How can I endure this insult?

Chapter 46: How Can I Endure This Humiliation... (Seeking Collection! Seeking Recommendation Tickets! Seeking Investment!)

Hm?

City Lord Duanmu frowned slightly. This action caused Pei Ling to subconsciously hold his breath and tense his senses, his hand instinctively reaching for the hilt of his saber.

Fortunately, the next moment, the City Lord's brows relaxed, and he said slowly, "That makes sense. We've come all this way, we can't return empty-handed... How about this, since all of you juniors had trouble on my territory. Since that's the case, I'll handle this mission for you."

As he spoke, he commanded his attendants, "Take good care of Young Friend Pei."

Before his voice even faded, he had already transformed into a gust of clear wind and disappeared.

In less time than it takes for a cup of tea to steep, the City Lord returned, tossing two bloodied demonic beasts in front of Pei Ling: "Young Friend Pei, the one on the left is a Peach Blossom Demon, and the one on the right is a Purple-Eyed Sable. Please check if they are correct."

Pei Ling swallowed hard and forced a smile, "City Lord, I'm just a new disciple at the fourth level of Qi Cultivation. I don't understand anything..."

"It's alright, it's alright," the City Lord said with a smile. "Just use your identification plate to verify. If it's wrong, I'll make another trip."

Pei Ling was extremely reluctant, but under the gaze of this Foundation Establishment stage cultivator, he had no choice but to steel himself and take out his identification plate.

However, after taking out the plate, he had no idea what to do?

"Young friend, smear the blood of the demonic beasts onto your identification plate, and you'll know if it's what the mission requires," City Lord Duanmu saw his confusion and reminded him.

However, after Pei Ling smeared the blood of the two demonic beasts onto the plate, it remained completely unresponsive!

His heart leaped with joy, and he quickly said, "City Lord, it seems there was a mistake. I wouldn't dare trouble you to make another trip; I'll go myself!"

"How could that be?" City Lord Duanmu was taken aback. He had only asked Pei Ling to verify it as a formality. After all, as the City Lord of Luoshan City, he knew the demonic beasts in the vicinity of his jurisdiction better than anyone.

He couldn't possibly have made a mistake even with his eyes closed.

Thinking of this, he frowned. After a moment of thought, he suddenly recalled something, "Young Friend Pei, did you not accept the mission?"

"Accept the mission?" Pei Ling asked blankly. "How do I accept a mission? Senior Brother Chen always said I was with Senior Sister Chen, and the mission was to deliver a letter to you and capture a Peach Blossom Demon?"

City Lord Duanmu sighed, "As expected! Young Friend Pei, you've just entered the sect, it's no wonder you don't understand. Missions in the Sacred Sect must be accepted on the spot at the Miscellaneous Affairs Department with your identification plate before rewards can be settled. If you come out like this without doing anything, upon your return, unless you make a special trip to the General Affairs Hall, it won't count."

At this point, he showed a look of confusion, "I see that Young Friend Chen and the others treat you well, and you also respect them greatly. They are experienced mission-takers, so why wouldn't they remind you?"

Why?

Because those bastards wanted my life on this trip, why bother with all these formalities?

Pei Ling knew the truth in his heart, but he followed City Lord Duanmu's lead, asking blankly, "Yes, why is that?"

"Perhaps because they were too eager to refine the Soul Summoning Banner," City Lord Duanmu chuckled, saying slowly, "After all, the Soul Summoning Banner is costly and requires a lot of souls and flesh. Even a young talent like yourself would need at least several dozen to ensure the Soul Summoning Banner becomes a high-grade talisman artifact... Perhaps for this reason, they were in a hurry to complete the mission and didn't have time to explain the details to you."

"It's not troublesome to complete the procedures later upon your return."

"Since Young Friend Chen and the others are no longer here, Young Friend Pei can just make a trip to the General Affairs Hall yourself later."

"...Yes." Pei Ling pondered for a moment, his face showing a succession of emotions: shock, astonishment, deep thought, sudden realization, anger, relief, melancholy, etc. His tone also quickly became dejected, "Thank you for your guidance, City Lord!"

City Lord Duanmu smiled kindly, "We are both members of the Sacred Sect, we are all on the same side, there's no need to be so formal."

He then pointed to the two demonic beasts in front of him, "Then, Young Friend Pei, hurry and take them back to the sect. Don't forget to report this matter to the Deacon Hall immediately upon your return, and then go to the General Affairs Hall to complete the procedures."

"City Lord." Pei Ling really didn't want to face the families of Li Siguan and the other two at this time. He hesitated for a moment, then grudgingly and indirectly refused again, "Please trouble the City Lord to handle it, but... although Senior Brother Chen perished in the beast's maw, the other senior brothers and sisters... might still be outside the city? Since we came out together, I was wondering if I should wait for them? Perhaps, tomorrow or the day after, or in a few days, there will be news of them?"

City Lord Duanmu fell silent.

Pei Ling forced himself to remain calm, "If it's too much trouble for the City Lord, then I'll go to the inn..."

"What are you saying?" City Lord Duanmu suddenly laughed, interrupting him. "As I said, we are all on the same side. Why would you stay in an inn when you have the vast guest courtyard of the City Lord's mansion? I was just thinking that this was my oversight. How about this, I'll give orders later for the Luoshan City guard to go out and search. If they encounter them injured or in danger, they can lend a hand. What do you say?"

With his words to this extent, Pei Ling could only express his gratitude tearfully, "How can we be worthy of such a magnanimous and benevolent elder of the sect like the City Lord!"

Damn it, this old guy probably heard my reminder and is sending the guards to silence them tonight, right?

This guess was confirmed half a day later: that evening, after pacing restlessly in the guest courtyard for a long time, Pei Ling was once again invited to the main hall.

As soon as he entered, he saw City Lord Duanmu with a look of grief. His heart immediately tensed.

As expected, the old guy choked back his sobs the next moment and said, "Young Friend Pei, please accept my condolences. The guard just brought back some severed limbs. After identification by the coroner and confirmation by the butler, it's likely that the other young friends, besides Young Friend Chen, have all..."

Pei Ling instantly felt as if he had lost his parents: How am I supposed to keep pretending to stay in Luoshan City now???

"Young friend, the deceased are gone. Please take care of yourself!" City Lord Duanmu saw his grief-stricken appearance, secretly praised him for being formidable, and quickly cooperated in persuading him, "You and Young Friend Chen were close. I'm sure their spirits in heaven wouldn't bear to see you so heartbroken for them... Oh, right, besides the severed limbs, some of their personal belongings were also found at the scene. These items will be entrusted to you to keep as a memento."

"No, no, no!" Pei Ling, who had been immersed in sorrow, suddenly woke up, his hands moving almost like afterimages. "City Lord, please calm down! My cultivation is low, and my virtue is shallow. How can I be worthy of keeping the relics of my senior brothers and sisters? Those things must be kept by the City Lord! If the City Lord doesn't accept them, it means you look down on us Qi Cultivation stage cultivators!"

City Lord Duanmu smiled gently, "Young friend, you don't need to be like this. Although those items are ordinary, they are still the personal belongings of your senior brothers and sisters. Both morally and logically, they should be given to you."

Pei Ling saw that he deliberately emphasized "ordinary" and still felt uneasy. He sternly refused, adamantly unwilling to accept. In the end, City Lord Duanmu had someone bring the items up. On a black ebony lacquered tray with gold inlay, there were only some tattered things. The only relatively valuable items were three Qi and Blood Pills in a small porcelain bottle and five Low-grade Spirit Stones.

...This old guy is too damn stingy!

"Since that's the case..." Pei Ling cursed inwardly. Never mind the rest, Chen Huan alone casually gave him a Qi and Blood Pill when they were in the Yin Corpse Cloud. How could the five people's remains be so meager?

The old guy not only took the most valuable Soul Summoning Banner but also swallowed all the remaining benefits, trying to fob him off with scraps!

This is simply outrageous!

How can I endure this humiliation!!!

Although he thought this, Pei Ling's mouth did not hesitate, "Please allow me to report, City Lord: The Human-Faced Spiders are ferocious by nature. If not for the City Lord's boundless benevolence, our journey would have been doomed! As the saying goes, my parents gave me life, and the City Lord saved me from the depths of despair! This kindness and grace will never be forgotten!"