Iron Mouth Direct Judgment

The smell of blood was faint, almost impossible to detect.

Xu Bai had survived the life-and-death struggles at Fierce Tiger Stronghold and had quite a few lives on his hands. Combined with the suspicions he had already developed toward Yun Xiang, all his precautions allowed him to catch the scent of blood.

In the dead of night, a woman ran all over the place, then came back carrying the smell of blood. If there was nothing suspicious about that, it would be a lie.

"Safe travels, sir. This little inn is closing too," Yun Xiang said, showing no intention of continuing the conversation.

Xu Bai glanced at the pitch-black street, then instinctively looked at Yun Xiang's right hand.

The progress bar rose another sliver.

He had plucked off another little bit.

Since she did not want to chat, there was no point in him staying. He turned and left the inn.

Yun Xiang watched Xu Bai leave the whole time. Only after he reached the end of the street did she lift her foot and walk back into the inn.

"Creak—"

The inn doors closed, and the street returned to silence.

After reaching the corner of an alley, Xu Bai did not go home. Instead, he stood by the wall and studied the inn's tightly shut doors.

Strange. Too strange.

To be honest, Xu Bai was not someone who liked to poke his nose into other people's business.

Logically speaking, this matter was suspicious, and this world was far less peaceful than he had imagined. Leaving now would have been the best choice.

But... he had not finished looking at the progress bar.

After several days of testing, during which he had wandered through nearly half of Sheng County, Xu Bai finally understood just how demanding the conditions for triggering a progress bar were.

So far, aside from the "Kidney Strengthening Essentials" he had obtained from the bookstore and the "Heart Slaughtering Technique" he had felt out from that middle-aged man, he had only discovered the Maple Leaf Tattoo on Yun Xiang's hand.

"Can't waste it..." Xu Bai thought.

"Starting tomorrow, I'll come pluck wool from her every day."

He glanced at the inn again, then turned and left.

Once he had plucked enough and filled the progress bar, he would stop.

No, wait!

Why did that sound like a great general singing opera, with flags all over his body? Could he really be that unlucky? Xu Bai pondered as he walked.

The street was dark, and the night lay deep as water.

Apart from the occasional clang of a night watchman's gong, the street was silent again, broken only now and then by a couple of cat cries.

The next day.

Xu Bai got up early. After washing up, he once again went to the inn.

Just as usual, he ate and drank, his eyes occasionally drifting toward the back of Yun Xiang's hand.

The progress bar was rising, and that alone made him happy. Even the wine in his hand tasted better.

Yun Xiang still stood behind the counter, carrying out her usual duties as the accountant.

The full-figured woman possessed a mature charm, and Xu Bai was not the only person in the inn who looked at her. Yun Xiang seemed long accustomed to it and simply went about her work.

He had assumed today would pass as usual, but just as Xu Bai set down his wine cup, footsteps sounded outside.

The inn was full of people coming and going, so footsteps alone would not have meant anything. But these footsteps were different.

Along with them came the sound of bells jingling.

Xu Bai turned his gaze toward the entrance.

Before he saw the person, he first saw a long banner.

The banner was old and tattered, patched in several places, looking utterly shabby.

On its front were embroidered four large characters.

—Iron Mouth Direct Judgment.

Though embroidered, the characters were still vigorous and forceful. That calligraphy alone was enough to draw eyes.

The banner gradually came closer. A man holding it walked in, dressed in a worn moon-white Daoist robe.

The moon-white Daoist robe was not merely old; it was patched all over, especially around the sleeves, where an entire ring of patches had been sewn on.

From head to toe, he exuded an air of destitution.

The man appeared to be in his thirties and was fairly handsome, but there was something off about his eyes.

From the moment he entered, those eyes kept darting around, never still for a moment.

Looking around was normal enough. Anyone entering an unfamiliar place would instinctively take stock of their surroundings.

But this man was different. His gaze was uncomfortable from beginning to end.

It was like being gravely ill and going to see a doctor, only for the doctor to sigh and shake his head as he examined you.

That was roughly the feeling.

Xu Bai figured that if they had not been in an inn, this fortune-teller would have been beaten up already.

While he was thinking this, the fortune-teller did not find a seat. Instead, he went straight to the counter.

He seemed to know Yun Xiang, and the two spoke quietly.

The inn was too noisy for anyone to hear what they were saying.

Only after quite some time did the fortune-teller leave.

Before leaving, he looked around once more, just as he had upon entering.

When his gaze reached Xu Bai's table, it paused slightly.

Xu Bai noticed the look and frowned faintly.

That gaze was vivid, unlike before. It carried surprise.

The fortune-teller no longer left. Holding his banner, he changed direction and walked toward Xu Bai.

Xu Bai drained the wine in his cup and watched with interest.

When the fortune-teller approached, Xu Bai heard a voice.

"Greetings, brother. I am Iron Calculation Immortal." Iron Calculation Immortal greeted him, and as his sleeves swayed slightly, the patches became even more conspicuous.

Xu Bai said nothing. He merely raised his head to look at Iron Calculation Immortal, his eyes carrying an inscrutable meaning.

"I see a faint omen of calamity between your brows and eyes, brother. You may suffer a bloody disaster soon..." Iron Calculation Immortal sat down beside him as if they were old acquaintances and began speaking to himself.

He did not care whether Xu Bai responded, as though everything were only natural.

"What does that mean?" Xu Bai asked.

"Strange. I have seen many bloody disasters, but yours flickers in and out of sight. It seems as though it could be resolved in the next moment, yet it cannot be resolved. It is as if it lacks some opportunity." Iron Calculation Immortal frowned deeply.

"They say fortune-tellers can resolve fate. How should mine be resolved?" Xu Bai poured himself another cup of wine and tipped his head back to drink it.

Iron Calculation Immortal shook his head. "Your fate is very strange. This bloody disaster should either be resolved or not resolved, yet you are caught between resolution and non-resolution. Too strange."

As he spoke, Iron Calculation Immortal stared intently at Xu Bai's face again.

But after looking for a long while, he still could not make heads or tails of it.

"I see that you know the proprietress. Do you know what kind of man she likes?"

At that moment, Xu Bai abruptly asked.

Last night's idle chat with the waiter had given him an excuse.

Now, he could simply play the part of Yun Xiang's admirer and have a reason to linger here and leech progress.

This fortune-teller was strange. He had spoken with Yun Xiang the moment he came in, so they likely knew each other.

Thus, Xu Bai followed up with that question, making his excuse more convincing.

Unexpectedly, Iron Calculation Immortal froze at his words.

"How would I know what kind of man the proprietress likes?"

"Hm?" Xu Bai frowned. "Then what were you doing at the counter just now?"

"Paying back money. I borrowed money from the proprietress some time ago, and I came today to repay it." Iron Calculation Immortal pointed at himself, then at the counter.

Iron Calculation Immortal himself found it strange.

At first, he had only noticed that Xu Bai's face showed something abnormal, so he had specifically come over to take a look.

But Xu Bai's question had left him utterly confused, and he had no idea what the man meant.

He was a fortune-teller, not someone who tied red strings for lovers. What use was it asking him? Still, by now, Iron Calculation Immortal understood.

So he was an admirer.

No wonder... the bloody disaster flickered in and out of sight.