Chapter 152 - 148: The Strong Demon Ape’s Corpse, Setting Out for Corpse Puppet Materials
Chapter 152: Chapter 148: The Strong Demon Ape’s Corpse, Setting Out for Corpse Puppet Materials
A month passed in a flash. Following the time and place Li Xuerou had provided, Lu Zhao once again stepped into the Bixia Marketplace’s Black Market and arrived before the doors of the secret auction.
The guards at the entrance saw Lu Zhao, their gazes cold. They asked him his purpose for being there. After Lu Zhao presented a Token, a guard signaled for him to wait a moment. Soon, a silent, stone-faced attendant in black arrived. The attendant gestured for Lu Zhao to follow, leading him through several Restrictions and to the door of a private, enclosed room.
The room wasn’t large, but it was elegantly furnished. There was a dark zitan wood table accompanied by several low armchairs with thick, dark-patterned cushions. On the table sat a pot of Spirit Tea, a few plates of exquisite pastries, and a string of translucent Jade Crystal Fruits that gleamed like Water Spirits. The attendant who had led him there gave a silent bow and retreated like a shadow, the door closing soundlessly behind him.
Lu Zhao didn’t sit down. Instead, he walked straight to the massive, glaze-like floor-to-ceiling window. The scene below was in full view. There was no bustling hall filled with people as he had expected. There was only a circular, elevated stage surrounded by over a hundred identical private rooms, like stars gathered around the moon. The rooms were isolated from one another, and only their closed, pitch-black doors were visible. Not a hint of what was inside could be seen, making the entire auction feel even more secretive and silent.
Before long, a middle-aged man of about forty, dressed in a dark brocade robe with a refined face, walked slowly onto the high stage. His steps were steady and silent, his gaze calm. Though he didn’t intentionally exude any pressure, an unfathomable aura naturally emanated from him. Even from within his private room and through the Array, Lu Zhao felt an inexplicable tremor in his heart. ’This man’s Cultivation is definitely the highest I’ve ever seen in a Foundation Establishment Cultivator. He’s at least in the late-stage Foundation Establishment, and possibly even at the Foundation Establishment Peak!’ Lu Zhao was inwardly awed. ’The Bixia Black Market’s foundation is truly as deep as they say.’
"I am Weii Dongping," the man began, his voice neither high nor low, yet it carried clearly into every private room. "I thank you fellow cultivators for your patronage and will be hosting this Secret Auction.
"The rules are simple, three in total. First, bidding is done via secret bids. You may send a Transmission Sound to me, Weii. Bids can be made with Spirit Stones, Spiritual Materials, Pills, or Magical Artifacts. The highest bidder, or the one with the most valuable offer, wins.
"Second, communication between private rooms is strictly forbidden during the auction. Violators will be immediately ejected and permanently banned."
"Third, fighting is strictly forbidden here. Violators will be... killed without mercy." The last three words were spoken as casually as if discussing a trivial matter, yet they carried an absolute, bone-chilling coldness.
"The auction begins." Weii Dongping was concise. The first item, a brocade box exuding a rich medicinal fragrance, was quickly brought to the high stage.
Lu Zhao sat down in the chair by the window, leisurely sipping the mellow Spirit Tea with its gentle Spiritual Power and tasting the pastries that melted in his mouth. His gaze, however, remained sharply locked on the auction stage below.
One after another, rare treasures with restrained brilliance or powerful auras were presented: a Tier Two Spirit Grass with leaves that shimmered with a rosy glow; a rusty Tier Two Middle-Grade Magical Artifact that still held a hidden, fierce aura; a Tier Two Talisman that pulsed with Foundation Establishment Level fluctuations... An undercurrent of excitement began to stir. Behind the silent private rooms, a torrent of bids via Transmission Sound must have been raging. Though Lu Zhao’s eyes burned with desire, he remembered his sole purpose for being here. His heart was like iron, and he remained still.
A full hour later, a heavy, dragging thud suddenly echoed from the circular stage. Two burly men, built like towers and exuding formidable auras, struggled to carry a massive iron cage onto the platform. The bottom of the cage scraped against the stage, emitting a piercing SCREECH that highlighted its immense size. With a wave of his hand, Weii Dongping’s Magical Power sliced through the air like a knife, and the black cloth covering the cage was silently flung aside.
Inside the cage was the corpse of an enormous Ape Demon Beast! It stood nearly three zhang tall, and even curled up in the cage, it was incredibly imposing. Its body was covered in bristling, glossy black hairs as stiff as steel needles. Its gnarled muscles were like stacks of hard, bluish-black granite. Even though it had been dead for a long time, its stiff, cold body still radiated a suffocating, ferocious Evil Qi.
Lu Zhao looked up and saw that the corpse was remarkably well-preserved, with only a bowl-sized hole pierced through its chest.
"The twenty-seventh lot," Weii Dongping’s voice rang out, "the corpse of an Early Stage Tier Two Demon Beast, the Strong Demon Ape! In life, this beast possessed immense strength, capable of tearing tigers and leopards apart with its bare hands. Its Flesh Body was as tough as Refined Gold, and it excelled at close-quarters combat, earning it a fearsome reputation."
"The corpse is complete and largely undamaged. Though its Demon Pill is missing, its tendons, bones, and hide are exceptionally tough, and the Essence Blood in its heart has not yet dissipated. All of these are superior materials for Artifact Refining, Talisman Making, or even certain special Secret Techniques. If a skilled Tier Two Artifact Refiner were to use its thick, hard main tendons and skeleton as the Main Materials, supplemented with other Tier Two Spiritual Materials, they could refine several powerful Tier Two close-combat Magical Artifacts for Body Cultivators." His description was detailed and tantalizing.
Lu Zhao sneered inwardly. ’This Weii Dongping certainly knows his business.’ His words skillfully inflated the value of an Ape Demon corpse that lacked a Demon Pill and didn’t have scales or armor. Among Tier Two Demon Beasts, ape types were considered one of the poorer varieties, as they had no scales, no armor, and their claws and fangs weren’t particularly outstanding. Their value lay more in the inherent strength of their tendons and bones and the concentrated, undispersed Essence Blood. In his mind, he had already rapidly estimated the corpse’s approximate value on the open market.
To avoid any complications, Lu Zhao no longer hesitated. He sent a Transmission Sound directly to Weii Dongping: "Three thousand five hundred Spirit Stones." This was a high price he had settled on after careful consideration, ten percent higher than his estimated maximum. To be absolutely certain, he even added that two hundred of the Spirit Stones would be paid with two Middle-Grade Spirit Stones!
Time seemed to slow to a crawl during the dead-silent wait. Lu Zhao sat upright in his chair, his gaze fixed on the massive Demon Ape corpse on the stage. He unconsciously rubbed the cool, translucent teacup in his hand. The private room blocked out all sound, leaving only the steady beat of his own heart echoing in his ears.
Finally, Weii Dongping’s gaze swept almost imperceptibly over Lu Zhao’s private room. Immediately after, a clear Transmission Sound landed steadily in Lu Zhao’s ears, like a stone dropped into a deep pool: "To the friend in the Dinghai room, this item is yours."
The ten-thousand-jin boulder hanging over his heart crashed to the ground! Lu Zhao let out a long breath, his tense jawline relaxing slightly. An irrepressible light burst forth from his eyes. ’The most crucial, most difficult, and most vital link in the chain is finally in place!’
For the rest of the auction, Lu Zhao completely relaxed his Heart Spirit, watching purely for the sake of broadening his horizons and observing the treasures.
An endless stream of dazzling and exotic treasures appeared, broadening his horizons: a Thunder Pattern Tier Two Lingzhi growing on Thunderstruck Ancient Wood; a peculiar Crystal Stone that had a wisp of Spirit Fire sealed within it; a Tier Two Leather Armor Defense Magical Artifact refined from the hide of some unknown Deep Sea Demon Beast... He paid particular attention to the rare Spiritual Materials and various special Demon Beast parts, silently imprinting them in his Sea of Consciousness to accumulate valuable identification experience for "treasure hunting" with his Puppet Bead in the future.
Three hours later, the auction concluded as the final, grand finale Secret Treasure was sold. Led by a stoic, black-clad attendant, Lu Zhao entered an isolated stone room to complete the transaction. The moment he handed over the incredibly heavy Spirit Stone Bag, he finally received the special, large Storage Bag in return.
His Divine Sense probed into the bag. The massive Strong Demon Ape corpse, radiating a deep and fierce aura, floated quietly in the Storage Space. He tied the special Storage Bag snugly against his skin at his waist. Lu Zhao felt a long-absent sense of solid security settle over him.
Back at his cave residence in the Bixia Sect, the heavy stone door was sealed shut. With a wave of his hand and a dull THUD, the Demon Ape corpse, so large it made the cave residence feel cramped, landed heavily on the floor.
Its massive, three-zhang-tall body nearly touched the hard, cold ceiling of the cave residence. Its iron-black fur bristled like steel needles, and its gnarled, bluish-black muscles bulged stiffly like chunks of Panshi rock. Even in death, an unparalleled sense of savage power washed over him, and a thick, bloody stench filled the enclosed space.
Lu Zhao slowly stepped forward, running his palm over the ape’s hide, which was as cold as Cold Iron and exceptionally tough. He could clearly feel the terrifying hardness of the frozen power beneath the skin. A glint flashed in his eyes, and the corner of his mouth curled into a satisfied smile. "With this... my grand plan for the ’Tier Two Corpse Puppet’ can finally begin..."
「Three days later.」
Two hundred li northeast of the Bixia Sect.
High above a desolate and bleak valley, the Gang Wind howled, kicking up sparse, withered grass. Lu Zhao stood silently in the center of the valley and slapped the Storage Bag at his waist.
"SCREEE!"
Amidst a clear cry that sounded like Gold Stone cracking in the sky, the Cyan Feather Crane Puppet transformed into a streak of cyan-gray light and shot into the heavens! Its nearly zhang-long metal feathers glinted with a sharp, cold light under the pale afternoon sun!
Lu Zhao’s figure moved like lightning. He leaped into the air, landing precisely on the center of the crane’s broad, flat back, which was like a small boat.
"Up!"
The moment the thought formed in his mind, the Cyan Feather Crane’s massive wings, covered in cyan-gray metal feathers, abruptly folded inward. They then unfurled like great blades and, with a powerful flap, beat down once!
BOOM!
A terrifying explosion of sound erupted as a powerful, violent gust of air instantly kicked up a whirlwind of dust and withered leaves in the valley!
The Cyan Feather Crane’s huge body became a cyan-gray bolt of lightning that tore through the air. Ignoring the ascent limitations of ordinary flying creatures, it instantly broke through the hazy barrier of dust at low altitude and shot straight towards the sea of clouds where the Gang Wind howled!
The sharp Gang Wind cut at his face like a blade, but it was easily blocked by the barrier of faint cyan Wind Attribute Spirit Light circulating around the Crane Puppet and the Protective Spiritual Light that Lu Zhao had automatically raised.
Lu Zhao stood steadily on the crane’s back, his posture as straight and firm as a mountain rooted in rock. His gaze was like two bolts of cold lightning, piercing through the clouds and fixed unswervingly on the vast horizon of the Chen Country.
For the next half-year, he would ride the Cyan Feather Crane Puppet, traveling to all the major Marketplaces in the various counties under the Bixia Sect’s influence, combing through them to gather the various precious and obscure auxiliary materials needed to refine the Corpse Puppet.
The Cyan Feather Crane Puppet’s astonishing speed was several times faster than his own Wind Manipulation Technique, which would save him precious time on this long journey.
Lu Zhao flew through the sky. The shadow of the giant, cyan-gray crane was like a sharp arrow cleaving the firmament, leaving a white wake in the azure, clear sky.
It carried Lu Zhao towards the foundation of his transformation. This time, he would gather the materials and forge a Tier Two Corpse Puppet!