed man went; his target was the person following him. However, the person following him was focused on the gray-robed man, creating a situation where the mantis stalks the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.

The three left the market and fled. After traveling for a while, the person following them seemed to get impatient and suddenly increased their speed, chasing straight after the gray-robed man in front of them.

As the two drew closer, the gray-robed man finally noticed the person following him. His expression changed, his spiritual power surged, and his escape speed increased dramatically as he tried to shake off the person behind him, but he ultimately failed to escape.

The person following him noticed that the other party's divine sense had swept over him, so he simply stopped hiding his figure and revealed his true appearance. He was tall and had a full beard.

After catching up with the other party, without exchanging any words, the two clasped their hands together, and several black giant pillars appeared out of thin air around the gray-robed man.

There were six black pillars in total, each ten feet in size, radiating a dazzling dark light. They were connected to each other, covering an area of ​​several dozen feet in radius, forming a dark cage like a fence.

"I have no acquaintance with you, fellow Daoist, and we have no enmity. Why are you following me, fellow Daoist? What is your intention?" The gray-robed man, trapped in the black cage, had no choice but to stop, turn around to face the person following him, and asked sharply.

He was wearing a human skin mask or similar disguise, so his expression was not visible, but judging from his voice, he must have been both shocked and angry.

"Hand over the storage bag, and I'll spare your life." The bearded man said calmly, as if he had him completely under his thumb.

"Fellow Daoist, do you perhaps desire that ghostly crystal core? If so, I may grant it to you. A mere ten thousand spirit stones is not worth risking our lives for. Let us part ways here, as if nothing happened, how about it?"

The gray-robed man guessed that this person must have been following him since the market, and that he had only done one thing in the market: he had taken a picture of the ghostly crystal core. Therefore, he guessed that the other person might be after this item.

He regretted his carelessness and failure to act cautiously. He had thought that a mere ghost crystal core worth ten thousand spirit stones wouldn't attract the covetous eyes of others.

Logically speaking, even a Qi Refining cultivator wouldn't dare to mess with him, and a Foundation Establishment cultivator wouldn't risk a life-or-death struggle with him for ten thousand spirit stones.

So he didn't pay much attention and left the market after bidding on the item. He had no enemies here. The reason he came all the way to participate in this market auction was because he had heard that ghost crystal cores had been auctioned in the East China Sea District market for the past two years.

He came specifically for this item, never expecting that someone would be following him.

Seeing that the other party was making a request, he assumed that the other party only wanted money or valuables, so he made his own demands.

He only had the second level of Foundation Establishment cultivation, while his opponent had the fifth level. If they really fought, he would definitely not come out on top, so he wanted to spend money to avoid trouble.

The bearded man stopped talking and gave a soft shout. Six huge black pillars surged with billowing black mist, which submerged the area of ​​several dozen feet inside the dark cage in just a few breaths.

The black mist surged and churned, like a man-eating beast. The gray-robed cultivator was no longer visible inside; only occasionally could one see a few beams of light piercing through the black mist and striking the dark cage's light barrier.

Song Xian watched the two fight from afar, not in a hurry to intervene. He hoped that the two would fight to the death so that he could reap the benefits.

Just then, a long howl was heard, and golden light shone from within the black mist. Layer upon layer of golden light washed over the black mist like ocean waves, impacting the dark cage formed by the black pillar. Inside, a golden giant tiger, half-human and half-beast, appeared. It was several meters long, with a tiger's body but a human head, making it look extremely strange.

The half-beast golden tiger roared repeatedly, emanating waves of golden ripples from its mouth.

The six massive black pillars swayed slightly under the impact of the layers of golden waves, which rippled like waves.

The golden half-beast tiger flashed to the front of a giant pillar on the left, raised its huge golden tiger paw and slammed it down. With a loud bang, the black pillar trembled violently.

The golden tiger claws struck the black pillar like a storm, cracking sounds echoing continuously, and cracks appeared on the black pillar.

The bearded man did not stand idly by while the half-beast golden tiger attacked the black pillar. As it gathered layers of golden waves to wash away the black mist, he clasped his hands together. Suddenly, his belly swelled up like a pregnant woman's, and the next moment, a ghost head burst out of his belly.

The demon had a blue face, fangs, and bloodshot eyes; its appearance was extremely ferocious.

The bearded man remained expressionless, muttering to himself. The ghostly head inside his belly opened its mouth, and several black shadow ropes shot out from it, like long black snakes, heading towards the half-beast golden tiger.

At this moment, under the giant tiger's continuous blows, the black pillar shattered, and the cage formed by the condensed mystic light also collapsed with a crash.

As the black lines drew near, the half-beast tiger raised its massive paw and slammed it down.

Without any sound of clash, the moment the golden tiger's claws touched the black lines, they were instead wrapped around the lines. In the blink of an eye, numerous snake-like threads had already coiled around the golden tiger's limbs and circled around its body.

The half-beast tiger roared, and golden light formed in its mouth before it spewed it out.

In an instant, golden light engulfed the surroundings, and layers of golden waves swept over the black shadows that were wrapped around it.

Upon seeing this, the bearded man muttered incantations, and a piercing shriek came from the ghostly creature within his abdomen. A faint, ghostly figure appeared above his head, and it opened its mouth and inhaled sharply, forming a huge black vortex.

Like a cow drinking water, the golden waves rushed towards the vortex. At the same time, black shadow ropes shot out from the ghost head's mouth, wrapping around the golden tiger's body, pulling it towards the vortex.

After the golden half-beast tiger was completely wrapped by the shadow rope, its originally enormous size visibly shrank.

It struggled incessantly, trying to break free from the shadow rope's grasp. A faint light could be seen flickering within, but the shadow rope clung to it like a leech, expanding and contracting with its body.

(End of this chapter)