Before the words had even faded, the Mountain-Bearing Elephant was already upon them.
The earth trembled beneath its footsteps. Mountain-like pressure swept forward, and half the flea market was instantly swallowed by its colossal shadow.
Each time those massive hooves slammed down, the tremors grew more violent.
The ramshackle stalls—little more than broken stones and wooden planks—were the first casualties. Clay pots shattered. Livestock shrieked in terror. Mortals screamed.
The chaos blended into a single, deafening roar.
"Stop pushing! My herbs are getting trampled!"
"Heavens above, so this is a Rank 4 wild beast? Terrifying!"
The once-orderly market erupted into pandemonium—like cold water hurled into a pot of boiling oil.
Lin Mu moved with the stampeding crowd, yet his body flowed through them like a fish through water.
He squinted upward at the beast that seemed to blot out the sky, and at the Rank 4 expert seated in the shadow of that crimson silk canopy.
Goosebumps prickled across his skin.
In the original story, when Jia Fu visited the Gu Yue Clan at Qing Mao Mountain, his procession was grand, but he never rode such a ferocious giant beast...
His thoughts raced.
Qing Mao Mountain had three clans in a balanced stalemate—stable, with its leader also a Rank 4 expert. Intimidating equals would've been foolish.
But Black Blood Stockade was weaker, and White Bone Stockade—those ghostly grave robbers—lurked nearby, hungry.
The Jia Clan, as trade route pioneers, needed to flex muscle to secure business here. This wasn't about efficiency; it was about dominance—a warning to Black Blood Stockade, and every schemer within a hundred miles.
Understanding clicked into place. The cold smile on Lin Mu's lips deepened.
This spectacle was terrifying, yes.
But for him, it was a heaven-sent opportunity.
Using the crowd's panicked retreat as cover, he slipped unnoticed toward the traveling merchant's stall.
The merchant was paralyzed with fear.
The elephant loomed mere steps away, and the man's face had gone the color of ash. His legs shook so badly he couldn't even pick up the goods that had tumbled from his table.
He just stood there, mouth hanging open, staring at the approaching colossus.
Now.
Lin Mu's toe flicked out casually.
That unremarkable black stone—fallen and half-buried in the mud—was hooked up by a subtle force and landed firmly in his palm.
In the same motion, his other hand shot out like lightning, snatching the rusted iron dagger from the corner of the table.
"Half a Primeval Stone. Transaction complete."
His voice wasn't loud, but it cut cleanly through the chaos and into the merchant's ears.
A jagged half-stone slapped down onto the wobbling table with a sharp crack, embedding itself into the wood.
The merchant jolted back to awareness.
He glanced at the money on the table, then at the junk Lin Mu had already tucked into his robe.
At that moment, one of the elephant's feet crashed down nearby, sending up a storm of dust and making him flinch violently.
"Ah... yes, yes, fine..."
Haggle? He couldn't even think straight.
He hadn't even seen clearly what the boy had taken. All he knew was that this youth paid quickly and hadn't robbed him in the chaos—that alone was a blessing.
Lin Mu didn't linger. He pulled his bamboo hat low, clutched the heavy stone and dagger to his chest, and vanished into the churning crowd.
...
At the stockade gates, the dust gradually settled.
When the Mountain-Bearing Elephant finally halted, the entire Black Blood Stockade seemed to shudder in response.
Patriarch Lin Cang led a procession of elders forward to greet their guests.
A perfectly calibrated expression of bold hospitality adorned his face—not a trace of being rattled by the display of force.
"Brother Jia Fu! Crossing mountains and rivers to reach us—you've worked hard!"
Jia Fu descended gracefully from the elephant's back, straightening his already-immaculate brocade robe. The merchant's trademark affability played across his features.
"Not at all, not at all. Patriarch Lin personally coming out to greet me—I'm truly flattered."
"It's been a year since we last met, and I see Black Blood Stockade's defensive towers have grown even taller. Your 'Iron Bone' cultivation must have advanced again?"
"Ha ha ha! Just scraping by, nothing compared to Brother Jia's business empire spanning the world."
The two men stood at the gates, performing their ritualistic exchange of meaningless yet essential flattery before the entire stockade and the merchant caravan.
After the pleasantries concluded, Jia Fu clapped his hands.
Two attendants immediately stepped forward, bearing a pair of exquisite red-lacquered gift boxes.
"A small token of respect, nothing more. This is 'Cloud Mist Tea' from the Central Continent—excellent for clearing the mind and sharpening the eyes."
"And this pair of Rank 2 'Miasma Avoiding Gu,' perfectly suited to your stockade's environment."
Lin Cang's eyes flickered with interest, though he maintained his composure. He waved for his steward to accept the gifts, then gestured invitingly.
"Brother Jia is too kind. The wind is strong out here—let's continue our conversation inside. I've prepared our finest Green Bamboo Wine to welcome you."
Jia Fu smiled but didn't immediately move.
Instead, he turned casually, pointing toward a peculiar cart at the rear of the procession—one radiating an unmistakable chill.
"No rush for wine. Before I left, my father specifically reminded me—that key ingredient Patriarch Lin has been searching for? I went to considerable trouble this time, arranging a special shipment from Northern Plains..."
Lin Cang's gaze followed the gesture.
When he saw the sealed container marked with talisman characters, his steady breathing turned suddenly ragged.
Blood Jade Marrow.
He'd been stuck at the peak of Rank 3 for years.
That was his only key to Rank 4.
"Brother Jia... you've truly gone above and beyond!"
Lin Cang drew a deep breath. The fervent gleam in his eyes could no longer be concealed. He seized Jia Fu's arm, his tone shifting to something far more genuine.
"Come! Please, inside! Let's discuss this properly in the council hall!"
The procession swept through the gates in grand fashion.
As the important figures departed, the gawking crowd gradually dispersed. The once-bustling entrance was left in shambles—mortals still excitedly chattering about what they'd just witnessed.
...
Inside the council hall, tea fragrance curled through the air.
Without outsiders present, the veneer of brotherly courtesy faded considerably. What replaced it was naked negotiation.
On the long stone table, ten catties of Blood Jade Marrow had been laid out, positioned at the center.
The crystalline red mineral seemed to pulse with flowing blood, radiating an alluring luster.
Lin Cang's fingers traced the tabletop, suppressing the urge to simply seize it. His voice came out low and controlled.
"Brother Jia. Name your price."
Jia Fu lifted his teacup, took an unhurried sip, and spoke at a leisurely pace.
"Patriarch Lin is a straightforward man. You know as well as I do—this material is in high demand even in Northern Plains."
"Transportation costs are extreme. And with White Bone Stockade lately..."
He paused deliberately, casting a meaningful glance at Lin Cang.
"White Bone Stockade hasn't been very peaceful recently, has it? I hear they unearthed some ancient Earth Path ruins. Their strength has surged. Even the trade routes in this region have become unstable."
Lin Cang's expression darkened.
This was the cunning of merchants. By highlighting White Bone Stockade's threat, Jia Fu wasn't just inflating transportation costs—he was underlining Black Blood Stockade's precarious position.
Internal troubles, external threats, desperate need for power.
This Blood Jade Marrow? They had no choice but to buy.
"Brother Jia is well-informed."
Lin Cang didn't deny it. Instead, he acknowledged the situation openly.
"The old ghost of White Bone did dig up something. He's even boasting about swallowing the surrounding resource points. That's precisely why I need this shipment."
He met Jia Fu's gaze directly and laid out his bargaining chip.
"Beyond our regular annual supplies, I'm willing to open access to the Black Blood Wood forest behind our mountain. Your caravan may harvest thirty percent with priority rights."
Jia Fu's eyelid twitched.
Black Blood Wood was premium material for refining Wood Path Gu—and a rare specialized fuel. Black Blood Stockade had always guarded it jealously.
"Thirty percent is too little. Fifty."
Jia Fu set down his teacup and raised five fingers.
"Additionally, I want those three century-old Poison Vines you have in storage."
"Fifty percent is impossible—forty at most!"
Elder Kuang Xu slammed his palm on the table, unable to restrain himself.
"You can have the Poison Vines, but I want two hundred Green Mark Gu Eggs added to the deal!"
The negotiation instantly erupted into white-hot chaos.
Both sides went back and forth, haggling over every single point of profit.
But overall, although the atmosphere was tense, it didn't break down.
Because both parties had objectives they absolutely needed to achieve—the Jia Clan needed performance and specialty goods to report back, while Black Blood Stockade needed strategic supplies to boost their strength.
Half an hour later.
When Lin Cang and Jia Fu shook hands again, both wore satisfied smiles.
"A pleasure doing business."
"A pleasure doing business."
Though both felt they'd lost a bit, it was still above their psychological bottom lines. This was the best kind of transaction.
...
Meanwhile, at the back mountain of Black Blood Stockade, beside an abandoned stream.
This place was far from the crowds, surrounded by jagged rocks with only the gurgling of water—an ideal secluded spot.
Lin Mu sat cross-legged on a green boulder, playing with the black stone he'd just acquired.
Before the market dispersed, he'd deliberately detoured to check on Lin Ping's stall. It was already empty, even the grass mat on the ground rolled away.
Seemed the kid had listened to his advice and returned home early to avoid trouble.
"An obedient one. Hope he lives a bit longer."
Lin Mu withdrew his thoughts, refocusing his gaze on the stone in his hand.
He'd already rubbed off some of the surface dirt, revealing the underlying stone skin that resembled dried fish scales.
"The suspended animation shell from a Red Mud Gu's dormancy..."
"In the original work, these side school Gu insects—if you're lucky, the sealed Gu inside might just be in false-death slumber; if unlucky, it's just a dried corpse."
Lin Mu took a deep breath, mobilizing the emerald green Primeval Essence within his aperture, slowly channeling it into the rusty dagger in his hand.
Hum.
The originally dull, rusty dagger actually hummed under the Primeval Essence's enhancement, its edge glowing with a faint green light.
This was the wonder of Mid-Grade Primeval Essence—turning the rotten into the magical.
"Open!"
Lin Mu's wrist was extremely steady. The dagger's tip followed an imperceptible crack on the stone skin, gently cutting inward.
It wasn't as hard as imagined.
The sensation was like cutting into aged preserved meat—dry, tough, yet with a trace of eerie elasticity.
The stone skin peeled away layer by layer.
Lin Mu's movements were extremely slow and steady, afraid of damaging whatever lay inside.
When the final layer of stone skin was pried open—
A weak yet pure earthy smell mixed with a faint trace of blood rushed toward him.
In the hollow cavity at the stone's heart lay a thumb-sized, dark red, limp, flat, leech-like soft worm.