236: Chapter 91: Demons are Easy to Ward Off, But Human Hearts are Hard to Guard_2 236: Chapter 91: Demons are Easy to Ward Off, But Human Hearts are Hard to Guard_2 Li Ping’an took out a scarred magical mask and replaced it with a thin one on his face, which resembled his real appearance by about fifty percent.
A moment later, a brute emanating murderous aura, speaking with a southern East Continent accent, appeared in a small alley not far from the inn.
Next, Li Ping’an divided those spoils of lesser value into fifteen parts, visited the five largest local shops, and ten medium-sized ones, and within the span of two hours, he had gathered items worth a total of 240,000 low-grade Spirit Stones in top and mid-grade Spirit Stones.
——The specifications and quality of Spirit Stone chunks here were generally the same as those in East Continent with no noticeable issue.
240,000 low-grade Spirit Stones were indeed no small sum.
Even more so, Li Ping’an had already set aside those more valuable Treasured Materials, demon cores, and weapons, not selling them in this place.
If based on the price here, after he had pillaged over thirty True Immortals from the Demon Race, he had obtained nearly…
A million Spirit Stones?
This is the barren Western Continent, not the prosperous lands of East Continent.
This raised numerous doubts in Li Ping’an’s mind.
Something seemed quite amiss here.
He carefully recalled that within those demon caves, one could find handcrafts made by the Human Race, and some of the lesser Demon Kings even dabbled in elegance, composing poetry and painting.
‘A cultural invasion of the Demon Race by the Human Race?’
‘But how do these demons sustain themselves?
Where do they get so many treasures from?’
‘I and my master raided thirty-five or six demon caves, each mostly equipped with a True Immortal and five or six Elemental Immortals in terms of combat power, yet they neither specialize in Artifact Refining nor are adept at Alchemy, so why were there so many magical items and Elixir Pills?’
Li Ping’an’s brow furrowed deeply.
All of a sudden, he thought of the ‘Battleground Borderland’ back in his hometown, where all sorts of black market dealers traversed between battling sides, gradually forming special trade pathways.
But Humans and Demons were mortal enemies, with reproductive isolation before reaching the Innate Dao Body…
There were certainly problems here.
As Li Ping’an pondered, his Spiritual Sense suddenly issued a warning, having detected three groups of figures sneaking about in the locations he had passed.
‘Indeed, demons may be easily exterminated; human hearts are harder to guard against.’
Li Ping’an had no intention of meddling in other affairs.
He played a game of cat and mouse with the followers behind him, spending an additional half an hour before he quietly returned to the room in that inn, resuming his previous clothing, appearance, and aura.
He checked out of the inn, reclaiming a few Spirit Stones;
Then, swaggering past a few anxiously-looking middle-aged Daoists, he returned to his master’s side.
“Master, how was the food?”
Qing Su pointed to a few plates on the table that had hardly been touched:
“Only a few Spirit Grasses were to my taste, these meat dishes all have a tinge of gaminess, not as good as the ones Ling’er makes.”
“Well then, let’s be on our way,” Li Ping’an said with a smile, “I’ve already exchanged for the necessary items.”
Qing Su asked, “Aren’t you going to notify the Eastern Alliance?”
Li Ping’an glanced at the street, saw a few Daoists flying through the air, and said with a smile, “I’m afraid if we don’t leave now, we’ll end up locked inside a great formation.”
Qing Su was somewhat puzzled; the great formation here wasn’t activated…
The dust in the air suddenly began to tremble, and the midday sun suddenly dimmed.
A thick semicircular barrier appeared in the sky, cloaking the entire city within a large formation.
Li Ping’an asked, “Master, is the great formation controlled by the Immortals of the Eastern Alliance?”
Li Ping’an slowly nodded, indicating that he understood, but his eyes conveyed a growing suspicion.
Qing Su put down her chopsticks: “What’s wrong?”
After a slight hesitation, Li Ping’an still took the initiative to grab his master’s sleeve and conveyed his suspicions to her through whispered transmission.
Qing Su slammed the Xingyin Sword onto the table corner and transmitted back:
“If that’s the case, we cannot just leave this place!
“If there are traitors within the Eastern Alliance who are in secret collusion with the Demon Race, if a great battle were to erupt here someday, wouldn’t it put our Qi Cultivators of the Human Race between two fires!”
Li Ping’an saw his own master glowing all over.
[The sense of justice in my master.]
“Master, please calm down,”
Li Ping’an continued tugging at his sleeve and whispering:
“This is only the disciple’s conjecture; the Eastern Alliance surely isn’t entirely rotten, perhaps just one or two individuals have allowed themselves to fall.”
“Let’s leave this place for now and figure out a way to contact the experts of the Eastern Alliance in East Continent.”
Qing Su stroked her chin, pondering carefully, then decisively said, “I can engage in Magical Combat but am not skilled in strategy, so you will plan our next move, disciple.
Consider it a task I give you, to find the traitors of the Eastern Alliance here.”
“Master, how shall we contact the experts of the Eastern Alliance?
Do you have any means?”
“We can’t trust anyone from the Eastern Alliance here for the time being.
“It’s best to contact the headquarters of the Eastern Alliance in East Continent.”
Qing Su spoke with less confidence in her voice: “I’ve only become a Heavenly Immortal recently and haven’t contacted the Eastern Alliance; normally, we have designated people in the sect to handle that.”
“No matter, Master, just disguise your realm to appear as the pinnacle of the Innate Realm.”
“For now, we can only play it by ear.
“Now that the great formation is active, we either forcefully break through or watch and wait…
since things have come to this, let’s eat first.”
Qing Su nodded slightly.
She had that serene and beautiful face but it now bore a much more solemn expression, far from the cheerful mood she had upon arrival.
Outside the window, figures kept flying past the streets.
Li Ping’an faintly heard some Qi Cultivators shouting:
“A Demon Race spy has infiltrated our ranks!
Everyone should return home and not wander about; conduct a house-to-house search for the Demon Race spy!
The spy has a scarred face!”
Great, this supposed Demon Race spy is most likely him.