Chapter 117: He Chased It, It Chased Him

Chapter 117: He Chased It, It Chased Him

Inside the main hall of the pavilion in the rear courtyard of the Hall of Ten Thousand Beasts...

A strikingly beautiful woman in red was sitting in a chair. Her expression was cold, but her gaze was fiery.

Two men were standing beside her. On her left was a middle-aged man in a long robe who carried a noble air, and on her right was an elderly man with a long beard.

"Second Uncle, what were you doing earlier?" the woman asked after observing one of the two men for a moment.

Her tone was amiable as if merely exchanging pleasantries, yet she seemed to be questioning him.

The middle-aged man in the long robe smiled and said, "Oh, Hongqiu, as you know, our Hall of Ten Thousand Beasts is always booming with business. As such, I often have business engagements in Taotie City. Your arrival was so sudden, but I rushed back as soon as I received the news."

A gust of wind blew through the hall, causing the candle flame to flicker.

"The Hall of Ten Thousand Beasts is booming with business...?" The woman in red gasped. "Then why have you been turning in lower and lower profits in recent years?"

"Hehe," the middle-aged man chuckled. "It seems you don't know how things work in business. Even if a store is doing well, profit margins will fluctuate..."

"Ahem," the long-bearded elderly man coughed, interrupting the middle-aged man. Then the old man said in a deep voice, "Xu Nanling, you need to be aware of who you're talking to. The Young Lady is currently touring the Four Seas with the chief's arrow banner of command. Say what needs to be said, but show some respect and refrain from saying what shouldn't be said..."

It seemed that the middle-aged man revered the elderly man greatly.

Upon hearing the elderly man's words, the middle-aged man immediately nodded gently and said, "I will heed your reminder, Elder Cangxing."

The three people in the hall were Xu Hongqiu, the Young Lady of the Four Seas Whale Gang, Elder Cangxing, from the Northern Whale Division, and Xu Nanling, the manager of the Hall of Ten Thousand Beasts in Taotie City.

With the approaching election for the next chief of the gang, it was the usual practice for envoys to carry the chief's arrow banner of command as they toured the Four Seas. The purpose of the tour was to take advantage of the chief's authority and use it to investigate if any shady activities were being done within the four divisions of the Whale Gang. They could then use their findings as bargaining chips to increase their leverage in the upcoming election.

The home base of the gang's current chief, Xu Bashan, was the Northern Whale Division. In the past, he had stepped down as the vice-chief in charge of the Northern Whale Division to take part in the election to become the next chief of the gang.

The Northern Whale Division operated several stores in Taotie City, and they were key businesses for the gang. The Hall of Ten Thousand Beasts was one of them. It had always been managed by Xu Nanling—Xu Bashan's clan junior.

The very purpose behind Xu Hongqiu's visit was to inspect Xu Nanling's activities.

After Elder Cangxing admonished Xu Nanling, Xu Hongqiu said slowly, "Second Uncle is from my clan after all, so I don't mind whether he's polite with me when we're talking in private. However, Second Uncle, I hope you can give a proper answer when we're in public."

"Haaa," Xu Nanling sighed helplessly. "It's normal for profits to fluctuate when you're running a business. During the last two years, Taotie City has seen a great increase in the number of stores selling spirit beasts. To compete with them, we've had to make many price cuts. I've been working hard to continue bringing in profits—" New novel chapters are published on

"I know you've been working hard, Second Uncle. Why don't you take out the store's accounts ledger and let me have a look? Everything will be clear at a glance," Xu Hongqiu suggested suddenly.

Xu Nanling looked surprised. He raised his eyebrows and asked, "Do you suspect me?"

"This is one of our gang's businesses. I'm here under the chief's authority to check the accounts. I'm acting fairly and reasonably, so why would you say that?" Xu Hongqiu replied, staring at Xu Nanling coldly without any hesitation.

"I've always been sending the accounts ledger to the chief for review at the end of the year, and there has never been a problem. Yet, you've suddenly come here to say you want to check the accounts... You're obviously suspecting me..." Xu Nanling said, his anger seeping into his tone.

"Yes," Xu Hongqiu answered indifferently with a nod.

The meaning behind her answer was very clear...

I do suspect you. What about it?

Xu Hongqiu's candid admission stunned Xu Nanling.

The three figures were moving at lightning-fast speed. He chased it, and it chased him![1]

Chu Liang's eyes were only focused on the Human-Faced Xiao; he didn't even notice the black-robed figure. However, the black-robed figure overlooked the Human-Faced Xiao's presence and only noticed Chu Liang.

The black-robed figure at the forefront was too preoccupied to look closely at the situation behind him. He knew through his divine sense that someone had been following him this whole time, but he had no idea that it was just Chu Liang working hard to catch a Human-Faced Xiao. The black-robed man thought that he was the one Chu Liang was after.

Consequently, when the black-robed man passed through an intersection, he suddenly glanced to his left and right while shouting, "Stop him!"

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.

Three people rushed out from the sides of the intersection. Two of the three people raised their hands and held open a large golden net while the remaining person formed a seal with both hands and activated the golden net, sending it into the air.

Swish—

There was a flash of golden light, and the large net spread across the intersection in midair, instantly separating the black-robed man from his pursuers!

The Human-Faced Xiao let out a strange cry as it did a flip in midair to avoid colliding with the golden net. After that, it tried to turn and head in a different direction. However, it realized that it was a bit too late to do that.

During the chase, there had always been some distance between the three figures. Nevertheless, considering their swift speeds, that distance was basically nothing.

Chu Liang caught up in an instant while the Human-Faced Xiao was delayed.

"Go!" Chu Liang yelled.

To ensure he would land a hit on the Human-Faced Xiao, Chu Liang unleashed all of his enchanted artifacts.

Hundred Swords Seal!

Flying swords emerged in a flurry and filled the sky overhead with swordlight.

Demon-Binding Rope!

A beam of snake-like red light shot out.

Razor Leaf!

The crescent moon Chu Liang had been riding disappeared.

When the Human-Faced Xiao turned around and saw that it had no way out, it immediately showed a fierce expression to Chu Liang. It wasn't clear whether the Human-Faced Xiao even remembered the person to whom it had shown a vicious front during the day though. In any case, it was now pouncing toward Chu Liang.

In the next second, Chu Liang's overwhelming attack was raining down on the Human-Faced Xiao. He was no longer the same as when he did that mission on Southern Bastion Mountain. The Human-Faced Xiao had no strengths aside from speed. How could it possibly withstand Chu Liang's attack?

Shing—

In practically no time at all, this vicious ghost was killed by the Hundred Swords Seal and returned to being a wisp of yin qi.

Finally...

Right when Chu Liang felt at ease, he heard a familiar high-pitched, piercing scream ring out nearby.

"Aaaah!"

1. In case you didn’t get it, Chu Liang is chasing the Human-Faced Xiao, and the Human-Faced Xiao is chasing the black-robed figure. ☜