The Eternal Sin

In the depths of the giant’s belly, Jiang Chen found a secluded space behind a wall of hardened dark red flesh.

After collecting the spirit stones from the three terrified stall owners, Jiang Chen had orchestrated another public act from his four clones before quietly retreating.

To the eyes of the many cultivators in the background, Jiang Chen appeared to be a formidable young master of a hidden force who was being secretly protected by powerful seniors.

This elaborate facade of having a backing force was not merely a tool to extort the stall owners. It was a carefully calculated deterrent against the swarm of eyes that had been secretly tracking his movements, cultivators hiding in the dark and waiting to ambush him when the Black Market’s closing time approached.

Even without sensing these attackers, it was simple for Jiang Chen to foresee such a plan because he understood the hearts of men with mirror like clarity.

Birds die for food and humans die for wealth.

After Jiang Chen revealed such a huge quantity of spirit herbs and exchanged them for tens of thousands of spirit stones, how could there not be those who secretly calculated their chances? In this world, benevolence is thin as paper, while greed is deep as the ocean.

If Jiang Chen were in their place, watching a lone Qi Condensation cultivator rake in tens of thousands of spirit stones, he too would consider murder for profit.

As for those who harbored thoughts of harming him, Jiang Chen felt not the slightest trace of resentment.

’Everyone walks their own path, with ambitions heavy on their shoulders. What is there to resent? If I possess the right to kill for my benefit, then others naturally possess the right to kill for theirs. To resent them would be to resent myself.’

How could he be so narrow hearted as to condemn them for what he himself would do? Such hypocrisy was the specialty of so called righteous cultivators who believed themselves to be virtuous with blood still wet on their hands.

Even though Jiang Chen stood within a righteous sect, his heart had long since embraced the ways of the demonic path. The sect’s identity was merely a layer of fabric draped over skin. On the path he had chosen, strength was the only truth and survival defined morality. If he were to die beneath another’s scheme, it would only prove that his methods were inferior and his efforts lacking. What right did the weak have to complain? Their only right was to become slaves to the whims of the strong.

Thus, Jiang Chen carrying such a fortune was no different from a fat lamb waiting for slaughter in the eyes of demonic cultivators. However, the introduction of the "Eldest Brother" and the mysterious group of cultivators successfully turned their ambition into dread.

To challenge a monstrous cultivator like Jiang Chen was already a massive risk, but to provoke a hidden force of such caliber was the quickest path to the Yellow Springs.

It was not a gamble people were willing to take.

Now that he was alone, Jiang Chen allowed his divine sense to seep into the black storage ring on his finger. Within lay the fruits of his labor, a sea of spirit stones that would make even a Foundation Establishment cultivator feel their pockets itch in envy.

Through the sale of the Jade Heart Plantation herbs today, the forced tolls, and the final extortion of the merchants, he had amassed a total of ninety three thousand spirit stones!

He had also sold the purple storage ring along with several storage bags for an additional five hundred spirit stones. While the purple ring was a fine storage type treasure, keeping it was trouble Jiang Chen was unwilling to invite.

If Sun Jian or any of his so called allies from the Jade Heart mission caught sight of it, the resulting suspicion would be a storm he did not need. It was much better to convert such trophies into the raw currency of spirit stones.

Jiang Chen kept only a single storage bag visible on his belt to act as a decoy, for a cultivator with no storage item was suspicious in the eyes of an astute individual. Layers of deception, even on such a microscopic level were the only way to ensure longevity in a world where the strong devoured the weak.

Adding his previous savings of six thousand four hundred stones, his total wealth had reached the staggering sum of ninety nine thousand nine hundred spirit stones.

Jiang Chen hissed softly at the number.

For someone who once fought tooth and nail over half a spirit stone, this overwhelming amount made him realize how much had changed.

’When I had nothing, I struggled for just one piece more. Now that I possess nearly one hundred thousand spirit stones, I already find it insufficient. Is it just the nature of my path, or do people in general have an insatiable greed for more?’ Jiang Chen smiled somewhat self-mockingly.

He continued to ponder. ’With this financial capital, the Rank One fire essence at the Heavenly Star Treasure Auction is practically within my grasp. Unless an outlandish variable appears, a Rank One essence should not exceed forty thousand spirit stones. That leaves a vast reserve for other necessities. I could potentially secure a Foundation Establishment Pill or perhaps even a suitable manual for the next realm, though both are as rare as a phoenix feather.’

Jiang Chen weighed the information about the market values of these items that he had gathered through timely eavesdropping and inquiry. A mid grade Foundation Establishment Pill, offering a twenty five percent chance of success to breakthrough, was a resource that cost at least fifty thousand spirit stones. A high grade pill, which pushed those odds to forty percent, started at nearly ninety thousand spirit stones.

As for peak grade pills that guaranteed a sixty five percent success rate, it was extremely difficult to put a price tag on them. They were treasures of high level importance that usually circulated only within the inner circles of super forces or powerful individuals who reserved them for their younger generations.

Jiang Chen mused, ’That is why my current priority should be to obtain something that can allow my divine sense to contend with Foundation Establishment stage cultivators. And if that is not possible, then I must secure a ranked fire essence at the upcoming auction. Only these two paths are optimal for progress.’

To understand why Jiang Chen focused on a fire essence rather than a Foundation Establishment Pill or manual, one must consider his circumstances. Even if he managed to obtain a high grade Foundation Establishment Pill at the upcoming auction, what then? Without a Foundation Establishment cultivation manual, it would sit uselessly in his ring, and vice versa was equally true.

Moreover, even with a high grade pill that offered a forty percent chance in his pocket, Jiang Chen’s inferior cultivation aptitude meant that the probability of a breakthrough was far from sufficient. He needed a peak grade pill, and even then, success would not be guaranteed.

This was the core reason his mind remained fixed on the fire essence. To a common cultivator, a Foundation Establishment Pill or manual was the top priority, but Jiang Chen saw a different path.

If he could secure the fire essence, he could form totems of hundreds of Rank One demonic beasts, effectively becoming a legendary existence within the Qi Condensation realm. With such power, his earning ability would multiply tenfold. Only with power and wealth could one purchase the future of cultivation.

Furthermore, he harbored an grand ambition to strengthen his divine sense to the level of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. The reason was to set up a Rank Two Hexagonal Bone Seizing Formation.

If he succeeded in elevating his mental strength enough to maneuver this Rank Two formation, he could seize the bone essence of Rank Two beasts!

Devouring such essence would allow his bones to reach a level of strength where he could contend somewhat against cultivators of the Foundation Establishment realm and remain untouchable within the Qi Condensation realm.

As for why Jiang Chen did not consider the flesh and blood aspects, the reason was simple. He was already struggling with the flesh aspect at the Qi Condensation realm, so how could he aim higher?

Regarding the blood aspect, although it was relatively easier for him to obtain a bloodline from a Rank Two beast, the crucial issue lay in the immense spiritual essence required to activate such bloodline abilities.

Just as his Mirage Striped Iron Tiger bloodline consumed significant spiritual essence to activate the clone ability, a Rank Two bloodline would demand a tremendous amount of spiritual essence, something impossible for a mere Qi Condensation cultivator to sustain.

Jiang Chen’s brows knit into a frown. ’I have used my clones to scour the entirety of the Black Market for methods to boost my divine sense, but the results have been quite disappointing. The few techniques I found are barely useful for minor soul strengthening and severely insufficient for the monumental leap that I need. Hm, it seems I have no choice but to look for it at the auction.’

He tilted his head back and stared at the ceiling of flesh.

"Regardless of these troubles, this is truly a fulfilling way to live," Jiang Chen murmured softly.

The higher one climbed, the vaster the horizon became. To the young Jiang Chen, the future no longer looked like a dark tunnel, but a sky filled with infinite possibilities.

His eyes blurred with memory.

’When did it all begin to change?’

The answer surfaced like a pearl rising from deep water.

’Could there be any answer other than the moment I inherited the Flesh Devouring God Scripture? That single encounter was the pebble of change tossed into my life, creating ripples that grew into waves and reshaped my entire destiny. To have had that happen to me, how truly lucky. Once again... this luck, huh?’ Jiang Chen clicked his tongue, unsure what to make of it.

He pushed himself off the wall. There was still an hour before the curtain of the market closed. He still had a few items in mind, small things that would pave certain paths in the future. He stepped out from the darkness behind the flesh wall and re-entered the crowd.