End

The leaders of both sides had originally been facing off at close range. Bound by the inn's rules, neither side had made a move; they had merely stood close to each other.

However, one leader was sneak-attacked by a subordinate behind him. The two leaders facing each other toppled straight to the floor without any surprise, their faces pressed together.

The subordinate who launched the sneak attack was actually quite strong, also a Dou Shi. Otherwise, he would not have succeeded. Still, in his haste, he had not used a Dou Skill, merely channeled Dou Qi into the kick.

The power was not particularly great, and neither leader was seriously hurt.

From Xiao Ming's brief observations, after their earlier exchange of insults, unless they were both masochists, these two eldest brothers probably did not like each other.

Sure enough, the man who had just been kicked quickly pulled himself free from the other eldest brother's embrace, his face full of disgust as he shouted.

"Pah, pah, pah! That's disgusting! Haven't you brushed your teeth? Your breath reeks of garlic! You lot, grab that traitor for me! He dared kick me? I'll show him how I deal with people. Ugh—"

After saying that, he even made a retching motion, as though that brief contact had truly disgusted him beyond measure and dealt his spirit a severe blow.

"Hehehe, what an idiot. Those two were spraying spit at each other while they cursed before, and they were fine. Now they merely bumped into each other, and he's making such a fuss." The Strong Man Duo, who had been together nearby, were also drawn by the commotion. Bearded Uncle seemed extremely disdainful of the eldest brother's retching and mocked him loudly.

"Hahaha, unlike us, when we want to hug each other, we hug each other. It's merely proof of friendship. We're not afraid of other people's stares at all," White-bearded Old Man also sneered.

Neither of them lowered their voices; if anything, they seemed to be deliberately speaking louder.

Everyone in the inn heard them. Hearing the teasing exchange between the two strong men, they all burst into laughter, eager to stir up more trouble.

The eldest brother who had been knocked over got to his feet, his face flushed red and his eyes bloodshot.

He had already been furious when someone spat into his bowl while he was eating peacefully. After that came a brief exchange packed with horse-related insults.

Now he was being despised for having garlic breath, while the bystanders gleefully laughed at him.

Had they merely touched? His lips had nearly been smashed open!

Damn it!

The laughter around him was like demons chanting in his ears. He could not block it out, and it drove him into a frenzy. At last, the string called reason in his mind snapped. In an incomparably low voice, he said, "Kill these bastards for me!"

"But, Eldest Brother, there are too many people here, and this is..." A subordinate tried to step forward and dissuade him. There were too many people in the inn; they were not people his group could afford to provoke.

Smack!

"Are you teaching me how to do things? I said kill those bastards!" The eldest brother slapped his little brother and pointed at the group that had been confronting them earlier and was now blocking the traitor.

Of course, he was not so brainless as to think his group could fight everyone in the inn.

After saying that, the leader raised his saber and charged forward at the head of the group.

"Mad Blade Slash!" He went straight for the kill, chopping directly at someone's head.

"Damn it, you bastards actually dared launch a sneak attack! Brothers, get them! Kill them! Stone Shattering Palm!"

Xiao Ming watched from the side with great interest. All kinds of Dou Qi filled the scene with color, while the clashing of weapons rang out one after another. Splinters of wood and stone flew everywhere, and from time to time, unlucky people who were hit let out screams.

The battle rapidly grew in scale. Xiao Ming retreated to the edge of the inn and watched the two leaders clash.

They truly deserved to be people who made their living in the Black Corner Region. Pale yellow Dou Qi Gauze wrapped around their bodies. In a short time, they had already exchanged dozens of moves. Their long blades flashed back and forth, and the magic cores embedded in their weapons emitted dazzling, vicious light. Every strike cut toward the enemy's vital points from tricky angles, and every flash of a blade carried a howling wind sound.

Their subordinates tacitly moved away from the range of their combat, avoiding being caught in the crossfire.

Just as the two were fighting fiercely, the fat man and Scarface finally rushed out from the back.

"What are you doing? Have you forgotten that fighting is forbidden in the inn? All of you, stop!" Scarface shouted grimly when he saw the hall's tables and chairs scattered everywhere and stained with blood.

But both sides were fighting with all their might, their battle approaching a fever pitch. Who had time to listen to him?

"Hehehe, you're courting death."

Being ignored, Scar-faced Big Man grew extremely angry. He pulled out a pair of gauntlets from his waist and put them on. The Dou Qi inside his body began to flow.

A trace of a cold smile appeared at the corner of his mouth as he suddenly lunged at the two eldest brothers who were locked in fierce combat.

"Who?"

The sudden attack made both men's expressions change drastically. They rolled across the floor in a miserable state, barely avoiding the fist.

His strike missing, the fist did not pause. He swung both fists in broad arcs, sweeping them out. A streak of cold light passed over the shattered tables and chairs and shot toward one of them.

The man lying on the ground could not dodge in time. His Dou Qi Gauze was useless now, and he was struck squarely on the head. Instantly, his head burst apart like a watermelon, red and white matter mixing together.

"Eldest Brother!"

"Fuck, Eldest Brother died! Run!"

The commotion here alarmed the other subordinates still fighting. The group whose eldest brother had died sensed that things had gone badly. They immediately forced back their opponents and tried to slip away.

The group whose eldest brother was still alive saw how fierce Scarface was and felt that their own leader would soon meet a terrible end as well. They too began thinking of abandoning their eldest brother and fleeing.

But by then, the fat man had quietly blocked the main entrance. After several of their own men were effortlessly killed, everyone became obedient.

"Scarface, what do you mean by this?"

The unlucky fellow whose head had been smashed was the one who had been kissed. The one left alive was the man who had been kicked by the traitor. His face was ugly as he looked at Scarface. It seemed the two knew each other.

"What do I mean? Fighting is forbidden inside the inn. Haven't you forgotten that rule? You've put our other guests in danger." Scar-faced Big Man spoke righteously, as though he truly cared about the guests.

Damn it, everyone in Green Rock Town knows this place is a fucking Black Inn that specializes in fleecing travelers. What are you pretending for?

The man was burning with rage inside, but remembering that Scarface was two stars stronger than him, he could only ask, "What do you want?"

"Hehehe, we're old acquaintances, after all. Pay compensation."

"How much do you want?" The eldest brother felt that he was about to suffer a massive loss this time.

Scarface held out one hand.

"Five hundred gold coins?"

"No, five thousand gold coins."

"How much?" The eldest brother suspected there was something wrong with his ears. It felt as though he had misheard.

"You heard correctly. Five thousand gold coins. And each of your subordinates owes five thousand, while you owe ten thousand gold coins." A mocking smile hung on Scarface's face.

Xiao Ming, standing to the side, had not expected the man who had previously called him "my lord" to name such a ruthless price. What did five thousand gold coins mean? In the Jia Ma Empire, twenty gold coins were enough to cover a family's expenses for an entire year.

Some people could not earn five thousand gold coins in their entire lives.

Even though the people fighting here were all at least Dou Zhes, and there were even several Dou Shis, that did not mean they could afford such a sum.

Thus, they all looked desperately at their leader, hoping he would think of something or pay the money for them.

When power was against them, losing money was better than losing their lives.

Ignoring the pleading looks from his subordinates, he said, "Fine. I'll pay ten thousand gold coins."

Yes, he was only paying for himself. He did not care about the others at all. Brothers could be found again after they were gone, but once money was gone, it was truly gone.

Besides, he could not come up with that much money. Ten thousand gold coins already made up most of his savings.

Xiao Ming was not surprised by the outcome as he watched the eldest brother hand over a Black Card.

Scarface pinched the Black Card between his fingers, nodded in satisfaction, and waved his hand. "You can leave."

"Boss, don't go!"

"Eldest Brother, save us!"

"I know you still have money! Save me, and I'll have Cuihua keep you company tonight..."

The man ultimately left. His remaining little brothers were fed a kind of poison by Scarface and locked up.

According to the local townspeople in the inn who were watching the excitement, they were already used to such things. These people would eventually be sold as slaves to certain factions.

This matter did not affect Xiao Ming much, but Scarface's actions made him somewhat wary.

The Black Corner Region was chaotic, and this inn even dealt in human trafficking. It was probably not a proper inn.

The hall had already been damaged beyond recognition anyway.

Since Xiao Ming had never intended to eat the food here, he directly asked where his room was.

It got blocked once, so I'm sending it again.

Thanks for the reward, "Thank You."