The valley wasn't on any map.
That alone told me everything.
Hidden paths twisted through rock and forest, formations layered so naturally into the terrain that even experienced cultivators would mistake them for ambient Qi fluctuations. No banners. No insignia.
Just silence.
Commerce didn't always announce itself.
The best markets never did.
We stood on a ridge overlooking the valley.
Below us: lantern lights, stone platforms, and structures carved directly into the mountainside. People moved between them in measured patterns—buyers, handlers, guards.
And cages.
I exhaled slowly.
"Well," I said. "That's… industrial."
Xueyi's jaw tightened. "How many?"
"At least fifty active captives," I replied. "More underground."
Her grip tightened on her sword.
The entrance was guarded by a veil formation keyed to blood signatures.
Annoying.
I crouched and scraped dirt over my palm.
Then I smiled.
"Ever notice," I said lightly, "how sloppy people get when they reuse techniques?"
I adjusted my Qi to mimic the residual pattern left by the captured hunters.
The veil shimmered.
Opened.
Xueyi stared. "You copied it from footprints."
"I improved it," I replied.
Inside, the air felt wrong.
Too clean.
Suppressants laced with incense. Drugs to dull resistance. Formations tuned to prevent breakthrough surges.
Someone had invested heavily.
A handler approached, eyes flicking over us.
"New stock?" he asked.
I frowned. "Is that how you greet customers?"
He chuckled nervously. "Apologies. Buyers are late today."
Xueyi's expression was perfectly blank.
Too perfect.
We moved deeper.
Cages lined the walls.
Young men. Women. Some unconscious. Some glaring. All talented.
I recognized several sect styles in their breathing patterns.
I clenched my jaw.
"This place is ambitious," I muttered. "They're stealing futures."
Xueyi whispered, "Li Shen…"
"I know."
At the center of the market stood a raised platform.
An auction block.
A woman in crimson robes addressed the crowd.
"Today's prime lot," she announced smoothly, "is a dual-aspect cultivator with near-perfect compatibility."
The crowd murmured.
I felt Xueyi's Qi spike.
On the platform—
A teenage boy. Bruised. Eyes burning with hatred.
Iron Banner Sect markings, partially burned away.
I smiled thinly.
"They really don't learn."
I stepped forward.
Loudly.
The murmurs stilled.
The auctioneer frowned. "Sir, bidding has not—"
"I'm not here to bid," I said.
The guards shifted uneasily.
Xueyi stepped beside me.
Her sword rang as it left its sheath.
Clear.
Final.
The auctioneer's smile hardened. "You misunderstand where you stand."
I looked around.
At the cages.
At the buyers.
At the guards.
Then back at her.
"No," I said calmly. "You misunderstand who is standing here."
I released my Qi.
Not violently.
Precisely.
Principles unfolded—efficiency, adaptation, dominance through understanding.
Formations trembled.
Chains cracked.
Suppressants burned away.
Panic rippled.
Someone shouted, "It's him!"
Too late.
I moved.
One step shattered the auction block.
Another dismantled the central formation.
Xueyi became a storm—her blade freeing captives, cutting down guards who dared block her.
I reached the platform.
Met the auctioneer's eyes.
"You sell people," I said. "That's inefficient."
She screamed as my strike erased her cultivation.
Alarms blared.
Hidden doors burst open.
Real enforcers emerged.
Core Formation.
Peak.
Prepared.
I grinned.
"Good," I said. "Now we're talking."
A system alert flashed, brighter than before.
[Major Hidden Node — Talent Market]
Status: Discovered
Outcome Pending: Destruction / Seizure
Principle Gain Potential: High
The valley shook.
And for the first time since entering—
The market realized it had invited the wrong customer.