After hearing their self-introductions, Yang Kai raised an eyebrow, discovering that these people weren't even from the same faction — and there seemed to be an undercurrent of rivalry between them.
This left Yang Kai somewhat bewildered, unsure of what they actually wanted.
"There's a reason, friend." The one called Wu Chang seemed to be the outgoing type, wearing a familiar smile on his face that gave Yang Kai a false impression — the sort that made one uneasy. "Seeing as you came here alone, you must be planning to venture deeper into Falling Emperor Mountain to explore an ancient martial artist's cave dwelling, right?"
"That's right," Yang Kai gave a slight nod. "What about it?"
Wu Chang chuckled. "No need to be so wary, friend. I mean no harm — I simply wish to invite you to enter together with me."
"With you?" Yang Kai's brow rose.
"That's right." Wu Chang nodded quickly, gesturing to the side. "You've probably noticed, but I'm only at the second level of the Saint King realm. While that's not exactly low, it isn't particularly high either. The disciples of my Heavenly Extinction Sect are all over there — none of us have a Void Return realm powerhouse watching over us. If we run into any strong enemies once inside Falling Emperor Mountain... well, heh..."
He didn't finish, but Yang Kai had a rough idea why Wu Chang was inviting him. Following the direction of his gesture, Yang Kai spotted a group of martial artists dressed in the same attire as Wu Chang, numbering around a dozen or so. They were predominantly Saint King realm cultivators, with not a single Void Return expert among them.
It seemed the Heavenly Extinction Sect wasn't particularly powerful.
"You want me to protect your safety?" Yang Kai asked.
"Talking to a smart man saves a lot of effort. Protection works, cooperation works — it's up to you, friend." Wu Chang nodded eagerly.
"Is there a difference?" Yang Kai asked, surprised.
"Of course there's a difference." Seeing that Yang Kai seemed somewhat interested, Wu Chang pressed on while the iron was hot. "If you're protecting my Heavenly Extinction Sect, we can pay you a sum of wealth — guaranteed to satisfy you. But anything we find inside Falling Emperor Mountain belongs to the Heavenly Extinction Sect, with no share for you. If we cooperate, however, we can discuss the terms in detail — how to divide any treasures we find, for example. Though personally, I'd much rather cooperate with you, friend."
Yang Kai nodded slightly, finally understanding why these people were being so friendly. It was because they lacked powerful cultivators. He hadn't bothered to hide his cultivation level, so as a Saint King realm martial artist, Wu Chang would naturally be able to sense that he was at the Void Return realm.
"Are you all the same?" Yang Kai turned to look at the others.
Those martial artists nodded quickly, each rushing to introduce their family or sect.
"I understand." Yang Kai smiled knowingly, then asked with deep meaning. "But aren't you afraid I'll go back on my word? If we find something good, I might just kill you all to silence you."
Upon hearing this, Wu Chang and the others' faces stiffened, their expressions becoming uncomfortable. But Wu Chang quickly recovered, speaking with a dry voice: "You're joking, friend."
"Whether I'm joking or not — since I have the ability to explore the depths of Falling Emperor Mountain on my own, why would I cooperate with you and let my share of the profits get cut?" Yang Kai scoffed. He wasn't idle and chatting with these people for no reason. He was simply new to the area, and Wu Chang and the others clearly had knowledge of what lay within Falling Emperor Mountain. Perhaps he could pick up some useful information from them.
"Ah, well... here's the thing, friend. The ancient martial artists' cave dwellings inside Falling Emperor Mountain are hidden extremely well — many can't even be detected by Divine Sense. With more people, the chances of finding these cave dwellings naturally increase. Moreover, most of the restrictions on those dwellings can't be broken by a single person alone — cooperation is required. That's why martial artists who go in usually seek out like-minded companions. Those who venture in alone are extremely rare."
"There's some logic to that," Yang Kai nodded slightly.
Wu Chang and the others lit up with joy and were about to say more when Yang Kai waved his hand. "But I've only just arrived. I don't plan to go in just yet — when I do, I'll find you for cooperation."
With that, Yang Kai turned and walked away.
From start to finish, he had never intended to cooperate with any of them.
Though Wu Chang and the others felt somewhat reluctant, they couldn't very well stop him. They could only continue watching the surroundings, looking for any lone Void Return realm cultivators they might recruit.
After shaking off those people, Yang Kai didn't rush to enter Falling Emperor Mountain either. Instead, he wandered among the casually arranged stalls while taking out a message compass and channeling his spiritual sense into it.
After waiting a moment, the compass showed no response. Yang Kai shook his head and put it away.
It seemed Qian Tong was far too distant — otherwise he'd definitely have been able to make contact.
He wasn't browsing these stalls in hopes of finding any hidden treasures. While the goods on display were plentiful and varied, there was almost nothing that caught his eye. Who would put up anything truly valuable? They'd be far too busy cherishing their own treasures.
Everything on the stalls could be described as common goods, plain and simple.
Of course, there were always people who failed to recognize something valuable and treated real treasures like junk — but such rare opportunities were hard to come by.