Chen Xin was standing nearby. She glanced at Chu Xuan for a moment and couldn't help but ask, "Senior, weren't you being chased by people from Black Wind Island yesterday?"

Chu Xuan shook his head casually. "Yes, two ordinary pursuers. I dealt with them easily; they weren't from Black Wind Island. Although Black Wind Island is a bit tyrannical, they wouldn't stoop to such underhanded tactics. I have it under control."

He said this on purpose, not wanting to openly antagonize Black Wind Island just yet.

Chen Xin, observing his calm demeanor and tone, didn't sense any deception. She stood there confused. Could it be that Black Wind Island really didn't act on it? Had they had a change of heart?

Without delay, she went to find her third uncle, Chen Huozhao, to report the matter.

Chen Huozhao looked up from afar as he spotted Chu Xuan calmly seated at his stall, selling talismans just like yesterday. He was stunned. The person who had been marked by Black Wind Island was still alive?

"How is that possible?" he muttered to himself. "Didn't they send people after him?"

At the same time, the two Nascent Soul talismans from Black Wind Island, Dong Wei and Wang Pengjie, were staring at each other in confusion.

Dong Wei furrowed his brow. "We sent someone after him last night, right?"

Wang Pengjie nodded. "Yes, we did. We even paid to have people from Brother Song's side take care of it."

The two exchanged a look, their confusion growing.

The "Brother" they referred to was Song Tianlong, a Nascent Soul cultivator in the later stages, known for his formidable combat strength and volatile temper.

Dong Wei couldn't help but mutter, "Do you think Brother Song took our money but didn't do anything?"

Wang Pengjie pondered for a moment. "It's very possible…"

Neither of them dared to approach Song Tianlong to address the matter directly. They couldn't even bring themselves to question whether he had actually sent anyone. This kind of loss was one they would have to swallow, no matter how bitter.

After much contemplation, Dong Wei scratched his head. "How about we send two people tonight? No need to bother Brother Song; he took our money and did nothing."

Wang Pengjie nodded. "I have a friend, a Nascent Soul cultivator at the fourth stage. He's also a poison cultivator."

Dong Wei agreed. "I know someone with similar strength. If we promise them some rewards, they'll definitely help us out."

Wang Pengjie grinned. "With these two, we should be able to deal with that troublemaker."

The two exchanged satisfied nods.

...

The news that Chu Xuan had returned to the market and set up his stall again quickly spread. Most of the cultivators who had been in the area yesterday were particularly curious.

They had seen with their own eyes that someone had followed Chu Xuan when he left, only to find him back without harm.

Chu Xuan, however, paid no attention to the curious glances. After all, he was just a humble talisman seller, minding his own business.

Soon, his demon soul talismans were once again snapped up by eager buyers. This time, it took less than two hours for them to sell out completely.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

After that, Chu Xuan quickly packed up his stall and headed home, his business for the day done.

In the distance, Dong Wei and Wang Pengjie exchanged glances, silently passing a message to each other.

After Chu Xuan had left, it wasn't long before two cultivators followed his trail.

Chen Xin and Chen Huozhao looked at the receding figures of the two pursuers, both shaking their heads.

"I recognize both of them. One is an expert in poison and insect cultivation, the other raises a Dark Eagle," Chen Xin remarked. "Their strength is considerable—both of them appear to be at the Nascent Soul fourth stage."

Chen Huozhao smiled faintly. "With both of them acting together, that Liu Zhenxiong won't last long."

He then paused, deep in thought. "However, he did take out a hundred demon soul talismans yesterday, and today he has more than fifty again. I wonder where they came from. It's highly likely he found a demon cultivator's corpse and obtained the talismans from it. I suspect he may also have other demonic magic treasures on him."

Chen Xin sighed. "It's a pity. All those treasures will likely end up in someone else's hands."

Chen Huozhao nodded in agreement. "Indeed, it's truly a shame. If he weren't so wary of us, all those treasures would already be in our pockets. Let's go. We still need to find more 'fat sheep' today."

Chen Xin nodded and followed him.

...

On another isolated island, Chu Xuan smashed the skulls of the two pursuers with a single strike. Their Nascent Souls were casually extracted and tossed into the Umbrella.

"How is it that you're back again?" Chu Xuan muttered. "Didn't I already kill you both yesterday? Didn't learn your lesson, did you?"

He shook his head with a sigh. The endless stream of pursuers was becoming quite troublesome.

"Those two talisman masters just can't seem to leave me alone..."

A plan suddenly formed in his mind.

"I'll lure those two talisman masters out and deal with them all at once."

While going through one of the pursuer's storage bags, Chu Xuan found a Sound Transmission Jade. He immediately used it to send a message to Dong Wei.

Disguising one's voice was part of Chu Xuan's expertise in disguise techniques, and it was easy for him to mimic someone else's voice.

"We've trapped this talisman master on an island, but he's using an array to resist. We need your help to break it! The island is 1,100 miles northwest of Desolate Island, come quickly!"

Dong Wei and Wang Pengjie received the transmission and, without suspecting anything, immediately boarded their flying vessels and set off. On the way, Wang Pengjie furrowed his brow, a strange thought crossing his mind.

"Do you think this could be a trap?"

Dong Wei was momentarily taken aback. "A trap? What do you mean?"

Then he suddenly realized. "I get it now—you're worried that the two cultivators we hired are planning to attack us, right?"

He waved his hand dismissively. "Don't worry. We're talisman masters of Black Wind Island, they wouldn't dare act against us."

"Aren't you worried about offending Black Wind True Master?" Wang Pengjie scratched his head.

He had a nagging feeling something wasn't quite right. Just a moment ago, a frightening thought had flashed through his mind.

"What if Liu Zhenxiong managed to turn the tables on the two pursuers and lured us into a trap on this isolated island?"

But this thought vanished as quickly as it had come.

Unless Liu Zhenxiong was a Nascent Soul late-stage cultivator, it was almost impossible for him to kill two robber cultivators.

Moreover, most late-stage Nascent Soul cultivators had ventured deep into Desolate Island to search for treasures. Only a few cautious ones stayed on the outskirts of the island, still seeking treasures.

Compared to exchanging talismans and pills for goods, directly searching for treasures was obviously faster and required fewer resources.

Besides, few would bring out their most precious treasures for trade—they would rather keep them for themselves.

Dong Wei and Wang Pengjie could never have imagined that Chu Xuan was an exception.

"We're here."

It didn't take long for the two cultivators to arrive at the deserted island. There were many nameless, desolate islands with no Spiritual Qi in the Southern Third Ring, and even more scattered across the entire Starshatter Sea.

At this moment, the starlight was sparse, and the night was as dark as ink. The island felt eerie, like a ghostly realm.

"Where is he? Why aren't there any traces of battle? Where is the array?"

The two looked around, suspicion rising in their hearts. A strange feeling began to grow within them, one that made them uneasy. Reason told them that an ambush was almost impossible.

But their instincts told them that something was very wrong here. The contradiction between the two left them unsure whether to advance or retreat. After all, they had long coveted the treasures Liu Zhenxiong had acquired from selling his demon soul talismans. If they left now, wouldn't they miss out on all those treasures?

Just as they were about to venture deeper into the island to investigate, the ground suddenly began to tremble violently. Before they could react, a massive creature suddenly charged out, knocking them both over. Both cultivators, furious and alarmed, quickly summoned their defensive magic treasures.

However, before their defenses could fully materialize, two figures streaked out from the shadows with lightning speed!