Published: September 2, 2025
Chapter 512: Female Cultivator Furnace Vessel
“This place doesn’t seem much different from a regular auction. Daoist Xu specifically brought us here—can we really expect to see something extraordinary?” Liu, one of the brocade-clad burly men’s group, asked Xu Yun with some doubt.
“Don’t worry! Although auctions here happen frequently, every few days or half a month, there are a few special items that appear each time. They may not be the most expensive things at the auction, but they’re indeed rarely seen in the Inner Star Sea,” Xu Yun said with a hint of mystery. Then, seeing Han Li approaching, he smiled kindly at him.
Han Li casually nodded and suddenly asked a question that caught the others off guard.
“Daoist Xu, how many cultivators are there in this Black Stone City? It doesn’t look like there are many cultivators around.”
“Brother Qu, you have truly sharp eyes! Apart from a few inns where travelers can stay temporarily, there aren’t many cultivators who live here permanently. Advanced-stage cultivators usually have their own secluded mansions on other islands. Lower-level cultivators tend to live in small villages and towns alongside mortals. The cultivators in Black Stone City mostly come here for trading, and the lower-level ones come more frequently,” Xu Yun admitted frankly.
“But isn’t it said that only cultivators at the foundation establishment stage and above can survive in the Outer Star Sea? How come there are so many mortals and qi refining stage cultivators here?” The brocade-clad burly man fell silent for a moment and then asked a question that even Han Li found puzzling.
“Brother Yi, you’ve hit the crucial point. This is one of the biggest differences between Strange Abyss Island and other demonic beast islands.”
“On other demonic beast islands, only advanced-stage cultivators specially go there to hunt demonic beasts. After gathering enough gains, they return to the Inner Star Sea. But on Strange Abyss Island, some years after the Sea Abyss was discovered, the factions here found several spirit stone mines on nearby islands and developed other resources needed for cultivation. They are basically self-sufficient now. As a result, some cultivators bring their families over. Mortals without spiritual roots and lower-level cultivators naturally appear. I’ve also heard that these factions managing Black Stone City are gradually shifting their main personnel from the Inner Star Sea here. Maybe in tens of thousands of years, this place will become a second Inner Star Sea. However, aside from Black Stone City, most of the mortal and cultivator villages on other islands aren’t absolutely safe. Small villages often get wiped out by suddenly appearing high-rank demonic beasts. This place is just retracing the old path our ancestors took when they first arrived in the Inner Star Sea,” Xu Yun said calmly.
This statement left the others stunned.
“Does the Star Palace and other factions not intervene in all this?” The brocade-clad burly man exhaled lightly and asked in a deep voice.
“It’s still a long way from flourishing as much as the Inner Star Sea. Besides, the Inner Star Sea alone is vast enough to keep them busy. Who has time to care about this place? They’d rather have these factions focus their main energy here on Strange Abyss Island. Otherwise, the Inner Star Sea would probably be even more chaotic now,” Xu Yun snorted coldly, clearly still annoyed about the Star Palace suddenly sealing the teleportation formations.
The brocade-clad burly men found this explanation reasonable. After exchanging a few glances, they dropped the topic.
For cultivators like them, it was better not to pry too much into the affairs of these factions to avoid trouble.
After selling several more magical artifacts and materials, a middle-aged man in blue appeared behind the auctioneer, holding a red brocade box containing a fist-sized orb that was white with hints of purple.
Xu Yun’s spirit lifted the moment he saw it.