Besides the Red Lotus Karma Fire Sutra, there were plenty of other items in the Storage Bag. Lu Yan took them out and tallied them one by one.
The Storage Bag contained a total of two thousand three hundred Spirit Stones, two Mid-Grade Magic Items, five bottles of unfamiliar pills, two books, and more than a dozen first-tier High-Grade talismans.
Apart from those, the Storage Bag held nothing else.
"So poor?"
Surprise showed in Lu Yan's eyes. This amount of wealth seemed far from befitting Cheng Yu, a Foundation Establishment Great Cultivator from a major sect.
Just then, the vengeful ghosts Lu Yan had ordered to search the surrounding area began returning. They brought two magical artifacts and laid them before him.
The White Bone Bell and the Blood Hook Flying Sword.
Both were High-Grade Demonic Path magical artifacts Cheng Yu had used in the earlier battle. The White Bone Bell, its bones as white as jade, was already covered in cracks and had been damaged during the fight.
The Blood Hook Flying Sword had also been corroded by the many vengeful ghosts, and most of its spiritual essence had been depleted.
Looking at the two spoils before him, Lu Yan thought carefully about the battle.
The Blood-Bearded Giant Ghost's surprise attack had immediately destroyed the other man's umbrella-shaped High-Grade magical artifact. The ensuing battle had also consumed more than a dozen second-grade talismans, his robe, and the blood-red lotus platform he had used to fly away.
Counting the High-Grade White Bone Bell he had used at the start, along with the Blood Hook Flying Sword he had brought out to launch a sneak attack, Cheng Yu had indeed been quite well-off.
Most of the useful things in the Storage Bag had already been used up. What remained was hardly surprising.
"It's a shame most of the magical artifacts were destroyed. Even the flying artifact, that blood-red lotus platform, was smashed to pieces by Giant Spirit's strike. Otherwise, I could have put it to use."
Lu Yan murmured regretfully. Just then, another vengeful ghost presented him with a Storage Bag, this one belonging to He Luyuan.
A Mid-Stage Qi Refinement cultivator naturally didn't have much wealth. All told, he had only a little over fifty Spirit Stones. The one thing Lu Yan was pleased to find in the Storage Bag was a Low-Grade Flying Boat artifact.
After surveying the battlefield, Lu Yan saw that everything seemed to have been cleared away. He was about to recall the vengeful ghosts and leave.
At that moment, a vengeful ghost suddenly poked its head out of the ground, struggling to drag something up from below.
Only after taking a closer look did Lu Yan notice that it was a square Array Disk buried deep underground.
The Array Disk seemed to be earth-attributed, able to merge with the ground and shape it into an array foundation.
Lu Yan's face lit up with delight. He personally helped pull the Array Disk out of the earth.
The words "Spirit Gathering" were clearly inscribed on it. A closer look revealed that it was a second-tier formation, and Lu Yan immediately thought of the dense spiritual energy he had sensed upon first entering the courtyard.
"The dense spiritual energy in the courtyard earlier must have been connected to this formation, right?"
But Lu Yan had no time to study it just then.
After putting away the Array Disk, Lu Yan turned his gaze to the three bodies of the Scavenger Team hanging on the wooden frame.
He had only met the three once, and, in a way, he had even saved their lives.
All three were supernatural beings. In the Apocalypse Version, they would likely have survived as long as they didn't venture deep into ruined cities.
Who could have guessed that after escaping one calamity, they would run into an even greater one almost at once? Cheng Yu, a disciple of the Red Lotus Demonic Sect, had captured and tortured them.
With a soft sigh, Lu Yan released a wisp of Profound Yellow Merit Fire, which swallowed the three bodies of the Scavenger Team.
Flames rose through the mountain woods in the dead of night, swiftly turning the courtyard into a sea of fire and erasing every trace of Lu Yan.
Then Lu Yan piloted the newly acquired Flying Boat and sped toward Azure Valley Market.
At dawn, Lu Yan piloted the Flying Boat out of the Wushan region.
Looking back at the endless stretch of mountains, Lu Yan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
He had planned to return to Azure Valley Market the previous night, but had overlooked the greatest threat in Wushan: the demon beasts that lurked everywhere.
Over the course of the night, Lu Yan had accidentally entered the territory of three Foundation Establishment demon beasts and been hunted by their packs.
If not for the Hundred Soul Banner protecting him, there would likely have been nothing left of him by now.
This close call had quickly brought Lu Yan back to his senses after his confidence had begun to swell.
Among these Rogue Cultivators, Foundation Establishment-level strength was indeed impressive. But in the Xianxia Version as a whole, it merely meant he had climbed out of the very bottom.
Countless powerful beings in the Xianxia Version could threaten him.
And the Xianxia Version was only one of the world's updated versions; it could even be called one of the relatively safer ones.
"Future Version Updates will surely bring even more threats. I absolutely can't let myself get carried away over a mere Foundation Establishment-level strength."
Murmuring to himself, Lu Yan headed toward the entrance to Azure Valley Market.
As soon as he arrived, Lu Yan saw that a long queue had formed outside the market. More than a dozen Qi Refinement cultivators in blue uniforms stood nearby, arrogantly directing the Rogue Cultivators into line.
Startled, Lu Yan stopped without approaching and chose to watch from a distance.
The Rogue Cultivators at the front seemed to be discussing something with the Qi Refinement cultivators. Their words provoked furious protests from some of the Rogue Cultivators, and during the argument, a few even tried to turn and leave.
Just then, a streak of Escaping Light came speeding from afar. A young cultivator in a robe landed above the market entrance, releasing the full force of his Foundation Establishment aura without restraint.
Every cultivator present felt their heart tighten. Even those who had tried to leave stopped in their tracks.
The young cultivator called out, "I am Xie Yun, an Inner Sect Disciple of the Azure Parasol Sect. I have come on orders from the Azure Parasol Sect Enforcement Hall to investigate Demonic Path activity.
"All of you need only open your Storage Bags for inspection. Once you pass the screening, you may enter Azure Valley Market."
An uproar immediately broke out among the Rogue Cultivators.
A Storage Bag's importance to a cultivator went without saying, especially since most of those present were Rogue Cultivators, and each had more or less some secrets of their own.
They had come to the market to trade. If Azure Valley Market wouldn't have them, they could go elsewhere. What sense was there in handing their secrets over to someone else?
"We're not going into Azure Valley Market!"
"It's just one market. At worst, I'll go to another."
Even Lu Yan took an inconspicuous step back.
The other cultivators only feared that their secrets might be discovered. Lu Yan's situation was entirely different.
If the Hundred Soul Banner and Demonic Path Cultivation Technique in his Storage Bag were exposed, he would surely be branded a Demonic Path Cultivator on the spot, and countless troubles would follow.
"Silence!"
A clear sword hum rang out. The flying sword circling beside Xie Yun fixed its keen gaze on everyone present.
"This is no request. It is an order from the Azure Parasol Sect Enforcement Hall!"
"Once we've inspected your Storage Bags and confirmed you aren't Demonic Path lackeys, you'll be free to leave. Anyone who defies the laws of the Azure Parasol Sect will be executed!"
Everyone fell silent, too frightened to meet the sharp gaze of the Foundation Establishment Great Cultivator.
Lu Yan lowered his head too, but there was no fear in his eyes—only confusion.
"Azure Valley Market belongs to the Azure Parasol Sect. Forcing cultivators to submit to Storage Bag inspections is unquestionably an act of self-sabotage.
"Once the market's reputation is ruined, Rogue Cultivators will stop coming, and this cultivation market will inevitably decline."
"Besides, there are plenty of ways to find Demonic Path Cultivators. This is undoubtedly the least efficient and most costly method.
"They're paying such a steep price and gaining nothing. This doesn't look like a search for Demonic Path Cultivators at all. It looks like a deliberate attempt to ruin Azure Valley Market's reputation!"
Lu Yan immediately thought of Jade Polishing Fairy, who had lost her post guarding Bamboo Forest Market and now had only Azure Valley Market left to oversee.
"Their target isn't Demonic Path Cultivators. It's Jade Polishing Fairy!"
"She's a true disciple of the Azure Parasol Sect, yet she has only one market left to oversee. She's already become a laughingstock within the sect.
"If Azure Valley Market declines as well, Jade Polishing Fairy will inevitably bear most of the blame. By then, even her position as a true disciple will be in jeopardy!"
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