A ruthless bandit from the celestial realm, he began his cultivation journey after kidnapping the Em

The long street of the black market...

After selling all the Spirit-Replenishing Pills he had, Ye Chen took Lin Ningxue and Lin Wanli for a stroll around...

He bought the pills for cultivation, so it wasn't necessarily because he needed spirit-replenishing pills.

Along the way, he also encountered quite a few grade-three pills. Although the prices were a bit higher, they were still at normal market prices, unlike the Spirit Replenishing Pill which was inflated by 100%...

Soon, he had spent almost all of the three thousand spirit stones he had earned...

Lin Ningxue and Lin Wanli watched in stunned silence, seemingly never expecting Ye Chen to be so extravagant, spending thousands of spirit stones in the blink of an eye...

"Hiss! Senior brother, you... you spent your spirit stones way too fast!" Lin Ningxue exclaimed in surprise.

Even if she worked in the spirit herb garden her whole life without cultivating, she could only accumulate so many spirit stones. Ye Chen spent them all in the blink of an eye; the impact on her was simply too great...

Although Lin Wanli had been in seclusion for a long time and didn't have much of a connection to spirit stones, he knew that so many spirit stones could buy a decent sword, and he couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache...

Ye Chen didn't care at all.

He had plenty of spirit stones on him; just from looting Long Xingyu and Jiang Changyi's storage bags, he had tens of thousands of spirit stones. Although the Purple Gold Gourd had absorbed some, he still had quite a few...

For Ye Chen, spending spirit stones was no big deal; if he ran out, he could just rob more.

The most important thing is to make yourself stronger!

"call..."

"I didn't expect the black market to be so big..."

Ye Chen asked with a surprised expression.

It took them a long time to explore all the streets and alleys of the black market. Without exception, Ye Chen bought up every single pill that could be used to enhance spiritual power...

He had no intention of lingering in the black market at that moment.

"It's almost time, let's go back, or we'll be too late..."

Ye Chen looked at Lin Ningxue and Lin Wanli beside him and said something, then turned and walked towards the edge of the valley...

"Um?"

A hint of doubt flashed across Lin Wanli's face...

There is no curfew in the outer sect, so it doesn't matter if the disciples return to their caves late. Why is Senior Brother worried that it's too late?

Besides, the black market won't be shut down, and we can leave here no matter how late it is, so what's the rush?

Could it be that Senior Brother usually goes to bed early and doesn't have time to catch up with his usual rest time?

Lin Wanli scratched his head, and seeing that Ye Chen was almost gone, he hurriedly followed...

The three, wearing masks, emerged from the valley, and the surrounding noise instantly subsided like a receding tide...

The surrounding area was a dark, dense forest, with the occasional strange cries of birds and beasts echoing through the air...

"Phew...it's so much quieter outside..."

"This mask is such a hassle to wear..."

Lin Wanli breathed a sigh of relief and raised his hand to remove the mask from his face...

"Wait a minute..." Ye Chen reached out to stop them, lowering his voice, "Don't take them off yet, let's go outside first..."

"what?"

Lin Wanli looked at Ye Chen with a puzzled expression, not understanding his intention...

Wearing a mask is to avoid revealing one's identity in the black market, but now that we've left the valley and there's no one around, why are we still wearing masks?

These things aren't comfortable to wear either...

Does my senior brother prefer this kind of role-playing?

Although Lin Wanli had doubts, he didn't ask any further questions and continued walking outside beside Ye Chen...

As we crossed a fork in the road, several figures suddenly leaped out of the surrounding woods...

"stop!"

"Hand over all the spirit stones you have..."

"Otherwise, don't blame us for being impolite..."

Although these people were all wearing masks, Ye Chen and the others recognized them at a glance...

"It's you guys!"

Lin Wanli frowned slightly, looking surprised.

The people who suddenly blocked their way were none other than the merchants who had previously sold Spirit Restoration Pills at exorbitant prices on the black market...

He hadn't expected these people to come looking for trouble.

Recalling Ye Chen's previous words—that he would return the pills, that it was too late—he seemed to understand everything now...

It turns out that his senior brother had anticipated these people would return to cause trouble, which was why he deliberately prevented him from removing his mask earlier...

The intention behind this was, of course, to make these people recognize their identities, while simultaneously preventing them from recognizing their true identities...

After all, if these people knew he was the sword fanatic Lin Wanli, they probably wouldn't have jumped out to cause trouble...

"Senior brother..."

Lin Ningxue looked at the vendors blocking her way; each of them exuded a powerful aura, and she couldn't help but feel worried...

After all, she was the weakest of the three, and not only could she not help, but she might also drag Ye Chen and Lin Wanli down.

"Don't be afraid..."

"Those few weaklings are no match for Old Lin..."

Ye Chen turned to look at Lin Ningxue and gently comforted her.

He could tell that these disciples were quite strong, almost all at the early Foundation Establishment stage, giving them the right to act with impunity in the outer sect. However, compared to Lin Wanli, they were still far inferior...

"This... is Senior Brother Lin alright?"

Lin Ningxue asked in a low voice.

"Of course..." Lin Wanli stepped forward, patting his chest as he said, "Junior Sister, don't worry, leave it to me..."

"You and your senior brother can just watch from the sidelines!"

Lin Wanli, having finally gotten a chance to show off in front of Ye Chen, naturally wouldn't let it slip by...

Perhaps after he finishes demonstrating his swordsmanship, his senior brother can give him some pointers...

Seeing this, the surrounding vendors' faces, hidden behind their masks, darkened, and their gazes towards Lin Wanli became increasingly hostile...

"You think you can take us down all by yourself? You've got some nerve..."

"Kid, you think too highly of yourself, don't you?"

"Holding around a sword, do you really think you're Lin Wanli, the sword fanatic? Do you deserve it?"

"You can't imitate Lin Wanli's movements, but you can't learn his swordsmanship. Don't come crying and begging for mercy later..."

"Kid, don't say we didn't give you a chance. Kneel down now, admit your mistake, and hand over all your spirit stones. We might consider letting you go..."

......

They all looked at Lin Wanli with disdain and mocked him...

Although he was wearing a mask, no one suspected he was the sword fanatic Lin Wanli...

After all, everyone in the outer sect knows that Lin Wanli is aloof, arrogant, and taciturn. How could he possibly talk so much?

Not to mention he had two close companions; Lin Wanli always preferred to be alone...

Hearing what these people said, Lin Wanli's face darkened, and his gaze turned cold...

"You brought this on yourselves..."

"Then... let's all come at once!"