Misunderstanding? I Think You're a Petty Thief!

Heaven Dou City was truly worthy of being the imperial capital; the sheer prosperity of the street where Mo Li and Jiang Zhu found themselves was enough to make one click their tongue in wonder.

The street stretched on as far as the eye could see, wide enough to accommodate several carriages traveling side-by-side, while the diverse array of shops lining both sides was enough to dazzle anyone.

As for Mo Li and his companion, while it was said they were strolling together, in reality, only Jiang Zhu was enjoying it to the fullest. Mo Li lacked much interest in these shops, though he would chime in every now and then to ensure the conversation didn't go cold.

"Little Brother Mo Li, look over here!"

Mo Li offered a wry smile as he looked toward the excited Jiang Zhu not far away.

He saw her gently pick up a necklace made of gemstones, her eyes sparkling as she said happily to Mo Li, "What do you think? Is it pretty? The shopkeeper said this is made of real gemstones!"

Mo Li leaned in for a closer look and curled his lip. "This is obviously fake."

Even without activating Peering at Heaven and Earth, he could see the impurities at a glance; the necklace before them was merely a trinket made of common materials.

Hearing his words, the shopkeeper, who had been wearing a fawning expression, immediately pulled a long face, looking as if he were annoyed by someone speaking such blunt truths.

Seeing this, Jiang Zhu hurriedly placed the necklace back where it belonged, apologized to the shopkeeper, and then pulled Mo Li by the wrist toward the next shop, chiding him as they walked:

"Little Brother Mo Li, it's not that I want to nag, but the shopkeeper was right there—you shouldn't say things like that to someone's face. Besides, how could you tell it was fake at a single glance?"

Mo Li chuckled. It was a joke; even without circulating his cultivation technique, his spiritual power was already comparable to that of an ordinary Spirit Ancestor, so the nature of these common ores was naturally clear to him at a glance.

"There are things you don't know; my eye for these things is quite sharp."

"If you're really that sharp, wouldn't we make a fortune if I took you to gamble on raw stones?"

Jiang Zhu covered her mouth and giggled, assuming Mo Li was just boasting.

Mo Li shook his head with a smile at her words; what Jiang Zhu said actually made some sense.

However, he wasn't sure how gambling on stones in this world differed from his past life, but if the opportunity arose, he wouldn't mind giving it a try.

Just as the two were chatting while walking, a figure wrapped in a wide, heavy robe drifted past Jiang Zhu as if by chance.

Seemingly when no one was paying attention, a hand reached out quietly from the wide sleeve, aiming for the pouch at Jiang Zhu's waist.

The street was bustling with people, so naturally, few noticed such petty theft.

But just as the person was about to succeed, Mo Li, who had been laughing and talking with Jiang Zhu, suddenly furrowed his brows and cast his gaze toward the panicked figure.

It was a middle-aged man with a lean face and ordinary features, dressed in a loose robe. At this moment, his face was full of panic, and his eyes shifted downward because Mo Li's hand had clamped onto his wrist like an iron vice.

"Why are there so many blind fools today?"

Mo Li felt a bit speechless; even a petty thief had the audacity to target him.

At this moment, curious gazes from the street turned toward them. Faced with this situation, many people clearly understood what was happening and hurriedly lowered their heads to check their own belongings.

"Hey, where's my purse!"

"Mine is gone too."

As more and more people discovered their belongings were missing, the man caught by Mo Li's grip turned deathly pale, struggling desperately to break free.

Jiang Zhu had already moved to the other side the moment Mo Li spoke up, leaving him plenty of space.

"Let go!"

Mo Li ignored him. He had keenly sensed a fluctuation of spirit power the moment the man made his move, and at such close range, the man's actions could not escape his perception.

Just then, a white spirit ring rose from beneath the man's feet.

His already sinister face sprouted a few whiskers, and his expression turned even more treacherous.

Mo Li glanced at him; it seemed his spirit was of the rodent variety, which explained his penchant for thievery.

After releasing his spirit, the man's hand darted toward Mo Li's chest.

Mo Li took one look at his spirit ring, then shook his arm, tossing the man aside. He slightly bent his arm, transitioning into an elbow strike, and slammed his elbow into the man's chest with swift, immense force.

"Thud!"

"Argh!"

As the man flew backward, Mo Li reached out and grabbed, causing a heap of bundles, purses, and various odds and ends to spill from the man's person. The man clutched his chest and collapsed on the ground nearby.

The surrounding crowd scattered, searching for their belongings. Seeing this, Mo Li stepped back a few paces and reflexively caught a pale purple purse.

It was merely an instinctive reaction, but just as he intended to toss it aside, a sharp, feminine cry rang out.

"You little thief, give me back my things!"

Accompanying this voice was a surge of green spirit power. Mo Li frowned and used his other hand to circulate his spirit power, blocking the attack.

At this moment, the owner of the voice pushed through the crowd and appeared before him.

He saw a young girl with short purple hair glaring angrily at the purple bundle in his hand, her exotic eyes filled with coldness.

"No, you've misunderstood."

Once Mo Li saw her clearly, he realized the girl was quite beautiful, especially those exotic green eyes, which held a strange, alluring charm.

Just as he was about to explain, Dugu Yan, standing opposite him, narrowed her eyes, her long, slender gaze curving into a dangerous arc.

"Are you going to tell me you just happened to find this?"

Mo Li thought to himself, You already know the answer, don't you? He was just about to point out the real culprit, but when he turned his head, the person was already gone.

They had seized the opportunity to slip away the moment Dugu Yan made her move.

Fortunately, there were plenty of people nearby who could testify for him.

"That's right, if you don't believe me, you can—"

Before Mo Li could finish his sentence, Dugu Yan lunged at him in a fit of rage.

"Do you take me for a fool? The bag is right in your hands! Today, I'm going to teach a petty thief with sticky fingers like you a real lesson!"

A wave of green soul power, far more ferocious than the last, surged toward Mo Li, faintly carrying a foul, pungent odor.

Mo Li frowned. This purple-haired woman was completely unreasonable; she attacked without a word and refused to listen to any explanation at all.

He pulled Jiang Zhu back a few steps first. Because of Dugu Yan's aggressive assault, the surrounding crowd immediately retreated to form a wide circle; after all, this was a battle between soul masters, and ordinary people avoided such things like the plague.

After putting some distance between them, Mo Li decisively raised his left hand, sending a jet of equally powerful black flame flying toward the purple soul power. The two forces collided and then vanished into thin air.

"So, you do have some skill."

Seeing her attack neutralized, Dugu Yan was forced to re-evaluate the youth standing before her, who appeared even younger than herself.

Although her previous strike had been intended as a lesson—she couldn't actually kill Mo Li, after all—it hadn't been an easy attack to block.

The fact that Mo Li had dispelled it so effortlessly stirred her competitive spirit, causing her to momentarily cast the matter of her bag to the back of her mind.

Two bright yellow soul rings rose from beneath her feet, and her second soul ring began to glow.

"Second soul skill: Jade Scale Blue Poison!"

Upon hearing the name of the purple-haired girl's soul skill, Mo Li's furrowed brows instantly smoothed out, and he couldn't help but let out a smile.