Chapter 43: The Free Market

The Sterling Family had already made their move.

No one could guarantee how soon they would begin investigating Winters Manor.

Ryan’s rapid increase in strength was closely tied to the abilities of the Creation Furnace. If he wanted to continue growing at such a pace, he needed to greatly expand his sources of waste pills and waste treasures.

With enough materials, he could activate the Creation Furnace and continuously create higher-grade treasures, exchange them for large quantities of Origin Stones, and use those Origin Stones to acquire even more cultivation resources.

In fact, Ryan had considered asking Elena to help him acquire a large quantity of waste pills and waste treasures.

Her family operated businesses on a massive scale. With so many industries under their control, there were undoubtedly numerous alchemists and artifact crafters working for them, which meant they should produce a considerable amount of waste pills and waste treasures.

However, Ryan quickly dismissed the idea.

His relationship with Elena was still shallow, and he couldn’t be certain that she was someone he could completely trust.

Whether it was purchasing large quantities of low-value waste pills and waste treasures or buying massive amounts of Low-Grade Origin Stones before selling large quantities of Top-Grade pills, either approach would leave behind traces that could easily attract attention.

To powerful factions, such unusual behavior would undoubtedly appear suspicious.

And if he accidentally left behind even the slightest clue and someone with ulterior motives discovered the existence of the Creation Furnace, the consequences would be disastrous.

The trouble caused by the discovery of a strange treasure could be far more terrifying than the trouble of offending the Sterling Family.

At worst, offending the Sterling Family meant being hunted by a single powerful family.

But if the existence of the Creation Furnace were exposed, Ryan could very well find himself being hunted by countless powerful families and experts at the same time.

Until he established absolute trust with someone, it was better to avoid allowing powerful factions to learn too much about his needs.

He couldn’t afford to assume that everyone else was foolish.

As long as someone paid enough attention, it wasn’t impossible to deduce that he possessed some extraordinary treasure from his unusual behavior, especially if he suddenly began acquiring large quantities of waste pills and waste treasures.

Therefore, unless absolutely necessary, Ryan would have to find a way to expand his sources of waste pills and waste treasures by himself.

Only when his own strength had reached a level formidable enough that he no longer needed to fear the coveting of most powerful factions could he truly afford to act without restraint.

With that thought, Ryan temporarily abandoned the idea of asking Elena for help.

For now, he would have to rely on himself.

His thoughts continued to turn as he considered his next step in cultivation.

Perhaps this trip to the Ashfall City Free Market would give him some inspiration.

...

After traveling for a while, Ryan finally arrived at his destination, the Ashfall City Free Market.

"Finally." Ryan looked up.

A moment later, a hint of surprise flashed across his eyes.

The market was far more unique than he had expected.

Aside from a towering, ancient-style stone gate, the entire area was completely enveloped by a dense layer of beautiful white light that blocked the view from outside.

From a distance, it resembled an enormous inverted bowl of light.

Nothing within could be seen clearly. Everything was obscured by a hazy blur.

Ryan quickly realized that the entire market was covered by a massive battle formation.

Above the ancient stone gate, several powerful characters were carved into the stone.

Ashfall City Free Market.

The calligraphy was flowing and vigorous, carrying an indescribable sense of grandeur.

Ryan couldn’t help but step closer and carefully examine the inscriptions.

Within each character’s strokes, he could faintly see intricate lines twisting and intertwining. From time to time, they emitted brilliant white light, making the entire stone gate appear both magnificent and mysterious.

The bottom of the gate was completely open.

There were no actual doors. Instead, an enormous empty doorway stood there, with the original door panels seemingly replaced by a colossal wall of white light.

At the center of the ground beneath the gate was a circular teleportation array, emitting a faint white glow.

Ryan was just about to walk toward it when a clear voice suddenly interrupted him.

"Customer, please wait." A tall, thin man dressed in gray robes reached out to block Ryan’s path.

He frowned slightly before saying, "Is this your first time here? I’m one of the market stewards. If you wish to enter the market, you must pay one Low-Grade Origin Stone each time."

The gray-robed steward had initially been somewhat annoyed.

Seeing Ryan walk straight toward the entrance without paying, he had assumed that the young man didn’t understand the rules and had even considered making things difficult for him.

However, the moment he extended his Mental Awareness to probe Ryan, his expression subtly changed.

His own Mental Awareness had already reached the mid-stage of the Origin Spirit Realm, yet he couldn’t see through Ryan’s true cultivation at all.

The steward immediately understood.

Many experts who traveled outside liked to conceal their cultivation and appearance. Since he couldn’t determine Ryan’s strength, there was a good chance he had encountered someone far stronger than himself.

Naturally, he didn’t want to provoke such a person.

His attitude softened considerably as he patiently explained the rules.

"Uh..." Ryan was slightly stunned.

He then remembered that his mental map had indeed indicated that entering the Ashfall City Free Market required an entrance fee.

After a brief hesitation, the spatial ring on his finger flashed with white light.

A Low-Grade Origin Stone appeared in his hand before he reluctantly tossed it toward the gray-robed steward.

"Sorry. It’s really my first time here. Here’s the Origin Stone."

The steward skillfully caught it.

Ryan couldn’t help but feel a little pained.

He had already spent a considerable number of Origin Stones recently.

After paying the entrance fee, he would have only twenty Low-Grade Origin Stones left.

Every single one felt precious.

"Alright. Welcome."

The steward’s expression finally relaxed, and a smile appeared on his face.

"If you wish to set up a stall in the market, you can also come to me and exchange for a stall jade token. The fee is three Low-Grade Origin Stones per day."

As he spoke, he made a welcoming gesture toward Ryan and pointed toward the teleportation array.

"Alright. I’ll look around first. If I need anything, I’ll come back and find you."

Ryan smiled and nodded before stepping onto the teleportation array.

That was what he said aloud.

But inwardly, he couldn’t help feeling that setting up a stall here wasn’t cheap.

Three Low-Grade Origin Stones a day.

He didn’t know how much traffic the market received. If there weren’t enough customers, setting up a stall here would simply mean throwing Origin Stones away.

It was better to observe the situation first.

"Alright. After entering the market, esteemed guest, please refrain from engaging in conflicts or killing others. Otherwise, the market’s guardian will personally intervene and punish you."

The gray-robed steward gave him a casual warning.

Before Ryan could respond, he raised a finger and activated the teleportation array.

"Whoosh!"

Dazzling white light flashed.

Ryan suddenly felt dizzy and disoriented, as though the entire world were spinning around him.

By the time his feet firmly touched the ground and his vision gradually returned, he had already been teleported inside the Ashfall City Free Market.

In an instant, Ryan was stunned by the scene before him.

It felt as though he had stepped into an entirely different world.

The Ashfall City Free Market was bustling with activity.

A single main thoroughfare ran through the center of the market.

The road was extremely spacious, seemingly wide enough to accommodate twenty or thirty people walking side by side.

White lines had been drawn across the bluestone pavement on both sides, dividing the area into individual stalls.

Each stall had a number displayed at the front.

The stalls themselves weren’t large, measuring only around two square meters, yet almost every one was occupied.

Stall owners of various appearances sat cross-legged on the ground, guarding their goods.

Ryan looked into the distance.

The occupied stalls stretched along both sides of the road, forming seemingly endless rows that disappeared toward the horizon.

Occasionally, an empty stall could be seen.

But such vacancies never lasted long.

Before long, someone carrying a stall jade token would rush over and claim the spot.

Ryan’s eyes flickered.

It seemed that business here was indeed quite good.

Looking closer, he discovered that the stalls themselves were extremely simple.

Most vendors merely spread an animal hide or a large piece of cloth across the ground and arranged their goods on top.

There was no elaborate decoration whatsoever.

Yet the items displayed on those crude cloths were anything but ordinary.

There was a dazzling variety of treasures, materials, weapons, pills, and other strange objects.

Mercenaries who ventured into the wilderness often acquired valuable treasures during their adventures. Rather than going through complicated channels to sell them, many preferred to bring them here and freely set up stalls.

It was simple, convenient, and direct.

Behind the rows of stalls on both sides of the main thoroughfare were various small and medium-sized businesses.

Ryan glanced around.

Taverns, restaurants, brothels, inns...

Almost everything one could need was available.

From time to time, elegantly dressed Bloodline Fighters could be seen entering and leaving these establishments.

The combination of individual stalls and small- to medium-sized businesses catered to Bloodline Fighter groups with vastly different levels of wealth, making the entire market exceptionally lively.

At this moment, the central avenue was packed with people.

Warriors moved through the crowd, stopping from time to time to inspect the countless stalls.

The flow of people was practically endless.

Occasionally, loud voices could be heard as buyers and sellers haggled over prices, adding to the lively and boisterous atmosphere.

Ryan quietly observed everything around him.

Then, a trace of surprise appeared in his eyes.

The strength of most of the people walking through the market actually surpassed his own.

Ryan’s current cultivation was at Stage Five of the Origin Sea Convergence Realm.

Yet in this bustling market, he was actually among the weakest.

His expression gradually became serious.

This Ashfall City Free Market was clearly far more extraordinary than he had initially imagined.

"I didn’t expect there to be so many powerful Bloodline Fighters in this market."

The discovery only made Ryan more interested.

He began browsing the stalls lining both sides of the main avenue, carefully examining the various items on display to see if there was anything suitable for him.

There were simply too many stalls.

Moreover, valuable items seemed to appear everywhere he looked, leaving Ryan somewhat overwhelmed.

To save time, he had no choice but to speed up his browsing, carefully scanning each stall before moving on to the next.

...

"Skill Stone: Profound-Tier Medium-Grade Bloodline Combat Skill, Shadow Fist. Five hundred and fifty Low-Grade Origin Stones?"

At Stall No. 081, Ryan suddenly stopped.

Something on the stall had caught his attention.

His eyes lit up, and pleasant surprise immediately filled his heart.

He quickly picked up a wooden product-introduction slip and injected a trace of Origin Energy into it.

Information soon appeared within his mind.

[Skill Stone]

[Profound-Tier Medium-Grade Combat Skill: Shadow Fist]

[Skill Introduction: Punches as fast as lightning, creating layers of fist shadows. The user can instantly strike the same location twice, causing the power of the fists to stack and erupt with twice the force. Its destructive power is astonishing. A direct hit can severely injure an enemy or even kill them instantly.]

[Conclusion: Suitable for certain Enhancement-Type and Lifeform-Type Bloodline Fighters.]

[Current Price: 550 Low-Grade Origin Stones.]

[Original Price: 600 Low-Grade Origin Stones.]

"A single attack can instantly erupt with double the fist power?"

Ryan’s eyes shone with interest.

"This Bloodline combat skill is quite interesting..."

He stared at the introduction for a long time.

It was a Skill Stone.

More importantly, it was a Bloodline combat skill that suited his current situation extremely well.

The technique could be used alongside the Overlord Body Bloodline.

And when combined with the terrifying power of his Rampaging Tyrant Strength ability, the destructive force produced by the two would undoubtedly be astonishing.

Unfortunately...

He didn’t have enough money.

Ryan stared at the wooden slip for another moment before sighing helplessly.

"Forget it."

He reluctantly returned the wooden slip to its original position.

A product-introduction wooden slip was a common item among Bloodline Fighters.

It was flat and square, usually made from relatively inexpensive low-memory spirit wood.

Compared with something like a Shadow Stone, its raw material was considerably cheaper.

Although it possessed a certain memory function, its capacity was extremely limited. It could only store simple text information and was incapable of recording complicated images, Mental Awareness guidance, or other detailed information.

Because of this, it was often jokingly referred to as the low-end version of a Shadow Stone.

Vendors commonly used such wooden slips to introduce the treasures they were selling.

The slip would contain only basic information about an item. If a customer was genuinely interested, they could then negotiate with the stall owner and examine or purchase the actual treasure.

This method also prevented precious items, especially things like Skill Stones, from being accidentally activated or damaged by curious customers.

After spending considerable time studying and familiarizing himself with the world of Bloodline Fighters, Ryan had gradually learned about many things he had previously known nothing about.

The Shadow Fist was one of the treasures he currently needed the most.

Although he had already awakened the Spider Bloodline and the Overlord Body Bloodline, he had yet to master a single Bloodline combat skill.

This Shadow Fist was remarkably compatible with him.

The technique could be used alongside the Overlord Body Bloodline.

And when combined with the terrifying power of his Rampaging Tyrant Strength ability, the destructive force produced by the two would undoubtedly be astonishing.

Unfortunately, the price of 550 Low-Grade Origin Stones was far beyond what Ryan could currently afford.

Ryan couldn’t help but feel a little regretful.

If he had enough Origin Stones, he would definitely buy it without hesitation.

He glanced at the other items on the stall before reluctantly moving on.

After all, he hadn’t come to the Free Market just to admire treasures he couldn’t afford.

If he wanted to buy something like the Shadow Fist, he first needed to find a way to earn more Origin Stones.

And that brought him back to the problem he had been thinking about before coming here, the Creation Furnace.

Perhaps, among the countless stalls in this market, he could find something that would help him solve that problem.