Summoning the Gods: Start by creating the Eternal Night.

He was clearly deeply impressed by these two extraordinary guests, and upon seeing them, he bowed as low as a shrimp.

"No need for further words." Jing Ke's voice was icy cold. "We're looking for you; it's important. Let's go outside and talk."

The mole hurriedly nodded and bowed, "If you command me, senior, I will go through fire and water without hesitation!"

The mole dared not delay for a moment and quickly followed the two out of the gambling den and into the dead-end alley next to it.

"What information do you two seniors wish to gather from me?"

"We are from the Misty Rain Pavilion. Our Misty Rain Pavilion has now officially emerged to accept bounties, and we need to find a suitable place to place our Misty Rain Pavilion's bounty marker. Do you know of any suitable locations?"

Jing Ke's tone was calm, yet carried an undeniable air of authority.

"What! Seniors, you're actually from the Drizzle Pavilion!" The burrowing rat was startled.

Although he had previously taken Jing Ke and his companion to Langya Pavilion, he was unaware of their identities.

Moreover, some time ago, Xiyu Tower and Qingyun Sect fought a fierce battle. He was too weak to go and watch the battle, but he still heard about the situation.

The groundhog, its back hunched, paced back and forth in the alley, rubbing its hands together, its whiskers trembling slightly with the movement.

"Are you two looking for a place to put the 'bounty marker'?"

"However, there is already a mission hall here in the black market. If you place a bounty on it, you might offend the person behind the mission hall."

"It's alright! You just need to find us a suitable place. You don't need to worry about anything else," Jing Ke said, looking at the burrowing rat.

Upon hearing this, the groundhog's fawning smile faltered slightly, but then quickly returned to its usual cheerful expression.

"Looking for a lively place? There's a trick to it—it has to be a place where there are lots of people and lots of chatter, but nobody really cares."

He led the two toward the center of the Black Market, through stalls filled with the sounds of vendors hawking their wares, and to a square.

"What do you think of this place?" The burrowing rat pointed to an empty general store in the corner of the square. "People come and go here all day long, and news travels faster than the wind."

Jing Ke nodded, his gaze sweeping over the bustling crowd in the square. Then he turned to the burrowing rat and said:

"This is the place."

"I'll give you a chance to join my Xiyu Tower. What do you say?"

"What? Senior, do I really have a chance to join the Drizzle Pavilion?"

The burrowing rat exclaimed in astonishment. In this world, who wouldn't want a powerful background? He never expected that he would be able to join this mysterious Drizzle Pavilion.

"That's right! I'm going to place my Fine Rain Pavilion's bounty poster in this general store, and then you'll be in charge of the bounty poster."

The burrowing rat's eyes lit up, and it immediately replied, "This humble servant is willing to join the Drizzle Pavilion!"

Jing Ke glanced at him and said in a deep voice, "Fine! From now on, you are a member of my Fine Rain Pavilion. But if I find out that you have betrayed Fine Rain Pavilion..."

He lightly traced the dagger with his fingertip, a flash of cold light, "This black market's hidden channel is perfect for dumping corpses."

The mole shuddered and nodded hastily, "I understand! I would never dare! Then... shall I go and secure the shop now?"

"Go ahead." Jing Ke took out a storage bag from his robes and tossed it to the burrowing rat. "We'll wait for you here."

The storage bag arced through the air before being caught steadily by the burrowing mouse.

He weighed the storage bag in his hand, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes. He quickly stuffed it into his robes and bowed repeatedly.

"I'll take care of it right away and give you a reply within fifteen minutes!" With that, he ran out of the square like a gust of wind and disappeared into the alleyway in an instant.

Only Jing Ke and Yao Li remained in front of the grocery store.

"Is the 'Groundhog' trustworthy? Is it a bit rash to put him in charge of the bounty marker?"

Jing Ke shook his head: "No need to worry! Have you forgotten the Blood Slaughter Technique that the monarch bestowed upon us? Practicing this technique can make the practitioner loyal to my Fine Rain Pavilion."

Yao Li's lips curled into a cold smile: "Oh right! I had completely forgotten about it!"

After an incense stick has burned,

A burrowing rat's voice rang out: "Sir! It's all taken care of! This shop is ours from now on!"

Following the sound, the burrowing rat scurried in, holding a bunch of rusty keys: "These are the shop keys."

Jing Ke took the key, opened the shop, and glanced at the door before leaving.

Yao Li took out the palm-sized, jet-black secondary stele from his bosom—it was made of the same material as the main stele of the Xiyu Tower stronghold, only several times smaller. The surface of the stele was smooth at the moment, without any inscriptions.

He walked to the center of the shop, flicked his finger, and the secondary stele was embedded in the ground like a nail, standing firmly and fitting perfectly with the ground, as if it had always been there.

The instant the secondary stele landed, an invisible wave spread out from the stele, echoing the protective formation of the Fine Rain Pavilion.

In the Viewing Pavilion of the Misty Rain Pavilion, a water mirror next to the sand table suddenly lit up, clearly reflecting the scene inside the general store.

"It's done," Yao Li said in a deep voice.

The burrowing rat stared at the black stone tablet that had appeared out of nowhere, its eyes wide open, as if about to reach out and touch it, but was stopped by a single look from Yao Li.

Reluctantly, he withdrew, exclaiming in surprise:

"Goodness gracious...this stele looks extraordinary. Our little general store is about to get quite lively!"

Jing Ke turned to look at the burrowing rat: "Well done. Remember, keep a close eye on this shop in the future."

"This is the first half of the Heavenly Rank cultivation technique of my Xiyu Tower, the Blood Slaughter Technique. You should practice it first, and depending on your performance, I will bestow upon you the second half later."

Jing Ke then gave the first half of the "Blood Slaughter Manual" to the burrowing rat, but not the second half, so that the burrowing rat would understand that only by acting effectively could he have a chance to obtain it.

"I understand! I understand!" The mole hurriedly took the "Blood Slaughter Technique," his heart filled with horror. Good heavens, a Heaven-rank cultivation technique! He had never seen anything like it in his life.

Joining this Misty Rain Pavilion was truly worthwhile. Not only does it have a powerful background, but it also offers such benefits. My future days won't be so difficult anymore.

The burrowing rat gazed at the Heavenly Rank cultivation technique in its hand as if it were a treasure, then turned to the bounty notice tablet and said, "My lord, if anyone comes asking how to use this tablet..."

Jing Ke then explained the usage of the secondary stele again!

"Alright, from now on you will run this general store openly."

"If any suspicious persons are found loitering around, immediately report it through the reward plaque."

"Yes, sir," the burrowing rat hurriedly bowed.

The two figures flashed and left the general store without a sound.

Before long, the two stopped in front of a pavilion with a plaque that read "Langya Pavilion".

Yao Li nodded slightly and walked into the pavilion side by side with Jing Ke. The two had just stopped standing.

Su Mei, dressed in a light green silk dress, walked slowly towards them, her eyes sparkling with desire.

When his gaze fell on Jing Ke and Yao Li, his smile deepened, clearly remembering their previous visit.

Su Mei said softly, "Please come in, distinguished guests of Xiyu Tower."

"The Pavilion Master has already instructed that if any distinguished guest from Xiyu Tower arrives, you must be led to see him."

Jing Ke and Yao Li exchanged a glance and both nodded expressionlessly, signaling Su Mei to lead the way.