However, being able to acquire the Foundation Establishment Pill Formula was worthwhile no matter what.

Although he had already achieved Foundation Establishment, there were still many Gu Clan members in the Qi Condensation Realm waiting for Foundation Establishment Pills! If the Gu Clan could produce Foundation Establishment Pills themselves, the clan's strength would rise by a large margin!

Gu Changhuan carefully examined the Foundation Establishment Pill Formula. The spiritual herbs required to refine the pills totaled thirty-six, among which the three main ingredients were Mystic Ice Grass, Heavenly Spirit Fruit, and Fire Velvet Mushroom, while the remaining thirty-three were supplementary herbs.

He already possessed more than ten of these spiritual herbs.

Some, such as Mystic Ice Grass and Jade Marrow Mushroom, were cultivated in the family's medicinal garden. Others might also be grown by the Gu Clan.

But he was certain the clan lacked several ingredients, including Thousand-Faced Flower and Fire Velvet Mushroom. Perhaps he should return home after leaving Linyao Market, before continuing to Heng Prefecture.

After all, collecting spiritual herbs was a task that benefited from many hands, making it much more suitable for the family to handle.

He could stay another half month. The wine would be ready by then, and he could sell a batch before leaving. It would also give him time to look for more of the herbs.

Gu Changhuan calculated quietly in his mind.

The stall had earned far more than he had expected. Of course, he sold good, genuine wares. Other vendors put out all sorts of rubbish and fakes.

Some wares looked so mysterious and impressive that even Gu Changhuan could not see through them. Only the Tongxian Map's lack of response had saved him from being fooled. Ordinary rogue cultivators would be still easier prey.

Because of this, although Gu Changhuan had not been operating his stall for long, he had already built a solid reputation.

Many rogue cultivators and shops knew that a mysterious Qi Condensation cultivator had recently appeared on the third level of Linyao Market, earning plenty of spirit stones by selling various pills, spiritual talismans, and Magical Artifacts, while simultaneously buying rare spiritual herbs, seeds, and young plants.

Several shops had already begun inquiring with the market managers about Gu Changhuan's true identity.

The three managers did not want to offend someone with such an unknown background. But the shopkeepers were vital to the market, too. They gave vague answers: they knew little about him, but he should not be underestimated.

They did not even disclose that Gu Changhuan was actually a Foundation Establishment expert.

As for the dark-faced burly man from Kaitian Hall, he remained even more cautious precisely because he knew Gu Changhuan was a Foundation Establishment cultivator. The reason was simple: Gu Changhuan looked far too young.

Achieving Foundation Establishment at such a tender age meant his background was certainly not something an ordinary Haoran Sect disciple like him could afford to provoke.

Understanding the hints, the shop managers realized the young man had powerful backing. Otherwise, he would never dare to sell so many spiritual treasures so openly. Killing a junior was a small matter, but if bringing down a junior provoked their seniors, it would spell absolute disaster.

But there were always a few—ill-informed, foolish, or blinded by greed—who seemed determined to dance straight over the edge of death.

Jin Youheng was precisely such a person.

Jin Youheng was a rogue cultivator who had set up his stall near Gu Changhuan's, possessing Late Qi Condensation cultivation at the ninth layer.

He had been eyeing Gu Changhuan for quite some time.

At first, he was merely jealous of the brisk business at Gu Changhuan's stall. Gradually, however, greed took root, and he began plotting murder for wealth.

He never bothered to consider why Gu Changhuan dared to trade so openly on the third level of Linyao Market; he only saw the spiritual treasures on Gu Changhuan's stall dwindling day by day and the Storage Bag at his waist swelling rapidly.

Still, he did not dare to make a move within the market, opting instead to make preparations and contingencies.

Jin Youheng hired a minor rogue cultivator at the early stage of Qi Condensation, stationing him to watch the market's sole exit every day with instructions to send word the moment Gu Changhuan departed.

He found two other rogue cultivators who wanted a share of Gu Changhuan's wealth. They agreed to follow him out of the market, kill him, and split the spoils forty, thirty, and thirty percent.

Jin Youheng and his companions plotted with great confidence, yet they discovered that Gu Changhuan lingered in the market for nearly a month with no apparent intention of leaving.

The three grew increasingly anxious. Yet, daring not cause trouble inside the market, they could only comfort themselves that the longer Gu Changhuan stayed, the more spirit stones he would earn, leaving them an even richer prize in the end.

Naturally, Gu Changhuan knew nothing of being targeted by his stall neighbor. Even if he had known, he would not have minded collecting a few more Qi Condensation heads. At that moment, he was entirely occupied with selling his wine!

Such a volume of spirit wine could not be sold at a stall; that would simply be too slow.

He changed his appearance and sold wine to different shops under different identities.

He reaped a massive profit.

Yet the market's capacity was limited. After visiting every shop, Gu Changhuan had only managed to sell half of the spirit wine stored in his space.

Once he had sold what he could, he returned to his cave abode, packed up, and left Linyao Market at once.

Departing in haste, he naturally failed to notice the idle early-stage Qi Condensation rogue cultivator loitering near the entrance, nor did he know that a Communication Talisman was dispatched the moment he stepped away.

Upon receiving the message, Jin Youheng was ecstatic. He quickly summoned his companions, packed up their stall, and left Linyao Market behind.

From that day on, none of them ever returned.

Once clear of the market, Gu Changhuan traveled swiftly using his Divine Movement Technique, and it took very little time for Jin Youheng and his two companions to close the distance.

Facing two cultivators at the ninth layer of Qi Condensation and one at the eighth layer, Gu Changhuan felt no ripple of emotion. He drew his Azure Cloud Sword and dispatched all three in a few swift strokes, without even needing to summon the Haotian Mirror.

Jin Youheng and his companions could not understand why a Foundation Establishment cultivator would pose as a Qi Condensation cultivator to run a stall—or why they had been unlucky enough to pick him. Now they were dead by his sword.

He took their storage pouches and destroyed the bodies. Practice made it easier; this was already his third time.

All Gu Changhuan could think was how poor they were. The three men together had fewer Spirit Stones than the fat and thin cultivators he had killed before.

Leaving the range of the Hidden Dragon Mountains, Gu Changhuan boarded the White Dragon Shuttle and returned to Emerald Maple Mountain.

Returning to the mountain naturally meant paying a visit to the Patriarch first.

Gu Wanchang never expected Gu Changhuan to return so swiftly, assuming he must have run into serious trouble on his travels, and asked with immediate concern:

"Did you run into trouble? Tell us. We'll take care of it! And if we can't, your great-grandfather can help!"