Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

The plan was originally flawless. As long as the two puppets could hold out for a little longer, even just for the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, he was confident he could leave the battlefield and escape capture.

But despite all his calculations, he never expected that a completely unreasonable sword cultivator would emerge from the black forest! Xiao Wen, with his Qi Refining Level 7 cultivation, fought against four Qi Refining Level 8 cultivators, including the strange puppet, causing the main puppet to reveal a weakness, which was quickly killed by the family members.

The two puppets were destroyed in quick succession. Since both puppets were connected to his consciousness, their violent destruction in such a short time caused cumulative damage to his soul. However, even if he could recover for a while, he could temporarily suppress his injuries.

However, the time was too short, and the two injuries could not be suppressed and erupted instantly. After all, he was not the real Blood Fiend Four Fiends, and their spiritual power was very different. After the simulated spiritual power aura leaked, it was immediately noticed by the experienced Blood Fiend leader, causing all his efforts to be in vain.

"Everyone, let me explain." While rapidly dodging his leader's increasingly fierce crimson blade energy, Liu Yifeng secretly and frantically activated the remaining essence blood in his body, preparing to unleash the blood escape secret technique, which came at a great cost.

Meanwhile, the late-stage Qi Refining cultivators of the family who had been tricked resumed using various tracking methods to search for any suspicious targets.

Without the strange puppets to attract attention, it wasn't long before they found him and the Four Blood Fiends. This time, it was Liu Yifeng's turn to desperately search for a glimmer of hope for his survival.

A new game of tracking and counter-tracking has begun. Only this time, the roles of hunter and prey have been reversed.

But all of this dramatic and extraordinary events had nothing to do with Lin Xuan and the others.

While Xiao Wen was wreaking havoc and cleaning up the battlefield, Lin Xuan had already taken the Lin family's secret healing pills, stabilizing the terrible wound on her shoulder. When she slowly opened her eyes, she saw Xiao Wen hanging the last storage bag on his waist.

Xiao Wen turned around, looking at Lin Xuan and Lin Qingluo who had helped her up. He deliberately raised his voice, which carried far in the quiet forest: "Fortunately, at least there's someone who understands and didn't try to run away. Hand over your storage bags."

Lin Xuan was taken aback at first, then he understood.

There might still be other cultivators around; those people from before haven't completely dispersed.

They possessed a large amount of wealth obtained from the Seventh Team, like children carrying gold in a bustling city. Without the protection of a powerful figure, they would have no chance of leaving this perilous black forest.

Handing them over to Xiao Wen, who is powerful and has just "saved" them, is actually the safest option.

Seeing that the person who had just saved their lives was now asking them to hand over their storage bags, Lin Qingluo's goodwill towards him plummeted instantly. "Qingluo, give it to him."

Lin Xuan calmed Lin Qingluo down, who was still agitated, and said calmly.

The two handed over all their storage bags, including the special storage bag containing the most valuable supplies.

Xiao Wen accepted the sword without any hesitation, casually hanging it at his waist. Then, he completely ignored them, carrying the bronze sword and slowly walking towards the edge of the forest. His arrogant demeanor seemed to be deliberately attracting those greedy people in the shadows to rob him, and then intentionally killing another wave of them.

Yes, that's very much like a sword cultivator.

Lin Xuan immediately understood his intention, and pulled Lin Qingluo along, following him at a distance.

Sure enough, those eyes hidden in the shadows retreated reluctantly after confirming that the priceless caravan supplies had fallen into Xiao Wen's hands and that Lin Xuan and his companion could no longer get anything out of them.

To provoke a sword cultivator who had just killed several Qi Refining Level 8 cultivators for the sake of two penniless individuals at the fourth and third levels of Qi Refining is simply not worth the risk.

After all, sword cultivators are not only utterly unreasonable in terms of strength, but their personalities are also notoriously unreasonable.

On the other side, after chasing Liu Yifeng for some distance with his family, Lin Tianze realized that things were not going well. With his daughter on his mind, he broke away from the group and searched for her by following the hidden marks he had left behind.

Seemingly sensing Lin Tianze's approach, Xiao Wen, who was walking slowly ahead, paused slightly. He then turned around and gave Lin Xuan a meaningful look. The next moment, a flash of azure light appeared around him, and his speed suddenly exploded. He transformed into a streak of azure light and disappeared into the depths of the dense forest in a few flashes, leaving no trace.

As Lin Xuan and the other person were wondering, a familiar blue stream of light descended from the sky and landed steadily in front of them, revealing Lin Tianze's worried and anxious figure.

"Father!"

Upon seeing her loved ones, Lin Xuan's carefully constructed facade of strength finally crumbled. Like a wronged child, she threw herself into her father's arms and burst into tears, as if she wanted to release all the fear, grievances, and hardships of the past few days.

Lin Tianze stiffened slightly. This usually serious and resolute man looked at his trembling daughter in his arms, and a trace of undisguised heartache and guilt flashed in his eyes.

He raised his slightly heavy hand and gently patted his daughter's back, clumsily comforting her.

He was unwilling to let his daughter get involved in this storm, but Lin Xuan was stubborn and insisted on doing what she had decided to do. As her father, he could only do his best to protect her in secret.

After a while, Lin Xuan's emotions gradually calmed down. Somewhat embarrassed, he lifted his head from his father's arms and introduced Lin Qingluo to him.

"Alright, it's all over." Lin Tianze looked at his daughter's pale but much more determined face, his heart filled with mixed emotions, which finally turned into a soft sigh. "Let's go home." This time, the journey home was uneventful, and the three of them returned safely to Qingfeng Market.

However, what Lin Tianze didn't expect was that thousands of meters above the battlefield, in the clouds, there was a group of people watching the battlefield.

Thousands of meters above the ground, above thick clouds, floats a blue spirit boat.

On the spirit boat, a dozen or so figures stood silently.

The two people seated at the head of the table exuded a profound and unfathomable aura. Their spiritual power was restrained yet naturally emanated a chilling pressure. They were none other than the master of Qingfeng Market, Master Qingming, and the patriarch of the Qiao family.

Beside them stood Qiao Yanran of the Qiao family, Su Qianxue, daughter of Feiyu Shangren, Liu Yuan, son of the Liu family patriarch, and more than ten other cultivators.

Most of these people are at the ninth level of Qi Refining. These are the core elites that the market is truly cultivating and who have the potential to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage in the future.

There are only two groups of people in the market who have the potential to become Foundation Establishment cultivators: one group consists of the dozen or so elites standing here now, and the other group consists of the patriarchs and elders of the various families.

These two groups of people are the core of the market, and they are expected to produce Foundation Establishment cultivators. The group that has arrived today is relatively young.

They arrived here before the Tribulation Cultivators even arrived today. To them, the cultivators fighting on the battlefield below today are perhaps just a trial, a selection process.

The real storms in the market often hinge on the decisions of these high-ranking bystanders.