A public notice was posted seeking a wife, and a female saint from the Immortal Sect was found.

"Master, the situation at home is dire. It's not even dawn yet, but the news of the Ning and Zhang families joining forces has somehow spread far and wide, causing widespread panic..." Liu Shen, remembering this, hurriedly reported to his superior.

At this point, Liu Shen hesitated for a moment, then added, "The guards, including two guards, are missing. It's highly likely that... after receiving news of the Ning and Zhang families joining forces, they left the Chen family and fled far away to avoid trouble."

Chen Yi was taken aback for a moment upon hearing this, but he quickly recovered. It was not surprising that the Chen family was in a state of panic because the Ning and Zhang families had suddenly joined forces.

A guard is just a guard after all. Everyone values ​​their life. And this is just the beginning. If something else happens, the Chen family may fall apart immediately.

The laughter of last night is still vivid in my mind; who could have imagined that it would be the final moment of peace?

After pondering for a moment, Chen Yi said to Liu Shen, "Try to appease people. If anyone insists on leaving, don't stop them."

"In addition, immediately gather information about the Ning family, the Zhang family, the Wang family, and the Zhao family."

Liu Shen nodded hurriedly, then turned and left. The matter was too big, and he felt completely lost. Chen Yi's calmness made him understand what he should do.

"If too many people leave, the Chen family will be essentially scattered," Li Changqing said, looking at Chen Yi.

Chen Yi gave a wry smile upon hearing this and said, "We can't stop them. The fact that the Ning and Zhang families have joined forces means that something must have happened. It's very likely that we will soon receive news that will cause even greater devastation to the entire family."

Li Changqing immediately became curious and asked, "Why are you so sure something will happen soon?"

"Two years ago, one of the Zhang family patriarch's sons got into a fight with the Ning family over a spiritual spring and was accidentally killed by the Ning family. That's a huge grudge, isn't it? Now the two families are actually able to join forces through marriage. Isn't that reason enough?" Chen Yi replied.

Li Changqing nodded immediately. This reason was sufficient. For the Ning and Zhang families to be able to join forces, something must have happened that put them under unprecedented pressure.

Of course, these were just the two people's guesses, but they were immediately confirmed after dawn.

As the warm sun rose, three riders suddenly stopped in front of the Chen family's gate. The three riders were all dressed in the same clothes and were quite strong, each with the cultivation level of the eighth level of Qi Refining.

"Deacon of the Zidan Sect's Affairs Hall, by order of the Hall Master, from this day forward, the Zidan Sect will no longer purchase medicinal herbs from the Chen family."

One of them, without announcing his entry, spoke directly, his voice easily echoing throughout the entire Chen family compound.

When Chen Yi and Li Changqing arrived at the main gate, they overheard Liu Shen anxiously asking, "Three esteemed sect leaders, has the Chen family done something wrong? The Chen family has been cultivating medicinal herbs for the Zidan Sect for over a century; how can it suddenly stop?"

"We are merely relaying orders: if there are problems with the Chen family, go and ask our head of the family."

The three cultivators from the Purple Pill Sect gave a curt reply and then turned their spirit steeds away.

Liu Shen was stunned. When he saw Chen Yi and Li Changqing arrive, he murmured in a daze, "Patriarch, Miss Li, the family is ruined. This time, it's really going to collapse."

Chen Yi remained calm and reassured her, "Steward Liu, there's no need for this. The sky hasn't fallen yet."

He had anticipated that something would happen, but he never expected that the Purple Pill Sect would stop purchasing medicinal herbs from the Chen family. This matter could be considered as uprooting the foundation of the Chen family's existence.

The sky hasn't fallen yet, but our current situation is practically the same as if it had.

"Master, what should we do?" Liu Shen asked weakly, as if all his energy had been drained away.

Not long ago he was making arrangements for the New Year, but now it seems that the New Year will not be able to be celebrated.

Chen Yi thought for a moment and said, "Go and see how many people will stay after what happened at the Purple Pill Sect. I'll handle the rest."

Upon hearing this, Liu Shen instinctively went to do it, but after taking a few steps, he suddenly stopped and looked back at Chen Yi.

He wanted to say that the Purple Pill Sect's move was a bolt from the blue for the Chen family, and it couldn't be kept secret. Whether it was the guards, the old masters in the medicine garden, or the servants, probably very few people in the Chen family would dare to stay.

When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter; such is the way of the world.

After hesitating for a moment, Liu Shen ultimately didn't say anything, because he realized that since the patriarch had asked him to see how many people were willing to stay, it meant that the patriarch had already anticipated that many people would leave without saying goodbye and leave the Chen family as quickly as possible.

Thinking of this, Liu Shen sighed heavily and turned to leave.

On this joyous day, however, the Chen family was far from at peace.

"Everyone's gone, so there's no one to do the work in the herb garden," Li Changqing said.

Chen Yi looked at Li Changqing and couldn't help but ask, "Are you leaving or not?"

Li Changqing's expression remained calm. He didn't intend to answer Chen Yi's question, but instead said directly, "The matter of the Purple Pill Sect needs to be dealt with as soon as possible. Also, according to your previous guess, the Purple Pill Sect refused to accept the Chen family's medicinal herbs. Which family is involved in this matter?"

"Anyway, it has nothing to do with the Ning family or the Zhang family. They don't have the ability to instruct the Purple Pill Sect. Now there's no need to think about it anymore. It must be that the Qi Refining Stage 9 cultivator from the Zhao family has broken through to the Foundation Establishment stage. Only a Foundation Establishment cultivator, plus a suitable price, could possibly reach some kind of deal with the Purple Pill Sect," Chen Yi said.

There's no need to investigate this matter further; it's the truth. The sect leader of the Purple Pill Sect is a cultivator at the Great Perfection of the Foundation Establishment stage. The fact that the Zhao family has produced a Foundation Establishment cultivator means they are already qualified to make deals with the Purple Pill Sect.

After pondering for a moment, Li Changqing asked, "Based on what you've said, does the Chen family have any acquaintances or people with whom they have a decent relationship within the Zidan Sect?"

Chen Yi glanced at Li Changqing and was secretly pleased. He didn't need to ask to know that Li Changqing was about to retaliate.

Whether he could withstand the collapse or not is another matter, but Li Changqing could withstand it. It seems that wearing the ring last night was not in vain.

Thinking of this, Chen Yi glanced at Li Changqing's finger, where he was still wearing the ring. A smile immediately appeared on his lips as he said, "Yes, he is the Grand Steward of the Purple Pill Sect's Affairs Hall, and he has connections with my Chen family."

Li Changqing nodded and said, "That's good. I have a pill formula. Since the Purple Pill Sect is a pill refining sect, it's easy to see that the formula is valuable. Since you said that the Zhao family has reached the Foundation Establishment stage and is qualified to trade with the Purple Pill Sect, our Chen family has not yet reached the Foundation Establishment stage, but this pill formula is as valuable as a Foundation Establishment master. I don't want the Chen family to fall apart like this."

Chen Yi raised an eyebrow and subconsciously used the system's identification function.

"To determine whether Li Changqing's sudden appearance of the elixir formula and his subsequent statements are true."

The system responded immediately.

[Analysis: Lie.]

What Li Changqing wanted to take out was an improved Foundation Establishment Pill, used for Foundation Establishment stage cultivation.

[Give the pill formula to the Purple Pill Sect. Once Li Changqing recovers his Foundation Establishment cultivation, he will naturally take control of the Purple Pill Sect. In this way, the Foundation Condensation Pills refined by the Purple Pill Sect will be perfectly suited for Li Changqing's use.]

By handing over the pill formula at this moment, Li Changqing was paving the way for his breakthrough to the Golden Core stage.

After reading the system upgrade, Chen Yi paused for a moment, then glanced at Li Changqing.

Good heavens, they've even set their sights on the Purple Pill Sect now. Their vision is that far-reaching.

He's still recovering from his injuries and is only at the sixth level of the Qi Refining stage, yet he's already thinking about breaking through to the Golden Core stage.