Leaving the Market

Shen Jingchuan cultivated all night, and as dawn broke, he stopped his practice, got up, and went out into the courtyard.

The morning air was a little cool. He took two deep breaths and felt refreshed and full of energy.

A short while later, Huan'er also came out. She was stunned when she saw the people in the courtyard.

"Young Master Shen, you've finished your training so early."

Shen Jingchuan turned around and responded with a smile.

"Hmm. Miss Huan'er, do you still have any pills for your cultivation?"

Upon hearing this, Huan'er quickly waved her hand.

"Yes, yes, yes, please don't give me any more, I have enough."

Shen Jingchuan glanced at her and shook his head.

"You're definitely not good enough, otherwise why would your progress be so slow? With such good pills, you should have broken through another level by now."

Huan'er's face fell, she sighed, and looked up at him.

"I only have Five Spirit Roots, and it's uncertain whether I can even reach the Qi Refining Late Stage in this lifetime. I just broke through, and I've only been cultivating for a short time, yet I've already broken through another level? Do you think everyone is like you?"

She suddenly took half a step closer and lowered her voice.

"Young Master Shen, tell me the truth, do you possess Heaven Spirit Root?"

Shen Jingchuan looked at her, slowly nodded, and grinned.

"You guess."

Huan'er rolled her eyes at him, then turned and left.

"I'm ignoring you, go cook."

A while later, Xiao Mingshu came out of the house. Shen Jingchuan saw her, cupped his hands in greeting from afar, and spoke in a clear voice.

Good morning, Princess.

Xiao Mingshu paused, knowing from his form of address that he was in a very good mood. She stepped forward and gave him a disapproving look.

"What's wrong? You seem to be in such a good mood, teasing me first thing in the morning."

Shen Jingchuan stopped laughing and his expression became serious.

"I've made up my mind. After we finish eating, I'll go check out that Qi Kingdom State market you mentioned."

Xiao Mingshu raised an eyebrow.

"Aren't you afraid the Wang Household will intercept and kill you outside?"

Shen Jingchuan waved his hand, his tone indifferent.

"The Lineage has already given word. If they don't intercept me, fine, but if they dare to make a move, they'll be the ones who die."

Xiao Mingshu stared at him for a couple of seconds, and seeing his confident demeanor, she believed him. She hesitated for a moment.

"In that case, Huan'er and I will go with you and get some fresh air."

Shen Jingchuan shook his head.

"You two had better not go. Especially Huan'er, her cultivation is too low, she'd be a burden if she went along."

Xiao Mingshu was Qi Ingestion and pointed at herself.

"And what about me? I can't be a burden too, can I?"

Shen Jingchuan looked at her and nodded seriously.

Xiao Mingshu was so angry she laughed.

"Fine! I offered to accompany you because I was worried you might encounter danger on the road, and you just say I'm a burden."

Shen Jingchuan had already planned ahead; he wouldn't bring anyone with him on this trip.

He should delay revealing his trump card as long as possible. Azure Cloud Stronghold has already raised its flag in rebellion, opposing the Xiao Household's rule. Sooner or later, he will have to confront the Xiao Household head-on.

No matter how good their relationship was, Xiao Mingshu was still surnamed Xiao. It wasn't that he didn't trust her, but there was no need to.

Furthermore, this trip was inherently dangerous. He was confident because of the two spirit beasts in his Ring that were comparable to Foundation Establishment, but no one could say for sure what other tricks the other party might be hiding.

If he really let Xiao Mingshu come along, he wouldn't even dare to release his spirit beasts, which would make things difficult and restrictive.

Shen Jingchuan made up his mind, turned to look at her, and cupped his hands in a respectful gesture.

"Sister, tell me the locations of those two markets. I'll ride Big Black there and be right back; it won't take long."

Xiao Mingshu frowned and looked him up and down.

"That's not right. With such a powerful background Shen Household, you don't even know where a market town is?"

Shen Jingchuan's heart skipped a beat.

Oh no, he'd messed up the conversation. He didn't show it on his face, just chuckled, his mind racing.

"Sister, didn't I tell you before? Our Shen Household doesn't even live in this area; we live far away."

He shrugged, looking helpless.

"I'm unfamiliar with this area; how can I compare to you?"

As he spoke, he simply started to act shamelessly.

"Look at you, asking so many questions. Just tell me, are you going to tell me or not?"

Xiao Mingshu opened her mouth, but swallowed the words back, feeling utterly annoyed.

She had already told herself not to pry into his affairs, but why did she do it again? She glared at him irritably and sighed.

"Alright, alright, I'll give it to you, okay?"

She turned and went into the house. A moment later, she took out a blank Jade Slip, probed it with her Divine Sense, and imprinted the location, distance, and landmarks along the way of the two markets into it.

"Here." She tossed him the Jade Slip. "One to the east and one to the north, both about seven or eight hundred miles away, beyond the Great Qian Kingdom. I've marked the routes on it; you can find them with your Divine Sense."

Shen Jingchuan reached out and caught it, then probed it with his Divine Sense. Sure enough, the mountains and roads were clearly visible, like a living map. His eyes lit up, and he cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards her.

"Sister, you're so thoughtful."

After finishing his meal and bidding farewell to Xiao Mingshu and her servant, Shen Jingchuan went out. He first probed his Heaven and Earth Ring with his Divine Sense to greet Big Black and give it a heads-up.

He pretended to pat the Spirit Beast Pouch, then, on a whim, released Big Black.

As soon as the Big Black hoof landed, it looked around and nuzzled him with its head. Shen Jingchuan led the reins and walked slowly towards the market exit, and no one asked any questions along the way.

Once outside the market gate, he mounted his horse.

With a probe of his Divine Sense into the Jade Slip, the location of the market in the east was clearly revealed—it was located in a large mountain called Green Wilds Mountain in the southern part of the Qi Kingdom, and the market was also called Green Wilds Market, more than 700 li away from here.

He knew in his heart that the Wang Household would most likely try to abduct him along the way.

In the past, he would have either taken a detour or run away in a fit of rage.

But things are different now. With two second-tier Demon Beasts hidden in the Ring, he is very confident.

They are just as careful as they should be, and would never make the foolish mistake of being caught red-handed.

Shen Jingchuan the reins, but didn't urge the horse to gallop faster.

He sat on horseback, trotting slowly eastward at a normal pace, a mischievous smile playing on his lips.

If you want to rob me, then come on. It's not easy for them to be watching and following me from so far away; we should give them time to set up an ambush, shouldn't we?

Once outside the valley, Shen Jingchuan knew that he had left the territory of Spirit Creek Market.

Along the way, someone could make a move at any moment. Besides the Wang Household, there might be other eyes eyeing this piece of fat meat.

But he wasn't flustered at all; on the contrary, he seemed to be secretly looking forward to it.

His cultivation level, Law Treasures, and helpers have all been replaced, and he hasn't even had a proper fight yet. He himself feels that he is now terrifyingly strong.

We traveled eastward for about half an hour when suddenly we heard the sound of horses' hooves behind us, fast and rapid, as if they were galloping towards us.

Shen Jingchuan didn't turn around; instead, he released his Divine Sense to probe behind him. They were still far away, so he couldn't get a clear view.

After a while, the auras of those five people finally entered his Divine Sense.

He pulled on the reins, rode Big Black away from the official road, and retreated to a clearing far away.

Making way for someone is polite, but he couldn't give the other party an opportunity to suddenly attack while they were passing by, otherwise there wouldn't be enough time to react. Staying away from the main road was cleaner.

Shen Jingchuan reined in his horse, turned around, and quietly looked back at the path he had come from.

Seeing that he had stopped far away and was waiting facing him, the five riders slowed down and finally reined in their horses a few dozen paces away.

Shen Jingchuan used his Heavenly Eye Peering into Truth Instruction to scan the opponent's background and knew everything clearly.

The leader was a Qi Refining Great Perfection, followed by a Qi Refining Ninth Layer and three Eighth Layer of Qi Refining.

He just watched them.

The leader cupped his hands in greeting, speaking politely, but there was no smile on his face; his eyes were dark and brooding as he looked the man up and down.

"May I ask if the person opposite me is Shen Jingchuan, my Young Friend Shen?"