Li An remained calm, continuing to read his book.
After the old man purchased sixty Breaking Charms, he left satisfied.
Thoughts flickered through Li An's mind.
If Li An's earlier suspicions were somewhat paranoid, now it seemed there were indeed suspicious aspects.
The thin young man, the one-armed strongman, and the old man with both hands intact—these three appeared completely different, even their cultivation levels varied... Could they be the same person?!
He suddenly recalled—the demon cultivator who plundered the Profound Yang Sect's Pill Shop at Liuyang River!
That demon cultivator killed the disciples of the Profound Yang Sect, stole pills, yet was never caught.
If the other party had means to change appearances, conceal cultivations, that would make sense...
If these three people Li An encountered were all that demon cultivator, what was the purpose behind their actions?
First, acquiring symbols for setting up restrictions.
Then purchasing a large number of Breaking Charms.
It was impossible they were using Breaking Charms to break their own restrictions—
A thought flashed in Li An's mind, could Liyang Valley be a trap? The demon cultivator used a lot of restriction materials to create the illusion of a secret realm as a diversion?
And the real target of the demon cultivator was elsewhere... could it be the market?
Li An felt he might be close to the truth!
His heart suddenly raced.
If they really intended to attack the market, wouldn't this place be extremely dangerous?
Run away? That was Li An's first thought.
But, he quickly dismissed it. If the demon cultists truly targeted the market, the periphery must be full of their spies, leaving the market would be even more dangerous.
Stay inside the market... should he immediately notify the Foundation Establishment Stage cultivators stationed inside?
That's also an option. A frontal assault on the market would involve deceit. If defenses were reinforced in advance, the demon cultivators might be thwarted.
But there was risk too.
Li An could be exposed, drawing the attention of Foundation Establishment cultivators, even an investigation.
A dilemma.
Li An calmed his mind, weighing the pros and cons.
"That they used such roundabout methods to buy Breaking Charms proves two things: first, the Breaking Charms are crucial to them, they have to obtain them. Second, their strength isn't overwhelming, and they need to cover their tracks until they acquire the charms."
Moreover, since the Liuyang River market incident, the vigilance of major markets had risen sharply, which might be why they haven't resorted to murder and robbery.
"Therefore, to sabotage the demon cultivator's plan... the key is the Breaking Charms."
Li An's eyes glimmered slightly.
Although he couldn't figure out how they planned to use Tier One Middle Grade Breaking Charms against the Tier Two protective array of the market, based on current deductions, if something went awry with the charms, their scheme might fall apart, right?
This way, the market could remain safe.
He also wouldn't have to expose himself.
On this day, Li An had Wang Yun close the shop early.
In the evening, he retrieved all the Breaking Charms!
The next day, the Spirit Talisman Shop opened as usual.
In the morning, a short sturdy young man entered, purchasing thirty Breaking Charms in one go.
He also wore that white skeleton ring.
Li An feigned focus on reading while sensing the aura of the person.
In the afternoon, a handsome middle-aged man in a wide robe came by, buying ten Breaking Charms, followed shortly by a hunchbacked male cultivator who bought forty.
Li An observed everyone who entered to buy talismans, noting that despite their different appearances, both bore the white ring.
"They've already bought a hundred and forty... almost all the Breaking Charms are sold out."
Li An whispered, as his first batch of two hundred charms was nearly depleted.
But he quickly made another hundred, and sharply raised the price to four each, double the usual!
He guessed they'd definitely continue buying, fat demon cultivators, no reason not to slaughter them!
Sure enough, different-looking individuals continued visiting, buying small quantities each time, hardly attracting any attention.
Very cautious, these demon cultivators are really cautious!
Li An grew increasingly serious.
The more cautious they are, the bigger their plot likely is.
"They've already bought over two hundred, the plan should almost be set, right?"
That afternoon, Li An pondered, feeling the danger creeping closer...
"That demon cultivator must be the same person, though their form changes, the white ring remains, and after activating my Life Seed, I seem to vaguely distinguish their life force..."
"The other party changes frequently, but their cultivation never exceeds sixth level Qi Refining."
"Overall, the cultivation should be in late-stage Qi Refining, but not reaching Foundation Establishment."
In his past life, Li An was a Golden Core-level powerhouse. Once he pinpointed the target, after thorough analysis, he couldn't fully confirm the other's realm but could perceive the fluctuations of Spiritual Qi, which hadn't reached the quality of Foundation Establishment!
After Foundation Establishment, Spiritual Qi liquefies, and even in thin emissions, there's a distinction from the Qi Refining Stage.
"We've got new information, a calamity occurred in Liyang Valley, countless casualties, someone seized a Foundation Establishment Pill, and it's still being contested!"
Another message spread within the market.
Li An inquired, finding out seemingly the Foundation Establishment Pill was taken by the Profound Yang Sect cultivators, but as a result, they faced siege, in dire straits!
"Master Yu of the market dispatched three late-stage Qi Refining experts to aid!"
Meanwhile, news of the aid followed closely, as it's inconceivable for the market to stand idle while the trapped Profound Yang Sect disciples suffer.
Li An couldn't help frowning. Three late-stage Qi Refining experts dispatched... did the Foundation Establishment expert Yu Xiong stationed in the market fall for the trap?
Fortunately, Yu Xiong himself hadn't departed, otherwise Li An would've been prepared to flee immediately.
Boom!
While Li An pondered, the entire market suddenly quaked!
The ground seemed to tremble.
Attacks were happening, the four corners of the market suddenly activated the array lights, a massive blue shield protecting the entire market.
"Who dares to disturb the market of the Profound Yang Sect? Are you courting death?"
Inside the market, a powerful aura surged, Yu Xiong had already taken flight, fully presiding over the array.
Yu Xiong, in white Taoist robes, with eyes bright like rays, stood unyielding in the array, hovering above the market, scanning all directions!
"Yu, if you're wise, open the array and surrender all resources in the market... if not, when I break the array, today I'll chop you up and feed you to the dogs!"
In the sky outside the market, a man enveloped in black Demonic Qi had flown over, wearing a horse-face mask and holding a white bone banner.
"Life-taking Horse-Faced?!"
Yu Xiong's expression changed, shocked.
Life-taking Horse-Faced, one of the major demon cultivators wanted by the Profound Yang Sect in recent years!
A Foundation Establishment Demon cultivator, with a bloody debt, who in just three to four years exterminated two Foundation Establishment families. Now he dared to lay his eyes on the Profound Yang Sect's market?!
"I'll count to ten. If you open the array, I won't kill anyone, but if you persist... you and everyone in the market will die!"
Life-taking Horse-Faced spoke coldly:
"Ten..."
...
"The market is under attack!"
"What's going on? Someone dares to attack the market?!"
"It's the demon cultivators, demon cultivators have arrived outside the market!"
"Life-taking Horse-Faced, it's Life-taking Horse-Faced!"
The streets were in chaos, everyone panicked, fleeing in all directions.
"Close the shop!"
Li An immediately ordered.
But as Wang Yun went to close the door, a middle-aged man walked in, pushing Wang Yun aside with a cold smile, saying:
"Such a profitable business, closing so early? Don't you think it's a pity?"
...