Having acquired two satisfactory Magical Artifacts, Bai Zichen was in a cheerful mood and began to wander through the Market.

He carefully scanned the wooden box and the Magical Artifacts with his Divine Sense, ensuring no one had left any marks.

He had read too many tales in the biographies of his predecessors about people being targeted for murder and robbery after flashing their wealth while shopping, and these stories had left him wary.

’The Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion is a top-tier trading company with branches throughout Liang Country, and it has a solid reputation. They wouldn’t stoop to colluding with Tribulation Cultivators... Still, you can’t be too careful. Better safe than sorry.’

Bai Zichen browsed through a few shops on both sides of the street, including the Five Elements Trading Company and the Qingfeng Sect’s own store.

The Magical Artifacts displayed inside, both in quality and quantity, fell quite short of what the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion offered.

’And their customer service... even their mortal greeters can’t match the looks or figures of the ones at the Pavilion. No wonder they can’t compete with the Ten Thousand Treasures Pavilion!’

As he mentally criticized his Sect’s business practices, Bai Zichen continued to wander, eventually arriving at the open-air plaza on the outskirts of the Market.

A quick glance revealed at least a hundred stalls.

The larger ones were tended by three or four people at once, their shelves lined with a dazzling array of goods, mostly basic Talismans and Low-Grade Magical Artifacts.

The smaller ones were simple: a piece of cloth spread on the ground with two or three scattered items for sale. Once sold, the owner would be on their way.

This was the norm for the Loose Cultivators selling their wares in the plaza.

"Spiritual Objects, dug up from an Ancient Secret Realm! Come and see, everyone! The destined may even comprehend an Ancient Divine Power from them..."

"A Cultivation Technique from the Five Mountains Temple! The Five Mountains True Man himself used this to become a Core Formation True Man! Miss this opportunity and you’ll regret it for the rest of your life!"

"A Treasure Map left behind by a Great Foundation Establishment Cultivator! It’s said to lead to a lifetime of savings, including a Foundation Establishment Pill!"

A few Loose Cultivators were shouting at the top of their lungs to attract customers, each claim sounding more tempting than the last.

Bai Zichen actually went over to the stall claiming to have the Five Mountains True Man’s Cultivation Technique and took a look. It was a yellowed booklet. On the first page, written in four large, flamboyant characters, was the title: Five Mountains Divine Skill.

’This fake is so sloppy. The legacy Cultivation Technique of a Core Formation True Man, and it’s not even recorded on a Jade Scroll? Just copied into a book...’

It was obvious with a moment’s thought. The Five Mountains Temple had become an annex of the Qingfeng Sect. If the Five Mountains Divine Skill truly still existed, it would have long since fallen into the Sect’s hands.

This so-called Five Mountains Divine Skill was nothing more than several Qi Refining Techniques scrambled and mashed together, then written into an artificially aged booklet.

"Hey, old man! You broke my treasure and think you can just walk away?"

"What nonsense is this? The bowl was already cracked when we picked it up. I was making my way in this Market when you were still in your mother’s womb. And you have the nerve to try and scam me?"

"Everyone, come bear witness! These two damaged my family heirloom and are trying to pin the blame on me! Can a brother go and get the plaza’s Steward to settle this for me!"

A large crowd of Cultivators had gathered in front of a stall across the way, and the sound of a noisy argument drifted over.

In a plaza this large, countless disputes occurred every day.

Bai Zichen had no interest in rubbernecking. He knew that trying to find a real treasure among the Loose Cultivator stalls was like finding a needle in a haystack—highly unrealistic.

Anything with a grandiose name, coupled with a story about it being a family heirloom, was guaranteed to be a fake. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

They were specifically designed to swindle inexperienced, fledgling Cultivators.

He took a few steps away, but then realized the arguing voices sounded familiar. He circled back and returned to the stall across the way.

The stall owner was a skinny young man. His features were regular enough, but his eyes betrayed a mix of cunning and anxiety, giving him a shifty air.

He was currently clutching the sleeves of two Cultivators, refusing to let them leave.

’Elder Tong, Lu Song... What a coincidence. I didn’t expect to run into them here.’

No wonder the voices had sounded familiar; the two people arguing with the stall owner were both acquaintances of Bai Zichen.

’Elder Tong passed the servant disciple assessment on the first try. I’m not sure about Lu Song... but since they’re together, he must have made it into the Sect in the end.’

Bai Zichen wasn’t in a hurry to intervene. ’This is right next to the Sect’s Market. Surely our own servant disciples won’t be at a disadvantage against a Loose Cultivator.’

"Steward Xiong is here! Make way, make way!"

A corpulent, brawny man emerged from the crowd of onlookers. His arms were as thick as another man’s waist. This had to be the Steward Xiong everyone was talking about.

"What’s all this? Don’t you know my section is usually the quietest? I hate it when people cause a scene!"

Steward Xiong waddled forward, his beady eyes sweeping over the scene as he spoke in a grim tone.

The Qingfeng Sect’s authority over the Market only extended to the four streets of the core area, which was also the extent of the Guardian Array’s protection.

The outer plaza and the sprawling residential areas for Loose Cultivators and mortals were never considered part of the Market by the Qingfeng Sect. As long as nothing truly outrageous occurred, the Sect couldn’t be bothered to intervene.

The hundred-odd stalls in this plaza represented a sizable amount of business.

Where there was profit, there was bound to be conflict.

Disputes over stall locations and price wars over similar goods gave rise to the position of plaza Steward.

The circular plaza was divided into four sections, each with a Steward responsible for managing affairs and collecting stall fees from the Loose Cultivators.

For a Loose Cultivator to secure a position as a Steward, besides having a high enough Cultivation and being sufficiently ruthless, the most important thing was to have connections to the Qingfeng Sect.

Otherwise, no matter how powerful you were, you wouldn’t be able to hold onto the position for long.

Under the sweep of his Divine Sense, Steward Xiong’s Cultivation was plain to see: he was a Qi Refining Seventh Layer Cultivator.

’Late-Stage Qi Refining. No wonder he can keep this place in line. Everyone’s terrified of him.’

Bai Zichen stood by and watched, curious to see how the corpulent man would handle the situation.

"Boss Xiong, you’re here! Perfect! You have to get justice for me!"

A flicker of hidden delight crossed the skinny young man’s face. He let go of Elder Tong and the other man, then picked up the two halves of the broken bowl from his stall.

"I’ve always been an honest merchant here in the Market, Boss Xiong, you know that! I’ve never cheated anyone. These two came to my stall and asked to see my family heirloom. One of them fumbled and smashed the Treasure Bowl, then they immediately tried to flee! Luckily, I managed to grab them!"

Steward Xiong took the two pieces of the broken bowl. "You two," he said, "what do you have to say for yourselves? Is what he said true?"

"Steward Xiong, my Junior Brother Lu here had just picked up the bowl when it split in two. It was obviously broken to begin with, put here as a trap to scam someone! How could we be the ones who broke it..."

Lu Song’s face was beet-red with anger, but Elder Tong held him back and stepped forward to explain.

"Nonsense! My Treasure Bowl was perfectly fine! A customer was interested in it just this morning and almost bought it! Several of the nearby stall owners can vouch for me!"

The skinny young man shot up, acting as if he had been grievously wronged.

"That’s right, I saw the Treasure Bowl this morning and it was perfectly fine."

"An old man and a young one, they look so righteous. I can’t believe they’d do something like this and refuse to admit it..."

Several stall owners spoke up in unison, corroborating the story. Elder Tong was left speechless for a moment, realizing they had run into a group of market bullies.

Before becoming a Spirit Plant Master, he had knocked around the Market for two years and had seen scenes like this before.

He just never expected it to happen to him in his old age.

"Well then, it seems the matter is quite clear," Steward Xiong declared. "You two damaged the stall owner’s property, so you will naturally compensate him for its full value."

With a wave of his large hand, Steward Xiong passed his judgment.

"Kid, that broken... Treasure Bowl of yours. How many Spirit Stones is it worth?"

"Steward Xiong, we are both disciples of the Qingfeng Sect. Are you really going to pass judgment without any further investigation?"

Elder Tong hadn’t expected the corpulent man to be so brazen. He quickly took out his Identity Token and held it forward.