Everyone felt a thick cloud of suspicion in their hearts.
Most of those present were elders of the Ji Family, who had heard of the magical catastrophe that occurred in Fuyang County decades ago.
It is said that this catastrophe led to the tragic deaths of numerous cultivators in Fuyang County.
Dozens of mortal cities were slaughtered.
Even the Sun Family, also a Foundation Establishment clan, couldn't escape this disaster.
The entire family was almost wiped out overnight.
Fortunately, the Crimson Sunset Sect discovered it relatively quickly.
They dispatched a large team almost immediately.
Ultimately, they managed to quell the catastrophe.
So here's the question.
What's the situation with the Foundation Establishment elder of the Sun Family in Fuyang County before us?
Or is he one of the survivors of that catastrophe?
Why did he bring people to attack the Luoh River Marketplace under the jurisdiction of the Ji Family?
What exactly is their objective?
Ji Haoyuan temporarily suppressed these doubts in his heart, then turned to Ji Yunshan and the others beside him and said,
"Yunshan, later you will hang the corpses of these people outside the marketplace.
I will stay here for a few days; during that time, if anything happens, you can come to me."
Upon hearing Ji Haoyuan's words, Ji Yunshan and the others couldn't help but be shocked.
Hanging the corpses of the scarred man and others outside the marketplace presented no issue for Ji Yunshan and his group.
But to hang the corpse of a Foundation Establishment cultivator outside the marketplace, wouldn't that be a little...?
Seemingly seeing through Ji Yunshan and the others' thoughts, Ji Haoyuan mildly responded,
"Why? Do you think there's a problem?
Or have these years' experiences and situations already eroded your spirit and confidence?"
These words instantly caused Ji Yunshan and the others' hearts to tremble slightly.
Very soon, they understood Ji Haoyuan's true intention behind such actions.
Each, feeling slightly ashamed, couldn't help but nod and reply,
"Yes, Uncle!"
"Yes, Uncle, we know what to do now!"
Some time later.
Inside a quiet room in the Luoh River Marketplace.
Ji Haoyuan looked at the storage bags arrayed before him.
These were all taken from that masked elder and others.
After spending several days removing all the restrictions from these storage bags, Ji Haoyuan began to examine their contents.
First was the storage bag of the masked elder.
A flying sword of Spiritual Artifact level.
The very flying sword the masked elder used while dueling him earlier.
Next were nearly four thousand Spirit Stones and some pills used for the daily cultivation of Foundation Establishment cultivators.
Among these pills, the most valued by Ji Haoyuan was the one that could extend a cultivator's life.
Named the Ten-Year Pill.
As its name implies, it can extend a cultivator's lifespan by ten years.
Although not much, its intrinsic value as a pill itself is considered quite precious.
Especially in Ji Haoyuan's eyes, this pill that extends a cultivator's life by ten years is undeniably more valuable than anything else.
Next were some minerals and Spirit Grass, and the mask worn by the elder with the mask.
It also turned out to be a Spiritual Artifact.
Only its function isn't for attack or defense, but for concealing one's true face, unable to be penetrated by ordinary Divine Sense.
It's quite a useful auxiliary item.
Ji Haoyuan sorted and categorized these items.
Finally, he looked at the tidy pile of jade slips in the opponent's storage bag.
They were all cultivation techniques inherited by the Sun Family.
They included the Sun Family's core cultivation technique, the Wood Longevity Technique, and another technique named the Primordial Water Technique.
Both cultivation techniques can be trained to the Foundation Establishment level.
However, their content is not very complete.
After reaching the Foundation Establishment realm, there isn't much of a continuation.
If forced to train, reaching mid-foundation establishment might be the limit for these techniques.
Next were some magic techniques and jade slips concerning alchemy, control, and other aspects.
Ji Haoyuan briefly browsed through them.
He identified two techniques currently useful to him.
One was the Beng Mountain Spear Technique of the second rank, the other was the Upper Yuan Sword Point of the second rank.
The former could be utilized with his Crimson Flame Patterned Spear, whereas the latter could serve as a backup attack strategy.
Overall, the gains from this event were fairly substantial.
Especially the Ten-Year Pill and those jade slips from the Sun Family.
The former could allow Ji Bochang to extend his life for another ten years, while the latter could significantly enhance the foundation of the Ji Family.
The only regret was that Ji Haoyuan didn't find any useful clues from the storage bags of the masked elder and others.
Yet, this didn't mean Ji Haoyuan had no thoughts or conjectures.
The fact that the other party carried all the Sun Family's jade slips indicates a desire to rebuild the Sun Family.
However, everyone knows that to rebuild a Foundation Establishment family, having merely a Foundation Establishment cultivator isn't enough.
One crucial and vital point is to have their own estate and Spirit Vein.
The so-called core location of the family.
Like the Ji Family's Qianyang Mountain, the Zhang Family's Dongming Mountain, and the Liu Family's Qingning Mountain.
Without these.
Forget about rebuilding the family, even the daily cultivation of clan members would be an issue.
So.
Could it be that they've set their sights on the Ji Family's Qianyang Mountain and that second-tier inferior Spirit Vein?
This is not an impossible thing but rather highly probable.
The only question Ji Haoyuan still has is on what basis does he believe that after toppling the Ji Family, their Sun Family could take over the Ji Family's Qianyang Mountain?
It's known that the three major Foundation Establishment families in Nanning County each have at least five hundred years of history here.
Interests among the various parties have long been fixed.
Even though the Ji Family is currently in decline, they still maintain control over some crucial interests.
What makes his Sun Family think that, upon the fall of the Ji Family, the other two families would relinquish interests originally belonging to the Ji Family to them?
That's hardly possible.
Unless, behind the Sun Family, there are shadows of the other two families.
Or shadows of one family.
Ji Haoyuan's gaze suddenly turned unusually deep at this moment.
As if penetrating through the void, landing separately on the distant Dongming Mountain and Qingning Mountain.
Could it be you?
Or perhaps, one among you?
Several days later.
After everything at Luoh River Marketplace was reconstructed, Ji Haoyuan didn't linger any longer. He returned to Qianyang Mountain.
Simultaneously.
The news of Ji Haoyuan killing a Foundation Establishment cultivator of the same realm swiftly spread across Nanning County.
For a time, many cultivators were shocked, terrified.
Especially when they personally saw the hanging corpse of the masked elder outside Luoh River Marketplace, the shock in their hearts became increasingly intense.
Because this confirmed a fact, that the news of a second Foundation Establishment cultivator appearing in the Ji Family wasn't mere rumor but a real event.
Moreover, this Foundation Establishment cultivator's strength seemingly far exceeded that of a typical Foundation Establishment cultivator.