Leaf Gray watched the spiritual light on the passing cultivators for a while, then looked at his own, using it as a comparison to roughly estimate the cultivation levels of these cultivators.

Overall, there were mostly cultivators at the second and third layers of the Spirit Creek realm, with fewer at the first layer, and most of them were rogue cultivators.

Although reaching the first layer of the Spirit Creek realm qualified one to cultivate and travel on the battlefield, the various sects, large and small, naturally waited for their disciples to reach higher cultivation levels before letting them leave the sect headquarters, provided they had the capacity to do so, thus giving them more capital to preserve their lives.

As for those rogue cultivators, they had no one to rely on. Although the battlefield was dangerous, opportunities were everywhere. To live comfortably, they naturally came out to strive early.

This was somewhat like the difference between children from poor families and children from wealthy families.

There were also those at the fourth layer of the Spirit Creek realm, but the proportion was small; often, only one or two would appear among dozens of cultivators.

Leaf Gray even saw someone suspected to be at the fifth layer of the Spirit Creek realm. That person's perception was extremely sharp; the moment Leaf Gray looked at him, he turned his head to look back. His crimson eyes were like a pair of beast pupils, giving off a great sense of pressure, and Leaf Gray instantly felt a chill all over his body.

After this round of observation, Leaf Gray had a rough idea in his heart.

Recalling the Manager Miller and Ryan Carter he had killed in the mine tunnel before, Leaf Gray only knew at the time that their cultivation levels weren't high, but he had no idea what their specific levels were.

Now it seemed, Manager Miller was probably at the third layer of the Spirit Creek realm, while Ryan Carter was at most at the second layer.

However, one of them was interfered with by the Metamagnetic Field, making it difficult to utilize his spiritual power, and the other was severely injured, allowing Leaf Gray to pick up the advantage. Now, the grass on their graves was probably three zhang high.

Not sure if it was an illusion, but Leaf Gray felt that the spiritual light on his body was clearer than that of other first-layer Spirit Creek realm cultivators.

While observing like this, someone suddenly squatted down in front of him. That person picked up a piece of ore from Leaf Gray's stall and asked, "How much for this?"

How would Leaf Gray know how to price it? He placed these ores here precisely to test the waters, so he had prepared his words: "You make an offer. If it's suitable, I'll sell."

At the same time, he checked the other party's cultivation level. Judging from the spiritual light on his body, he should be a cultivator at the second layer of the Spirit Creek realm. However, this guy's spiritual light seemed much murkier than others.

Leaf Gray suddenly realized: Could this be what the Sect Master mentioned, the situation where spiritual power becomes turbid? If so, then it meant the person before him had taken too many spirit pills recently, leading to accumulated pill toxins in his body.

That person then quoted a number: "Two spirit stones!"

"Scram!"

Although Leaf Gray didn't know the exact value of his ore, he was sure that the other party came with a mindset to snatch a bargain, so there was no need to think too much about it.

That person wasn't angry either. He just saw Leaf Gray looking dumb and dazed and came to see if there was any advantage to be gained. Confirming the look in his eyes, he wasn't someone who could be easily taken advantage of, so naturally, he wouldn't make an enemy of Leaf Gray for no reason. He put down the ore and left.

After that, people came to ask the price one after another. Leaf Gray always told them to quote their own price, but not a single transaction was successfully completed.

What Leaf Gray noted was that the Metamagnetic Ore was asked about the most, and the offers for it were also the highest, reaching as much as twenty spirit stones, offered by a cultivator at the fourth layer of the Spirit Creek realm.

It seemed this thing was indeed valuable. No wonder both Manager Miller and Ryan Carter used their positions to privately stash some away.

For cultivators at their level, items of such value represented considerable wealth.

Leaf Gray didn't make any sales, but instead, the items on the stall of the female cultivator next to him kept decreasing. She was selling herbs she had gathered from Jade Mountain herself, which had a very broad market. In less than half a day, she sold everything.

The female cultivator packed up her things and prepared to leave. Before leaving, she asked Leaf Gray, "You want to know the value of these ores, right?"

Having watched from the side for quite a while, how could she not see Leaf Gray's intention?

"Mm." Leaf Gray nodded, "Does Shijie know how much these things are worth?"

The female cultivator shook her head: "I haven't studied ores much. I can't even identify what kind of stones these are, so I don't know their value either. But if you really want to sell them, you can go to the Providentia Merchant Alliance. Although their buying prices are slightly lower than the normal market price, overall, they are quite fair to all. Mainly, the cultivators here aren't very wealthy. Selling small items is fine, but for something like your Metamagnetic Ore, there aren't many with the financial capacity to buy it, so the offers you get won't be very high."

Leaf Gray had actually noticed this problem too, but he never intended to sell his ores here in the first place. Hearing the female cultivator's words now, he naturally followed the good advice: "Thank you for the guidance, Shijie."

"Then good luck to you!" The female cultivator gave Leaf Gray a gentle smile, took a few steps, merged into the crowd, and disappeared from sight.

Not long after the female cultivator left, Leaf Gray also packed up his stall.

His purpose in setting up a stall here wasn't to sell things; it was mainly to observe other cultivators more conveniently and find a way to judge their strength.

Now that he had achieved his goal with the female cultivator's guidance, there was naturally no need to waste more time.

The time it takes for an incense stick to burn later, Leaf Gray stood in front of a huge circular building, looking up.

In the market with its scattered, chaotic layout, such a building was definitely a conspicuous landmark.

This was the Providentia Merchant Alliance. Just this single building silently demonstrated its profound foundation and vast financial resources.

The trade union's plaque hung above the main entrance. The wide-open door was like a beast's mouth, with countless cultivators entering and exiting. On both sides of the door was attached a pair of golden couplets. The left one read: Warmly Welcoming Guests from The Novem Lands; the right one read: Joyfully Accepting Wealth from All Directions. The horizontal scroll read: Guests Feel at Home!

Leaf Gray followed the flow of people into the main hall. Strangely, although many cultivators were coming and going, the hall was extremely quiet.

Immediately, a fair-faced, slender female cultivator came forward and bowed gracefully to Leaf Gray: "Greetings, Shixiong."

Leaf Gray returned the greeting and couldn't help but glance at the pair of furry ears on top of her head.

This was another demon cultivator, and one who hadn't fully transformed. According to what that fat cultivator said before, when these demon cultivators reach profound cultivation levels, their demonic characteristics slowly disappear, gradually becoming no different from ordinary humans.

So, seeing many demon cultivators with demonic characteristics here wasn't strange because the cultivators here weren't of high cultivation level.

Although she noticed Leaf Gray's gaze, the female demon cultivator was already used to it and naturally didn't show any unusual reaction, still asking gently: "Does Shixiong wish to buy, sell, or just look around?"

It seemed different choices led to different treatment. Leaf Gray composed himself and said, "Sell."

The female demon cultivator beamed with a smile, gesturing with her hand: "Shixiong, this way please."

Leaf Gray then followed her in that direction. Over there, there seemed to be many partitioned rooms, and one could vaguely see figures sitting inside them, discussing.