"I don''t want your spirit herbs." Nangong Huan smirked, stepping back a couple of paces.


    The two disciples from the Chi family looked despondent, but just then, Nangong Huan continued, "I can help you expel the cursed insects directly, but you must agree to testify against Shen Ye Ruo later."


    "Absolutely! We''ll definitely testify! We''ll even point out Nangong Qian''er!" The two were immediately excited, knowing that Shen Ye Ruo was Nangong Qian''er’s mother, and thus she must be involved!


    "We''ll testify too!" the disciples from the Ye family chimed in.


    Upon hearing them mention Nangong Qian''er, Nangong Huan realized that she had managed to slip away.


    Well, she wouldn’t get far.


    Nangong Huan instructed Xiao Jiu to expel the cursed insects from the two disciples, and soon after, the insects were crushed underfoot.


    "Miss Huan, thank you so much!" the two disciples expressed their gratitude, acknowledging that without her help, they would have fallen under Nangong Qian''er’s control.


    Nangong Huan nodded and said, "If you encounter any disciples who have consumed the cursed potion, tell them not to panic; the certification association will assist in resolving it."


    "Understood! We’ll remember!" the two replied promptly, and the other three disciples from the Ye family took note as well.


    Once everyone was safe, the small teams went their separate ways.


    "Hey, what about Nangong Qian''er? Should we chase after her?" Ye Wanjun suddenly realized, feeling a bit regretful.


    "No need," Nangong Huan interjected. "A cornered dog will jump over the wall; give her some breathing room. She won''t resort to killing or stealing."


    In truth, Nangong Huan had her own motives. The trial had just begun, and many people likely hadn’t consumed the cursed potion yet, meaning her money-making plans would be difficult to execute.


    As for having the two Chi family disciples calm everyone down, it was to provide a glimmer of hope. She didn’t want people to confront Nangong Qian''er head-on and risk their lives, which would hinder her ability to profit from the dead.


    She wasn’t a saint; without a certain price, why should she save their lives?


    Looking around, only her Xiao Jiu could expel the cursed insects!


    "Let’s go find some thorny fruits and gather some flags. Who knows, we might strike a big deal," Nangong Huan said, a satisfied smile spreading across her face as she strode into the forest.


    ---


    Over the next two days, the sounds of sales echoed through the forest:If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    "Flags for sale, flags for sale! Don’t miss out! Yellow flags, blue flags, red flags—buy one, you won’t regret it! Everything you want is here; if you pass this village, you won’t find this shop again!"


    Ye Wanjun’s voice was loud as he set up a small stall under a tree, displaying a pile of enticing flags.


    Meanwhile, Nangong Huan lounged on a branch, casually chewing on a blade of grass. Beside her hung two disciples who looked utterly defeated, stripped down to their underpants, their faces full of regret.


    At that moment, a small duo passed by, and the female disciple glanced curiously. "So, you’re the ones selling flags? How much for one?"


    It was far better to solve problems with money than to fight spirit beasts! Over the past two days, news of the flag sales had spread throughout the trial area.


    "Fifty thousand spirit herbs for a yellow flag, five hundred thousand for a blue flag, and five million for a red flag!" Ye Wanjun held up the three types of flags, his smile beaming.


    "That’s so expensive," the male disciple frowned. Their allowance was limited; while they could manage fifty thousand, anything over that was tough, and five million was unthinkable!


    Ye Wanjun waved his hand sympathetically. "Oh, come on! Since we’re all in this trial together, I’ll give you a discount: ten percent off for two, seven percent off for five, and half price for ten! Buy a blue flag, and I’ll throw in two yellow flags! How about that? A great deal, right?"


    A discount? The two began calculating the savings in their heads and realized it was quite a bargain.


    Seeing their hesitation, Ye Wanjun continued, "You know, a bottle of the cursed potion you used in battle costs fifty thousand spirit herbs. Instead of spending on potions, why not invest here? It’s easier and simpler! Plus, we’re about to close up shop. If you buy more, I’ll even give you an extra two thousand spirit herbs off!"


    That made sense! They nodded. After two days of battling, they had accumulated quite a few flags. There was a chance they could break into the top ten, which came with many rewards. A few spirit herbs didn’t matter much.


    "How many spirit herbs do you have?" The female disciple glanced at the male disciple.


    He patted his pocket. "Uh, over thirty thousand."


    "Perfect! I have over twenty thousand; let’s buy a blue flag!" she suggested.


    "Alright!" The male disciple agreed, and they pooled together forty-eight thousand spirit herbs to exchange for the blue flag, with Ye Wanjun generously adding two yellow flags as a bonus.


    Having successfully completed another transaction, Ye Wanjun felt on top of the world.


    Just as the two were about to leave, the two disciples hanging from the tree suddenly cried out as if they had seen a savior.


    "Brother Tian! Save us!"


    Their cries made the duo look up, and they realized there were people hanging from the tree.


    "Oh, you know them?" Ye Wanjun’s gaze shifted between the two groups, a mischievous smile forming on his face.


    "Uh, that’s my brother. Can you let them down?" The male disciple’s face darkened; what trouble had these two gotten into now?


    Ye Wanjun shook his finger, pretending to be reluctant. "That won’t do. These two just tried to rob my flags because they thought I was easy to bully! If I don’t teach them a lesson, how can I do business?"


    The two disciples were the unfortunate ones who had passed by earlier and thought they could snatch Ye Wanjun’s flags!


    "What do you want?" the female disciple asked nervously, aware of the threat from Nangong Huan hanging above.


    "Cough—" Nangong Huan cleared her throat, and Ye Wanjun immediately understood.


    He held up three fingers and said, "How about this? Since you just bought a blue flag, you can buy a yellow flag for three thousand spirit herbs, and we’ll let these two down."


    The two exchanged glances, gritted their teeth, and agreed, "Alright!"


    They pulled out three thousand spirit herbs to buy a yellow flag, and Nangong Huan finally let the two down.


    "Brother Tian! You’re my real brother!" The two, now only in their underpants, clung to the male disciple’s leg, crying out in despair, creating quite a scene.


    Embarrassed, they quickly gathered their things and left in a hurry.


    Ye Wanjun happily counted his spirit herbs, exclaiming to Nangong Huan, "Wow, we made over ten million!"


    In just two days, Nangong Huan had collected all five red flags, and among the buyers, one wealthy disciple had directly purchased a red flag, accounting for half of their earnings!