Chapter 141: Turbulence in Umang Town (Part IV)

Ji Mo practiced a peculiar technique. Although she was only at the Core Condensation stage, she could easily peer through the cultivation levels of Core Formation cultivators. Since she could not fathom the old man before her, it meant his cultivation was definitely above the Nascent Soul stage.

"Peak Deity Transformation," Xiao Jin muttered with a curl of its lip.

"Can you beat him?" Ji Mo asked expectantly. Although she knew the odds of a Core Condensation beast defeating a peak Deity Transformation cultivator were zero, she couldn't help but ask—after all, Xiao Jin’s performance earlier had been quite spectacular.

"I can't." Xiao Jin glared at her fiercely, ruthlessly shattering her hopes.

"If you knew you couldn't beat him, why were you so arrogant?" Ji Mo shot it a look of displeasure.

"You!" Xiao Jin huffed in anger, turning its head away to ignore her.

Just as Ji Mo was about to use this as an excuse to lecture Xiao Jin further—to prevent its foul mouth from causing trouble in the future—the black-bearded old man who had been at the red-clad girl’s table walked over, interrupting their exchange.

Accompanying him was Mu Chuan, whom Xiao Jin had sent flying earlier. Outsiders assumed he hadn't been seriously hurt, but only Mu Chuan knew that Xiao Jin’s seemingly careless collision had dealt him a massive, hidden blow. At this moment, his internal organs felt as if they had been crushed by a heavy weight, aching and roiling incessantly.

A mouthful of blood welled up in his throat, but he was too embarrassed to spit it out. He could only swallow it back, his face twisting in suppressed agony and burning rage. As he looked at Xiao Jin, there was a faint glint of fear beneath his anger.

"Senior, as far as I know, Umang Town is a free town. I have never heard of any rule requiring guests to be interrogated about their backgrounds," Su Ye said, looking up at the black-bearded man with polite courtesy. Since the elder’s age and cultivation were far above his own, addressing him as "Senior" was appropriate and respectful.

"Umang Town usually doesn't require checking the origins of travelers, but today is different. We are in extraordinary times, with demons invading and the Jinyue Palace having met with catastrophe. I am Ze Zong, from the Shangqin Divine Steel Sect. I am one of the investigators commissioned by the sect to look into the Jinyue Palace incident. If you two cannot clarify your identities, I’m afraid I’ll have to trouble you to return to the sect with us." The black-bearded elder raised his brows slightly, a faint chill flickering in his eyes as he stared at Su Ye.

Although Ze Zong’s gaze was unfriendly, his request was not unreasonable, especially after revealing his identity. However, Su Ye and Ji Mo had only been in this cultivation world for about an hour. They were completely ignorant of the distribution of power here, so even if they wanted to fabricate a fake identity, they wouldn't know what to claim.

*Sigh, trouble follows us wherever we go,* Su Ye thought with a quiet sigh. Just as he prepared to make up a background, Ji Mo stepped in first: "Senior Ze Zong, it’s not that we don't want to cooperate, but we have some doubts about what you've said. If I recall correctly, the Jinyue Palace is a fourth-grade sect of Shangqin. Not only that, but it ranks in the top three among sects of its tier in terms of overall strength. For such a sect to be wiped out overnight—surely a fourth-grade sect of that caliber should have had Void Refinement cultivators guarding it, right?"

"For a fourth-grade sect with a Void Refinement protector to be destroyed just like that, it seems a bit far-fetched for your sect to send only a Deity Transformation cultivator to lead the investigation. Furthermore, my senior brother and I are both merely at the Core Condensation stage. If the Jinyue Palace were truly destroyed by the Demon Domain, and if the demons had further designs on Shangqin, why would they send cultivators of our level to a place as complex as Umang Town?"

Ji Mo’s words were somewhat sophistical. The Divine Steel Sect was one of the four great third-grade sects of Shangqin, and the Jinyue Palace was indeed their subordinate. It was perfectly reasonable for them to send someone to investigate the incident, and for an elder like Ze Zong to be in charge was standard. However, since Ji Mo had no way to prove their identities, she chose to be stubborn and aggressive rather than risk being exposed with a lie. This might force the others to hesitate and refrain from acting rashly.

"Heh, what a sharp-tongued girl. Never mind whether your sophistry holds water, but as a mere Core Condensation cultivator, you dare to defy a Deity Transformation True Lord without regard for rank. Have you considered what kind of punishment you deserve?" Unfortunately, the opposition was not easily intimidated. As soon as Ji Mo finished, Mu Chuan, standing beside Ze Zong, sneered.

"How can you judge that I’m being sophistical? Who can prove you are truly from the Divine Steel Sect? Perhaps you are the ones from the Demon Domain, running here to frame us. Otherwise, would a Deity Transformation True Lord really ignore his status and act so unreasonably to coerce us juniors?" Ji Mo retorted, glaring back at him.

Ze Zong and Mu Chuan had likely never encountered someone with such low cultivation but such daring, who could twist black into white so fluently. They were momentarily stunned. Even Su Ye was taken aback. *Wait, who said I was the one who twists facts? I should really let the Senior Sister see the Junior Sister’s talent for framing others and turning things upside down!*

"In Umang Town, there is no need for logic or debating. Whoever has the bigger fist makes the rules." Just then, another voice rang out. Ji Mo was startled, fearing that old man Ze Zong had lost his patience and decided to strike directly.

However, she saw Ze Zong and Mu Chuan frowning as they looked behind her. Ji Mo turned around and noticed a middle-aged man dressed like a shopkeeper standing about three or four meters away. It was he who had spoken. Ji Mo asked, "Are you the manager here?"

"Indeed, I am the manager. If you have a conflict, solve it by fighting. Debating is useless. If you break the tables, chairs, or the building, the loser pays for the damages," the man said with a wave of his hand.

"What if the loser dies?" Xiao Jin, perched on Ji Mo’s shoulder, couldn't help but ask.

"If they die, they surely have a storage bag on them. We’ll just take it to cover the costs. Of course, if they don't even have a storage bag, the winner pays double," the manager said, curling his lip.

Xiao Jin wanted to ask what would happen if the winner didn't pay, but Ji Mo clamped her hand over its mouth, preventing it from making a sound. Ignoring the manager, Ji Mo turned her gaze back to Ze Zong and smiled, "Senior Ze Zong, after hearing what the manager said, I don't think I have anything else to add. Shall we start fighting, or should we each go our own way?"

*Death wish!* Ze Zong could no longer restrain himself and slapped his palm toward her. Although he was wary of their origins and feared offending someone he shouldn't, Ji Mo’s behavior was simply too arrogant. One was at the peak of Core Condensation, the other at the beginning; even if they were from the four great sects of the Fenglan Empire, at their level, they had no right to act so wantonly before him.