Yuling River Market

"F-Father."

Wang Weiyang called out cautiously.

Wang Xiong rubbed his brow, his mood wretched beyond measure.

Though Wang Lie's talent was poor, he was still a Second Level of Qi Gathering cultivator. To ordinary people, he was an existence that crushed them across dimensions.

In ordinary times, he could also shoulder quite a few of the Lineage's affairs for him.

Yet now, he had vanished without a trace, his fate unknown.

"Uncle may have merely been captured and imprisoned by the Yang Family. It may not necessarily be..."

"Hmph!"

Wang Xiong snorted coldly. "Have you ever met Yang Guanfeng?"

"Uh... your son has not."

"Heh heh heh, that man is a vicious wolf that devours people without even spitting out their bones! Once you fall into his hands, how could there possibly be any way to survive?"

A vicious glint flashed in Wang Xiong's eyes. Clearly, he had dealt with Yang Guanfeng before.

Wang Weiyang immediately grew somewhat fearful. "Then what should we do now? The Yang Family won't come knocking to demand an explanation, will they?"

Hearing his son utter such a foolish remark, Wang Xiong felt a wave of disappointment in his heart.

How could the Yang Family possibly come to demand an explanation? Would that not be handing them a chance to turn the tables and accuse them instead?

There had been no movement for three days. Clearly, the Yang Family had killed their man and then acted as though nothing had happened, while the Wang Family could not show even the slightest dissatisfaction—not even ask a single question.

"Ah... the Yang Family will not come. This time, we have fallen into their hands."

Wang Xiong let out a helpless sigh. "Until your younger brother returns home to visit, do not leave White Stone Town. Stay home and cultivate properly, understand?"

"Understood. I know, Father."

After Wang Weiyang left, a trace of weariness appeared on Wang Xiong's face.

He was not like Yang Guanfeng, who had Elder Yu, powerful and dependable, at his side to assist him.

The Wang Family's present standing had all been supported by him alone.

Now that he had lost another capable general, how could he not be vexed and distracted?

However, after sighing with emotion for a while, a hint of comfort surfaced on his face.

Fortunately, both his sons possessed cultivation aptitude.

His younger son had even caught the eye of a sect and been secretly taken up the mountain to cultivate. His future could be said to stretch bright and broad before him.

"When one's strength falls short of another's, one must endure and yield for the time being."

As the head of the family, Wang Xiong truly did not lack resolve or patience.

On the fourth day after Wang Lie's death, the Yang Family's fourth shop in White Stone Town opened for business.

To everyone's surprise, Wang Xiong, the patriarch of the Wang Family, personally came to offer congratulations. He and that old Yang Family cultivator seemed to have met too late in life, chatting with great delight.

To outsiders, it appeared that the Wang Family had reached some manner of cooperation with the Yang Family.

Yet the true reason behind it was known only to the few of them.

Little Pine Mountain, the Yang Family estate.

The Yang Family was now several times larger than it had been in Willow Leaf Town.

As a transfer station between the two towns, in addition to their original shop business, the Yang Family had opened up several thousand mu of farmland and established restaurants and inns for passing merchant caravans to eat and rest.

After this string of moves, their daily revenue abruptly increased by forty percent, and their lives became more prosperous than before.

While running agriculture and commerce, Yang Xiaolei also began training Clan Soldiers under Yang Guanfeng's instructions.

The Yang Family's influence and population would only grow larger in the future. By then, it would be impossible for family cultivators to personally step in whenever trouble arose.

Cultivators were the Lineage's highest fighting force. Unless it was a grave crisis threatening the family's survival, they could not easily enter the fray.

Yang Guanfeng told Elder Yu about Wang Lie's intrusion into the Forbidden Ground.

Elder Yu had no objections to how he handled it, but he was somewhat uncertain about Chen Yang's matter.

"It is nearly time for the Yuling River market to open as well. I will make a trip there, find an array master to set up a new Forbidden Ground formation for Late Qi Gathering, and inquire about this stone while I am at it," Elder Yu said.

Yang Guanfeng nodded. "That will do."

The two then began sorting through the treasure vault within the Forbidden Ground.

Ever since following Yang Guanfeng, Elder Yu had traveled once a year to the cultivator market at Yuling River.

This was to purchase resources needed for cultivation, while also selling some items in exchange for Spirit Crystals to pay the Dynasty's taxes.

After taking stock, the Yang Family currently possessed seventeen Spirit Crystals, twenty-three Qi Gathering-grade talismans, eight Qi Gathering-grade healing pills, one damaged spirit artifact, and then a number of miscellaneous materials.

These things had been accumulated bit by bit over the years through Yang Guanfeng and Elder Yu's struggles outside.

Compared to other families, the Yang Family's greatest wealth was Elder Yu's presence.

He had once been a sect cultivator, broad in knowledge and experience, and still remembered some cultivation methods and spell formulas from his former sect.

Otherwise, with the Yang Family's wealth, even if they smashed their pots and sold their iron, they could not buy a cultivation method capable of reaching the Core Formation Realm.

To hire an array master, they would need at least twenty Spirit Crystals.

After calculating things over, the two gathered up a pile of items that they estimated could sell for around fifteen Spirit Crystals.

"As for the remaining money, Elder Yu, spend it as you see fit."

"Rest assured, Patriarch. I will not let our family suffer a loss."

Elder Yu tied the bundle around his waist and set off for Yuling River that very day.

After three days of travel, he caught sight of that familiar river and said with feeling, "Old friend, we meet again."

Back then, he had drunk his fill from this river. Whenever he came here, he could not help feeling sentimental.

Continue west along the Yuling River, and one would reach Wangyue City.

It was the only city nearby, governing the eight towns below it, including Willow Leaf Town and White Stone Town.

Wangyue City was not particularly large. Its City Lord was a Late Essence Condensation cultivator.

At the same time, he was also the owner behind this Yuling River market.

The Yuling River market sat on an island in the middle of the river. It opened once every season, and cultivators from all around Wangyue City came here to trade and buy goods.

Those with the ability could choose to cross the river on foot, or they could take a boat.

At Elder Yu's age, he naturally chose the boat.

"Elder Yu, you came too."

He was an old customer here, and someone recognized him the moment he boarded.

The person greeting him was a cultivator from the Nanshan Li Family named Li Cheng.

The Li Family was far larger than the Yang Family. Their patriarch possessed Qi Gathering Perfection, and by conservative estimates, their household had at least ten cultivators.

"Young Master Li, it has been a long time." Elder Yu returned the greeting politely as well.

Though they were in the same realm, both at the Sixth Level of Qi Gathering, Li Cheng was much younger than him. It was practically set in stone that Li Cheng would break through to Late Qi Gathering in the future.

"It truly has been a long time. I heard that your Yang Family has also moved out of the town?"

The Yang Family had relocated over three months ago. The surrounding powers had all learned of it already, so it was no secret.

"Yes."

Elder Yu nodded. "Our ancestors must have blessed us. One of the children in the family has passable aptitude and luckily broke through into the Qi Gathering Realm."

"So that is how it is. Then moving out was necessary. Otherwise, the taxes would have been so high that you simply could not bear them. It was much the same for our Li Family back then."

Li Cheng nodded, then asked, "Then what does Elder Yu intend to buy on this trip?"

Faced with Li Cheng's probing, Elder Yu did not deliberately conceal anything.

"After relocating, there have been some problems with our formation. I thought I would invite an array master to set it up again."

"Oh? You came for a formation as well? Then we can go together."

After further questioning, he learned that Li Cheng had also come because his family had recently opened up a separate courtyard and needed someone to set up a Late Qi Gathering protective formation.