Chapter 133: Chapter 38: Qianyang Furnace

Heavy equipment like Artifact Refining Furnaces was rarely sold in grass markets.

In the past, Yang Jing could have gone to the Sect’s Firework Hall to purchase an Artifact Refining Furnace.

The Five Elements True Spirit Sect’s Artifact Refining prowess was among the best of the Six Great Sects, and their massive War Flying Boats were clear proof of this.

However, he had offended Huan Qingshuang, who happened to be a Chief Steward of the Firework Hall.

Although a single Chief Steward couldn’t possibly wield absolute power in the Firework Hall, Yang Jing still chose to go to a Marketplace outside the Sect.

It would be all too easy to discreetly tamper with a major piece of equipment like an Artifact Refining Furnace.

The Five Elements True Spirit Sect did not permit trading houses like the Celestial Treasure Tower to operate within its grounds.

The Celestial Square Marketplace was built right up against the edge of the Sect’s Grand Array. Any trading house with some standing in the Western Province would open a branch here, offering a complete and colorful variety of wares.

Nearly half the people in the Celestial Square Marketplace were disciples of the Five Elements True Spirit Sect, so safety within its bounds was very well-guaranteed.

Some disciples, unable to bear the austere life within the Sect, would even come to the Celestial Square Marketplace every ten days to revel for a few days.

Wearing veiled hats, Yang Jing and Ji Feng rode a Sect-operated Flying Boat to the Celestial Square Marketplace.

This was a passenger Flying Boat that shuttled between the Sect and the Marketplace. The Five Elements True Spirit Sect covered an area as large as a small country. For disciples in the Qi Cultivation Stage, traveling to the Marketplace from a distant location could take several days of flying alone.

Thus, the great trading houses in the Celestial Square Marketplace had petitioned to establish this passenger Flying Boat route.

The Celestial Square Marketplace was far more prosperous than Huangyuan Marketplace; its market district alone was twenty times larger.

On the skyline, buildings hundreds of feet tall stood like a forest. There were even palaces and pavilions floating in the sky, while colorful Flying Boats weaved between the high-rises like schools of fish.

This was Ji Feng’s first time outside the Five Elements True Spirit Sect, and he was dazzled, unable to take in all the wondrous sights of the Marketplace at once.

After the Flying Boat docked at the skyport, Yang Jing led Ji Feng off and headed straight for the Celestial Treasure Tower.

A maid in the Celestial Treasure Tower’s eyes lit up the moment she saw the two men dressed in the Daoist Robes of Outer Disciples.

“Welcome, esteemed guests. What brings you to our Celestial Treasure Tower today?”

“An Artifact Refining Furnace.”

Yang Jing said, getting straight to the point.

The Celestial Treasure Tower was incredibly well-stocked. They had over thirty types of Artifact Refining Furnaces alone, ranging from Tier One Lower Grade to Tier Two Upper Grade.

Yang Jing spent over seven hundred Spirit Stones to purchase a Tier One Upper Grade Qianyang Furnace.

Artifact Refining Furnaces were much larger than Alchemy Furnaces. This Qianyang Furnace was over nine feet tall and weighed more than a ton. It was fitted with a Spatial Restriction, creating an interior space thirty feet square—more than enough room to refine even large Magical Artifacts without feeling constrained.

Within the Five Elements True Spirit Sect, they had even hollowed out an entire mountain, transforming it into a massive Artifact Refining Furnace used for refining large components like the Dragon Bone keels of Flying Boats.

After some haggling, Yang Jing also managed to get one hundred and twenty jin of Iron Essence from the Celestial Treasure Tower at a bargain price.

Because of its Spatial Restriction, the Artifact Refining Furnace couldn’t be placed into a Storage Bag. The Celestial Treasure Tower dispatched two Warriors, who managed to hoist the Qianyang Furnace and transport it to the Flying Boat.

“Speaking of which, a huge scandal erupted right around the time I joined the Sect. One of your establishment’s shopkeepers turned himself in and exposed an organization that was smuggling Spirit Pills to the Demon Country. I wonder, what was the final outcome of that affair?”

Yang Jing asked the Celestial Treasure Tower’s Shopkeeper, feigning curiosity.

The Shopkeeper, who had been beaming from the profitable sale, froze when he heard the question. His expression immediately turned awkward. The Celestial Treasure Tower had suffered a significant loss because of that incident.

Quite a few of the Celestial Treasure Tower’s shopkeepers from various locations had been taken away for investigation by the Sword Cultivators of the Taixu Sword Sect.

“The case still hasn’t been closed. Those Sword Cultivators from the Taixu Sword Sect don’t bother with pleasantries. I heard more than forty people have already been condemned. The Taixu Sword Sect plans to grind their bones to dust and scatter their ashes. They’re even going to extract their Divine Souls to be burned day and night in Soul Lamps.”

The Shopkeeper shuddered as he spoke. This was arguably the most severe punishment among the Six Great Sects.

’More than forty people,’ Yang Jing thought, feeling a sense of reassurance. ’It seems the Profound Carp Association truly has been dealt a heavy blow. Initially, only a dozen or so were captured.’

’I just hope the Taixu Sword Sect’s Demon Slaying Hall can uncover the identity of the Profound Carp Association’s leader soon,’ he thought. ’Only then can I truly rest easy.’

Yang Jing made some small talk with the Shopkeeper about other matters, so his inquiry about the Profound Carp Association wouldn’t seem so abrupt.

Before leaving, he also received an auction invitation from the Shopkeeper.

A place the size of Huangyuan Marketplace naturally couldn’t support an auction. But the Celestial Square Marketplace was different; the spending power here was on a completely different level.

To ensure that all kinds of rare treasures and thousand-year-old Spirit Medicines fetched high prices, the Celestial Treasure Tower held an auction every year. The grand auction held every decade could even attract high-rollers from thousands of miles away.

This year’s auction was still two months away, but most of the invitations had already been distributed.

The Shopkeeper had only given him an invitation because he saw Yang Jing spend hundreds of Spirit Stones on the Artifact Refining Furnace without batting an eye, and because they had gotten along so well during their chat.

“I heard an invitation like this can sell for over fifty Spirit Stones.”

After the two returned to the Flying Boat, Ji Feng said with great envy.

“As long as you work hard at Artifact Refining, fifty Spirit Stones will be nothing to you in the future,” Yang Jing said.

He was quite interested in the Celestial Treasure Tower’s auction. When the time came, treasures collected by the Celestial Treasure Tower branches from all over the Western Province would be gathered and sold at their branch in the Celestial Square Marketplace.

In the game, Nine Heavens World, the auction at the Celestial Square Marketplace had always been a place for all the mega-whales to spend lavishly and steal the spotlight.

’If my Insect Extermination Bell business goes well, perhaps I’ll be able to buy a few treasures at the auction, too.’

After returning to the valley for A Class, Yang Jing, not wanting to reveal his Body Refining Techniques, spent some Spirit Stones to hire three miscellaneous task disciples to carry the Qianyang Furnace into his house.

Fortunately, the floor of the house was sturdy enough not to be crushed by the Qianyang Furnace’s weight.

Ji Feng, entranced, caressed the Qianyang Furnace’s massive frame and pressed his cheek against its cool surface.

This Qianyang Furnace was already better than the Artifact Refining Furnaces used by most Outer Disciples in the Firework Hall.

Although he had insisted when they were buying it that a slightly inferior Artifact Refining Furnace would be enough, now that they actually had the Qianyang Furnace, he was treating it like the most precious treasure in the world.

“Senior Brother Yang, you can deduct the cost of this Qianyang Furnace from my share of the profits.”

“There’s no need. Since you’re getting a fifteen percent cut of the profits from the Insect Extermination Bell business, just focus on the Artifact Refining. I’ll take care of everything else.”

Yang Jing said nonchalantly.

Back when he was with the Profound Carp Association, he handled several thousand Spirit Stones a month, more or less. The few hundred Spirit Stones for the Qianyang Furnace were practically nothing in his eyes.

Ji Feng summoned his Five Elements True Fire, rubbing his hands together eagerly as he prepared to refine a few Insect Extermination Bells for practice.

“Speaking of which, Junior Brother Ji, do you know where I might be able to buy a Transformation Pill within the Sect?”

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