Qing Chen sat upright in the restaurant, yet his spiritual sense caught every word of the conversation in the private room next door.
"Brother He was a man of unbending steel back when he served in the Law Enforcement Hall. After coming to Luofu Island to assist Island Master Chu, he punished villains and rooted out evil. Who knows how many scoundrels he brought down!"
"If Brother He hadn't intervened back then, Yang Jinquan's entire family would have been wiped out by his enemies. How could he be enjoying such success today? He's even reached the seventh layer of Qi Refining! Truly... truly, Heaven is unjust!"
The voice carried irrepressible anger.
Another man chimed in, his tone vicious. "Hmph! If he knows what's good for him today and obediently hands over the spirit stones, we'll let it go. But if he dares not show himself...
"Then neither Luofu Island nor Mysterious Mountain Island will have so much as a foothold left for him! We'll join forces, seize his Storage Bag, cripple his cultivation, and drive him off the island."
As Qing Chen listened to their discussion, his heart remained unruffled. Instead, a trace of cold mockery arose within him.
The He-Surnamed Cultivator had been an honorable man in life, protecting the people of his region;
Yet when his son needed spirit stones to save his life, which of these seemingly indignant people had ever sincerely extended a helping hand?
Their posturing now was probably more a matter of envying Yang Jinquan's progress in cultivation and seizing the chance to vent.
Meanwhile, on the long street below, the woman had made her way on her knees to the city lord's residence.
Her body swayed on the verge of collapse. The fabric over her knees had long since worn through and