Upon hearing this, the Lord of Qianyang City seemed somewhat displeased and gave a cold snort:

"You'd better catch them all in one fell swoop, otherwise if even one of them escapes, we're both doomed!"

Unfortunately, the person opposite was not afraid of the warning, and his chuckle was full of an unsettling, sinister aura.

"Why is the city lord saying all this? You weren't this cowardly when it came to taking benefits."

"you!!!"

"Shh-"

Before the Lord of Qianyang City could even say "you," he was interrupted by the person opposite him, who was smiling with amusement in his eyes:

"Lord, don't worry. Actually, even if you didn't tell me, I wouldn't let any of them go. After all... the fish are too smart; it's impossible to make an exception for them!"

"What do you mean?" The Lord of Qianyang City's expression changed.

The person opposite him didn't look down on the Lord of Thousand Sun City at this moment, but instead smiled and tapped on the table:

"Look, clever little fish, two of them have already sneaked in."

The Lord of Qianyang City was even more shocked and peered at the water mirror that the other party had conjured on the table.

At first glance, there was nothing unusual in the water mirror, but upon closer inspection, two spots appeared to show something moving, even though there was nothing there.

"Truly worthy of being an elite disciple, he managed to enter this place silently; he's quite skilled!"

The Lord of Thousand Suns City inwardly praised him, but the worry in his eyes deepened. After speaking, he looked up at the person opposite him and said:

"Ghost Taoist, are you absolutely sure it's all foolproof? Are you absolutely certain which two people came in?"

The man called Ghost Taoist did not answer the Lord of Thousand Sun City's question, but just chuckled and pointed at two spots on the water mirror that showed unusual activity.

Mingxin Zhenren and Wuxiu Zhenren, who were originally investigating around the market, had just received a message from Liu Yunqing telling them to leave when they felt a gust of wind rise up and floated up. When they landed, they arrived at a cave.

Upon closer inspection, they saw the Lord of Qianyang City dressed in black robes and a strange cultivator emanating black energy.

Liu Yunqing, who was hiding outside the room, felt something was wrong when she heard the Ghost Taoist say those words. She immediately tried to send a telepathic message to the two of them, but she was still a step too late.

Yes, that ghost Taoist must be the controller of the Ghost Market Formation. Moving people within the formation would be a piece of cake for him!

If the other party can capture people so easily, why didn't he make a move when everyone was in the Ghost Market last time?

Is it because he can't make a move in the Ghost Market, or is it because the Ghost Daoist needs them to go to the Ghost Market?

Seeing the two arrested, Liu Yunqing suppressed the urge to expose himself, first sending a message to Zhuo Ying outside, and then deciding to wait and see.

Under normal circumstances, it would be easy for two Nascent Soul cultivators to take down several Golden Core cultivators. The fact that they have wasted so much time without making a move indicates that their goal is not to kill them immediately.

Liu Yunqing's guess was indeed correct. After capturing Mingxin Zhenren and Wuxiu Zhenren, the Ghost Daoist broke the concealment talismans on their bodies, sealing only their spiritual power, and then threw them into a corner.

How did you find us?

The two struggled for a while, with the Odorless Immortal even cursing loudly. However, the Odorless Immortal suddenly gave up struggling and took the initiative to speak.

Apparently quite satisfied with the two, the Ghostly Taoist's wicked face broke into a seemingly amiable smile as he patiently replied:

"There's nothing on my territory that I can't find."

When Master Mingxin heard this, he merely raised his eyebrows and scoffed, "You're certainly making a big show of it. Didn't you notice anything?"

The Ghost Taoist didn't understand what her expression meant, but he didn't care. He only cared about whether the body he wanted was perfect.

Mingxin Zhenren, enduring the scrutinizing gaze directed at the goods, continued to ask, following Liu Yunqing's telepathic transmission:

"Are you a puppeteer?"

Upon hearing this, the Ghostly Taoist withdrew his gaze from Mingxin Zhenren and gently shook his finger, saying:

"To be precise, I am a puppeteer of living people, far superior to those who make puppets from fake wood!"

Upon hearing about living puppets, not only were True Immortal Mingxin and True Immortal Wuxiu disgusted, but even the City Lord of Qianyang, who was sitting to the side, couldn't help but frown.

He usually only takes the benefits and tries not to think about the man's methods, but hearing about them now still makes him uncomfortable.

Fortunately, he doesn't have to worry about these things. It's just an annoyance every time they meet, which is tolerable.

"Aren't you afraid of divine retribution for doing this?"

Upon hearing Mingxin Zhenren's words, the Ghost Taoist chuckled coldly:

"Divine retribution? Wasn't this all something everyone willingly gave up in exchange? Even if it's a matter of cause and effect, it was their choice. What does it have to do with me?"

After saying that, he looked at Master Mingxin and shook his head disdainfully, saying:

"How can a natural-born swordsman be so foolish and naive?"

"Fortunately, you've met me. Once I help you discard those useless notions of justice, you'll become the sharpest sword in my hand!"

As the Ghost Taoist spoke, his gaze toward Master Mingxin gradually became infatuated, and he couldn't help but gently stroke Master Mingxin's face as if caressing a precious treasure.

"puff--"

With a flash of afterimage, the sound of a weapon piercing flesh rang out. Ghost Daoist hissed and retreated quickly, enduring the pain.

Then, Master Mingxin's natal spirit sword almost sliced ​​off half of the Ghost Daoist's outstretched hand.

"Tick-tock—tick-tock—"

Seeing the dark red bloodstains rolling down his palm, Ghost Daoist was not angry but pleased. He looked at Mingxin Zhenren with even more affection and praised him three times before treating the wound.

The Ghost Taoist then made a hand seal with his other hand, using black energy to envelop his injured hand. In just a few breaths, the black energy dissipated and his injured hand was healed.

The Lord of Thousand Suns City, who was used to this situation, waited for the other party's wounds to heal before interjecting:

"Judging from the current situation, these kids clearly already know what's going on, but only two of them walked right into the trap. The other five are probably going to cause trouble, so let's just arrest them all!"

Upon hearing this, the Ghost Taoist immediately frowned and shook his head:

"No, no, it's already a pity that these two broke in. I still hope that the other five can reach their best state."

"no!"

Having seemingly come to his senses, the City Lord of Thousand Suns resolutely disagreed with the Ghost Daoist's idea this time, and continued:

"If they had just gone to the ghost market obediently, that would have been fine. But now that they've suspected this place and even managed to sneak two people in, the rest of them might leak the information."

Hearing what the Lord of Qianyang said, Ghost Daoist understood the trouble involved, but he simply couldn't resist the temptation of five perfect puppets.

"No matter how good the perfect puppet is, you still need to be alive to protect it!"

The words of the City Lord of Qianyang finally made the Ghost Daoist relent, and he reluctantly nodded:

"Alright, then I'll capture the other five from the Ghost Market."

The moment the Ghost Taoist finished speaking, his expression changed.

"Oh no! There were only three people in the Ghost Market. Where did the other two go?"

The Lord of Qianyang City's expression changed drastically, and he abruptly stood up from his chair, saying:

"Where else could they have gone? They either went to deliver a message or they've already arrived here!"

Ghost Taoist glared at Mingxin Zhenren and his companion, then sneered and made hand seals, saying:

"Whether it's here or sent to deliver a message, let me see!"