"Junior Brother Xu, a few of us are planning to go have some fun in Cyan Yang City. Do you want to come with?"

As they left the Task Hall, Chen Chao and the others invited Xu Yang.

After forty consecutive days of hard work, the whole group wanted to go to Cyan Yang City and relax.

Xu Yang was tempted, but he shook his head and said, "Thank you for the invitation, Senior Brothers, but I won’t be going."

He had thought about visiting Cyan Yang City, but he didn’t want to go with Chen Chao’s group. They were going out for a night of carousing, and his friendship with them hadn’t reached that level of intimacy.

Parting ways with Chen Chao and his friends, he headed back to his residence.

’Fourteen contribution points can be exchanged for four Qi Replenishing Pills,’ Xu Yang calculated internally.

He had already refined the previous three Qi Replenishing Pills. Even with these four additional ones, it wouldn’t be enough for him to reach Qi Gathering Perfection.

’But if I exchange them on the black market, I can get six Qi Replenishing Pills. Two more should be about enough.’

Qi Replenishing Pills were of little use to those with Bone Marrow Cleansing Cultivation, so many disciples at that level would opt to trade their pills for contribution points on the black market after obtaining them.

Therefore, exchanging for Qi Replenishing Pills on the black market was more cost-effective than doing so within the Sect.

Xu Yang counted on his fingers. Today was the twentieth.

He bought a mask at a shop, then cultivated while waiting for nightfall.

As dusk fell, Xu Yang left his room. By the time he had eaten at the dining hall, the moon had already risen.

He hid the mask on his person and walked toward the sect’s main gate. No one stopped him.

The Purple Sun Sect didn’t forbid Outer Disciples from leaving; one just needed their Identity Token inspected to enter the sect gates.

Quite a few people were heading to the black market. Everyone tacitly understood the procedure: leave the sect gates, find a secluded spot to put on a mask, and only then proceed to the black market’s location.

’Wealth stirs men’s greed. It’s better to be careful.’

After putting on his disguise in a secluded spot, Xu Yang headed five li to the east.

Disciples ambushing and killing other disciples was a common occurrence. Since no one knew anyone’s identity, the killer would never be found.

With his speed, even without using a Lightweight Skill, he could cover the five-li distance in less than a quarter of an hour.

He bounded through the mountains, following the person ahead of him, and soon the sound of a commotion reached his ears.

After passing through a small grove of trees, the view suddenly opened up before him.

In the depths of this rarely-trodden mountain, a flat clearing had appeared. Countless people milled about, and some had even lit oil lamps and set up stalls.

Xu Yang descended from the air, his gaze sweeping across the area. He noticed that not everyone was wearing a mask. Some, bold in their superior skills, appeared at the black market openly.

Such people were generally very powerful.

There were quite a few people at the black market, at least over a hundred.

’I’ve heard that it’s not just disciples from the Purple Sun Sect who come here, but also some Martial Artists from the nearby Cyan Yang City.’

He walked into the black market and found a dazzling array of goods for sale: Elixirs, medicinal herbs, Weapons, and even Martial Arts Secret Manuals. Anything a Martial Artist could possibly need was being sold. Someone was even selling a leopard cub, claiming it possessed the bloodline of an Exotic Beast.

Xu Yang couldn’t tell if it had an Exotic Beast bloodline, but even if it really was an Exotic Beast cub, he wouldn’t buy it.

Many items could be traded for silver, but some sellers only wanted contribution points.

"Three Qi Replenishing Pills for just seven contribution points! First come, first served!"

Xu Yang finally saw someone selling Qi Replenishing Pills for contribution points. Just as he’d heard, the price was much cheaper than in the Sect.

Selling like this was actually a bit of a loss, but contribution points were the hard currency of the Purple Sun Sect. If you wanted to get them without doing tasks, you had to take the hit.

If the prices were the same as in the Sect, who would risk coming here?

"Can I see your Qi Replenishing Pills?" Xu Yang strode forward.

The goods on the black market could be real or fake; one had to inspect them carefully.

"Take ’em or get lost!" the man said coldly.

Xu Yang turned and walked away without another word. A guilty conscience like that meant the goods were most likely fake.

He soon found another seller. This one readily handed him three Qi Replenishing Pills for inspection. After confirming they were genuine, Xu Yang immediately took out seven contribution points and gave them to the man.

The man also inspected them carefully to ensure the contribution points weren’t forged, and only then was the transaction complete.

Soon after, Xu Yang found a second person. After another inspection, they completed the trade, and he now had six Qi Replenishing Pills.

He didn’t linger. He immediately left the black market, channeling True Qi to his feet and vanishing like a black shadow.

About a kilometer away from the black market, there was still no one following him, and his wary heart began to relax. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"Kid, leave your things behind and I’ll let you go. Don’t make me kill you."

A dark figure suddenly drifted down from a tree up ahead, blocking his path.

Xu Yang’s heart sank. No one had been behind him, but the real enemy had been lying in wait up ahead all along.

It was none other than the man who had rebuffed him earlier. That guy probably wasn’t selling fake goods; he was looking for a target.

While Xu Yang was trading with the other seller, this man must have run here to wait for him.

"Fine. Come and get them," Xu Yang said, standing his ground.

The dark figure let out a soft chuckle. "It seems you’re not willing to give them up. In that case, I’ll be so kind as to see you off."

A powerful aura radiated from his body. With a light tap of his toes, the ground beneath him exploded, and his figure, wrapped in a fierce wind, vanished from the spot.

A strong wind surged, sending fallen leaves scattering. In the blink of an eye, the man crossed a distance of two zhang and unleashed a palm strike powerful enough to shatter stone monuments.

Qi Gathering Perfection!

Before the palm even arrived, a potent stream of True Qi had already split the air and shot forward. It struck the air with a muffled BOOM, carrying with it a suffocating pressure.

This was a form of the Sky-splitting Palm Technique, and it was exquisitely refined. After leaving the body, the True Qi showed no signs of dissipating; in fact, it grew even more condensed and focused.