Reversing the Milky Way

"I remember that the Imperial Guard is only established in towns or villages, not in large cities. This is understandable. If you want to cultivate in places like the Lowland Spirit Tower, you have to move around in ordinary areas. I have to say, the regulations issued by the Fire Cloud Kingdom are really effective. This way, it can ensure that cultivators are not overly concentrated in cities, while also allowing them to play an important role in ordinary areas."

After Bai Cheng emerged from the secret chamber, he arrived at the circular stone platform.

"By the way, how do I activate this teleportation array?"

Suddenly, the image of Bai Siyong standing on the stone platform, channeling his spiritual power, flashed into his mind.

"I remember that spiritual energy gathers from under my feet. I don't know if I can activate this teleportation array."

After speaking, Bai Cheng tried to circulate the spiritual power within his body, condensing it at his feet and releasing it.

Immediately afterwards, he saw the clearly visible array patterns on the stone platform beneath his feet rapidly lighting up, although the light was spreading outwards much more slowly.

At this moment, Bai Cheng's face clearly showed signs of strain. From the moment he released his spiritual power, he noticed that once the array beneath his feet stopped transmitting spiritual power, the array patterns beneath his feet would quickly disappear.

Subsequently, after nearly three minutes of continuous spiritual energy transmission, the array patterns in the circular stone platform beneath his feet finally lit up completely, followed by the phenomenon that occurred when Bai Cheng first rode the teleportation array.

As darkness enveloped him once more, the feeling of weightlessness returned to Bai Cheng's body. This was, undeniably, the first time Bai Cheng had activated and used a teleportation array, and he felt slightly uneasy. Fortunately, the array didn't require further spiritual energy during the teleportation, which relieved Bai Cheng; otherwise, given his current state, he would have been in serious trouble.

After a flash of light, Bai Cheng appeared on the stone platform of the teleportation array.

As the darkness faded, he forced himself to get off the stone platform despite feeling intense motion sickness, though this time the dizziness was much milder than the first time he had experienced it.

"Strange, this place seems to have become much hotter than before."

"Who are you? How dare you trespass into the third level?"

A stern and forceful voice reached Bai Cheng's ears.

"What! The third floor?"

Bai Cheng quickly turned his head and saw a large three characters written on the stone wall.

Immediately afterward, a figure appeared in front of him. After feeling the pressure from the person in front of him, Bai Cheng's expression became tense, because the person in front of him was actually at the Great Perfection of the Meridian Opening Realm.

This person is Ming Qianren, the manager of the lower level of the Earth Spirit Tower, whose true identity is the Hidden Dragon Guard.

Bai Cheng looked at the old man who looked to be in his fifties and felt a little nervous, because he could clearly feel the difference between them.

"Please forgive me, senior! This is my first time operating a teleportation array, and I don't understand the principles behind it. I intended to return to the upper level, but I ended up on the lower level instead."

Upon hearing Bai Cheng's explanation, Ming Qianren also began to examine Bai Cheng's level of understanding.

'This kid can drive a teleportation array at the fourth level of Spirit Guidance; he's probably from some powerful family, right?!'

Ming Qianren withdrew his serious gaze.

"Since this is your first time operating, I won't pursue the matter further. The Earth Spirit Tower is considered to be in its lower level from the third level onwards, and I am Ming Qianren, the manager of the lower level. The cultivators who come to cultivate in this third level are basically at the Great Perfection of the Qi Condensation Realm or the Meridian Opening Realm. With your current level, it's simply wishful thinking. You should quickly return to the upper level."

Upon hearing this, Bai Cheng didn't dare to delay at all and quickly stepped onto the stone platform.

"By the way, Senior Ming, how exactly do I operate this teleportation array to return to the upper level?"

Ming Qianren flashed onto the stone platform.

"The so-called teleportation arrays are basically two opposing points, and there are very few one-way teleportation arrays. The array patterns of the teleportation array are generally divided into two directions: clockwise, it teleports to the next recorded teleportation array eye, and counterclockwise, it teleports to the previous recorded teleportation array eye."

After speaking, spiritual energy gathered beneath Ming Qianren's feet, and the teleportation array quickly lit up.

Bai Cheng then noticed that the light screen at the edge of the teleportation array was actually slowly rotating, a detail he hadn't noticed before. After the demonstration, Ming Qianren quickly withdrew the spiritual energy beneath his feet, and the teleportation array instantly lost its light.

After seeing all this, Bai Cheng quickly bowed to express his gratitude.

"Thank you for your guidance, senior."

After speaking, he once again gathered the spiritual energy beneath his feet and began to pour it into the teleportation array. The subtle sensation beneath his feet allowed him to clearly determine the direction of the spiritual energy. As the light within the teleportation array disappeared, Bai Cheng's figure also vanished from the stone platform.

After seeing Bai Cheng leave, Ming Qianren nodded slightly.

"Hmm, not bad. This child is kind-hearted and has excellent comprehension. I wonder which family he belongs to?"

At this point, he suddenly sighed.

"Alas, a great upheaval is about to occur in three hundred years. I wonder if my Bai family will be able to advance further, or will it decline from here on out?"

After saying that, he returned to his seat and continued to sit cross-legged.

On the second level of the Earth Spirit Tower, when Bai Cheng returned, he looked tense and was breathing heavily.

"I never expected that activating the teleportation array twice would consume nearly 60% of my spiritual power!"

Therefore, Bai Cheng decided to stop and recover his spiritual power before continuing to activate it.

Half an hour later, as the teleportation array on the first floor of the Earth Spirit Tower lit up, Bai Cheng slowly walked out from it.

Bai Siyong was somewhat surprised to see Bai Cheng. He had originally intended to go and pick him up and tell Bai Cheng how to use the teleportation array, but he did not expect that Bai Cheng would learn to activate the teleportation array on his own.

"Hehe! As expected of a disciple recruited by the Bai family, his comprehension is no less than that of other scions of aristocratic families of the same generation."

"You're too kind, senior. Bai Cheng only had a temporary insight."

In fact, Bai Cheng said this mainly to reduce his own presence, because the people who can come to this place are basically not ordinary people, and their cultivation levels seem to be very high. With his current level, he is basically just a supporting character here, and he is likely to become the target of trouble.

After saying goodbye to Bai Siyong, Bai Cheng quickly left the Earth Spirit Tower and returned along the same route he had come from.

On his way back, he also picked a few spiritual plants.

"Not bad, I actually harvested two Grade 3 spiritual plants. I remember that this grade could be bought for fifty to one hundred silver coins a plant in Wuling Town. I wonder what the price would be in Baifeng City. After all, I consumed two Xuanling Pills to cultivate in the Earth Spirit Tower this time. I must recoup my investment."

Some time later, Bai Cheng returned to the place where he had entered Cui Ling Island, where Tian Hu and Bai Fengze had been waiting for a long time.

"How is it? How is Bai Cheng's cultivation going? I heard from Tianhu that you entered the second level of the Earth Spirit Tower for cultivation, is that true?"

"That's true, but the second level is probably my current limit. If I want to cultivate in the third level, I'll probably have to try again later."

Upon hearing this, Bai Fengze's eyes flashed with surprise.

"What?! You actually want to cultivate in the third level?! Do you know that even cultivators at my level would find the environment there unbearable?! And you actually want to go?!"

Bai Cheng nodded seriously, and the resolute look in his eyes surprised Bai Fengze.

"No matter what, you should act within your capabilities. There's no need to overexert yourself. Your safety should be the top priority. Okay, let's go back."

After saying that, Bai Fengze took Bai Cheng and left Cuiling Island, returning to the White House Academy.

"I have other things to do, so I'm afraid I won't be able to come see you for a while. Please take care." With that, Bai Fengze turned to leave.

However, at this moment, Bai Cheng suddenly asked about information about the Trial Tower.

"Brother Fengze, do you know where the Trial Tower in the academy is located?"

"The Trial Tower? The Trial Tower is not usually open to the public. Why are you asking about it?"

"Nothing, I was just curious and wanted to take a look."

"The Trial Tower is located at the foot of a deep mountain, forty miles northwest of the academy. It's quite a distance from here, but if you want to know more, you can go to the Third Elder, Lu Xuzi. He is the elder who is mainly in charge of the affairs of the Trial Tower."

After learning about the situation, Bai Cheng watched Bai Fengze leave. He wasn't interested in the Trial Tower in the academy, but rather in the spirit puppets inside.

That afternoon, he went to the alchemy pavilion in the academy to sell the spiritual plants he had picked on Emerald Spirit Island. However, there he encountered a familiar face: Shao Yuheng.

After exchanging greetings, Bai Cheng got straight to the point.

"Senior Brother Shao, how many silver coins are these spiritual plants I've picked worth?"

Shao Yuheng glanced at the spiritual plant in front of him, his brows furrowing slightly.

“Junior Brother Bai Cheng, actually there are quite a few such spiritual plants growing in rare places in the back mountains of our White Palace Academy. Because there are few people in the academy, outsiders can't get in, so we also have students who pick spiritual plants to supply us. If you insist on selling to us, I'm afraid I can only charge you less than half the market price. In that case, all of yours will only amount to fifty silver coins.”

Upon hearing this, Bai Cheng was somewhat stunned.

"Half the price? That's too cheap!"

"There's nothing we can do. Spirit herbs below the fourth grade are not rare items in our academy. There's basically no shortage of them in terms of supply."

At this point, Shao Yuheng changed the subject.

"Do you remember where we first met? I recommend you sell your products there."

"You mean the night market in front of the academy?"

“That’s right. If you sell these things there, you should be able to get a reasonable price. Otherwise, our academy’s disciples wouldn’t sell their items there. If you sell them in the academy’s collection pavilion, the price will be greatly reduced, since the items there are specially prepared for the students.”

Upon hearing this, Bai Cheng nodded.

"I see, this is indeed quite troublesome."

After that, Bai Cheng said goodbye to Shao Yuheng.

Before long, it was evening. Bai Cheng, carrying the spiritual plants he had picked during the day, picked up his bundle and headed down the mountain to the academy.

Even at 9:00 AM, the market in front of the White House Academy was still bustling. It has to be said that this area is probably the most vibrant place in Baifeng at night.

When Bai Cheng arrived at the road, the space on both sides was already filled with all kinds of stalls.

"Tsk, it seems I'm late. If I had come earlier, I could have gotten a good spot. But I'll just sell the spiritual plants in my bag; it shouldn't take much time. Sigh, it's a pity I don't know how to refine pills. If I did, I wouldn't have to sell these spiritual plants."

Bai Cheng walked forward along the road and finally stopped in a not-too-crowded place, where he began to set up his stall.

Just then, he looked at the stalls on both sides of him and found that everything sold here was clearly priced. Even when he passed by the stalls that also sold spiritual plants, he noticed that they also separated the spiritual plants by type and sold and priced them separately.

Bai Cheng felt that while the advantage of doing this was that it could fetch a higher price, the disadvantage was that it took too long. You had no idea which kind of spiritual plants and herbs people would buy. If someone only needed a few specific spiritual plants and herbs, then the rest would be unsellable.

Thinking of this, Bai Cheng's eyes lit up. For someone who had seen all sorts of tricks on Earth, this was no problem at all.

Then, instead of opening the bundle, he exposed the only two grade three spiritual plants he had picked outside the bundle, and then placed all the grade one and grade two spiritual plants inside.

He had already estimated the normal price of his spiritual plants. He had picked a total of thirty first-grade plants, eleven second-grade plants, and two third-grade plants. The total price should be around two hundred and forty silver coins. Moreover, this was calculated based on the lowest price for each grade.

After arriving at this price, Bai Cheng never felt that he could sell something for so much money at once, and this was just something he picked casually on Emerald Spirit Island.

Then, he sat in front of the package and shouted, "Take a look! Look at this! Freshly picked spiritual plants and herbs are only available in one package! The price is only two hundred and forty silver!"

Soon, Bai Cheng's voice attracted a group of people.

This left the two stall owners sitting next to him somewhat bewildered.

Afterwards, someone saw two Grade 3 spiritual plants exposed on Bai Cheng's bundle. The market price of these Grade 3 spiritual plants ranged from a minimum of fifty silver to a maximum of one hundred silver.

"Hey friend, why don't you open up the spiritual plants you're selling? How are we supposed to know what's inside if you do it like this?"

After he finished speaking, the people around him started to jeer.

"Yes."

"Yes."

Bai Cheng smiled slightly after hearing this. He first looked at the person in front of him and found that the person was only a martial artist in the late stage of Body Refinement. Then he said, "Friend, don't be in a hurry. What I'm selling is called a Spirit Plant Blind Box."

"Spirit plant blind boxes? What the heck are those?"