There were a great many robbers.

Luo Yu felt this person looked vaguely familiar, as if he had seen him before when setting up a stall at the Nine Heavens Palace—a glance was all it took for Luo Yu to remember someone now, his memory was exceptional. He was secretly delighted: Was this business coming to him? So he nodded enthusiastically, "Yes, yes! Are you here to buy a magical artifact?"

The man grinned, pulling the group aside and said, "I want to buy a formation array. Did you bring any goods this time?"

Luo Yu exchanged a glance with Qin Yue. After being reprimanded by their uncle, they dared not attract attention again and had not prepared any formation arrays for this trip, fearing those with ulterior motives might make connections.

Luo Yu replied, "Sorry, the arrays are sold out. Why not take a look at the magical artifacts? They’re newly crafted, no one has picked them yet."

The man looked disappointed, wearing a bitter expression, "My cultivation has stalled at the tenth level of Qi Refining, and spiritual herbs are hard to find these days. I can only rely on formation arrays. If you have extras, could you spare me one?"

Luo Yu felt apologetic and said, "There’s only a defensive array and an offensive array left. If you want them, I’ll let you have a set."

The man said, "I want a Spirit Gathering Array. What use are those arrays for cultivation?"

Luo Yu sighed helplessly, "The Spirit Gathering Array really is gone."

The man was annoyed, "Why don’t you make more Spirit Gathering Arrays to sell? Don’t tell me you stole them from Nine Heavens Palace and now don’t dare to sell... Right! You were at the Nine Heavens Palace at the time!"

At his words, several cultivators nearby turned to examine them—four Foundation Establishment cultivators! With powerful arrays, could they have stolen from the major sects?

Whispers spread, eyes filled with speculation and appraisal.

Qin Yue saw the situation was turning sour and snorted coldly, "Nonsense! If making an array meant one could steal from all the sects, wouldn't their spiritual gardens have been emptied long ago?"

The man, seeing Qin Yue was angry, felt a bit intimidated: He'd misspoken and offended a Foundation Establishment cultivator. Better to leave; if he angered them, what if they killed him to silence the matter?

He said no more and quickly slipped away.

Qin Yue swept her gaze over the crowd, pulled Luo Yu along, and continued calmly shopping. After making a show of buying some things, the group returned to their quarters.

Once the door was shut, Su Heng strode forward, bent on one knee, and said loudly, "Master, now that our identities have been exposed, should I capture that man for a lesson? We can’t let him spread this!"

Qin Yue sat casually in a chair, her demeanor calm. "That person has already left Yu Tianlong... and now that others have overheard, what use is it to catch him? The major sects have no evidence; what can they do?"

Luo Yu, reassured by his uncle’s confidence, was bold, "We’ll meet whatever comes! Unless the sects send their Core Formation elders, what’s there to fear?"

Su Heng retreated, feeling the two masters were quite the rascals—almost shameless... Yet, being shameless was a skill in itself, perhaps?

Over the next few days, Yu Tianlong opened a tree-lined street as a marketplace. The road bustled with voices, many Miao tribesmen rode fierce beasts along the street, some followed by entire packs, seemingly just to block traffic. The four set up shop like at Nine Heavens Palace, selling goods and shopping. Their dominant artifacts still sold briskly; each sale came with a business card—since their address was already known, there was no avoiding business.

The Heroic Tournament soon ended, and they packed up to leave.

As they rode clouds out of the village, they saw a group ahead, each standing on a magical artifact, weapons in hand, blocking the way. Luo Yu counted eight, all Foundation Establishment cultivators—six humans, two demons.

Qinghuo saw trouble brewing and cast out her flying sword, stepping forward and demanding, "Who are you, blocking my master’s path, and what do you intend?"

A grim-faced cultivator stepped forward from the group, smiling insincerely, "We heard you are the illustrious visitors to the great spiritual gardens. We admire your skill and have come especially to pay our respects."

Qinghuo replied coldly, "Since you’ve paid your respects, please step aside."

The cultivator smiled darkly, "You demonstrated extraordinary abilities at the sects, surely reaping much benefit. Since fate brought us together, why not share a portion and make friends?"

Qinghuo and Su Heng were furious, about to rebuke him, but Qin Yue snorted and said coolly, "How much do you want?"

The cultivator smiled kindly, "Not much, not much—fifty plants each."

Qin Yue drifted forward on a cloud, shaking her head, "Do you think we looted the gardens? We merely took some seedlings; not a single mature plant is in our possession."

The cultivator was stunned, not believing her, "How could you leave a treasure mountain empty-handed? Hmph, do you take us for fools? If you won’t hand over the spiritual herbs, I’ll have to take them myself and see if your skills match your arrays... Wait—"

Before he could finish, blood spurted from his mouth. He looked down in shock—a fiery-red flying sword had pierced his chest unnoticed.

Qin Yue’s lips curled in disdain as she withdrew the sword, flicking it clean, "Strike first for advantage."

The cultivator clutched his chest, trembling as he pointed at Qin Yue, "You... sneak attack... shameless..." With those words, his body slumped, and a ball of green light shot out, trying to flee. Qin Yue snapped her fingers and a red fireball incinerated it, her actions fluid, showing her experience in such matters.

The rest of the group was stunned by the sudden turn of events. Once the cultivator’s soul was burned away, they recovered and attacked together. One cried out in grief, "Thief! You killed my brother—you must pay with your life!"

Qinghuo and Su Heng rushed forward to shield Qin Yue, taking the blows.

Luo Yu, unwilling to lag behind, summoned the Blue Sprite and joined the fray. Magical artifacts whirled through the air; Qin Yue faced three opponents at once, Luo Yu handled two, throwing another artifact into the mix. His powerful spiritual sense tracked every movement—dodging and countering perfectly, not falling behind at all.

Qinghuo and Su Heng each rode a cloud, fighting their adversaries evenly. Qinghuo commanded her flying sword against twin axes, while Su Heng wielded a whip so deftly it occasionally stripped skin from his opponent.

Qin Yue was the main event, facing the fallen cultivator’s brother and two demon cultivators. Her sword, Crimson Abyss, blazed with fire, leaving scorching trails as she darted and spun. The brother, unused to such close combat, was flustered and overwhelmed. Qin Yue moved among the three as if playing—a chance to practice her footwork, really. The two demon cultivators were quick and responsive, making her reluctant to finish them off too quickly.

The demons grew increasingly alarmed: Who was this person? Her physical strength surpassed even theirs! Human bodies were typically frail, unable to withstand such rapid movement and impact. Her spiritual sense was extraordinary, predicting their attacks and avoiding them effortlessly—their artifacts couldn’t even touch her shadow. Meanwhile, their tails were singed bald from the heat.

While they were wondering, a scream rang out—the brother was accidentally beheaded by Qin Yue’s sword, his head and body separating.

The two demons realized things had gone south. As the brother’s soul fled, they ran in the opposite direction. Qin Yue, unhurried, waved her jade hand, releasing a golden fireball that burst in the sky like fireworks, weaving into a spherical net that trapped everyone inside. The brother’s soul crashed into the net and vanished without a sound.

The demons were terrified, unsure what the golden net was. One stabbed upward with his artifact, but it vanished halfway, just like the soul.

Qin Yue stood calmly on her cloud, snorting, "Come back and fight."

The demons were scared witless, faces turning pale as they exchanged looks. Fight? This person was a thief of spiritual herbs, a cunning attacker, ruthless and powerful—practically a demon lord in the making. How did they get themselves into this mess?

Qin Yue narrowed her eyes, "If you’re tired of fighting, I’ll send you on your way."

Without hesitation, the two demons dropped to their knees atop their artifacts, bowing their heads, "We admit defeat! Please spare us!"

Qin Yue sneered, "If I had lost, would you have spared me?"

One demon was speechless, the other replied, "As long as you spare us, we’re willing to serve you as our master!"

The second demon brightened at this and echoed, "We’re willing to serve you as well!"

Qin Yue mocked them, "I don’t want such subordinates. You’re just trying to save yourselves. Do you think I’m so easily fooled? Come and fight again, or die."

The demons pleaded anxiously, "You misunderstand! We’re both of the wolf clan, and have always revered strength—the strongest is our leader. Now that we’ve been defeated, we’ll be loyal and never harbor ill intent!"

Qin Yue was somewhat tempted—their agility would make them good sparring partners.

Thus, the Demon Lord Qin nodded, "I’ve heard the wolf clan is fond of devouring their masters; every leader dies at the hands of his subordinates..."

The wolf demons hurried to explain, "It’s true, but you are so powerful that we’ll obey you completely and never betray you!"

Qin, with regal pride, declared, "In that case, I’ll accept you both. If one day you defeat me, you may devour your master and depart."

The two wolf demons were overjoyed, bowing, "Fang and Claw greet the master!"

Qin Yue said, "Rise. Now I order you both to kill your former companions. Any objections?"

The wolves replied, "As you command!"

Qin Yue squinted, "So straightforward?"

The demons replied fearfully, "We had no ties to them—just met along the way, nothing more."

Qin Yue nodded, "Go on, then."

The demons wiped cold sweat from their brows: This demon lord was unpredictable. Would serving such a master be fortune or disaster? Still, with his ruthlessness, there would surely be plenty of opportunities for killing and looting—a prospect not without appeal...

Qin Yue withdrew the Yang True Fire, and the wolves, eager to prove their loyalty, rushed off and attacked their former companions, quickly finishing them—no soul escaped.

Luo Yu and the others were bewildered by the sudden turn of events: What was going on? Mutual slaughter?

They descended to the ground. Qin Yue calmly ordered Fang and Claw to gather the spoils and clean up the bodies; then she turned to Qinghuo and Su Heng, her tone icy, "You fought for so long and still didn’t kill them. What were you doing? Less flirting, more training."

The two blushed and hung their heads, "Yes, Master!"

Qin Yue glanced at the wolves, "You’ll spar with them from now on—if you improve, challenge me."

The wolves replied eagerly, "As you command!"

Qin Yue took Luo Yu’s hand, "Let’s go."

Luo Yu summoned his cloud, and they floated away. The wolves, however, hesitated.

Qin Yue asked, "What’s wrong? Don’t want to follow me?"

Fang replied urgently, "You misunderstand, Master! It’s just... we have some brothers in our clan. If we leave, they’ll fight for leadership. They’re all equally strong, and after the struggle, more than half may die. May we bring them along as well?"

Author's note: Well, another chapter done... I’ve broken my word.

Cultivator Buddy’s Journey 62—The Robbers Are Many, update complete!