Du Youqian walked out of the cave and moved around in all directions.
From every angle, the cave entrance was completely invisible.
He bent down, picked up a few stones, and threw them at the cave.
CLINK. The Array repelled the stones, which bounced back just as if they had struck solid rock.
Du Youqian nodded, satisfied. An ordinary person would never discover the cave here.
Even if someone touched it, the Array would provide a tangible sensation, tricking them into believing it was just an ordinary stone wall.
As for Cultivators, they too would struggle to find it with a careful search, unless they already knew something was amiss.
This was because Du Youqian had paid special attention to Concealment when setting up the Array, intentionally eliminating any fluctuations of Magical Power.
Given his Tier Two proficiency in the Array Dao, achieving this had still required considerable effort to theorize and test.
He had also used up some precious Array Materials.
All in all, the results were excellent.
Moreover, being able to deploy such an Array proved that his skill in the Array Dao had progressed again, reaching at least the Tier Two Middle Grade level.
Du Youqian placed everything he wanted to leave for his next reincarnation inside the cave.
The cache included Spirit Stones, some Elixirs with long shelf lives, protective Magical Artifacts, and other useful Array Materials.
Du Youqian planned for his next incarnation to join a Sect, then find an opportunity to slip away as soon as possible to claim this inheritance. It would help him get through the difficult early stages of his Cultivation.
"CHEEP, CHEEP! SQUEAK, SQUEAK!" Just as Du Youqian was about to head down the mountain, the Monkey found him and began gesturing frantically.
Du Youqian had lived with this Monkey for several decades and could already understand some of its meaning.
"You're saying that there isn't enough Spiritual Qi here, and you want to go somewhere else to continue your Cultivation?"
The Monkey nodded, then made a few more quick gestures. "SQUEAK, SQUEAK, SQUEAK! CHEEP!"
"You want to go west? To the Han Kingdom? Which mountain in the Han Kingdom?"
"SQUEAK SQUEAK SQUEAK!" The Monkey didn't just gesture; it also picked up a branch and began to draw in the dirt.
Du Youqian's furrowed brow relaxed.
"Five Wishes Mountain in the Han Kingdom. I see. If I ever need to, I'll go there to find you." At this point, an idea struck Du Youqian, and he decided to plant a seed for the future. "If I die, can I have my descendants come and find you?"
The Monkey hesitated for a moment before nodding and letting out two more squeaks.
"I'll have them say, 'An old friend from Soul-shaking Mountain has come to visit.' Then you'll know it is my descendant."
The Monkey nodded again in agreement.
Du Youqian knew that, out of respect for their past friendship, his future self might receive some help from the Monkey, but it wouldn't be much.
'Still, it's just a bit of foreshadowing,' he thought. 'Whether it'll ever be useful is another question entirely.'
After bidding the Monkey farewell, Du Youqian left Soul-shaking Mountain. He traveled to a coastal region in the northeast of the Wu Kingdom, near the border with the Qi Kingdom, and arrived at the North Shore Market.
The North Shore Market wasn't large—much smaller than the other famous Marketplaces in the Wu Kingdom. Prices for goods were slightly higher, and the quantity and variety of items were also more limited.
It wasn't always possible to find rare resources here.
But it had one advantage: it was situated in a minuscule Blessed Land and had no single, absolute ruler. Instead, it was jointly controlled by two small, nearby Sects and five Cultivation Clans.
The strongest Cultivators in those two Sects and the Cultivation Clans were only at the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.
Some of these seven factions were from the Wu Kingdom, while others were from the Qi Kingdom.
None of them were confident enough to devour the others, so the Marketplace maintained a healthy state of balance.
Furthermore, most of the people who frequented the North Shore Market were Loose Cultivators with low Cultivation levels, making them easy to control.
As a result, conflict within the Marketplace was rare, and Tribulation Cultivators seldom lurked in the surrounding area.
It could be called the safest Marketplace in the Wu Kingdom, bar none.
Du Youqian planned to spend the last moments of his current life here.
Whether he made money was irrelevant. His main goal was to familiarize himself with life at the bottom of the Cultivation Realm, deepening his understanding of it day by day.
Another benefit was staying up-to-date on the latest news.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"2,600 Spirit Stones… Why are there an extra 200?" The middle-aged man with a mustache asked in confusion after counting carefully.
Du Youqian smiled. "Not at all. You must have miscounted. It's exactly 2,400 Spirit Stones."
The man's eyes lit up in understanding. "Oh, yes, I miscounted. The amount is correct. It's 2,400 Spirit Stones."
Putting away the Spirit Stones, he looked at Du Youqian with a smile. "Old sir, at your age, you're still coming out to open a shop? Why not stay at home and enjoy your golden years?"
This person was a steward of the Feng Family.
The Feng Family, one of the seven powers behind the North Shore Market.
Du Youqian smiled. "One must leave something for the next generation. Every little bit I can earn helps."
The other man smiled again. "You've taken over this shop, what do you plan to do? Don't misunderstand, our Feng Family won't interfere with your business, but we must have some understanding of what you plan to sell. If what you're doing, the goods you're selling, are not permitted by the Marketplace's rules, we can communicate and resolve it in advance. No need to make things ugly, right?"
Du Youqian nodded with a smile. "I understand, and it's no secret. I plan to open a small sundry shop, selling some Talismans, Elixirs, Magical Artifacts, and the like. You can rest assured, I will follow the rules. Anything that shouldn't be in my shop will never appear in it."
"Good, that's good." The man was quite polite, not at all overbearing or condescending. "If you don't mind me asking one more thing, old sir... you know Drawing Talismans, as well as Alchemy and Artifact Refining?"
Du Youqian said, "I know a bit of everything, but I'm a master of none."
After returning from Cyan Bamboo Castle, there was a long period when Du Youqian's progress in Arrays and Alchemy stalled because he lacked the corresponding Inheritance knowledge to advance further.
He didn't want to let time go to waste.
Therefore, during those days, he also learned a bit of Talisman Making and Artifact Refining, right up until Elder Tao passed away and gave him the Tier Two Inheritance for Alchemy and Arrays.
Du Youqian discovered that his talent for the Array Dao was the best. His talent for Alchemy was a little worse, but not by much.
His talent for Artifact Refining was barely passable, just average.
As for Talisman Making, that was purely a matter of burning money to increase proficiency. His aptitude in this area could only be described as better than nothing.
However, over the long years, he still raised his Artifact Refining level to Tier One Upper Grade, and Talisman Making to Tier One Middle Grade.
"Not at all, old sir. One look at you and I can tell you're a skilled craftsman. When you open, I must come and have a good look. If the goods are high quality and reasonably priced, I'll have to pick a few things."
"You're too kind, far too kind."
And with that, the conversation came to a perfect end.
A few days later, people coming and going from the Marketplace noticed that a shop in a decent location in the southwest corner of the Marketplace had quietly taken down its "For Rent" sign and put up a new one.
"Ruzhen Grocery Store."
After more than half a month, the small shop opened for business.
Curious onlookers who came to check it out found the shop newly decorated.
The shop was well-stocked with Elixirs, Talismans, and Magical Artifacts. Although they weren't high-grade, their quality was decent and the prices were fair.
There was also a 20% discount for the grand opening.
Immediately, many people who had only planned to take a casual look couldn't help but buy a few things.