Ultimately, Long Haotian, with a sullen face, bought a Sky Thunder Seed from Xu Yi.
Don't ask why he didn't buy more.
Xu Yi was truly black-hearted.
They lingered at the City Lord's mansion for one more day, so there was no queue when they arrived at the teleportation array.
"Senior Sister Xu, will you return to Xuanqing Sect with us?"
Chen Tao stood before the teleportation array to Xuanzhou and invited Xu Yi.
Xu Yi shook her head and chuckled, "No, I fear certain people would be so angered they couldn't eat."
Although she didn't name names, Chen Tao and Wang Yi'an both looked at Long Haotian.
Long Haotian's face grew even more sullen.
This woman was truly heartless. She had reaped countless benefits from them, their senior and junior brothers, and yet at their departure, she couldn't resist a sarcastic remark.
Though he thought this inwardly, his mouth moved uncontrollably, "Who said that? You won't know until you try."
Xu Yi raised her eyebrows in surprise, but ultimately refused.
She had previously sent a message to Xuanji Gate, asking Elder Qingfeng to inform Lu Zaiye that she had gone to explore a secret realm and to have him return to the sect by himself.
She was now planning to go to Bagua City, another major city in Haozhou, where it was rumored that the ruins of an ancient incomplete formation lay. She wanted to witness it firsthand and see if she could gain any inspiration from it.
As for visiting the Xuanji Sect as a guest with these three, it was entirely outside of Xu Yi's considerations.
When Xu Yi parted ways with the trio, she friendly exchanged imprints of their communication disks.
"Goodbye, all three of you."
Long Haotian and the other two watched as Xu Yi stepped onto the teleportation array, waved goodbye to them with a flourish, and disappeared before their eyes. Only then did they let out a sigh of wistful longing.
"Let's go, we should head back too."
Long Haotian exhaled the suppressed frustration from his chest and took the lead towards the teleportation array.
The next time they met, he was determined not to fall into Xu Yi's hands again.
Chen Tao and Wang Yi'an rallied their spirits and followed behind Long Haotian, stepping onto the teleportation array.
...
Bagua City.
The city walls were built with black and white rocks. Up close, the rocks seemed haphazard and irregular, but from a distance, they appeared to form complex and profound patterns, obscure and difficult to comprehend.
Xu Yi stood at a high vantage point, gazing at the city walls. She watched for three hours until her sea of consciousness began to ache, and finally, she reluctantly gave up.
Following her usual habit, she copied the patterns on the city walls onto a jade slip. Then, with a light tap of her toes, she quickly headed towards Bagua City.
Bagua City, with its allure of ancient formations, had attracted many formation cultivators from thousands of miles away.
When Xu Yi arrived at the city gate, she saw many hopeful-looking cultivators.
After paying the entrance fee and entering the city, she sensed a strong aura of formations.
Whether it was the shops lining the streets, the shop signs on the pavement, or even the inconspicuous carvings on the city walls, all bore the traces of formations.
Xu Yi's lips curved upwards, and she slowed her pace, gradually soaking in the intense atmosphere.
However, her good mood did not last long, as it was disrupted by an argument.
Ahead, outside a shop selling formation disks, a middle-aged man dressed as a shopkeeper stood on the steps, looking down at the girl below and sneering, "I say, you really think highly of yourself. You don't even have a formation cultivator's badge. If I give you ten low-grade spirit stones, that's already good. If you dare to cause trouble again, I won't give you a single copper."
His condescending demeanor made Xu Yi frown.
The girl he was mocking had a youthful appearance. She clenched her fists and shouted, "You didn't say that back then. The cost of these few formation disks I made is more than ten spirit stones!"
"I said I could acquire them for a hundred spirit stones, but that was when I thought you were a formation cultivator," the shopkeeper said, his lips curling downwards, looking somewhat impatient.
"I am a formation cultivator, and these formation disks were made by me!" the girl hastily argued.
"You're a formation cultivator?" The shopkeeper extended his hand. "Then show me your formation cultivator's badge."
The girl bit her lower lip in embarrassment and remained silent.
The sarcasm on the shopkeeper's face intensified. "Without a formation cultivator's badge, how can you be called a formation cultivator? Don't insult the name of formation cultivators."
Most of the cultivators in Bagua City were formation cultivators. Upon hearing the shopkeeper's words, they immediately chimed in loudly.
"The shopkeeper is right. Cultivators without a formation cultivator's badge are simply not worthy of mentioning the word 'formation cultivator'."
"Exactly. Anyone thinks they can be a formation cultivator, without even considering if they have the ability."
"Young lady, stop boasting here. Go back and cultivate for a few more years."
"..."
The girl's eyes welled up under the accusations of the crowd, but she stubbornly refused to let tears fall. She shouted at the shopkeeper, "Then give me back my formation disks! I won't sell them to you anymore!"
As she spoke, she held the spirit stone pouch the shopkeeper had given her out in front of him.
The shopkeeper's eyes darted around, and he suddenly said sternly, "Not selling them to me? Do you understand the rule of exchanging money for goods?
Besides, did you make these formation disks? Didn't you steal them? You look like a decent person, but I never expected you to do something like this. Truly, one cannot judge a book by its cover!"
"You're talking nonsense! You're talking nonsense!" Tears finally streamed down the girl's face. She took two steps forward, grabbed the shopkeeper's sleeve, and cried out with a choked voice, "Give me back my formation disks! Give them back!"
"Let go! I told you to let go!"
The shopkeeper struggled a few times but couldn't pull his sleeve free from the girl's grasp. Looking at her tear-streaked face, malice arose in him. He raised his hand high and swung it towards the girl's face, a twisted glee flashing in his eyes.
The girl closed her eyes in despair as she saw the impending slap.
*Bang!*
The girl shivered. The expected pain did not come. She tentatively opened her eyes and found the detestable shopkeeper lying inside the shop, a display counter crushed beneath him.
She looked down and saw only half a sleeve remaining in her hand.
"Are the formation disks you were talking about made by you?"
A voice asked beside her.
She turned her head and saw a spirited woman standing beside her, who hadn't been there moments ago.
She was stunned for a moment. Seeing the shopkeeper already propping himself up with the floor and about to stand, she quickly came to her senses and said, "Those formation disks were all made by me. They have my mark on them."
As the girl spoke, she took out a formation disk from her storage bag and showed Xu Yi the plum blossom mark on the back.
Xu Yi nodded and swept her divine sense across the shop, quickly locating the formation disks with the plum blossom imprints.
With a wave of her hand, those formation disks automatically flew to the girl's front.
"Take your belongings."
The girl quickly put the formation disks into her storage bag. After a moment of hesitation, she still threw the spirit stone pouch she held towards the shopkeeper's body, "Here's your spirit stones back!"
Xu Yi chuckled softly and led the girl away.
Others wanted to say something, but they were intimidated by Xu Yi's aura and could only watch as she led the girl away.
Inside the shop, the shopkeeper, with a lump on his head from being struck, glared venomously at the backs of the two women and reached for the communication disk at his waist.
They dared to cause trouble here, they would definitely pay the price!