8: Chapter 008 Entering the Black Market!

The night was heavy, shrouding the entire Wurong County!

A figure moved like a ghost, sneaking along the darkness of street corners and alleys, his footsteps as light as a specter. Every time the night patrol guards passed by, he seemed to know in advance, easily avoiding them.

Heading west, the figure soon reached the northwest corner of Wurong County, outside an abandoned old alley that seemed to be tucked into a gap in the city wall.

If he hadn't asked out of curiosity before, Chen An would never have imagined that this abandoned old alley, which was desolate during the day with dilapidated and collapsed houses everywhere, would actually be the location of the black market.

Walking another hundred steps forward, his field of vision suddenly shifted, and a dilapidated courtyard appeared before his eyes.

The courtyard walls were mottled and decaying, the wooden door old and cracked. Under the eaves outside the courtyard, a row of dull black lanterns hung, their yellow, dim light flickering unsteadily, barely casting a circle of hazy, dark light, leaving most of the surrounding area still shrouded in deep shadows.

On both sides of the courtyard gate stood several sturdy men in black, each with a cold, rigid expression and sinister eyes, their bodies wreathed in fierce, violent Evil Qi.

These people were all at least Martial Artists of the Qi Condensation Realm.

Chen An stepped forward steadily, his pace calm and composed, showing no sign of panic.

He reached into his robes, his fingertips pinching a cold yuan crystal, and tossed it casually, landing precisely in the palm of one of the sturdy gate guards.

The sturdy man caught it, weighed it in his hand, and cast a faint glance at Chen An.

Seeing his black cloak, with his face hidden behind it, revealing only half his face, he did not probe or question further.

The black market only recognized benefits and never asked about origins.

As long as the entrance fee was paid, and one didn't cause trouble or pick fights, it didn't matter what your identity was or where you came from; you could enter safely.

The leading, sinister-looking man withdrew his gaze, turned sideways, raised his hand, and spoke coldly with a raspy, coarse voice: "You know the rules. Inside, trade based on your own ability. Fighting is forbidden. If you break the rules, you die!"

This simple warning was the only bottom line of the black market.

The other thugs remained standing in place, their eyes vigilantly scanning the people coming from the alley entrance, paying no more attention to Chen An.

Chen An nodded slightly, said nothing, stepped over the threshold, and calmly entered the black market hidden deep within the ruined alley, a place where all sorts of people mingled.

Once inside the courtyard, the space opened up. It was bustling with people, with rows of stalls, appearing before him like a night market square from his past life.

Most of the vendors were masked and wrapped in clothes, either covering their faces with black cloth or lowering their brows with bamboo hats, their expressions gloomy and cold. Many were wrapped in tattered, heavy cloaks, tightly concealing their appearance and aura, unwilling to reveal even the slightest detail.

No one shouted or hawked their wares; everyone communicated in extremely low voices, whispering and bargaining in secret.

The stalls were filled with a dazzling array of goods: various weapons, Vicious Beast meat not commonly seen, various Medicinal Pills of unknown origin, handwritten copies of Cultivation Techniques and Martial Skills, and even some contraband items strictly prohibited from circulation in the open, all quietly changing hands here.

Passersby walked hurriedly, all with vigilant expressions. When they brushed past each other, they avoided eye contact, only observing with peripheral vision.

The air was thick with the bitterness of herbs, the pungent smell of Vicious Beasts, the rust of ironware, and wisps of lingering murderous intent, all heavily shrouding the entire black market.

After scanning the entire black market, Chen An did not rush to sell the bottle of qi condensing pill in his robes; instead, he began to browse the stalls first.

His gaze swept past stall after stall; there were sharp weapons, Yao Beast Materials, Cultivation Techniques, Martial Skills, medicinal powders, and Spirit Pills—everything one could imagine.

The stall owners were all reticent, only whispering to bargain when a customer stopped, exuding secrecy and caution everywhere.

"Hmm?!"

Suddenly, Chen An stopped in front of a stall.

The owner of this stall was somewhat special; he was an old man with a long beard.

Unlike others who hid and covered themselves, he was wearing an ordinary long robe, with no disguise on his face, sitting there openly and magnanimously.

The old man's eyelids drooped slightly as he sat lazily, not actively soliciting customers, nor deliberately observing passersby, as if the chaos, schemes, and murderous intent around him had nothing to do with him.

Chen An's eyes narrowed slightly, and he felt a secret sense of vigilance in his heart.

When something is abnormal, there must be a demonic reason!

To dare to appear in the black market without any disguise, showing one's face so frankly, meant he was either a fool who didn't know the immensity of heaven and earth, or a supreme expert holding absolute power, completely unafraid of others' covetousness.

He suppressed his surprise, pretended to stop casually, and slowly let his gaze fall on the items placed in front of the old man.

A pile of books!

To be precise, it was a stack of yellowing, dog-eared ancient books and handwritten scrolls, all of which were various Cultivation Techniques and Martial Skill secret manuals.

The pages were old, the ink faded; some covers were damaged or missing, and some were simply wrapped in coarse linen. They looked plain and unremarkable, yet in this black market filled with all sorts of characters, they appeared exceptionally striking.

Seeing this, Chen An became even more cautious!

How precious were Cultivation Techniques and Martial Skills? Ordinary factions would strictly control them and would never let them drift into the market at will.

Yet this person dared to openly set up a stall in the black market to sell them, without even concealing his appearance or identity; he was definitely no ordinary person.

He remained calm and collected, his gaze gently sweeping over the titles of those scrolls.

Most were Yellow Rank Martial Skills and Cultivation Techniques, with only a few Profound Rank ones, but the variety was complex—blade techniques, palm techniques, movement techniques, and Body Refining secret arts were all there.

Chen An flipped through them slightly, then picked up a Martial Skill labeled Low Grade Profound Rank, titled "Black Tortoise Breath-Concealing Technique". He glanced at the stall owner, and seeing no objection, he flipped through it.

The content inside the book was thin, with only a few pages of introduction, plus a few scattered lines of superficial incantations; it was incomplete and could not be considered a complete Martial Skill at all.

Chen An was not at all surprised by this.

If it were a truly complete Profound Rank Martial Skill, it would be invaluable and precious; how could it be casually placed on a black market stall for people to flip through?

Those placed openly were mostly fragments, useless scrolls, or incomplete handwritten copies passed down. They looked enticing in rank, but in reality, they were incomplete to Cultivate; either they easily led to Qi Deviation, or their power was less than one-tenth of what it should be, only good for reference.

His fingertips rubbed the yellowed, rough paper, and he understood clearly in his heart.

After flipping through a few more Cultivation Techniques and Martial Skills and finding them all incomplete, Chen An lost interest. He didn't ask any more questions, put them down, and turned to leave.

When he turned and left, the old man who seemed to be asleep slowly raised his head, cast a glance at him with turbid eyes, and then continued to close his eyes and doze off.

After walking around and gaining some understanding of this black market, Chen An found a vacant spot in a corner, took out a piece of paper he had prepared beforehand and the bottle of qi condensing pill, placed them down, and then sat cross-legged.

People came and went in the black market, and soon someone noticed the single white jade bottle displayed in front of him.

Ordinary medicine bottles were crude and plain; such a delicately textured white jade vessel clearly contained top-quality Medicinal Pills, instantly attracting the attention of many.

Before long, a figure with a steady gait slowly approached...