120: Golden Core Remains and the Underground Black Market

West side of Qiyuan Island, abandoned mining area, underground secret chamber.

This place was originally the main nest of Iron Fire Ants, but it had now been transformed into a massive Artifact Refining workshop.

The air was filled with a nauseating smell of burning and blood.

"Ugh..."

Ling Yunxiao leaned against the stone wall, retching a few times, his face pale as he watched the scene on the workbench.

Zhou Wannian (Old Man Han) held a sharp light-splitting blade, processing the remains of that Golden Core Stage corpse king like a master butcher.

"Young City Lord, you'll get used to it."

Zhou Wannian didn't even look up, his movements precise and cold. "In the world of Cultivators, corpses are often more valuable than the living. Especially a Golden Core Stage corpse; after being tempered by Evil Qi for hundreds of years, these bones are three times harder than Refined Iron, making them excellent Materials for refining 'bone puppets'."

*Crack.*

He skillfully removed a femur from the corpse king and tossed it into a nearby pool filled with dark red medicinal liquid.

"This is called 'removing evil and preserving spirit'. After soaking for seven times seven, forty-nine double-hours, the resentment inside is removed, leaving only the inherent toughness of the bone."

Li Feiyu was assisting on the side; though his face was also somewhat pale, his eyes held more of a fanatical glint.

"Old Man Han, how strong will Iron Pillar be once he's repaired with this stuff?"

"If we don't count intelligence and just compare pure hardness and strength..."

Zhou Wannian glanced at the Green Wood Giant Spirit Guard in the corner, which only had half a body left.

"It'll be enough to withstand a full-strength blow from an Early Stage Golden Core Cultivator without shattering."

"And..."

Zhou Wannian pulled a black, clumped mass that looked like solidified asphalt out of the corpse king's chest cavity.

"This is 'corpse oil essence'."

"Don't look at me like that. Although this stuff is disgusting, its power can double when used to carve 'corrosion array patterns' or refine 'yin thunder'."

Ling Yunxiao suppressed his discomfort and stepped forward to help.

"Old Man Han, I understand. This is called... making the best use of everything."

"Exactly."

Zhou Wannian nodded in satisfaction.

"The tenet of the Green Robe Tower is: there is no useless trash, only resources placed in the wrong spot."

...Three days later.

'Iron Pillar' was reborn.

Compared to its previous 'scrap-metal style' patchwork appearance, the current Iron Pillar looked even more sinister and terrifying.

Its skeleton had been entirely replaced with the white bones of the Golden Core corpse king, and the exterior was covered in armor forged from Purple Copper Essence. In its originally empty eye sockets, two 'ghost fire beads' excavated from the corpse king's eyes were embedded, flickering with an eerie green cold light.

Most importantly, Zhou Wannian had melted a tiny bit of the 'star gold' fragment and plated it onto Iron Pillar's massive claw.

*Sshhh—*

Iron Pillar lightly swung its giant claw, and the hard rock wall was sliced open with three bottomless gashes as if it were tofu.

"So sharp!" Li Feiyu marveled.

"This is only the beginning."

Zhou Wannian patted Iron Pillar's cold shoulder. "Right now it's just an empty shell; it's still missing the most core 'lubricant'—Flowing Silver Sand. Without that, its joint movements will be sluggish, making it easy for experts to exploit openings during battle."

"Flowing Silver Sand?" Ling Yunxiao frowned. "That's a rare material. You can't buy it at all in the shops on the surface of Qiyuan Island."

"If you can't buy it on the surface, then go underground."

Zhou Wannian changed out of his blood-stained refining robes, put on an unremarkable grey cloth shirt, and donned a bronze mask that blocked Divine Sense.

"Come, I'll take you to see the true gold-consuming pit of Qiyuan Island—the underground black market."

...Underground Qiyuan Island, Black Rock City.

If the market on the surface was a symbol of order, then this place was a carnival of chaos.

The entrance was located at the bottom of an unremarkable dry well, and only those holding a specific token (which Zhou Wannian had spent money to buy) could enter.

There was no sunlight here, only the dim illumination provided by glowing moss embedded in the walls. The streets were lined with stalls, most of the stall owners wearing masks or even black robes, no one knowing anyone else.

"Don't look around blindly, don't ask unnecessary questions, and don't bargain too hard."

Zhou Wannian whispered instructions to the two behind him. "Half of the things sold here are stolen goods obtained from murder and robbery, and the other half are funerary objects dug up from ancient ruins. The waters here are very deep."

The three of them wove through the crowded flow of people.

Zhou Wannian wasn't in a hurry to buy anything; instead, he first stopped at a stall specializing in buying 'unidentified Materials'.

"Boss, do you take bones?"

Zhou Wannian lowered his voice and fished a small section of the corpse king's finger bone from his sleeve.

The stall owner was a thin, small old man wrapped in a black robe. He was originally somewhat indifferent, but when he saw that finger bone, his cloudy eyes suddenly brightened.

"A Golden Core Stage... Evil Bone?"

The stall owner's voice was hoarse. "The quality is good. Freshly unearthed?"

"Just picked it up," Zhou Wannian said succinctly.

"How much?"

"Exchange for Flowing Silver Sand. Five pounds."

"Five pounds? Are you robbing me!" The stall owner sneered. "At most two pounds."

"Four pounds. This bone contains a trace of the corpse king's original Evil Qi from when it was alive. If you know your goods, you'll know what it can be used to refine." Zhou Wannian's tone was flat as he made a move to take it back.

"Wait!"

The stall owner pressed down on the bone, hesitating for a moment.

"Three and a half pounds. I don't have any more than that."

"Deal."

The transaction was completed quickly.

Zhou Wannian obtained a small jade bottle containing half a bottle of silver sand that flowed like mercury.

"This is Flowing Silver Sand. With this, Iron Pillar's flexibility will increase by at least thirty percent."

Just as they were about to leave.

A sudden commotion came from ahead.

"Get lost! This piece of 'Starfall Iron' has been claimed by this Young Master!"

An arrogant and overbearing voice rang out.

A young Cultivator wearing a brocade robe with several Storage Pouches hanging from his waist was seen rudely pushing through the crowd, standing before a stall with two Late Foundation Establishment Stage bodyguards.

On that stall lay a fist-sized, black metal block.

The stall owner was a Qi Refinement Stage Loose Cultivator, trembling with fear: "Sen... Senior, I already promised to sell this item to that Fellow Daoist..."

He pointed to a gloomy-faced middle-aged man nearby.

"I don't care!"

The brocade-robed youth threw out a Storage Pouch. "Five hundred Spirit Stones, and the item is mine! Who dares to compete with me?"

The middle-aged man glanced at the bodyguards behind the youth, then at the medallion at his waist (which seemed to be the mark of some major power), and finally gritted his teeth, swallowing his anger as he retreated.

"Hmph, at least you're sensible."

The brocade-robed youth picked up the metal piece triumphantly and turned to leave.

Zhou Wannian stood in the crowd, watching this scene with a peculiar look in his eyes.

"Old Man Han, who is that guy? So arrogant?" Li Feiyu asked in a low voice.

"I don't know him."

The corners of Zhou Wannian's mouth curled slightly. "However, that so-called 'Starfall Iron' is actually just a piece of scorched 'black iron essence' wrapped in a layer of lead. It's a fake."

"Ah?" Ling Yunxiao was stunned. "Then hasn't he lost big?"

"That's what you call discernment."

Zhou Wannian shook his head. "In this place, deceiving or being deceived all depends on one's own skill. Since we've encountered a fat sheep, there's no reason for us to let him pass."

He suddenly stepped forward and intentionally bumped into the triumphantly gloating youth.

"Ouch!"

Zhou Wannian let out an exaggerated cry, and a wooden box in his hand 'accidentally' fell to the ground.

*Clack.*

The wooden box broke open, revealing a rusty broken sword that faintly exuded a sense of ancient Sword Intent.

"Don't you have eyes?!"

The brocade-robed youth was furious and about to lash out, but his gaze was suddenly drawn to the broken sword.

"This is..."

He felt a trace of an 'ancient treasure' aura emanating from the broken sword.

"My family heirloom sword!"

Zhou Wannian picked up the broken sword with a pained expression, looking terrified. "I'm sorry, Young Master, this old man was blind... I'll leave now, I'll leave now."

"Wait!"

The youth called out to him, "Let me see that sword."

"This... this is a defective product, it's not worth anything..." Zhou Wannian clutched the sword, looking as if he didn't want to show it.

The more he acted like this, the more the youth's curiosity was piqued.

He snatched the broken sword away and swept it with his Divine Sense.

Although heavily corroded, the material was incredibly hard, and there seemed to be extremely profound array patterns carved inside (which were actually cloud seal runes Zhou Wannian had carved with the turtle spirit brush specifically to fool people).

"An ancient treasure fragment!"

The youth's eyes lit up. He prided himself on being a Great Master of appraisal and loved the feeling of 'picking up a bargain' like this.

"Old man, I want this sword. Name a price."

"This... this is ancestral, it's not for sale..."

"One thousand Spirit Stones!"

"Young Master, it really isn't for sale..."

"Two thousand!"

"Deal!"

Zhou Wannian's face changed instantly as he stuffed the broken sword into the youth's hand, grabbed the bag of Spirit Stones, and pulled Li Feiyu and Ling Yunxiao into the crowd, vanishing in the blink of an eye.

"..."

The brocade-robed youth froze for a moment, then smiled triumphantly.

"Country bumpkin, selling an ancient treasure fragment for only two thousand Spirit Stones? I've made a huge profit this time!"

...Abandoned mining area, secret chamber.

Zhou Wannian was in a great mood as he counted the two thousand Spirit Stones he had just obtained, plus the Flowing Silver Sand he had traded for earlier.

"Old Man Han, that sword..." Ling Yunxiao hesitated to speak.

"That was just a scrap sword I picked up, added some corpse king bone powder, and then carved a few useless illusionary runes on it."

Zhou Wannian said indifferently, "The cost was about... three Spirit Stones."

Ling Yunxiao and Li Feiyu looked at each other and both gave a thumbs up.

Ruthless.

Truly damn ruthless.

"Alright, stop joking around."

Zhou Wannian put away the Spirit Stones and took out the Heavenly Secret Dao Disk.

The hour of the Rat had arrived.

"That brocade-robed youth looks like a spoiled brat from some major power. Although we scammed him once, we still have to guard against him settling the score later."

"I ask the Heavenly Secret."

"What is this person's background? Where do his fortune and misfortune lie?"

*Hummm—*

The Heavenly Secret Dao Disk spun.

[Deduction Target: Six-Link Palace · Young Master (Foundation Establishment mid stage)]

[Recent Fortune: Great Calamity]

[Event: Tomorrow at noon, this person will carry a large sum of money and a batch of newly acquired 'treasures' (including that fake sword) to the 'Black Wind Abyss' in the Outer Sea for a transaction. On the way, he will encounter the aftershocks of a Rank 4 Yao Beast, the 'Sea-Splitting Beast'. His guards will be annihilated, and he will flee heavily injured to a 'nameless deserted island'.]

[Opportunity: He is carrying an internal sea chart of the 'Six-Link Palace', which marks several undisclosed safe shipping lanes and resource points.]

"The Young Master of Six-Link Palace?"

Zhou Wannian's eyebrows shot up.

The Six-Link Palace was a super merchant alliance ranked in the top three of the Outer Sea, over a hundred times stronger than the Blood Shark Squad. No wonder he was so rich.

"An omen of great calamity..."

Zhou Wannian looked at the divination and stroked his chin.

"A Sea-Splitting Beast... that's a Rank 4 Yao Beast equivalent to the Nascent Soul Stage. He actually managed to encounter a natural disaster of that level?"

"However, that internal sea chart..."

Zhou Wannian's eyes grew deep.

In the Outer Sea, a reliable sea chart was more valuable than any Magic Treasure. It meant survival, avoiding danger, and enjoying exclusive resources.

"It seems our 'Green Robe Tower' is going on field duty again."

Zhou Wannian stood up and looked at Li Feiyu, who was applying Flowing Silver Sand to Iron Pillar.

"Fei Yu, stop applying it."

"Pack up Iron Pillar. Tomorrow, we're going out to sea... to take on a big job."

"Remember to bring those sets of 'Blood Shark Squad' clothes."

"This time, we're going to play the part of... the bandits' body collectors."