Extortion

The main hall was silent, with only the rhythmic tapping echoing through it.

Wang Mengde stood to one side, his expression respectful, his gaze lowered.

He knew the other party was putting psychological pressure on him.

First, say nothing. First, tap the table and let him ponder it himself, let guilt eat at him.

If his conscience was guilty, every tap would make his heart race a little faster.

Wang Mengde did indeed have a guilty conscience.

Yet he was not the least bit flustered. Instead, he was exceptionally calm.

His mind raced as he calculated.

Yang Daqiang, captain of Island Patrol Guards Seventh Squad, nephew of Rosy Cloud Island's lord, and famously greedy for wealth.

There was an eighty to ninety percent chance that he had come this time with his sights set on Wang Mengde's spirit stones.

He wanted to mooch off him.

Wang Mengde had long known that his harvest of nearly two thousand spirit stones would surely attract attention.

That was simply how this world worked.

A nobody with neither strength nor backing could never hold on to a huge sum of wealth.

Several years ago, a fourth-level Qi Refinement Rogue Cultivator named Chen Daniu had stumbled upon a Jadeheart Ginseng in the deep sea.

On the third day after the news spread, the Island Patrol Guards came knocking.

The charge was murdering multiple people.

The evidence was conclusive.

Perhaps it truly had been conclusive, but perhaps it had been fabricated.

But regardless of whether the evidence was real or fake.

Chen Daniu was arrested by the Island Patrol Guards, fined five thousand spirit stones, and given one month to pay.

A month later, because Chen Daniu had failed to pay the fine within the stipulated time, he was made to repay the debt with his body.

His vital blood was refined into blood pills, his bones into bone powder, and his soul into soul crystals.

That was the sorrow of little people.

Once they obtained a vast fortune, a pack of hungry wolves would inevitably fix their eyes on them.

They would use every possible method to snatch that wealth from their hands.

Charges? Evidence?

To those people, such things were merely tools.

Wang Mengde was not stubbornly rigid.

He had long prepared himself to part with some wealth.

He was merely considering how to part with it in exchange for the greatest possible benefit.

Best of all, he could make even more.

Yang Daqiang tapped the table, his gaze seemingly tangible as it swept back and forth over Wang Mengde.

Suddenly, he snorted coldly.

The spiritual pressure of a sixth-level Qi Refinement cultivator erupted from him with a boom, crushing fiercely toward Wang Mengde.

Wang Mengde let out a muffled grunt, his body involuntarily retreating two steps.

He steadied himself. Anger churned in his heart, but his face remained respectful.

Yang Daqiang suddenly barked, his voice like a thunderclap exploding through the main hall.

"Wang Mengde, how did Qin Xiangnan, Zhao Youming, Zhou Lie, and Sun He die?"

At the same time as the shout, an invisible force charged straight at Wang Mengde's soul.

Soul-Seizing Technique.

Wang Mengde felt his mind grow faintly dazed, then he instantly recovered.

A flicker of anger passed through his heart.

Why were all those bastards from the Island Patrol Guards the same?

They came in and immediately tried to put him in his place.

First, they used spiritual pressure to intimidate him, then they used the Soul-Seizing Technique to probe him.

Liu Yiyi had done so years ago, and Yang Daqiang was doing exactly the same.

He drew a deep breath and suppressed the anger in his heart. His face remained respectful, even carrying a measure of perfectly timed panic.

"At the time, the Azure Jade Ghost Carp school was pursuing us. The situation was urgent, so we scattered and fled.

"After we split up, I never saw them again."

Yang Daqiang stared at him and leaned forward slightly.

"You were the last person to see them. The four of them died, yet you returned with eight Azure Jade Ghost Carp."

He placed heavy emphasis on the words "Azure Jade Ghost Carp."

The implication could not have been clearer.

Wang Mengde understood at once.

As expected, the man had come to mooch off him.

But he could not give him spirit stones.

At the very least, not now.

If he gave spirit stones now, would that not be tantamount to admitting that he had killed them?

He could never admit to murder.

Besides, even if he paid up, it would not solve anything.

If Yang Daqiang could come to mooch off him, then other Island Patrol Guards could do the same.

It would become a bottomless pit.

Wang Mengde's expression did not change as he said calmly.

"Captain Yang, what do you mean by that?

"That day, we were hunted by the Azure Jade Ghost Carp school and scattered in every direction. How would I know where they went?

"The fact that I managed to return alive was already thanks to my ancestors' accumulated virtue."

Yang Daqiang sneered.

"You have mastered the Entwining Silk Technique to its pinnacle. You have the ability to kill all four of them. If I search with all my strength, I will definitely find evidence that you murdered them."

After saying that, Yang Daqiang sent Wang Mengde a voice transmission. "I will definitely find evidence that you murdered them. Definitely."

Those words were an utterly naked threat.

A blatant robbery.

Anger surged within Wang Mengde, but he quickly forced it down.

The anger of someone without strength was utterly useless.

His expression remained respectful as he transmitted back.

"You intend to fabricate evidence?"

Yang Daqiang looked at him, a mocking smile curling at his lips as he transmitted.

"Does it matter whether it is real or fake?"

Wang Mengde transmitted.

"It does not matter. As long as the cultivators on the island believe it."

A trace of approval flashed through Yang Daqiang's eyes.

"Looks like you are a smart man. You should know what to do."

Wang Mengde fell silent for a moment before suddenly speaking.

"Recommend me for the Island Patrol Guards, and I will give you spirit stones."

Once he joined the Island Patrol Guards, he could buy pills, magical artifacts, and talismans at internal prices, twenty percent cheaper than on the market.

He could also buy rare pills and spirit fruits unavailable on the market.

Most importantly, with the identity of an Island Patrol Guard, he would have a backer.

If anyone wanted to move against him in the future, they would have to weigh the consequences.

Yang Daqiang froze, then sent a scornful voice transmission.

"You? You want to become an Island Patrol Guard?"

Wang Mengde replied with complete seriousness.

"Me."

Yang Daqiang stared at him for a while before transmitting.

"Do you know how many Rogue Cultivators want to join the Island Patrol Guards? Do you know what price they must pay to get in?"

Wang Mengde knew.

He had heard about it.

Joining the Island Patrol Guards generally cost around fifteen hundred spirit stones.

That was three to four years of income for an ordinary fourth-level Qi Refinement cultivator.

He transmitted.

"Recommend me for the Island Patrol Guards, and I will give you two thousand spirit stones, paid in full within five years."

Yang Daqiang's gaze shifted slightly.

Two thousand spirit stones.

Even he was somewhat tempted.

But he quickly shook his head and transmitted.

"The most basic requirement for joining the Island Patrol Guards is fourth-level Qi Refinement. You are only at the third level. You are not qualified."

Wang Mengde transmitted.

"I have mastered the Entwining Silk Technique and Spirit Eye Technique to their pinnacle."

Yang Daqiang froze.

He had already heard about the Entwining Silk Technique being at its pinnacle.

But the Spirit Eye Technique was also at its pinnacle?

He stared at Wang Mengde in disbelief.

"Your Spirit Eye Technique has truly reached the pinnacle?"

Over the past two days, he had heard many people mention that Wang Mengde's Entwining Silk Technique had reached the pinnacle, and that his Spirit Eye Technique had most likely reached the pinnacle as well.

But he had never quite believed it.

A third-level Qi Refinement cultivator who had cultivated two spells to their pinnacle?

What kind of monster was that?

"It has." Wang Mengde nodded, then sent a flattering voice transmission.

"A mere Island Patrol Guard position—isn't that just a matter of a word from Captain Yang?"

Yang Daqiang subtly straightened his chest at those words.

They sounded pleasant.

After pondering for a moment, he transmitted.

"I want three thousand spirit stones."

Wang Mengde frowned slightly and transmitted.

"I do not have that many spirit stones. I will pay it off within ten years, once a year."