Your Subordinate Lin Xiaotian Pays His Respects to the Sect Leader

The moment Shopkeeper Yang finished speaking, the crowd erupted.

The Qin Clan had gone to such a deranged extreme in using its power to oppress others. Everyone could only look at Mo Sanniang with pity and sigh.

They did not know what Qin Wansheng had whispered to Shopkeeper Yang, but they presumed he had invoked the person backing him.

And that person made even the Heavenly Ox Chamber of Commerce wary enough not to utter a word of protest.

That meant Qin Wansheng's backer could only be more powerful than anyone could imagine.

Qin Wansheng was pleased with the result Shopkeeper Yang had announced. He walked up to Chen Ning and smiled. "Do you still think you can contend with me now?"

"How will I know without trying?"

Chen Ning looked at him with a smile. He was determined to obtain the Star Essence Liquid. If he allowed even the Qin Clan of Gold and Iron City to bully him, how could he hope to contend with all those spies in the sect later?

Chen Ning looked past Qin Wansheng at the deeply uneasy Shopkeeper Yang and asked, "Shopkeeper Yang, you know better than I do which clan came out ahead in the contest, yet you've given the qualification to the Qin Clan. How do you intend to silence all those wagging tongues?"

"Th-this is no concern of yours... The Heavenly Ox Chamber of Commerce has the final say in this matter."

Forcing himself to remain calm, Shopkeeper Yang spoke in a clear voice.

Now that he had chosen a side, he could only smash the already cracked pot and follow this path into the dark.

If anyone was to blame, it was the Mo Clan for having no one behind it.

That was simply how the world worked.

Anger filled Su Ling'er's almond-shaped eyes, and she was about to step forward, but Chen Ning stopped her. "Don't rush. Let's wait and see."

Chen Ning also wanted to see just how shameless these people could get.

Sure enough, they did not disappoint him. Qin Wansheng had long coveted the high-grade dance diagram, and he made another move. Looking at Mo Sanniang, he said:

"There's one more matter. Mo Sanniang of the Mo Clan stole my Qin Clan's high-grade dance diagram. Now she's slipped up, and I've spotted the evidence. I advise you to return the diagram at once, and my Qin Clan will let bygones be bygones."

"You!"

Tears of grievance welled up in Mo Sanniang's eyes.

She had yielded again and again, but the Qin Clan kept turning black into white.

"Vicious slander! Your Qin Clan stole the Mo Clan's mid-grade dance diagram decades ago, and now you have the gall to turn around and accuse us?"

She had always known that the Qin Clan woman had stolen the dance diagram decades ago, but there was nothing she could do. The Mo Clan had fallen into decline, and she was no match for the Qin Clan, which was at the height of its power.

But now the Qin Clan had sunk to such depths of shamelessness that even if she died, she would protect her benefactor's dance diagram.

"Benefactor, go first. A man like him is capable of anything."

Mo Sanniang tucked the high-grade dance diagram into Chen Ning's sleeve and gave him a meaningful look.

Chen Ning remained unmoved. "There's no hurry to leave," he said calmly. "This diagram was meant to be exchanged for Star Essence Liquid. Since I gave it to you, it's yours."

Chen Ning put the dance diagram back in Mo Sanniang's hands.

Qin Wansheng saw this, and greed flared up in him. With a wave of his hand, he sent two guards toward them.

Both men were martial artists at the peak of the Body Tempering Realm. Though they were nothing much in the cultivation world,

in the mortal world, they were already highly capable guards.

The two men advanced menacingly, intent on snatching the dance diagram from Mo Sanniang's hands.

Su Ling'er did not even move. A glint flashed in her eyes, and two bloody heads tumbled to the ground.

Su Ling'er was already a Spirit Martial Realm expert. Dealing with ordinary martial artists who had yet to enter the Human Martial Realm could not have been easier.

At the sight, everyone in the chamber of commerce felt their hearts tremble.

They had not expected the beautiful young woman who had stayed by Chen Ning's side all this time to be so ruthless and fierce.

"You killed my Qin Clan's guards! How dare you! There's no room for discussion this time. I'll see your Mo Clan destroyed!"

Qin Wansheng roared, and more than a dozen guards behind him sprang into action, charging at Chen Ning and the others together.

The onlookers scattered and fled outside.

Several of the dozen-plus men were Human Martial Realm martial artists. It was clear that Qin Wansheng had some wealth, to be able to command so many martial artists.

But at that realm, no matter how many came, there would never be enough for Su Ling'er to kill.

Just as the dozen-plus men were about to charge the Mo Clan, a furious shout came from behind them. "Stop, all of you!"

Everyone looked closely and saw the fat-headed, big-eared Qin Clan woman clutching a long saber, its edge pressed against Qin Wansheng's neck.

A closer look revealed that the Qin Clan woman's eyes were clouded, as though someone had seized her body.

Chen Ning smiled faintly and raised a hand in greeting to Qin Wansheng.

A weak-willed person like the Qin Clan madam was easy to control.

Activating Bewitch the Mind did not even cost him anything.

"Y-you... What exactly are you trying to do?"

With the blade pressed against his neck, Qin Wansheng's voice trembled.

"I'm planning to return the dance diagram to your Qin Clan."

Chen Ning stepped toward him, smiling as he spoke.

"Do you know... who's backing me?"

With his life on the line, Qin Wansheng had no choice but to invoke his backer again.

"I'm really not interested..." Chen Ning smiled as he looked at Qin Wansheng's hateful face.

"If you let me go now, I'll spare your corpse from mutilation. Otherwise, if you ruin the plans of the person backing me, you'll have no chance to regret it!"

Qin Wansheng spoke viciously. As soon as he had been taken hostage, he had already signaled a guard to return and ask that person to come and get him out of this predicament.

His residence was close to the Heavenly Ox Chamber of Commerce, so that person would arrive soon. Then the Mo Clan and this brat before him would all die!

"Still talking tough?"

Chen Ning casually picked up a saber and scraped it against Qin Wansheng's face. "Let me see if your face is as foul and hard as your mouth."

"Stop right there!"

A Qin Clan guard's shout rang out from the entrance to the chamber of commerce.

When Qin Wansheng saw the person behind the guard, a smile spread across his face once more. "Hahaha, he's here! You're finished, brat!"

Chen Ning also turned to look out of curiosity, only to find it was someone he knew.

The person standing behind the guard was none other than the eighth elder, Lin Xiaotian.

Lin Xiaotian: "..."

As soon as Lin Xiaotian stepped inside, he sensed something was wrong, because she saw Su Ling'er's somewhat familiar figure.

Finally, when Chen Ning turned his head, he was certain.

Their eyes met.

Lin Xiaotian froze on the spot.

With his intelligence, once he saw Chen Ning threatening Qin Wansheng with a saber, he quickly understood what was happening.

Qin Wansheng laughed aloud. "Elder Lin, you're just in time! This is the man trying to cut off our source of income! Hurry and deal with him!"

All the onlookers in the Heavenly Ox Chamber of Commerce had fled, so Qin Wansheng had no more reservations. He might as well lay his cards on the table and scare this brat who didn't know the immensity of heaven and earth to death.

But the next moment, he witnessed a sight he would never forget for the rest of his life-

Lin Xiaotian dropped to one knee before Chen Ning and said respectfully, "Your subordinate Lin Xiaotian pays his respects to the sect leader!"