Cultivating for a hundred lifetimes to ascension

The ground within the city was paved with dark, mysterious stones, extremely flat, with various primitive patterns carved on each black stone, adding some exotic flair.

The spacious streets were lined with towering buildings constructed of giant stones, each with distinct shapes, with even more various bustling divine temples in between.

The clamorous streets occasionally echoed with the sounds of chanting and prayers, giving the city a heavy religious atmosphere.

Compared to the neat and solemn style of the Tianzhu Realm, the buildings in the Netherworld Ghost Realm with their distinct styles had an added sense of sanctity.

On the streets, there were many pedestrians, mostly from the Human Clan, but also quite a few from different Alien Races.

It was here that Zhao Sheng finally got a glimpse of the customs and culture of the Nine Demon Continent.

The Alien Races that came and went on the streets varied in shape, although they were mostly humanoid in appearance, their bodies still bore marks of their beastly origins, and half-human, half-beast figures were a common sight.

After wandering around the city for a while, Zhao Sheng covertly released his Divine Sense and had seen every corner of this city.

Immediately, he found an inn operated by a Divine Temple in Qingjin City and settled down.

The scale of Qingjin City on the Nine Demon Continent made it one of the most bustling cities, as he casually glanced at the street markets earlier, the stalls were filled with many Spiritual Medicines, demon beast materials, secret medicines, ancient books, and so on.

The shops on the street were numerous, and a casual scan revealed many treasures, all brimming with Spiritual Energy and shimmering with treasure light, all valuable and rare Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures.

In the inn, Zhao Sheng secretly planned his itinerary for the next day, and soon after, he sat back on the bed, crossed-legged, and began to meditate.

The next morning, with the double suns in the sky, Zhao Sheng left the inn early.

After strolling through a couple of streets, he stopped in front of the gate of a multistory White Rock Tower.

Looking from the entrance, it was a bookstore selling scriptures and classical texts.

Zhao Sheng stepped forward and entered.

"Esteemed sir, have you come here to purchase some Ancient Scriptures? Our Zhu Lan Pavilion is one of the top scripture shops in Qingjin City," said a pleasant-looking, red-skinned, white-haired middle-aged man as Zhao Sheng walked through the entrance.

Inside the hall, besides some simple and unadorned tables and chairs, the surroundings were lined with orderly arranged beast skin books and Jade Dishware, numbering in the tens of thousands.

"Bring me your shop's maps detailing the various races of the Nine Demon Continent, their territories, and, yes, a complete set of ancient books about the Candle Light Mountain Range," said Zhao Sheng boldly.

"Sir, why not step up to the third floor, and we can discuss in detail inside. Our shop has a myriad of ancient books and Secret Scriptures, guaranteeing your satisfaction!"

"Fine, lead the way!"

"This way, please, sir."

The white-haired middle-aged man smiled knowingly and led Zhao Sheng upstairs to the third floor without further ado.

Half a day later, Zhao Sheng left the bookstore with ease.

Zhao Sheng hadn't expected that merely parting with a single "Zombification Technique" would make the shopkeeper treat him as a distinguished guest.

Not only was he given a heap of books and maps related to the Nine Demon Continent, but he also made a profit of several thousand Spirit Stones.

With abundant Spiritual Energy in the Netherworld Ghost Realm and more spirit stone mines than in the Tianzhu Realm, the purchasing power of Spirit Stones was generally three to five percent lower than in the Tianzhu Realm.

Conversely, the prices of any Cultivation Techniques, Elixir Pills, and Magic Artifacts related to the extraordinary were frighteningly expensive.

From this point of view, the level of knowledge monopoly in the Netherworld Ghost Realm was far more severe than in the Tianzhu Realm.

Although Zhao Sheng had obtained the items he wanted, he did not rush back to the inn and began to browse through other shops selling Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures.

After visiting several shops, he found that the Cultivation Resources produced in the Nine Demon Continent were extraordinarily rich, with some Heaven and Earth Spiritual Objects that were rare in the Tianzhu Realm not so treasured or uncommon here.

Of course, some Spiritual Items that were common as dirt in the Tianzhu Realm were extremely rare in this realm.

This revelation left Zhao Sheng overjoyed, secretly thinking his cultivation would be smoother by threefold in this realm.

After browsing for a while longer, Zhao Sheng suddenly stopped in front of a small shop.

It was another shop selling various Spirit Grasses and spirit gold materials. The storefront was about two or three zhang wide, and inside, several wooden shelves displayed Spirit Grasses, demon beast materials, and other items in a somewhat disorganized manner. The shop was empty of customers at the moment.

Zhao Sheng glanced at the shop and immediately walked in.

After making a round inside, he stopped in front of a shelf, his gaze fixed on a Jade Box on the shelf, which contained a Lingzhi that was entirely purple and emitted a strong medicinal fragrance.

"Sir, have you taken an interest in this item?"

Behind Zhao Sheng, a cautious voice suddenly emerged. Turning his head, he saw a middle-aged man with blue-tinted skin and eyes as large as bells walking over.

This person appeared to be the shopkeeper, with only an early-stage Qi Refining cultivation level.

Perhaps he had sensed the unfathomable spiritual pressure emanating from Zhao Sheng and looked somewhat nervous.

"How much for this item?" Zhao Sheng asked indifferently, pointing at the Lingzhi.

"If the sir wishes to purchase it, I'll let it go for a lucky price of only three hundred spirit stones, how about that?" The middle-aged man, seeing Zhao Sheng's interest, offered a price with a forced smile.

A flash crossed Zhao Sheng's eyes upon hearing the price.

In the Tianzhu Realm, Purple Qi Mushrooms were nearly impossible to exchange for, yet astonishingly, they were valued at merely three hundred spirit stones in the Nine Demon Continent.

And it looked like there was room to negotiate the price even further.

It was simply unimaginable!

But regardless, he was determined to secure this unexpected bargain.

Zhao Sheng did not say much, flipping his hand to toss a bag of spirit stones. Once the shopkeeper confirmed it, he swept his long sleeve and collected the Purple Qi Mushroom.

"Shopkeeper, I also need a few more of these Lingzhi. Does your shop have them?" Zhao Sheng inquired after thinking for a moment.

The middle-aged shopkeeper, having made a sale and seeing the possibility of more business, was in high spirits, but alas, the deal could not be made.

"Sir, I'm deeply sorry. This Lingzhi was sold to my shop by someone else, and there is only this one.

However, if the sir could wait a few days, there might be a chance to purchase a few more." The middle-aged shopkeeper tentatively said.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Sheng's brows furrowed, "Forget it, this item is not destined for me."

After declining the proposal, Zhao Sheng left the shop. With no further mood to continue browsing, he returned to the inn.

Once back in his room, Zhao Sheng sat cross-legged for a moment, then with a wave of his hand, several jade plates, a few rolls of beast skin, and a cylindrical leather scroll several feet long appeared before him.

These were the carefully chosen ancient books about the Nine Demon Continent and the Candle Light Mountain Range.

He held up a jade plate with one hand and sent his Divine Sense into it, with a wealth of information rapidly filling his mind.

As Zhao Sheng continued to absorb the information, he gradually formed a clear impression of the Nine Demon Continent.

He also learned a lot about the Candle Light Mountain Range, his destination on this journey.

The Candle Light Mountain lay at the far eastern end of the continent, and further east lied the most famous Wuya Sea of the Nine Demon Continent.

According to the scriptures, crossing this Wuya Sea Domain could take one to the southwestern part of the Heavenly Curtain Continent.

Certainly, Zhao Sheng had no immediate intention of going to the Heavenly Curtain Continent.

He merely wished to reach Candle Light Mountain, choose a Spirit Vein, set down an Array Base, and cultivate while waiting.

As time gradually passed, dawn arrived before Zhao Sheng had finished assimilating all the information.

Zhao Sheng walked to the window, contemplating as he looked at the Qingjin City's morning view.

The Nine Demon Continent's situation was far more complex than he had anticipated.

The Qingjin City where he was now located belonged to the middle part of the continent, while Candle Light Mountain was situated at the very eastern edge, with a distance close to thirty thousand li separating the two.

In the Nine Demon Continent, Cloud Boats were exceedingly rare, nowhere near as common as in the Tianzhu Realm, and there were too many barbaric regions on the continent, each filled with dangers.

Of course, Zhao Sheng was not afraid of these dangers.

Yet from the situation on one Nine Demon Continent alone, one could infer that the overall strength of the Netherworld Ghost Realm was much stronger than that of the Tianzhu Realm.

The war between the two realms was in full swing, and it was uncertain whether the Tianzhu Realm could withstand the invasion of the Netherworld Ghost Realm.

He gazed out the window for a long time, taking a deep breath.