Chapter 342: Marketplace

Chapter 342: Chapter 342: Marketplace

The disciples from the Unpassable River withdrew.

Bai Mo received news that things were a bit chaotic over there now.

Loose Cultivators were flooding in. Any remaining low-level Sea Race members would be left for them to clean up.

There were benefits to be had. Some of the heavenly materials and earthly treasures that had spewed out of the Sea Eye were left for them to divide amongst themselves.

Although it was mostly just scraps, based on past experience, it wasn’t unheard of for a Loose Cultivator to find an astonishing treasure and rise to prominence.

This was a tacit understanding between the sects and the Loose Cultivators.

Publicly, it was presented as the sects being magnanimous, not cutting off opportunities for Loose Cultivators to advance on their path.

In reality, they were simply short-staffed and couldn’t afford to leave disciples behind any longer.

Bai Mo passively received new prisoners and became familiar with a few of the disciples in charge from the Foreign Affairs Hall.

"The Unpassable River has suffered a great disaster. Forty percent of the population is gone. What a tragedy, what a tragedy!"

The Foreign Affairs Hall disciple escorting a great Nascent Soul Cultivator said this with narrowed eyes.

Despite his words, his expression told a different story; he was perfectly calm.

Bai Mo could only agree.

"It truly is a tragedy."

"Based on past experience, the next step is probably to organize the migration of people from other areas to settle and develop the disaster-stricken lands?"

Immortal Arrival City had experienced something similar. Many of the current Cultivators there were descendants of those migrants.

The disciple from the Foreign Affairs Hall nodded.

"Junior Brother, you seem to know your stuff."

"When we see things like this, we just have to learn to relax. You’ll get used to it sooner or later."

He spread his hands.

"Look, the cases I handle, the fiends you have locked up in your prison... most of them are tied to massacring cities and taking lives."

"You can’t dwell on it. It’ll only break your heart and harm your body."

The Nascent Soul fiend being transferred this time was the only one so far.

His arms and legs were broken, and even his neck was lolling to one side.

Even so, the fiend’s body was still covered in numerous restrictive shackles.

Only after the man was locked in a cell did the escort team finally let out a huge sigh of relief.

"We’re off. After this fiend wastes away in prison for a few decades, he won’t be so arrogant."

Bai Mo watched as the Nascent Soul fiend, once unshackled, was able to move his limbs with effort after just a moment. He began to set his own bones back into place.

He twisted his head straight and, opening his mouth, spat out several small bone fragments.

"Heh. How could this mortal shell and these external trinkets restrain me?"

Bai Mo saw him sit cross-legged as an obscure fluctuation emanated from his body. His meridians bulged, and all the restrictive seals placed on him became visible.

He was clearly preparing to use a technique like having his Divine Soul leave his body.

’But how many Nascent Soul cultivators have been imprisoned to death in this black prison?’

’Did he really think he could leave just because he wanted to?’

Paying him no mind, Bai Mo saw the disciples from the Foreign Affairs Hall off.

With this, the Mi Mountain black prison had now taken in fifty-six new inmates.

This showed the extent of the chaos at the Unpassable River.

Back in his stone house, Ah Er was nowhere to be seen. The farming tools it used were neatly placed in a corner.

’Hmm, that little guy has been going out quite often lately.’

Ever since it ate that pill, Ah Er’s bloodline had indeed been enhanced.

Putting everything else aside, just look at its current bear-cub-like size—none of its ancestors for eighteen generations could have matched it.

But ever since Bai Mo had let it out for a walk that one time, the badger had gone wild, often leaving the house and not returning for a whole day.

At first, Bai Mo thought its wild instincts had resurfaced and that it was preparing to return to the wilderness.

But seeing it return punctually every night overturned that guess.

’Whatever. I’ll check on it when I have time.’

Bai Mo returned to his stone house, took stock of his assets, and began to plan his trip.

According to the information he’d gathered, the prisoners to be escorted had mostly all arrived.

Mi Mountain would probably be quiet for a while.

Crushing a Jade Talisman to summon Li Wuji, Bai Mo explained:

"I’m sorry for delaying your matter until now, Senior Brother. It was unavoidable. It’s time for me to go out and gather the rest of the medicinal ingredients."

"Besides, if I don’t go soon, I’ll miss out on the strange items brought back from the Unpassable River to the market at the foot of the mountain."

Bai Mo shook his head.

"I can’t delay any longer."

Li Wuji was even more concerned about this than Bai Mo.

"Just leave Mi Mountain to me. Go without worry, Junior Brother."

"Alright. I’ll be back in three days."

Bai Mo said, "There are many new faces in the prison. An elder will be coming to inspect, so don’t let them find any faults..."

With that, he left Mi Mountain, boarded a Flying Ship, and vanished in an instant.

Time was short, and he couldn’t afford to dally.

「...」

The Array Patterns on the Flying Ship activated, and it shot through the air like a flying leaf.

Bai Mo had just flown for a short distance when he suddenly spotted a Demon Beast below, sometimes running on all fours, sometimes walking upright like a person.

It looked very familiar.

Looking closely, it wasn’t some Demon Beast at all; it was clearly his own pet.

Bai Mo immediately descended.

Ah Er shook the mud from its head as if it sensed something.

It looked up and saw its master leaping down, and it immediately shrank its neck back.

Seeing it covered in muddy water, Bai Mo frowned. He casually patted its neck, sending mud splattering everywhere.

"What are you still doing out here at this hour?"

"Hurry up. If you’re not quick, you’ll miss the gate’s closing time."

Ah Er nodded repeatedly, let out a cry at Bai Mo, and scrambled back toward Mi Mountain.

Bai Mo, on the other hand, jumped back onto his Flying Ship and continued toward Silkworm Valley.

He had heard that the market near there had many strange items for sale, spewed forth from the Unpassable River Sea Eye.

Riding without stop, Bai Mo finally caught sight of the market late at night.

Even at this hour, the market was still brightly lit.

Flames of various colors flickered quietly—ghastly greens and shimmering whites.

As he got closer, he realized that the disciples running the stalls had intentionally lit lamps with fish oil to attract customers.

"Yo! Are you interested in this lamp, Junior Brother?"

"This oil was rendered from the fat of an Unpassable River Whale King. It’s top-grade stuff, capable of illuminating the netherworld."

Bai Mo’s hand, which was fiddling with the lamp, paused.

"It’s not from the Sea Eye?"

"No, but it’s no small matter either."

"The Whale King pods have existed in the Unpassable River for many years. They used to mind their own business, not interfering with those on shore. The two sides even cooperated for mutual benefit on many occasions."

The enthusiastic disciple explained, "But this time, they were driven by the Sea Race to attack the coastal Sea City."

"A huge coastal city... was breached by a single Whale King. It crushed half the city, and it ended up trapped there itself."

"This lamp oil was rendered from the fat of that very Whale King."

Bai Mo thought for a moment, asked the price, and then said:

"I’ll take two pounds of the lamp oil."

"You got it! That’ll be thirty Spirit Stones."

A Whale King from the sea, a creature of unknown age, was a treasure trove from head to tail.

Lamp oil rendered from its fat was indeed useful for Alchemy.

After paying for the lamp oil, Bai Mo turned to look elsewhere.

He hadn’t walked more than a few steps when he saw half a turtle shell, a full forty feet high, displayed ostentatiously.

At the same stall, there was also a steel trident standing upright, nearly as tall as the turtle shell.

One could only imagine what kind of colossal creature wielded that trident.

Compared to this, the Sea Race member locked up in the black prison was nothing.

Bai Mo hurried over, squeezing through the crowd of onlookers.

An ancient turtle shell was an absolutely fantastic item with many uses.

But while he was still in the crowd, before he even had a chance to speak, the half-shell was taken down.

Several disciples with obscure auras shouldered the turtle shell and left in a hurry.

Bai Mo was a little disappointed, but he knew that a turtle shell like that was a hot commodity. He had expected as much, so he wasn’t too upset.

His gaze returned to the stall before him, which was covered in many strange and bizarre items.

Bronze carapaces, leather-like paper, stones, flesh, and bones—it had everything.

Which were useful and which were useless all depended on the customer’s own discerning eye.

To be able to acquire that trident and turtle shell, the stall’s origins couldn’t possibly be simple.

Bai Mo’s eyes swept over the goods. Sensing the ancient aura of the items on the stall, he knew these were the things that had truly come from the Sea Eye.