Boss Po

Although Lu Shang appeared to be doing nothing but slowly making his way into the shop, he was actually probing his surroundings with his divine sense.

Lu Shang discovered that there were only three or four rooms beyond the entrance.

But there should have been quite a few hidden passages inside, none of which escaped Lu Shang's Divine Sense.

The stone walls obstructed his Divine Sense, however, so Lu Shang could not tell whether Steward Chang was being held in some secret chamber.

Perhaps he had already been killed. That was entirely possible, too.

A moment later, the obese middle-aged man came out from the back with a feigned smile.

He slowly led Lu Shang into a room on the left and invited him to sit.

"Although a Fifth-Stage Demon Beast is indeed worth a fortune, I still have to ask where you got it, for the sake of everyone involved," the middle-aged man asked from the other side of the table.

As he spoke, he set a cup of wine on the table for Lu Shang.

"I happened across it while out at sea a few days ago. At first, I thought a demon beast was attacking me!"

"Only when I got a clear look did I realize it was a dead Demon Beast."

"After I hauled it out of the water, I discovered it was a dead Fifth-Stage Demon Beast, and it even still had its Demon Core."

Lu Shang casually spun this lie.

The man's brows tightened slightly at his words.

"Was that all?" the obese middle-aged man asked again.

"I suspect a high-level cultivator killed it, but it was more likely killed by its own kind. After all, if a high-level cultivator had killed it, they wouldn't have left the Demon Core behind," Lu Shang explained.

The middle-aged man nodded slightly in agreement.

After all, when he had inspected the Storage Bag earlier, he had noticed that the demon beast seemed to have been attacked by something, leaving parts of its body missing.

How could he possibly have known that Lu Shang was so powerful?

With a single strike, he had effortlessly pierced the Fifth-Stage Demon Beast's body.

He did not harbor much suspicion about Lu Shang's account.

After all, there were so many demon beasts in the outer seas that they frequently killed one another and left their remains behind. It was entirely possible for a Qi Refining cultivator to happen across one.

"Then why have you brought both this Fifth-Stage Demon Beast and its core here to sell, fellow Daoist? You should know that even its carcass alone is worth a fortune to a Qi Refining cultivator."

"A Demon Beast Core can also aid cultivation. For many Qi Refining Stage cultivators, it's a treasure they can only hope to stumble upon."

"You look young, with boundless prospects ahead of you. Why not sell the carcass for some Spirit Stones and keep the core to aid your cultivation?"

Lu Shang had naturally prepared for the middle-aged man's questions.

Lu Shang spread his hands helplessly. "Precisely because I'm only a Qi Refining cultivator. If I kept it with me and another cultivator discovered it, wouldn't I just be asking for trouble?"

After saying this, Lu Shang let out a long sigh, making himself seem even more helpless.

"That's good, then," the middle-aged man muttered.

Though his voice was extremely quiet, how could it possibly escape Lu Shang, a Core Formation Stage cultivator?

So he's finally going to show his true colors, Lu Shang thought.

"In that case, why don't we step farther inside to talk?"

As he spoke, the middle-aged man pointed beside a bookshelf.

Seeing this, Lu Shang could more or less tell that the fat man wanted to lead him into a secret chamber.

Pretending he knew nothing about what lay inside, Lu Shang asked, "Boss Po, why are you pointing at the bookshelf?"

The middle-aged man smiled faintly and walked over to the bookshelf, fiddling with some strange mechanism while keeping his hands hidden from Lu Shang's view.

Lu Shang did not care.

He had no intention of sparing a dead man so much as another glance.

Then the bookshelf slid aside, revealing a hidden passage before Lu Shang.

"Please!"

With that, he led Lu Shang into the passage.

Lu Shang naturally followed, wanting to see what trick the middle-aged man intended to pull.

The farther they went, the wider the space became.

Lu Shang could now probe the precise situation inside with his divine sense.

The place seemed to be some sort of processing workshop.

Demon beast carcasses were being butchered inside.

"Heh, heh!"

A sinister chuckle reached Lu Shang's ears.

Lu Shang knew the fat man had finally decided to drop his pretense.

"Seize him!"

At his command, seven or eight Qi Refining cultivators immediately emerged and surrounded Lu Shang.

"Elder Po, what is this?" Lu Shang did not retaliate immediately, continuing his act instead.

"Hmph! A mere ant at the early Qi Refining Stage thinks he can get so many Spirit Stones out of me? You must be dreaming in broad daylight!" the middle-aged man said coldly.

The seven or eight Qi Refinement cultivators surrounding him then advanced on Lu Shang, vicious expressions on their faces.

Seeing this, Lu Shang decided to stop pretending as well.

"Hahahaha! You really don't know what's good for you!"

In an instant, Lu Shang stopped concealing his aura.

His middle Core Formation aura surged outward like a tide.

In the blink of an eye, the surging aura slammed the seven or eight Qi Refining cultivators into the surrounding stone walls.

The middle-aged man was also forced to the ground by its pressure.

Lu Shang knew this aura would, at most, push them aside a little. It would not take their lives.

Lu Shang gently raised a hand, and several streams of sword qi appeared.

Within moments, they killed the Qi Refining Stage cultivators.

Lu Shang did not kill the middle-aged man, instead approaching him slowly.

Having witnessed Lu Shang's true strength, Fatty Po was so terrified that his legs went completely limp.

He lay slumped on the ground, his face filled with fear.

Seeing Lu Shang slowly approaching, he hurriedly begged for mercy.

"This lowly one did not know your true identity, Senior, and incurred your wrath! Please be magnanimous and overlook this lowly one's offense. Spare me this once!"

As he spoke, the middle-aged fat man hurriedly kowtowed, begging Lu Shang to spare his life.

Within just a few breaths, Lu Shang saw blood on the ground.

"Hmph!"

"Stop kowtowing. I have something to ask you!"

Seeing that the man had not yet kowtowed himself to death, Lu Shang decided to get to the point and ask about what had happened ten days ago.

"Ask away, Senior! This lowly one will tell you everything he knows and hold nothing back!" As though he had found a lifeline, he raised his head from the ground to look at Lu Shang.

"Tell me, within the past ten days, has a Qi Refining Stage cultivator like me come here to sell demon beasts and Demon Beast Cores?"

Lu Shang looked down at the middle-aged man before him.

The sharpness of Lu Shang's gaze gave him another fright.

After thinking for a moment, he seemed to remember something. "Yes, yes!"

"Seven days ago, someone surnamed Chang did indeed come here to sell demon beasts and their cores."

"This lowly one didn't know he was acquainted with you, Senior! Please spare my life!"

After saying this, the middle-aged man begged for mercy even more desperately.

"What? Have you already killed him?" Lu Shang demanded.

At these words, the middle-aged man actually wet himself.

"No! Although we were tempted by his wealth that day, his cultivation was mediocre, so we only captured him. If you want to see him, Senior, I'll take you there immediately."

"Take me there!"

"Senior, could you spare this lowly one's life after I take you there? This time, I had eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai. Once we return, I'll certainly offer you the Spirit Stones with both hands."

What Lu Shang had not expected was that the middle-aged man still thought he had found a lifeline and was actually entertaining hopes of being spared.

As for the Spirit Stones, Lu Shang would have them all the same once he wiped out the Po family.

"Heh! Do you really think I won't be able to find him after killing you?"

As he spoke, several streams of sword qi appeared out of thin air. The instant Lu Shang finished speaking, they plunged into the middle-aged man's flesh.

They ended his life amid his screams.