Throne Of The Forbidden God

Black Market and Forbidden Information

The sun had not yet fully risen when Ravian stepped out of the dilapidated inn. The morning air of Azure City, which should have been fresh, instead felt heavy with soot and the lingering scent of poverty that clung to the lower district. He pulled his black cloak tighter, ensuring his mask was perfectly in place. Beneath his bed, two lives were already gone, yet his heart felt no weight. There was only an empty space now filled with absolute coldness.

[Master, it is advised to move through the side alleys. A small clan patrol unit has been detected three hundred meters ahead. Detection probability: forty percent.]

"I know, System. I don't plan on causing a scene on the main street," Ravian murmured softly.

[System detects fluctuations in the Hell Meridian energy. Master, your emotions are still unstable. You need to maintain your breathing frequency.]

"Shut up and just show me the way. Where is the entrance to that black market?"

[Straight for fifty meters, then turn left behind the burnt tavern. There is an iron door with an inverted one-eye symbol.]

Ravian followed the instructions with light, nearly silent steps. He passed piles of trash and several drunks who had collapsed in the street. At the end of the narrow alley, he found the iron door in question. A massive man with a large axe leaned against it, eyeing everyone who approached with a bloodthirsty gaze.

"What do you want, stranger?" the guard asked, his voice heavy like muffled thunder.

"I'm looking for items not sold in official shops," Ravian replied flatly.

"Everyone says that. Do you have an entry token?"

Ravian didn't answer. He simply raised his hand slightly, letting a tiny speck of black energy from the Hell Meridian seep out. The air around them instantly chilled, and the guard flinched, gripping the handle of his axe with trembling hands.

"This energy... such a dark aura," the guard whispered, his face turning pale. "Go in. But remember, whatever happens inside is not our responsibility."

The iron door opened with an ear-piercing screech. Ravian stepped into a descending tunnel lit by pungent-smelling oil torches. The further he went, the more the noise grew, the sound of haggling, the roars of caged beasts, and the clinking of metal.

"Welcome to the Abyssal Bazaar, System," Ravian said internally.

[This place has a high concentration of negative energy. It is very suitable for hiding your Hell Meridian aura. However, be cautious of ancient artifact collectors. Some of them have sharp eyes.]

Ravian walked among stalls peddling forbidden goods. Everything from poisons that could bore holes through bone to spiritual slaves bound by energy-suppressing chains. His eyes kept searching, not for weapons, but for a small shop in the most hidden corner. A shop belonging to someone known as Three-Eyes.

"Hey, Sir! Do you need a sword that can cut shadows?" a scrawny merchant shouted.

"No," Ravian replied without looking back.

"Or perhaps a potion to boost dual-cultivation passion?" the merchant chuckled wickedly.

Ravian stopped for a moment, turning slightly toward the merchant. "I only need an address."

"Whose address?" the merchant asked, now more serious.

"Three-Eyes."

The merchant immediately shut his mouth. He looked left and right before pointing toward a fragile-looking wooden staircase leading to an even darker lower floor. "Down there. But make sure you have enough gold. He doesn't accept cheap silver coins."

Ravian continued his pace. Every step he took creaked, as if warning him to turn back. Down there, the room was lit only by a single large candle placed in the center of a round table. An old man with one eye covered by a patch and two other eyes one of which was on his forehead, stared at him intensely.

"A new customer with a very heavy past," Three-Eyes greeted. His voice sounded like two sheets of sandpaper rubbing together. "Sit down, Masked Sir. Or should I call you... a traveler from the abyss?"

Ravian sat in the wooden chair across from the man. He wasn't surprised. Three-Eyes wouldn't have such a reputation if he couldn't smell the scent of death.

"I need information," Ravian said, getting straight to the point.

"Everyone needs that. The question is, can you afford the price?" Three-Eyes poured thick green tea into two small cups.

"Depends on how valuable the information you have is."

"I have everything. The bedroom secrets of sect elders, the weaknesses of city defense formations, even the locations of treasures forgotten by time. What are you looking for?"

Ravian leaned forward, staring directly into the man's third eye, which kept twitching restlessly. "The Arkana Clan. I want to know what they are hiding behind their mask of nobility."

Three-Eyes fell silent. The candle in the middle of the table flickered violently as if a cold wind had blown on it. "Arkana... that is a very expensive name these days. They are at the peak of their glory."

"A glory built on a rotten foundation," Ravian countered coldly.

"True. And that rot is starting to smell pungent," Three-Eyes chuckled softly. "You know, the current Arkana Patriarch is doing big business with the Black Shadow Sect. They are smuggling forbidden artifacts through medical supply routes. They call them 'research materials,' but they are actually the energy cores of kidnapped cultivators."

Ravian’s hand beneath the table clenched tightly. "Spiritual slave trade?"

"Worse than that. They harvest meridians from talented children in remote villages and sell them to nobles who want their children to have instant talent. That is how they fund the luxury you see in the city center."

[Master, this data is valid. I have found a pattern match with missing persons reports in the outer sectors over the last three years.]

"Then what about Lin Xuelan?" Ravian asked, his voice trembling slightly at the mention of the name.

Three-Eyes sipped his tea slowly, as if enjoying the anticipation on his opponent's face. "Ah, the goddess of the Blue Cloud Sect. She is the Arkana Clan's masterpiece. But did you know? Her beauty has a very fatal flaw."

"Tell me."

"Her Pure Spirit Meridian cultivation... it was stolen, wasn't it? You surely know that better than anyone," Three-Eyes smirked, revealing black gums. "However, her body does not fully accept that meridian. Every new moon, she must soak herself in a pool of sacred beast blood to suppress the energy rejection. If she misses even one night, that meridian will explode and destroy her entire body."

Ravian felt a mixture of rage and a strange satisfaction. So, the power you stole from me has instead become your curse, Xuelan?

"Is there written proof of all this?" Ravian asked.

"Of course there is. I have copies of shipping manifests and secret medical records stolen by one of her personal servants before that servant 'disappeared.' But as I said, the price is not cheap."

"How much?"

"Five hundred gold coins. And a promise."

Ravian frowned. "What promise?"

"Someday, when you stand upon the ruins of the Arkana tower, I want you to let me take one item from their secret vault. Whatever it is, you must not ask questions."

"You are so sure I can destroy them?"

Three-Eyes stared at Ravian's masked face with his third eye, which now glowed purple. "I don't see a man in front of me. I see a black hole ready to swallow this entire city. So, do we have a deal?"

Ravian pulled a small pouch from beneath his cloak. He placed it on the table. Inside was not gold, but five high-level energy stones he had obtained from beasts in the abyss.

Three-Eyes' eyes widened. He took one of the stones and examined it with trembling hands. "This... this is a Hell Essence Core! Where did you get something this rare?"

"That is none of your business. Is it enough?"

"More than enough! This could fund my life for ten years!" Three-Eyes quickly hid the stones inside his clothes. He then reached into a hidden desk drawer and pulled out an old parchment scroll tied with a magic seal.

"This is everything you need. The names of the officials they bribed, the schedules for illegal artifact shipments, and the location of Lin Xuelan's secret pool. Use it wisely, Shadow Sir."

Ravian took the scroll. He could feel the weight of the information in his hand. This information was far more lethal than any sword he had ever held.

"Why did you help me so easily?" Ravian asked before standing up. "You could have sold me out to the Arkana Clan and received a much larger reward."

Three-Eyes laughed dryly. "Because I am old, and I am bored of seeing those arrogant people act so holy. Besides, I want to be on the winning side when this storm begins. And my gut tells me... you are the storm itself."

Ravian didn't answer. He stood up and turned, preparing to leave the place. However, just as he stepped toward the stairs, the System issued a red warning in his mind.

[WARNING! Detection of a high-level cultivator's aura approaching. Cultivation Level: Soul Refining Stage, Middle Phase. Distance: fifty meters and closing!]

"Damn it," Ravian cursed. "Who is it?"

[Energy signature analysis... Identity detected: Arkana Clan Law Enforcer, Elder Lu. He is searching for someone.]

Three-Eyes also looked tense. He touched his third eye. "Oh, no. You must leave now! They often conduct surprise inspections if there are reports of missing smuggled goods. If they find you here with that scroll..."

"Where is the other exit?" Ravian asked, his hand already gripping the handle of a hidden dagger.

"Behind that bookshelf! There is a drainage tunnel that leads to the city canal. Quick!"

Ravian moved immediately. He pushed the heavy bookshelf with his physical strength, which had been enhanced by the Hell Meridian. A dark hole opened in the wall.

Just as he was about to enter, the front door of Three-Eyes' shop shattered into pieces. An old man in a blue robe embroidered with a golden sun entered with a crushing aura.

"Three-Eyes! Give me today's transaction records, or I will pluck out that third eye of yours!" Elder Lu barked.

Three-Eyes tried to remain calm, even though cold sweat drenched his forehead. "Elder Lu... what an unpleasant surprise. I haven't had any customers today."

Elder Lu narrowed his eyes. He sniffed the air in the room. "This scent... there is a very foreign energy aura here. Who just left?"

Ravian held his breath inside the tunnel, closing the bookshelf very slowly so as not to make a sound.

[Master, do not move. He is spreading his spiritual sense. Use the Hell Breath Suppression technique now!]

Ravian immediately activated the technique. His heart slowed, and his temperature dropped drastically until he felt almost like an inanimate object. Through a small crack in the bookshelf, he saw Elder Lu walking toward his hiding spot.

"Don't try to lie to me, old man," Elder Lu said while unsheathing his longsword. "I feel someone behind this wall."

Three-Eyes bravely stood in front of the bookshelf. "That is just the drainage, Elder. It does smell foul, much like your clan's politics."

A hard slap landed on Three-Eyes' face, sending him tumbling into the corner of the room. Elder Lu stepped toward the bookshelf and struck it with a palm infused with spirit energy.

BOOM!

The bookshelf was blown to bits. However, behind it was only a solid stone wall. Ravian had already moved further into the tunnel, using the darkness as his absolute shield.

"Empty?" Elder Lu growled. "Impossible. I'm certain I felt something."

"I told you, didn't I?" Three-Eyes groaned while wiping blood from his mouth. "You're too paranoid, Elder. Perhaps it was just the large rats that often roam down here."

Inside the dark and damp tunnel, Ravian kept running. Foul-smelling sewage soaked his feet, but he didn't care. He kept a tight grip on the information scroll against his chest.

[Master, we are far enough. Elder Lu is not pursuing. He seems more interested in interrogating Three-Eyes.]

"He won't get anything out of that old man," Ravian replied, his breath coming in short gasps. "Three-Eyes is more cunning than he looks."

Ravian reached the end of the tunnel, which opened into a quiet city canal. He climbed out and took a deep breath. The cold night air felt like heaven compared to the smell of the sewers.

He sat on the edge of the canal, partially opening the scroll under the dim moonlight. His eyes swept over line after line of names and numbers.

"Tomorrow," Ravian whispered. "Tomorrow is Lin Xuelan's status ascension ceremony."

[Master, according to the data in the scroll, they will receive a massive shipment of illegal artifacts tonight at the north docks to fund that party.]

"I see," Ravian smiled behind his mask. A smile that, if seen by others, would give them nightmares for weeks. "They want to celebrate with grandeur? Then I will make sure they celebrate with fire."

He stood up, staring at his reflection in the calm canal water. His ruined face no longer looked pathetic to him. It was his badge of honor, proof that he had returned from death to collect an unpaid debt.

"Information is indeed a sharper weapon than a sword," Ravian murmured while stowing the scroll away. "And I have just sharpened my sword right at their throats."

He walked away from the canal toward his new hiding place. His mind had already jumped to the next step. Sabotage. He would cut off their financial lines, humiliate them in front of their allies, and slowly peel away every layer of hypocrisy that shrouded the Arkana Clan.

"System, prepare a route to the north docks. We have work to do before dawn."

[Understood, Master. Calculating the fastest route and guard blind spots. Mission 'Silent Sabotage' begins in three, two, one...]

Ravian disappeared into the darkness of the alley, leaving Azure City still fast asleep, unaware that the foundation of power they had worshiped all this time had just begun to crack.

In the distance, the Arkana tower still stood tall, but to Ravian, it only looked like a giant tombstone waiting for its name to be carved.

"Enjoy your last night in peace, Xuelan," whispered the night wind, carrying Ravian's voice. "Because tomorrow, the whole world will see who you truly are."

Ravian stopped for a moment on a stone bridge. He looked toward the docks where several large ships were beginning to dock. He could see large wooden crates being lowered very carefully by men dressed in black.

"That's them," Ravian said.

[Master, there is something strange. The energy detection in one of those wooden crates... it is no ordinary artifact.]

"What do you mean?"

[The energy is very similar to... your lost Spirit Meridian. There is a possibility they are using fragments of your energy to empower those artifacts.]

Ravian's blood boiled. They didn't just steal his future, but they were also using the remnants of his being as a trade commodity?

"Enough," Ravian's voice sounded so low it was barely audible. "Tonight, that dock will become their grave."

He leaped down from the bridge, landing silently on a pile of crates at the edge of the dock. Behind his black mask, Ravian's eyes now emitted a faint red glow a sign that the Hell Meridian had begun to fully awaken, hungry for a vengeance that had been delayed for far too long.

Suddenly, a shout was heard from the direction of the ship.

"Who's there? Show yourself!"

A guard with a torch ran toward Ravian's position. The torchlight caught the edge of Ravian's black cloak, revealing the figure standing tall in the middle of the dark dock.

"Just a shadow coming to take back what belongs to him," Ravian answered coldly.

The guard didn't even have time to shout a second time before a black hand emerged from the darkness and gripped his face. The next second, there was only a haunting silence and the scent of char carried by the sea breeze.

Ravian stared at the large ships in front of him. His revenge was no longer just a plan. It was a reality that had just begun. And he would not stop until every inch of ground in Azure City trembled at his name.