Eternal Life by Daily Divination

Chapter 31: Chapter 31: The Zheng Family’s Thank-you Gift

Li Chang’an really hadn’t put much effort into it.

It was simply a matter of convenience.

However, if the Zheng Family insisted on giving him a reward, he certainly wouldn’t refuse.

“Young Miss, I have other matters to attend to, so I’ll be leaving now.”

After a brief conversation, Li Chang’an took his leave and departed from the small courtyard.

Behind him.

Watching his retreating figure,

Zheng Qingqing pondered for a moment before suddenly speaking:

“Li Chang’an might have already broken through to the Qi Refining Fourth Layer.”

“What?”

Zheng Ling’Er couldn’t help but be startled.

To have the cultivation of the Qi Refining Fourth Layer at his age was comparable to the elite disciples of a Foundation Establishment Family!

“Sister Qingqing, are you sure you didn’t see wrong?”

“I shouldn’t be mistaken. I recently obtained an Ancient Treasure in a Secret Realm that allows me to vaguely see through falsehoods.”

Zheng Qingqing shook her head slightly.

“His strength doesn’t seem to have changed, but his aura is fluctuating and indistinct. He’s clearly concealing it on purpose. If he hadn’t broken through, he would have no need to do so.”

Hearing this, Zheng Ling’Er fell silent.

Li Chang’an’s aptitude seemed to be even greater than she had imagined.

She felt a flicker of doubt.

But she quickly reaffirmed her conviction.

Her Dao companion in this life had to have a chance of reaching Foundation Establishment.

Li Chang’an was impressive, but it would be incredibly difficult for him to cross the threshold of Foundation Establishment.

…

Not long after, the Zheng Family’s thank-you gift arrived.

And it was truly a generous gift!

’A house near the center of the Marketplace, and it even has a front and back courtyard!’

Li Chang’an was astonished as he looked at the deed in his hand.

One had to understand that although the Qinghe Marketplace was built on a Tier Two Spirit Vein, not the entire marketplace could enjoy Spiritual Power at a Tier Two concentration.

Only the small, central-most area had a Heaven and Earth Spiritual Power concentration that reached the Tier Two level.

The farther out one went, the lower the concentration of Spiritual Power became.

Li Chang’an’s current house was on the absolute outskirts of the Marketplace, where the Spiritual Power concentration barely reached Tier One Low Grade.

He had already been planning to move.

After all, he was now a Middle Stage of Qi Refining Cultivator and would do best to cultivate in an area with denser Spiritual Power.

And now, the Zheng Family had directly gifted him an even better one!

’The Spiritual Power concentration in the area where that house is located must be at least Tier One Top Grade. That’s enough for me to cultivate to the Late Stage of Qi Refining!’

Li Chang’an was exceptionally pleased as he clutched the deed.

That very evening, he took all his belongings and moved into his new home.

“Having a courtyard just feels different.”

A smile on his face, Li Chang’an walked into his small courtyard and looked up at the star-filled sky.

This place was already close to the core area of the Marketplace.

Every inch of land here was worth its weight in gold.

Having a small courtyard here was an incredible luxury!

Moreover, it was also safer!

His previous house had been on the edge of the Marketplace.

If the Marketplace were ever attacked, the peripheral areas would undoubtedly be the first to suffer.

’If I had a protective Array, it would be even more perfect!’

Li Chang’an mused.

He was well-off now, so he could go to the Hundred Treasures Pavilion and buy a protective Array for his home. That would make it even safer.

He then instructed Dahuang to continue digging tunnels.

It was always better to be prepared!

’I’ll go to the Black Market again tomorrow. Hopefully, nothing unexpected happens.’

Although today’s incident had brought Li Chang’an considerable gains, he much preferred calm and peaceful days.

Time slowly passed.

That night, just after Midnight,

a golden light appeared before Li Chang’an’s eyes.

[Divination has been refreshed]

[Today’s Divination: Auspicious]

[You go to the Black Market and purchase a damaged Array Flag. You unexpectedly discover that there is a hidden world within the Array Flag, containing a complete Tier One Top Grade array: the “Cloud Mist Hidden Killing Array.”]

’The Cloud Mist Hidden Killing Array?’

Li Chang’an was delighted. He had heard of this Array before.

It was considered a high-quality item even among Tier One Top Grade arrays!

Setting up this Array required a large quantity of expensive materials.

As a result, its quality was extremely high, and its price was quite steep. Few Qi Refining Cultivators could afford it.

’No need to buy an Array now. That’s another sum of Spirit Stones saved.’

Li Chang’an calculated silently in his heart.

The more Spirit Stones he had, the easier it would be to plan for Foundation Establishment in the future.

…

Early the next morning, Li Chang’an disguised his aura, put on a mask, and headed straight for the Black Market.

This time, nothing unexpected happened along the way.

He reached the Black Market smoothly.

“Dahuang, let’s wait out here. I’ll send the Puppet Body in.”

With a thought, Li Chang’an controlled the Puppet Body and had it walk directly into the Black Market.

He himself stayed with Dahuang in an Underground Space that Dahuang had created using magic.

The interior of the Black Market was similar to the trading area of the Qinghe Marketplace.

There were many stalls.

It was bustling and noisy, with people coming and going.

At every moment, one could hear the sounds of hawking and haggling.

The difference was, most of the Cultivators in the Black Market concealed their faces, and very few used their real identities.

’First, I need to find that Array Flag mentioned in the divination.’

Li Chang’an’s gaze swept over the stalls one by one.

After about a quarter of an hour,

he had located five Array Flags. All of them were somewhat damaged, and from their appearance alone, he couldn’t discern anything special.

Since he wasn’t sure which one it was, Li Chang’an bought all five Array Flags directly, planning to examine them slowly once he returned.

Afterward, he began to sell the items he no longer needed.

’The Cyan Wood Sword, the Cyan Wood Shield… both of these Low Grade Magical Artifacts came from Wu Yun’s Storage Pouch. They’re useless to me now. And there’s this Meteor Hammer…’

Li Chang’an moved between various stalls.

He sold these items to the various stall owners at slightly lower prices.

Soon, he had obtained over a hundred Spirit Stones from selling these things.

There were still many items left to sell.

But he stopped for the time being and left the Black Market.

’I’ve sold enough for now. If I keep going, I might attract attention.’

Li Chang’an guided the Puppet back to his side.

After taking the Spirit Stones and the Array Flags,

he changed the Puppet’s appearance, giving it a new identity.

A little while later, he controlled the Puppet, sent it back into the Black Market, and continued selling the remaining items.

He repeated this process several times.

Each trip yielded a different amount of Spirit Stones.

Sometimes it was a few dozen, other times one or two hundred.

In the end, Li Chang’an sold off everything he didn’t need.

’That’s about it. It went pretty smoothly.’

After the final transaction, Li Chang’an had the Puppet leave the Black Market.

But suddenly, he frowned, noticing several auras following from a distance.

’I’m being followed after all.’

Li Chang’an felt a bit helpless.

The Black Market really wasn’t a good place. He had been targeted by Tribulation Cultivators on his very first visit.

’Do I look like an easy target?’

Li Chang’an thought for a moment.

The Puppet Body’s aura was very weak; it probably did look like an easy target.

“Dahuang, get ready to move!”

A hint of coldness touched Li Chang’an’s face as he instructed Dahuang.

Since they chose to be Tribulation Cultivators, they should be prepared to be robbed themselves!

On the surface, the Puppet Body used a few Talismans, and its speed suddenly increased, as if it had discovered the Tribulation Cultivators following it.

The Tribulation Cultivators increased their speed in response.

“He spotted us!”

“Doesn’t matter, he can’t escape!”

The strongest among this group of Tribulation Cultivators was a middle-aged cultivator at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer.

The others were at the Qi Refining Third Layer.

The middle-aged cultivator asked his subordinate,

“Are you sure that guy is a fat sheep?”

“Boss, I was watching him the whole time. That guy sold over a hundred Spirit Stones’ worth of Treasures. He’s definitely a fat sheep!”

“Good!”

A trace of greed appeared in the middle-aged cultivator’s eyes.

He let out a few sinister cackles.

Then, he shouted loudly:

“Fellow Daoist up ahead, please wait! This one intends to give you a fortunate encounter.”