The old man's sword glowed a stark crimson, blazing like a raging inferno.

The old woman's blade shimmered a mottled pale blue, radiating the biting chill of frost.

"Not good, a Pseudo-Artifact! Junior Brother Xu, be careful!"

Ye Shanhu cried out in alarm. Employing some unknown method, a transparent barrier of Spiritual Qi suddenly materialized to envelop her.

"Kill!"

The husband and wife moved in unison, brandishing their swords while forming esoteric hand seals with their free hands.

Their hand seals resonated, their hands clasping together as their oppressive momentum surged exponentially.

Both swords thrust toward Xu Changshou. A jagged pillar of ice, wreathed in raging flames, hurtled directly toward the space between his brows.

Clang!

Three Cun from Xu Changshou's brow, the flaming ice pillar abruptly halted, slamming into an unseen barrier.

At that moment, an earthy yellow ripple cascaded around Xu Changshou's form; it was precisely this undulation that thwarted the couple's lethal strike.

Indeed, Xu Changshou had triggered the Earth Stalwart Talisman.

Following this.

Crash!

The ice pillar shattered and the flames scattered into the void, yet the earthy yellow ripples remained entirely unmoved-ethereal and profound, unyielding as a monolith.

The couple's expressions warped in horror. "Impossible!"

Their combined, synchronized strike was something even a cultivator at the twelfth layer of Qi Condensation could never withstand.

Xu Changshou was merely at the ninth layer of Qi Condensation. How could he block it? And what exactly were those earthy yellow ripples?

Could it be a Magical Artifact?

No, impossible. A mere ninth-layer Qi Condensation cultivator lacked the foundation to wield a Magical Artifact.

Countless fragmented thoughts raced through their minds.

Sharp Gold Talisman, manifest!

Xu Changshou's mind stirred, and a blinding, incandescent golden light erupted from his right palm.

Before anyone could discern the source, a ferocious surge of golden sword qi tore out from his grasp.

"What is that?!"

Ye Shanhu and the spectating cultivators stood aghast, utterly unable to fathom how Xu Changshou could unleash sword qi with his bare hands.

To manifest sword qi empty-handed was the domain of great Foundation Establishment cultivators; a Qi Condensation cultivator's mortal coil was too frail to bear such violent recoil.

Those in the Qi Condensation realm required the medium of a Pseudo-Artifact to project such power.

They remained ignorant of the truth: Xu Changshou was not channeling the sword qi himself, but deploying the Sharp Gold Talisman.

Because the Sharp Gold Talisman detonated the instant it left his void space to materialize as sword qi, it merely created the illusion of an empty-handed technique.

Pfft-

The old man's defenses were brutally shredded. The golden light pierced his skull, bursting it like a melon and obliterating his soul on the spot.

Such overwhelming power!

Xu Changshou was secretly shaken; the Sharp Gold Talisman was far more tyrannical than he had calculated.

"Old man!"

The old woman shrieked in terror, immediately turning to flee for her life.

Sharp Gold Talisman! Go!

Xu Changshou thrust his palm toward the back of the fleeing woman's head, unleashing another stream of golden sword qi.

Bang!!!

Her defensive barrier collapsed instantly. The sword light surged forward without losing momentum, impaling her through the back of the skull.

Her body seized violently, the spark of life extinguishing from her eyes as she collapsed in a pool of her own blood.

Under normal circumstances, Xu Changshou would be no match for a twelfth-layer Qi Condensation cultivator.

Yet the sheer devastation of the Sharp Gold Talisman defied logic. An ordinary version matched the peak strike of a twelfth-layer expert, to say nothing of one drafted upon the hide of a Ferocious Bull King.

"Too formidable..."

The surrounding Qi Condensation cultivators were thoroughly paralyzed by the carnage. Not a single soul dared to intervene.

Xu Changshou had executed two twelfth-layer experts with clinical precision-an outcome no one, not even Ye Shanhu, could have anticipated.

Those two bare-handed bursts of sword qi had branded a deep, primal fear into the hearts of all present.

"Senior Sister Ye, we leave!"

Knowing this location had become dangerously compromised, Xu Changshou swiftly stripped the corpses of their Storage Bags and Pseudo-Artifacts, grabbed Ye Shanhu, and made a rapid exit.

His Windwalk Talisman still clung to his legs, granting him phantom-like speed. Before the stunned crowd could mount a reaction, the duo had vanished.

"Pursue them!"

Gritting their teeth in avarice, the mob scrambled in the direction of Xu Changshou's retreat.

In merely an instant.

Xu Changshou had already swept Ye Shanhu back into the safety of their inn.

"Junior Brother Xu, what exactly was that sword qi you just unleashed?"

The moment the door closed, Ye Shanhu pressed him, unable to contain her curiosity.

Xu Changshou remained silent for a breath before offering a faint smile. "Before I departed, Martial Uncle Li bestowed a life-saving trump card upon me."

"Understood! So that is the truth of it. No wonder it possessed such tyranny."

Ye Shanhu nodded in realization.

Sensing Xu Changshou's reluctance to elaborate, she knew better than to pry further.

Probing another cultivator's hidden trump cards was a grave taboo. She guarded her own secrets closely and expected no less from others.

"Senior Sister Ye, please appraise these two Pseudo-Artifacts for me. Are they of high value?"

Shifting the topic, Xu Changshou offered the deceased couple's blades to Ye Shanhu.

As a representative of the Wanbao Pavilion, her appraisal skills were impeccable. Whatever market price she quoted was virtually absolute.

Ye Shanhu scrutinized the weapons and offered a slight nod. "Passable quality. Junior Brother Xu, you have come into a small fortune.

These two swords, one is named Crimson Smelt, and the other Azure Edge.

One carries a fire attribute, the other water. They are relatively standard Pseudo-Artifacts in the market. In terms of exchange, they command roughly sixty Spirit Stones each."

"So cheap?"

Xu Changshou felt a pang of dissatisfaction. His Five Clouds Sword had bled him of one hundred and eight Spirit Stones.

Ye Shanhu explained, "Junior Brother Xu, the value of Pseudo-Artifacts fluctuates heavily. Common attributes are inexpensive, while mutated variants fetch a premium. A lightning-attributed Pseudo-Artifact, for instance, would demand an exorbitant sum."

"I understand."

Xu Changshou nodded inwardly. The steep cost of his Five Clouds Sword stemmed from its rare containment of five harmonious attributes.

Glancing back at the twin blades, he asked, "Senior Sister Ye, these weapons serve me no purpose. Will your Wanbao Pavilion acquire them?"

Ye Shanhu smiled bitterly. "You seized these swords through slaughter and plunder. They are tainted goods. Our Wanbao Pavilion dares not touch them.

The Wanbao Pavilion operates upon strict tenets. We categorically refuse items stained with karmic complications."

"Understood."

Xu Changshou smiled faintly, storing the blades away.

These weapons bore the distinctive mark of the Joyous Union Sect. The Pavilion's refusal was born of a reluctance to draw the ire of such a faction.

Ye Shanhu added, "Do not fret, Junior Brother. Our refusal does not render them worthless.

When time permits, travel to the Wanxian Market. The merchants of the Wanxian Tower are bold enough to swallow tainted goods."

Xu Changshou gave a nod of acknowledgment.

The Wanxian Tower was a chaotic nexus for Rogue Cultivators, reigning squarely within the domain of the Wu Zhou Old Demon. Whatever the orthodox sects feared to touch, the Wanxian Tower devoured.

Later.

Xu Changshou, without seeking privacy, emptied the contents of the looted Storage Bags onto the table before Ye Shanhu.

The deceased couple were merely Miscellaneous Disciples of the Joyous Union Valley, likely relegated to secular duties long ago. Bereft of true fortunes, there was little reason to conceal their meager scraps.

Yet, the moment the spoils clattered onto the wood, Xu Changshou instantly regretted his transparency.

The Storage Bags disgorged an array of deeply esoteric and twisted dual-cultivation implements, their grotesque designs instantly painting Ye Shanhu's face a furious scarlet.

Moreover, the decrepit old man apparently harbored a perverse obsession; hundreds of stolen women's undergarments spilled out in a silken mountain.

As expected of the Joyous Union Sect. Their depravity knows no bounds.

Xu Changshou mentally conceded that his horizons had been forcibly broadened.

Ye Shanhu stammered, her face flushed with burning indignation. "Junior Brother Xu, you... why would you display this filth? It is repulsive! Stow it away at once!"

"My apologies, profound apologies!"

Xu Changshou frantically swept the offending contraband back into the storage space.

Beyond the mountain of debauchery, the couple's accumulated wealth amounted to a pitiful dozen Spirit Stones. Nothing else warranted a second glance.

Nightfall descended.

The once-quiet inn soon bristled with volatile activity as a sudden influx of cultivators swarmed the premises.

Each new arrival wore an expression of haughty arrogance, radiating tyrannical auras.

"They have arrived. These scavengers cling like starving wild dogs. Junior Brother Xu, how shall we proceed?"

Inside Xu Changshou's quarters, Ye Shanhu's expression was incredibly stark.

The evening had dragged in a multitude of cultivators, many bearing the lingering scent of the Thunder Marsh. It was evident their greed had yet to be extinguished.

"Hold your patience, Senior Sister Ye. Wait here. I shall go sever this karma."

Xu Changshou pushed open his door and descended into the main hall.

The moment his boots touched the floorboards, countless predatory gazes locked firmly onto him.