Because it bordered the territory of the Five Elders Association, Jiushan Province could truly be considered a front line of war.
Over thousands of years of warfare, ownership had changed hands multiple times.
Rather than racking their brains to pour effort into massive construction, only to end up benefiting the enemy in the end, it was better to simply let it remain in this state of chaos, serving as a buffer zone between the two warring sides.
It was precisely this unspoken mutual understanding between the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals and the Five Elders Association that brought about the existence of Jiushan Province as a "lawless land."
Before Mount Tianchang, True Monarch Qingmu revealed his identity.
Moments later, as they entered Tianchang Mountain City, the crowd collectively breathed a sigh of relief, their taut nerves finally relaxing.
Fatigue swept over their minds.
One after another, everyone decided to first rest and recuperate properly in the city.
Li Fan felt fine; after all, this was merely a clone, and losing it wouldn't be much of a loss.
Feeling little exhaustion, he took the opportunity to stroll around Tianchang Mountain City.
Tianchang Mountain City was built against the mountain, its architectural layout vastly different from other Heavenly Cities.
From top to bottom, it was terraced into nine distinct levels.
A statue of the Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Venerable stood on the highest tier, looking down upon all living beings.
The tier below held official buildings of the Alliance of Ten Thousand Immortals, such as the Martial Practice Hall and Heavenly Secret Hall.
Further down lay a distinct demarcation line, which marked the core of the city-protecting grand formation.
The lowest few levels appeared rather disorganized, dotted with all manner of shops and residences.
Looking toward Tianchang Mountain City from afar, Li Fan suddenly had the impression that the upper three tiers had flown in from elsewhere and pressed down atop the mountain.
Compared to the architectural scenery of the other tiers, they seemed distinctly out of place.
The most significant difference between the cities within Jiushan Province and those elsewhere was the total absence of the Heavenly Profound Mirror.
Before arriving, Li Fan had already learned that, perhaps out of security concerns, no city in Jiushan Province was equipped with a Heavenly Profound Mirror.
If neither party in a transaction carried a portable Lesser Heavenly Profound Mirror, the transaction could only be settled with spirit stones.
The clone's purpose on this trip was to purchase cultivation techniques.
After inquiring with some passersby, Li Fan soon arrived at the Wanfa Merchant Guild on the sixth level.
It was an unassuming small building. Had there not been a fluttering banner by the entrance embroidered with an extremely familiar character for "Wan," Li Fan would have thought he was in the wrong place.
There was no greeter at the door either. But once Li Fan stepped inside, the lighting shifted abruptly.
Only then did he discover an entire separate world within the building.
Clamorous noise carried over from afar, and as far as the eye could see, a bustling throng of people filled the space.
It was as though he had stepped into a lively marketplace, where many cultivators had set up stalls.
Observing for a moment, Li Fan noticed that the gathered crowd was distinctly divided by several banners.
The banners were inscribed respectively with characters such as "Artifacts," "Formations," "Elixirs," "Talismans," "Books," and "Miscellaneous."
At the very center of all these trading marketplaces, a tall pavilion stood majestically.
In the center of the building hung a plaque bearing the conspicuous character "Fa."
Li Fan made his way through the crowded throng toward Wanfa Pavilion.
Cultivators bustled in and out of the tall pavilion continuously, making it appear exceptionally busy.
Upon entering, a Qi Condensation cultivator dressed in Daoist robes hurried over to greet him.
"Esteemed guest, what brings you here today? Cultivation techniques, restricted goods, slaves?" he asked warmly.
"I'll just browse around first," Li Fan replied casually.
The attendant nodded with a smile. "Understood! Please make yourself at home. If you need anything, just let us know anytime."
Li Fan strolled through Wanfa Pavilion.
From the notices posted around the pavilion, Li Fan learned that the goods sold on the first floor were only for the Foundation Establishment stage and below.
Nonetheless, the sheer variety of goods was an eye-opener for him.
Cultivation techniques lined up like books, displaying their effects in detail; quietly standing cultivator slaves with hollow, vacant eyes;
magical artifacts of extraordinary power specially crafted by masters; storage rings salvaged from the corpses of fallen cultivators, claimed to be uninspected;
there was even a private customization service—no matter what kind of magical artifact, slave, or cultivation technique one desired, as long as one paid a sum of money, one could acquire it in the fastest time possible without having to slowly wander and search through Wanbao Pavilion.
The goods could only be viewed, not touched.
A faint curtain of light separated them from visitors.
Locking one's divine sense onto an item would cause written descriptions to surface upon the light curtain.
If one wished to make a purchase, one only needed to call an attendant to swiftly settle the bill via a Lesser Heavenly Profound Mirror using contribution points.
Once purchased, the display would instantly be replaced with another item, ensuring no stall remained empty.
...
Li Fan walked around, inevitably reminded of his experience browsing shopping malls before his transmigration.
Compared to shopping in the Heavenly Profound Mirror, the consumer experience in Wanfa Pavilion felt somewhat primitive, yet it seemed even more effective at stimulating the urge to spend.
Passing through a boundary barrier, Li Fan reached the second floor of Wanfa Pavilion.
According to the notices in the building, under normal circumstances, a cultivator could only enter floors corresponding to one realm above their own cultivation level.
The second floor featured goods related to the Golden Core realm.
This was also the highest floor Li Fan could currently access.
The varieties of merchandise here were identical to the first floor, though far fewer in quantity.
The attendants on this floor were Foundation Establishment cultivators instead.
Even so, they still wore pleasant smiles and remained exceedingly courteous.
After browsing for a while, Li Fan stopped before a cultivation technique titled *Ten Thousand Li of Mist and Waves*.
Locking his divine sense onto it, the description appeared:
"Water-attribute Golden Core cultivation technique."
"Upon mastery, the spiritual qi within the body becomes like a lake stretching ten thousand li, inexhaustible in use; one's form turns as ethereal as faint mist, unpredictable to ghosts and gods."
"Selling Price: 70,000 contribution points."
"Buyout Price: 140,000 contribution points."
This buyout price was something that had not appeared on the first floor.
Not knowing what it meant, Li Fan noted that it was double the normal selling price.
Out of curiosity, Li Fan asked an attendant.
After an explanation, Li Fan finally understood.
The standard sale of a cultivation technique merely sold the right to practice it.
Wanfa Pavilion retained backup copies of the technique.
If, for whatever reason, no one cultivated the sold technique for thirty years, Wanfa Pavilion would put it back on the market for sale.
The buyout price, on the other hand, was the price to completely purchase all rights to the technique.
Once sold, Wanfa Pavilion would no longer retain any backup copy.
The purchasing cultivator would possess total ownership of the technique.
If the buyer accidentally lost the manual, they would not be able to retrieve it through Wanfa Pavilion.
And if the buyer died without leaving a legacy behind, it meant that the cultivation technique would be permanently lost.
"Interesting. A technique buyout..."
"Double the standard price..."
"Whether it's a bargain or a loss is truly hard to say."
In no rush to buy, he recalled that after browsing for so long, he hadn't seen any of the "restricted goods" the attendant at the entrance had mentioned.
He couldn't help but inquire about it.
"It's like this: restricted goods sold in Wanfa Pavilion aren't necessarily expensive," the attendant explained enthusiastically.
"It's just that for various reasons, they aren't suitable for public sale.
"If you wish to view them, Fellow Daoist, you must first sign a non-disclosure contract."
Li Fan saw no harm in this and promptly signed the contract.
The attendant produced a golden talisman inscribed with the character "Fa."
A layer of golden light welled up from it and enveloped both of them.
In the blink of an eye, Li Fan appeared on another, unknown floor.
Here, there were even fewer goods and customers.
Li Fan looked around with keen interest.
They truly lived up to their name as restricted goods.
The very first item Li Fan laid eyes on captured his deep interest:
*Illustration of Dharma-Transmitting Heavenly Venerable Forcibly Seizing the Taishang Primordial Scripture*.
Chapter 224