Chapter 2452: Chapter 2455: Trading Town
Abandoned Plain, the boundary between the inner and outer regions.
In a small forest still within the outer regions, a figure sat cross-legged under a large tree, exuding an earthy yellow Great Dao Divine Light. If you looked closely, these divine lights were not emanating from this figure’s body but from an earthy yellow pearl in his hand.
In front of him, a burly man wielding a broad back greatsword guarded vigilantly, occasionally glancing at the young man cultivating.
Crackle!
The sound of thunder erupted, and a bolt of lightning swiftly darted through the woods.
The man glanced at the lightning, slightly breathing a sigh of relief.
The lightning stopped before the man, revealing a burly figure not much different from him.
"Brother Yan Hu, is there really a trading town ahead?"
The burly man with the sword softly inquired.
These three were Jiang Chen’s group, who ventured deep into the Abandoned Plain.
Along the way, the trio encountered several waves of necro spirits, mostly individual ones, and at most three at a time. With their strength, they easily handled them. The necro spirits that managed to reach the outskirts were not formed from particularly strong beings.
Upon reaching this vicinity of the boundary, they heard from a group of people about a newly emerged trading town at the boundary. While Jiang Chen cultivated, Yan Hu went to gather some information.
"Indeed, there is a trading town now."
Yan Hu nodded lightly.
"Who established it?"
An inquisitive voice rang out as Jiang Chen ceased cultivation, opened his eyes, and put away the somewhat dimmed necro sphere in his hand.
This was the strongest necro sphere they’d obtained; its owner in life was a cultivator in the mid-stage of the Virtual Refinement Realm. The necro sphere held a rich Great Dao comprehension of the Earth Path.
"The town was established collectively by the eight top villages of the plain, called the Eight Great Villages."
Yan Hu responded softly.
"Eight Great Villages!?"
Jin Hu exclaimed, eyes filled with intense apprehension.
"So it’s them."
Jiang Chen glanced at Jin Hu and said softly, "The Eight Great Villages are the strongest villages in the Abandoned Plain. It’s rumored that each village chief has the strength of a Semi-Saint but fled here to escape someone they couldn’t afford to provoke outside."
"Half-Saint powerhouses!?"
Yan Hu was taken aback, finally understanding Jin Hu’s significant reaction.
"Not just half-saint powerhouses."
Jin Hu, recovering his composure, explained softly, "The leading figures of the Eight Great Villages are all at the Unity Realm Stage, and they have a rule: they don’t accept anyone below the late stage of the Virtual Refinement Realm."
"Such a group of strong individuals forming a village is indeed quite intimidating."
Jiang Chen nodded lightly.
Standing up, Jiang Chen called out, "Let’s head to that trading town and exchange some spirit stones while we’re at it."
Jiang Chen had essentially exhausted his low-grade spirit stones, with only over ten thousand middle-grade spirit stones left. Although this was a considerable amount, it might not suffice for large-scale necro spirit hunts in the Abandoned Plain. Merely hunting them one by one wouldn’t satisfy Jiang Chen’s appetite.
His goal was to condense all of the Power of the Great Dao into a Great Dao Wheel of Light, preparing to break through to the Virtual Refinement Realm.
The three of them leaped out of the woods and soon saw a makeshift town.
The town was surrounded by a circle of tree stumps, not very large, seemingly only about ten miles in circumference.
The town had only a few scattered buildings, with most areas filled with various stalls selling a multitude of items.
Instead of a town, it was more apt to call it a larger-scale marketplace. Though simple, it was crowded with people. At a glance, thousands roamed about, mostly members of adventure teams and people from the villages of the plain, with some well-dressed, distinguished-looking young men and women.
Outside that small town, every hundred meters, there was a man with a sword standing guard. The circle of tree stumps left an opening, which was the entrance to the town, where ten young men with swords were collecting something from those entering the town.
"Stop! To enter the town, each person needs to pay one middle-grade spirit stone."
As Jiang Chen’s group approached the town’s entrance, a man with a sword blocked their way.
Slightly taken aback, Jiang Chen quickly understood the role of those sword-wielding men around. These people were likely not guards but rather ensuring that no one bypassed the stumps to evade the entrance fee.
Without much fuss, Jiang Chen took out three middle-grade spirit stones from his space ring and handed them over.
The man, storing the spirit stones, glanced over the three and said indifferently, "New here? Listen to the rules: one middle-grade spirit stone to enter, no charge to exit. No fighting inside the town. To stay overnight, it’s one hundred middle-grade spirit stones per night. Got it?"
In this Abandoned Plain, nighttime is very dangerous. The necro spirits are significantly stronger at night, making even the cultivators in the Virtual Refinement Realm reluctant to spend the night alone here.
"Understood!"
Jiang Chen and Yan Hu didn’t respond verbally, just nodded. Jin Hu honestly answered.
"Go ahead!"
The man gestured and continued to look at the next person wanting to enter the town.
The trio entered the town, glancing around.
The surrounding stalls showcased an array of items: cultivation techniques, combat skills, spirit grasses, spirit pills, etc., including some broken pots, old jade slips, broken swords, broken blades, and more.
Out of curiosity, Jiang Chen inquired at a stall and learned that these stalls accepted only necro spheres and spirit stones, and the peculiar items on display were supposedly brought from ancient ruins in the inner regions. Whether they were genuinely sourced from such places was a matter of perspective.
"Excuse me, brother, where can I exchange spirit stones here?"
Seeing the stall owner to be rather talkative, Jiang Chen softly inquired.
The stall owner was a young man dressed in light blue attire. Judging from his aura, he was likely in the late Virtual Refinement Realm. On his back was a dark, broad back greatsword identical to Yun Tao’s weapon. Jiang Chen felt a sense of familiarity toward the sword, prompting his question.
"Exchange spirit stones?"
The stall owner looked at Jiang Chen in surprise.
Other stall owners and passersby also turned their gaze toward Jiang Chen, some with scrutinizing looks.
"What’s wrong?"
Jiang Chen, perplexed, scanned his surroundings and spoke softly.
"Brother, do you know who typically exchanges spirit stones here?"
The stall owner chuckled, gazing meaningfully at Jiang Chen, "One is an array master, exchanging for low-grade spirit stones to set up formations. The other is the fat sheep, those noble heirs who venture out without bringing low-grade spirit stones. Which one are you?"
Jiang Chen was momentarily taken aback, then understanding why people around looked at him that way.
