"I'm not curious," Zhao Zuo said, raising his voice.
Shen Yunjiao clenched her exposed right fist slightly. Though her skin was fair, her arm was covered in many scars from healed wounds. While they somewhat marred its beauty, they also added a touch of wild charm.
An almost imperceptible, dangerous aura emanated from her. The silence spoke volumes.
The smile on Zhao Zuo's face stiffened.
"I am curious," Zhao Zuo said with a straight face, yielding to the voice in his head.
"The reason is actually quite simple. I just need this type of Magical Artifact." Shen Yunjiao gave a faint smile, clearly satisfied with Zhao Zuo's tact. With a soft laugh, she turned and left.
"In any case, my thanks, Taoist Friend Shen." Zhao Zuo clasped his hands in a gesture of respect.
During this time, Zhao Zuo had intermittently upgraded another Willow Leaf Dart, planning to sell it at the Moyun Market in a while. A moment ago, he had indeed considered taking the Magical Artifact out to sell to Shen Yunjiao.
'But on second thought, my knowledge of Shen Yunjiao is limited, and I can't be sure it's safe.'
Zhao Zuo returned to his room, sat on his bed, and began to reflect.
Shen Yunjiao had snatched two Spirit Stones right from Qian Kaiyun, yet he showed no dissatisfaction. He even struck up a conversation with her, full of flattery and compliments. 'That is the kind of mindset and forbearance I need to learn.'
'When facing someone who holds your life in their hands, you must show enough reverence, even if it means giving up a bit of dignity. No matter how they treat you, you must always be aware of your own position.'
'Arrogance brings ruin, modesty brings rewards.'
He rested for about ten minutes before continuing to grind for experience.
By noon, Zhao Zuo decided to make his second trip to the Market. His Spirit Rice had run out that morning. As usual, he first washed himself, changed into a gray Taoist Robe, and tucked his Talismans away. He secured the Sky-Breaking Saber in a hidden clasp at his waist, along with the other upgraded Willow Leaf Dart.
Only then did he push open the door.
The sun was high in the sky, its Yang Qi abundant, forcing all evils to retreat.
It was the same dirt road as last time, but it wasn't as muddy. The roadsides were littered with everyday trash. Zhao Zuo still chose to walk along the edge, remaining vigilant of any sounds around him.
After walking a few kilometers, he found that most pedestrians he encountered would actively move aside, all in a hurry. Some would clasp their hands in greeting, exchange a few simple pleasantries, and offer some nice words wishing the other a smooth journey on the Immortal Dao before parting ways and continuing toward the Market.
Zhao Zuo noticed that some of the people he passed were far worse off than him, both in their clothing and their complexion. 'So there are plenty of people in this district who have it even worse than me,' he thought. 'These people have spent decades stuck in the Early Stage of Qi Cultivation. They're basically doomed to never reach Foundation Establishment.'
But they couldn't save up enough Spirit Stones to leave on a Flying Ship. They could only struggle daily to pay their rent. Whether it was gathering herbs in the mountains or hunting uncivilized beasts, everything came with a certain risk, and they could lose their lives at any moment.
'It seems those who have a craft have a more stable life. At the very least, they can earn enough from their skills to pay rent without having to take risks... without having to worry about dying.'
When Zhao Zuo realized he wasn't among the most miserable of the lot, his mood improved considerably.
After walking a bit further, the stone pillars of the Moyun Market came into view.
In the open ground outside the pillars, several headless corpses were piled up. Blood stained the nearby soil red, and strange, black-feathered birds were perched on the bodies, pecking at the flesh.
Zhao Zuo's good mood instantly evaporated. These were the bodies of stowaways—people who couldn't pay their rent, were driven out into the Yunlan Mountain Range, and had tried to sneak back in. Once their value had been squeezed dry, they lost their right to live.
'This is a dog-eat-dog world. In my past life, the worst that could happen from not working hard was losing your job. Here, you lose your life.'
As he passed the corpses, Zhao Zuo subconsciously quickened his pace. He felt deep sympathy for their plight, and a voice rose from the bottom of his heart... 'Survive, no matter what it takes!'
Dealing with these stowaways so publicly was a clear case of "killing the chicken to scare the monkey." Zhao Zuo had to admit that this overt warning was indeed effective.
Stepping past the stone pillars was like entering a bustling bazaar. The shouts of vendors rose and fell one after another.
This time, Zhao Zuo didn't linger in the stall area and headed directly for the inner part of the Market. Suddenly, among the many stalls, he spotted a familiar figure: Shen Yunjiao, whom he had just seen that morning. She was still wearing the same red Taoist Robe, which made her stand out starkly among the many black-clad figures.
On her stall were several Lower Grade Magical Artifacts and some bottles and jars of Pill Medicine. Zhao Zuo took a quick look but didn't see the upgraded Willow Leaf Dart.
Just then, Shen Yunjiao looked up. Their eyes met, and they gave each other a slight nod.
Zhao Zuo continued walking into the Market, but then he saw the stall where he had bought the Willow Leaf Darts last time. In a corner of the black cloth, four broken Willow Leaf Darts were still lying there. Even after twelve days, the stall owner hadn't found a second customer willing to buy such useless items.
Zhao Zuo walked over and squatted down to examine the remaining four Willow Leaf Darts. 'This must have been a set,' he thought. 'Eight in total. Besides the four I bought last time, no one else has purchased any.'
After touching each one and confirming that he could summon the transparent panel, Zhao Zuo spoke to the stall owner. "Two Spirit Stones. I'll take them all. What do you say?"
"Oh? It's you?" The stall owner clearly recognized Zhao Zuo, a flash of surprise in his eyes. He couldn't understand what use this person could possibly have for these pieces of junk. He then picked up the Willow Leaf Darts and inspected them carefully, confirming they were just ordinary Lower Grade Magical Artifacts on the verge of being scrapped.
Unconvinced, the stall owner checked them over carefully several more times but found nothing out of the ordinary.
"They're yours."
"Thank you, Senior." Zhao Zuo calmly took out two Spirit Stones and handed them to the stall owner, then tucked the four Willow Leaf Darts into the hidden clasp at his waist.
'With these Willow Leaf Darts, at least I won't have to worry about the next few months' rent.'
'I'd gained three Spirit Stones from gifting medicine, and profited one from selling the Willow Leaf Dart to Shen Yunjiao.'
'I currently have two left.'
Zhao Zuo did a quick calculation. 'All the Spirit Stones I've earned recently came from Shen Yunjiao.' He subconsciously looked back. In the crowd, that red-robed figure seemed more and more... approachable.
With his business settled, Zhao Zuo continued on toward the Moyun Market. Besides buying Spirit Rice, his plan this time was to check out the original owner's workplace and earn some more Spirit Stones.
He wound his way through the Market, hurrying past the entrance of the Spirit Pill Hall where they sold Pill Medicine. He also resisted the enthusiastic advances of the half-exposed female Taoist Friends at the Qunfang Pavilion.
Zhao Zuo finally arrived at a shop called the Earth Fire Forging Hall. A wave of heat washed over him, so intense it seemed to warp the air. From within came the constant sound of hammers striking iron blanks.
CLANG. CLANG. CLANG!
The Moyun Sect was divided into four great halls: the Earth Fire Hall, the Core Heart Hall, the Shenxiao Hall, and the Punishment Hall.
Earth Fire for Artifact Refining, Core Heart for Alchemy, Shenxiao for external affairs, and Punishment for internal affairs.
The Earth Fire Forging Hall was a subsidiary shop of the Earth Fire Hall, responsible for taking on custom Artifact Refining jobs and Magical Artifact repairs. The original owner's job was as a raw material processor.
His official title was Artifact Refining Apprentice. Those who were less polite liked to call him... a stinky blacksmith.
....
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