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Chapter 54: Firewell Market
As Meng Zhang approached Firewell Market, he felt waves of scorching heat coming at him. Once he entered Firewell Market, the heat became unbearable, and he was drenched in sweat.
Cultivators at the Refining Qi stage could adjust their body temperature with true qi and were immune to extreme weather conditions. As a cultivator who practiced the Lesser Yang True Qi, which had an affinity with Yang attributes, Meng Zhang should have had stronger resistance to the heat. However, even he couldn't escape sweating profusely after entering Firewell Market.
The wind chasing horse he rode on was also soaked in sweat and was panting like a dog.
The security and defense at Firewell Market were stricter than Singing Sand City. All cultivators entering and leaving the market had to have their identities carefully checked, unlike Singing Sand City, where a simple registration sufficed.
Flying Swan Sect's rule over the area appeared loose but was actually quite stringent. All cultivation forces, be it clans or sects, whether directly affiliated with Flying Swan Sect or under the rule of its affiliates, were registered and documented. The leaders and influential figures of these forces, such as elders and masters, were recorded in detail, and any changes were updated promptly. Flying Swan Sect, with significant interests in Firewell Market, naturally shared this information with the market's guards.
Though Taiyi Sect might be a small and inconspicuous sect, its relevant information was also recorded in Firewell Market. Thanks to his status as the Taiyi Sect Master, Meng Zhang smoothly entered Firewell Market. Loose cultivators, on the other hand, would need someone to vouch for them to gain entry.
Endless Sea of Sand had extreme temperature differences between day and night. It was scorching hot like a furnace during the day and bone-chillingly cold at night. However, the climate at Firewell Market was drastically different from other places in Endless Sea of Sand.
When Meng Zhang arrived at Firewell Market, it was already nighttime, but the weather was still uncomfortably hot. Cultivators on the streets paid no mind to their appearances, with most of them bare-chested and wearing shorts. Even so, a few steps of walking would immediately drench them in sweat.
Meng Zhang keenly felt that the intense heat in Firewell Market primarily came from beneath the ground. Deep underground, it felt like there was a massive furnace burning, emitting nearly endless heat. People on the surface seemed like they were inside a giant steamer, receiving the roasting heat from the furnace.
The market was named Firewell because it had over a dozen natural fire springs. These fire springs had been transformed into dozens of fire chambers by Earthfire Sect and Flying Swan Sect. While most of these chambers were for their own use, quite a few were rented out to others in exchange for rent payments.
Firefire was a relatively cheap and effective fire source for refining tools. Constructing a fire chamber from scratch would be costly and require at least a cultivator at the Foundation Building late stage to do so. Thus, not many forces in the surrounding areas could afford their own fire chambers. Even many sects and families' tool refiners came to Firewell Market to rent fire chambers.
Relying on this unique advantage, Firewell Market had already established its reputation early on. After years of development, it surpassed Singing Sand City in prosperity.
Meng Zhang found an inn, settled the wind chasing horse, and rested for a while. When the night grew deeper, he set out to wander the streets.
Firewell Market was much livelier than Singing Sand City, with most shops still open in the evening. Meng Zhang went to several different shops and sold a pile of miscellaneous items he carried, obtaining less than four hundred low-grade spirit stones.
Every time he went out, he had to carry seven or eight storage bags, which was quite inconvenient. It was like being an "Elder with Nine Bags" and looked extremely unsightly. Meng Zhang wanted to buy a larger capacity storage equipment, but after inquiring about the prices, he gave up. It was better to bear with the ugliness and not waste spirit stones.
Earthfire Sect was renowned for its craftsmanship in refining tools, and because of renting out fire chambers, Firewell Market attracted tool refiners from all over. Therefore, the market offered a vast array of magic tools, not only in quantity but also quality. Even some rare magic tools could be found there.
Using his discerning eye, Meng Zhang purchased several reasonably priced magic tools to bring back to his sect's treasury and reward his disciples. Additionally, he replenished some commonly used talismans, especially the Earth Escape Talismans, buying quite a few of them. After his experience in the abandoned mine, Meng Zhang realized the benefits of using talismans and now had the means to buy more for future needs.
As he walked the streets, even though it was late at night, Firewell Market was still as bright as daylight. Flames would soar into the sky from buildings beside the street, illuminating the sky with a bright and fiery red. Sounds of clanging and striking echoed throughout the streets, occasionally accompanied by booming and explosions. However, the people on the streets were already accustomed to these sounds and paid them little attention.
With so many tool refiners gathered in Firewell Market, such commotions were considered quite normal.
Meng Zhang decided to visit Firewell Market's black market. Thanks to his Deception Breaking Eye and extraordinary insight, he had successfully made some good deals in Singing Sand City. However, the limited number of stalls in the black market there made it difficult for him to find fruitful deals after a few visits. He hoped that Firewell Market's black market would be livelier and more fruitful.
Filled with anticipation, Meng Zhang began searching for the location of Firewell Market's black market. In this never-sleeping city, finding a secluded and shady corner to serve as a black market proved to be quite a challenging task.
Unlike the black market in Singing Sand City, which was on the surface, Firewell Market's black market was located underground. To the north of Firewell Market, where there were no natural fire springs or fire chambers, some unknown power had dug an immense underground space, turning it into an underground plaza and other structures.
As was his habit, Meng Zhang headed directly for a dark corner. After searching for a while, he couldn't find the location of the black market. Finally, he spent a few spirit stones to hire a local guide, who led him to the entrance on the surface, from where they descended into the underground plaza.
The underground was dug very deep, and a long corridor extended deep underground. Several dimly lit torches were stuck on both sides of the corridor, emitting a faint yellow glow.
Following the dimly lit corridor for a considerable distance, Meng Zhang finally entered an extraordinarily vast underground plaza. At this time, the plaza was already full of stalls. Under the faint light from above, the items on the stalls appeared hazy and elusive.
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