Mortal: I'm in Tianxing City, intelligence updates daily.

When we arrived, it was still early, and the market was sparsely populated, with many shops not yet open.

Li Shizhou went straight to a shop called "Danding Pavilion".

Over the past few years, he has purchased 30% of his pills from this store, and he is already very familiar with them.

The shopkeeper was a plump, middle-aged cultivator with the cultivation level of early Foundation Establishment.

As soon as Li Shizhou entered, the shopkeeper greeted him warmly: "Young friend Li, it's been a while. We've got two Foundation Establishment Pills in stock. Would you like one saved for you?"

"Senior is too kind. I am just a junior outer disciple of the Star Palace and do not have any spirit stones to buy. I will try my best to raise them within the sect."

Although the resources in the Chaotic Star Sea are richer than those in Tiannan where Han Laomo is located, the Foundation Establishment Pill, a hard currency, is still monopolized by various forces, and it costs a lot of spirit stones to buy it in the shops.

He has other ways to obtain enough Foundation Establishment Pills, so it's best not to flaunt his wealth.

The shopkeeper was just being polite, so he went along with it and said, "Then I won't keep any for you. What kind of pills would you like to buy today?"

"Just give me ten bottles of Feeding Spirit Pills."

"Alright, young friend, please wait a moment, I'll get it for you right away."

A moment later, the money and goods were settled. Li Shizhou chatted with the shopkeeper for a while before leaving Dan Ding Pavilion.

He took out a Spirit Feeding Pill and threw it into the Spirit Beast Bag. The dog, which had been somewhat agitated, calmed down after eating the pill.

After feeding the dog, he strolled around the third section of the market, memorizing the things he recognized as usual.

At four quarters past the hour of You (5:45 PM), the golden panel refreshed precisely on time.

[Daily Opportunity Information]

[Area: One li]

[An: There's a jade pillow at Wu Xuan's stall, containing a treasure map. Obtaining it will be slightly beneficial for Foundation Establishment.]

[Danger: Fellow cultivator Gu Chongyang possesses a jade pendant at his waist that can ward off ghosts and evil spirits. If seized, it can be sold for 500 spirit stones.]

"A treasure map that's also beneficial for Foundation Establishment, that's truly rare."

After reading the contents of the intelligence report, Li Shizhou immediately became interested.

Jade pillows are conspicuous items, and Li Shizhou found a stall selling them a moment later.

The stall owner was a burly man, as tall as an iron tower, with a shrewd look on his face. He looked somewhat familiar and had the cultivation level of the twelfth level of Qi Refining. His stall displayed several magical artifacts and a jade pillow that exuded a faint chill.

Li Shizhou pointed to a silver dagger and asked, "Fellow Daoist, how much is this dagger?"

The burly man didn't answer directly, but said with a half-smile, "Fellow Daoist, you've got your eye on my jade pillow, haven't you? You cultivators who are good at finding bargains all like to use misdirection."

Upon hearing this, Li Shizhou felt a chill. Although he recognized the burly man somewhat, he had never dealt with him before. He wondered how this man knew that he was good at finding bargains and could tell that he was interested in jade pillows.

After looking at the burly man suspiciously for a moment, Li Shizhou said, "Fellow Daoist, do you know me? How can you be so sure I want this jade pillow?"

The burly man said with some pride, "My brother and I are employees of Huizhenlou. We have seen you before. You came to sell spiritual materials that are difficult for ordinary people to identify on two separate occasions. My brother received you both times. He mentioned it to me afterward, so I remember you. As for the jade pillow, it is because your yang energy is too strong, and you need this item to suppress it."

Upon hearing this, Li Shizhou understood. He had tried his best to sell the treasures in a dispersed manner, but he hadn't expected that someone with ulterior motives would still see through his scheme.

As for this burly man, he seemed shrewd, but he was just someone who wanted to show off after discovering someone else's secrets, and he was nothing to be afraid of.

The benefits that are in hand are the real benefits. As long as he can successfully buy the jade pillow, Li Shizhou doesn't mind being looked down upon by others.

He then feigned surprise and said, "Fellow Daoist, you are truly astute. I have been in this market for years, and this is the first time someone has seen through my thoughts. Let's not beat around the bush. How many spirit stones are you willing to give up this jade pillow for?"

After being flattered a few times, the burly man's smug expression grew even stronger: "Fifty spirit stones, one price."

The number was more than Li Shizhou had anticipated, but it was still within an acceptable range.

After some haggling, he finally bought the jade pillow for forty spirit stones.

After obtaining the goods, he did not linger in the market, but went straight back to Yuheng Courtyard.

After carefully inspecting the cave's array, Li Shizhou took out the jade pillow and examined it closely.

This object is about 1.2 feet long and half a foot wide, with a concave center. It feels heavy and cool to the touch.

The surface has grayish-white stone patterns of varying shades, resembling flowing clouds or water ripples.

He didn't know what material it was made of, but his divine sense could only probe half an inch deep.

After observing for a while and finding nothing special, Li Shizhou tried to use it as a magical artifact to bind to its owner. He performed a series of blood-dripping spells, but there was no response.

"Looks like the only option is to try breaking it."

Having just spent forty spirit stones, Li Shizhou still felt a pang of heartache. He took out a small silver sword and began to slowly scrape along the edge of the jade pillow. Before long, the ground was covered with jade powder.

Persistence pays off. After another half-cup of tea time, a black spot appeared on the jade pillow.

Li Shizhou was overjoyed. He took it and looked at it; it seemed to be something like leather.

He scraped along the edge of the black dot and quickly took out a piece of black animal hide, no bigger than the palm of his hand. On it was a simple map drawn in white paint, along with a few lines of small writing.

"Water Crystal Mushroom, Flowing Cloud Island."

These are the two most important pieces of information that Li Shizhou obtained from the animal hide.

Among them, the Water Essence Ganoderma is a spiritual herb that grows in water. It can be taken directly and can treat hidden injuries left by Qi Refining cultivators due to carelessness in cultivation or combat.

The original owner died from a qi deviation, so there might be some hidden injuries. If left untreated, these could have some impact on his foundation building. No wonder the information about the opportunity said it would be beneficial to his foundation building.

However, this medicinal herb has a drawback: once picked, it will turn into a puddle of juice within a few breaths, losing all its medicinal power. It can only be refined in the place where it grows.

He took out a map and searched around, discovering that Liuyun Island was more than a thousand miles away from Tianxing City and was an inconspicuous coral island.

To reach this island, one must fly alone in the vast ocean, with a chance of encountering a thief.

Li Shizhou paced back and forth inside the stone house, considering whether he should go to Liuyun Island.

"If I fail to establish my foundation due to hidden injuries, I'll regret it. At worst, I can just buy more talismans and go again. Besides, the distance isn't that far."

After much deliberation, he decided to go anyway.

The next day, he first went to the Inner Affairs Hall to ask for a half-month leave, and then changed into the clothes of a rogue cultivator and went to the market, spending three hundred spirit stones in one go.

The items purchased included a mid-level talisman that could withstand a full-force attack from a Foundation Establishment cultivator, costing one hundred spirit stones.

Last time, it was thanks to this kind of talisman that I was able to withstand the attack of Senior Brother Yu Mengyou's talisman treasure.

The other two hundred spirit stones were used to purchase a defensive formation, which could be used to protect oneself when refining spirit medicine.

He now attacks with a golden hammer, an indigo gourd, and a talisman.

The defense consists of two top-tier magical artifacts, one mid-level talisman, and an array.

The flying chariot used for escaping is also a top-tier magical artifact.

In addition, there is a cloak made from a fragment of Qi Boyuan's magical artifact, which can conceal one's appearance.

As long as they are not targeted by Foundation Establishment cultivators, their safety should be guaranteed.

After leaving the market, Li Shizhou flew towards the northwest of Tianxing City.

Along the way, whenever he sensed something was wrong, he would put on a black cloak. Two days later, he finally arrived safely over a coral island.

Meanwhile, in Tianxing City.

There was a knock on the door of the small house that Zhuo Ruting was renting.

A moment later, Zhuo Ruting opened the wooden door, but there was no one outside, only a letter lying quietly on the ground.

She picked up the letter, opened it, and her expression changed drastically.

The letter read: "Fairy, your grandmother is in our hands. If you do not wish for anything to happen to her, please come to Liuyun Island alone for a talk."