Chapter 74: Broken Bowl

Translator: podao001

Entering White Cloud City, Chen Feng was immediately bedazzled by what he saw. Truth be told, Black Origin City, with its population number of several millions, could already be considered quite a sizeable city. After entering White Cloud City, however, Chen Feng understood the meaning of the word ‘city’.

The first was the many cultivators moving back and forth through the street. Back in Black Origin City, cultivators only made up a small portion of the city population. There, cultivators with the cultivation base of the astral energy (6th) layer could already be considered as experts. After entering White Cloud City, though, Chen Feng noticed that almost everyone within the street was a cultivator. Looking around, he also noted that there were over 10 Concealed stage cultivators within a radius of hundreds of metres. The cultivators with cultivation bases beneath Concealed stage in White Cloud City were the equivalent of ordinary humans in Black Origin City.

Additionally, the number of people in White Cloud City was also 10 times more than the number of people in Black Origin City.

Various items were put on display within row after row of tall buildings. There were also many vendor stands on the street, which sold items for cultivation. Exotic flowers and herbs, medicinal pills, flying swords, magic treasures, rare and ancient antiquities, hides of yao beasts. There were even subdued yao beasts there howling out non-stop.

“Tsk tsk! Even though there are so many cultivators within this city, the spiritual energy here is still higher compared to outside,” Chen Feng blurted out.

“Naturally. When building a city, a good location with a high level of spiritual energy will be chosen. Additionally, countless magic arrays have been set up in White Cloud City. With the enchantment placed on it by some powerful characters, this city can continuously absorb the surrounding worldly spiritual energy, even those that are far away. Practicing cultivation within the city yields a result that is several times better than outside,” said Ye Ziming.

“Thousand-year-old lingzhi! Ten thousand-year-old knotweed!”

“I have a ten thousand-year-old jade marrow!”

“Fellow Daoists! Fellow Daoists! I have some newly unearthed Magic artefacts. These are all primordial relics.”

Seeing the cultivators making their way through the street, the vendors on either side of the street shouted out.

“Primordial relics? Stop boasting. With the exception of Immortal artefacts, even the best Magic artefacts will be damaged beyond use,” one of the cultivators said with disdain.

“If you do not believe me, then forget it. All these items are freshly excavated out from Demon Soul Valley,” shouted the vendor.

Hearing the words Demon Soul Valley, the entire street fell into a state of silence. Next, one gaze after another fell upon the broken bowl that the vendor was holding. Following that, burst after burst of divine sense swept through the broken bowl.

“Humph! That is clearly a piece of trash.”

“Which beggar did he snatch that away from?”

Everyone shook their heads and some even started swearing loudly. After that, the street returned to its normal state.

“Hey! Hey! Don’t leave, I am telling the truth!” the vendor hurriedly shouted. Unfortunately for him, they all ignored him.

Out of curiosity, Chen Feng had also used his divine sense to inspect the broken bowl earlier. He was unable to sense any energy fluctuation from it. Furthermore, it seemed to be made of mud. There were tens of cracks on the rim of the bowl and it looked no better compared to the bowls used by beggars in the streets.

“You three, you three, this is your first time in White Cloud City, right? Judging by your outstanding atmosphere, extraordinary statures and elegantly handsome appearances, you must be men with vision. Come, come! Come have a look at my Magic artefacts. These are all taken out from the infamous Demon Soul Valley. They must certainly be the Magic artefacts used by the primordial demon gods!” Seeing Chen Feng’s group, the vendor quickly called out to them.

Chen Feng, Lu Ta and Ye Ziming were immediately at a loss, uncertain if they should laugh or cry. The vendor sported a sharp nose and monkey-like cheeks with a short stature while his eyes were constantly darting about. One glance was all it took to surmise that he was a very savvy person. There was, however, one matter that caught Chen Feng’s attention. The vendor’s cultivation base was higher than his. Chen Feng couldn’t even tell what level he was at.

“Ha ha ha, you are clearly lying with a straight face! Look at us? How do we look like elegantly handsome people?” Lu Ta could not stop himself from retorting.

That was the truth. Although they weren’t ugly, their clothes were utterly ragged. They did not look any better than beggars at the moment. Given their current state, there was no way they could be said to have outstanding atmosphere and elegantly handsome appearances.

“Your outer appearances may not look the part, but I can see through your outer appearances and see your hidden auras that others cannot. Surely, the three of you are not ordinary characters. Likewise, your ability to judge must be unique as well. You are definitely characters who can understand the value of objects. Although this object in my hand looks like a broken bowl, those with ability will be able to tell that there is something extraordinary here. Those other people do not understand and will not even bother considering it. Could items from Demon Soul Valley be common goods?” said the vendor quickly with a glib tongue.

“He he, boss, you are mistaken. The three of us are just ordinary people. Naturally, we also have no vision. You should leave these primordial Magic artefacts for yourself. Who knows? One day, after you have unlocked the mystery within it, you can become a peerless expert. Wouldn’t it be a waste to sell something like this to others? Come on, let’s go,” said Ye Ziming with a smile before beckoning to Chen Feng and Lu Ta to leave.

“Hey, hey, hey! There is no need to leave so hastily. The way I see it, our fates are intertwined. Even if you are not interested in this broken bowl, I have other items here, don’t I? Just look around. You will surely find some good items. All the items here were obtained from dangerous places,” said the vendor.

“Forget it. We still have some matters to attend to. We will come back to take a look when we have time.” Ye Ziming turned around to leave but saw that Chen Feng remained standing there.

“Brother Chen, let’s go. Didn’t you say you want to buy information about some of the big sects? I know of a merchant guild up front. They have everything there,” said Ye Ziming with a smile.

“Heh, we are here to have some fun anyways. There is no need to hurry. The way I see it, this boss here is quite a decent fellow and his items are quite special. I want to have a look.” Having said that, Chen Feng reached out with his hand to pick up a ginseng that was as thick as an arm to inspect.

“Hey, hey. This brother has quite the pair of eyes. This ginseng is a thousand-year-old medicinal herb. It is the infamous Golden Ginseng.” Seeing the interested look on Chen Feng’s face, he moved over.

“Golden Ginseng? Aren’t you going too far? Which part of it looks like a Golden Ginseng? It doesn’t even have any trace of golden colour.” Ye Ziming felt that the vendor was truly something else, capable of spouting lies without giving a single thought to what he just said.

Both Lu Ta and Ye Ziming felt somewhat vexed by him. However, seeing Chen Feng’s show of interest, they chose to say nothing else. They simply waited by the side with frowning looks.

Truth be told, given Chen Feng’s ability, he could not see anything from the items there. However, as he was about to turn around and leave just now, Tower’s voice rang out within his mind.

“No hurry, there are some good shit here.”

What? There are good items here? Which one? Chen Feng’s heart gave a thump and he used his divine sense to secretly communicate with Tower.

“Do not be anxious and do not reveal a shocked expression. Have a good chat with that fellow first and ask him where he got that broken bowl,” Tower secretly advised Chen Feng.

Thus, Chen Feng had stood there and revealed a look of interest.

Tower, is this a Golden Ginseng? Asked Chen Feng, who was holding onto the thick ginseng. This was his first time seeing such a big ginseng. He thought to himself that it must be at least several hundred years old.

“Golden Ginseng my ass! That is just a 20-year-old mountain ginseng matured using a secret technique,” replied Tower contemptuously.

Chen Feng was stunned. He put down the ginseng and picked up a knotweed.

“Ohoh! Little brother, you truly have vision. This knotweed is at least a 10,000-year-old herb. Look at how big it is. After buying it, you can concoct a Human-tier medicinal pill. You might even be able to concoct an Earthen-tier medicinal pill with it,” said the vendor.

“That is carved out from rosewood,” Tower did not even wait for Chen Feng to ask before saying coolly.

Hearing that, Chen Feng rolled his eyes.

“This small ding is made from ordinary clay. There are some iron fragments mixed in as well.”

“This is a completely useless flag.”

“This is a damaged earthen jar made from yellow mud. It is used for storing water.”

Every time Chen Feng picked up an item, Tower would immediately inform him the truth about the items. In the end, Chen Feng felt the urge to beat the shit out of the vendor bubbling up within him. That fellow was being overly deceitful.

“Brother Chen, all of those are trash. Let’s hurry and leave.” Lu Ta was finally unable to stop himself.

“No hurry. Let me have a look again,” replied Chen Feng with a smile.

Seeing Chen Feng pick up and inspect every single item in his stall, he was unable to stop himself from asking, “How about it, brother? Which one are you interested in?”

“He he, boss. You are quite the capable fellow, eh?” said Chen Feng with a smile.

“What do you mean by that?” asked the vendor with a puzzled tone.

“This ginseng is only 20 years old. It is forcibly matured using some secret technique. This knotweed is carved out from rosewood. Only, some medicinal stuff have been smeared over its surface. This small ding is made from ordinary clay. This ancient sword is just a piece of scrap iron. This earthen jar can only be used to hold water. This spirit flag is made from the hide of an ordinary animal,” said Chen Feng slowly as he pointed at the items within the stall.

Hearing Chen Feng’s words, the vendor was instantly flabbergasted. Even Ye Ziming and Lu Ta, who were standing nearby, were surprised. They did not expect Chen Feng to see through all those items so quickly.

This fellow has incredibly discerning eyes. The two of them exchanged glances.

“I say, little brother. Since you have such a level of insight, why come over and make fun of me? I am just trying to make a living here. This action of yours is equivalent to destroying my livelihood.” The vendor’s face immediately grew sullen.

“Hehe, earlier, you were the one who pulled us, not letting us leave. Besides, even if you want to pull a scam, you should at least make it look a little real. This scam of yours is just too outrageous, no?” Chen Feng could not stop himself from saying.

“If you don’t want to buy, then just don’t buy. There was no need for you to reveal the details.” The vendor felt somewhat uncomfortable.

“I am not necessarily not going to buy anything. Let me ask you. Where did you get this broken bowl?” asked Chen Feng as he picked it up.

The vendor’s eyes suddenly lit up. “Could it actually be a treasure?”

“Mm, it is indeed a Magic treasure. However, the various seals on it have disappeared and it is now just a damaged item. What I am interested in is the slightly peculiar aura lingering upon the surface of this broken bowl. I am quite curious about certain matters. Thus, I want to inquire about it,” said Chen Feng.

“About that...” The vendor’s face revealed a somewhat troubled look.

“Oh, what is this? Are you not willing to talk? Or do you want to force me to kill?” Chen Feng’s expression suddenly changed and killing intent abruptly rose up from his body as he stared intently at the vendor. It appeared as though he would attack the moment the vendor mentioned anything disagreeable.