When the man who had been drinking saw the woman, an elated look immediately appeared on his face. He stood up, looking like he was about to say something. The woman walked towards him and sat down with a calm and collected look. She cast her eyes around the building and swept her gaze over Su Ming, who was just about to leave, but she did not pay much attention to him.
"Did I pass?" The man looked uneasy. He did not sit down, but chose instead to whisper.
"You did not meet our expectations, but I’ve bought you one day’s time for you to prove your worth."
Su Ming left. While doing so, he heard those words. These two people did not seem to be trying to avoid others eavesdropping on them, but Su Ming did not want to be involved in anything that had nothing to do with him, even if he could somewhat tell that there was some sort of secret between the man and the woman. Still, that had nothing to do with him.
The night went by quietly. During the second morning, when Su Ming opened his eyes from his meditative state, he straightened his clothes and left the room. Han Mountain City was shrouded in a thin layer of fog in the morning. When he went outside, it was like walking on clouds. It was quite a strange feeling.
After Su Ming spent the previous day observing and listening, he had grown to understand Han Mountain City better. While walking in the streets, Su Ming lifted his head and looked at the city. More accurately speaking, there were four layers of it. He was now at the fourth layer, which was located at the bottom of the city. The area within this level was also the biggest.
The third layer was only open to those with the appropriate level of cultivation. Those who did not reach that level would not be able to enter. The second and first layers were only open to those with enough social standing.
‘The peak is located above the first layer. It is also the place where the city’s Star Gathering Tower is located. Only those who are at the Transcendence Realm and are guests of the three tribes can go in there.’
Su Ming cast his eyes at the top layer of the city and only looked away after a long period of time. He walked towards one of the shops selling herbs in the fourth layer.
He did not buy the herbs needed to create Mountain Spirit and South Asunder. His main purpose of coming to Han Mountain City was to find a map that leads to the Alliance of the Western Region and to find herbs required to create Spirit Plunder.
Through the morning, Su Ming went to multiple shops. These shops were well supplied with all sorts of herbs, but the prices were also more expensive compared to Wind Stream. Fortunately, Su Ming’s pockets were rather full with the stone coins given to him by Fang Mu as a sign of respect.
‘I still lack five of the herbs needed for Spirit Plunder, and…’
When noon arrived, Su Ming fell into a thoughtful silence. He walked towards the entrance of the third layer. There was also a magnificent gate there, and there was a dim light blinking within the door. There were dozens of people gathered near the door, and they were all there for the entertainment.
Su Ming saw some of the Berserkers walking past the door, and some were expelled because their levels of cultivation were not high enough. Their faces might have been filled with anger, but they knew there was nothing they could do. They no longer tried, walking towards the watching crowd. There, it seemed like they bought something before returning to enter through the dim light in the gate.
After a moment of observation, Su Ming moved towards the gate. The moment he arrived, the people who were watching for entertainment purposes looked towards him.
Su Ming remained composed. He moved towards the dim light, but at that moment, he felt a strong repelling force falling on his person. It was as if someone pushed him with a great force. He staggered backwards a few steps, and found himself unable to go through the gate.
‘The limit is the eighth level of the Blood Solidification Realm…’
Su Ming frowned and moved backwards. He had managed to deduce the requirement to enter the third layer based on the repelling force alone.
"It’s another one of those without any abilities coming up to try again. Hey, I’m talking to you! Come here!" The dozens of people watching by the side immediately called out to Su Ming.
Su Ming looked over coldly. The person who spoke to him was a middle aged man at the fifth level of the Blood Solidification Realm. When he saw Su Ming looking at him with a surly look, he immediately glared back, revealing the white plate hanging off his waist.
"Hmph, you seem pretty stubborn. I usually sell this pass for 1,000 stone coins, but for you, if you want to pass through the third layer, you’ll need to buy this for 1,300 stone coins!" The middle aged man let out a cold harrumph and brought out a palm sized stone piece from his bosom, waving it in his hand.
Su Ming averted his gaze and did not bother with the middle aged man any longer. He looked towards the dim light on the gate instead and walked towards it once more.
Not only did his actions cause the middle aged man to laugh coldly, the other people from the three tribes selling the pass around them also looked over and started laughing mockingly.
"I haven’t seen someone like this for a few days. Fang Lin, don’t sell that pass to him even for 1,300 stone coins!"
"It’s a pity Fang Lin got to him first. He’ll definitely earn big this time! If it were me, I wouldn’t sell the pass for anything less than 2,000 stone coins. Either he’ll have to buy it for an exorbitant price, or he wouldn’t be able to go in. It’s his fault for not being at the appropriate level."
It was clear that these people were well acquainted with each other. As they laughed, an agreement was formed between them. None of them would sell the pass for a low price, all of them raising it.
Their laughter caught the attention of people around them. It was especially so for those who did not manage to pass through the door. Most of them had pitying expressions on their faces.
Su Ming got closer to the gate, but he did not step inside. He pressed his right hand against the dim light and once again felt the repelling force coming from it.
"2,000 stone coins. Give me 2,000 stone coins, and I’ll sell you this pass. Lad, I’m telling you, you’re not the first to be causing trouble here. If you don’t buy it today, then with our rules, even if I’m not here the next time, you’ll still have to spend more stone coins to…" the middle aged man from Tranquil East Tribe immediately shouted loudly, but before he could finish speaking, he swallowed his words as if he was cut off.
The others were also stunned. They no longer laughed, but watched the gate as expressions of shock appeared on their faces.
They saw Su Ming standing at the gate, unmoving. He had his right hand placed on the dim light, but that dim light was flashing brightly, as if there was an invisible force charging into it, causing that it to seem like a cloth that was being pulled apart. A deep hollow appeared in the light, many ripples cascading off of it, as if it could not withstand the pressure.
This sight made the people from the three tribes selling passes take in a sharp breath. The middle aged man turned pale. They had been earning stone coins for years like this in this place, and they saw far too many people walking into that gate every day. It could even be said that they had seen many things. They had also seen this sight dozens of times, where a hollow was formed on the light, but every single time this happened, it was due to a powerful Berserker in the Transcendence Realm!
Whenever the Berserkers in the Transcendence Realm entered the gate, the dim light would be pushed to the side, like it was being torn apart.
Amidst the silence, a crack suddenly opened up in the dim light at the gate. Su Ming slowly retrieved his right hand and calmly walked into the crack. Once he did so, the dim light in the gate gradually returned to normal.
There was only silence outside the gate. The middle aged man pretended to be composed despite his nervousness. The other tribe members of the three tribes beside him were momentarily stunned before they all looked at him with pitying looks.
"You offended a Berserker at the Transcendence Realm… Fang Lin, good luck."
"I didn’t think he’d be at the Transcendence Realm. How old did he seem like?"
"I’ve never seen him before. This person must have only just arrived to Han Mountain City."
The middle aged man was feeling slightly uneasy. He might be forcing himself to remain calm, but the fear in his heart made him not dare to continue selling passes. He quickly left, feeling incredibly regretful. He usually had a pretty keen eye, or else he would not be in this business. He had taken a guess at Su Ming’s level of cultivation, that was why he had dared to speak, but he hadn’t expected himself to make a wrong guess.
‘Aren’t you just tormenting me? You’re my senior, why couldn’t you just go through? Why did you have to cause trouble for me..?’
The more the middle aged man thought about it, the more he felt that he was wronged.
At that moment, Su Ming had walked into the third layer of Han Mountain City. He looked at the dim light at the gate, and a contemplative look appeared in his eyes.
‘Looks like fine control is not something mastered during the Blood Solidification Realm… I could enter easily once I used fine control to manipulate my Qi the second time. The hollow created in the dim light is also a clear sign that my entrance was different compared to others.’
While thinking quietly, Su Ming walked up the mountain path. Not far into the distance was the entrance to the second layer of Han Mountain City. There weren’t many buildings around this place, and the number of pedestrians were also fewer. Yet every single one of the people walking in this place was at the very least at the eighth level of the Blood Solidification Realm. Even the buildings in the place exuded a mighty presence that seemed to be letting out a pressure of their own.
It was clear that there were powerful Berserkers staying in these buildings.
It might be noon, but this place was not as lively as the fourth layer. Su Ming walked towards the shops when suddenly his eyes flashed. An amazed expression appeared on his face, but it quickly disappeared.
There was a shop that sold materials obtained from wild beasts. The stench of blood wafted through the air. There was an old man sitting cross legged at the shop with his eyes closed. On his right wrist were several black bells.
The shop was not big. On the right side of the wall were nine black wooden pins. These pins were fixed on a spider the size of a millstone. The spider was entirely purple, and it was already dead, but it had nine legs!
The ninth leg was red, and it was clear that it was different from the other legs on the spider’s body.
‘This is one of the ingredients required to create the Welcoming of Deities!’
Su Ming averted his gaze and walked towards the shop.
Yet the moment he was about to step into the shop, the three bundles of mist hanging in the sky above Han Mountain City suddenly changed. They started tumbling, and muffled booming sounds echoed in the air.
The sudden change immediately made the old man in the shop open his eyes. He was not the only one. Almost everyone in the third layer lifted their heads as their hearts lurched in their chests.
The three bundles of mist tumbled even quicker. At the same moment, in Star Gathering Tower, located at the peak of the city surrounded by mountains, an old and aged bell suddenly tolled.
Dong…
The bell toll seemed to form several formless sound waves that rolled down the mountain. Not only did they attract the attention of those at the third layer, it also caused a commotion among the people in the fourth layer. Even those within the second layer all looked up with attentive looks.
"That’s three bell tolls! Someone’s attempting to challenge the Chains of Han Mountain!"
"It’s been a long time since someone challenged the Chains of Han Mountain! Most of those who fail will die, but if they’re successful, then they can ask the three tribes to fulfill one of their requests!"
"The request is not the main point. If they’re successful, then they will definitely become the chief guest of that tribe. The status is much higher than that of a regular guest. I even heard before that this is one of the requirements for Freezing Sky Clan to take in disciples from Han Mountain City!"
"Which Chain of Han Mountain will this challenger take?"
Sounds of discussion rose up like a wave in Su Ming’s ears. A person appeared in the center at the top of the mountain where three chains were connected.
‘It’s him!’
When Su Ming saw the person clearly, a thoughtful look appeared in his eyes.
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