226: Chapter 226 is all done

The two returned the way they came. After emerging from the outskirts of Ten Thousand Snakes Valley, they mounted their Magical Artifacts and rushed back to Luoxia City in less than half an hour.

Upon entering the shop, Su Chengyuan and Li Shi went straight to the second floor and closed the door tightly.

The two men, Liu and Wang, followed them up, but Su Chengyuan dismissed them first, leaving only Li Shi.

"The matter of Ten Thousand Snakes Valley cannot be pursued for the time being." Su Chengyuan sat down in a chair and poured himself a cup of Spirit Tea; having stayed with the Family for a long time, he liked to drink some whenever he was idle.

Li Shi did not respond, waiting for him to continue.

"There is a Formation blocking the underground. There is more than one person setting it up; it's an entire team."

"That middle-aged Late Foundation Establishment Stage Cultivator said there is one month left, which means they have been staked out in Ten Thousand Snakes Valley for a long time."

"An operation of this scale is not something a Loose Cultivator could organize."

Su Chengyuan picked up his teacup, took a sip, and then set it back on the table.

"With our strength, it is unwise to barge in blindly."

Li Shi was silent for a while. "Then should we just head back?"

"No."

Su Chengyuan's fingers tapped twice gently on the tabletop.

"I've made this trip for Chenger. It won't do to go back without even seeing a shadow of the item."

He leaned back in his chair, his gaze fixed on the wooden beams of the ceiling.

"Formations are set by people, and Formations set by people can be broken by people. Just because we can't break it doesn't mean others can't."

"You mean... find help?"

"Something easier than finding help." Su Chengyuan flipped his hand and took out a blank Jade Slip. He used his spiritual power to carve a message into it with his fingertips, then took out a second and a third; the content of each was identical.

"There is a man-made Formation blockage more than forty zhang beneath Ten Thousand Snakes Valley, covering an area of no less than two li in radius."

"A team of Foundation Establishment Cultivators of unknown origin is active in the valley, using the flesh and blood of Fire Snakes to power the Formation."

"The purpose of the Formation is unknown, suspected to be related to the abnormal spiritual power fluctuations beneath Ten Thousand Snakes Valley."

He carved fifteen slips in one breath, checked the content word by word, removed all clues that might point to himself, and phrased it vaguely.

Even if those with a keen eye knew it was being spread intentionally, there would always be people who couldn't resist investigating such a secret. After all, it looked like something extraordinary was being worked on, and it might very well be a great Opportunity.

Li Shi looked at the row of Jade Slips on the table. "Spread them directly?"

"Not directly." Su Chengyuan picked one up and examined it. "Send someone to ask around for Abandoned Mines, Desolate Graves, or Wild Daoist Temples nearby—places where Loose Cultivators occasionally scavenge—then arrange for someone to drop these things there."

"What if no one picks them up?"

"Fifteen slips, scattered across seven or eight different locations. It's enough if just one is seen."

"When a Cultivator finds something like this, they'll spread the word whether they believe it or not. After all, it's Ten Thousand Snakes Valley."

"When the time comes, it will spread from one to ten, then ten to a hundred. In probably less than three to five days, the news will spread throughout the circle of Loose Cultivators within five hundred li of Luoxia City."

Su Chengyuan pushed the fifteen Jade Slips to the edge of the table.

"Once the news ferments, curious Loose Cultivators and Disciples of small sects will rush to Ten Thousand Snakes Valley."

"With so many people, that group won't be able to stay still."

"They will either pull in their net and leave early, or strengthen their defenses and reveal even more flaws."

"Either way, it's a good thing for us."

"But if they take the item and leave early..."

"If there really is a Strange Fire down there," Su Chengyuan corrected. "So far, we've only detected the Formation and the people; the Strange Fire is still just speculation."

"In the absolute worst case, even if they take the item and leave early, they will have to take the Formation with them."

"Once the Formation is withdrawn, the situation underground will be exposed."

"At that time, we'll take people and go again; at least we'll be able to figure out exactly what's going on down there."

Li Shi put the fifteen Jade Slips into his Storage Pouch and asked further, "Mr. Su, there aren't any traces of our spiritual power on these Jade Slips, are there?"

Su Chengyuan glanced at him. "What do you think?"

"With the way you handle things, there definitely won't be."

"Hehe, Brother Li, you go on." Su Chengyuan pulled out two more Talismans from his Storage Pouch—a Second-rank Disguise Talisman and a Breath Concealment Talisman—and placed them in Li Shi's hand. "Go tonight and return before dawn. Change your outfit."

Li Shi took the Talismans and quickly returned to his room; he also needed to make some preparations.

Su Chengyuan sat alone by the window on the second floor until he heard the last few cries of street vendors gradually fade away and the night rose layer by layer.

Then he thought about the matter of Ten Thousand Snakes Valley: a range covering at least two li at a depth of over forty zhang, and more than a dozen Foundation Establishment Cultivators stationed there for over half a year...

This was not something a small sect could pull off.

But no matter who it was, once the news was leaked, the other party would no longer be able to stay there peacefully.

When the water gets muddy, the fish are easier to catch.

Su Chengyuan began to meditate with his eyes closed, waiting quietly for Li Shi to return.

At the beginning of the Mao hour, Li Shi returned from outside.

"Mr. Su, everything is settled."

"Did anyone see you?"

"No, with the Second-rank Disguise Talisman and the Breath Concealment Talisman, no one could discover me."

Su Chengyuan nodded and closed his eyes to continue meditating. To what extent the situation would ferment depended on the will of heaven.

Everything that could be done had been done; the rest was just waiting.

He would wait a bit longer to see how things developed. If it was feasible, he would investigate again; if not, he would immediately set off to return to the Prefecture City.

As for what exactly was underground, he would find out then.

...

Before the morning mist had completely cleared the next day, Su Yunling took off from Tiangang Sect.

Flying her sword southward at full speed, driven by spiritual power, the Flying Sword, wrapped in a layer of fire-attribute spiritual light, pulled a long crimson trail beneath the clouds.

Without stopping for a moment, the outline of Qingyang Town finally appeared at the end of her vision on the evening of the seventh day.

Having not returned home for many years, Su Yunling actually felt a bit of homesickness and trepidation, her mind filled with a sense of anxiety and a thousand thoughts.

Su Yunling put away her Flying Sword five li outside the town and proceeded on foot.

She did not notify her Family in advance.

The reason was simple: she didn't want to disturb too many people.

The rules of cultivation Families emphasized grandiosity. Once the news of her return spread, the elders in the clan would surely hold a banquet to welcome her, and she would have to pay her respects to each one.

Su Yunling had neither the patience nor the interest.

She just wanted to come back quietly to see her father and mother.

But she underestimated one thing.

The current Su Family was no longer the Su Family of back then.

As the town's outline loomed in the twilight, it didn't look much different from her memory—the city walls weren't high, the roads weren't wide, and there were a few crooked-neck trees at the city gate. Everything seemed peaceful.

Until the moment her foot stepped over the threshold of the city gate.

A very subtle tremor of spiritual power spread from where she stepped, rapidly spreading along the barely visible lines on the ground to both sides of the city wall, connecting the entire Formation Base of the city gate in an instant.

Su Yunling's steps paused.

A Second-rank Formation?

When did Qingyang Town get such a thing?

Although she had restrained her spiritual power, the concentration of spiritual power within a Foundation Establishment Cultivator was still there. This type of detection Formation was most sensitive to abnormal fluctuations in spiritual power intensity.

When a Foundation Establishment Cultivator stepped into the territory of a group of Qi Refining Cultivators, it would be strange if the Formation didn't sound.

A flurry of hurried footsteps came from atop the city wall, followed by the sound of people bumping into each other and Magical Artifacts being summoned.