Fantasy: Immortality Begins with Absorbing Demons

Chapter 239 Gathering

A thin mist rose, blurring the surrounding waterways.

I don't know how much time has passed. The small boat is moored on a riverbank.

"We've arrived. Please disembark."

The old man's voice came from behind.

Han Yi stepped off the boat and stood still, his feet landing on a patch of damp sand.

Looking around, it seems to be located on the riverbank, with many houses in front, row upon row, and several tall buildings inside, resembling a bustling commercial street.

Further ahead was a tall earthen fortress, which, though called an earthen fortress, was no different from a small town. It had walls, gates, and patrolling soldiers—everything one could need.

As a family with martial arts masters at the advanced level, Yingjiabao has the resources to build such a defensive castle.

'The market should be located on this commercial street...'

Han Yi carefully observed his surroundings.

'The Ying family of this place certainly knows how to get along with people…'

He thought to himself, he had assumed that the gathering would be held inside Yingjiabao, but now it seemed that Yingjiabao had found a separate open space and created this bustling area.

It's probably also for safety and secrecy reasons.

After all, it's not easy to come by water, and there's a fortified earthen fortress ahead. If anything happens, the trading parties here can simply slip away.

That's quite thoughtful.

"This market... is completely different from what I imagined..."

"There's too much of a bustling atmosphere."

Han Yi smiled, paid one coin, and mingled into the crowd to enter the market.

"A rare weapon, a rare weapon, the Netherwind Desolate Blade that can shatter gold and jade and cut through iron like mud, only ten taels of silver, ten taels of silver!"

"Big sale! Big sale! Plum blossom chicken for just one cent per pound! Plum blossom chicken!"

"Practice martial arts! The White Bone Claw Technique, known for its ability to annihilate any living being with a single claw strike, comes with a visualization diagram. It can help you progress from the Skin Refining stage to the Meridian Opening Martial Master stage. What a great deal!"

At the market entrance, vendors with veils were loudly hawking their wares.

Han Yi glanced at the items casually, shook his head, and left.

That so-called Netherwind Desolate Blade—no need to even look at it; it was probably just a fake, painted with some dye and thrown into a cesspool. He knew about the Plum Blossom Chicken; it seemed to be a rare, artificially bred, highly nourishing demonic beast, with tender meat and abundant vital energy. It was quite expensive.

But what was on the stall was indeed 'Plum Blossom Chicken', with a plum blossom stuck on each piece of chicken.

The last stack of manuals was even more laughable. It was obvious that martial arts techniques with visualization diagrams would not be easily taken out and placed on the ground.

Everything that appears here is 100% fake.

'Sure enough, whether it's the black market or the marketplace, there are always people who try to cheat and swindle... but they only fool naive people... unfortunately, I'm long past that age of being playful...'

Han Yi mentally complained as he strolled into the commercial street.

He had already received guidance from Huang Ze and knew that what was outside was all just a bunch of gimmicks; the real gems were all inside.

Soon, he arrived at a commercial street. There were almost no vendors or hawkers in the open spaces in front of the gates; further in, there were mostly shops and stores.

Most of these shops were open, with lanterns hanging high and red, yellow and green banners displayed in front of them, creating a vibrant atmosphere. Inside, the shelves were stocked with various goods, but there weren't many customers.

Han Yi could understand it. Those who came to this market to buy things were all independent martial artists. To put it bluntly, they were all poor people, so naturally they were short of money and had no money to spend in such high-end shops.

That is, him...

"This should be it..."

Han Yi looked at the red bow and arrow symbol on the plaque and murmured.

The light here is dim; there's only a lantern lit on the signboard.

According to Huang Ze, this is a shop that sells high-quality monster meat resources, so high that it is almost comparable to what is provided by the sect.

When Bai Yuechou was still Huang Ze's disciple, following him to learn his skills and become his apprentice.

At that time, Huang Ze had not yet achieved the level of Qi in his meridians. He would come here from time to time to buy meat for Bai Yuechou's extra meal.

Han Yi stood outside the house and looked into the open wooden door. The light inside was also very dim, with only an oil lamp lit, and the flame burning on the wick was emerald green.

Springtime was still chilly, and the wind was still biting at night. The banner swayed forlornly in the wind, hitting the wooden wall with a soft "patter".

The lamp wick swayed, and through the swaying, one could vaguely see the bloody white bones on the chopping board inside the room.

At the same time, as the lamp oil burned, a strange fragrance spread around.

Han Yi swallowed, surprisingly feeling a little hungry.

'This lamp oil...something's not right...could this be a shady business...?'

The image of Huang Ze, a drunkard who was always drunk and immersed in wine, appeared in Han Yi's mind.

He became increasingly suspicious that Huang Ze might have been drunk when he went there that day and had told him about a truly shady establishment!

Just as he was pondering, a gruff voice suddenly rang out: "You're here to buy meat?"

Upon hearing this, Han Yi looked over and couldn't help but gasp. This time, he was genuinely frightened.

Behind the chopping board, a mountain of meat lay spread out on the bed.

No, it should be a bed, or a mountain of flesh standing on a large wooden board.

"Your Mightiness…...."

Han Yi carefully considered his words and organized his thoughts.

This is an incredibly fat man!

It was about two meters tall, with layers of white fat piled up like tires, and its loose skin covered in grease.

This person weighs at least a thousand pounds! And what's even more terrifying than that is that he's also a martial arts master at the entry level!

Even in this tiny shop, a martial arts master is on duty...

Who exactly is behind this shop?

"I heard they sell high-end monster meat here? Don't worry, I know the rules!"

As he spoke, he tossed out a receipt.

So what if he's a martial arts master who has opened meridians? He is one anyway!

Rou Shan took the voucher, glanced at it casually, and laughed, "So it was a referral from a regular customer... No problem, no problem..."

Then, he spread out his large, fan-like hand, grabbed it onto the cutting board, and flung it away.

Snapped!

A piece of meat, still slightly bloody and steaming hot, was tossed in front of Han Yi. The meat had distinct muscle fibers, weighed six or seven pounds, and had no fat or sinewy texture; it was clearly a piece of high-quality meat.

"This is a black bear that patrols the mountains, a top-grade ferocious beast. Its meat is tender, full of vitality, and has a rich flavor. It is neutral in nature. How about it? Are you satisfied?"

The mountain of flesh's deep voice rang out.

"Alright, what is your price?"

Han Yi looked at the piece of meat in front of him, which looked extremely good, and tentatively asked.

"Haha, the meat here is originally priced at sixty taels of silver per catty, but since you are a regular customer who recommended it, I will give you fifty taels of silver per catty."

'Fifty taels of silver per catty?'

Han Yi was shocked. The piece of venison he bought on the black market cost him fifteen taels of silver per catty. Now, the price had more than tripled.

Although he thought this in his heart, he remained expressionless and calmly said, "Okay!"

He took out a gold note, one of the same ones he had obtained from the Shadow Assassin Pavilion stronghold last time.

He came to the market hoping to buy more monster meat resources.

After all, this market is only open twice a month, on the first and fifteenth of each lunar month, so you have to buy more.

"Official gold notes can be exchanged at any bank. One hundred taels of gold notes can be exchanged for one tael of gold and ten taels of silver, which is equivalent to one thousand taels of silver. Now, give me twenty catties of meat first."

After Han Yi finished speaking and took out a gold note, the fat man opposite him seemed to be stunned.

"Good... that's straightforward enough! I, 'Fatty Zheng,' love people like you who are so decisive!"

A few breaths later, he burst into laughter, and while laughing, he cut off a large piece of black bear meat and threw it in front of Han Yi.

"This piece plus the one from before definitely weighs over twenty pounds. Consider the extra as a gift from Fatty Zheng..." Fatty Zheng laughed heartily. "Nothing is more important than eating meat... But remember, Blood Refining Martial Artists shouldn't eat too much, or they'll burst! Hahahaha..."

Fatty Zheng kept laughing so hard that the shop was shaking.

Han Yi clasped his hands in a fist salute, carried the twenty jin of meat on his back in a black cloth bag, and turned to leave.

I've run out of money, but I've already achieved my main purpose for coming to the black market, so it's best to leave now.

The way back, of course, still requires taking a boat, and then disembarking on the other side of the river.

However, after leaving the commercial area and winding his way into a small alley, Han Yi suddenly stopped.

He said coldly, "You've been following me for so long, hiding your face, why don't you come out?"

At the alley entrance, a man in black appeared out of nowhere. "Good lad, with such sharp senses, you must have eaten quite a bit of good food..." the man in black chuckled slyly. "To be able to buy so much meat from Fatty Zheng, you're obviously quite wealthy... Bring it to me!"

This man was still standing at the end of the alley when he spoke, but as soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly rushed towards Han Yi.

He swiftly drew his right hand from behind his back, and with a flick of his wrist, something resembling a green venomous snake appeared...

call!

Only when you get closer, under the moonlight, can you see that this is not a venomous snake at all, but clearly a soft sword coated with potent poison and gleaming green.

As the man in black approached Han Yi, he silently sprinkled out black scales, which, under the cover of darkness, clung to Han Yi's body like a persistent infection.

'good!!!'

The man in black was overjoyed. The powder, imbued with his special scales, combined with the Azure Scale Sword, would cause the opponent's body to become deficient in yin and hot, with internal fire rising, resulting in fatal internal injuries.

This rich young man must be carrying a lot of money. He was injured at Leshou Villa before, so this meat can help him recover.

"Why…..."

For some reason, the man in black suddenly heard a sigh.

The sigh was filled with complex emotions: some helplessness, some regret, but mostly indifference.

A strange sense of dread flashed through the man in black's heart, as if he were facing some kind of monstrous flood.

'Impossible, I've been observing for a long time. He's just a Blood Refining Warrior with little practical combat experience...'

"Die!"

The black-clad man's soft sword suddenly lengthened again, its tip gleaming with a sinister green light. Han Yi merely swayed slightly, using his Flying Swallow Leg kick to dodge the attack. Then, he clenched his fingers into a fist and swiftly reached for the soft sword in the black-clad man's hand.

call!

As the figure rapidly approached, accompanied by a faint, sharp whistling sound, the man in black's pupils suddenly tightened.

His hair stood on end. He never imagined that this man, who looked like a rich young master, could unleash such terrifying fighting power in an instant.

Moreover, this reaction, this speed…

Could it be...?

not good!!!

The man in black felt an unimaginable, powerful force emanating from Han Yi's seemingly fair fingers, as strong as thunder and lightning, and extremely domineering.

Crack! As Han Yi completed the feat of "disarming a white blade with bare hands," the black-clad man's arms made a crisp sound, his bones broken by the force of the impact.

boom!

Han Yi slightly bent his left leg and pushed off with his right shoulder. In just one move, the man in black felt his entire body go numb and all his strength relaxed. He was sent flying more than ten meters away.

"You, you're a Meridian Opening Martial Master?!"

The man in black stared intently at Han Yi, who was approaching him.

"Why...?"

Hehehe…..

The man in black opened his mouth as if to say something, but the blood gushing from his mouth prevented him from making a sound.

puff!

With the last spit of blood, the man in black made no further sound.

"Ah, what a pity..."

Han Yi sighed again and stepped forward to pull down the mask of the man in black.

Beneath the mask was a middle-aged man with a somewhat aged face.

"This person looks somewhat familiar..."

Han Yi frowned and quickly searched his memory.

"'Azure Scale Sword' Luan Biao?"

He quickly remembered this person; he seemed to have seen the bounty on the wanted poster issued by the Martial Alliance.

The wanted notice stated that Luan Biao committed a heinous crime at Leshou Villa, slaughtering 28 members of the Leshou family, including the elderly, young, men, and women!

"This is…..."

Han Yi rummaged through Luan Biao's waist pouch. He found a stack of silver notes, all of them large denominations of one hundred taels each. He didn't count them carefully, but he estimated there were about a dozen. He quickly stuffed them into his own waist pouch.

These dozen or so silver notes were temporarily used to cover his expenses for tonight.

In addition, there was a soft sword and a small booklet lying on the ground, which should be the martial arts manual that Luan Biao had practiced.

Han Yi didn't care and pocketed it as well.

Besides these, he also found a small, exquisite black box in Luan Biao's arms.

The box was made of metal, and when opened, it revealed a piece of jade that resembled crystal.

The jade is carved with some strange, unfamiliar characters and cloud patterns. On the front, there is also a pattern of a mythical beast resembling a Qilin, baring its fangs and claws, looking extremely fierce.

This piece of jade looks unlike any ordinary item; it's extraordinary. "Luan Biao seems to value this piece of jade highly; I wonder where he got it from..."

Han Yi shook his head. People die for money, birds die for food. Luan Biao is used to killing and robbing. Who would have thought that he would run into such a tough nut to crack?

However, this is also his own fault...

Thinking of this, Han Yi put the jade into the box, then put the box into his pocket. He quickly tidied his bundle, got up and walked out of the market.

Bang!

As he left, he casually kicked Luan Biao's corpse into a stinking ditch.

He didn't plan to take Luan Biao's head, even though he could exchange it for a bounty from the Martial Alliance.

This Luan Biao is only at the late stage of Blood Refinement, and the bounty is only a hundred or so taels of silver, which is not enough to cover his troubles.

Besides, tonight's harvest has already been quite satisfactory, why create unnecessary trouble for myself...?