Night of Chaos [Please Follow]

Beneath the bustling Market.

Every day, quite a few Chambers of Commerce arrived. Shen Lie and Lu Qingqing's caravan did not draw anyone's attention.

After all, there were far too many cultivators hoping to make a quick fortune off the Market's prosperity.

In just three days, Shen Lie and Lu Qingqing had selected a location, paid the Spirit Stones, and opened their shop with remarkable speed.

Given the Market's current bustle, every day wasted meant one less day of earning Spirit Stones.

With the banner of a Li Fire Palace inner disciple, opening the shop went especially smoothly.

Inside the shop.

"Brother Lin, we truly have you to thank for this."

"Brother Shen, how could this be my doing? The clan merely sent me here."

Li Erniu's face reddened slightly. He knew his own worth; this procurement list was merely something the Zhou Family had arranged through his hands.

Yet when this scene fell into Lin Chang'an's eyes, he began to ponder in secret.

It was understandable for the Zhou Family to befriend Yun Yao. Adding flowers to brocade was easy, but delivering charcoal in the snow was hard.

Though Yun Yao had yet to reach Foundation Establishment, making friends in advance could never be a loss. Even if she failed to establish her foundation, they would still have befriended a Li Fire Palace inner disciple.

And if she truly achieved Foundation Establishment, there was no way they could lose.

"But the Zhou Family's recent movements seem somewhat excessive."

Lin Chang'an frowned inwardly. Over the past few days, he had noticed that the Zhou Family had been recruiting cultivators from outside on an unusually large scale.

"Senior Brother Lin, we truly have you to thank."

Junior Sister Lu Qingqing said with a smile, while Li Erniu beside her nodded honestly.

"Big Brother Lin has devoted himself to cultivation all these years. He knows more people and has more connections than I do."

"Junior Sister, you're too kind."

Lin Chang'an smiled and waved his hand. Whether out of gratitude for Elder Lu's guidance, the books this Junior Sister had gifted him, or his own interests, he had to help with this matter.

During this time, Lin Chang'an had also introduced quite a few ordinary Talisman Masters, along with other cultivators.

After all, a shop opened by a Li Fire Palace inner disciple was far more trustworthy than the casual stalls outside.

But then a trace of hesitation flashed across Lin Chang'an's face, and Lu Qingqing happened to notice it.

"Senior Brother Lin, do you perhaps have some difficulty you cannot speak of?"

After seeing this, Shen Lie and Er Niu both laughed awkwardly and pretended not to notice, preparing to excuse themselves.

Yet Lin Chang'an merely shook his head lightly.

"It's nothing much. It's just that the Market has recently become a jumble of dragons and snakes. As for some Talismans and Medicinal Pills that cannot see the light of day, I don't know whether..."

Though he did not state the rest outright, Lin Chang'an had made himself perfectly clear.

"Senior Brother Lin need not worry."

Upon hearing this, Lu Qingqing was not surprised. Instead, delight appeared on her face as she nodded with a smile.

"As long as the quality is sound, I imagine no one would dare stir up trouble on Li Fire Palace's turf."

This Junior Sister Lu Qingqing was quite capable. Beneath her gentle words, every sentence revealed the backing behind her.

Yun Yao was, after all, an inner disciple. Naturally, the matter of establishing a Chamber of Commerce had been reported to the Sect.

With the Sect as their backer, many problems could be avoided.

"That's good, then."

Lin Chang'an nodded lightly. The Cultivation World had no shortage of cultivators who had committed crimes, fled from enemies, or possessed rotten character.

Such people were neither high nor low. Cultivation lineages were unwilling to recruit them, and they themselves did not dare show their faces easily. They could only hide within the Market.

He had drifted about the Market for twenty years. Though he knew few great cultivators at Qi Refining Late Stage, he was familiar with many cultivators from every school and walk of life.

"It still has to be you, Big Brother Lin."

Shen Lie and Lu Qingqing discussed the offered base price with Lin Chang'an, their faces full of smiles.

Only when people had exchanges of favor between them could their relationship endure longer.

Lin Chang'an nodded in agreement while silently calculating that, for the time being, he would move a small portion of his Talismans through Shen Lie's channel. It was comparatively safer.

But if he wanted this to last, he truly needed to quickly learn another first-tier mid-grade Talisman.

Otherwise, if he kept producing nothing but First-tier Mid-grade Golden Light Talismans in such quantities, suspicion would arise sooner or later.

"Big Brother Lin, do you think the Little Princess can achieve Foundation Establishment this time?"

On their way back, Li Erniu could not help asking curiously.

Lin Chang'an shook his head and sighed deeply.

"Er Niu, even competition among Li Fire Palace inner disciples is so fierce. One can imagine how difficult it is for ordinary cultivators like us to seek Foundation Establishment."

Li Erniu shook his head blankly after hearing that.

"Luckily, we're only at the Qi Refining Fourth Layer. We don't need to think about so much."

Lin Chang'an gave a mute laugh at Er Niu's optimistic attitude. He lifted his head to gaze at the bustling Market, his eyes holding a complex emotion no one could see through.

How many people had come this time for the Foundation Establishment Pill, and yet how many would ultimately succeed?

Had he not awakened his golden finger, he likely would not even dare dream of the words Foundation Establishment.

The calm before Green Bamboo Mountain Market's land reclamation was suddenly shattered one night ten days later.

Lin Chang'an had been cultivating in his room when the booming sound from the Market abruptly reached his ears, jolting him awake.

"How is this possible?!"

This familiar sound made Lin Chang'an's expression change drastically, because it was the sound of Green Bamboo Mountain Market's Mountain Protection Array.

The last time it had sounded was during a Monster Beast Tide eighteen years ago, and he still remembered it vividly.

He swiftly withdrew the low-grade Magical Tool Green Bamboo Sword from his Storage Bag. The moment he stepped outside, he saw the Array Barrier enveloping the sky above the Market beneath the night curtain.

"Big Brother Lin, what happened?!"

Li Erniu from next door hurried over in terror, dragging his whole family along with him, children in tow.

"Someone is attacking the Market! Er Niu, hide quickly."

Lin Chang'an's heart trembled. At a time like this, the most dangerous people were not the enemies attacking the Market, but their own people within it.

Under the night sky, the Array's flashing radiance illuminated the Market. In Li Erniu's terrified pupils, the scene from eighteen years ago resurfaced.

At the same time, the entire Market erupted into turmoil, becoming incomparably clamorous.

Before the Market's Array Barrier had activated, a blood-covered cultivator who charged inside cried out in terror.

"Monster Beasts! The Monster Beasts from the Cloud Mist Mountain Range have rushed out!"

At the outskirts of the Market, amid wolf howls after wolf howls, countless Monster Beasts were driven charging toward the Market.

Meanwhile, at the Wang Family.

"Old Ancestor, these beasts have finally come."

The Wang Family's Great Elder could not help laughing loudly this time.

"The Market's grand array has activated. This time, I want to see just how many Mid-grade Spirit Stones the Zhou Family still has to sustain it."

The two Second-tier Monster Beast cubs from before had been nothing more than bait.

Monster Beasts attacking the Market was not a problem. But if something went wrong with the Market's array, that was a problem.

Both the Wang Family and the Zhou Family were lineages under Li Fire Palace's rule. Since they had established themselves in the Market, they needed to shoulder the responsibility of keeping it stable.

At Green Bamboo Mountain Market, the Wang Family and Zhou Family stood one in the east and one in the west, each responsible for operating half of the Market's grand array.

And an array of this level consumed Mid-grade Spirit Stones.

Even to Foundation Establishment cultivators, Mid-grade Spirit Stones were precious.

At the Beast-Taming Zhou Family, the Bronze Bell was rung, while countless cultivators and spirit beasts grew restless and roared.

"Defend the Market's grand array."

The Beast-Taming Zhou Family's Old Ancestor was furious. At this moment, he finally understood the Wang Family's sinister intentions.

Too ruthless!

They were drawing firewood from beneath the cauldron!

"Gather every Zhou Family cultivator and prepare to repel the enemy!"

At the same time, several mysterious cultivators who had infiltrated the Market stared at one another, wide-eyed.

"What's going on? We haven't even started acting yet. Why has the Market already fallen into chaos?"

The leading cultivator looked at the chaotic Market, a savage smile appearing on his face.

"Since our Divine Sword Sect will sooner or later wage war against Li Fire Palace anyway, this is a heaven-sent opportunity."

The Yue Kingdom had three Great Sects: Divine Sword Sect, Li Fire Palace, and Mystic Sound Pavilion.

Among them, Divine Sword Sect was the strongest.

Yet the hidden Divine Sword Sect cultivators did not need to create unrest within the Market at all.

The moment the Market's grand array activated, chaos had already erupted inside it.

Excitement filled some cultivators' faces, agitation filled others', and quite a few wore savage, twisted expressions.

Burning, killing, plundering—shops were smashed one after another, while naked greed and slaughter between cultivators were laid bare.

No one knew who shouted, "Foundation Establishment Pill!" but countless cultivators instantly saw red.