Underground workspace.
The gentle light of the Spirit Lamp evenly illuminated the entire space.
Ning Zhuo sat at the table, checking the storage bag in his hand one last time.
This was the spoils of war he had obtained from the three ghosts of the Huang family in the black market earlier.
After confirming it was safe, Ning Zhuo began to decode the miniature formation on the first storage bag, then fabricated the original owner's aura and Divine Sense, finally tricking the bag into opening successfully.
In the first storage bag, there were a few Spirit Stones, a spiritual pet called Green Knife Mantis, and some materials suitable for ghost cultivators, such as Dark Essence, Spirit Essence, and Netherworld Flowers.
The second storage bag contained a few hundred Spirit Stones, ghost cultivation materials including a wisp of Yin Wind, and a jade slip for a ghost cultivation technique called the Yin Bone Technique, which could modify one's bones.
The third storage bag belonged to the leader of the three ghosts, and the formation had two layers, making it extraordinarily difficult and time-consuming for Ning Zhuo to crack.
"Interesting," the young man's eyes sparkled.
The greater the difficulty and resistance, the more it stirred his fighting spirit.
He immersed himself fully, enjoying the thrill of tackling challenges.
After nearly half an hour, he finally succeeded in cracking it.
As soon as it opened, a small ghost head lunged toward Ning Zhuo's face.
Ning Zhuo snorted grimly, having been prepared. In the critical moment, the Buddha Heart Demon Seal in his sea of consciousness flashed, capturing the ghost head. Then, the defensive formation on the desk activated, obliterating the ghost head instantly.
The ghost head had been the final act of defiance from the ghost leader of the Huang family.
With this, the storage bag had no more defenses against Ning Zhuo.
There were over a thousand Spirit Stones, two jade slips containing ghost cultivation techniques: the Netherworld Heart Sutra and the Detailed Explanation of the Soul Attraction Technique. There was also a large pile of cultivation materials, not exclusively for ghost cultivators.
"Fire Essence?!" Ning Zhuo's pupils dilated as he discovered approximately ten pounds of Fire Essence.
Joy immediately appeared on his face.
Containing his excitement, Ning Zhuo pulled out a drawer and grabbed a handful of Golden Silk Jade Drop Cakes.
Using a spark of mana, he burnt off the wrapping paper around the cakes, letting the ashes flutter away like the remnants of burnt corpses in a pill furnace.
He opened his mouth and stuffed all the cakes in.
Chewing.
Under the illumination of the Spirit Light Lamp, his lips glowed crimson, revealing white teeth occasionally. The Golden Silk Jade Drop Cake was crushed between his teeth and lips, its filling oozing out and mixing together. It was as if those many cultivators who had fallen at his hands were wailing in the grinder before their flesh and blood turned into nourishment for Ning Zhuo's growth.
The world of cultivators was cruel. Without the gray market business of Top and Bottom Wishing Ropes and the contributions of these demon path cultivators, how could Ning Zhuo afford to eat so many Golden Silk Jade Drop Cakes?
As he ate the Golden Silk Jade Drop Cake, Ning Zhuo happily tallied the gains from yesterday's black market.
Selling Top and Bottom Wishing Ropes earned him 24,000 Spirit Stones.
His uncle, Ning Ze, had purchased 80 ropes for the Ning Family, contributing the bulk of it.
In comparison, the Spirit Stones from the three ghosts of the Huang family were pitifully few.
"The Top and Bottom Wishing Ropes I make are the best underground ropes on the market. As such, this business has always been good."
"It seems the Ning Family is preparing for a big movement with such war preparation."
"Alas, the cultivation world is a dog-eat-dog place!"
"There's always someone with ill intentions, bullying an ordinary young man like me."
"Since those three ghost cultivators had come out to rob, they were naturally poor. But the ten pounds of Fire Essence were a real surprise."
"With this, the Fire Essence I've prepared has reached over a thousand pounds, more than enough!"
Over the past few years, Ning Zhuo had been secretly accumulating Fire Essence. For safety, he bought only a little each time from the market, gradually adding up. At his pace, gathering ten pounds of Fire Essence would take over a month.
Now, this large batch of Fire Essence immediately filled his final gap.
After tallying the gains, Ning Zhuo also calculated the losses from last night's black market.
He took out a silver-gray token from his bosom.
The front of the token had the character "Han," and the back had the character "Cang."
Ning Zhuo tossed it lightly, and the token disassembled, expanded, and emitted dazzling light. When the light dissipated, the Iron Han Armor floated quietly in mid-air.
Ning Zhuo opened a section of the spine in the Iron Han Armor, where a Foundation Establishment Pill was embedded.
"Only thirty percent of the Foundation Establishment Pill is left."
This pill was crucial, one of the elements enabling the Iron Han Armor to exhibit Foundation Establishment level combat power. Ning Zhuo himself was only at the Qi Refinement Realm.
"Once the Foundation Establishment Pill is used up, the Iron Han Armor will be useless."
"Alas, obtaining a Foundation Establishment Pill is incredibly difficult." Ning Zhuo frowned slightly.
This was Ning Zhuo's greatest loss from yesterday.
He had also gained a new scar last night.
It was the stab wound left by the leader of the three ghosts of the Huang family, and Ning Zhuo was helpless against it.
Upon closer inspection, the surface of this mechanical armor was already covered in scars.
Some were old injuries, while others were marks left during battles when Ning Zhuo wore it.
"Mother..." Ning Zhuo stroked the old scars, his gaze becoming sorrowful.
Fourteen years ago, when he was only two, his mother had given him her dying advice.
He thus learned: in Fire Persimmon Mountain, there was a Magma Fairy Palace, a Mechanical Immortal City. The city spirit secretly selected cultivators to inherit the city. His mother had been one of the Foundation Establishment Stage cultivators selected. The city's trials were extremely difficult.
His mother, owing to her exceptional strength, was targeted jointly by other competitors and suffered fatal injuries.
"The Immortal City kept declining, lowering its selection standards. Zhuo'er, when you turn fourteen, the selection standards of the Mechanical Immortal City will lower to the Qi Refinement Realm. This will be your greatest opportunity!"
"Zhuo'er, you must study mechanical techniques well. Don't let anyone know about your investment in this area."
"You must personally design mechanism artifacts, assemble them, and operate them; these are all parts of the Mechanical Immortal City's tests."
"If you rank among the top few in the selection, you will be recognized as a mechanism seed and will receive the city's focused nurturing. This is particularly important for you since you lack the background others have. You need the cultivation resources of the Mechanical Immortal City even more."
"Never cultivate to the Foundation Establishment Stage using our family's technique! Your mother was a mechanism seed in the Foundation Establishment Stage but regrettably couldn't change her cultivation technique due to her fixed dantian.
Many trials in the Lava Palace became much harder for me because I hadn't practiced the techniques left by the Three Ancestral Masters, eventually forcing me to stop helplessly."
"Cough cough cough!"
Two-year-old Ning Zhuo cried in terror, "Mother, stop talking. You're coughing blood!"
Ning Zhuo's mother extended her hand, stroking his small head, eyes full of reluctance and worry. "Zhuo'er, I'm sorry. I can't protect you. Without your father and me, you'll be alone, relying solely on yourself."
"Do not be too loyal to the family. Your father made that mistake!"
"Before he died, he asked the Young Clan Leader Ning Xiaoren to look after you. But I've seen him clearly; he's not reliable."
"Your uncle and aunt are both stubborn and stingy, not kind people. Be cautious."
"Sometimes, relatives and friends around you are more dangerous than enemies!"
"Don't stand out too much. With your parents gone, no one is your true support. Be inconspicuous but not inferior. Grow up ordinarily, quietly accumulate strength, without attracting attention."
"I've seen too many child prodigies perish young…"
"Mother's Iron Han Armor is left for your protection. It holds the power of Foundation Establishment."
"Also, this magical treasure—the Buddha Heart Demon Seal! It's my lucky find from the Magma Fairy Palace. Never expose it."
By now, her voice had faded to the limit.
Tears kept falling as she stared intently at the two-year-old Ning Zhuo, wanting to look at him, to keep looking, but her vision turned darker.
In her final moments, she hesitated: "I don't know if teaching you this is right or wrong."
"Zhuo'er, take good care of yourself. If you can't, give up on the Magma Fairy Palace."
"Life is the most important. I want you to live, to live well!"
"If you live, mother will be happy."
The two-year-old Ning Zhuo clung desperately to his mother's blood-stained robe: "Mother, Mother, stop talking. Don't die, don't die, waah waah waah..."
His mother's last words: "Good Zhuo'er, don't be afraid, don't be afraid... Mother is here, Mother will protect you from below..."
The next moment, her heart stopped beating, and her hand slowly slipped from Ning Zhuo's head.
The two-year-old Ning Zhuo's body trembled as if struck by lightning. He looked up abruptly—already sixteen years old.
Once tender and tear-streaked, the child's face had been replaced with a determined look of a grown teenager.
He had grown up, bearing his mother's dying admonitions and expectations.
"Mother, the circumstances have changed!"
"The City Lord, along with the Zhou and Zheng families, have intensified their cleaning efforts in the Flame Demon Melting Cave, significantly reducing the defensive pressure of the Magma Fairy Palace and minimizing its damage. Without external pressure, the Palace Spirit hasn't lowered the selection standards anymore."
"This year, the Ning Family also discovered the secret of the Magma Fairy Palace. If they join the defense, when will I see the standards lower?"
"Maybe never in this lifetime!"
"The major powers in Fire Persimmon Immortal City are all trying to monopolize the benefits of the Magma Fairy Palace within their circles. How can this be tolerated?"
"So, I must act personally!"
"Now, I have accumulated enough Fire Essence, definitely sufficient to bombard the palace to a state of damage, lowering the standards."
"I just need the Explosive Flame Monkey."