Chapter 564: Chapter 238: Purchasing Intelligence, Marketplace Trading

The reason it hadn’t been widely publicized was to avoid tipping off their target.

The Cangming Immortal Sect had specifically noted that the Golden Light Wanderer was extremely dangerous and advised all Golden Core Cultivators against engaging him.

Therefore, anyone who happened to encounter him could secretly report his whereabouts to one of the nearest major powers and collect the bounty.

The portrait itself was indeed impressive—incredibly lifelike.

The problem, however, was that Xiao Chen had already dispelled his disguise.

In other words, he was now using his true face and had no fear of being identified.

The Yin Corpse Sect was trying to catch him with a portrait of a fake face; they were doomed to come up empty-handed from the very start.

After leaving Cangming Tower, Xiao Chen called out, "Stone!"

Guo Pan immediately came jogging over from a small alley. "Senior, where are we headed next?"

"Back to the Spiritual Communication Pavilion."

Xiao Chen thought for a moment, then added, "I also need to buy some Spirit Honey and sell a batch of Tier Three Talismans."

"Figure out where we should go, then lead the way."

’Since I’m already at the Marketplace, I might as well take care of the Spirit Honey.’

’The next time some reckless Spirit Bird dares to try and eat me, I’ll roast it with honey.’

Upon hearing this, Guo Pan thought for a couple of breaths before replying, "This way, Senior. The Li Family’s Shop has been selling Spirit Honey for over three hundred years. Everyone who’s tried it says it’s excellent."

’Even in the cultivation world, two hundred years was a very long time.’

’A time-honored shop like this usually meant the family had produced at least three generations of Foundation Establishment Cultivators. Otherwise, their business would have been stolen long ago.’

But to Xiao Chen’s surprise, the person selling the Spirit Honey was a simple, honest-looking Golden Core Cultivator.

"Which kind are you interested in?"

He smiled cheerfully and presented two large bowls. "We have both Tier Two and Tier Three Spirit Honey."

"You’re welcome to have a taste of each before you decide."

’Oh, they offer samples.’

Unafraid of any tricks, Xiao Chen took a taste.

The Tier Three Spirit Honey was smooth and delicate on the palate, with a hint of a fragrant Spirit Medicine.

’They must have intentionally added some Spirit Medicines that help restore True Essence during processing.’

"So? Our Spirit Honey tastes pretty good, doesn’t it?"

The shopkeeper continued with a cheerful smile, "And I’m not just bragging. You know how the Five Great Sects are holding their joint tournament next month?"

"Just the other day, a steward from the Cangming Immortal Sect came and bought a large jar of Spirit Honey."

"It’s to help their elite disciples restore True Essence during the tournament."

Xiao Chen inquired curiously, "Is that so? How come I haven’t heard anything about a tournament?"

The man quickly explained, "How could it be fake? It’s the absolute truth."

"There’s our own Cangming Immortal Sect, the Celestial Spirit Sect and Mojie Sect to the north, the Cloud Sea Sword Pavilion to the east, and the Thousand Mechanism Valley."

"And almost all the True Disciples from these major sects are going. The news is all over the place."

.

"Oh, I see."

Xiao Chen nodded and waved his hand, setting down ten thousand Spirit Stones. "I’ll take a hundred pounds of the Tier Three Spirit Honey."

’Interesting. This tournament feels very targeted.’

’According to the intelligence he’d gotten from Su Li, there weren’t actually many Daoist Sects in the Compassion Sea region; they were mostly concentrated in the southwest and northwest.’

’A few Buddhist temples occupied the prime territories in the southeast, northeast, and the center.’

’Ignoring the Minor Sects that only had Golden Core Cultivators, the Daoist presence had previously been limited to just those five major powers.’

’It wasn’t as if they were mortal enemies, but they definitely couldn’t get on the same page.’

’The Thousand Mechanism Valley could hardly even be considered a Daoist Sect, since they specialized in the art of Mechanical Puppets.’

’But this time, the Five Great Sects were joining forces, sending the younger generation of their True Disciples to compete against one another.’

’Yet they had specifically excluded the newly risen Clarity Sect.’

’It seemed the relationship between the established sects and the Hidden Sects was a bit strained.’

Several thoughts flashed through Xiao Chen’s mind. He didn’t know if the sects had always been at odds or if there were other reasons at play.

’His previous intelligence had mentioned that the other Hidden Dao Lineages also seemed to be making moves.’

’There were only so many Tier Four Spirit Veins, not nearly enough to accommodate so many factions.’

Of course, that wasn’t something Xiao Chen needed to worry about.

He just had to maintain his distance and avoid getting dragged into the mess if a war did break out.

"Senior, this is the Spiritual Communication Pavilion."

After they passed through a small alley, Guo Pan pointed to a large, square-shaped courtyard across from them.

The courtyard was perfectly square, with eight identical gates built into its four walls, all of which stood wide open.

Many Cultivators were passing through, and Xiao Chen even saw quite a few who were only at the Qi Refining Stage.

After looking into it a little, he finally understood that selling intelligence was only one of the Spiritual Communication Pavilion’s specialties.

It served another, more important purpose: providing a place for people to chat and shoot the breeze.

Unlike places like Chaohui Pavilion or Cangming Tower, which were strictly partitioned with private, sound-proofed cubicles for transactions, the Spiritual Communication Pavilion was different.

The Spiritual Communication Pavilion was more like a cross between a tavern and a teahouse.

Aside from a few areas sectioned off by folding screens for trading intelligence, the rest of the space was one enormous, bustling hall.

In the very center of the hall stood a raised platform, where a Cultivator sat telling all sorts of stories.

The surrounding Cultivators either listened to the storyteller, went up to tell their own tales, or chatted about anything and everything with fellow cultivators they met by chance. In short, the main attraction was the lively, bustling atmosphere.

Xiao Chen had only taken a few steps inside before he overheard a number of shocking rumors.

A certain Golden Core Elder from the Cangming Immortal Sect had been secretly practicing the Replenishing Skill, but something had gone wrong, causing him to suffer a cultivation deviation.

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