Diverting Calamity Eastward

Wang Daoyuan was injured on top of his injuries, spitting out several large mouthfuls of blood, barely managing to stay conscious. He had to commit to the act, with only one line of dialogue left, and couldn't falter now. Mustering all his strength, he shouted, "Ninth Uncle, he snatched the goods!"

Before he finished speaking, he fainted.

Wang Zhide, with his Qi Refining Peak cultivation and protective spells, was in much better shape than Wang Daoyuan, despite his defenses being breached by a sword and him spitting blood. He still had some fight left in him.

Hearing Wang Daoyuan's words, he roared, "Stop, thief! Leave the goods!"

Immediately, he unleashed two second-tier low-grade Golden Saber Talismans. Two small golden blades shot towards the shadowy figure.

A dismissive laugh echoed from the shadowy figure. With a casual wave of his hand, a beam of sword energy flew out. It collided with the golden blades, which were instantly annihilated. The sword energy continued its trajectory towards Wang Zhide.

Wang Zhide summoned another second-tier low-grade Golden Armor Talisman. The sword energy struck, colliding with the golden armor, and both vanished. Wang Zhide fell to the ground, spitting out another mouthful of blood.

Second-tier low-grade talismans were said to possess power comparable to a strike from an early Foundation Establishment cultivator. In reality, before a true Foundation Establishment cultivator, they were utterly outmatched. Three second-tier low-grade talismans couldn't even fully negate a casual blow from a Foundation Establishment cultivator.

Wang Zhide called for his clansmen working in the shop, instructing them to carry Wang Daoyuan away for treatment and to deactivate the shop's defensive formation.

The shadowy figure, now high in the sky, rapidly fled towards the outskirts of the market. At this moment, a vast expanse of sword light erupted from around Wang family's two shops, pursuing the shadowy figure, a truly spectacular sight.

Wang Zhide secretly breathed a sigh of relief. That was close. Fortunately, they had all left. Otherwise, with this group of Foundation Establishment cultivators, wiping out the Wang family wouldn't take much time at all.

While the Foundation Establishment cultivators had departed, some Qi Refining cultivators were unwilling to leave. Before long, someone couldn't hold back.

An elderly cultivator entered the general store and cupped his hands towards the pale-faced Wang Zhide. "Does Daoist Wang have any interest in selling the Clear River Carp? This humble one is not talented, but I am quite well-off and wish to purchase the Clear River Carp. What are your thoughts, Daoist Wang?"

Before he finished speaking, Wang Zhide erupted in fury. "Zhao Baoguo, are you trying to bully my Wang family into thinking we have no one? I, Wang Zhide, admit my own incompetence and that I am no match for a Foundation Establishment senior. However, it hasn't reached the point where a mere eighth-level Qi Refining cultivator like you can ride roughshod over me. Even if I am severely injured, I can still destroy you."

The elderly cultivator's face flickered between green and white. He wanted to act but hadn't made up his mind. He could only let out a cold snort and say, "Daoist speaks with such arrogance. Do you not respect the rules of the Netherworld Sect?"

Wang Zhide roared, "Get out!"

Wang Zhide's anger surged, and he spat out another mouthful of blood.

Zhao Baoguo let out a cold snort and retreated outside the door.

A crowd gathered around, asking him about the situation.

To retaliate against Wang Zhide's humiliation, he embellished the story. "Old Wang Zhide really took a fall. Don't let his usual pleasant demeanor fool you; he had a notoriously short temper when he was younger. He's just pretending to be a good person in his old age, and this time his true colors have been revealed. He even spat blood in anger at the end, hahahahahahahahaha."

He felt much better, as if he had personally beaten Wang Zhide, and felt refreshed.

A middle-aged cultivator asked, "So, was the Clear River Carp really taken by that Foundation Establishment senior?"

Zhao Baoguo said proudly, "Of course. Didn't everyone see it with their own eyes? Look at Wang Zhide's pathetic state. He can't hold anything back. If the Clear River Carp hadn't been stolen, would he have been so enraged? Moreover, the Wang family even deactivated their defensive formation. If the Clear River Carp were still there, would Wang Zhide dare to deactivate the formation?"

Most people believed him, and the cultivators lurking around the Wang family's shops gradually dispersed. Only a few, unwilling to give up, remained in the vicinity. With only a handful of them, they didn't dare to cause any trouble.

After Wang Daoyuan fell unconscious, his clansmen fed him healing pills and carried him back to his cave dwelling. When he woke up, the sky was just beginning to brighten. Although his body still ached as if it were falling apart, he could move with some effort.

He thought about the Clear River Carp still being in his possession. Although many believed it had been stolen by a Foundation Establishment cultivator, the item had passed through his hands, and he would inevitably be questioned. If the Netherworld Sect couldn't obtain the Clear River Carp in the end, with the Liang family fanning the flames, the Wang family would ultimately be the ones to suffer.

Furthermore, even if the Wang family managed to keep the Clear River Carp, they wouldn't dare to sell it, and keeping it wouldn't be of much use. Rather than that, it would be better to hand over the Clear River Carp. While the Netherworld Sect wasn't exactly virtuous, they wouldn't completely ignore a subordinate force that offered them a valuable item. At the very least, it might reduce the Netherworld Sect's pressure on the Wang family.

When one is under another's roof, they must bow their head. Rather than holding onto something they couldn't use, it was better to hand it over to appease the Netherworld Sect.

With this thought, Wang Daoyuan dug a hole under his bed in the cave dwelling. He took out two Clear River Carp from his spatial storage and placed them in a basin of water. He then placed the basin into the hole, covered it with a wooden board, and buried it with some soil.

After all, the Clear River Carp were first-tier spirit beasts, possessing tenacious vitality far beyond ordinary fish. This little bit of disturbance was nothing, and Wang Daoyuan wasn't worried about suffocating the two fish.

After finishing these tasks, Wang Daoyuan lay back down on the bed, took a few healing pills, and slowly circulated his cultivation technique to heal. He had been ambushed by a cultivator at least at the ninth level of Qi Refining, and then injured by the sword energy of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Without one or two months of recuperation, he wouldn't be able to fully recover.

On the other side, the shadowy figure who had stolen the spirit beast bag flew eastward from Qingli Market on his sword. Just as he exited the market, he discovered a group of Foundation Establishment cultivators pursuing him on their swords. Some were even willing to expend their essence blood to activate secret techniques to hunt him down.

The shadowy figure cursed inwardly, "A bunch of bumpkins who have never seen the world. It's just over a hundred thousand spirit stones, is it worth all this effort?"

He seemed to have forgotten that he himself had risked violating the Netherworld Sect's prohibition for these hundred thousand-plus spirit stones, forcefully attacking the shop and injuring people within. If caught by the Netherworld Sect, he would undoubtedly meet a terrible end.

Man dies for wealth, birds die for food. Over a hundred thousand spirit stones was enough for a Foundation Establishment cultivator to earn for decades. A typical late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, without mastering the Hundred Cultivation Arts, could earn at most two to three thousand spirit stones a year.

It was even more so for Qi Refining cultivators. The vast majority of Qi Refining cultivators couldn't earn enough money in their lifetime to buy a Foundation Establishment Pill, and a Foundation Establishment Pill only cost fifty thousand spirit stones.

The pursuers were getting closer and closer, forcing the shadowy figure to use his escape secret techniques.

A group pursued, one fled. After more than two hours of this chase, the shadowy figure stopped. If he continued to flee like this, he would lose the ability to resist. It would be better to strike hard and kill one of the pursuers first, to scare off the others, and then he might have a chance to escape.

He slowly reduced his speed. The pursuers behind him thought he was exhausted. A few reckless individuals charged forward, eager to snatch the Clear River Carp.

As these reckless individuals approached the shadowy figure, he turned and thrust his sword forward, aiming directly at a pursuer in the early stage of Foundation Establishment.

Seeing the long sword thrust towards them, the pursuers instinctively scattered. The cultivator in the early stage of Foundation Establishment bore the brunt of the attack, with no time to dodge. He could only summon his long sword to meet the blow head-on.

After a loud bang, the early-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator's sword snapped, and he was also seriously injured. Without his magic artifact, he couldn't even fly on his sword, let alone pursue. Moreover, he was injured; if he didn't escape quickly, someone might take advantage of his predicament and kill him.

He gained no advantage and lost his magic artifact. Helplessly, the cultivator cursed and withdrew from the chase.