2: Chapter 2: Intercepting at the Market, Innate Sword Bones

The Yunzhou underground black market was hidden beneath a narrow street in the east of the city called "Broken Soul Alley."

The entrance was an abandoned, dried-up well with an inconspicuous little rune carved into the well wall. Those in the know would touch it, the rune would light up, and a stone staircase extending downward would appear at the bottom of the well.

Lu Changyuan, draped in a dusty concealment robe, walked down the stone steps alone.

The scale of the black market was larger than he had imagined.

The underground space had been artificially expanded, spanning dozens of zhang in circumference. Night-luminescent pearls were embedded in the four walls, emitting a dim yellow glow that cast the entire space in alternating light and shadow. Stalls were packed densely, selling everything imaginable—incomplete Magical Artifacts, Medicinal Pills of unknown origin, bound Spirit Beasts, and even a few Mortals with pale complexions and hollow eyes, chained to wooden posts with yellow paper stuck to their chests indicating their Spiritual Root grade.

The air was filled with the smell of blood, the bitter scent of Spirit Medicine, and some indefinable, putrid odor.

Lu Changyuan's expression remained unchanged as he walked deep into the black market, following the direction given by the Jade Slip.

He stopped in a corner.

It was a slave-trading stall, even darker than the surrounding ones. Seven or eight people were locked in iron cages, mostly Mortals. Only in the innermost cage was a young boy.

The boy looked to be only sixteen or seventeen years old, with a gaunt figure, wearing ragged coarse cloth clothes, his body covered in overlapping new and old scars. His hands were tied behind his back, and iron nails pierced his shoulder blades, the blood having long since congealed into black scabs.

But he did not lower his head.

He sat straight in the corner of the iron cage, his gaze as sharp as a blade, carrying a coldness and defiance completely disproportionate to his age, like a sword that had been trampled into the mud yet still maintained its edge.

The stall owner was a middle-aged Cultivator with a fleshy face, currently haggling with a black-robed Cultivator.

"This brat is a devilish Cultivator, with Devilish Qi remaining in his body. Ordinary people simply cannot tame him," the stall owner rubbed his hands, his tone sycophantic. "But your esteemed self has profound cultivation, so he is perfect to be used as a furnace. The purity of his Qi is absolutely sufficient—"

"Cut the crap," the black-robed Cultivator's voice was gloomy. "Thirty Mid-Grade Spirit Stones, is it a deal?"

"Deal, deal, deal, you are the boss."

Lu Changyuan stood on the periphery of the crowd, his Divine Sense quietly probing toward the boy.

The moment his Divine Sense touched the boy, the heavenly secret jade slip in his Sea of Consciousness vibrated slightly, and a line of small golden characters appeared in his mind:

[ This child, born with Sword Bone, one in ten thousand. ]

Lu Changyuan's eyes flickered.

Born with Sword Bone.

He had seen this term in the classics within the Lu family's Scripture Pavilion. Those born with Sword Bone had bones naturally compatible with the Dao of the sword. They achieved twice the results with half the effort when Cultivating sword techniques, and when breaking through critical Realms, they would trigger phenomena between heaven and earth, with Sword Intent manifesting on its own. This Physique appeared only once every few hundred years in the entire Immortal Realm, and any top Sect would spare no cost to take such a person under their wing.

And now, this Genius was about to be sold as a furnace for the price of thirty Mid-Grade Spirit Stones.

Lu Changyuan stepped forward.

"Wait a moment."

His voice was not loud, but it carried a natural calm and certainty, causing the few Loose Cultivators watching to involuntarily clear a path.

The black-robed Cultivator turned his head, narrowing his eyes as he sized him up: "Who are you?"

"Just passing by." Lu Changyuan glanced at the boy in the iron cage and said casually, "I want this person."

The stall owner was stunned, then immediately put on a smiling face: "This Fellow Daoist, this kid already has an owner. Why don't you look at something else—"

"One hundred Mid-Grade Spirit Stones." Lu Changyuan interrupted him, took out a Storage Pouch from his sleeve, and tossed it onto the stall. "More than what he offered, that should be enough."

The black-robed Cultivator's gaze instantly turned dangerous.

He was at the Perfection of Qi Refining, which counted as above-average combat power in this black market. The young man in front of him, who looked no more than seventeen or eighteen, could not be read by his Divine Sense, but his intuition told him the other party was not to be trifled with.

But he was not the type to retreat easily.

"Brat," his voice lowered, carrying a clear threat. "Do you know who you are snatching things from?"

"I don't know," Lu Changyuan looked at him calmly, "and I don't care."

The black-robed Cultivator's expression sank.

He raised his hand, and Qi condensed in his palm; he was clearly about to attack.

Lu Changyuan did not retreat, nor did he adopt any defensive stance. He simply took three Talismans from his sleeve, held them between his fingers, and played with them casually.

Those were three Tier 2 peak-grade Flame Explosion Talismans.

Those with good judgment in the black market recognized them at a glance.

The crowd around them quietly retreated a few steps.

A Tier 2 Flame Explosion Talisman, the explosive power of a single one was enough to severely injure a Cultivator at the Early Foundation Establishment. If three were detonated simultaneously, a Cultivator at the Perfection of Qi Refining had almost no chance of survival without any precautions.

More importantly, the market price for one of these things was three hundred Mid-Grade Spirit Stones.

Three of them meant nine hundred.

This kind of spending was not something an ordinary Loose Cultivator could afford.

The black-robed Cultivator's hand stopped in mid-air.

"You..."

"I will count to three," Lu Changyuan's voice remained calm, even carrying a hint of nonchalance. "If you haven't left by then, I will assume you are trying to rob me."

"One."

The black-robed Cultivator's expression became extremely ugly the moment the word "one" fell.

A fierce glint flashed in his eyes, and he actually took the initiative to form a hand Seal. A dark, short awl flew out from his sleeve, stabbing straight at Lu Changyuan's throat.

Exclamations erupted from the surroundings.

Lu Changyuan did not even lift an eyelid. He flipped the three Flame Explosion Talismans between his fingers, and the first one had already turned into crimson firelight.

Boom!

The explosion detonated in the narrow black market, waves of fire wrapped in violent Qi slamming head-on into that black awl, shattering it into fragments on the spot. The protective Qi barrier the black-robed Cultivator hastily erected lasted only an instant before being blasted to pieces by the second Flame Explosion Talisman.

"Stop! I don't want him anymore!"

His face was deathly pale. Before he could finish speaking, the third Talisman had already been flicked out by Lu Changyuan.

Another loud explosion.

The black-robed Cultivator was swallowed by the waves of fire; his protective Magical Artifact, Qi barrier, and his flesh and blood were all blown apart, leaving only a scorched mark on the spot. The pungent smell of burning flesh quickly spread through the black market, and the previously noisy crowd fell into instant silence.

Lu Changyuan put away the Talismans and looked at the stall owner.

The stall owner's legs had already gone weak from fear. He said repeatedly: "Fellow Daoist, Fellow Daoist, you take him, just take him, no need to pay the Spirit Stones..."

"Rules cannot be broken." Lu Changyuan pushed the Storage Pouch over. "One hundred, count it clearly."

He walked to the iron cage, squatted down, and met the boy's gaze.

The boy did not speak, only looking at him with those sharp eyes. There was no gratitude, nor fear, only a kind of calm scrutiny.

"What is your name?" Lu Changyuan asked.

The boy was silent for a moment before opening his mouth, his voice hoarse: "Leng Feng."

"Leng Feng," Lu Changyuan stood up and signaled the stall owner to open the iron cage. "Follow me."

"Why?"

"Because I just spent one hundred Mid-Grade Spirit Stones to buy you," Lu Changyuan looked at him calmly. "Of course, if you don't want to leave, I can leave you here and wait for the next buyer to come."

Leng Feng looked at him for a while. Finally, he braced himself against the ground and stood up with difficulty.

His legs were trembling, but he did not let himself fall.

Lu Changyuan watched this scene, and something in his eyes loosened slightly.

He turned and walked toward the exit of the black market.

Behind him, Leng Feng followed his footsteps.

It was already late at night when they returned to the Immortal Cave on Qingyun Peak.

Lu Fu was startled when he saw Lu Changyuan bring back a blood-covered, dying boy, and he hurriedly went to get healing Medicinal Pills.

Lu Changyuan waved his hand to stop him.

He walked to the desk, opened a sandalwood box, and took out a Medicinal Pill.

The Medicinal Pill was entirely emerald green, with fine golden lines flowing across its surface, emitting a clear, medicinal fragrance that made one feel refreshed just by smelling it.

Lu Fu's eyes widened, and his voice went out of tune: "Fifth Young Master, is that... a creation pill?"

The creation pill was a secret formula of the Lu family, specifically used to repair severe damage to Meridians and bone injuries. The value of one was enough to make a Cultivator at the Early Foundation Establishment envious. In the entire Lu family, the inventory did not exceed ten.

Lu Changyuan placed the Medicinal Pill in front of Leng Feng, his voice calm: "Eat it."

Leng Feng looked at the Medicinal Pill, and for the first time, a trace of fluctuation appeared in his eyes.

He raised his head and looked at Lu Changyuan: "What do you want?"

"You." Lu Changyuan sat down opposite him, his expression composed. "Your talent, your sword, and this life of yours. From now on, they are all mine."

Leng Feng was silent for a long time.

Eventually, he lowered his head, picked up the creation pill, and placed it in his mouth.

The Medicinal Pill melted upon reaching his throat. A warm current of Qi surged from his Dantian, spreading along his Meridians to his entire body. Leng Feng could feel it—the things that had been suppressed by the Seal for who knows how many years were waking up.

His bones emitted a faint vibrating sound.

It was a deeper resonance, like a sword that had been asleep for a long time, having its hilt grasped for the first time.

Leng Feng's eyes opened wide.

He looked at his own hands. In his palms, extremely faint Sword Qi flowed under his skin, like swimming fish, like light.

"This is..."

"Your talent," Lu Changyuan looked at him calmly. "How long has it been suppressed?"

Leng Feng did not answer, but his fingers tightened slightly.

Lu Changyuan did not press for an answer. He stood up, walked to the window, and spoke with his back to Leng Feng: "Recover from your injuries first. As for whether you are worth this creation pill, give me the answer yourself once you can stand firm."

Leng Feng raised his head and looked at his back, not saying a word.