The next day, Mo Hua was drawing arrays in the artifact crafting shop when the Qian family sent people to cause trouble.
The outer wall of the shop was incomplete, and the arrays hadn't been finished, giving the Qian family an opportunity to exploit.
Several cultivators from the Qian family disguised as ordinary wandering cultivators snuck into the shop, found a corner, and started causing damage when no one was around.
They collapsed several walls, smashed some foundations, and cut through a few wooden beams. Some freshly drawn arrays were also smeared and ruined.
A few craftsmen discovered this and tried to stop them, only to be beaten up.
Some demon hunters came to assist, and after a few exchanges, the Qian family cultivators saw the situation turning against them and fled.
In the afternoon, the Qian family came again. Although they were eventually driven away by the demon hunters, they still managed to damage quite a few buildings.
Master Ban was worried, fearing the worst.
Elder Yu Changlin was furious when he heard about this. He pretended to leave, then secretly returned, blending in with a group of craftsmen to see who dared to stir up trouble under his watch.
Believing they were unnoticed, they started to destroy the walls and beams once more.
But every move they made was within Elder Yu’s spiritual sense.
Before they could act, Elder Yu leaped up and slapped them down one by one, making them cough up blood.
Elder Yu held back, not taking their lives.
The leader of the group, with his face covered, was at the ninth level of Qi refinement. Upon seeing Elder Yu, he turned to run.
But as a Qi cultivator, how could he escape from Elder Yu, who was at the Foundation Building stage?
Within moments, Elder Yu caught up with him, and after a few exchanges, the cultivator was slapped to the ground, his shoulder in immense pain, bones fractured.
Elder Yu tore off the black cloth covering his face and cursed:
"Qian Shunzhi, so it's you, you little bastard!"
Qian Shunzhi gritted his teeth, "Falling into your hands, kill me if you must..."
Elder Yu squeezed his shoulder, making him scream.
"Playing the hero? Do you think I don't know what you're up to?" Elder Yu scolded.
Qian Shunzhi quickly said, "Elder Yu, Elder Yu! Let's talk, I was just... following orders!"
"Whose orders?"
Qian Shunzhi remained silent.
Elder Yu spat, "It’s nothing but orders from that old turtle Qian Hong. Why can't you say it?"
Qian Shunzhi smiled bitterly, "You already know, why ask?"
"I wanted to see if you'd be honest." Elder Yu said.
"Elder Yu, whatever you say goes, you're magnanimous, can you let me go?"
Elder Yu sneered, "Are you dreaming? Even if you hadn't fallen into my hands, I would still trouble you. Now you’ve come to provoke me, do you think I’d let you go?"
Elder Yu called people over to tie up Qian Shunzhi and his men, then threw them at the Qian family’s gate.
"Qian Hong, you coward, plotting behind the scenes, sneaking around, are you still a man? If you're not a man, have your wife remarry and your son change his surname!"
Elder Yu cursed loudly.
The Qian family's gate remained tightly closed, with no response.
Elder Yu continued to curse, from top to bottom, finally cursing the Qian family patriarch, calling him ungrateful, shameless, and a despicable person.
The Qian family finally couldn't bear it anymore. An elder at the Foundation Building stage came out and accused:
"Yu Changlin, this is the Qian family, stop spouting nonsense!"
Elder Yu didn't care and asked, "Where's that old turtle Qian Hong?"
The Qian family elder frowned, "The family head is not here, if you have something to say, tell me."
Elder Yu snorted, "Is he really not here? He's probably hiding in a woman's bed, too afraid to come out."
"Yu Changlin!" The Qian family elder roared.
Elder Yu stopped as he achieved his goal; he wasn’t here just to curse. There was a lot of work waiting for him at the artifact crafting shop.
Elder Yu said, "Your Qian family members came to my place to cause trouble."
The Qian family elder deflected, "How do you know it’s our Qian family?"
Seeing this, Elder Yu was about to curse again when the Qian family elder quickly said, "Alright, what do you want?"
Both sides knew the truth, there was no need to beat around the bush.
"We want spirit stones!" Elder Yu was straightforward.
The Qian family elder frowned, "How many?"
Elder Yu demanded an exorbitant amount.
The Qian family elder angrily said, "Don’t push your luck!"
Elder Yu smiled, "Let's negotiate, no need to rush."
In the end, they agreed on one hundred spirit stones per person. The Qian family would ransom their people with spirit stones, and Elder Yu would drop the matter.
Elder Yu returned with nearly a thousand spirit stones.
Part of these would be used to compensate the injured craftsmen and demon hunters, treating their injuries and comforting them.
The rest, Elder Yu planned to buy some food and drink to reward everyone and ease their nerves.
But he knew the Qian family wouldn't stop.
The Qian family elder, upon receiving Qian Shunzhi back, scolded, "You're such a fool, how could you be so careless?"
Qian Shunzhi was helpless, "Elder, it's not my fault. Who would have thought Yu Changlin, that old fox, would be so cunning. I saw him leave the shop with my own eyes, that’s when we acted. Who knew he’d sneak back, dressed as a craftsman, blending in with the crowd. You couldn't tell at a glance."
The Qian family elder sighed, "Yu, the old fox, truly is cunning."
The key issue was his shamelessness, his skin thicker than a refining furnace.
Qian Shunzhi asked, "Elder, what do we do next?"
"Continue with the plan," the Qian family elder said. "But be more careful. Best to act at night or when they're resting. Cause trouble, don’t let them stop working. At least delay their progress."
"What about Yu Changlin?" Qian Shunzhi asked.
"He's a demon hunter elder, he can't stay at the shop all the time. There will be times when he’s away or careless."
"But... what if he catches us again?" Qian Shunzhi asked quietly.
The Qian family elder said lightly, "If he catches you, you take a beating. At most, we pay some spirit stones for compensation. He can’t really kill you, otherwise he’d have to answer to the Dao Court."
Qian Shunzhi was reluctant.
Being beaten by someone at the Foundation Building stage was no small matter...
His body still ached, his shoulder bones fractured, and the lingering spiritual energy from Elder Yu's strikes made him suffer.
This was Elder Yu holding back, otherwise, he wouldn’t have survived.
The Qian family elder was displeased, "What are you afraid of? Have some guts!"
Qian Shunzhi lowered his head, saying nothing.
The Qian family elder said, "Rest assured, the family head has promised that if you succeed, you won’t be treated poorly. If you achieve great merit, even Foundation Building pills are within your reach."
Qian Shunzhi's eyes lit up, "The family head really said that?"
"Of course, would I lie to you?"
Qian Shunzhi's heart burned with determination, "Alright, I will risk my life to complete the task."
The Qian family elder nodded, "Go, this is like a weasel stealing a chicken; patience is key. There are no perpetual guards against thieves. They will slip up eventually. Just keep an eye out, and you’ll find an opportunity."
Qian Shunzhi bowed, "I will follow your instructions."