Why Bother Arguing with a Beggar?

"I say, this... uh... 'Grandmaster'..." Li Lang swiftly raised his fan-sized hand and heavily slapped Yu Xiaogang's shoulder again, nearly knocking him off balance.

"Can't you see my Miss is in a very 'good' mood right now?"

He deliberately stressed "Grandmaster" and "good," making no effort to hide the mockery in his tone.

"Even if you want to 'show off your talents,' you should at least pick an auspicious day, shouldn't you?" He had completely classified Yu Xiaogang as some street performer who fooled people with his mouth.

"Who are you calling a performer?!" Yu Xiaogang's face flushed red from Li Lang's contemptuous attitude.

He was the dignified Second Young Master of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan, the future founder of Martial Soul Theory, yet he was being humiliated like this?

"Fine, fine, fine, you're not a performer..." Li Lang impatiently patted his shoulder again, making Yu Xiaogang grimace in pain. "You're a 'master performer'! There, satisfied?"

"I'm not!" Yu Xiaogang growled stiffly, his neck craned.

"Ugh..." Li Lang rolled his eyes inwardly, cursing this guy for having such thick skin. "I know you're not a performer."

"So, esteemed 'Grandmaster,' could you please show some mercy and stop harassing my Miss?"

He pointed at the corners of two Gold Soul Coins peeking out from Yu Xiaogang's collar. "Didn't my Miss just 'tip' you, Grandmaster?"

"Do us a favor and go elsewhere to 'preach and teach,' will you?"

"You're treating me like a beggar?!" Yu Xiaogang's eyes went bloodshot with rage. He panted heavily like an enraged bull.

"Forget it, Li Lang. Let's go." Zhang Huan tugged his companion's arm, glanced at Yu Xiaogang, and spoke in an even tone that somehow sounded more cutting. "Why bother arguing with a... beggar?"

"We need to get some food packed up for Miss."

The two ignored Yu Xiaogang, who was trembling with fury, and headed for the counter.

Yu Xiaogang was left standing there alone, his clenched fists so tight that his knuckles turned white, his fingernails digging deeply into his palms.

An immense sense of humiliation gnawed at his heart like venomous snakes.

His fists tightened secretly inside his sleeves as he screamed madly in his heart!

"Just wait! One day, I'll make every one of you—make the entire Soul Master World—grovel beneath Yu Xiaogang's wisdom!"

On the upturned eaves of a secluded pavilion near the hotel where Spirit Hall was staying.

Yue Guan, dressed in splendid robes, stood by the railing as he listened to Ghost Charm, who was nearly blended into the shadows beside him, recount what had happened in the outskirts earlier.

For the first time, an expression of disbelief appeared on his face, which was more delicate than a woman's.

"Old Ghost, are you saying... that mysterious Guardian from earlier, the one who didn't even reveal a Soul Ring, used a Self-Created Soul Skill to defeat your Ninth Soul Skill—Hellish Specter—head-on?"

There was a trace of barely perceptible shock in Yue Guan's voice.

"Yes." Ghost Charm's voice remained dry and cold, like the low cry of a night owl. "However, I only used seventy percent of my Soul Power."

He added that last part, but it only made the matter more shocking.

Yue Guan fell silent.

A Soul Saint had relied solely on a Self-Created Soul Skill to contend with and even gain the upper hand against a Titled Douluo's Ninth Soul Skill?

Had he not heard it from Ghost Charm himself, he would never have believed such a monstrous talent existed in this world.

Only the faint sound of the night wind brushing against their robes remained atop the pavilion.

After a long while, Yue Guan finally spoke, his tone grave and probing. "Old Ghost, do you think he and Her Highness the Saintess..."

Ghost Charm's gaze beneath the shadow of his hood seemed to flicker. He slowly shook his head, his voice low and firm. "The Saintess is the future Pope."

"Her private affairs are not for us to discuss, much less decide." With that, his figure became like ink scattered by the wind, silently merging into the shadow beneath his feet and disappearing completely.

"Hey... Old Ghost! When are you going to fix that habit of leaving without a word?" Yue Guan complained toward the empty eaves. He shook his head helplessly, then turned into a streak of light and vanished into the night after him.

At midnight, inside the Saintess's suite on the top floor of the luxurious hotel reserved by Spirit Hall.

Bibi Dong had none of her usual noble composure. She sat cross-legged on the soft carpet with her back against the bed.

She hugged a fluffy pillow in her arms and viciously pounded it with her fists—thump, thump, thump—as though it were some bastard's face.

On the exquisite dressing table sat the still-steaming food containers Zhang Huan and Li Lang had brought back, filling the room with tempting aromas, yet she did not even spare them a glance.

"Bastard! Bastard! Bastard!" Each time she struck the pillow, she spat out another curse.

Today had simply been the most stifling day of her life!

Not only had she lost a lock of hair with special significance during the battle, but she had also somehow indirectly... indirectly... with that shameless bastard!

Just recalling that bamboo tube spout made her feel uncomfortable all over. Her anger made her stomach ache faintly—how could she have any appetite?

Just then—

Crack!

A soft, crisp sound rang out as a small hole appeared in the room's glass window.

Bibi Dong's eyes sharpened. Her jade-like hand shot out like lightning and firmly caught a small stone that had flown inside.

"Who's there?!" She sprang to her feet at once. Soul Power surged as the phantom of the Death Spider Emperor Martial Soul flashed behind her, cold killing intent spreading through the room.

Outside the window, a black shadow flashed past!

"Stop! Take another step, and I'll attack!" Bibi Dong shouted sharply. Her body was already leaping through the window with the agility of a wildcat, landing steadily on a decorative ledge along the hotel's exterior wall.

She was already full of Evil Fire with nowhere to vent it. This petty thief who had delivered himself to her door was a gift from heaven!

Under the moonlight, she reached the hotel's highest rooftop platform after just a few leaps.

That black shadow stood not far ahead.

"Stop! Take one more step, and don't blame me for being ruthless!" Bibi Dong's voice was icy as Soul Power gathered at her fingertips.

Hearing her, the black shadow actually stopped and raised both hands high. The motion carried a hint of... absurdity?

"Don't! Miss, please calm down! Don't attack!" A voice that made her teeth itch with familiarity rang out.

Bibi Dong's brows rose sharply. Alarm bells rang in her heart, but she did not lower her guard. "Turn around!"

"Alright, alright, Miss, calm down, calm down..." the shadow said as he slowly turned around.

Cool moonlight spilled down, illuminating that handsome face with its annoyingly punchable smile.

"Hm? Why is it you?!" Bibi Dong recognized him at once. The little caution she had felt was instantly replaced by even greater fury as she mocked him.

"Heh, who would've thought?"

"The famed Black-Clothed Protector is actually a roof-crawling thief who likes scaling walls in the middle of the night!"

Zhao Linchuan lowered his hands with a smile, looking utterly innocent. "I've been wronged!"

"I left something important with you during the day, so I came specifically to retrieve it."

"But your guards are sealed up tighter than an iron barrel. What else could I do..." His gaze meaningfully flicked toward Bibi Dong's Storage Soul Tool.