365: Return to Tianfeng, the Mystery of the Ghost Market

Tianfeng City.

Above the sea of clouds, a brilliant starlight tore through the sky, descending abruptly at a terrifying speed that nearly ignored spatial distance.

The starlight withdrew, revealing a magnificent flying boat of strange design and smooth lines, cast entirely from Astral Crystals.

This was the Nine Heavens Star Shuttle, the top-tier flying boat of the Wanfa Immortal Sect. Its speed was so great that it could touch the edges of the Space Law, far beyond what ordinary Dao Artifact flying boats could compare to.

Less than a day and a night after Shen Yuanmo's order was given, he and Qing Xuzi stood once again above this majestic city of the Eastern Region.

“Such heavy Evil Qi...”

Qing Xuzi stood at the bow, looking down at the familiar yet strange city below, his brow furrowed tightly.

Shen Yuanmo's gaze was even more profound.

Within his Divine Sense perception, the current Tianfeng City was like a spiderweb stretched to its absolute limit.

Countless powerful, obscure Divine Thoughts, carrying greed and vigilance, silently interlaced above and beneath the city, testing and fearing one another.

Any slight disturbance could trigger a violent tremor in this vast net.

Compared to when he left three months ago, the current Tianfeng City had become a volcano on the verge of eruption.

“It seems the news of the divine treasury key has completely spread,” Shen Yuanmo said in a flat tone, betraying no emotion.

“Indeed,” Qing Xuzi gave a bitter smile. “No one can remain unmoved by such a supreme treasure. Who knows how many old monsters are hiding in this city now.”

He looked at Shen Yuanmo, his expression becoming increasingly respectful.

If not for this unfathomable Elder Shen presiding over them, the Wanfa Immortal Sect would likely have to pay a bloody price just to get a share of the spoils in these muddy waters.

“Let’s go. Let’s not keep our ‘old friends’ waiting too long.”

Shen Yuanmo withdrew his gaze, and with a flash, his figure disappeared from the Nine Heavens Star Shuttle.

Qing Xuzi did not dare to delay; he quickly stowed the flying boat and followed close behind.

The two did not enter the city through the main gate. Instead, led by Qing Xuzi, they arrived at a deserted Valley of Scattered Rocks outside Tianfeng City.

Qing Xuzi formed hand seals, chanting under his breath, and struck dozens of complex dharma seals against an unremarkable green stone.

Light flowed over the green stone as a dark vortex emerged out of thin air, emitting an ancient and chilling aura.

“Elder Shen, this is one of the most secret passages into the Ghost Market; only a handful of people know of it.”

Shen Yuanmo did not hesitate and stepped inside.

The stars shifted and the world spun.

In the next instant, a completely different set of worldly rules enveloped his body.

Cold, dead, and oppressive.

It was as if he had fallen from a vibrant world into a forgotten, ancient graveyard in an instant.

What met his eyes was a dim, lightless sky with no sun, moon, or stars—only a blood-colored crescent moon hanging high, emitting an ominous red glow.

Beneath his feet was a wide street paved with black stone slabs. On either side of the street stood shops of bizarre shapes and ancient styles.

Lanterns flickering with ghostly light hung by the doors, yet not a single soul could be seen. Only gusts of yin wind blew past, swirling the dust on the ground.

This was the underground Ghost Market beneath Tianfeng City.

A small world independent of the Canglan Realm, possessing its own rules.

With a thought from Shen Yuanmo, his majestic Divine Sense—which was comparable to the Middle Stage Returning Void Realm after his Breakthrough to the Great Perfection of Soul Transformation—was about to spread out like a tide.

However, the moment his Divine Sense left his body by three feet—

Boom!

An invisible, vast power of Restriction, carrying an aura of decay and death, slammed into his Divine Soul like a ruthless iron hammer!

Even with the toughness of Shen Yuanmo's Divine Soul, he felt a slight sting.

He gave a muffled groan and instantly withdrew his Divine Sense.

“What a powerful Restriction!”

A sharp light flashed in Shen Yuanmo's eyes as he looked up at that blood moon.

He could feel that the source of that terrifying power of Restriction was precisely that bizarre blood moon in the sky.

The Dao charm contained within that power was ancient and overbearing, causing even him, who wielded the Chaos Great Dao, to feel a hint of alarm.

“Hedao Realm... or perhaps, even stronger!” He made an instant judgment in his heart.

“Elder Shen, are you alright?” Qing Xuzi asked with concern upon seeing Shen Yuanmo's expression change slightly.

He then explained with a bitter smile: “I forgot to remind you, Elder, that within this Ghost Market, there are Restrictions laid down by a great power that forbid all Divine Sense probing and any form of private combat.”

“This is the iron Law of the Ghost Market. For over a hundred thousand years, no one has dared to violate it.”

“What happens to those who violate it?” Shen Yuanmo asked.

A look of deep dread appeared on Qing Xuzi's face.

“They will be obliterated on the spot by the Ghost Guards, the enforcers of the Ghost Market. Regardless of cultivation or background, there are no exceptions.”

The words had just left his mouth.

A series of synchronized yet silent footsteps echoed from the end of the street.

A squad of figures clad in ferocious black armor, holding pale bone spears, and wearing masks that blocked all inspection, walked out of the darkness like ghosts.

They lacked even a shred of life force, possessing only a chilling killing intent that could freeze one's Divine Soul.

There were ten in total.

Shen Yuanmo's pupils shrank slightly.

The cultivation of each of these ten Ghost Guards was actually at the Spirit Transformation Late Stage!

The aura of the leading Ghost Guard was even more solid to the extreme, only half a step away from entering the Returning Void Realm!

Such a force was enough to easily sweep through any third-rate or even second-rate Sect in the Eastern Region!

And here, they were merely the enforcers responsible for patrolling.

Qing Xuzi didn't even dare to breathe loudly, instinctively pulling Shen Yuanmo to the side of the street.

Only after the squad of Ghost Guards had silently passed and disappeared into the distant darkness did he let out a long sigh of relief.

“Quite the Lord of the Ghost Market, quite the grand display.”

Shen Yuanmo watched the direction the Ghost Guards had vanished, his eyes playful.

Just then.

A commotion suddenly broke out in the crowd ahead.

An overbearing and peerless Sword Intent, as if it wanted to cleave this world apart, erupted from the entrance without warning!

That Sword Intent was incomparably sharp, yet it was suppressed firmly within three feet by the rules of the Ghost Market, unable to leak out in the slightest, creating a suffocating pressure.

The already sparse Cultivators on the street all had their faces change drastically. As if they had seen a ghost, they hurriedly retreated to both sides, clearing a wide path.

Under the gaze of countless eyes filled with awe and fear.

A middle-aged man with a cold expression, wearing a moon-white sword robe and carrying an ancient sword on his back.

Surrounded by a group of equally powerful Returning Void Elders, he stepped into the Ghost Market with a majestic stride.

It was the current Sect Master of the Taiyi Sword Sect, the Late Void Returning Stage powerhouse, Jian Wuya!

His gaze was like two unsheathed sharp swords, scanning the entire area.

All Cultivators who met his gaze felt a stinging pain in their eyes and their Divine Souls felt as if they were tearing. They all lowered their heads, not daring to look directly at him.

When his gaze swept over Qing Xuzi, it clearly paused for a moment.

Their two gazes collided in the air, sparking invisible flames.

In Jian Wuya's eyes was undisguised hostility and a warning, as if saying: Wanfa Immortal Sect, you had better not block my path!

Qing Xuzi's face darkened slightly, but he could only steel himself to meet the gaze.

However, as Jian Wuya's gaze swept past Qing Xuzi's side—

When it reached Shen Yuanmo, whose aura was restrained to the extreme and appeared as ordinary as a common Nascent Soul Initial Stage Cultivator, it did not linger at all, passing right over him.

He didn't realize at all that the madman who had shattered his Sect's Returning Void Elder's Sword Heart with a single finger outside Ascension City was standing right in front of him at this moment.

Shen Yuanmo watched Jian Wuya and his group walk overbearingly toward the depths of the street with a calm expression.

He ignored the pressure that had almost condensed into substance.

The moment he stepped into the Ghost Market, his Heaven-Defying Comprehension talent began to operate on its own.

In just a short moment.

The massive Restriction that covered the entire Ghost Market, which even Dao Union powerhouses were wary of, was no longer an impenetrable wall in his eyes.

Countless extremely complex Formation runes, the trajectories of energy flow, the nodes where Laws interlaced... everything was being rapidly analyzed, dismantled, and reconstructed in his mind.

“Using the blood moon as the Formation eye, drawing in the Nine Nether Death Qi as energy, and then constructing the framework with Space Law, fusing at least three thousand seven hundred types of ancient Restriction techniques...”

“So that's how it is. The Restriction here isn't for forced suppression, but for assimilation, bringing all external forces into its own cycle of rules...”

In just a few breaths of time, Shen Yuanmo had already analyzed a full thirty percent of the Restriction structure at the Ghost Market entrance!

He had even deduced several weak nodes that could be temporarily bypassed or even used to harness the power of the Restriction!

The corners of his mouth curled up slightly, almost imperceptibly.

In his heart, he already had a plan.

The group continued forward, and soon, at the end of the street, a magnificent palace built entirely of unknown giant black stones appeared.

Above the palace hung an ancient plaque with two blood-colored characters written in a bold, flowing style.

Youming Hall!

This was the core location for Ghost Market transactions.

At this moment, over a hundred Cultivators had already gathered in front of Youming Hall, each with a profound aura, clearly all here for the divine treasury key.

Jian Wuya and his group naturally stood at the very front.

Just then.

The tightly closed black doors of Youming Hall opened silently.

An old man wearing a black robe, with a hunched figure yet an unfathomable aura, appeared.

As if merged with the darkness of the entire Ghost Market, he leaned on a bone staff and slowly walked out.

His murky gaze swept over the crowd, his voice raspy yet clearly reaching everyone's ears.

“The Master has given an order.”

“The divine treasury key goes to the highest bidder.”

“In half an hour, the transaction will begin inside the hall.”