Chapter One: Heaven's First Floor

  In the present era, the Xian Dao of the Hongmeng world is flourishing. Since the human tribe overthrew the demon tribe's rule 10,000 years ago, on the basis of the spiritual crystal inheritance that has been passed down through generations to absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth for cultivation, various powerful and mysterious divine arts have been created in this long period of 10,000 years. In the present Hongmeng human tribe's Xian Dao world, it is indeed a thriving scene with a hundred flowers blooming together.

  And the human race, after driving away the demon clan and unifying the Hongmeng realms, has not formed a unified heavenly court like the Tianyao Wangting of the previous generation of demons. On the contrary, powerful Xianmen schools and aristocratic families have replaced the rule of the demon clan, becoming the most powerful forces in the Hongmeng realms.

  Commonly known as Cultivators, these practitioners of the True Way are the most revered and feared individuals in this prosperous era. Even among ordinary people, having any connection to the Cultivation world is referred to as a "Fateful Connection to the Divine", which speaks volumes about their status.

  In this context, the cultivators in the Hongmeng world are naturally as numerous as fish crossing a river. This has also formed those mysterious and magical, magnificent and colorful cultivation worlds in the hearts of ordinary people. Among them, the main Hongmeng realm with "Four Orthodox and Seven Mysterious" at its head, those powerful families and aristocratic clans, are naturally the strongest group of people on this vast Hongmeng continent. However, apart from these, there are many more ordinary people who cannot be counted. Yes, even in the cultivation world, compared to those famous disciples, there are still cultivators who live a difficult life, commonly known as scattered cultivators, struggling to survive and pursuing their dreams of immortality.

  The number of scattered cultivators is extremely large, and no one knows exactly how many there are. However, it is generally believed that among the numerous cultivators in the Cultivation Realm, the lowest-ranking scattered cultivators account for at least half of all cultivators. These scattered cultivators have their own origins, some having obtained a mysterious manual from who-knows-where, others having stumbled upon heavenly treasures and acquired a set of skills, and of course, there are also those who left various Cultivation Sects due to various reasons and now wander the world alone. In short, the reasons are diverse and the sources are endless, making this a peculiar scene in the Cultivation Realm of the Hongmeng World.

  The first floor of Shenjia Tian, a shop that sells all kinds of spiritual materials and treasures for cultivation, mainly caters to these seemingly ubiquitous and endless individual cultivators.

  At this moment, Shen Shi walked quickly to the west side of the long counter inside Tianyi Building. There were already many people standing on both sides of the counter. Inside the counter were uniformed attendants and shopkeepers from Tianyi Building, while outside the counter were all sorts of people, mostly scattered cultivators, with a few individuals who looked extraordinary, possibly disciples from nearby cultivation sects. After all, Xilu City was the most prosperous city in the western part of Yinzhou's Tianyin Mountains, where all kinds of spiritual materials and goods were readily available. Some cultivators from these sects would often come to Xilu City to find things they urgently needed during their cultivation, whether important or not.

  The little red girl who had just called out to Shen Shi was now standing in a corner inside the counter, with a man standing outside the counter. After calling Shen Shi over, the little red girl smiled and seemed somewhat embarrassed, saying in a low voice: "Little Stone, this customer wants to sell a 'Black Copper Fruit', but I'm not very familiar with this kind of spiritual fruit, can you help me take a look?"

  Shen Shi laughed and said: "Good."

  Just then, a shocked and slightly angry voice came from beside him, saying: "What's wrong with you, how does Tianyi Building do business? Can't even tell that this is a black bronze fruit, let alone bringing in a kid to appraise my rare spirit fruit. Are you out of your mind?"

  Shen Shi turned his head to look, and saw that the person speaking was none other than the man who had just been standing opposite Xiao Hong. He was a middle-aged man with ordinary clothes, and there were already many wrinkles on his face between his eyebrows. He looked like a wandering cultivator who had been frustrated for many years, and at this moment, he had a few shades of anger on his face, staring at him and Xiao Hong with wide eyes.

  Shen Shi wanted to speak but stopped, while Xiao Hong, who had been working on the first floor for many years, was experienced in dealing with these scattered cultivators. She didn't get angry and smiled slightly: "Don't be offended, sir. Although Shen Shi is young, he's the only son of our Tianyi Building's boss and has grown up here since childhood. Not to mention other things, this building trades all sorts of rare treasures, spiritual medicines, and herbs every day. This kid has seen more than anyone else, and after learning from several old men in the building for many years, his eyes are now sharp. Even Song Changlao from the Xuan Yin Gate came once and was full of praise afterwards. He told us that if we encounter any uncertain goods, just ask our young master."

  That loose cultivator heard these words, the angry look on his face slightly subsided, but between his eyebrows and eyes there was still a hint of suspicion, sizing up Shen Shi from head to toe, clearly not fully believing Little Red's words.

  Shen Shi didn't get angry, and exchanged a glance with Xiao Hong. He thought to himself that this person was probably a wandering cultivator from outside Xi Lu City, otherwise, if he were a cultivator who often moved around in Xi Lu City, he would have likely heard of the name "Xiao Shi Tou" from Tian Yi Building, one of the two major shops in the city.

  At this time, Shen Shi didn't bother to respond to the suspicious gaze of the loose cultivator, and instead leaned against the counter, saying to Xiao Hong: "The things, let me take a look first."

  Xiao Hong turned her head and looked at the scattered cultivator, saying: "Sir?"

  He hesitated for a moment, furrowed his brow, and finally reluctantly pulled out a wooden box from his bosom, carefully placing it on the flat cabinet surface, saying: "Take a look." After speaking, he seemed to have thought of something again, and hurriedly added another sentence, saying: "Just let the child take a look, don't touch it with your hands, or you'll lose the spiritual energy of the Lingguo or damage this rare treasure. I won't be responsible for that!"

  Shen Shi glanced at the middle-aged loose cultivator, smiled and nodded in agreement. He then took over the wooden box and placed it on the counter without leaving the cabinet. First, he gently stroked the surface of the wooden box with his hand, paused for a moment after a brief contemplation, before releasing the latch and opening the box.

  As the wooden box lid opened, a faint fruity aroma wafted out of the box. Under the gaze of the three people, inside the box were several layers of soft blue silk, in the center of which lay a black fruit about the size of a thumb, with a deep dark green color and a plump appearance. The skin was glossy and seemed to be emitting a faint black glow, making it quite attractive.

  Shen Shi's eyes shone brightly as he carefully examined the black fruit, without any intention of touching it. He simply stared at it in silence, seemingly lost in thought. On the other hand, the middle-aged cultivator was getting impatient and after a brief moment, he couldn't help but ask: "How is it? Isn't this Black Copper Fruit good enough? I risked my life to pluck it from the high mountains of Yin State's northern region. Just look at its quality, it's worth at least ten... no, at least fifteen Spirit Crystals!"

  Shen Shi fell silent for a moment, then gently pushed the wooden box containing the black fruit in front of that loose cultivator. The middle-aged man was taken aback and asked, "What do you mean?"

  Shen Shi smiled and said, "I'm sorry, sir. We don't buy this kind of thing at Tianyi Building."

  The middle-aged man's face suddenly sank, but before he could explode in anger, Shen Shi had already spoken up: "Because the thing in this box is not the Black Copper Fruit, which ranks second among the spiritual herbs listed in the Heavenly Dao's 'Hong Meng Pharmacopoeia', but rather a type of miscellaneous fruit that can only be found on Gao Wu Mountain, called Black Snake Fruit. It contains no spiritual energy whatsoever, and is completely useless for either cultivation or alchemy."

  The middle-aged man was stunned, his face changed greatly, a pair of eyes stared widely, with a few strands of blood vessels hidden in them, revealing a few strands of fierce light, and said viciously: "You damned kid, if you dare to spout nonsense again, believe it or not, I'll kill you!"

  Shen Shi's expression didn't change, standing there with a calm face. However, the little red girl on the other side of the counter changed her previous gentle and pleasant demeanor, her face suddenly turning cold as she said in a light tone: "This guest should be careful with his words. Although Tianyi Tower is open for business and values harmony, since this tower is an asset of Xuanyin Gate, it's not that easy to bully."

  As soon as the three words "Xuanyin Gate" entered his ears, the middle-aged loose cultivator's body shook violently, and his fierce aura dissipated by more than half. However, a few hints of anger and resentment still lingered on his face. It is worth noting that in this world, the status of cultivators with or without a sect background is vastly different. Even though there are many loose cultivators, most of them are at the bottom of the cultivation world, and they dare not provoke the famous sects. In terms of strength alone, these sects that have survived to this day in the fiercely competitive cultivation world are not to be underestimated. The Xuanyin Gate, which is renowned in Yinzhou, may not be comparable to the top-notch sects in the cultivation world, but compared to the lowest-level loose cultivators, it is a giant existence that can crush them with just a finger.

  Shen Shi smiled slightly, not taking the middle-aged loose cultivator's ferocity to heart. Having grown up in this Tianyi Building since childhood, he had seen similar scenes countless times. With a faint smile, he asked the middle-aged loose cultivator, "If you don't believe me, then let me ask you, you said this fruit is a Black Copper Fruit, how did you identify it?"

  "That's a no-brainer, of course it's the Black Jade Herb, as big as a thumb, growing in deep mountains where it's damp and shady. Once mature, its fruit has an unusual fragrance and is rich in spiritual energy, making it one of the essential spirit herbs for brewing several types of spirit elixirs."

  Shen Shi laughed and said, "Not bad, you've memorized the Hong Meng Medicine Classic quite well."

  That loose cultivator was praised, and his expression immediately became much more relaxed, revealing a few points of pride. He snorted and said, "Nonsense, we loose cultivators traveling the world rely on ourselves for everything. The demon beasts are too powerful to hunt, so most of the time we can only pick some spiritual herbs and fruits to exchange for spiritual crystals to cultivate. If our eyesight is not accurate, then what's the point?"

  Shen Shi smiled and didn't speak, pushing the wooden box closer to him again. "There are so many spiritual herbs in the world. Just those recorded in the Hong Meng Medicine Classic have 13,750 varieties, most of which can be described with just a few sentences. Take another look at the black fruit's skin, hmm... pick it up and examine it carefully against the light."

  He hesitated for a moment, his face showing a few hints of doubt. After some hesitation, he slowly picked up the wooden box and turned halfway around to face the bright spot near the door. He narrowed his eyes slightly and examined it carefully, muttering to himself: "This is clearly a black copper fruit, why make a fuss about a black snake..."

  His voice had barely fallen when his voice suddenly choked, and it was at this moment that a faint voice came from behind him, saying: "Do you see that under the bright surface, is there a black shadow texture, faintly twisted, like a black snake?"

  The middle-aged man was stunned, holding the wooden box for a long time without reacting. His eyes were fixed on the object in his hand, with an incredulous expression. The only sound that came from beside him was the calm voice of the young man, saying: "The real black copper fruit is actually dark and mysterious in color, not this kind of black with a greenish tint; also, the 'as big as a thumb' recorded in the pharmacopoeia refers to the little finger, this black fruit is really too big. Apart from that, the reason why black copper fruit is rare is not only because it grows in deep mountains and old forests, but also because after it ripens, the fragrance of the fruit is extremely strong, and soon attracts wild beasts to come and eat it, so this kind of spiritual fruit is rarely seen on the market. And this one..."

  Shen Shi slightly shook his head and smiled: "The fragrance is too faint."

  At this moment, the middle-aged loose cultivator was already speechless and expressionless, with a few beads of cold sweat on his forehead. He couldn't say a word for half a day. Looking at him, Shen Shi slightly shook his head and didn't say much. He turned around to greet Little Red who had a smile back on her face, then walked away.

  The Tianyi Building was bustling with people coming and going, the sound of voices rising to a crescendo. Shen Shi wove in and out of the crowd, and when he reached the entrance, he happened to glance back, only to see that the little red-haired girl had already walked away to attend to another customer who wanted to sell something, while the middle-aged loose cultivator from earlier was still standing woodenly in the same spot, looking as if his soul had been lost.

  Shen Shi's mouth corners twitched slightly, and he stopped looking at her, turning around and walking out of the Tianyi Building.

  Let's get into a normal rhythm starting tomorrow and strive for two updates every day! If I can keep up the pace... Tomorrow's update will be at 10 am.