"Even in the Baiyun Sect, only those with clean backgrounds who have passed trials are granted Foundation Establishment methods by the sect."
Speaking up to this point, the stall owner could not help but glance at Ye Hao and smiled, saying, "You aren't a rogue cultivator, are you?"
"If you're a rogue cultivator, you'll probably only ever cultivate to Qi Refinement Great Perfection in this lifetime."
"However, you could try to find a way to enter the Baiyun Sect."
"If you gain the sect's appreciation and swear a Heavenly Dao oath, they might just impart a Foundation Establishment method to you."
"It's just that your future freedom might be somewhat restricted."
Ye Hao frowned. "Are there none at auctions either?"
"Foundation Establishment methods do appear at auctions, but as a mere Qi Refinement cultivator, do you really want to get involved in that?"
The stall owner looked over the figure before him with interest; his aura wasn't weak.
Fifth-Layer Qi Refinement.
With just this bit of strength, wanting to buy a Foundation Establishment method at an auction...
Even if he could manage to buy one, he wouldn't be able to walk out of the Baiyun Sect's domain alive.
"It seems the best way is still through the Baiyun Sect."
Ye Hao felt helpless.
He had originally thought he could stay in the handyman disciple status for a long time, but he hadn't expected to be trapped by the issue of a cultivation method.
Without a cultivation method, no matter how much spiritual energy he had in his body, he couldn't make a single inch of progress.
As for buying a Foundation Establishment method in the black market or at an auction as he had previously thought...
That now seemed rather unrealistic.
Leaving aside how long he would have to wait just to come across a Foundation Establishment method...
Furthermore, even if he actually bought one, how could he leave safely?
"Ahem, I have an ancestral Grave-Robbing Technique here."
"If you learn it to great perfection, you might just run into a Foundation Establishment method when excavating an ancient tomb."
The stall owner suddenly lowered his voice and placed a black jade slip into Ye Hao's hand.
"How many spirit stones?"
Ye Hao was just about to decline and return it to him.
However, suddenly thinking of something, he still accepted it and then looked at the stall owner.
"Fifty low-grade spirit stones will do."
The stall owner smiled and extended his right hand.
"Not expensive either."
Ye Hao nodded.
With a wave of Ye Hao's hand, fifty low-grade spirit stones appeared on the stall.
The stall owner hurriedly swept them up, then looked at Ye Hao with an enthusiastic expression and smiled, saying, "Fellow Daoist, would you like to look at other spells?"
"For example, this Golden Foil Armor. Once cast, it coats your body in a layer of gold armor, boosting your defense while consuming very little spiritual energy."
"Even at Fifth-Layer Qi Refinement, it's enough to maintain it for several hours."
"And there's also this Water Mist Technique. After casting, a thin mist gradually rises around you, obscuring others' line of sight."
"I only want Second-Tier spells. Don't bother with First-Tier ones."
Ye Hao shook his head and turned, intending to leave.
Seeing that Ye Hao really intended to leave...
The stall owner gritted his teeth and pulled out a damaged book from his robes.
"Ahem, I don't have complete Second-Tier spells."
"However, I have an incomplete one. Do you want it?"
After saying that, the stall owner looked at Ye Hao.
"Let me see it first."
Ye Hao nodded, then picked up the damaged book.
"Metal-Splitting Gang Blade, a Second-Tier mid-grade spell. Condenses metal gang energy into a three-foot golden blade, capable of easily slicing through the flesh of Second-Tier demon beasts."
"Unfortunately, it can only be cultivated up to proficiency at most."
"The cultivation methods for the subsequent major accomplishment and great perfection stages are missing."
After finishing reading, Ye Hao set the damaged book back down.
"Not to your liking?"
The stall owner looked at Ye Hao in surprise.
"I don't have a gold spirit root. Cultivating this spell would be too difficult for me."
Ye Hao possessed water, fire, and wood spirit roots.
If one cultivated a spell that did not align with their own spirit roots, although it could still be mastered, its effect would be greatly diminished, and its power drastically reduced.
Otherwise, Ye Hao would have genuinely been tempted by this spell.
"If that's the case, then forget it."
The stall owner felt a bit disappointed.
He had originally thought he could push this incomplete Second-Tier book off his hands and pocket a few hundred spirit stones for nothing.
Now it seemed he wouldn't get that opportunity.
"By the way, where did you get these incomplete spells from?"
"You don't have to answer if you don't want to; I'm just curious."
Before leaving, Ye Hao couldn't help but look at him with curiosity.
"It's not that I can't tell you. This damaged Second-Tier technique was picked up by me in a secret realm."
"As for which secret realm, I won't say."
The stall owner said with a smile.
"Farewell."
Ye Hao nodded and then left.
To pick up a damaged Second-Tier technique inside a secret realm...
Such a secret realm wasn't something he could participate in at present.
At the very least, he wouldn't consider it until after he established his foundation.
"Am I really not the protagonist? How come I never run into any lucky chances?"
Ye Hao looked over the stalls, full of doubt.
In the novels he read in his past life, whenever a protagonist entered a black market, they would always encounter rare treasures that others overlooked.
And only the protagonist could spot what made them special.
Yet Ye Hao had looked for a long time without seeing anything extraordinary.
It was all trash.
"Wait."
As he walked, Ye Hao suddenly paused.
Because he caught sight of someone he never would have expected to see.
Lu Jie.
He was actually setting up a stall in the black market.
Moreover, on the stall were spirit artifacts he had never seen before, along with various small items.
Although the man was disguised extremely well, wrapped entirely in black robes...
How could Ye Hao ever forget that faint foul odor?
"Why is there a feeling of familiarity?"
Sensing someone approaching, Lu Jie couldn't help but look up.
Yet looking at the black-robed person before him, he felt the figure's build was somewhat familiar.
Still, he couldn't figure out for the life of him where he had seen this person.
Furthermore, among the Fifth-Layer Qi Refinement cultivators he had interacted with in the sect, none matched the person before him.
"How much are these spirit artifacts?"
Ye Hao squatted down and curiously picked up a First-Tier high-grade longsword from the stall.
He asked in a slightly raspy voice.
This longsword was clearly a standard-issue sword for inner disciples of the Baiyun Sect.
It even bore the special forging emblem of the Baiyun Sect.
Only upon becoming an inner disciple would the sect issue such a First-Tier high-grade longsword free of charge.
Yet on the stall in front of him, there were three whole longswords like this.
Could it be that these First-Tier high-grade longswords Lu Jie had displayed were entrusted to him by inner senior brothers to sell in the black market?
No matter how he thought about it, that didn't seem normal. After all, Lu Jie was merely a handyman disciple.
Between them lay the status of an outer disciple.
The gap was immense.
What qualification did he have to help them sell them?
First-Tier high-grade longswords bestowed by the sect were theirs to keep, and selling them wouldn't incur punishment.
At worst, even if they had to be brazen about it, they could sell them through legitimate channels; there was no need to come to the black market.
Which meant the origins of this batch of First-Tier high-grade longswords in Lu Jie's hands were somewhat suspicious.
Lu Jie spoke: "First-Tier high-grade longswords are three hundred low-grade spirit stones."
His voice was also disguised, lacking any of the youthfulness he had shown when he was with Ye Hao at the teleportation array.
Rate on N.U.
