[When buying up Wushan Market's numerous shops and properties at rock-bottom prices this time, you did not intend to use your public identity as the alchemist Wang Lin.]
[Instead, you planned to hide your identity.]
[This bottom-fishing was, in essence, harvesting other cultivators.]
[The low-level Qi Refining cultivators did not matter much, but quite a few properties in Wushan Market were backed by Foundation Establishment cultivators.]
[In the second simulation, after the Ouyang family finished their harvest, they immediately held an auction, inviting numerous Foundation Establishment cultivators and ceding a portion of their profits as compensation.]
[They also invited Ruan Hu, a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator from the Beast Taming Mountain inner sect, to serve as a deterrent.]
[Only then did they barely manage to appease the anger of the various Foundation Establishment cultivators.]
[If you had gone bottom-fishing using your public identity as the alchemist Wang Lin, it would indeed have been much easier to suppress the Ouyang family. However, you would have faced the subsequent backlash from the other Foundation Establishment cultivators.]
[This went against your fundamental strategy.]
[Hiding your identity was a bit troublesome, but it left no lingering issues. All the backlash and resentment from the Foundation Establishment cultivators who eventually realized what had happened would be borne entirely by the Ouyang family.]
[By hiding behind the scenes and buying up a massive amount of properties, you could sit securely and reap the rewards without taking any risks.]
......
[After the previous two simulations, you were crystal clear on the Ouyang family's strength during this period.]
[Their strongest expert was the head of Wushan Market, Ouyang Shen. He was at the peak of the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage. However, since he was in his twilight years, his actual combat strength could probably only barely maintain the level of someone who had just entered the middle stage.]
[Next was Ouyang Qian. As a newly advanced Foundation Establishment cultivator, she was likely still stabilizing her cultivation at this point.]
[As for you... at the sixth level of the Foundation Establishment Realm, you were in your prime. Coupled with your cultivation of the Shanhai Art, the quality of your Fali was no weaker than that of a cultivator at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage. In terms of divine sense, you possessed the Indomitable Will talent and a soul secret treasure.]
[As for your physique, with the Shanhai Body Tempering Art cultivated to the fourth layer, your physical body alone could rival a Foundation Establishment cultivator.]
[Your true combat power could absolutely be considered that of an expert at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage.]
[Not to mention the numerous trump cards you had prepared over the years, such as Tier Two High-Grade and even tier-three talismans for offense and life preservation.]
[To you, the Ouyang family of this period was nothing more than a group of the old and weak. You could sweep them away with a single hand.]
.....
[Half a month later, you arrived at Wushan Market.]
[At this moment, Wushan Market was filled with lamentation. The Ouyang family had failed to cultivate a new Foundation Establishment successor, and the old head of Wushan Market, Ouyang Shen, was nearing the end of his lifespan.]
[Almost all the properties in the market were being sold off at dirt-cheap prices.]
[Not a single cultivator was optimistic about the market's future; they only sought to recoup as much of their losses as possible.]
[You secretly dispatched several low-level Qi Refining cultivators to buy up the market's shops and properties one by one at the lowest possible prices.]
[Naturally, the acquisition process was incredibly covert, and you strictly refused to raise your bids.]
[Not only did you refuse to raise prices, you ruthlessly drove them down.]
[If you had increased your offers or bought properties too readily, the low-level Qi Refining cultivators might have noticed something amiss, which could very well have obstructed your bottom-fishing efforts.]
[In this regard, the Ouyang family's approach was quite similar to yours. They would rather hold off on buying temporarily than let those low-level Qi Refining cultivators detect any subtle shifts in the market.]
[A few days later, in a valley outside the market.]
[You stood with your hands behind your back while several low-level Qi Refining cultivators below you respectfully handed over the deeds to various shops in the market.]
[Your appearance and figure had been disguised. You now presented yourself as a cold-faced middle-aged man dressed in a black robe.]
["Senior, these are all the shop deeds we acquired..."]
[The several Qi Refining cultivators spoke with trembling voices.]
["Mm."]
[You nodded slightly and took the deeds, simultaneously performing a soul search on the several Qi Refining cultivators.]
[With your current divine sense strength, searching the souls of Qi Refining cultivators would not turn them into idiots; they would merely fall unconscious for a short while before recovering.]
[After confirming that these low-level Qi Refining cultivators had not hidden anything or pulled any tricks, you suddenly looked toward the valley entrance and smiled. "Since you've arrived, Fellow Daoist, there's no point in continuing to hide."]
[A few breaths later, a figure in a yellow robe walked out.]
[The figure was an old man of medium build with bronze skin and a graying hair and beard.]
[It was none other than Ouyang Shen.]
["What brilliant methods you have, Fellow Daoist..." Ouyang Shen sighed. "May I ask how you found out?"]
[Since you dared to buy up the market's properties like this, there could only be one explanation: you knew the Ouyang family had already cultivated a new Foundation Establishment cultivator.]
[However, the Ouyang family had done their utmost to hide this fact. Only Ouyang Shen and a few core family members knew about it.]
[You quietly watched Ouyang Shen and did not answer.]
[Ouyang Shen seeking you out was entirely within your expectations.]
[Any changes to the ownership of shops within the market had to go through the Ouyang family.]
[After all, the Ouyang family were the masters of the market and occupied its Tier Two spirit vein.]
[No matter how cautiously you acquired the shops and properties, it was impossible to hide it from them.]
[In the second simulation, you had ultimately purchased only ten percent of the market's properties out of fear that the Ouyang family would not play by the rules.]
[This time, however, you were already a Foundation Establishment cultivator with strength rivaling an expert at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage. It was time for the Ouyang family to worry that you would not play by the rules.]
["Since you dare to take advantage of our precarious situation, Fellow Daoist, let me see just how much weight you carry."]
[Seeing that you did not reply, Ouyang Shen wasted no more words. The Fali within his body surged, erupting into a powerful halo of energy.]
[A giant gold-and-blue axe appeared out of thin air and cleaved toward you with extreme sharpness.]
[In the cultivation world, strength reigned supreme. Since you dared to snatch the Ouyang family's interests, Ouyang Shen naturally would not let you leave alive if you lacked sufficient strength.]
[Hum—]
[You raised your right hand. Your majestic Fali converged, forming a Vajra Bell that protected you within.]
[The giant gold-and-blue axe chopped down viciously, only to be completely blocked by the Vajra Bell, which was formed entirely of Fali.]
["What? You blocked the full-force strike of my artifact using Fali alone?"]
[Ouyang Shen immediately realized something was wrong.]
[In a fight between normal cultivators, if both sides were evenly matched, the one wielding a magic artifact naturally held the advantage.]
[A high-quality artifact could multiply a cultivator's power.]
[Yet now, facing his full-strength strike, you had not even brought out an artifact. This made Ouyang Shen realize your strength far exceeded his expectations.]
[But before Ouyang Shen could react, you formed hand seals, took a deep breath, and your eyes turned profoundly deep.]
[Boom!]
[The sound of a lion's roar, striking entirely on the level of the soul, exploded violently and echoed throughout Ouyang Shen's sea of consciousness.]
[Ouyang Shen's consciousness instantly blurred. A look of terror spread across his face. Summoning several artifacts to protect his body, he instinctively began fleeing madly toward the market.]
["Lion's Roar... a divine sense attack of this caliber... It's an expert at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage..."]
[Ouyang Shen's scalp went numb. When his consciousness barely cleared a breath later, he plunged into absolute panic.]
[The Lion's Roar was a divine sense attack secret technique quite common among Foundation Establishment cultivators.]
[The range and power of the Lion's Roar depended on the user's divine sense strength.]
[Although Ouyang Shen was in his twilight years, his divine sense had not degraded much.]
[It remained at the peak of the Foundation Establishment Middle Stage.]
[Who could blur his consciousness for a full breath using the Lion's Roar secret technique, other than a true expert at the Foundation Establishment Late Stage?]
['That one breath just now? I'm actually not dead?']
['I'm not even injured?']
[Ouyang Shen forcefully calmed his disordered divine sense and looked back at the cold-faced man in black robes standing in the valley.]
[At this moment, the cold-faced man hovered in the air, his hands resting behind his back, watching him with a profound gaze.]
['Did he hold back? Otherwise, if he had attacked just now, even if I hadn't died, I'd be heavily injured...']
[This thought surfaced in Ouyang Shen's mind.]
[Immediately after, a hoarse voice traveled into Ouyang Shen's ears through divine sense.]
["I will only take half of Wushan Market!"]
[Ouyang Shen's mind trembled. He finally knew why he had survived.]
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