"So be it."
With that thought, Li Qi made his decision. To avoid future trouble, he would strike first. It was better than waiting for someone to break through to the Mahayana stage and then seek him out.
With this in mind, Li Qi's gaze fell upon Qin Tianyi, who was now comatose beside him.
After Li Qi performed a soul search, Qin Tianyi was rendered useless. However, even a mosquito's leg is still meat.
With a slight shift of his mind, Li Qi opened a small fissure in the Silent Annihilation Space, directly sucking Qin Tianyi into it.
Thus, the contingent from the Qin Yang Merchant Association that had come to the Void Black Market in the Yin Zong Domain was truly annihilated.
Taking a deep breath, Li Qi stretched his arms.
The opponents he had faced this time were unprecedentedly powerful. Yet, instead of leaving Li Qi exhausted, he felt invigorated after having the enemies utterly destroyed within the Silent Annihilation Space. The backlash had even propelled him unexpectedly to the third level of Tribulation Crossing.
Li Qi surveyed his surroundings.
It was an empty expanse. The cultivators from the Void Black Market, who had been avid spectators, had long since vanished. Those who possessed their own small worlds had likely retreated to them. Even those who roamed the void without a fixed abode had probably found a place to lie low for a while.
His gaze shifted slightly towards the Void Black Market.
Now, only a few small areas remained of the Void Black Market. The intact Penguin Medicine Pavilion stood out remarkably. The only other entities present were a few heavily injured Tribulation Crossing stage cultivators.
Among these injured cultivators was Fang Siyuan, who was staring blankly in Li Qi's direction. He had witnessed everything that had transpired. He had believed he was certainly going to die today. However, the sudden appearance of a powerhouse from the Penguin Medicine Pavilion had, with unfathomable might, annihilated the entire contingent from the Qin Yang Merchant Association. This outcome surpassed his wildest imagination.
But soon, a smile of satisfied revenge bloomed on Fang Siyuan's face. His Refined Artifact Pavilion had been the most unfortunate in this incident, with only he remaining as a Tribulation Crossing stage cultivator. The pavilion master of the Refined Artifact Pavilion had already perished at the hands of the Qin Yang Merchant Association's strongmen early on. Having been nurtured by the Refined Artifact Pavilion since childhood to reach the Tribulation Crossing stage, he harbored deep affection for it. How could he not harbor hatred for the Qin Yang Merchant Association for destroying it? Now, although the Qin Yang Merchant Association members weren't killed by his Refined Artifact Pavilion, he was content to have witnessed their demise before his very eyes.
"Satisfying! They had it coming!"
With this thought, Fang Siyuan's smile grew even more genuine.
Just then, Li Qi's figure suddenly moved towards the devastated Void Black Market. Fang Siyuan and the other Tribulation Crossing stage cultivators who had cheated death instantly tensed. They realized Li Qi seemed to be heading their way.
As expected, before long, Li Qi arrived at the Void Black Market. He extended a hand towards them, beckoning them to approach. The group was puzzled but felt no fear. If Li Qi intended to act against them, they knew they couldn't escape.
With this understanding, Fang Siyuan and the others quickly drew closer to Li Qi.
"Senior from the Penguin Medicine Pavilion! Do you have something you require of us?"
Their expressions were uncharacteristically respectful. They had known the Penguin Medicine Pavilion hailed from a prosperous region, but they had never grasped the true terror of the power behind it. A single individual had effortlessly annihilated the Qin Yang Merchant Association's forces, who had defeated their own local merchant association alliance.
At this moment, Li Qi's calm voice echoed.
"You have all witnessed how I dealt with the powerful members of the Qin Yang Merchant Association. I have no interest in handling the remaining matters."
"I want the few of you to exert yourselves and spread this news to other Void Black Markets. Instruct your local merchant association alliances to eliminate the Qin Yang Merchant Association branches in those markets. Is that understood?"
Upon hearing this, Fang Siyuan and the others grew solemn.
"Rest assured, Senior. These matters will be our responsibility. Since you have already dealt with the strong members of the Qin Yang Merchant Association, our local merchant association alliance will handle the rest."
"Good. I appreciate your effort."
Li Qi nodded slightly and then, as if remembering something, his voice, though casual, carried an undeniable authority.
"Oh, and when you meet the strong members of your local merchant association alliance, be sure to tell them this."
"I require seventy percent of the resources plundered from those Qin Yang Merchant Association branches. The remaining thirty percent will be divided amongst your local merchant association alliance. Deliver it directly to the Penguin Medicine Pavilion. If anyone has objections, or is unsatisfied with this distribution, they can come to the Penguin Medicine Pavilion to speak with me."
After speaking, Li Qi said no more.
Fang Siyuan and the others' expressions grew even more serious.
"Rest assured, Senior. We will make these matters clear to everyone. We believe no one will dare to cause trouble over this."
"Very well. In that case, you may depart."
Li Qi gave a slight nod and no longer intended to keep Fang Siyuan and the others around. He let them leave to deal with the Qin Yang Merchant Association branches in other Void Black Markets.
As for the seventy percent of the plundered resources that Li Qi demanded from the Qin Yang Merchant Association branches, he felt it was entirely reasonable. After all, he was the one who had dealt with all of the Qin Yang Merchant Association's powerful members. If he wished, he could have demanded ninety percent. If he hadn't intervened, the local merchant associations would likely have lost the foundations they had painstakingly built over millennia, let alone retaliated against the Qin Yang Merchant Association.
After seeing Fang Siyuan and the others off, Li Qi glanced again at the heavily damaged Void Black Market. After all, this was the headquarters of his Penguin Medicine Pavilion, the Void Black Market of the Yin Zong Domain. Without the Void Black Market, future transactions would be inconvenient.
With this thought, Li Qi's mind stirred.
From within the Penguin Medicine Pavilion, the First and Second Bound Soul Puppets, who had been using formations to protect it, flew out. Li Qi then commanded them to rebuild the Void Black Market.
Upon receiving the order, the First and Second Bound Soul Puppets immediately set off around the Void Black Market, beginning to gather fragments of fallen stars. As the two Bound Soul Puppets were both at the Tribulation Crossing stage, rebuilding a Void Black Market was not a difficult task.
As expected, in a short period, a Void Black Market was constructed. Moreover, the newly built Void Black Market appeared to be even larger than the original one.