Taiyi Sect's procurement of large quantities of food and other supplies involved sending people to the market to hire large camels to transport the goods back. As for the dangers encountered on the journey, Taiyi Sect would handle them on their own. Tian Zhen didn't want to disturb Meng Zhang's cultivation and volunteered to handle the task himself. However, Meng Zhang rejected Tian Zhen's proposal and decided to go personally.
His reasons were twofold: first, after staying in the sect for so long, he wanted to go out and get some fresh air; second, his Cultivation Base and strength were far superior to Tian Zhen's, so he believed he would be better equipped to handle any danger along the way.
Having made his decision, Meng Zhang and Tian Zhen, the General Affairs Elder, didn't argue further. Before departing, Tian Zhen reminded Meng Zhang that the spirit fields in the sect were about to be harvested, and the manpower was insufficient. If Meng Zhang didn't hire loose cultivators from outside to help, they would need to call back the elderly seniors who retired in Sweetwater Oasis to lend a hand. Meng Zhang noted Tian Zhen's reminder.
The nearest market to Taiyi Sect was Singing Sand City, which belonged to Twin Success Valley, located about seven hundred li south of Taiyi Sect, near the Singing Sand Mountain. Meng Zhang set off early in the morning.
He rode a wind chasing horse named Xiao Bai, with a one-cubic-meter storage bag hanging all over his body. This appearance was a common sight for many cultivators, as they would use multiple storage bags if their storage space wasn't enough, earning them the nickname "Nine-Bag Elders."
In the past few days, Meng Zhang had consumed almost all of the over four hundred low-grade spirit stones he had confiscated from the Zhang brothers. Taiyi Sect's treasury had fewer than a thousand low-grade spirit stones, and he brought eight hundred of them with him. The storage bag on his person was filled with the scarlet copper he had refined. Meng Zhang's plan for this trip to Singing Sand City was to sell the scarlet copper to ensure he had enough spirit stones.
Wind chasing horses were known as the legendary steeds capable of traveling a thousand li during the day and eight hundred li at night. As a First Rank demon beast known for its speed, the wind chasing horse was faster than the legendary steeds.
Meng Zhang set off early, not stopping along the way, and arrived near Singing Sand Mountain shortly after noon. The entire journey was filled with endless yellow sand, devoid of any greenery. Occasionally, there were some variations in terrain, like sand dunes of varying heights.
Meng Zhang had become tired of this monotonous scenery during his rare outing. When he arrived at the foot of Singing Sand Mountain, he finally felt a sense of refreshment. Singing Sand Mountain was only a few hundred meters high, but in the surrounding area, it was considered a rare high mountain.
After years of erosion by sandstorms, Singing Sand Mountain had many small and large caves on its surface. When strong winds blew across the desert, it would pass through these caves, producing sharp whistles and moans. That was how Singing Sand Mountain got its name.
At the foot of Singing Sand Mountain, there was a wide Second Rank spirit vein. Hundreds of years ago, Twin Success Valley, the ruling power of the Singing Sand Mountain region, established Singing Sand City, relying on this Second Rank spirit vein.
Singing Sand City was in a strategic location, near many other families and sects, some of which were comparable in strength to Twin Success Valley. Twin Success Valley had also released part of its interests, attracting forces such as Forest Spring Watch and Liu Family.
After centuries of development, Singing Sand City became the most prosperous trading market in the surrounding area. While bringing enormous benefits to Twin Success Valley, it also facilitated trade between various forces.
Bypassing Singing Sand Mountain, Meng Zhang saw Singing Sand City in the distance—a rare sight of greenery in the desert, surrounded by forests, with a small river flowing and lush green grass.
The town was filled with various buildings and outside, camel caravans came and went.
This beautiful town was the Singing Sand City that Twin Success Valley had worked hard to build for many years. With the support of the Second Rank spirit vein, a Second Rank high-grade protective formation was set up to guard the market. The area around the market was covered by the protective formation, sufficient to repel any invading enemies.
Only in the north and south directions of the market were gates left for people to enter and exit.
Meng Zhang rode Xiao Bai, the wind chasing horse, directly to the south gate of Singing Sand City. Two Refining Qi stage cultivators guarded the gate with a team of guards.
After registering his identity at the gate and paying the two low-grade spirit stone city entrance tax, Meng Zhang smoothly entered Singing Sand City.
Although Taiyi Sect was a small sect, it was still a subordinate force of Twin Success Valley, making Meng Zhang somewhat of an insider. With the identity of Taiyi Sect's Sect Master, Meng Zhang enjoyed some convenience in Singing Sand City.
After entering the market, Meng Zhang first found an inn to stay and settled Xiao Bai, the wind chasing horse. He didn't rush to go shopping but strolled around the market.
He visited various shops and even inquired about prices, even if he didn't intend to buy anything. Along the way, he went into many shops and didn't encounter any situations where he was looked down upon.
The shop assistants or shopkeepers were mostly quite enthusiastic. Meng Zhang used his Mind Reading Divine Ability several times to explore their thoughts. He didn't feel any psychological pressure when using Mind Reading on outsiders. Moreover, he wasn't trying to invade their private thoughts but wanted to understand the various market conditions and prices in Singing Sand City.
Meng Zhang continued to stroll around until dinner time before returning to the inn where he was staying. Singing Sand City was built on a Second Rank spirit vein, and although Twin Success Valley used a spirit gathering array to gather most of the spiritual energy in the market and control the output, the spiritual energy in most parts of Singing Sand City was still much denser than outside.
To prevent poor cultivators from coming to Singing Sand City to absorb spiritual energy, Twin Success Valley had implemented various measures. For example, to enter the market, one had to pay a city entrance tax. Besides, unless cultivators had registered residency in the market, they had to either stay in an inn or rent a house to live in. No beggars were allowed in the market, and sleeping on the streets was strictly forbidden.
The inn where Meng Zhang was staying was owned by Forest Spring Watch. In addition to providing accommodation services, it also had a restaurant that served three meals a day. The chefs from Forest Spring Watch were renowned for their culinary skills, and even simple spirit rice and spirit vegetables could become exquisite delicacies under their hands, fully stimulating the hidden spiritual energy within the ingredients, making it easier for cultivators to absorb.
Although Taiyi Sect planted a large amount of spirit grain, most of it was sold to the outside world in exchange for various resources. Taiyi Sect's disciples couldn't have enough spirit grain to consume.
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