txolops Chapter 105 City Encounters, Exchange Meeting
Chapter 105 City Encounters, Exchange Meeting
Li Ping slowed his pace, his gaze sweeping around with interest as he carefully examined the interior of this renowned immortal city in the Western Wilderness.
Although Jixia Immortal City is a three-dimensional city built against the mountain, its ground streets are planned in an extremely orderly manner, without any disorder.
The road was wide and flat, and even if five or six people walked side by side, it did not feel crowded at all. The low-level cultivators passing by moved about in an orderly manner.
On both sides of the street, rows of uniform shops are neatly arranged. Some have signs that read "Alchemy Shop" or "Artifact Shop", while others are labeled "Spiritual Materials" or "Talismans". Qi Refining cultivators come and go from time to time, and the sounds of bargaining can be faintly heard from inside the shops.
Walking along the street, he soon arrived at a "road".
Jixia Immortal City was founded by Confucian cultivators, who have always placed great emphasis on rituals and rules. Naturally, they would not allow cultivators to fly freely in the city and disrupt order.
In fact, most of the entire immortal city was under a strong anti-flying restriction, making it impossible to fly unless one had a token.
However, the diameter of Jixia Immortal City was already nearly a thousand miles, and with its layered, three-dimensional city structure, its actual area far exceeded that number.
If relying entirely on walking, even if a cultivator possesses speed far exceeding that of ordinary people, it would take a long time to reach the area halfway up the mountain or even the summit from the city at the foot of the mountain, which is extremely inconvenient.
The imperial road was built specifically to solve this problem.
It is not a real road, but rather a combination of narrow strips connecting different urban areas.
There are no restrictions on flying in these areas, so cultivators can fly freely.
Through these roads, cultivators could use their escape light to fly and quickly reach the city they wanted to go to.
Its design is quite similar to the subway in Li Ping's previous life city.
Although the principles are different, they both achieve rapid passage by using specific "routes," and are similar in their purpose.
……
Li Ping knew this clearly.
Neither the thousand-year-old spiritual herbs nor the third-tier spiritual fire can be bought in the ordinary shops in the lower city at the foot of the mountain.
Those shops mostly sell low-level spiritual materials and basic talismans; they would never deal with high-level spiritual materials.
After observing the city's scenery, he didn't linger any longer and flew directly along the main road to the upper city located halfway up the mountain.
As the altitude increased, the surrounding clouds and mist gradually thickened. By the time they reached the upper city area, the city beneath their feet was already hidden in a light mist, and the concentration of spiritual energy in the air was several times higher than that in the lower city.
Not only is this place close to the clouds, but it is also the most central and prosperous location in the entire Jixia Immortal City, where high-level alchemy workshops, top-tier weapon shops, and rare spiritual material markets all converge.
As for above the clouds, that's where the academy is located, and it's not open to ordinary cultivators!
Flying on the highway, looking down at the city below, which was layered and distributed from low to high, Li Ping suddenly felt a strange sense of familiarity.
He frowned slightly and pondered for a moment, then suddenly smiled: Isn't this exactly the same as the layout of Fenglan Immortal City?
The lower city is the activity area for low-level cultivators, the upper city gathers high-level resources and powerful individuals, and the core forbidden area is located at the very top.
It is likely that when Fenglan Immortal City was established, its layout and planning were mostly based on Jixia Immortal City, the "benchmark of the Western Wilderness".
……
Upon arriving at the upper city, they were surrounded by low-level cultivators.
Similar to what I saw in the lower town, they wore eager smiles and began to promote their guiding services, their tone full of anticipation.
This time, Li Ping didn't refuse outright. Instead, his gaze swept over everyone and finally landed on a Qi Refining early-stage cultivator with gray hair and a slightly hunched posture: "You'll do."
Although the cultivator was simply dressed, his eyes were clear and unlike the others who were eager to grab things, he exuded a sense of composure.
Upon seeing that the senior had chosen him, the white-haired old cultivator's face lit up with joy, while the other low-level cultivators dispersed with expressions of disappointment.
"Thank you for your kind invitation, senior!" the white-haired old cultivator said with a beaming smile. "Senior, I know the city's streets and alleys, and all kinds of shops, inside and out. May I ask if you've come to the city to find a pill-making workshop, a weapon-making shop, or something else?"
Li Ping nodded slightly, quite satisfied with the old cultivator's familiar attitude, and said bluntly, "No need to look at ordinary shops, just take me directly to the shops in the upper city that specialize in high-end spiritual herbs, preferably the kind of shops that can find spiritual herbs that are over a hundred years old, or even have thousand-year-old spiritual herbs in circulation, the more top-notch the better."
Upon hearing this, the white-haired cultivator's eyes flashed with understanding, and he quickly bowed and replied, "Yes, senior, please follow me."
As he walked, he whispered, "If we're talking about the top-tier shop selling spiritual herbs in this upper city, it has to be Qingzhi Pavilion. Foundation Establishment stage cultivators usually choose this shop to buy spiritual herbs, and it's even said that occasionally Core Formation stage elders patronize it..."
……
A few quarters of an hour later, led by the white-haired old monk, Li Ping stopped in front of a simple and elegant seven-story building.
The entire building is constructed of warm, white jade, with intricate patterns of spiritual herbs carved on the window frames. A jet-black sandalwood plaque hangs outside the building, bearing the three gilded characters "Qingzhi Pavilion," which gleam in the sunlight.
Looking at the bustling scene inside the building, the white-haired old cultivator gave a somewhat awkward and embarrassed smile. He quickly bowed to Li Ping and said, "Senior, Qingzhi Pavilion is just ahead. It is the top spiritual medicine merchant in the upper city. I am of lowly status and it is inconvenient for me to go in and disturb you. I will wait for you outside."
Li Ping glanced at him, said nothing, and strode into the building.
The moment he stepped inside, he subtly released a trace of Foundation Establishment stage aura.
In an instant, a late-stage Qi Refining cultivator dressed in a blue brocade robe, with a calm and composed aura, quickly stepped forward, a respectful smile on his face, and bowed, saying, "Greetings, Senior! I am a steward on the first floor of Qingzhi Pavilion. There is a private room upstairs specially prepared for Foundation Establishment seniors. Please follow me."
After saying this, he led Li Ping upstairs to the second floor, invited him into an elegantly furnished private room, served him some fine tea, and then bowed and withdrew.
A moment later, the door to the private room was gently pushed open, and a young girl in a bright green dress walked in with a smile.
As soon as she entered, the young woman smiled and said, "This fellow Daoist looks somewhat unfamiliar. I am Gongsun Yu, a high-ranking steward of the Qingzhi Pavilion. May I ask your name?"
Li Ping stood up, nodded, looked at her calmly, and said in a nonchalant tone, "My surname is Yan, and I have only recently arrived in the Immortal City."
The girl in green, Gongsun Yu, looked up and saw Li Ping's face clearly, and a look of amazement appeared in her eyes.
The "Fellow Daoist Yan" before me had a face like jade, a high nose bridge, and a calm and noble demeanor. Even when he was just standing, his outstanding immortal appearance was hard to hide.
But only for a moment. She quickly composed herself and regained her composure, smiling as she said, "So it's Fellow Daoist Yan. I've been in Qingzhi Pavilion for many years. Fellow Daoist Yan, please feel free to ask me for anything you need."
Upon hearing this, Li Ping didn't beat around the bush and went straight to the point, stating the purpose of his visit: "Fellow Daoist Gongsun is indeed straightforward, so I'll be frank. I'd like to purchase a thousand-year-old spiritual herb from your esteemed establishment. I wonder if you have it for sale?"
"A thousand-year-old spiritual herb?" Upon hearing this, Gongsun Yu's delicate brows furrowed slightly, as if she were quite troubled, and her tone became somewhat somber: "Does Fellow Daoist Yan really need a spiritual item of this level?"
A vague sense of foreboding arose in Li Ping's heart, but he maintained a calm demeanor and said nonchalantly, "Yes, I can buy it at the market price, there will be absolutely no problem with the spirit stones."
Gongsun Yu gently shook his head, his tone tinged with apology: "Fellow Daoist Yan is new to the Immortal City and is probably not familiar with the rules here. To be honest, my Qingzhi Pavilion actually has a Core Formation stage senior in charge."
"Our pavilion occasionally manages to find medicinal herbs that are over a thousand years old. According to our rules, we always reserve them first for that senior's use and will not sell them to others."
Upon hearing this, Li Ping's expression darkened slightly.
Seeing the change in Li Ping's expression, Gongsun Yu quickly explained, "Actually, it's not just our Qingzhi Pavilion; almost every shop of any size in Jixia Immortal City has a Core Formation cultivator behind it."
These shops not only earn spirit stones through their daily operations, but their more important responsibility is to scavenge various high-grade spiritual materials, including thousand-year-old medicinal herbs, for the Core Formation cultivators behind them.
Li Ping cursed under his breath as his expectations for coming to Jixia Immortal City were dashed.
"The Core Formation cultivators in the trenches!"
……
He took a deep breath, suppressing his frustration.
Unable to purchase the thousand-year-old spiritual herb, Li Ping inquired about third-tier spiritual fire: "Fellow Daoist Gongsun, does your esteemed establishment sell third-tier spiritual fire?"
Gongsun Yu's answer was not unexpected by Li Ping.
The third-tier spirit fires were also all snapped up by Core Formation cultivators.
……
Half an hour later, Li Ping walked out of Qingzhi Pavilion looking dejected.
Needless to say, he failed to purchase either the thousand-year-old spiritual medicine or the third-tier spiritual fire.
Clearly, his attempt to compete with Core Formation cultivators for high-level resources through open shops was utterly futile.
In his view, the ultimate problem was the scarcity of resources in the Western Wilderness cultivation world.
Whenever a high-level spiritual object appears in the world, it immediately attracts the attention of Core Formation cultivators who vie for it.
They might not even have enough for themselves, so how could they possibly let these treasures fall into the hands of Foundation Establishment cultivators?
……
However, Li Ping quickly suppressed his disappointment, as he wasn't entirely without a chance to obtain these two spiritual items.
Recalling his conversation with Gongsun Yu in the pavilion, he realized that, according to Gongsun Yu, it was unlikely that he could buy the required thousand-year-old spiritual herbs and third-tier spiritual fire through open channels.
However, every few months, a resource exchange meeting is held within the Foundation Establishment cultivator circle of Jixia Immortal City.
Rare spiritual items such as thousand-year-old spiritual herbs and third-order spiritual fire occasionally appear at the exchange meeting. They can be bartered or auctioned at high prices, which offers more opportunities than in the shops. He can try his luck at the exchange meeting.
Thinking of this, the frustration in his heart eased a little; at least there was still a way out.
"Senior!" The white-haired old cultivator who was guarding outside saw him come out and hurriedly came over obsequiously.
Li Ping nodded: "Take me to a reliable weapon-refining shop, one that can handle the refining of second-tier or higher magical artifacts."
Since he had run into obstacles in purchasing millennium-old spiritual herbs and third-tier spiritual fire, Li Ping decided to first refine the venomous snake fangs into flying needle magic weapons.
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