Immortal Path Space

Chapter 296: Heishi Valley

The journey from Qingxu Sect to Heishi Valley, which should have taken five or six days, had stretched into more than ten for Wang Hong and Gu Wei.

Upon their arrival at the Marketplace's outskirts, they presented a Transmission Talisman to the elder brother stationed there.

Soon, a tall Foundation Building cultivator soared out of the Marketplace on his flying sword.

"Hahaha! Junior Brother, congratulations on successfully reaching Foundation Building!" The tall cultivator greeted Gu Wei with a bear hug before turning to Wang Hong. "You must be the new fifth disciple that Master has taken in, right?"

"Junior Brother Wang Hong, I greet Elder Brother," Wang Hong replied respectfully. It was their first meeting, and he wanted to be polite.

"I am your Elder Brother Luo Yuxuan. Come, follow me inside."

Luo Yuxuan's cultivation had already reached the later stages of Foundation Building, and according to Gu Wei, he had been under Gu Qingyang's tutelage for over a hundred years.

Luo Yuxuan led Wang Hong and Gu Wei into the Marketplace, where he arranged for them to stay in places rich in Spirit Qi.

Within Heishi Valley, there was a medium-sized Spirit Vein that had been discovered by a Golden Core cultivator many years ago and claimed as their own. The Marketplace had been established around it, continually attracting loose cultivators to reside there. These loose cultivators paid Spirit Stones for the privilege of practicing and living in the valley, with the backing of Golden Core cultivators ensuring their safety.

After many years of development, Heishi Valley had become a gathering place for loose cultivators in the surrounding area, giving rise to several Cultivation Clans that settled there. The valley's owners had changed several times over the years.

Over a hundred years ago, Gu Qingyang had used two bottles of three-tier Pills to acquire ownership of Heishi Valley from a Golden Core cultivator. After more than a century of management, Gu Qingyang had finally recouped the investment.

The income from Heishi Valley's Marketplace primarily came from two sources: rent for cave mansions and shop spaces, and the revenue from Gu Qingyang's own shop, the largest one in the Marketplace. While controlling the entire Marketplace might seem lucrative, the income from these lower-grade Spirit Stones was limited in its usefulness to Golden Core cultivators.

After living in the valley for a few days, Wang Hong had gained some understanding of the Marketplace's situation and had also identified some areas that could be improved to increase its income. However, since the Marketplace was currently managed by Luo Yuxuan, and he was still relatively new here, Wang Hong didn't want to impose his ideas without being asked. Besides, he and Luo Yuxuan were not close, and bringing up unsolicited suggestions might come off as annoying.

So, Wang Hong settled into life at the Marketplace and hung up a closed-door sign. In the initial period, the heads of a few local families in Heishi Valley would often come to pay their respects or invite him to gatherings. After all, they lived in Gu Qingyang's territory, and Wang Hong was Gu Qingyang's disciple, so it was only natural to curry favor.

After attending a few gatherings, Wang Hong focused on his cultivation, while Gu Wei helped Luo Yuxuan manage various affairs within the Marketplace, thoroughly enjoying his responsibilities.

Several female cultivators from different clans in the valley intentionally or unintentionally created opportunities to get closer to Gu Wei, though their true intentions remained unclear.

Gu Wei had been a quiet figure within the sect and had a friendly disposition, so he naturally welcomed these interactions.

With the peaceful atmosphere in the valley, Wang Hong spent his days secluded in his cave mansion, practicing the art of refining tools.

He harvested several one-tier spirit wood from his space and began his practice with Magical Weapons.

First, he cut a small piece from the spirit wood, ignited spirit charcoal, and placed the spirit wood over the flame.

Spirit wood contained various components, each requiring different temperatures to refine. When refining tools with spirit wood, the first step was to use this knowledge to eliminate impurities, leaving only the essential components.

Afterward, the crafting process began, shaping the refined essence into a tool, followed by inscribing formations.

Wang Hong's current project was refining Magical Weapon arrows. Since these arrows were relatively simple, he planned to refine a substantial quantity for the Qi Cultivation disciples under him.

However, even with his hard work, there was still a high failure rate in refining these arrows. Nevertheless, he didn't give up and continued refining one after another, knowing that the vast supply of one-tier spirit wood he had cultivated would be sufficient.

After a month of dedicated effort, he finally mastered the refinement process for Magical Weapon arrows.

He then proceeded to refine Magical Weapon Flying Swords, still using spirit wood as the material but incorporating small amounts of additives.

Three days later, he successfully refined his first Flying Sword, albeit a Low-Quality Magical Weapon.

After another month of practice, he was able to consistently refine Low-Quality Flying Swords.

In the days that followed, Wang Hong's routine consisted of cultivation, refining tools, and delving into the knowledge from the Jade Scroll he had obtained from the sect.

Time passed quickly, and after a year of hard work, he had learned the majority of Magical Weapon refinement techniques.

One day, just after he had finished refining a Magical Weapon, he received a Transmission Talisman from Luo Yuxuan. He immediately opened his cave mansion.

Luo Yuxuan and Gu Wei arrived together. After a year of spending time together, Wang Hong had become quite familiar with them. They often gathered to enjoy tea and wine.

Once they were seated in the living room, a lifelike female servant puppet entered, carrying three bottles of Spirit Wine and placing them on the table.

"Junior Brother Wang really knows how to enjoy life!" Luo Yuxuan admired the puppet, a hint of envy and lechery in his eyes.

"I only know some basic skills; there's nothing to enjoy. I bought it because it was meticulously crafted and looked so lifelike, but it's not that useful," Wang Hong replied. He had bought the puppet thinking it was a novelty but was surprised when it started behaving strangely after he removed its clothes.

It had acted erratically, making strange noises and unusual movements, which had embarrassed him. The puppet was incredibly lifelike, and Wang Hong couldn't bear to look at it directly. It wasn't until he dressed it in clothing that it returned to normal. After that, he refrained from undressing it and only let it perform menial tasks like pouring tea and water.

"I've heard that Junior Brother Wang is skilled in management and has received praise from Master. I've been guarding Heishi Valley Marketplace, but our annual income keeps decreasing. Do you have any good ideas?" Luo Yuxuan asked after taking a big sip of Spirit Wine.

In recent years, many cultivators had retreated into deep forests and mountains to avoid the ongoing conflict with the Demon Clan. Additionally, some had been conscripted, resulting in a decrease in the valley's population. With fewer people, business naturally suffered.

"The current situation is challenging, with almost every city experiencing a decline in population. I'm afraid there's not much I can do," Wang Hong replied, considering the circumstances.

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