Hearing the voice, Li Yan slowly turned to look. The speaker was indeed the burly man outside the stall. This man was over a zhang tall and dressed in fine clothes. In his left hand, he held a jadeite pearl the size of a baby's fisted, which he was constantly rolling. The overall impression was that of a bear in human clothing, playing with a tiny chestnut.
Li Yan had already taken note of this burly man when he was walking over. The man was at the peak of the early Foundation Establishment stage, his cultivation quite impressive. At this moment, he was sizing Li Yan up and down with a pair of small, gleaming eyes.
Sun Guoshu's heart was somewhat uneasy. After all, his target today was a cultivator from the Malevolent Spirit Sect. He had been in this free market for nearly twenty years and had taken advantage of countless cultivators. He was generally an extremely cautious person and never meddled with cultivators from the nearby sects. But today, while searching for a fat sheep, he had passed by this Malevolent Spirit Sect female cultivator's stall several times. He observed that she was timid in all her transactions; whatever price someone offered, as long as it wasn't too outrageous, she would agree in a low voice. Some of the prices, in Sun Guoshu's opinion, were practically giveaways.
This made Sun Guoshu take notice. After more than half an hour of observation, he concluded that this female cultivator was a complete novice who had just stepped out into the world. It was likely her first time out alone, and she was ignorant of many things. Seeing this, Sun Guoshu hesitated. This was, after all, a Malevolent Spirit Sect cultivator. Making a move on her could bring about a fatal disaster. But after long consideration, he still couldn't control his greed. Moreover, he had wandered around for several circuits today and the few Malevolent Spirit Sect cultivators he had seen had already left. He hadn't encountered any others, which made the restlessness in his heart unbearable.
'If I pull this off, I'll be set for at least a few months. This little girl has taken in at least two thousand Spirit Stones today. The great sects are truly great sects. For rogue cultivators or cultivators from small sects like me, even if we work ourselves to death, we'd be lucky to earn a few dozen Spirit Stones a month. After this job, I'll just lay low for a few months. I'll make some discreet inquiries later. With this girl's personality, she probably won't make a big deal out of it when she gets back. I'll come out again after the dust settles.'
Having made up his mind, Sun Guoshu circled the market once more. After confirming again that there were no Malevolent Spirit Sect cultivators around, he waited for his moment and then approached the stall.
Who knew that just as he was about to succeed and move on to the next step of his plan, a Qi Condensation cultivator from the Malevolent Spirit Sect would pop out of nowhere. The moment he saw Li Yan, Sun Guoshu was stunned, but after seeing Li Yan's cultivation level, he couldn't help but sneer inwardly.
However, when the young woman in the stall cried out and Li Yan walked out from the crowd step by step with a calm demeanor, Sun Guoshu's heart once again filled with suspicion.
'That girl called him "Junior Brother." She's a Foundation Establishment cultivator, so why would she address a Qi Condensation, eighth-layer cultivator like that? Could it be that this person has concealed his cultivation?' For a moment, Sun Guoshu was unsure how to handle Li Yan's appearance. But seeing Li Yan approach step by step with no one else following behind, Sun Guoshu decided to cast out his Divine Sense and sweep the surroundings. There were no other Malevolent Spirit Sect cultivators within his range, which made him even more hesitant.
'This person is alone. Could he really have hidden his cultivation? But no matter how I look at it, his cultivation seems to be at the eighth layer of Qi Condensation. Could he be a prodigy who was promoted to an Inner Sect disciple ahead of schedule?'
When Sun Guoshu saw Li Yan walk up to the stall without sparing him much of a glance, and hearing the discussions from the onlookers, he knew he couldn't delay any longer and thus spoke up to press the issue.
Looking at Sun Guoshu, Li Yan had already vaguely guessed his scheme, but he hadn't yet asked his fellow sect member what exactly had happened. Thus, he turned a deaf ear to Sun Guoshu's questioning and turned his face to the young woman.
"Senior Sister, what exactly happened?"
Seeing Li Yan ask, and in a manner that seemed very familiar with her, the young woman's heart relaxed. Just as she was about to speak, a powerful Divine Sense swept over, aimed directly at Li Yan. Being so close, she felt the sweep of the Divine Sense as well. It was tyrannical, rolling toward Li Yan without any pause.
Li Yan, however, seemed not to have noticed, his face still calmly directed at the young woman. The young woman's heart lurched with anxiety. Although she had only been at the Foundation Establishment stage for a year, she knew the immense gap between Qi Condensation and Foundation Establishment. While she knew the other party would never dare to take Li Yan's life here, he could still suffer a hidden loss, or even be left with a psychological scar. This incident could then affect Li Yan's future cultivation. A Divine Sense attack was an indescribable assault that would, at the very least, affect one's soul. Moreover, she knew Li Yan's true realm was indeed Qi Condensation, and her heart pounded with alarm.
She steeled her resolve. Though she knew her cultivation was inferior to his, she immediately released her Divine Sense, intending to block the attack for Li Yan. But just as her Divine Sense left her body, the sweeping Divine Sense that had been aimed at Li Yan suddenly vanished about a foot behind him. This stunned her, and she quickly retracted her own Divine Sense.
Sun Guoshu, at this moment, was drenched in a cold sweat. When Li Yan had ignored his questioning, he had hardened his heart and directly sent his Divine Sense to probe Li Yan. He certainly didn't dare to make a killing move; the consequences would be tragic. Without anyone else needing to act, the Golden Core expert overseeing the market would crush him.
His purpose in releasing his Divine Sense was to see what Li Yan's true cultivation realm was. If he was truly at the Qi Condensation stage, his Divine Sense would only make the other's soul tremble and his aura unstable; it wouldn't be fatal. If this kid was truly a Foundation Establishment cultivator, he believed he could find out some clues even if it meant getting injured, and then he would act accordingly. Otherwise, facing an unknown opponent, he wouldn't dare to just walk away now.
The young woman had misjudged the purpose of his probing Divine Sense. The reason was simple: she rarely fought with others, being engrossed in her beloved art. For a moment, she hadn't seen through Sun Guoshu's intentions at all.
Sensing the arrival of Sun Guoshu's incredibly fast Divine Sense, Li Yan's eyes narrowed. He thought, 'Such a sharp and fast Divine Sense. So he's a metal-element cultivator. No wonder he's so bold as to scan an unknown cultivator.' Among the five elements, metal had the strongest attack. Cultivators of the same level were often a cut above their peers, which was why Sun Guoshu, relying on his peak early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivation, felt he could test Li Yan's cultivation realm.
Seeing Li Yan seemingly unaware, standing there motionless like a fool, Sun Guoshu couldn't help but feel a surge of joy. It seemed the other party's cultivation was indeed very low, unable to detect his Divine Sense.
However, when Sun Guoshu's Divine Sense came within a foot of Li Yan's back, a powerful repulsive force sent it bouncing away. The strength of this Divine Sense greatly shocked Sun Guoshu. He was a cultivator at the peak of the early Foundation Establishment stage. To be able to repel his Divine Sense, one had to be at least at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment.
'He... he... he's a mid-to-late stage Foundation Establishment cultivator!' This thought echoed in Sun Guoshu's mind, and cold sweat poured down his back.
His probe, though quick, was still sensed by some of the cultivators nearby. The corners of the mouths of several onlookers curved into expressions that said, "I knew it." These were the few who had guessed from the moment they saw Li Yan that his cultivation was not as pathetic as it appeared on the surface. They just never imagined that Li Yan's actual combat strength, if he were to face a Foundation Establishment cultivator head-on, would crumble instantly. He was simply powerful in his Divine Sense.
This thought was not limited to these few; even Sun Guoshu thought so now. He couldn't help but curse his luck inwardly. 'This person may be young, but he must have reached Foundation Establishment first, and at the mid-stage or higher. To be at the mid-stage of Foundation Establishment at such a young age, his status in the sect must be considerable. This... this... I need to find an excuse to leave quickly. If I let this girl speak, it's over for me.'
The Malevolent Spirit Sect young woman standing in the stall had a look of utter disbelief on her face. Especially when Li Yan's Divine Sense had appeared for that instant, her eyes showed a flicker of astonishment, but she was quickly brought back to her senses by Li Yan's question.
"Senior Sister, tell me what happened." As Li Yan spoke, the young woman calmed her emotions and slowly recounted the events. This caused the surrounding people to show expressions of "as expected." Many of them knew what this Sun Guoshu was all about.
The young woman was a disciple of Four Symbols Peak. She had just successfully reached Foundation Establishment last year and had only stabilized her realm a few months ago. She was quite skilled in the art of mechanical puppetry. Today, another Foundation Establishment senior brother from Four Symbols Peak was supposed to bring her to the trading city, but he had to attend to an urgent matter and postponed the trip. However, the young woman urgently needed several materials for a puppet she was researching, and her Spirit Stones were running low after crafting a batch of puppets. If she waited for that senior brother, it would be another month. The few senior brothers and sisters on her peak whom she was familiar with were either in seclusion or out on training expeditions.
Finally, the young woman gritted her teeth and came to the Peiyang Trading City alone. This was her first time leaving the sect. Although she had a simple jade slip map for guidance, by the time she arrived, it was nearly noon. She headed straight for the free market. After selling the five puppets she had, she planned to use the Spirit Stones to buy the raw materials she needed and return to the sect. But just as she had sold the last puppet and casually placed a puppet she was currently researching on the table, Sun Guoshu appeared. This puppet was one she would often take out to examine whenever no customers were around.
Just as she was about to pack up and leave, Sun Guoshu showed up and asked for the price of the puppet. The young woman thought he was asking about the items she had just sold and, while packing her things, casually replied, "Four hundred low-grade Spirit Stones."
Hearing this, Sun Guoshu said "good" and reached for the puppet on the table, while his other hand pretended to fish for Spirit Stones. When the young woman saw a hand reaching for the puppet on the table, she was instantly alarmed and snatched it back. How could she be willing to sell it? This puppet was something she was in the middle of researching and was not for sale.
Her action, however, made Sun Guoshu refuse to back down, and he began to shout and clamor.
After hearing this, not only Li Yan but also many of the surrounding cultivators understood the cause of the matter. Recalling the earlier whispers about this man, Li Yan instantly understood Sun Guoshu's scheme.
This Sun Guoshu was likely a long-time regular here, probably a rogue cultivator. He used trickery and intimidation to cheat or extort visiting rogue cultivators or those from small sects. Today, seeing that this Senior Sister from Four Symbols Peak was a greenhorn just entering the martial world, he had decided to target her.
Through this brief contact, Li Yan had a general understanding of the Senior Sister from Four Symbols Peak before him. He sighed inwardly that a Foundation Establishment cultivator, and a member of the Malevolent Spirit Sect at that, was being bullied like this. This Senior Sister was likely the type who focused solely on ascetic cultivation and was engrossed in the art of mechanical puppetry. She had very little experience in the martial world and a very gentle personality. This was evident from the fact that even when speaking to Li Yan, her voice was extremely soft, as if she were afraid of disturbing others.
Knowing the full story, Li Yan had a plan.