"Jinsha Marketplace" is located on Golden Dawn Mountain, south of Baisha River Oasis, less than five hundred miles from the Chen Family's headquarters at Baituo Ridge.
Originally, Golden Dawn Mountain already had a Tier Three Lower Grade Natural Spiritual Vein. Later, as the scale of "Jinsha Marketplace" grew larger, the Chen Family spent a huge sum to elevate its Spirit Vein Grade to Tier Three Top Grade.
The Spiritual Qi emitted by the Tier Three Top Grade Spirit Vein is enough to simultaneously suffice for the breathing exercises of several Foundation Establishment Cultivators and hundreds of Qi Cultivation Stage Cultivators, thus, up till now, the number of permanent Cultivators in "Jinsha Marketplace" has exceeded five hundred, with more than a hundred various kinds of shops inside the marketplace.
As the only Cultivator Marketplace within tens of thousands of miles, every day there are Cultivators arriving at "Jinsha Marketplace" to buy or sell cultivation resources. This marketplace solely collects thousands of Spirit Stones yearly just from the "Head Tax".
There was someone who calculated that even excluding the Spirit Stones earned annually by Chen Family's self-run shops, merely the rent paid yearly by each shop and Cultivation Cave Mansion, along with the "Head Tax" paid by cultivators entering and leaving the marketplace, could provide the Chen Family with a net income of ten to twenty thousand Spirit Stones.
Such a large sum of income clearly attracts envy, therefore, to protect this "Golden Goose", the Chen Family not only arranged a Tier Four Lower Grade Array in the marketplace but also had more than three Chen Family Foundation Establishment Cultivators stationed there year-round.
With three Foundation Establishment Cultivators stationed and supplemented by the Chen Family's enforcement team established in the marketplace, even if attacked by a Purple Mansion Stage Cultivator or a Tier Four Demon Beast, they can rely on the Array to hold out for several hours, persisting until Elder Chen, Chen Yaohui, stationed at Baituo Ridge arrives for rescue.
After leaving the Chen Family's reception point, Zhouyang rode a Shatuo Beast and traveled for a day before arriving outside the marketplace shrouded in mist by the Array.
Outside the marketplace, Chen Family Cultivators are specifically responsible for collecting the "Head Tax". Late-Stage Qi Cultivation Cultivators who stay in the marketplace for more than 10 days must pay an extra Low-grade Spirit Stone as a retention fee, while those staying for less than 10 days are charged at the rate of one Low-grade Spirit Stone.
However, the Zhou Family, as an allied clan with the Chen Family, has their cultivators only pay one-third of the "Head Tax" when entering the marketplace.
Not sure how long he would stay within the marketplace, Zhouyang first paid a year's fees and then carried his proof of payment, a Refined Iron Token with a special mark, and slowly walked into the fog-shrouded marketplace.
The Immortal Marketplace, of course, has great differences from towns established by mortal humans.
Upon entering the marketplace, Zhouyang found that although it appeared misty from the outside, inside it was actually a Spirit Mountain hundreds of meters high, densely populated with pavilions, radiant with treasure light reaching the sky. Various grandiose, magnificent palaces, pavilions, and treasure towers share the same mountain, emitting diverse dazzling Spiritual Light that attracts cultivators from all directions to venture into them.
Day or night makes no difference for this Immortal Marketplace.
"There lies my family's Jade Spring Tower."
After observing for quite a while at the foot of the mountain, Zhouyang finally spotted his family's operated "Jade Spring Tower" amidst the many pavilions.
The "Jade Spring Tower" sits beside a pool halfway up the marketplace mountain, the entire building towering seven zhang high, all constructed using Centennial Iron Wood, the building is divided into three layers; the bottom two layers sell magical artifacts, elixirs, spirit talismans refined by Zhou Family Cultivators, while the top layer is used for entertaining distinguished guests.
Initially, the two shops gifted by the Chen Family to the Zhou Family were one called "Jade Spring Tower" and another named "Drunken Immortal Tower," the latter being a restaurant, previously managed and operated by Zhouyang's mother Lin Yuting.
Before Zhou Xuanhao's Foundation Establishment, "Jade Spring Tower" was always overseen by him, but after returning to his family to prepare for his Foundation Establishment matters, the Zhou Family Cultivator in charge of "Jade Spring Tower" became the newly promoted Elder Zhou Xuanlin.
Zhou Xuanlin ranks seventh among the "Xuan" generation, and he's another Tier Two Refiner besides the old clan leader Zhou Minghan and Zhouyang, but his talent in artifact refining is not particularly outstanding. Even though his cultivation recently broke through to Ninth-Layer Qi Cultivation, he can only refine Tier Two Middle Grade Spiritual Artifacts, and his success rate isn't particularly high.
Now, "Jade Spring Tower" not only has Elder Zhou Xuanlin from the Zhou Family presiding but also has Zhou Family kin Qian Hongyu leading three juniors from the "Yuan" generation, Zhou Ping, Zhou Yu, Zhou Xiong, serving as sales clerks responsible for the shop's item sales.
Qian Hongyu is the Dao Companion of Zhou Xuanchen, who ranks twelfth in the "Xuan" generation, while Zhou Ping, Zhou Yu, and Zhou Xiong rank fourth, fifth, and thirteenth respectively in the "Yuan" generation. Among them, Zhouyang is only more familiar with his younger Thirteenth Brother Zhou Xiong, who is closest in age to him.
Coincidentally, because he is relatively young, Zhou Xiong was specifically assigned to solicit business outside "Jade Spring Tower," under the pretext of training his eloquence and perception.
Thus when Zhouyang led the Shatuo Beast to the building front, his clan brother Zhou Xiong immediately recognized this clan brother who had already made a name sensation across the clan.
"Ah! Brother Nine, why are you also here at the marketplace? Little brother hadn't heard anything about this from Seventh Uncle beforehand!"
Being five years younger than Zhouyang, Zhou Xiong is only twenty-seven this year, and he possesses a handsome and appealing appearance.
At this moment, upon seeing Zhouyang leading the Shatuo Beast over, he first let out a loud shout of surprise, then quickly ran forward with eagerness, took the reins from Zhouyang's hand, and, with an enthusiastic tone, warmly greeted, "Brother Nine, you must have been overwhelmed with fatigue traveling all this way. Let little brother help lead the Camel Beast to the backyard for care, coincidentally, Seventh Uncle is upstairs today, you can see him on the third floor."
Ninth Layer Zhouyang is now a prominent figure in the Zhou Family. Even though the news of Zhou Xuanhao's Foundation Establishment hasn't reached the Baisha River Oasis yet, Zhouyang's reputation as a Tier Two High-Grade Refiner and his Eighth-Layer Qi Cultivation Stage are enough to make his peers like Zhou Xiong look up to him.
Everyone in the Zhou Family now knows that, barring any accidents, Zhouyang is likely to be the next Clan Leader of the Zhou Family.
In such a situation, if one could establish a good relationship with Zhouyang in advance, wouldn't there be benefits when he takes over the family's power?
So, it's not just junior cultivators like Zhou Xiong; even those of the "Xuan" generation among the elders, except for a few, don't dare to impose their seniority on Zhouyang anymore.
After all, the Cultivation Realm respects the strong. Seniority is not an excuse for them to act recklessly. Aren't they afraid that if they suppress Zhouyang now, he might retaliate severely after establishing his foundation and becoming Clan Leader?
Even if they're not afraid for themselves, can they be sure their descendants won't be?
Therefore, considering their descendants, once it was confirmed that Zhouyang could use the "Foundation Establishment Pill" to break through to Foundation Establishment, few among the Zhou family elders would dare to assert their seniority over him, let alone his peers like Zhou Xiong.
Having lived two lifetimes, Zhouyang's actual age far exceeds his apparent age, so he doesn't find this situation inappropriate.
He himself would not use his status to oppress others, nor does he like it when others try to suppress him with their seniority. When the elders defer to him, he naturally respects them in return, maintaining proper decorum.
"Then I'll trouble Thirteenth Brother. I do have matters to discuss with Seventh Uncle." He nodded slightly, expressed his thanks, and walked into the building after letting go of the reins.
Upon hearing footsteps, Zhou Ping and Zhou Yu, who were a bit lethargic due to the lack of customers inside the building, perked up, thinking a customer had arrived. They quickly prepared to welcome them.
"Who might this be... You're Brother Nine!"
"Brother Nine, what brings you to the marketplace?"
Seeing that the visitor was Zhouyang, whom they hadn't seen in many years, Zhou Ping and Zhou Yu were both taken aback, surprised by the sudden visit of the Zhou family's genius without any prior notice.
"Fourth Brother, Fifth Brother, long time no see. How have you been?" Zhouyang smiled gently, warmly greeting his cousins.
Seeing his demeanor, Zhou Ping and Zhou Yu were startled, and with a feeling of being honored, they hastily returned the greeting, "Brother Nine, you're too polite. We've missed you over these years as well."
Indeed, they've been away from home for many years, only returning to the family once every three to five years on average. To learn about the family's news, they relied on trade caravans. Over these years, the news brought by these caravans often related to the Brother Nine before them.
Each time they heard news of this Brother Nine, they couldn't help but wonder how the once silent and somewhat solitary youth managed to accomplish feats that countless elders of the Zhou Family hadn't achieved in the past two hundred years.
"Hehe, the younger siblings in our family miss both of you too, especially Little Fourteen and Little Fifteen. They're always eager to grow up quickly, come down from the mountains, and join you in the marketplace to explore the Cultivation Realm."
Zhouyang chuckled, recognizing their unease, and mentioned some interesting stories about their younger siblings to help lighten the mood.
Sure enough, upon hearing these anecdotes unrelated to cultivation, the tense expressions on Zhou Ping and Zhou Yu's faces eased somewhat, and they also shared some childhood stories among the three of them.
After chatting for a while, the distance resulting from years of separation quickly vanished. Once familiar again, Zhou Ping and Zhou Yu displayed the communication skills honed from years working as shop assistants, vividly sharing tales of grand events witnessed in the marketplace, as well as their experiences working at the "Jade Spring Tower."
Of course, during the conversation, they couldn't help but express envy at Zhouyang's rapid advancement in cultivation and sought his advice on some cultivation problems they encountered.
Zhouyang, not keeping anything secret, answered their questions as best as he could, and even lent them his notes on cultivation insights for reference.
After about half an hour of conversation, as the chat was in full swing, Zhou Yu suddenly slapped his forehead and exclaimed, "Ah, I got so caught up catching up with Brother Nine that I forgot about the important business. You must have important matters to convey, right? Seventh Uncle is upstairs; we won't hold you up."
Hearing this, Zhou Ping was momentarily stunned before quickly nodding in agreement, "Fourth Brother is right. Brother Nine, your important business is a priority. Our reminiscing can wait. There's plenty of time after you finish your business."
Zhouyang acknowledged their words, feeling that the catching-up was about right. From his conversation with his cousins, he had gained some understanding of the current situation at "Jade Spring Tower" and smiled, "Since both brothers say so, I will go upstairs to meet Seventh Uncle first. We'll catch up later."