97: Chapter 97 Tiangong Market

Seeing the bear monster appear, Ye Jing did not rush to deal with it; he knew there was another Yao Beast in the cave whose cultivation level was unknown, and a direct fight would not be to his advantage.

He immediately mounted Hei Feng and said, "Hei Feng! We are leaving here at once!"

Hei Feng let out a long howl and then swiftly dodged the bear monster's attack.

The bear was over three meters tall, and with a single swipe of its paw, it left a deep crack in the stone wall.

It let out a violent, earth-shaking roar, turned its body, and stomped its thick bear paw heavily against the ground, causing the entire cave to tremble violently.

The bear monster's fur was nearly golden, and it had sharp teeth. It spat towards the fleeing Ye Jing, instantly releasing a golden light needle.

Ye Jing hurriedly urged Hei Feng to run faster. The light needle pierced deep into the stone wall like an arrow from a bowstring, followed by an explosive blast.

From this, it was clear that its power was astonishing.

Ye Jing was secretly shocked; the strength of this bear monster was so terrifying that if he had been hit, let alone himself, even Hei Feng would have had no ability to resist.

Fortunately, he had not ventured deep into the cave, and he would soon be able to escape from here.

However, before he could think further, a bone-chilling cold suddenly rose up his back—the suffocating feeling of being locked onto by a top-tier predator.

Deep within the cave, the Yao Beast that had not yet shown itself finally made a move.

A sound of vibrating appendages echoed over, and a faint, ghostly purple light emerged from the cave. A black-purple scorpion appeared from within.

It waved its front pincers and let out a heaven-shaking hiss at Ye Jing. This powerful spiritual pressure made the surrounding restless Yao Beasts fall silent in fear.

Hearing this familiar sound, Ye Jing's eyes widened. This was the same Yao Beast that had previously appeared at the edge of the forbidden zone with its two offspring.

Far from being afraid, Ye Jing actually became somewhat excited. What a small world it was!

He leaped out of the cave. The bear monster hissed incessantly but did not pursue him outside.

On the other side, near the valley, Su Dadan and Liu Qing were startled by the heaven-shaking roars coming from within.

When they saw Ye Jing ride out on a black dog, the two Cultivators were also taken aback. The black dog was extremely robust, standing a head taller than a person.

They clicked their tongues in wonder, thinking that this old Cultivator not only knew how to use a sword but also how to tame beasts.

"Senior, are you alright?" Su Dadan stepped forward and asked with concern.

Ye Jing dismounted from Hei Feng and said, "I am fine. I just accidentally provoked the Yao Beast inside; it was a false alarm."

"That is good, that is good." Su Dadan breathed a sigh of relief. "Old Senior, I was right, wasn't I? There is nothing good in this valley other than these Yao Beasts."

Hearing this, Ye Jing changed the subject: "By the way, are you two heading to Tiangong Market after gathering the green-veined grass? Take me with you."

He had explored this Spiritual Vein today, and the strength of the Yao Beasts he saw should be stably around Qi Refining Level 5 or 6, which was just right for his family to deal with.

After finishing the exploration of the Spiritual Vein, he wanted to go see the Tiangong Market that the two Cultivators had mentioned.

As for Low-Grade Spirit Stones, he did have a few on him, all purchased at a high price, which could be used as the entrance fee.

Su Dadan and Liu Qing looked at each other, seeing surprise in each other's eyes. Su Dadan immediately nodded in agreement: "It is our good fortune that Senior is willing to travel with us. Of course, that is no problem!"

They already felt that this old Senior was unfathomable. Being able to travel together might provide them with more security, so how could they dare to refuse?

Liu Qing put away the gathered green-veined grass, carefully placing it into a special jade box, and smiled: "Senior, we have gathered enough green-veined grass. At our pace, we can arrive in ten days if we take a carriage."

As he spoke, his gaze could not help but glance at Hei Feng again. This black dog had turned into an ordinary-looking black dog, but its eyes revealed a flash of intelligence; it was definitely no ordinary Yao Beast.

Their awe of Ye Jing grew even more.

Ye Jing nodded slightly. He was currently only at the Qi Refining Level 5, but he had hidden his true strength to avoid unnecessary trouble.

The two Cultivators were quite generous. Despite their scarce resources, they had plenty of money on them. They spent three taels of silver to rent a carriage and set off.

Along the way, Su Dadan talked quite a bit, taking the initiative to tell Ye Jing many details about Tiangong Market.

Traveling rapidly by carriage, Ye Jing saw many scattered Cultivators, most of whom were heading towards the Tiangong Market ahead.

Some Cultivators could even ride their Magical Artifacts to fly high, their speed far exceeding that of their small carriage.

Ten days later.

A huge stone gate appeared in front of them. The words "Tiangong Market" were carved onto the top of the gate in vigorous, powerful strokes, faintly exuding a fluctuation of Qi.

On both sides of the gate stood two Cultivators dressed in uniform brown tight-fitting outfits, with tokens hanging from their waists. They were carefully checking the identity of every Cultivator entering the market and collecting the entrance fee.

"Senior, the entrance to Tiangong Market requires one Low-Grade Spirit Stone as an entry fee. However, if we enter together, the two of us can pay for you as well."

As Su Dadan spoke, a fawning smile appeared on his face.

Having hitched a ride with Ye Jing, and considering he had saved their lives, they were naturally unwilling to be stingy about such a small matter.

Ye Jing waved his hand and said, "No need, I can afford that small amount of Spirit Stones."

His indifferent demeanor made the two Cultivators feel that this old Senior was truly formidable, and their hearts were filled with awe.

After the three of them got off the carriage, Su Dadan walked towards the gate first, with Ye Jing following behind them.

When Ye Jing handed the Low-Grade Spirit Stone to the gatekeeper, the other party took the stone, glanced at Ye Jing, and seeing that this old Cultivator was unremarkable and just a little old man, he let him pass without further ado.

Once inside the market, noisy hawking filled his ears. The streets were lined with all kinds of stalls, displaying Spiritual Plants, Ores, Magical Artifact fragments, and other items.

Cultivators came and went in an endless stream, making it very lively. Ye Jing swept his gaze around, carefully observing the layout of the market.

He secretly memorized the key locations, such as the Medicinal Pill shop, the Magical Artifact shop, the Yao Beast Pavilion, and the Mission Hall where tasks were specifically posted.

"Senior, we plan to go sell our green-veined grass first to exchange for some Spirit Stones and resources needed for Cultivate. If there is somewhere you want to go, we can split up first and meet later at the Welcome Tower in the center of the market, how about that?"

Su Dadan turned and asked. He knew that most Cultivators preferred to travel alone, so he took the initiative to suggest splitting up.

Ye Jing nodded and said, "Very well, you two go ahead. This old man will look around."

He had intended to explore the market situation on his own to search for resources suitable for his family's Cultivate, so splitting up suited him perfectly.

After parting ways with Su Dadan and his companion, Ye Jing slowly walked along the street, his gaze carefully scanning the various stalls.

He thought of his eldest grandson, Ye Tianhao, who liked to use a sword. There were a few low-grade spiritual swords on the stalls, but many were damaged.

After asking around, Ye Jing learned that Spiritual Artifacts were very expensive; even the cheapest spiritual sword cost over a hundred Low-Grade Spirit Stones.

However, damaged spiritual swords were slightly cheaper, being one-third of the original price or even less.

Seeing this, Ye Jing immediately thought that his Immortal Willow could repair damaged Spiritual Artifacts. If he bought these damaged spiritual swords, wouldn't it be much cheaper?

Thinking of this, Ye Jing asked about some shops that bought Spiritual Plants. It just so happened that he didn't have many Spirit Stones, but he had plenty of Spirit Medicine like the crimson blood fruit and qi condensing grass that had been nourished by the Immortal Willow.