Raise a sword!

Along the way, Jiang Peng had to dodge hordes of demonic beasts, which caused him to take a long detour.

By the time they finally arrived near the ghost market, it was already getting late.

The fiery sunset shone through the gaps in the dense forest, turning the mountain path into a dim yellow. The spiritual energy in the forest seemed to be drawn by something, appearing quite restless.

As they drew closer to the Black Market Valley, Jiang Peng felt increasingly uneasy.

"Something's wrong, what happened?"

With a hint of curiosity, Jiang Peng quickened his pace, and in less than a quarter of an hour, just before the sun completely set, he finally arrived at the front of the Black Market Valley.

As far as the eye could see, a dark mass of demonic beasts were relentlessly charging at the array at the entrance of the valley, showing no fear of death.

Monsters were constantly being killed, but as soon as one monster died, another would step on its corpse and launch a new attack.

Jiang Peng had only secretly investigated for a short while when the corpses of the demonic beasts outside the valley's formation had already piled up two more layers high.

Meanwhile, the seemingly impregnable formation was actually already on the verge of collapse.

"This is no longer a small group of demonic beasts!" Jiang Peng was shocked.

The so-called "small group of demonic beasts" refers to the kind he encountered on his journey, consisting of seven or eight low-level demonic beasts gathered together, which ordinary people dared not approach.

Even someone like Jiang Peng, whose fighting skills are comparable to those in the late stage of Qi Refining, would simply avoid such an encounter to prevent any disturbance that might attract nearby small groups of beasts and cause even greater trouble.

But there were thousands of these monsters in front of them.

Meanwhile, smaller groups of demonic beasts continued to arrive from various directions in the mountains and forests, joining the main demonic beast army to continue their attack on the Black Market Valley.

"This is a beast tide," Jiang Peng exclaimed. "With such a high level of casualties, even if it can't compare to the actual front lines, it's probably not far off."

After only a short investigation, Jiang Peng had already seen hundreds of demonic beasts and at least three Qi Refining cultivators perish.

The demonic beasts were naturally isolated by the formation and were used as live targets to be killed.

The three fallen cultivators were also killed because of the formation! The area they were maintaining had been damaged!

Finally, another fifteen minutes passed.

Jiang Peng's expression suddenly changed as he realized that spiritual energy was rapidly dissipating after the formation was broken.

Almost simultaneously, the demonic beasts that discovered the formation had been breached also changed direction and rushed towards the damaged area, giving the cultivators in the Black Market Valley no chance to repair the formation.

"The formation is broken! Engage the enemy!"

A loud shout echoed through the mountains and forests. A man in black stood on the cliff of the valley, having removed his black clothes and mask, revealing himself to be an inner disciple of the Cangshan Sect.

This person has the cultivation level of the late stage of Qi Refining.

Although Jiang Peng did not recognize him, the man seemed to have some prestige.

After he appeared and spoke, the situation inside the black market, which had been in complete chaos, quickly stabilized. The initially panicked cultivators were finally able to organize a powerful counterattack.

However, just as the beast tide was finally pushed back somewhat, some rogue cultivators began to flee, and the situation, which had initially been slightly advantageous, suddenly plummeted.

The situation has temporarily reached a stalemate.

However, the remaining cultivators in the black market have already realized that once they rush forward and desperately drive back the beast tide, all their companions who were just fighting side by side will immediately seize the opportunity to slip away.

After several similar incidents, morale in the Black Market Valley had plummeted to rock bottom, and even the constant revelation of Cangshan Sect disciples' identities to gather the crowd was to no avail.

...

Inside a pavilion in the Black Market Valley.

Lan Yingying stood on the third floor of the attic, gazing at the direction of the valley entrance in the distance.

She wore a veil to conceal her face, and her beautiful eyes were filled with worry.

"Why would a beast tide attack Black Market Valley?"

Lan Yingying was not only worried about the beast tide, but also concerned about the various unreasonable aspects of this beast tide.

First, the beast tide came suddenly.

How did such a large number of monsters suddenly appear outside the valley, catching everyone off guard?

Why was there not a single warning signal from the front lines?

Why didn't the Foundation Establishment cultivators stationed in the black market discover this beforehand? Why did they stand by and watch the formation be breached... and even the Foundation Establishment cultivators themselves?

For a time, there were far too many questions without answers.

Finally, Lan Yingying looked at the middle-aged man behind her.

"Brother Zhao, what did the Li family say?"

The middle-aged man was named Zhao Yuan, one of the disciples who participated in the Cangshan Sect's assessment at the same time as Sun Yinxi and Lan Yingying.

Of those people from back then, some left and others went their separate ways, each with their own circumstances. In the end, only four remained in close contact, and Zhao Yuan was one of them.

This person's aptitude was only low-grade spiritual root, and because he was already over twenty years old when he came to the sect, the Cangshan Sect did not accept him.

However, Zhao Yuan's opportunity did not lie with the Cangshan Sect.

He eventually became a son-in-law of the Li family, and over the course of more than a decade, he had given birth to several offspring with spiritual roots for the Li family.

Because of this, he made a name for himself in the Li family and became the person in charge of the Li family's black market shops.

"The communication has been cut off." Zhao Yuan frowned. "This incident happened so suddenly. The market was completely unaware of the beast tide before it arrived. This is very unusual... There must be some villains behind the scenes."

The gathering of the beast tide takes time, and people come and go from the black market all the time.

"Someone intercepted everyone attempting to enter or leave the black market within a short period of time, thus cutting off information!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yuan and Lan Yingying exchanged a glance, each seeing the astonishment in the other's eyes.

If this speculation is true, then this beast tide will likely face even more turbulence.

After a moment of contemplation, Zhao Yuan said in a low voice, "Sister Lan, I'll take you through the passage at the back of the valley later. That's an escape route left by the major families that run the black market. The Li family has a stake in it, so it shouldn't be difficult to get rid of an outsider."

Upon hearing this, Lan Yingying's expression softened slightly, but she still asked worriedly, "What about you, Second Brother Zhao?"

Zhao Yuan shook his head.

"You have spiritual materials that you've collected for Yinxi, so it would be best if you went to Cangshan Sect as soon as possible. As for me, your second brother, I cannot leave, as I bear the heavy responsibility of the family."

Rumbling--

Suddenly, a loud noise came from the entrance of the valley.

Their conversation was interrupted, and they both looked in the direction of the sound. Then, their eyes widened in surprise.

The cliff, tens of meters high, collapsed violently, and amidst the billowing dust, the sharp fracture at the point of collapse could be vaguely seen.

The collapse of the mountain resulted in the formation being incomplete.

The already crumbling valley formation finally gave way and vanished completely within a few breaths.

In a short time.

The sounds of beasts roaring, mountains collapsing, and cultivators shouting battle cries filled the air.

The chaotic sounds, the visible magical light, and the scattered severed limbs transformed the once peaceful Black Market Valley into a complete hell on earth in a short period of time.