"Hungry~ Food~"
Just as Xiao Feng was about to lead Xiao Yixian and the others into Black Mark City, a childish voice suddenly rang in his ears.
The seven colored Heaven Swallowing Python, covered in vibrant scales, emerged from Xiao Feng's sleeve, rubbing its small head against his fingers.
Initially, the Heaven Swallowing Python was attached to Qing Lin because she had half of the serpent bloodline and was slightly influenced by Queen Medusa. However, over time, the python realised that by sticking with Xiao Feng, it could enjoy an endless supply of pills, so it clung to him instead.
Seeing the python open its little mouth in a "hungry" gesture, Xiao Feng chuckled, shook his head, and tossed it a fifth-tier pill.
"Delicious~ Full~"
After swallowing the pill in one gulp, the Heaven Swallowing Python expressed its satisfaction and curled back into Xiao Feng's sleeve.
"Let's go!"
After feeding the little glutton, Xiao Feng waved his hand, and with Xiao Yixian and Qing Lin, they headed towards Black Mark City.
Soon, the three reached the city gate. They saw more than a dozen disciples of the Eight Gates Sect, dressed in black uniforms, standing at both sides of the gate like city guards.
However, unlike other places, anyone entering Black Mark City had to pay a hefty entry fee.
"Young master, why don't those people need to queue?"
As Xiao Feng and his group queued up with others to enter the city, Qing Lin noticed a group that arrived later but walked straight into Black Mark City without waiting.
"This is your first time in Black Mark City, isn't it?"
The middle-aged man in front of them overheard and explained, "The Eight Gates Sect has a rule: anyone who has reached the Dou King level or is a fourth-tier alchemist can enter directly."
"I see."
Hearing this, the three of them understood.
No wonder the Black Corner Region really respects strength!
"Young master, does that mean we don't need to queue either?"
"Yes."
Xiao Feng nodded slightly and led Xiao Yixian and Qing Lin out of the line, heading straight for the gate.
"My goodness! Are they all Dou King experts?"
The middle-aged man, who had just explained the entry rules, gasped as he saw Xiao Feng and the others summon Dou Qi wings and stride confidently into the city with the Eight Gates Sect disciples smiling warmly at them.
After entering Black Mark City, Xiao Feng and the others went to the largest inn in the city, rented three luxurious rooms, and then began exploring the city.
After wandering for over half an hour, they eventually arrived at the Black Seal Auction House.
The Black Seal Auction House, the largest in Black Mark City, was backed by the Eight Gates Sect. Compared to the Mittel Auction House, it was larger and featured higher-quality auction items, including some high-tier Black-level techniques and Dou Skills.
Xiao Feng bought some refining materials at the auction house, while Xiao Yixian and Qing Lin each purchased two Black-level high-tier Dou Skills suited to their abilities.
Xiao Yixian chose two poison-element Dou Skills, which were said to come from the Ten Thousand Scorpion Sect of the Cloud Empire. Qing Lin selected two serpent-element Dou Skills, reportedly from the Heavenly Snake Palace of the Snake Empire.
They also learned from the auction house staff that in about a month, the Black Seal Auction House would host its annual auction.
Each year, the auction features even higher-quality items than usual, with the possibility of Di-level Dou Skills and seventh-tier pills appearing.
Since Xiao Yixian was already a nine-star Dou King and would soon break through to the Dou Emperor level, which might require a few days of hibernation, Xiao Feng decided they would stay in Black Mark City for a while.
...
A Few Days Later
At the Black Seal Inn, in a high-class suite.
In the spacious main hall of the suite, Xiao Feng was seated cross-legged in front of a large black cauldron, controlling his Wind Fury Dragon Flame for refining.
"Boom!"
After some time, a deep chime rang from the cauldron, and Xiao Feng waved his hand, retracting the flame into his body.
"Whoosh!"
As he opened the cauldron lid, a silver-grey streak of light shot out, transforming into a pair of palm-sized metallic wings that landed before him.
The silver-white metallic wings were a flight treasure Xiao Feng had specially crafted—Flowing Cloud Wings!
The effect of the Flowing Cloud Wings was simple, similar to a flight Dou Skill. It allowed the user to condense a pair of Dou Qi wings, enabling flight, an ability generally reserved for Dou King experts.
However, compared to Flight Dou Skills, the flight treasure Xiao Feng crafted was more cost-effective.
For example, the Purple Cloud Wings flight Dou Skill Xiao Feng previously trained in granted him flight, but it consumed too much Dou Qi.
When he was still a Dou Master, using Purple Cloud Wings drained his Dou Qi almost instantly, leaving him unable to fly for long.
But the flight treasure was different. Xiao Feng had embedded an energy-gathering array into the Flowing Cloud Wings, allowing them to be powered by magic cores so the user wouldn't have to worry about running out of Dou Qi.
Since the materials used for the Flowing Cloud Wings came from a fourth-tier flying magical beast, with enough energy, they could achieve speeds comparable to a fourth-tier flying beast.
Another advantage of the Flowing Cloud Wings was that they could be reused. When the user advanced to the Dou King level and could generate Dou Qi wings naturally, they could pass the Flowing Cloud Wings to someone else.
In contrast, Xiao Feng's Purple Cloud Wings could only be cultivated by the original user.
In the current market, even essential Emperor-level flight Dou Skills could sell millions of gold coins. Xiao Feng's Flowing Cloud Wings were far more valuable, potentially worth two million gold coins.
By selling the Flowing Cloud Wings, Xiao Feng wouldn't have to worry about funding for the upcoming auction.
(End of Chapter)
Thank you to everyone for supporting and comforting me in this time of crisis. I was very busy because of the death of a close family member, which is why I was not able to post on a regular basis, but worry not, I will try my best to update the fic on a regular basis In Sha'Allah. Once again, thank you so much, everyone!