Near the commoners' district of Heaven Dou City, Xuan Xiao really had gone begging, just as he had told Zhi An he would.
He was currently at the boundary between Heaven Dou City's wealthy district and its commoners' district, the most chaotic and bustling part of the city.
This was where paupers, fallen nobles, and wandering Soul Masters scraped out a living, a place where fish and dragons mingled.
Xuan Xiao had already changed into a beggar's outfit, ragged and covered in patches upon patches. He looked more miserable than anyone else.
But he was no ordinary beggar. Something unsettling radiated from him from head to toe.
The other beggars kept well away, squatting more than ten meters off, terrified of getting dragged into his trouble. They did not even dare meet his eyes.
Why? Because the battered bowls set out in front of him were enough to make anyone's calves cramp with fear.
Beneath those chipped, broken bowls were slips of paper bearing the names of the Heaven Dou Empire, the Star Luo Empire, the Clear Sky Sect, the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, and Spirit Hall.
Who would dare toss money into those bowls? Wouldn't that be slapping those great powers in the face?
Beside him stood a crooked, battered wooden sign with a line of large characters scrawled on it in charcoal.
Which power cared most about wandering Soul Masters?
The moment that sign went up, passing Soul Masters felt their legs go weak. Who dared answer that? Wasn't that asking to die?
Xuan Xiao himself had not a care in the world. He lay snoring in the warm midday sunshine, without the slightest concern for appearances.
Beneath his head, he had a silk handkerchief that looked expensive at a glance.
He slept as blissfully as could