Cultivation begins in Qingfeng Market.

Old Master Wu let out a long sigh of relief, his face filled with barely concealed excitement, and carefully maintained the operation of the formation.

He nearly exhausted himself trying to capture this spirit beast, which was known for its illusions and agility.

Pharmacist Chen strode forward, took out a specially made spirit beast pouch and several ropes engraved with spirit-sealing runes, preparing to claim this priceless trophy.

The sealing rope had already been placed around the neck of the Bewitching Fox, and Pharmacist Chen was preparing to put it into his spirit beast pouch.

A sudden change occurred! "Whoosh—whoosh whoosh!"

Several sharp whooshing sounds came from the depths of the thick fog without warning, their speed astonishing! Immediately afterwards, four streaks of light, each a different color but equally imposing, arrived in an instant and hovered above the stone forest.

The light faded, revealing four figures.

The leader was a young man dressed in a moon-white brocade robe. He had a handsome face, but his eyes carried an arrogant air of superiority. He wore a long sword with a hazy spiritual light at his waist, and its spiritual power fluctuations had reached the peak of the seventh level of Qi Refining.

He was followed by two men and a woman, all dressed in the same style of brocade robes, clearly disciples of a sect, and all at the seventh level of Qi Refining.

They stood on identical flying magical artifacts, highlighting their extraordinary origins.

The moment these four appeared, their powerful spiritual pressure crashed down like an invisible boulder, making it hard for the members of Gao Yuan's team to breathe.

Gao Yuan's pupils contracted sharply, and his heavy sword instantly left its sheath a third of its length. A dark red spiritual light instinctively shone forth, protecting his team members.

Lin Zhao's four elemental beads silently slipped into her sleeve, and the four beads gathered together, their spiritual power surging.

Chu Xin's Ice Soul Sword emitted a soft hum, and icy blue spiritual light flowed within the scabbard.

Everyone sensed that the newcomers had ill intentions.

The young man in the brocade robe glanced over the ravaged stone forest, finally settling on the Bewitching Fox trapped by the formation. A hint of undisguised greed and satisfaction flashed in his eyes.

He slightly raised his chin and spoke in a matter-of-fact tone:

"This Bewitching Fox is for my Thousand Glory Sect."

The voice was calm, yet carried an undeniable authority.

The expressions on the faces of the Tianfeng Squad members instantly turned extremely ugly.

The Thousand Radiance Sect! One of the three major sects of the Cloud Mist Mountain Range, it is a powerful force, and its disciples are known for their arrogance and domineering behavior.

Gao Yuan suppressed his anger, stepped forward, and bowed respectfully, saying, "Fellow Daoist of the Thousand Radiance Sect, this fox was captured by my Po Jun Squad after a hard-fought battle."

"A bitter struggle?" The young man in the brocade robe scoffed, interrupting him.

He glanced disdainfully at the group of people who were in poor condition. "So what? This Bewitching Fox is of great use to us. It is your honor to be conscripted." He deliberately emphasized the word "conscripted".

Cheng Jin gripped the bronze seal tightly, his knuckles turning white.

Old Wu maintained the formation, daring to be angry but not daring to speak out.

Lin Zhao's eyes were icy, and the four-element pearl in her sleeve trembled slightly.

He could clearly sense the other party's undisguised contempt and domineering attitude. It was a sense of superiority stemming from their sect, viewing ordinary cultivators as ants that could be manipulated at will.

Upon seeing this, a tall, thin disciple behind the young man in the brocade robe snorted coldly, stepped forward, and said sternly, "What? Do you intend to disobey the orders of my Thousand Glory Sect?"

Before he finished speaking, a crimson longsword was already half an inch from its sheath behind him, and a scorching fire-attribute spiritual pressure surged toward Gao Yuan and the others, full of provocation.

Another female disciple chuckled and spoke up, her voice laced with sarcasm: "Senior brother, why waste your breath on them? A bunch of rabble. It's their good fortune that they can serve my Thousand Glory Sect. The right thing to do is to hurry up and take the Spirit Fox."

Gao Yuan's face was ashen. The arrogant attitude of the Qianhuang Sect disciples was like ice water poured over his head, instantly calming him down.

To back down? To hand over the opportunity that was within his grasp, and then suffer the humiliation of being "requisitioned"? That word didn't exist in Gao Yuan's dictionary!

Ultimately, it was those figures hovering in mid-air that made Gao Yuan make up his mind.

Although late-stage Qi Refining cultivators can briefly fly, this is the perilous Cloud and Mist Mountain Range. Even a seasoned Qi Refining Ninth Level expert would never easily fly and become a sitting duck in the air.

The fact that the other side chose to fly in order to create pressure and demonstrate their superiority precisely exposes their novice nature, which lacks real life-or-death experience.

"Since it is a fellow Daoist from the Thousand Radiance Sect who has taken a liking to you," Gao Yuan's facial muscles twitched as if he were enduring a great humiliation, and he spoke with a strained voice.

At the same time, his hands, hidden behind his back, rapidly made a series of hand gestures known only to the team—"Prepare to attack, Mind-Bewildering Fox, Distract your vision."

The command was clearly given, and Lin Zhao's eyes sharpened as he secretly drew upon the spiritual power of the Four Symbols Pearl in his sleeve.

Chu Xin's Ice Soul Sword slightly concealed its cold gleam, while Cheng Jin cooperated by revealing an increasingly unwilling yet helpless expression of frustration.

Gao Yuan's tone shifted subtly at this moment, carrying a final hint of insistence as he looked up at the young man in brocade robes: "This fox was indeed obtained by our brothers at the cost of their lives. If your sect truly needs it, could we conduct a fair trade according to the rules of the market?"

"trade?"

The young man in the brocade robe seemed to have heard the funniest joke in the world, and a sneer curled up at the corner of his mouth.

He didn't bother to say another word, only expressing his contempt through his actions.

He casually took out a shrunken little cloth bag from his storage pouch at his waist, turned the bag upside down, and dozens of low-grade spirit stones scattered out with a clatter.

He didn't even bother to hand it over himself, but instead tossed it away casually, like dismissing a beggar.

The dozens of spirit stones, gleaming with a faint yet ironic light, were hurled at Gao Yuan and his group!

The trails left by the spirit stones were no longer symbols of wealth, but rather naked marks of humiliation, crashing down on everyone's dignity.

Old Wu seemed to finally give in, letting out a muffled groan as his hands trembled violently, causing the array that had trapped the Bewitching Fox to flicker erratically!

"Crack!" The spiritual chains binding the Bewitching Fox shattered! The freed fox let out a sharp screech, a mixture of fear and rage, and transformed into a swift white blur.

Driven by instinct, they darted headlong into the intricate crevices of the stone forest without looking back!

"Oh no! The fox demon is trying to escape!" the female disciple of the sect exclaimed in alarm. Seeing that her long-desired spirit pet was about to disappear, she completely disregarded the formation and the enemy in front of her. With a flash of spiritual light around her, she took to the air and chased after it without hesitation!

It's now!

"Attack!" Gao Yuan's roar was like a thunderclap! The heavy sword in his hand erupted with a raging crimson flame that had been suppressed for a long time, like a volcanic eruption, and with an unstoppable momentum, he fiercely slashed at the leading brocade-robed youth!

The young man possessed exceptional fighting instincts; he swiftly shifted his body and narrowly avoided the attack.

But out of the corner of his eye, he saw that his junior sister had already ventured deep into the area alone. He cursed inwardly, but he had no choice but to spare his attention to support her. He could only swing his sword to meet Gao Yuan's angry attack head-on.

"boom!"

The flames and magic collided violently, causing spiritual energy to surge and sending all the rubble on the ground flying!