Martial Nephew Bai, You're Here Too?

After leaving the market, Qin Chuan did not return directly to the small courtyard. Instead, he headed for a deserted area.

Five little tails were following him: one at the Middle Golden Core Stage, two at the Early Golden Core Stage, and two at the Late Foundation Establishment Stage. One of the Late Foundation Establishment cultivators was the stallholder who had just sold him the finger bone.

Once there was no one else around, Qin Chuan turned, pinpointed the five people's positions, and said in a low voice, "Aren't you coming out?"

"You're capable enough, at least. Do you recognize that finger bone? What secret does it hold?" The speaker was the Middle Golden Core cultivator.

"Forget it. I'm in a bad mood today, so I'll just search your souls." Qin Chuan drew the Tianquan Sword and, before the five could react, struck them all down with a single slash, leaving them gravely wounded.

He thought it best to start with an acquaintance, so he walked up to the stallholder, placed a hand on his head, and said softly, "Don't resist, and it won't hurt."

He used the soul-searching technique, pressing one hand against the top of the stallholder's head. His other hand did not stay idle either, pulling the other four over.

Half an incense stick later, Qin Chuan burned the five corpses with a Fireball Technique, tucked their storage bags into his robes, and slowly walked back.

From the five people's memories, he learned that the finger bone had indeed come from the Land of the Fallen Phoenix. They had not picked it up themselves, however; they had robbed it from a minor cultivator. There was no other information. The five had followed Qin Chuan because they thought he knew what the finger bone was.

It was not the first time the stallholder and his companions had done something like this. They set up stalls at the market, and whenever they encountered a fat sheep without protection, they followed their target, killed them, and seized their treasures. They had amassed considerable wealth, all of which ended up benefiting Qin Chuan.

As soon as Qin Chuan returned to the small courtyard, he activated the formation and checked his gains. He had bought so many things on this trip, yet instead of decreasing, his spirit stones had increased.

"Many thanks to those warmhearted fellow Daoists for their gifts."

He sorted and packed his belongings, then took the finger bone out again. He looked at it from every angle, but after several hours, he still could not see anything unusual about it.

"Why did the Will of the Heavenly Dao guide me to buy it?"

Qin Chuan could not figure it out. He poured spiritual power into it, drew it into his soul, and tried every method he could think of, but the finger bone did not react at all. He even inserted it into his own flesh, but there was still no reaction.

Finally, wincing at the cost, he took the Will of the Heavenly Dao out of his body. "I hope you react to this."

This time, it did react, but it hurt Qin Chuan even more, because the finger bone absorbed the Will of the Heavenly Dao he had obtained with such difficulty! Absorbed it! Absorbed it!!!

And after absorbing it, the finger bone still showed no reaction. It was just like a scumbag who ate his fill, pulled up his pants, and walked away.

Qin Chuan wanted to curse, but in the end, he only let out a long sigh and put the finger bone into his storage ring. He had a feeling that the finger bone and the Heavenly Dao were not on the same side, though he did not know where that feeling came from.

"The finger bone should have something to do with the Land of the Fallen Phoenix, and the Land of the Fallen Phoenix will open soon. I should be able to find out what it is then."

"It can absorb the Will of the Heavenly Dao, so perhaps it'll be a great help to me. For now, I'll work on formations."

Qin Chuan began making loose formations again. He had also made a new discovery: some basic formation plates could be reused, which gave him a new insight into formations.

The days passed one after another, and on the day of the auction, Gu Hao hurried to the small courtyard.

"Brother Qin, sorry for the wait. The person selling the sword art only returned to the auction house today. I came straight here after buying it." As Gu Hao explained, he handed Qin Chuan the parchment scroll bearing the words "Taunting Sword Art."

"Many thanks, Brother Gu. How many spirit stones was it? I'll pay you." Qin Chuan took the parchment scroll and put it into his storage ring.

"Ten thousand low-grade spirit stones," Gu Hao said, naming a price offhand.

Qin Chuan made a quick estimate in his head and took out fifty thousand spirit stones for Gu Hao. "Brother Gu, I can't keep taking advantage of you. You must accept these fifty thousand low-grade spirit stones."

"All right. Let's go, Brother Qin. The auction is about to begin." Gu Hao accepted the spirit stones.

"Wait a moment, Brother Gu. Half an incense stick will do." Qin Chuan hurried inside and put away the formation plates he had made during this time, then dismantled and collected the formations he had set up. He was heading for Gale Valley as soon as the auction ended.

One incense stick later, Qin Chuan and Gu Hao arrived at the entrance to the auction house.

From a distance, Qin Chuan caught the scent of tea. He could have figured out with his big toe that the green tea vicious female supporting character Gu Xiwan was pulling hair with the heroine Gu Xiran.

Naturally, Pei Xuan and his two brothers were there, as were Chu Zhan and his two brothers. The whole group stood at the auction house entrance, tearing into one another.

Qin Chuan rolled his eyes. He could not understand what was so interesting about this kind of argument. Gu Xiran and Gu Xiwan might as well slap each other; that would be more entertaining.

Just then, Gu Xiwan's affected, sobbing voice rang out. "Sister, I know you've never liked me, but why... why did you... boo-hoo-hoo..."

Gu Xiwan's cutesy voice made Qin Chuan's mighty frame shudder, scattering goosebumps all over the ground. Gu Hao shuddered too. It was far too cutesy.

But Qin Chuan's attention soon shifted away from Gu Xiwan. He studied Xie An and Jiang Lin, feeling that their features had changed. Could losing one part have affected them that much?

Jiang Lin and Xie An were dressed in white, with red lips, white teeth, and handsome faces. Jiang Lin in particular had been described in the plot as being indistinguishable from a woman. Now he looked just like an old sister-in-law. He wouldn't become sisters with the heroine later, would he? The thought sent a chill through Qin Chuan.

The more Qin Chuan looked at Jiang Lin and Xie An, the more they resembled old sisters-in-law. Still unsure, he quietly asked Gu Hao, "Brother Gu, do you think Xie An and Jiang Lin's features have changed a little?"

At Qin Chuan's prompting, Gu Hao also looked at Xie An and Jiang Lin. After a few quick glances, he replied, "They do look a little effeminate. Perhaps it really did have an effect."

As Gu Xiran and Gu Xiwan's quarrel grew fiercer, Chu Zhan and his companions began airing their opponents' dirty laundry, bringing up the fact that Pei Xuan and his companions were not men. The three were so furious they were about to fight them on the spot, but a steward from the Wealth and Peace Merchant Guild came out and stopped them.

Qin Chuan gained something from watching the quarrel. He noticed that when Xie An heard that he was not a man, he not only shot Chu Zhan and his companions venomous looks, but also secretly cast several hateful glances at Pei Xuan and Jiang Lin.

There's friction among the three simp brothers? Hehe, then I'll add fuel to the fire. They might just start fighting among themselves. First, I'll mess with that dark bastard Jiang Lin's head.

Qin Chuan had reasons for choosing Jiang Lin. First, Jiang Lin was sure to lose to Xie An in the bidding later and would therefore fail to obtain the Vitality Grass. Second, Jiang Lin was the sort to seek revenge for the smallest grievance. Aside from Gu Xiran, he would never give anyone his sincere affection; he was a white-eyed wolf through and through.

So when the hair-pulling ended, Qin Chuan stepped forward to greet the protagonist's group. "Martial Nephew Bai, you're here too?"

Before my campaign could begin, I died. I've been locked in the little black room. The male and female leads only hugged, and in it went. My heart is dead.

Here's one chapter to keep things alive for now. Let's see whether they let me out.

If you can, please send some free power for love. Thank you, everyone.