Chapter 652 - 357: Guiding Jade Tree (Part 2)

The trade fair wasn’t high-level; it had been proposed and organized by the Core Formation Cultivator who guarded Qingbu Square. However, according to the news released beforehand, many fine items would be up for trade, some even good enough to catch the eye of Nascent Soul Cultivators. Based on the principle of ’since I’m here anyway,’ he naturally had to attend.

Passing by Yaoyun’s room, Lü Zhong didn’t forget his duties as her master.

The little one was very obedient, completing the cultivation tasks he had assigned on time and in full, so he didn’t have to worry about her at all. The aptitude of a Celestial Spirit Root was truly extraordinary. Introducing Qi into the body, a process that took ordinary cultivators anywhere from three to five days to as long as half a year, was something she had accomplished in the blink of an eye.

After three months of cultivation, Yaoyun had already reached the Qi Refining Third Layer.

And this was only because Lü Zhong had specifically instructed her not to break through to the next Realm until her foundation was completely solid. Otherwise, given the cultivation speed of a Celestial Spirit Root, her cultivation would have soared. After three months, she wouldn’t be in the mere Early-stage Qi Refining; it wouldn’t have been surprising if she had broken through to the Late-stage Qi Refining.

After a brief quiz, Lü Zhong saw that Yaoyun’s answers flowed effortlessly, so he let her go and play.

Not forgetting to leave three Incarnations behind, he then walked out of the inn.

Outside the door, a Beast Vehicle was already waiting.

Even in these chaotic times, the Beast Vehicle was still decorated with extravagant splendor. It wasn’t until Lü Zhong boarded that he discovered how spacious the interior was. Not only was there a brocade couch with a silk quilt for resting, but also meticulously brewed Spirit Tea, priceless Spirit Fruits and pastries, and of course, no shortage of serving maids.

"Let’s go," Lü Zhong said to the driver.

The venue for the trade fair was not far from the inn where Lü Zhong was staying.

After a few twists and turns through the streets, the Beast Vehicle stopped in front of an impressive-looking pavilion.

The pavilion’s main doors were wide open, guarded by two Foundation Establishment Cultivators to prevent any undiscerning people from wandering in. The one responsible for welcoming and seeing off guests was a lavishly dressed woman. She also had a Foundation Establishment Cultivation, but her level was much higher than the two guards—she was already at the Fake Pill Realm.

Lü Zhong gazed at the low-lying pavilion, a sense of aversion inexplicably rising in his heart.

Noticing this, he couldn’t help but fall into thought.

Unfortunately, it was inconvenient to reveal his identity right now. Otherwise, he could just release his Nascent Soul Divine Sense and get a clear view of everything within a thousand zhang, which would naturally lead him to the source of the problem.

Keeping his guard up, Lü Zhong walked toward the pavilion.

Seeing Lü Zhong approach, the woman’s face broke into a smile. She bowed slightly and said, "Welcome, Senior. The trade fair is about to begin. Please, follow me."

With that, the woman walked ahead to lead the way.

Lü Zhong kept some distance as he followed her into the pavilion. There was no Sumeru Mustard Seed Space applied to the interior; after all, Qingbu Square had once been nothing more than a poor, remote backwater.

Passing through a corridor, the two of them soon arrived at a large hall.

Just like the corridor outside, the hall’s furnishings were extremely plain. Everything was kept as simple as possible, a clear sign that the master of this place had no taste for luxury or complexity.

Looking in from the doorway, one could see a square hall.

A dozen or so tea tables were arranged according to the Nine Palaces and Eight Trigrams. Some were set for two people facing each other, others for individuals, but each came with a square table laden with Spirit Tea and pastries. Most of the seats were already taken, with only a few spots left in the corners, looking as if they were specially reserved for the unsociable.

Seeing someone new enter, the seated guests looked over one after another.

Seeing it was a young, unfamiliar face, these people acted somewhat casually, their gazes sweeping lightly over Lü Zhong. But then, to their surprise, they discovered they couldn’t see through his cultivation. Instantly, their expressions shifted, and they no longer dared to underestimate the black-robed young man.

Lü Zhong paid no mind to the awe in their eyes and found an empty seat to sit down.

He picked up a cup and leisurely sipped his tea, perfectly at ease.

Just as the woman had said, the trade fair began soon after.

With the clear chime of a bell, the host—the guardian of Qingbu Square, Master Qingbu—entered from outside, accompanied by two Mid-stage Core Formation cultivators dressed in identical attire.

Master Qingbu walked to the center of the hall, his profound gaze sweeping slowly across the crowd. When he sensed Lü Zhong’s aura, which seemed to be at the Late-stage Core Formation, a flicker of joy inexplicably appeared in his eyes.

Lü Zhong’s keen senses caught this subtle display.

Drawing on his years of experience, he instantly guessed at several possibilities. A wry smile touched his lips. ’It’s been so long since I attended a trade fair,’ he thought, ’and of course, I walk right into trouble.’

With a thought, Lü Zhong used the Gray Mist Space to secretly probe his surroundings.

A quick look revealed a shocking discovery: there were quite a few people hidden in a secret room beneath the pavilion.

To be precise, they were five Core Formation Stage Ghost Cultivators.

The five were currently in a circle, chanting an obscure, esoteric text. Beneath their feet was a malevolent Array, flickering with an unstable, bloody red light, surrounded by the wails of floating, ghostly souls.

Such a scene, at a single glance, reeked of a conspiracy.

’No wonder I felt that strange sense of aversion when I first arrived,’ he mused. ’I must have sensed the presence of this plot. It seems the guardian of Qingbu Square has colluded with Ghost Cultivators.’

Lü Zhong watched Master Qingbu on the stage, who was beginning to explain the rules of the trade fair, and glanced at the two Core Formation Cultivators beside him, who were most likely his accomplices. In his mind, he had already sentenced the three of them to death.

However, he didn’t make a move just yet.

It was rare for him to participate in a trade fair, and he had no intention of letting it end so hastily.

At the same time, Lü Zhong wanted to give the group of Ghost Cultivators a big surprise.

He had seen the malevolent Array in the secret room before in a book titled *Blood Wedding Robe*. It was called the Netherworld Descent Rebirth Array, an exceptionally vicious Array. Its function was just as the word ’Rebirth’ in its name suggested: it could forcibly corrupt a target, causing all of their Immortal Spiritual Qi to transform into Yin Qi after a certain period.

Not only would their cultivation be completely lost, but their bodies would also be devoured by Yin Qi.

When that happened, a cultivator afflicted by this Array would either have to wait for death or, if they wanted to live, could only switch to cultivating the Ghost Dao.

However, the Netherworld Descent Rebirth Array was not without its weaknesses.

Not only did a weakness exist, but it was also quite a fatal one.

If the total amount of Yin Spiritual Qi within the Array could not overwhelm the Spiritual Qi of the intended target, then the effect would no longer be ’Netherworld Descent’ but would instead reverse itself.

In other words, it would convert Yin Spiritual Qi into Immortal Spiritual Qi.

’A contest of total Spiritual Qi? Heh, you’ve already lost!’ Lü Zhong was quite confident about this.

As a Nascent Soul Cultivator, his True Essence could crush that of a Core Formation cultivator in both quality and quantity; the two were not even in the same league. Furthermore, even if this band of Ghost Cultivators had prepared thoroughly and found a way to match the reserves of a Nascent Soul Cultivator, they would still be no match for him.

After all, when it came to Magical Power, Lü Zhong possessed at least several times that of his peers at the same stage.

Meanwhile, Master Qingbu had taken out the first item for trade.

"The Cloud Robe Immortal Shuttle. This shuttle was crafted by a master from the Mechanical Hall. Although its speed cannot compare to the Mountain Shaking Ship, it is still several tenths faster than our own Escape Speed, making it a life-saving treasure. The fixed price is one hundred thousand Spirit Stones, which must be paid in High-grade spirit stones."

Seeing that the first item presented was such a Flying Magical Artifact, Lü Zhong felt a stir of interest.

Although he had no use for this Flying Shuttle himself, it would be a perfect gift for his apprentice, Yaoyun. As a cultivator with a Celestial Spirit Root, her potential was immense, but before she was fully developed, she was still very weak at the Low Tiers and needed a few more life-saving items.

Without a second thought, Lü Zhong took out ten High-grade spirit stones.

Seeing how decisive he was, the other cultivators who were still hesitating about whether it was worth spending High-grade spirit stones immediately felt a pang of regret. They couldn’t help but feel dissatisfied with the trade fair’s peculiar rules; this was the first time they had ever seen one that used a ’fixed price’ method.

But since the deal was done, they said nothing more.

After Lü Zhong received the Flying Shuttle and returned to his seat, Master Qingbu cleared his throat and said:

"The second item for trade is a furnace of special Pills made with the Water Refining Method, discovered in a Yin Gui Spiritual Pool at the bottom of the Qingbu River. It has been identified as the long-lost Yin Gui Pill. This batch of Pills has been refined over a thousand years; their medicinal potency has been polished until it is perfectly pure and smooth. They should have very little Pill Poison when consumed and will be of great benefit for advancing one’s cultivation."

As Master Qingbu spoke, he took a crimson Pill Furnace from his Storage Bag. It still bore the corrosive marks of Spirit Water and was covered in clusters of Yin Gui Spirit Crystals. He then performed a Technique Mantra to open the Pill Furnace, retrieving the purple-black Pills one by one. He displayed them for everyone to inspect closely, proving they were indeed Yin Gui Pills, before sealing them inside Black Jade Bottles.

Seeing a furnace-full of Treasure Pills emerge, the cultivators in the hall could no longer sit still. Even though they had known this item would be for trade, they couldn’t help but grow excited now. One by one, their gazes burned as they stared at the pile of Black Jade Bottles, looking as if they wished they could seize them all for themselves.

Lü Zhong saw this and began to play along.

’The main event hasn’t started yet,’ he thought. ’I can’t give myself away.’