The afternoon marketplace was as bustling as ever, perhaps even more so than the past few days.

Li Yuan had only walked halfway down East Street when he noticed another batch of new faces on the street.

Numerous Loose Cultivators squatted by the roadside in groups of three or five, talking. Most of them wore grim expressions; some were travel-worn, while others still had poorly cleaned bloodstains on them.

As Li Yuan passed a group of Loose Cultivators, he overheard a few fragmented sentences.

"...The outskirts aren’t safe anymore. Yesterday, Old Zhou’s team ran into a Demon Beast at the foot of the mountains. They couldn’t even get away. Only three of the five made it back..."

"It’s not just the foothills. I heard there are powerful Demon Beasts appearing near a few of the outer mining veins, too. Sometimes they’re even in packs. Word is several Demon Beast hunting parties have already been wiped out."

"If even the hunting parties can’t handle it, what’s the point of us Loose Cultivators going into the mountains? Better to just stay in the marketplace for now and wait for things to blow over."

Li Yuan didn’t break his stride, but he filed the information away in his mind.

Demon Beast activity in the Yuanheng Mountain Range was becoming more frequent than before.

High Tier Demon Beasts were starting to appear even at the outer foothills. This indicated that Demon Beasts from the deeper regions were migrating outward, pushing the Low Tier Demon Beasts that originally occupied the periphery out as well.

This created a chain reaction, with the ultimate impact falling upon the Loose Cultivators and hunting parties who made their living in the mountains.

With people dying, the survivors naturally fled to the marketplace. This explained why the marketplace had been getting more and more crowded lately.

Continuing forward and turning into North Alley, Li Yuan noticed several new makeshift stalls had been erected on both sides. Some didn’t even have a proper stall; they just spread a cloth on the ground and squatted beside it, calling it a shop.

North Alley was already narrow, and now it was so crowded that it was difficult for even two people to walk side by side.

Halfway through his patrol, Li Yuan ran into a clerk from the administration office, who was clutching a stack of papers and hurrying toward East Street.

"Deputy Li." The clerk called out to him, separating a few sheets from the stack and handing them over.

"A notice from the administration office. Please pass it on."

Li Yuan took them and glanced over them.

The Wang family was going to expand the marketplace.

The notice was brief: due to the recent influx of Loose Cultivators, the existing housing and stalls were insufficient. The Wang family had decided to build additional housing on the east and south sides of the marketplace. They would also open up some vacant areas for Loose Cultivators to rent, with rent collected monthly.

When Li Yuan read the last line, his brow twitched slightly.

The areas to be opened included the vacant houses in the Inspector Generals’ residential quarter.

The area where Li Yuan lived originally had about a hundred wooden houses, but not many people lived there, leaving plenty of them empty.

Now that a large number of personnel had been transferred to the Guard, even more houses were vacant.

The Wang family planned to clear out these empty houses and rent them to Loose Cultivators.

Collecting rent from those living in and around the marketplace would certainly be a considerable source of income.

Li Yuan tucked the notices into his sleeve and continued his patrol, handing them out along the way.

In the evening, Li Yuan went to the Inspector General Corps’ station.

The door to the main room was open. Wang De sat inside, the stack of documents on his desk even thicker than it had been a few days ago.

"Sit down and talk."

Wang De picked up his teacup and took a sip.

"We’ve already found out. Zhao Wu was in the marketplace for almost a month, constantly asking about its defenses, manpower, entry and exit routes, things like that."

Wang De set down his teacup and took out a piece of coarse cloth. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

On the cloth was a hand-drawn map of the marketplace’s layout. It was quite detailed, even marking the number of guards at the administration office and their shift change times.

"This was left behind at Zhao Wu’s residence. It seems he sensed something and left in a hurry."

Li Yuan’s heart stirred, but his expression remained unchanged.

"It’s still unclear which faction he was working for. We haven’t been able to trace it yet."

The entire Qinghe Marketplace was the property of the Wang family, a Foundation Establishment clan. Coupled with the marketplace’s own considerable defenses, a simple group of raiding cultivators would never dare to cause trouble here.

Wang De paused here, looking at Li Yuan.

"How did you notice him?"

"He was a stall vendor who wasn’t worried that his goods weren’t selling. He had nothing better to do than watch the marketplace guards and the entrance. Later, he started actively asking about the Guard’s manpower."

Li Yuan answered succinctly, "Put it all together, and it’s not normal."

Wang De grunted in agreement and leaned back in his chair.

"So many people come in and out of the marketplace every day. Normally, no one would pay attention to what one Loose Cultivator is doing."

"You did very well."

Wang De offered a word of praise before getting to the main point.

"The marketplace has been attracting all sorts of people lately. Zhao Wu might not be the last of his kind."

"He blended in for a month before you spotted him. It shows that unless these people give themselves away, it’s hard to weed them out with normal patrols."

Wang De pushed the documents on his desk aside, clearing a small space, and rested his clasped hands on the tabletop.

"Keep an extra eye out during your patrols, especially on the newly arrived Loose Cultivators. See if there’s anyone else similar to Zhao Wu."

"If you find someone, come to me first. Don’t act on your own."

Li Yuan acknowledged the order. Wang De’s words suited him just fine. He then rose to take his leave.

Outside the station, twilight had fallen, and the lanterns in the marketplace were being lit one after another.

Back in his wooden cabin, Li Yuan bolted the door, stood in a cleared space, and first practiced the four initial forms of the Iron Bull Skill.

Qi Blood circulated through his body along a set path, washing over his organs and limbs.

The fourth form, Iron Bull’s Raging Hoof, was still a struggle. Every time he finished, his legs would be so sore they trembled. Still, it was a little better than the past few days; his body was slowly adapting.

After finishing his practice, Li Yuan sat down on the edge of his bed.

’It’s about time.’

With a thought, he unequipped the Iron Bull Skill.

[You have unequipped: Iron Bull Skill]

[Organ Fortification (White) Trait is now inactive.]

[Note: An unequipped item of the same type can only be re-equipped after twelve hours.]

A book appeared out of thin air in his palm, and the warmth that had been enveloping the organs deep in his abdomen faded away.

Li Yuan set the Iron Bull Skill book aside and picked up the Nourishing Essence Skill.

’Equip.’

The book dissolved into a faint glow and merged into his body. The next instant, a massive amount of information flooded his mind.

The Nourishing Essence Skill had five forms: Element Absorption, Breath Nourishment, Blood Endowment, Foundation Solidification, and Origin Return. The breathing methods, Qi Blood circulation routes, key movements, and cultivation taboos for each form were all clearly imprinted upon his consciousness.

It was the exact same feeling he’d had when he equipped the Iron Bull Skill.

The key points that had been so hazy when he’d flipped through the book that afternoon were now crystal clear, as if he had studied this Cultivation Technique countless times.

At the same time, a gentle warmth surged within him. Unlike the feeling from Organ Fortification, which was concentrated in his abdomen, this warmth spread out from his Dantian, flowing slowly through his meridians and muscles like a layer of warm water soaking his entire body.

’The effect of spontaneous Qi Blood generation.’

[You have equipped: Nourishing Essence Skill]

[Trait acquired: Spontaneous Qi Blood Generation (White) — Qi Blood recovery speed increased by 50%. Healing speed for external and internal injuries is accelerated.]

[Nourishing Essence Skill: Uninitiated (0/100)]

The Spell’s infusion was complete, but the physical cultivation still had to be done step by step.

Li Yuan didn’t delay. He stood up and, following the clear Spell in his mind, began to practice the first form of the Nourishing Essence Skill.