Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

three days later.

Lin Zhao piloted the Flowing Cloud Flying Boat, skimming low over a wide expanse of water.

This is the fifth location he was responsible for scouting.

The first four places were either ordinary monster lairs or, although there were scattered traces of blue-scaled monster activity, the aura was mixed and chaotic.

-----

At the same time, in the deepest underground chamber of the Jinsha Palace.

Zhu Yi sat cross-legged on the central futon, with an ancient-looking octagonal bronze mirror floating in front of him. He drew a complex rune on the mirror's surface.

"Jin Yang sends a message, the mirror reflects the vast world, Fellow Daoist Hu Xiao, please show yourself for a chat."

The runes lit up with a dazzling golden light, which then receded inwards.

The mirror surface rippled like water, and a blurry, indistinct image gradually appeared.

The illusory figure quickly solidified, transforming into the image of a middle-aged man with a robust and imposing physique.

His face was rugged, his tiger-like eyes held an imposing presence even without anger, and he exuded a heavy, inexplicable pressure.

Master Huxiao! One of the Seven Upper Markets, and the master of Huxiao Market!

It is common knowledge that Tiger Roar Market and Golden Sands Market have a tense relationship. More than ten years ago, they even fought a major battle over a spirit stone mine, resulting in the deaths of two Foundation Establishment cultivators.

The relationship is truly bad.

But it's true that they have a secret connection.

In order to survive the suppression of the three major sects, the more than ten towns and cities in the Yunxia Mountains have long formed a secret mutual aid alliance.

The three major sects were well aware of this, which is why the "Ghost Cry Market" existed, a market that was completely subservient to the sects and dedicated to suppressing disobedient markets.

Over the millennia, numerous cities have been wiped out by the Ghost Crying Market under various pretexts.

Jinsha Square is a large-scale market with some backing, so it won't be easy to completely wipe it out.

But Zhu Yi, the head of the workshop, had long been a thorn in the side of some people.

Although the Hundred Herbs Sect did not target him because of Fairy Baizhi, they still had reservations about Baizhi protecting Zhu Yi.

He needs an ally, an ally of sufficient stature.

Among the seven markets, three belong to the three major sects: Ghost Cry Market is the Black Glove, Sky Cloud Market is aloof, and Myriad Heng Market is known for its beast taming. Zhu Yi suspects that the beast tide and the dragon incident are probably related to them!

After careful consideration, the only one with the strength and willingness to resist the pressure from the sect is this Tiger Roar Master.

In his youth, this person traveled to distant lands and made a great name for himself; he even attempted to form his core!

Although he failed, he managed to survive thanks to his amazing background and good fortune. Instead of regressing, his cultivation advanced, reaching the "Pseudo-Core" realm. He possessed some characteristics of Core Formation and his strength was unfathomable. He was hailed as the "Number One Foundation Establishment Person".

Of course, this ranking does not include Chu Fengge.

After returning to the Cloud Mist Mountain Range, Master Huxiao brought Huxiao Market to the top seven in just a few decades. During this time, he clashed with the three major sects many times but never suffered any losses, earning him a fearsome reputation.

The illusory image in the mirror showed Master Huxiao looking at Zhu Yi with a mocking expression: "Zhu Yi, I heard that Jinsha Market has been quite lively lately. You almost got eaten by a demonic beast. If you ask me, you're just a coward. If you had been willing to fight back then, you wouldn't have been forced into this situation by the Qianhuang Sect."

Zhu Yi's face remained expressionless. If Hu Xiao Shangren hadn't been so powerful, he would have been beaten to death outside long ago.

After he finished his taunts, Zhu Yi said directly, "I'll give you a tough job, take it or leave it."

Master Huxiao narrowed his eyes. Despite his carefree attitude, he had been involved in numerous conflicts with the three major sects in his early years, yet he remained unscathed, which showed that he was still quite sensible in his actions.

The waters of Jinshafang Market are not easy to wade into. Of course, he also knew that since Zhu Yi had brought it up, he must have some incentive to entice him.

On the other side of the mirror, the phantom of Tiger Roar Master remained silent for a moment.

Seeing that he didn't respond immediately, Zhu Yi twitched his lips and threw back his previous words: "What, Fellow Daoist Huxiao, you wouldn't be... chickened out, would you? The once majestic Huxiao Venerable, it seems that with the passage of time, has become a sick cat?"

Tiger Roar Master's face was expressionless, but a string of dark gold prayer beads had appeared in his hand at some point, which he was slowly turning one bead at a time. Faint Sanskrit characters flowed on the surface of the beads, clearly indicating that they were not ordinary objects.

"A provocation? Zhu Yi, you're a seasoned fox, don't try that."

His voice was calm and steady. "Get straight to the point: what do you want me to do, and what will I get in return? I never do anything that loses money."

Zhu Yi knew the time was almost right, and his expression turned grim: "The matter here is most likely related to those beast-taming lunatics in Wanheng Market."

I will clear their hands, but given the arrogant and domineering nature of those people in Wanheng Market, they will definitely not stand idly by. They will surely send reinforcements, and that guy might even get involved himself.

He paused, then said, word by word, "I need you to help me stop all the reinforcements that Wanheng City might send."

Master Huxiao paused for a moment as he twirled the prayer beads.

After a long pause, he slowly spoke: "Wanheng Market... as one of the seven upper markets, it has a deep foundation, especially skilled in controlling insects and beasts, and has many mysterious methods."

With three peak Foundation Establishment cultivators stationed there to stop them... that price won't be low.

He wanted to pull the strings a little further and try to gain more benefits.

Zhu Yi cut him off abruptly, a glint of light flashing in his eyes, as he offered his real bargaining chip: "Don't give me that nonsense. After it's done, I'll give you a second-tier, or even close to third-tier, dragon core!"

The mirror trembled violently! The phantom image of Tiger Roar Master even blurred for a moment.

His hand, which had been fiddling with the prayer beads, stopped abruptly, clenching tightly. The sharp light in his tiger-like eyes almost pierced through lenses.

"...Is that really true?" His voice was much lower, with a burning intensity.

"When have I, Zhu Yi, ever joked about such a matter?"

Zhu Yi met his gaze without flinching. "Fine, come over. If not, I'll find another way. Let's pretend we never contacted each other today."

Master Huxiao had no more doubts and uttered a single word with great emphasis: "Fine!"

The mirror's brilliance faded, and the connection was severed.

-----

Deep within the Tiger Roar Market, in the core area of ​​a rugged stone palace entirely constructed of massive black rocks, this place is unlike the quiet chambers of ordinary cultivators; rather, it resembles the lair of some ferocious beast.

Master Yue Shan, the Tiger Roarer, stood up from a stone platform engraved with intricate array patterns. His figure appeared even more robust and powerful than his reflection in the mirror.

"Master." He bowed slightly towards the shadows in the stone chamber.

An old man with disheveled white hair, a withered face, but eyes as clear as an eagle's, slowly walked out, leaning on a dragon wood cane.

His aura was profound, and although he was also at the peak of the Foundation Establishment stage, he carried a sense of decline. He was none other than Li Baichuan, the previous head of Tiger Roar Market and Yue Shan's mentor.

"Have you reached an agreement?" Li Baichuan's voice was hoarse.

"Yes, the demon core of a second-tier flood dragon." Yue Shan said succinctly.

Li Baichuan walked to one side of the stone chamber, where there was a huge nest constructed with warm jade and a spirit-gathering array. A giant tiger with wings on its ribs, more than ten feet long, was sleeping with its eyes closed, its breathing long but weak.