If you were asked to identify an item, would you choose to extract magical powers?

Chapter 268 Cooperation with the Refuge
The entrance to this refuge, where the mechanism array is located, is rarely visited.

Xianyue was dressed in white and had a veil on her face. She was looking around at everything with a hint of curiosity in her eyes, just like a person who had been imprisoned for a long time and was suddenly released, full of curiosity about everything around him.

Shen Bai noticed her curious look.

Shen Bai touched his chin and said, "You're not going back?"

He thought that the jade token could help him block the attack of the masters of the chaotic organization, but he didn't expect that it could also kill all the opponents in a counterattack.

What was even more unexpected was that the crescent moon actually walked out of the jade token, which was very embarrassing.

After hearing what Shen Bai said, Xianyue withdrew her gaze, the corners of her mouth slightly raised, revealing a complacent smile: "I don't have to go back for a few hours, just enough time to take a look and see what the world outside is like."

This expression is like a kitten that has successfully stolen some food.

Shen Bai knew without even looking that Xianyue had taken all the subsequent matters into consideration.

The jade token can allow the crescent moon to stay outside for a short period of time, but it needs to be activated in a specific way, which is to use the breath of a master of the chaotic organization.

It is because of this that the crescent moon can emerge from the jade plate.

And now, from Xianyue's expression, it can be seen that she seems to really enjoy looking at the scenery outside.

"It's been so many years, and I've been in the desolate forbidden land. I've never appeared this time. I helped you a lot and killed them for you, so I'll take a look around. It's like you repaying me for this favor." Xianyue said in a clear and logical manner.

Shen Bai shrugged and said, "It's up to you, but I'm going to another refuge now. If you can wander around on your own, feel free to do so."

From what Xianyue said just now, Shen Bai could hear that Xianyue seemed to have been to the outside world, or that Xianyue herself was a person from the outside world.

But none of this matters anymore. When it comes to the key things, Xianyue won't say anything, and Shen Bai is too lazy to ask her.

Now I want to seize the time to pass through this passage and reach another refuge.

When Xianyue heard the word "refuge", her eyes gleamed slightly. "I've heard that it seems that during the Wancheng era, a group of people chose to escape because of the chaotic organization. I'll go with you to take a look."

It was deserted here. Although there were mountains, water, flowers and grass, after looking at the scenery for a long time, Xianyue felt a little bored.

Now that I heard that Shen Bai was going to a refuge, I felt a little curious.

Shen Bai nodded and said, "If you want to go, then come with me. Just treat it as a trip."

He had no right to reject Xianyue, nor was there any need to reject Xianyue.

At the moment, it seems that Xianyue can still take action.

In that case, just keep it by your side and use it as a helper.

No one can tell what other dangers there are in the refuge.

It is safer to have someone follow you.

Thinking of this, Shen Bai didn't say anything else, but turned his gaze to the secret passage.

The channel is formed by the condensation of space force and the long-term maintenance of the mechanism array.

Shen Bai himself was proficient in these two abilities, so when he cracked the mechanism formation, he had already mastered how to enter and exit the passage.

He didn't say anything and stepped into the passage without saying anything.

Xianyue followed behind Shen Bai, looking at Shen Bai's back with a slight surprise.

At this moment, Shen Bai's body gradually changed, and then turned into a white-haired old man.

If Hong Yuan, the Heavenly Supervisor, was here, he would definitely find that Shen Bai looked exactly like the village chief holding the dragon-headed cane.

Although he didn't have the dragon-headed cane, Shen Bai at this moment looked and behaved exactly like the village chief.

Since this trip is to explore the refuge, Shen Bai naturally will not go in in his true appearance, otherwise the first step in will cause considerable turmoil.

He had already made up his mind and used the Yi Xin method to transform himself into the appearance of the village chief, wanting to explore a new refuge in that capacity.

This will save you a lot of trouble.

Xianyue watched Shen Bai change his body shape, as if thinking about something, but said nothing.

Soon, the two figures disappeared in the passage.

The passage is formed by the power of space. When you step inside it, although you are constantly moving forward, every step you take will cause a huge change in the surrounding space.

With the drastic changes in space, Shen Bai will advance a long distance.

In this pulling, the space becomes extremely close.

In just a few breaths, everything around went from blurry to clear.

Shen Bai has stepped out of this space and arrived at a new refuge.

……

At this moment, there are birds singing and flowers blooming.

Shen Bai appeared in a dense forest.

A breeze blew through the forest, bringing with it a hint of fragrance.

When Shen Bai stepped out, he immediately used the Void-Breaking Red Eyes to cover everything around him.

Xianyue followed behind Shen Bai, and the curiosity in her eyes became more and more intense.

She looked everywhere, wanting to take in everything she could see.

It was not until Shen Bai winked at her that she followed Shen Bai in one direction.

The forest is very dense, but there is a road in the middle, which was built by someone else.

It is obvious that it was repaired by people in the refuge. As long as you follow this road, you will definitely find the refuge.

After about half an hour, the outline of a village finally appeared in front of them.

Although it is called a village, it is actually bigger than a county town.

The entire village was built on a flat land, unlike the ones Shen Bai had seen before that were built on the mountain.

But even so, each building has its own unique ancient style.

Just by looking at it, you can feel a sense of antiquity.

At this moment, wisps of smoke were rising from the village, carrying with them a hint of the aroma of rice.

Seeing this, Xianyue whispered, "These people in the refuge are really taking it easy. Once they were fugitives, they were actually willing to live in such a small place."

Although this place is big enough, it is not a problem to say that it is a small place compared to the whole world.

Shen Bai said, "They have already escaped from that era. All they want is to survive, not the so-called freedom. As long as they can live a stable life here, I guess they are already happy."

Xianyue nodded, agreeing with Shen Bai's statement.

Death is terrifying, but when they are able to escape the shadow of death, everything will seem insignificant.

Shen Bai said nothing more and walked towards the village ahead.

At the door, there were several people in casual clothes guarding it.

A few people were chatting, and when they felt someone approaching, they immediately became alert, looked in the direction, and then frowned.

"Village Chief Hu, why did you come back again? And you are the only one who came back." The man on the left was holding a rake with a cold light flashing on it. It was obviously an extraordinary object.

As for the rest of them, both the armor on their bodies and the weapons in their hands were extremely sharp.

If it were put out there, I'm afraid there would be a lot of people willing to fight for it.

Shen Bai smiled slightly and said, "I saw from outside that the people from the three major forces suddenly left for some unknown reason, so I asked my men to clean up the refuge there."

"Also, I have completely replaced the surrounding space, so they can't get in."

He is now playing the so-called village chief Hu, so his tone of voice and expression are exactly the same as the village chief.

The man holding the rake frowned upon hearing this and said, "If that's the case, Village Chief, why did you come back?"

Shen Bai smiled slightly and said, "Now, the entire refuge is considered stable, but it is still in a state of disrepair. Our refuge is good at making silk, so we would like to discuss with you about exchanging what we have."

Before coming, Shen Bai had done his homework. He had gotten everything out of the village chief and knew what the village chief was planning.

So when he said these words now, it would not arouse any suspicion at all.

The man holding the rake pondered for a moment and said, "Village chief, please go directly inside to the largest room. Our village chief is already waiting inside."

Since this matter had been discussed before, Shen Bai naturally didn't need to go through any extra procedures this time.

Shen Bai didn't say anything more, just nodded and walked inside.

The existence of the crescent moon seems a bit strange.

For some reason, the people around seemed unable to see the crescent moon. Even if the crescent moon stood in front of them, they would ignore it.

Shen Bai glanced at the crescent moon.

Xianyue quickly answered Shen Bai's question: "A special formation that can block my aura and reduce my presence to a minimum."

She is an expert in formations. When she was in Tianhe Tower, she used formations to stabilize the entire building.

When killing the members of the rebellious organization, it seemed like he was just pressing down casually, but this press also utilized the power of the formation.

It’s just that ordinary people can’t see it.

As a top master of formations, Xianyue can easily set up formations that can destroy people's souls.

Shen Bai nodded and said, "In that case, let's go see what good things this village has."

Being able to conceal one's own aura and reduce one's presence can also save Shen Bai a lot of trouble.

Of course Shen Bai wouldn't mind.

Soon, the two disappeared from the street and came to the largest building.

This building appears unusually tall, twice as tall as the surrounding buildings.

Not only that, its ancient atmosphere is even more intense.

Even standing at the door, Shen Bai could feel the sense of desolation coming towards him.

There were two men guarding the door, obviously they were from this refuge.

When Shen Bai approached, they looked straight ahead and let him walk in without saying a word.

The building has three floors in total.

There were a lot of people walking around busily on the first floor, carrying some ironware.

These iron tools exude an extraordinary aura, and if they were put outside, they would be enough to drive many people in the martial arts world crazy.

Shen Bai knew about this refuge. He had heard from the village chief that this refuge was good at casting.

The things cast are more than twice as strong as ordinary castings.

Because of this, this extremely large refuge is very popular among other refuges, and other refuges are willing to share what they have with them.

It is precisely for this reason that Shen Bai is more interested in this refuge.

If there wasn't much communication between this refuge and other refuges, Shen Bai felt that he might not be able to gain much.

But now, this refuge has frequent exchanges with other refuges. Just for this reason, Shen Bai feels that there is something to be gained here.

After entering, no one paid attention to Shen Bai's movements. Obviously, the village chief of this refuge should have given notice in advance.

Shen Bai didn't say anything more and went up the stairs to the third floor.

There were obviously fewer people on the third floor, and the door of the largest room was open.

A white-haired old man was holding a sword and looking at it carefully.

After Shen Bai walked in, the old man did not speak, but pointed to the seat next to him and asked Shen Bai to sit down and talk.

After pointing, he continued to observe the sword in his hand, as if the sword was extremely important.

Shen Bai is a master of swordsmanship, possessing the eighth-level Soul-Destroying Sword. He has absolute say in swordsmanship.

In addition, he had the art of soul casting and had made great achievements in casting, so he could see at a glance that this sword was no less powerful than the Hanyue sword in his hand.

But this sword is not like Hanyue, which can grow.

Han Yue had already been placed in the space of Yin-Yang Object Storage Technique, so Shen Bai was not exposed because of Han Yue at this moment.

When Shen Bai sat down, Xianyue looked around naturally, like a curious cat.

Because of the terrifying formation that Xian Yue had, even the old man couldn't find her trace.

Shen Bai looked at the tea on the table, picked it up and took a sip, then waited patiently.

After about an incense stick of time, the old man put the sword aside and said with a smile.

"Old Hu, it seems that your matter has been resolved."

Shen Bai nodded and said, "It's basically been resolved, so I wanted to tell you that the deal between us seems to be going ahead."

The old man nodded, took out a large stack of papers from the drawer beside him, placed them in front of Shen Bai, and said, "This is my opinion. Take a look. If we can reach an agreement, we can make a deal."

Shen Bai didn't need to look, as he could see everything above through his red eyes.

It's probably about some transaction processes and transaction methods.

The trading method in the refuge is very simple, which is to send people back and forth to trade.

The specific details of the transaction are also written on this piece of paper.

Shen Bai picked up the stack of papers and pretended to read it.

During this time, the old man did not speak, but stared at Shen Bai's empty left hand, as if thinking about something.

After Shen Bai finished reading, the old man sighed and said, "Where's your dragon-headed cane? It's something you never leave behind."

Shen Bai looked at his empty left hand and smiled slightly: "That thing is very heavy to carry, so I don't want to bring it with me. Do you have any objections?"

The old man stared at Shen Bai without looking away, and finally stretched out his hand, clasped his fists and said, "My last name is Jiang, you can just call me Village Chief Jiang."

"I wonder who you are?"

Shen Bai leaned back in his chair and said calmly, "The Great Zhou State's Heavenly Supervisor, Chief of Qianyuan Capital, Shen Bai."

After he said this, his appearance began to change, and soon he returned to his original appearance.

Xianyue was looking around curiously. Now she had walked to the balcony, looking at the entire shelter, and kept exclaiming.

Seeing Shen Bai suddenly return to his original state, he immediately averted his gaze, frowned, and looked thoughtful.

She knew that Shen Bai was meticulous and would not make any mistakes at this time.

But why did the other party find out?

Moreover, after being discovered, Shen Bai was not at all panicked, and even seemed to be prepared.

Xianyue was a little confused, but what Village Chief Jiang said next made him quickly understand.

Village Chief Jiang said slowly, "Young friend, you're deliberately exposing a flaw to see if I can detect it, and even what my reaction would be after discovering it, right?"

Shen Bai smiled slightly: "That's true. It seems that Village Chief Jiang is not a stupid person, and he has not done anything stupid."

Village Chief Jiang said with a serious look: "My friend, you seem to be very confident in yourself."

Shen Bai spread his hands and said, "I am indeed very confident. I have two plans when I come here. If Village Chief Jiang doesn't find out that I am fake, then it proves that you are not smart enough. Then I will deceive you."

"If you find out I'm a fake, it will prove that you are smart enough, and it will be easier to discuss the next thing."

After hearing what Shen Bai said, Xianyue had some insights in her heart.

This guy is very smart and he exposed this flaw on purpose.

If the other person is stupid and can't see it, then that's the result of being manipulated.

And if the other party is not stupid and can see it, Shen Bai will negotiate with the other party in another form.

At least no matter which situation it is, Shen Bai will be at an advantage.

To put it another way, if Shen Bai's disguise is flawless and he cooperates with Village Chief Jiang, there may be more or less flaws in some subsequent matters.

After all, there is no perfect disguise in this world, and if a flaw appears at that time, no one can predict what will happen in the middle.

Village Chief Jiang's solemn look gradually disappeared, and he said, "Young friend, tell me directly, what is your purpose?"

Shen Bai didn't say anything, and said bluntly: "I want to cooperate with you, it depends on whether you are willing to cooperate."

Village Chief Jiang frowned and asked, "How do we cooperate?"

Shen Bai said calmly, "I want to know more about the refuge, and I also want to use your refuge for my own benefit."

After saying this, Village Chief Jiang shook his head.

"My friend, if you want the things in my refuge, I can give them all to you, just for your safety, but forget about cooperation."

"You know why the refuge came into being. We just want to survive."

"Can he survive?" Shen Bai suddenly said.

Village Chief Jiang immediately shut his mouth and looked at Shen Bai with a very calm look.

Shen Bai said slowly, "You may not understand the current era very well. The Ten Thousand Cities Era has long passed, and several other eras have passed in between. Now it is the Four Kingdoms Era."

"But the rebellious organizations are still there, and now they have begun to show signs of chaos. The Four Kingdoms Era is about to be in turmoil."

"And after the unrest occurs, do you think you can survive?"

After hearing this, Village Chief Jiang shook his head and said, "My friend, we have lived in this refuge for countless years. We have proven that we can survive."

"We just want to survive and don't want to get involved in those things outside."

Shen Bai said calmly, "I know the facts are before my eyes. You can indeed survive, but that doesn't mean you will be spared in the future. Once the four nations completely collapse, do you think the people who organized the chaos will let you go?"

Village Chief Jiang kept silent, but a hint of hesitation flashed in his eyes.

Shen Bai continued, "Village Chief, you all know that village. The rebel organization wanted to use the village to find more refuge before invading."

"If there's a first one, there's a second one. The first one was because Village Chief Hu was lucky. He had already discovered it and closed all the passages. But will the second one be the same?"

"If a member of a rebellious organization finds a refuge, the attack will spread outwards from that refuge, and more and more refuges will fall. By then, how much of your village will be able to protect?"

This is why Shen Bai came here.

What he wanted was not only the secrets in the refuge, but he even wanted to use the refuge for his own benefit.

As for how to use it, he had already thought of it.

Get it first, what you get is the safest.

Even though these people look like weaklings who are running away, they are actually quite strong. They are just a little afraid of death.

If you are afraid of death, it’s very simple.

Tell them a reason why they will die, and no matter how afraid they are of death, they will change their minds.

As Shen Bai continued to speak, Village Chief Jiang's expression became more and more solemn.

After Shen Bai finished his last word, Village Chief Jiang took a deep breath and said.

"My friend, how do you want to cooperate?"

Shen Bai smiled: "If you want to cooperate, then we have to see what you have. Right now, what you can rely on is actually very simple, that is, the four remaining countries."

"If you can't even rely on these four countries, then you will surely perish in the face of the intertwined forces."

"I can now offer you a country, the Great Zhou Kingdom, which is about to be in turmoil."

The Great Zhou Kingdom is about to be in turmoil?

After these words were spoken, there was a hint of uncertainty in Village Chief Jiang's eyes.

In fact, he had been persuaded a little by Shen Bai. Recently, Village Chief Jiang had been worried because the refuge was besieged by three major evil forces, and some small refuges were also harassed by chaotic organizations.

Village chief Jiang was very restless.

He didn't understand why those members of the gang wouldn't let them go even though they had already fled to the refuge.

It is precisely because of this lack of understanding that Village Chief Jiang knows that perhaps one day in the future, they will all die at the hands of a rebellious organization.

In fact, in the eyes of Village Chief Jiang, everything Shen Bai said just now had already made him feel a little moved.

But no matter how tempted he was, if Shen Bai suggested cooperating with a powerful country, he might think there was no problem.

But it happened to be talking about a turbulent country like the Great Zhou Kingdom.

Why work with them?
Thinking of this, Village Chief Jiang expressed all the doubts in his mind.

Now that both sides have put their opinions on the table, some things should naturally be said.

If we explain it in a tactful way, if no one understands or hears it wrongly, other troubles will arise.

Shen Bai smiled slightly and said, "The Great Zhou Kingdom is in turmoil, and rebellious organizations will inevitably take advantage of the situation. It is precisely because of this that the Great Zhou Kingdom is a good battlefield."

"So, do you understand?"

When Village Chief Jiang heard this, his doubts were instantly cleared up: "I understand. Then how can we cooperate?"

In a peaceful and non-dangerous country, there will be no chaotic organizations. However, in a turbulent country, once a chaotic organization opens a gap, the chaotic organization will take advantage of the situation and destroy the entire world with an unstoppable force.

Therefore, when a country is in chaos, we should stabilize it and guard the gap, so that the chaotic organizations will not be able to advance.

Shen Bai looked at the empty space around him and the long sword on the table and said, "The members of the refuge who escaped from the Wancheng era are actually not good at fighting, but are good at various logistics. Am I right?"

Village Chief Jiang nodded and said, "Young friend, you're right. We took this into consideration when we discussed this. What we want is a long-term, stable life. Logistics, which we each excel at, are the foundation of our mutual exchange and the cornerstone of our survival."

Shen Bai smiled and said, "I know you are afraid of death. To put it bluntly, I don't need you to go to the battlefield, but these things you made can produce unimaginable effects when the Great Zhou Kingdom is in turmoil."

At this time, Shen Bai finally showed his fangs.

Xianyue, who was listening not far away, was slightly stunned. The curiosity in her eyes became more and more intense as she looked at Shen Bai.

She thought Shen Bai came here to take advantage, but in fact Shen Bai did take advantage, and a big advantage.

If the logistics personnel in the refuge area provide all logistical supplies to the Great Zhou Kingdom.

Not to mention all of it, even if it is provided by some of the members of the refuge, it can be a great help to the Great Zhou Kingdom.

Village Chief Jiang said slowly, "I'm afraid my refuge alone isn't enough."

Shen Bai smiled and said, "That's right. One is definitely not enough, so I need the village chief to use his eloquence to persuade more refuges to join us. After all, the current situation is like the lips and teeth are cold, and we are all on the same boat."

"I know, there are naturally benefits to doing business, and this benefit is that while you provide assistance, the Great Zhou Kingdom will become the sharpest sword against the rebellious organizations."

When he said this, Shen Bai knew that he had said everything he needed to say, and there was no need for him to continue.

Because if I go on, it will seem like I have too much to say.

This is his purpose this time.

If the logistics of the refuge can be used in the Great Zhou Kingdom, it will play a vital role when the Great Zhou Kingdom is in turmoil.

This is not only to deal with disorderly organizations, but also to deal with those princes who take advantage of the situation.

After a brief thought, Village Chief Jiang nodded and said, "Okay, I agree to this."

Through the red eyes that broke through the void, Shen Bai could see that Village Chief Jiang was sincere in agreeing to this statement, without any falsehood.

After a brief thought, Shen Bai nodded and said, "In that case, my goal has been achieved, and I will leave immediately."

This was his main purpose. Now that he had achieved this goal, Shen Bai naturally did not plan to stay any longer.

He planned to continue improving his proficiency in the Wanshui Jue after returning.

The crescent moon was also a little tired.

She came out of Shen Bai's jade token just to see what the outside world looked like. Now that she had seen the refuge, her curiosity was satisfied.

When he heard that Shen Bai wanted to go out, the curiosity in his eyes deepened.

She also wanted to see what the scenery was like outside the refuge.

Unexpectedly, after saying this, Village Chief Jiang raised his hand to stop Shen Bai from leaving.

"Don't worry, my friend. I have a request for your help. Would you be willing to help me?"

Shen Bai raised his eyebrows slightly and asked, "What is this unreasonable request?"

Through the Wuji Guashu, Shen Bai was able to calculate that this trip to this refuge was a great opportunity.

But what exactly this great opportunity is, there is still no definite answer.

The so-called Wuji Guashu does not require him to look for it deliberately. He only needs to come here and act casually, and he will find it.

He was about to leave, but Village Chief Jiang stopped him and said he needed help. This made Shen Bai curious.

He felt that this opportunity might come from here.

Thinking of this, Shen Bai once again used the Wuji Gua technique, and a golden color appeared in front of his eyes.

Golden threads emerged from the eight trigrams of the Wuji Guashu, all connected to Village Chief Jiang.

This proves that Shen Bai’s previous thoughts were correct.

Village Chief Jiang's so-called unreasonable request may be the key to his opportunity.

After a moment of contemplation, Village Chief Jiang stood up and said, "Young friend, are you willing to go somewhere with me? Don't worry, I have no ill will towards you. Since I have promised, I will definitely do it."

Xianyue had already walked to Shen Bai's side, observing everything with a little curiosity.

At present, only Shen Bai can see her, and she is also very curious about what exactly is going on with Village Chief Jiang.

Shen Bai nodded and said, "Obedience is worse than respect. Village Chief Jiang, please."

Village Chief Jiang said nothing more, stood up and walked out the door.

……

When he took Shen Bai to the outside of the tallest building, he immediately attracted the attention of many members of the shelter.

Although they were all curious, no one showed it.

Although Village Chief Jiang looks old, he walks with great vigor.

There is a small path behind this building.

Shen Bai followed behind.

The further up they went, the fewer people there were on the path. After they reached a hillside along the path, Village Chief Jiang finally stopped.

"My dear friend, this is the unwelcome request I mentioned. Look at the sky."

Village Chief Jiang waved his hand, and as he waved, the sky not far ahead began to distort.

The magnitude of the distortion increases from small to large.

When the distortion finally slowly disappeared, a special thing appeared in front of Shen Bai.

Not far ahead was a vast sky, but above this sky, there was a pitch-black coffin surrounding it, exuding a cold and heart-pounding aura.

(End of this chapter)