The Mo Family’s losses over the years were perhaps far greater than outsiders imagined.

If that weren’t the case, Mo Qingxue wouldn’t have been in such a hurry to break through to Core Formation.

’Logically, the Mo Clan Territory has a Tier Three Grand Array, and with their Tier Three Puppets, they shouldn’t have been breached so easily, even in their weakened state.’

Li Chang’an mused.

The problem must lie with the Tier Three Puppets.

The Mo Family’s two Tier Three Puppets had most likely been damaged during the years of constant battle.

’I wonder if Mo Qingxue will succeed.’

Li Chang’an had originally been quite confident that Mo Qingxue would reach Core Formation, but now he wasn’t so sure.

He could only hope nothing unexpected happened to her.

...

「A few days later.」

Li Chang’an assumed the identity of Li Fan and went to the Black Market to meet with Zhao Ming of the Demon Sect.

Over the past few years, the two had met almost every year to trade souls.

Furthermore, Li Chang’an had also used Zhao Ming as a channel to purchase numerous treasures for his Venerable Soul Banner to devour.

The Tier of the Venerable Soul Banner was approaching Tier Three.

Inside a private room in the Black Market.

Li Chang’an met with Zhao Ming.

"Daoist Zhao."

"Haha, Daoist Li, it’s been a while!"

Zhao Ming was all smiles, a completely different person from their first meeting, with no trace of his previous coldness.

This was because, through their years of trading, he had confirmed that Li Chang’an was not only wealthy but also a long-term client who could bring him a steady stream of income.

With a flash of Spiritual Light from his hand, a Small Bronze Cauldron appeared.

The cauldron was filled with densely packed souls.

"Daoist Li, same old price. Ten thousand souls, a mix of mortal and Cultivator souls of very high quality. That’ll be one hundred thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones!"

"Alright!"

Li Chang’an still didn’t haggle. After all, Zhao Ming was his only channel for buying souls.

He readily paid the Spirit Stones.

Soon, the two signed a Spirit Contract, and the transaction was complete!

The ten thousand souls flew one after another into Li Chang’an’s Venerable Soul Banner.

The Venerable Soul Banner now held a total of eighty thousand souls.

The power these eighty thousand Sub-Souls could provide had reached a truly astonishing level. If all of it were channeled to the Evil Soul, it would be enough to instantly kill a Foundation Establishment Peak Cultivator.

The Venerable Soul Banner’s Artifact Spirit sent him a fragmented message.

It conveyed that although there was a nearly insurmountable gap between Foundation Establishment and Core Formation Cultivators, a quantitative change was leading to a qualitative one.

With a few tens of thousands more souls, there was a chance the Evil Soul could match a Fake Pill Powerhouse.

But the prerequisite was that the Venerable Soul Banner had to be promoted to Tier Three.

’I’m finally approaching the Fake Pill Level!’

Li Chang’an rejoiced inwardly.

As long as the Evil Soul’s power reached the Fake Pill Level, all the Spirit Stones he had invested over the years would be worth it!

At this rate, if nothing unexpected happened, the Evil Soul would become his first Tier Three trump card!

Once he possessed a Tier Three asset, he could handle many matters with greater ease, such as collecting advancement treasures for himself and the Profound Water Turtle.

’Demonic methods are truly impressive. No wonder so many people fall to the Demonic path.’

The refining method for the Venerable Soul Banner was unique to the Demonic path.

The Righteous Dao Artifact Refiners from the Major Sects and Noble Families didn’t know how to refine a Venerable Soul Banner.

Of course, perhaps some did, but they feigned ignorance for fear of being labeled a Demon Cultivator.

Li Chang’an put away the Venerable Soul Banner and said to Zhao Ming with a smile,

"Daoist Zhao, I will need even more souls. I’ll be counting on you for the next few years!"

"Rest assured, Daoist Li, you can leave this matter to me!"

Zhao Ming, also beaming, patted his chest as he made his promise to Li Chang’an.

But he quickly changed his tune.

"However..."

"However what?"

"Daoist Li, you may not know this, but over the years, to gather souls for you, I’ve already bought up the souls of my relatives, friends, dao companion, and even my disciples. To get more souls in the future, it’s going to cost more Spirit Stones."

His smile became a bit awkward, and he seemed to be in a difficult position.

Hearing this, how could Li Chang’an not understand? The guy was clearly trying to jack up the price!

"Daoist Zhao, if you want to raise the price, just say so. There’s no need to beat around the bush between us."

"Daoist Li, you’ve misunderstood. I’m really not trying to raise the price. The situation is just as I’ve described..."

Zhao Ming immediately explained.

Even in a Demon Sect, obtaining souls wasn’t that easy.

His large-scale acquisition of souls over the past few years had already attracted a lot of attention.

To avoid trouble, he had spent a considerable number of Spirit Stones to bribe people high and low, which was the only reason he could continue acquiring souls.

All in all, he really did need more Spirit Stones!

"Daoist Li, I barely made any profit from the hundred thousand Spirit Stones in our last trade. It all went to others."

"Is that so..."

Li Chang’an couldn’t be bothered to discern the truth of his words.

He directly tossed him a Storage Pouch containing a full thirty thousand Low Grade Spirit Stones.

"Daoist Zhao, as long as you do a reliable job, there will be plenty of Spirit Stones!"

"Excellent! Daoist Li, you’re so straightforward!"

Zhao Ming’s eyes lit up. He had thought he would need to do more persuading, but he hadn’t expected Li Chang’an to just throw money at the problem.

This saved him a lot of trouble!

He accepted the Spirit Stones with satisfaction and once again assured Li Chang’an that he would do his utmost to collect souls for him.

Afterward, he suddenly brought up the matter of the Demon Planting Technique.

"Daoist Li, ever since I heard you ask about the Demon Planting Technique, I’ve grown rather curious about this Cultivation Technique myself."

"Oh? Could it be that Daoist Zhao has found more information?"

"Indeed!"

Zhao Ming explained with a smile that he had privately bribed the Fake Pill Supreme Elder of the Sect’s Library, who then allowed him into the Library’s most restricted area.

Hearing this, Li Chang’an couldn’t help but be surprised.

’The Demon Sects are truly different. Rules are merely for show—you can even bribe a Fake Pill Powerhouse!’

Just like that, the Fake Pill Supreme Elder turned a blind eye, allowing Zhao Ming to see a great deal of information that was difficult for outsiders to access.