Ji Xun was momentarily surprised. Was she talking to him?
Apparently, yes.
He was confused and cautious but responded, "Yeah, just casually asking."
Ji Xun confirmed they had no prior interactions.
In Sinless City, one couldn't be too careful about conversations with strangers.
The woman seemed to sense his thoughts and didn't mind. In Sinless City, if you didn't have this level of vigilance, your grave would have grass three meters high by now.
In a nonchalant tone, she said, "If you really need it, you can check out 'Silver Star Mysterious Shop' in the Dark Rain Street black market. Just say Don Qi recommended you."
She actually knew?
Ji Xun didn't understand why this stranger would be so kind as to give him a tip.
An ulterior motive?
Didn't seem like it.
Someone from the Cao family?
Also unlikely.
If she had recognized him, she would have directly called for backup and taken action. There was no need for convoluted traps.
Ji Xun couldn't figure it out and didn't think asking more would help.
"Thanks."
He replied courteously and left the shop.
Actually, Ji Xun didn't know that the leather-clad woman hadn't paid much attention to him after casually helping out. Her focus remained on the photos.
There was no special reason for her gesture.
When she got off her bike earlier, she happened to see someone magically produce a loaf of bread for a pair of street urchins.
She didn't know why, but that scene stuck with her.
What she did now was similar—an unintentional act, not some grand plan.
Just a rare moment of goodwill towards someone she found decent.
...
Walking out of the shop, Ji Xun kept thinking about the recent encounter.
He couldn't understand why a complete stranger would give him a hint.
A plant for the shop?
Someone with such high-end gear wouldn't need to do that.
As he walked, the thought kept growing stronger. He decided to check it out.
What if it was true?
"So there's a black market on Dark Rain Street?"
Ji Xun was puzzled.
He thought he was already in Sinless City's black market.
After all, the whole city was a crime capital, and any marketplace here wasn't legitimate.
But according to that woman, Sinless City had a special black market?
Naturally, Ji Xun wanted to see it.
But... where was Dark Rain Street?
...
Two hours later.
Ji Xun arrived at the intersection of Muddy Street and Copper Street in the northern part of the city.
According to the information he gathered, this should be "Dark Rain Street."
"Took some effort to find this place..."
Ji Xun muttered as he looked at the dimly lit street ahead.
Unfamiliar with the city and without a map, he finally found the place after extensive inquiries.
Muddy Street had no large factories, so with fewer people around, it retained much of its original ruinous charm, giving it a magical and decayed feel.
In the underground city, morning and afternoon street scenes were indistinguishable. There were no streetlights, and the area was dark, like dusk approaching night.
The air was filled with a pungent smell from the alchemical factories' waste, heavy polluters typically located in less populated areas.
As Ji Xun walked, he saw rusted iron fences everywhere. Few people chose to live in areas where they needed to wear gas masks constantly.
Moving towards the lit areas, the street narrowed, and dim lights illuminated rows of red-brick houses resembling haunted buildings. Steam pipes hissed and leaked, with decay all around.
Walking further, he heard the "woo woo" of a train horn, as if an intercity train was passing between the buildings, and white mist rose from the ground.
But there was no train in sight.
Ji Xun approached and realized the train was twenty meters below; he was still on a viaduct.
Ahead was an underground market.
Steel structures formed small houses, each a shop.
There were far fewer people here than in the hunter's market on Gros Street, but the place felt even more mysterious.
Ji Xun listened closely and heard the sound of rushing water.
Looking closely, he saw a turbulent underground river hidden in the misty depths beside the market.
"There really is a black market."
Seeing the shops, their modest signs gave the impression that good stuff was inside.
He observed the surroundings and walked over.
Various card shops, mechanical shops, material shops, and gun shops... it felt like a huge market for contraband.
A casual glance revealed that the mechanical shops displayed samples of military surplus equipment that hunters often found hard to get. The gun shops showcased heavy weaponry with exaggerated designs!
There were items like [Plague Bullets], [Aberration Bullets], and [Annihilation Bullets]—dangerous to enemies, the user, and the environment due to high pollution.
Such prohibited items were openly sold here!
The potion shops offered lethal rage potions, hallucinogens, and alchemical poisons...
Ji Xun was truly amazed.
How to describe it? Regular shops outside sold items like grenades, but here they sold missiles!
Sinless City had always been this way; rules applied only to those without power or privileges.
He suddenly felt a surge of anticipation.
It seemed like this place could truly offer something valuable.
"What a place..."
Ji Xun looked around eagerly, wanting to get his hands on almost everything.
But a glance at the prices quickly doused his excitement.
As expected, good stuff came with a steep price.
...
Ji Xun walked around, observing his surroundings.
Not only were the shops unique, but the customers were also very mysterious.
Most had their faces hidden by hats and cloaks, or they wore hoods, with very few showing their true faces.
Ji Xun, wearing a gas mask, blended right in.
Soon, he stopped.
He turned his head and saw a small shop with a wooden sign that had "Silver Star Mysterious Materials Shop" scribbled on it with black charcoal.
If he hadn't looked closely, he might have missed it.
This was it?
It didn't look particularly high-end.
Ji Xun scrutinized the shop and, despite his doubts, walked in.
The room was small, about ten square meters.
Inside, a few shelves took up most of the space, with bones of unknown creatures hanging from the ceiling.
Strangely, despite looking full, the shop didn't display many actual products, more like a cluttered warehouse.
Behind the counter, a gaunt middle-aged man with glasses was meticulously grinding a black powder, ignoring the customer who had just walked in.
Ji Xun asked, "Hello, boss. Do you have..."
But before he could finish, the man cut him off with a cold tone, "No."
Huh... that wasn't a good start.
Turning away business?
Ji Xun didn't know that the black market had its own rules.
Every shop here had its secret supply channels and sales networks. Without an introduction, shopkeepers wouldn't sell to strangers.
Ji Xun quickly realized he might have approached this wrong.
But he didn't know the rules.
Thinking of the leather-clad woman he met earlier, he hesitantly said, "I was sent by Don Qi."
"Don... Qi?"
Hearing this name, the middle-aged man's eyes twitched.
He put down his grinding tool and carefully examined Ji Xun.
Few people dared to mention that name.
Who was this guy?
Ji Xun, sensing the shift in the shopkeeper's demeanor, nodded slightly, "Yes."
His intuition told him the name might be significant.
But he hadn't lied; the woman did say that.
...
Hearing this, a strange look flashed in the shopkeeper's eyes. He seemed to believe Ji Xun.
He couldn't figure out who could casually mention "Don Qi," but he asked, "What were you looking for?"
"I was wondering if you have any breathing techniques..."
Seeing the shopkeeper's attitude change, Ji Xun guessed that the name "Don Qi" had worked.
Oh.
It was just that.
Before he could finish, the shopkeeper quickly responded, "Iron-tier breathing technique is 180,000. Tell me a name, and I'll find it for you, no questions asked. Silver-tier breathing techniques are 1.5 million. Currently, we have [Storm Breathing], [Thunder Secret Training], and [Fire Breathing]. If you need something else, you can pre-order it. The price depends on the difficulty of acquisition, delivered within a month."
His tone was casual, as if these were ordinary items.
...
Ji Xun, who had doubted the shop, was stunned by the list of breathing techniques.
Casually offering iron-tier breathing techniques?
And,
Storm Breathing?
Just this morning, "Great Sword" Bernie swore that [Storm Breathing] was a secret of their Storm Hunters. And now it was casually for sale here?
Could it be a namesake?
Ji Xun doubted it.
There were only a few well-known silver-tier breathing techniques. It wasn't likely to be a coincidence.
So, it wasn't that these techniques couldn't be bought; it was just a matter of finding the right place.
And from the shopkeeper's tone, it seemed other techniques could be pre-ordered?
His tone suggested he could acquire almost anything. And the methods were clearly not legal.
Wow, this place really had connections!
Ji Xun's perception of the shop was completely overturned.
He glanced around again, wondering if this place was a scam.
After all, it was a black market. Could this be a shady business?
...
Ji Xun, without showing his thoughts, realized he had nothing to lose. He considered testing the waters to see the shopkeeper's capabilities.
The shopkeeper, noticing Ji Xun's hesitation, asked, "Nothing catches your eye?"
He assumed someone referred by that name wouldn't want ordinary goods, and continued, "If you're looking for rarer breathing techniques, it might be a bit tricky."
Rarer?
Legendary gold-tier breathing techniques?
Just a bit tricky?
Not impossible!
Ji Xun was once again impressed by the shopkeeper.
He calmly stated his need, "I need a breathing technique that can absorb multiple elements simultaneously."
If the breathing technique was still single-element, even a silver-tier technique, he felt it would be rather underwhelming.
Besides, if this shopkeeper turned out to be unreliable, Ji Xun wanted to see just how far this guy would go to bluff.
"???"
When the shopkeeper heard Ji Xun's request, his eyes narrowed slightly, and he immediately put away his disdain.
As expected... the person introduced was not an ordinary individual.
For someone to need such a technique, their profession must be quite unique.
He didn't intend to pry into the customer's privacy, as that was a taboo in the black market. After a moment of contemplation, he said directly, "I do have a breathing technique like what you're looking for..."
Ji Xun glanced over, surprised: "Really?"
The shopkeeper continued, "I happen to have a fragment of a breathing technique here. I don't know its name. But this technique can absorb at least seven different elements... though it's a bit pricey."
As he spoke, he held up three fingers.
Ji Xun guessed, "Three million?"
If this shopkeeper found it pricey, it was certainly not thirty thousand or three hundred thousand.
Hearing the price, Ji Xun instantly felt skeptical.
A silver-tier breathing technique only cost a little over a hundred thousand, and this one was over three hundred thousand? And it was an unnamed technique?
The more mysterious the pitch, the less believable it sounded.
The shopkeeper didn't comment, but a shrewd look flashed in his eyes. He said, "A certified appraiser determined that this might be a gold-quality breathing technique, with origins possibly linked to ancient demonic deities. Though it's only a fragment, reaching the sixth level of this technique would theoretically be equivalent to the ninth level for most people. So this price is not high. This is also in consideration of the person who referred you; otherwise, I wouldn't have mentioned it."
"..."
Ji Xun, despite his doubts, showed no change in expression.
He couldn't afford such an amount, nor was he prepared to believe so easily.
Before Ji Xun could suspect a scam, the shopkeeper surprisingly produced a small booklet.
He added, "And don't blame an old man for saying more, but the source of this technique is very sensitive. You should know who it's from. So even if someone learns it, it's best not to let others know."
"..."
Ji Xun had no idea!
He guessed the shopkeeper thought he truly knew "Don Qi" and thus expected him to know certain high-level common knowledge.
Seeing the booklet handed to him for verification, Ji Xun realized the shopkeeper wasn't joking!
Ji Xun calmly took the booklet, casually flipping a page, his pupils dilating slightly.
He had already mastered the [Great Darkness Breathing Technique] and understood the principles of breathing techniques.
With his high comprehension, he could tell at a glance that this booklet was not fake!
The recorded breathing technique mantras seemed genuinely capable of absorbing multiple elements to gather energy.
"It's real?"
Ji Xun was genuinely surprised.
If the shopkeeper had gone to such lengths to create a fake technique, the scammer would have to be a master in cultivation techniques!
Now, with the shopkeeper handing it over so openly,
Ji Xun was 90% convinced.
Clearly... not only now, but the shopkeeper had been truthful the entire time!
He also took a deep breath.
This shop had such a powerful connection?
And who exactly was this "Don Qi" to have such influence?
He recalled the leather-clad woman from the bookstore and wondered if he had unintentionally gained a favor?
With his bad luck gambler's aura, he thought this was likely a scam, but now it seemed like a windfall?
Ji Xun was also puzzled. Wasn't the shopkeeper worried that someone would use just a name to bluff their way in?
He didn't realize that some names in the black market were too significant to be used carelessly.
...
Flipping through the booklet, Ji Xun closed it after two pages.
Though he had a photographic memory, and the shopkeeper didn't seem to mind if he studied it longer, he had no intention of exploiting the situation.
When treated with sincerity, it's best to respond in kind.
Ji Xun realized he was only able to see this technique thanks to "Don Qi". Acting like a thief would be beneath him.
But he truly didn't have the money.
In this moment, he no longer doubted the price of "three million".
On the contrary, he felt it was below market value!
That [Storm Breathing Technique] priced at one hundred fifty thousand, although market price, was practically unattainable and should theoretically cost more.
Thus, this gold fragment was undoubtedly a favor-priced item.
Moreover, this technique was invaluable to those it suited.
Ji Xun could already imagine his breathing efficiency multiplying...
But he really had no money.
The most valuable thing he had was the black water mercenary card, which he estimated could sell for a few hundred thousand at best.
That [Mutated Heart of the Gambler] was valuable too, but selling it would reveal his identity!
Ji Xun felt conflicted.
The shopkeeper, seeing his expression, couldn't guess what the referred customer was thinking.
While Ji Xun pondered how to raise the money or whether to risk selling some items, his expression suddenly changed.
His intuition indicated: "Mystic Arts Detection"
He instantly realized someone had just used a divination-like mystic art.
He was being watched!