Family Rise: Beginning with Grandfather.

Chapter 870 Chaos in Lotus Heart Valley

Yang Jizhen returned to the land of spiritual origin, and Yang Cheng'an called out to the backyard, "Jishan, Jishan!"

"Ba Ye!"

A burly man, covered in sweat, came into the shop from the backyard.

Yang's weapon-refining workshop has a front shop and a back courtyard layout. The back courtyard is quite spacious, with not only two weapon-refining rooms but also six side rooms.

Besides Yang Jizhen and Yang Chengan, there were two other employees here, Yang Jishan and Jiang Pingan.

Although Yang Jishan was not a descendant of Yang Zhengshan, he was a member of the Yang family. In his early years, he served as a military officer in Chongshan Town. Later, he came to Lingyuan and became a blacksmith.

Jiang Ping'an is Jiang Feng's grandson, and Jiang He's great-grandson. He is not yet forty years old and has only recently broken through to the Innate Realm.

"You stay here and keep an eye on the business, I'll go and take stock of the inventory!" Yang Chengan instructed.

"Okay!" Yang Jishan replied.

Normally, among the four of them in the shop, Yang Cheng'an is the most senior and is the shop's head manager. Yang Jizhen is a cultivator who specializes in magical artifacts and is the shop's main source of productivity. Yang Jishan and Jiang Ping'an are the shop's general helpers, helping to look after the business, running errands, and sometimes doing odd jobs for Yang Jizhen.

Yang Cheng'an gave an instruction and then went to the storeroom in the backyard.

The storeroom is almost empty of ritual implements. Business has been so good lately that most of the previously stockpiled items have been sold, and even some defective ones have been bought.

Now, only some ores and exotic beast materials remain in the warehouse, all of which are used to refine magical artifacts.

After Yang Cheng'an left, Yang Jishan wiped the sweat from his face. He had just been forging a spirit embryo and was now tired, so he could take a short rest.

Looking at the immortal cultivators coming and going on the street outside the door, Yang Jishan was still pondering the spiritual embryo he had forged.

He is a martial arts weapon master. Although he is not as good as an immortal weapon master, his weapon-forging skills are still quite good. He can currently forge high-grade spiritual weapons.

His goal is to forge a second-tier spiritual weapon, also known as a divine weapon in the Sea of ​​Spiritual Beauty, before breaking through to the Golden Body Realm.

Although he used to be a lieutenant general commanding thousands of soldiers, he had a great interest in forging. After arriving in the Land of Spirit Source, he did not feel dissatisfied with the change in his status. On the contrary, he now found forging spirit weapons more interesting than commanding thousands of troops.

Looking at the spiritual weapons he forged gave him a greater sense of accomplishment than looking at the soldiers he trained.

Just as Yang Jishan was pondering how to forge the spiritual embryo, a black-robed cultivator stopped in front of the shop and walked inside.

Yang Jishan quickly and respectfully greeted him, "Please, Immortal Master!"

The black-robed cultivator wore a bamboo hat, obscuring his face, but Yang Jishan didn't mind. Many outside cultivators in Lotus Heart Valley concealed their faces; bamboo hats and masks were very common.

"Hmm!" the black-robed cultivator responded in a low voice, then asked, "Do you accept magical artifacts here?"

"I'll take it, but the craftsman in my shop isn't here right now. I can give an estimate, but the price might be a bit low!" Yang Jishan said cautiously.

They not only sell ritual implements, but also buy them. They will buy any damaged or of unknown origin.

Repairing or studying the magical artifacts crafted by other artifact refiners greatly benefits Yang Jizhen's artifact refining skills.

Yang Jishan has been here for over ten years, and through this exposure, he has gained a lot of knowledge about Buddhist artifacts, so he can do some simple appraisals without any problem.

Of course, to avoid losing money, he usually keeps the price very low.

"Look at these!" The black-robed cultivator ignored Yang Jishan's words and directly took out more than a dozen magical artifacts and threw them on the counter.

Yang Jishan's heart skipped a beat when he looked at those magical artifacts.

A dozen or so ritual implements?
He only glanced at them and could tell that they were all high-grade magic artifacts, and in good condition.

The most important dozen or so magical artifacts are of various types, including flying boats, flying swords, shields, rings, long boots, and a robe stained with blood.

This is no longer a matter of unknown origin; it is very likely that it was obtained through robbery and murder.

In short, this man in black robes is very likely a cultivator who has undergone tribulation.

"Immortal Master, please wait a moment!" Yang Jishan pretended to be calm and picked up a shield-shaped magical artifact to examine it carefully.

Under the counter, he took a small step forward with his toes, stepping onto a black floor tile, which silently sank one finger's width.

There was no fluctuation of spiritual energy or any sound during this process, because it was not an array, but a very simple mechanism.

In the backyard, under the eaves outside the side room, an ordinary bell suddenly rang a few times.

The door to the side room opened, and Jiang Ping'an was slightly taken aback as he looked at the shaking bell.

This is a warning sign that a difficult customer has arrived at the shop. Of course, they are just difficult to deal with, not here to cause trouble. If they were here to cause trouble, there would definitely be some noise in the shop, which they could hear from the backyard.

Jiang Ping'an glanced at the shops ahead, then turned to look for Yang Cheng'an.

"Eighth Master, there seems to be trouble at the shop!"

Yang Chengan walked out of the warehouse, his expression somewhat solemn.

Instead of rushing to the front shop, he casually went to the area near the back door and listened intently to the sounds coming from inside.

Inside the shop, Yang Jishan calmly appraised each magical artifact, carefully stating the price he could offer.

“My esteemed master, these boots are quite special. They have twelve restrictions on them, but I can only recognize six. I can only offer three thousand spirit stones!”

As Yang Jishan spoke, he looked up at the black-robed cultivator.

The black-robed monk's face was shrouded in a cloak, so he couldn't see the other person's expression.

To be honest, this pair of boots should be a very rare high-grade magic artifact, especially since there are restrictions on them that Yang Jishan doesn't recognize. Even though Yang Jishan isn't a cultivator, he is very familiar with the restrictions on magic artifacts.

The fact that these boots had six kinds of restrictions he had never seen before could only mean that these boots were extraordinary.

The black-robed cultivator didn't speak, but simply nodded slightly, seemingly unconcerned about the price Yang Jishan offered.

Yang Jishan continued appraising and valuing the artifacts until he had assessed all of them. He then said, "Immortal Master, these sixteen artifacts cost a total of 58,300 low-grade spirit stones. What do you think?"

"I want a mid-grade spirit stone!"

"This little shop doesn't have that many mid-grade spirit stones, so they can only give you half a mid-grade spirit stone!"

“Sure!” The black-robed monk seemed very agreeable.

However, Yang Jishan felt uneasy because he knew that the price he offered was very low, even excessively low, yet the man agreed without any bargaining.

However, since the other party had agreed, he had no reason to refuse.

"Please wait a moment, Immortal Master!"

"Shopkeeper, shopkeeper!"

He called out towards the backyard.

Upon hearing this, Yang Chengan, who had been eavesdropping for a long time, naturally walked into the shop.

"Shopkeeper, this immortal master wants to sell these magical artifacts. I have already appraised them, and they will cost a total of 58,300 low-grade spirit stones!" Yang Jishan said.

Yang Cheng'an looked at the black-robed cultivator and gave him a kind smile, "Greetings, Immortal Master!" The black-robed cultivator simply nodded and remained silent.

Without saying much, Yang Cheng'an quickly took out the spirit stones, put them into a storage bag, and handed it to the black-robed cultivator.

The black-robed cultivator checked the storage bag, then turned and left without any hesitation.

After he left, Yang Cheng'an frowned as he looked at the magical artifacts on the counter.

If Yang Jishan can appraise magical artifacts, then he certainly can too, and his understanding of magical artifacts is even greater than Yang Jishan's.

"Eighth Master, something seems off about this man!" Yang Jishan said.

Yang Cheng'an put all the magical artifacts on the counter into his storage bag, then walked to the door and looked out onto the street.

He gazed at the bustling street, his eyes growing increasingly deep.

Lotus Heart Valley seems a little different from usual today.

Ah!
Many more people in black robes appeared!
Many cultivators like to conceal their figures and appearances, so it is not uncommon to see cultivators wearing black robes. However, the main cultivators in Lotus Heart Valley are mostly ordinary cultivators who live here. Those who truly like to conceal their appearances are mostly outsiders.

Normally, one might see two or three figures dressed in black robes at a glance, but today he saw no fewer than ten.

Although they were dressed differently and had different ways of concealing their bodies, their numbers were indeed far greater than in the past.

"They're all cultivators who have undergone tribulation? How is that possible? Are the enforcement team blind? Would they let so many cultivators into the market?"

"Or have they already infiltrated the market?"

Yang Cheng'an's expression changed slightly upon thinking of this.

If these people had already infiltrated the market, then what is their purpose in suddenly moving around the market today?
"Quick, close the door!"

"Eighth Master, what's wrong?" Yang Jishan asked.

"Something's not right, let's close the door first!"

The two hurriedly closed the shop door and began tidying up the ritual implements inside the shop and the things in the backyard.

Seeing their hurried appearance, Jiang Ping'an asked, "Eighth Master, what happened?"

"I don't know, let's pack things up first!"

Yang Cheng'an didn't know if his guess was right or wrong, but it was better to be prepared. At worst, he would just have to close the business for a few days.

Fortunately, they had enough storage bags, so even if they ran away, they could take everything in the store with them.

Just as they were packing their things, a violent explosion suddenly rang out in Lianxin Valley Market.

Boom~~
The next moment, the entire Lotus Heart Valley seemed to tremble.

Yang Cheng'an and the other two's expressions changed slightly, and they all looked up at the sky. They saw that a yellowish-brown light shield had appeared above Lotus Heart Valley. It was the protective array of Lotus Heart Valley, the second-order Thick Earth Locking Mountain Array, a protective array that relied on the power of the earth veins and the terrain of the mountains.

The activation of the protective array must mean that it has been attacked by the enemy.

Before the three could react, screams and shouts suddenly rang out from outside the shop.

"How dare you! Who would dare to run wild in Lotus Heart Valley!"

In the air, a furious roar exploded like thunder, and two imposing figures appeared.

"Eighth Master, he's a Foundation Establishment cultivator!" Jiang Ping'an said excitedly.

Yang Cheng'an's expression was indeed extremely solemn. "Hurry up and pack your things!"

Since the other side dared to attack Lotus Heart Valley, they must have known that there were Foundation Establishment cultivators stationed inside. Now that they have taken action, it means that they have made thorough preparations.

The three of them buried themselves in packing their things again. As the saying goes, even a broken home is worth a fortune, let alone a shop.

The warehouse contained a large quantity of refining materials, as well as numerous tools for forging spiritual weapons, including Yang Jizhen's refining tools. These items were worth over ten thousand spirit stones.

Even if they are just putting things into their storage bags, it will take them some time.

The three of them buried themselves in packing their things, while outside, chaos reigned.

Suddenly, a large number of people appeared in the entire Lotus Heart Valley, concealing their figures. These people did not say a word, but killed anyone they saw and robbed anything they saw. In an instant, battles were taking place all over the entire Lotus Heart Valley.

Outside Lotus Heart Valley, a large number of black-robed men were rushing in from all directions. If you counted carefully, you would find that there were as many as six or seven hundred of them, and each of them had the cultivation level of the late stage of Qi Refining.

Just as Yang Chengan and his two companions had put all the valuables into their storage bags, they heard a loud bang as the shop door was smashed open.

Immediately afterwards, a person dressed in black robes came to the backyard. Yang Cheng'an and the other two gathered together, watching the person in black robes warily.

"Hey, everything's all packed up. Saves me the trouble of wasting time!"

The man in black robes had a deep, hoarse voice; he was the same cultivator who had just been selling magical artifacts.

"What does the Immortal Master mean by this?" Yang Cheng'an asked, his expression darkening.

"Heh, give me all the storage bags, and I'll leave you with a complete corpse!" the black-robed cultivator said coldly.

He didn't really intend to sell the magical artifacts just now; his purpose was simply to exchange them for some spirit stones from this weapon-refining workshop.

As for why he didn't act immediately, it was because the agreed time hadn't arrived yet, and also because there were many people involved in this operation. He wanted to secure his gains first and exchange any unused magical artifacts for spirit stones to prevent others from getting there first.

However, he later changed his mind because he found that this weapon-refining workshop was extremely wealthy and could easily produce nearly 50,000 spirit stones. Therefore, he went to the weapon-refining workshop again as soon as he took action.

Beneath the black cloak, he grinned and suddenly waved his hand, sending out a talisman.

With a loud bang, the talisman exploded, shooting out streaks of gray flames.

"Watch out!" Yang Cheng'an kicked Jiang Ping'an aside and rolled to the side.

Yang Jishan reacted quickly as well. As soon as the black-robed cultivator raised his hand, a long spear appeared in his hand, which he thrust out.

The spear flashed and pierced, but it couldn't stop the burst of black flames.

Instantly, several black flames shot into Yang Jishan's body. Yang Jishan groaned, staggered, and fell to the ground.

"Jishan!"

Yang Cheng'an's eyes widened in shock. He rolled on the ground and approached the black-robed cultivator. Then, a long spear appeared in his hand, which he thrust towards the black-robed cultivator's chest.

However, the sharp spearhead was blocked by a layer of black mist when it landed on the chest, unable to advance even an inch.

Seeing this, Jiang Ping'an, who was not far away, also suddenly took out a short spear and threw it at the black-robed cultivator. However, he was only at the initial stage of the Innate Realm. Not to mention facing a cultivator in the late stage of Qi Refining, even a martial artist in the Heavenly Gang stage would not be a threat to him.

"Take Jishan with you!" Yang Chengan roared in a low voice.

The attack came at the perfect time. Yang Jizhen had just returned to the Spirit Origin Land with the Jade Token. If Yang Jizhen were here, he might have been able to defeat the black-robed cultivator. Even if he couldn't, they could still use the Jade Token to return to the Spirit Origin Land.

(End of this chapter)