Traces Revealed

Leaving the Transmission Hall, Zhao Wang arrived at a palace.

A figure was already waiting here.

He stood with his hands behind his back, wearing a Golden Mask, his entire body emanating a faint, chilly aura. It was none other than Shi Tao, the Inner Disciple in charge of the entire Blackwood Cliff.

"Senior Brother."

Zhao Wang cupped his fists, extremely respectful.

"How did things go?"

Glancing at him, Shi Tao asked indifferently.

"The three of them knew what was good for them and have already taken the Bone-Gnawing Pill."

"It seems they all know what's good for them." Shi Tao nodded, then added, "On Blood Soul Peak and indeed throughout the entire Demonic Sect, loyalty is the most important thing. Absolute loyalty is the only kind of loyalty; anything less is disloyalty."

"In your view, who among them is most worthy of cultivation?"

Zhao Wang was startled. Knowing that Senior Brother Shi was testing him, he mused, "Judging by aptitude, that Yin-Attracting Physique has the greatest potential, though her background is somewhat strange."

"As for second, that Lin Fan is also not bad, and his background is clear. He was personally abducted back to the mountain by the Saintess, so there shouldn't be too many issues."

"Understood."

A sharp glint flashed in Shi Tao's eyes.

"Right, keep an eye on this batch of menial disciples in the Hidden Scripture Pavilion recently. The Market Below the Mountain is not peaceful."

"Could something have happened at the market?"

Zhao Wang was startled. The Market Below the Mountain was not large, but it was the territory of the Blood Demon Sect. Could someone dare to act so recklessly there?

"The remnants under several feudal princes have sneaked in, and several people have already died, including one or two formal disciples."

"The sect has sent people to investigate, but it will be hard to track their traces for a while."

Market Below the Mountain.

Lin Fan surveyed his surroundings, a look of surprise on his face.

Compared to the last time he came, both the stall owners setting up shop and the people shopping had decreased significantly. At a glance, the volume of people had dropped by at least a third. What had happened?

"Boss, why is this place so abnormal?"

Lin Fan was very curious, and immediately and politely addressed a stall owner not far away, voicing the doubt in his heart.

"Little brother, you must not know yet."

"Over this past month, several murder cases have occurred outside the market. One or two Blood Demon Sect formal disciples have died, and as for menial disciples, there are several."

"It is said that each of their deaths was extremely tragic; not only was their vital essence sucked dry, but even their human skin was peeled off."

This stall owner was plump and also wore the attire of a Blood Demon Sect formal disciple.

He humted and continued, "Not many people dare to come to the market to set up stalls and buy things now, unless they are reckless like you and me."

He gave a self-deprecating smile, his expression devoid of fear, seemingly quite confident in his own strength.

Right now, the stall owners who dared to set up shop inside the market were fierce individuals with a few tricks up their sleeves; otherwise, who would dare to play with their own life?

Lin Fan came to a sudden realization. After offering words of thanks to the stall owner, he hurriedly searched for a stall selling talisman materials.

Since the market was unsafe, he needed to seize the time, buy his desired talisman materials, and leave as soon as possible.

Talisman materials were rather obscure items, and the market was somewhat desolate right now. After searching for half an hour, Lin Fan finally found a stall in a remote corner.

The stall was covered with talisman brushes, talisman paper, cinnabar used for making talismans, and various other talisman-making supplies.

"Azure Goat Talisman Brush, increases talisman-making success rate by three percent, price: 20 contribution points."

"Black Ox Talisman Brush, increases talisman-making success rate by five percent, price: 30 contribution points."

Just by glancing at them, Lin Fan was startled. Even a very basic talisman brush was quite expensive, and that was not even counting the other talisman materials.

No wonder Zhao Wang reminded them to take a look at the Talisman Secret Tome and not casually learn to draw talismans. Setting aside whether one could succeed, just the materials needed for talisman-making were a huge expense!

The stall owner was a woman, very tall with snow-white, delicate skin.

She wore a black veil over her face, revealing only eyes as bright and clear as water. Even so, she could vaguely be told to be a charming and moving beauty.

"Boss, calculate how much the Azure Goat Talisman Brush, basic talisman paper, and cinnabar come to together."

Lin Fan gritted his teeth and spoke.

He had only just become a formal disciple and had twenty contribution points. Even adding the contribution points he previously obtained from killing Wu Hai, the total right now did not exceed two hundred contribution points.

Yet in order to practice talismans, he had to bleed heavily and steel his heart.

"The Azure Goat Talisman Brush is 20 contribution points, and the basic talisman paper and cinnabar together are 40 contribution points. All together, I'll charge you 60 contribution points."

The stall owner spoke, her voice exceptionally light and melodious.

Lin Fan was startled, feeling that he had heard this voice somewhere before, but for a moment he could not quite place it.

He did not dwell on this question, but rather let his eyes flicker and tentatively said, "50 contribution points, I'll take it."

"60 contribution points, not a single point less."

The stall owner refused to yield an inch.

She had seen plenty of formal disciples who, disregarding their talent and personal circumstances, gambled and tried their luck purchasing talisman materials to practice talismans. In the end, they not only wasted contribution points and energy, but also delayed their cultivation time.

She had seen plenty of such leeks, though of course she wouldn't remind them and would only continually harvest them.

"55, I'll take it."

Lin Fan wore a look of heartache.

His expression was not feigned; it was genuine heartache.

"60, take it or leave it."

The stall owner glanced at Lin Fan, extremely forceful.

Because she remembered that it was precisely the youth before her who had bought a secret manual from her stall last time and haggled with her.

No matter what, she could not let the other party succeed again this time.

"Fine, you're ruthless."

Lin Fan was somewhat speechless. Too lazy to continue entangling, he could only agree to the stall owner's asking price.

Beneath her veil, the female stall owner's lips curved into a pleasing arc.

After the transaction was complete, Lin Fan did not linger, taking the talisman materials and leaving the market directly.

"Last time he chose an Intermediate Demonic Arts for formal disciples to cultivate, and this time he bought talisman materials."

"This kid is not simple."

Watching Lin Fan's departing back, the female stall owner's eyes flickered as she muttered to herself.

At that moment, she suddenly emitted a soft "oh" sound, her peripheral vision catching a glimpse of one or two figures suddenly following in the direction Lin Fan had left.

"This is getting interesting."

She clicked her tongue in wonder.

Having just left the market, Lin Fan felt that something was amiss.

Before he had walked very far, his brows furrowed slightly.

Lin Fan felt he had been very careful, but he had not expected to still attract the attention of interested parties.

A moment later, Lin Fan suddenly stopped, turned to look behind him, and spoke, "Sorry for the trouble of following for so long, you two might as well come out and chat."

As his voice fell, the space behind him remained empty and devoid of the slightest movement.

Lin Fan was not in a hurry either. Instead, he stayed in place without moving, staring straight in one direction.

After standing in this stalemate for a full quarter of an hour, a subtle sound suddenly arrived, and two figures appeared side by side.

One was tall and the other was thin, and both wore strange masks, making it impossible to see their true appearances.

"Well, well, you little demon sect brat, you actually managed to discover our traces."

The man wearing the Blood-Pattern Mask spoke, his tone carrying a hint of mockery and vigilance.

They had concealed their traces and committed crimes outside the market many times, and this was the first time they had encountered someone who could actively discover their traces.