“Xiu Yu…” Pei Li had just opened his mouth when Senior Ling Long gave him a single cool glance. She said not a word, yet the oppressive aura she released spoke more loudly than a thousand.

“Go,” she said to the others.

Pei Li stood in place and stared at their receding backs until the last trace of them vanished. Red rimmed the corners of his eyes. He pressed his fury down, turned, and walked out of the market. After a few steps he stopped, drew a Message Transmission Jade Talisman from his sleeve, and tapped it with a fingertip. A faint light flared across the talisman’s surface.

He let out a cold laugh: “Sui Bian, if you dare show yourself off, you are courting death. I will oblige you.”

A cruel smile tugged his lips as his figure blurred and disappeared into the crowd.

Meanwhile, Yu Zhao and the others continued threading their way through the market. The streets crisscrossed, and treasures of every kind were on display. They quickly found several more Starry Sky Stones of decent quality, but the rare Jade Core remained nowhere to be seen.

“Jade Cores are unlikely to be found in an ordinary market,” Senior Ling Long said coolly. “Such rarities usually appear only in hidden trading grounds or through special channels.”

Ancestor Sui Bian looked around: “Where should we look for such a hidden place?”

Ling Long and Xiu Yu exchanged a glance and spoke in unison: “The underground black market.”

Ancestor Sui Bian and Old Black Daoist stared at each other. “The underground black market? There is something like that beneath the Myriad Realms Treasure Fair’s market? How have I never heard of it?”

“Right, we have been here several times and never heard a whisper,” Old Black Daoist added.

Xiu Yu smiled as she explained: “The underground black market is secret by nature. Not everyone can know of it. And not just anyone can enter. They measure you on two things: strength and wealth. Without enough strength you cannot even find the threshold; without enough wealth, getting in is a waste of time.”

Ancestor Sui Bian and Old Black Daoist fell silent at once. In terms of strength, they could barely qualify. In terms of wealth, Old Black Daoist was a pauper; the most valuable things on him were his Lifebound Flying Sword Madam and the brand-new clothes on his back, which had been a gift from Ling Long. Ancestor Sui Bian’s situation was only slightly better.

Because they had bought so little in the market on past visits, it was no surprise they had never learned anything about an underground black market.

Catching their silence, Senior Ling Long’s eyes flashed with a trace of amusement that vanished in the next breath beneath a grave expression: “The underground black market is indeed a place to find rarities, but it is a tangled mix of fish and dragons, thronged with the most vicious criminals in the Middle Thousand World. In the market above there are at least rules to follow; in the black market, there are none. Killing for treasure is everyday business. Even I cannot guarantee I could bring you all out unscathed.”

Senior Xiu Yu nodded and looked at Yu Zhao with worry: “All the more since we are bringing Little Zhao. The cultivation of this body is shallow. If something happens, she will not be able to defend herself.”

Ancestor Sui Bian and Old Black Daoist hesitated. They had roamed for years and had ventured into places more dangerous than a black market; such things did not make them flinch. What they worried about was Yu Zhao. She was not merely a junior to them; she was the very inheritance of the cultivation world. They would rather die than allow harm to come to her. Deep affection breeds deep worry; the heart stays tethered to what it holds dear.

Catching the look on their faces, Yu Zhao lifted her chin and said firmly: “Ancestor, seniors.”

Her voice was young, but every word rang clear: “Though my cultivation is shallow, I understand that the path of cultivation must be walked step by step by oneself. If I always hide beneath the wings of my seniors, how can I truly grow?”

She paused, letting her gaze sweep across them before settling on Ancestor Sui Bian: “Ancestor, I know you worry for me, but I am not a real child. I do not want to be a burden. The underground black market is dangerous, but it is also a chance to temper myself. Please give me this opportunity.”

Ancestor Sui Bian started, then threw his head back and laughed: “Well said. I was fretting too much. Ling Long, Xiu Yu, take her along.”

Old Black Daoist looked at Yu Zhao with both admiration and a faint regret. He rubbed his smooth chin, suddenly weighing the possibility of taking Yu Zhao as his goddaughter.

Senior Xiu Yu sighed softly, crouched down, and pinched the little red pom-pom atop Yu Zhao’s head: “Since you insist, your aunt will not stop you. But you must promise me that whatever happens, you will stay close by my side and are not to act on your own.”

Yu Zhao answered earnestly: “I promise, aunt.”

Seeing no one object, Senior Ling Long said evenly: “Then we go together. But this trip will be perilous. Be cautious in all things and do not be careless.”

Everyone voiced assent. Led by Senior Ling Long, they made for the entrance to the underground black market.

The entrance was concealed at the end of an inconspicuous alley. Before they drew near, a heavy yin chill could already be felt. Before that cold could seep into Yu Zhao’s body, warmth flowed from Senior Xiu Yu’s fingertips and chased it away.

Ling Long’s right hand flashed through rapid Hand Seal Casting; Spiritual Power surged and condensed into a special sigil that fell upon the wall at the alley’s end. The stone rippled like water, then parted to either side and revealed a deep stairway.

The moment the stairs appeared, a knife-cold air rushed out. Ghost-green fluorite was set into the walls on either side, shedding a dim glow that threw their faces into alternating light and shadow.

Ancestor Sui Bian shivered violently: “Why does this feel like a passage to the Netherworld?”

Old Black Daoist slapped his arm: “Do not say unlucky things. We are here to find a Jade Core, not to die.”

Ancestor Sui Bian knew he had misspoken and clamped his mouth shut.

They followed the steps downward in a winding descent. The deeper they went, the heavier the chill grew. Beads of moisture gathered on the stone walls and ceiling; now and then a drop fell from overhead and ticked against the floor.

Just when Ancestor Sui Bian felt the cold seeping into his bones, they reached the bottom, where a massive stone gate loomed. On either side stood two figures in broad Daoist robes, one in black and one in white, faces hidden behind snarling masks, their eyes cold like soul reaping envoys of hell.

“Strangers? This is not a place open to just anyone,” one of them said.

Senior Ling Long did not bandy words. She raised two slender fingers and tapped lightly; with a turn of her wrist a Token lay in her palm. She showed it to the two guards.

The black-robed cultivator studied it, then gave the white-robed one a nod. Both stepped aside together.

The stone gate swung inward.