Chapter 24

### Chapter 24: Border Village

"This is..." Ding Hao looked at the few white, crystal-like grains that the merchant boss took out from the bottom of his storage bag.

"These are Spirit Rice grains, which should be easier to convert than Spirit Beast meat."

"Spirit Rice." Ding Hao placed a few grains in his palm, his eyes instantly filled with surprise.

Don't underestimate these tiny grains; each one contains far more spiritual energy than a single ordinary pill!

With a thought, "Star Absorption Technique, Absorb!"

Ding Hao was overjoyed; he could actually absorb it! The Star Absorption Technique was currently only at the first level and couldn't absorb the spiritual energy within plants, but it could absorb Spirit Rice, likely because the grains are the fruit of a plant, with the spiritual energy seeping out, making them as easy to absorb as pills.

No matter what, as long as he could absorb it, it was fine.

Seeing Ding Hao's delighted expression, the merchant boss was also pleased and nodded, saying, "I previously bought some Spirit Rice for a wealthy family, and there were a few grains left at the bottom of the storage bag. I didn't expect them to be useful."

Ding Hao said, "This is very useful to me. How can I purchase it?"

The merchant boss replied, "This is a banned item, and transportation is very troublesome. Each time, only a small handful can be brought in. Moreover, this item is very expensive, and the price becomes even more outrageous once it's brought in! In the Nine Provinces, only the royal family can afford it."

Ding Hao asked, puzzled, "This Spirit Rice is a good thing, why is it a banned item?"

The merchant boss explained, "Because this Spirit Rice is a species from the Immortal Refinement World, and it is brought to the Nine Provinces for cultivation. The cultivated grains are then resold back to the Immortal Refinement World. It is not something that people from the lower realms can consume, so it is banned."

Ding Hao said, "Then why not cultivate more, so both the upper and lower realms can enjoy it?"

The merchant boss smiled bitterly, "I don't understand. The Nine Provinces is a righteous world, and some rules are very rigid."

Ding Hao thought for a moment and said, "Since it's so troublesome to bring this into the Heavenly Will System, I might as well leave the Heavenly Will range and buy it from outside."

The merchant boss's face turned pale, and he shook his head, "Young Master Ding, before you reach the middle stage of the Innate realm, do not leave the Heavenly Will! Outside the Heavenly Will, there is no protection, and there are all kinds of fierce Spirit Beasts. More importantly, there are many bandits who will kill and rob you. They don't care if you are a genius; they will kill you just the same. It's very dangerous!"

Ding Hao couldn't cultivate using the methods of the Nine Provinces, and ordinary pills had no effect. The only thing he could use now was Spirit Rice, so he had to make some plans.

"How much do these Spirit Rice grains cost?" Ding Hao asked again, "The price in Earth City."

"Two yuan stones per bowl."

"Expensive!" This price still shocked Ding Hao.

After all, one yuan stone is equivalent to ten thousand taels of silver, and twenty thousand taels of silver only bought a bowl! This was still the price in Earth City; if brought into the Heavenly Will System, it would triple! No wonder only the royal family could afford it.

The merchant boss, however, smiled, "Actually, it's not that expensive. Outside the domain, everyone uses yuan stones, and many things can't be bought with silver. Once you have the strength and go outside the domain, you'll understand."

After the merchant boss left, Ding Hao thought carefully.

He could also act like a good boy and, under the Heavenly Will System, purchase a large number of ordinary pills. Although ordinary pills have little effect, they still have some use. He could slowly grind away at the original pill, and if he couldn't participate in the imperial examination this year, he could try next year, and if not next year, the year after.

However, he ultimately rejected this idea.

"Ten thousand years is too long; I must seize the day! I can't stay in one place. Ding Juncai is making progress, and I killed his family. If I fall behind him, he will surely take revenge! Now, I can only work hard to make money and venture outside the Heavenly Will!"

It was because of this conversation two months ago that Ding Hao went on a two-month frenzy to earn twenty million taels of silver.

...

Two months later, at the Ding family residence.

"The announcement is out!"

"Lord Ding Hao will also be entering seclusion to cultivate, pausing his monthly meditation guidance to prepare for the imperial examination. Please understand and cooperate."

"Understood, understood. I'll come back in a month."

Most people in the city understood Ding Hao's announcement. After all, Ding Hao was a genius who also needed to cultivate. He had already served the public for two months; what more could they ask for?

Seeing this announcement, City Lord Ling Yunxiao finally breathed a sigh of relief. Ding Hao finally knew to strive for improvement.

On the other side of the city hall, Ding Juncai, upon hearing the news, worked even harder to refine the second layer of the original pill!

What they didn't know was that Ding Hao wasn't in seclusion but had brought twenty million taels of silver to the edge of the Heavenly Will System.

At the edge of the Heavenly Will System, there were many border villages.

A border village was half inside the Heavenly Will and half outside. Standing in the village, you could see a light arc dividing the sky into two halves. One side had a faintly colored veil, while the other was a pure, transparent blue.

The border village was half inside the domain and half outside, with soldiers stationed in the village.

Generally, the soldiers didn't manage the entry and exit of people, but if you carried banned items that triggered the Heavenly Will System's alarm, they would immediately rush out to arrest you.

Before dawn, the border village was already bustling.

"Three Hairy Beasts, two thousand taels, anyone want them?"

"Eighteen hundred, I'll take them."

"Come and look, one Iron Leaf Bamboo, a great material for wood-based weapons, cheap price."

"I have a piece of raw refined ore..."

Ding Hao walked through the crowd, his eyes darting around. Everything here was very unfamiliar and novel to him.

"Who would have thought that a small border village would be so lively!"

Although the Heavenly Will System was good, many Spirit Beasts and Spirit Trees grew outside the system. Therefore, many hunters and treasure hunters hunted or searched for treasures outside the domain, and the most traded items here were beast meat and these natural treasures.

Spirit Beast meat and ordinary Spirit Tree materials were not banned items, so they were openly sold.

However, there were also some stalls that were more secretive.

"Jade Green Pill, want it? Three thousand taels each. Brother, if you bring it into the inland city, you can make at least five hundred taels."

"No money." Ding Hao didn't say no but claimed he had no money.

Being alone, he had to be very careful. He carried a huge sum of twenty million taels of silver and dared not show off his wealth.

In front of him, a carefree young master was clearly seen by Ding Hao. A thief held a snake-like creature, and the snake's head drilled into the young master's storage bag. Soon, the thief retracted the small snake, and the items in the young master's storage bag were stolen without anyone noticing.

Ding Hao also saw that some merchant caravans, as soon as they entered the outer domain, were followed by several burly men who exchanged glances.

"It seems that here, the mix of good and bad is common, and theft, robbery, and fraud are everyday occurrences. Indeed, every step must be taken with caution."

Ding Hao didn't rush to buy anything but mixed in the crowd, inconspicuously looking around.

"Selling black cloaks, conceal your form and face, essential for travel, murder, and robbery."

Ding Hao finally stopped at a small stall where a fair-faced man was selling black cloaks.

Many people outside the domain wore these black cloaks.

These black cloaks were very unique. Once worn, they not only concealed the face and appearance but also made it impossible to tell the height and build. Many people, as soon as they left the domain, would change into black cloaks to blend in with the crowd and avoid being targeted.

The fair-faced man said, "Little brother, want to buy? Very cheap, one yuan stone."

Without hesitation, Ding Hao turned and walked away. Immediately, the man shouted, "Three thousand taels, two thousand five hundred, two thousand is the lowest!"

Ding Hao then walked back and threw down two thousand taels of silver.

The fair-faced man casually grabbed a black cloak and smiled, "First time in the border village, little brother?"

Ding Hao ignored him and walked away with the cloak.

The man behind him said, "Little brother, once you cross this line, you'll be using yuan stones. Want to exchange some? One to ten thousand!"

Ding Hao still ignored him and walked away with the black cloak.

"First stage of the Innate realm." The fair-faced man's eyes flashed with a cold light.

Ding Hao, who was only at the first stage of the Innate realm, didn't dare to be careless and quickly found an uninhabited spot in the village to put on the cloak. Wearing the black cloak had another benefit: it made it harder for thieves to steal.

The border village was divided into two sides. Inside the domain, silver tickets were used, while outside, yuan stones were used. Therefore, many merchants also did currency exchange. The exchange rate varied daily, and generally, specialized exchange banks were less favorable, while street stalls were more favorable.

Ding Hao didn't dare to exchange with street stalls. After wandering around the crowd and feeling no one was following him, he entered a bank.

"Exchange silver tickets or yuan stones?" An old man with a mustache in the bank asked.

"Exchange yuan stones."

"Ten thousand five hundred taels for one yuan stone."

Outside, it was ten thousand taels for one yuan stone. Although it was a bit of a loss here, Ding Hao still took out one million five hundred thousand taels of silver. This amount was actually just one hundred yuan stones, not a small number but not very astonishing.

The old man counted the silver tickets and then took out two bundles of yuan stones.

Yuan stones were like coins, wrapped in a special kind of grass leaf, with fifty stones per bundle. Ding Hao broke one bundle, counted the number, and put it in his storage bag. He tore open one side of the grass leaf on the other bundle, saw that they were all yuan stones, and then put it in his storage bag.

Seeing Ding Hao skillfully tear open one side of the grass leaf, the old man smiled, "Frequent visitor, I see."

"Yes." Ding Hao responded and walked out of the bank.

Actually, the method of tearing open one side of the grass leaf to check was something he had just seen others do. He deliberately acted skillfully to avoid others knowing he was new and targeting him.

With one hundred yuan stones, he was much more convenient. He directly crossed the central line and stood in the outer domain.

Although this was the outer domain, it was still a border village, so it was still safe, and no one would openly kill and rob here.

On this side, the goods for sale suddenly increased.

"Selling a large amount of banned drugs, can improve physical constitution, take a look, all good stuff."

Ding Hao's eyes swept over, and he was shocked.

Here, all kinds of banned drugs to improve physical constitution were available!