“I’m just teasing you.”
Lady Yue smiled slightly, with a hint of playfulness.
“It really wasn’t for cultivation, but rather for a unique magical treasure. I’m not some kind of lunatic who takes people’s lives just for fun.”
‘But how is that any better?’
Although the man showed no expression on his face, his heart was already filled with terror.
Had he not been unlucky enough to be personally named by her, he would never have agreed to accompany this woman.
Some people said his luck was good because he could associate with Lady Yue despite being only at the Qi Refinement stage, but for him, this was the worst possible option.
He still couldn’t forget those three nights three months ago.
He had watched with his own eyes as his mistress peeled skin and dismantled bones, refining Squire Zhang’s entire family into blood-kin skin drums!
Now, that drumhead hung at his waist, acting as her messenger drum.
It was said that this drum could transmit sound across 1,000 miles.
Its resentment never dissipated, allowing it to both transmit voices and track targets.
He truly didn’t understand why the others were so eager to go out and do tasks for her.
Although Lady Yue didn’t have as much of a temper or arrogance compared to others and didn’t treat him like a slave to be ordered around on a whim, her level of cruelty was far beyond what he could accept.
“Pan Hu, it’s about time for this month’s wages, isn’t it?”
Lady Yue suddenly asked.
A flicker of panic crossed Pan Hu’s heart, and he immediately replied, “It is my honor to do things for you! Wages don’t matter at all!”
“What a joke.”
Lady Yue’s gentle smile suddenly vanished, replaced by a cold expression.
“Doing things for me is your honor? What honor do you have? How well do you know me? Do you even know the reasons behind my actions? This is nothing more than a transaction where I take money to eliminate disasters for others. Don’t make it sound so noble.”
Pan Hu had not yet recovered from the cold rebuke, and his fingertips were still shaking uncontrollably beneath his sleeves.
He had originally only wanted to flatter her, but he hadn’t expected to strike the wrong chord.
He never thought Lady Yue would mind such compliments so much… Having annoyed her… He didn’t even dare to imagine how miserable his end would be.
His hands were visibly trembling.
Unexpectedly, Lady Yue flipped her wrist, and a brown storage bag appeared out of thin air in her palm.
She handed the storage bag to Pan Hu with a crisp, decisive movement, her tone returning to its previous gentleness.
“Between us, we only talk about these things.”
A wisp of spiritual energy, like a gentle breeze, brushed past as the string tying the bag shut was slowly pulled away.
Once the bag opened, a brilliant light immediately spilled out, accompanied by a refreshing scent that hit his face.
That storage bag… was actually filled with spirit stones!
“Since you don’t understand me and we don’t share the same goals, there’s no need for that hollow flattery. In the future, when you see me, just report truthfully. It would be even better if you skipped the kneeling rituals.”
The storage bag hung before Pan Hu’s eyes.
He instinctively reached out to take it.
As his fingertips touched the cool fabric of the bag, Lady Yue continued, “Inside is the payment for your extra errands. Massacring Squire Zhang’s family and tracking the Ling family guard were not originally part of your duties.”
Her tone didn’t carry much emotion, as if she were stating a common, trivial matter.
“It’s just that there’s a shortage of hands right now and truly no one else to use, so I’m letting you fill in for the time being. It must have been hard on you, running back and forth like this.”
‘Hard on you…’
Having drifted for many years with low strength, how many cold glares and injustices had he faced from being looked down upon, ordered around, and treated as a servant?
Pan Hu could no longer remember what it felt like to be told it was “hard on him.”
Toiling at the bottom of the cultivation world, a Qi Refinement stage cultivator was like an ant.
A payment of twenty spirit stones usually meant being on call at any time to be ordered around.
This was the norm for his livelihood; sometimes, he would work like an ox or a horse for just a few spirit stones.
He had long since lost the high-spirited nature of a youth.
His sharp edges had been ground smooth, and his tears had long ago dried up.
He only firmly remembered one truth: “Money is hard to earn, and hardships are hard to swallow.”
He never dared to hope for wages, and he didn’t even dare to dream of respect.
Yet at this moment, Lady Yue’s casual words were like a pebble dropped into a dead, silent lake, sending ripples outward.
A faint warmth slowly flowed through his heart.
“Yes… Mistress.”
“Continue monitoring the neighbors and observe the movements of that Ling family guard. I always feel like there’s something wrong with the Ling family.”
“Something wrong…?”
“How could a mere border town have a cultivator capable of being a guard? Why would they be willing to serve as a guard?”
“Now that you mention it, Lady Yue, it is indeed strange…”
“Blind guessing won’t help. Continue the surveillance.”
“Yes!”
With the extra wages, Pan Hu was suddenly filled with energy, feeling as though he had an inexhaustible strength throughout his body.
He left immediately.
Without stopping, he quickly rented a room in an inn near the main gate of the Ling residence where he could see everything, and began observing Brother Nine.
As the days passed, Pan Hu observed with patience and focus.
For the first few days, Brother Nine still tried to maintain his former “Master Nine” persona.
However, Pan Hu soon noticed that Brother Nine began entering and exiting the Ling residence frequently.
He no longer walked with his head held high like before; instead, his back was hunched, and he looked like a thief with a guilty conscience.
Pan Hu followed Brother Nine and discovered that the man’s connections were indeed very broad.
In just a few days, he had met many people while following him.
Brother Nine sought out old acquaintances from the escort agency, shopkeepers, and even street vendors.
Every time he spoke, it was about “emergencies” or “temporary cash flow.”
At the same time, Pan Hu witnessed time and time again how those so-called friends abandoned him.
“Old Third, help me out! Just lend me fifty taels, I’ll definitely pay you back next month! I, Brother Nine, am a man of my word!”
Brother Nine grabbed the sleeve of a short, stout man, his voice hoarse.
The man threw him off with a look of pure disdain.
“Still calling yourself ‘Brother Nine’? You’re just a rotten gambler, get lost! Do you have any credibility left? When I lent you money before, I thought you were going to pay off your debts, but you turned around and went right back to gambling! Instead of lending to you again, I’d rather throw my money into the sea!”
After saying his piece, he walked away, leaving Brother Nine standing there with clenched fists.
His eyes were bloodshot, yet he was helpless.
Similar scenes played out repeatedly at the teahouses, taverns, and even in front of the pawnshops on Vermillion Bird Street.
At first, some people gave him a few pieces of silver out of old friendship, but as soon as Brother Nine got the money, he headed straight for the gambling den to try and win his money back.
After losing everything, he would come back to harass them again.
In less than half a month, his friends all avoided him like the plague.
Once, in front of the Drunken Immortal Restaurant, Pan Hu watched through a gap in the window as Brother Nine argued with a man.
“Brother Li, when you were in trouble years ago, who was it that helped you settle things with your enemies? Now I—” Before Brother Nine could finish, the other man cut him off with a cold face.
“Brother Nine, friendship is friendship, but money is money! You owe the gambling den 3,700 taels. Who would dare fill that bottomless pit?”
The man flicked his sleeves and left.
Brother Nine slumped down on the threshold, holding his head and muttering, “It’s over… everything is over…”
The news spread like wildfire.
When Pan Hu ate at the inn, he often heard the tea drinkers at the neighboring tables sneering.
“Have you heard? That Brother Nine from the Ling residence gambled away everything he owned. He’s about to pawn his own underwear!”
“Serves him right. What is he if not a complete moron for gambling like that?”
“Tsk tsk, everyone makes a detour when they see him now. He’s like a god of plagues!”
The gossip of Azure Wood City nailed Brother Nine to a pillar of shame.
The prestige of the former “Master Nine” had vanished, leaving only the infamy of a “down-and-out gambler.”
By the end of the month, the gambling den finally lost its patience.
One morning, as Pan Hu was leaning against the window sipping tea, he suddenly saw the owner of the Cailai Gambling Den heading straight for the Ling residence with three thugs in a menacing manner.
The lead thug was burly with bulging temples, clearly a master at Level 5 of Qi Refinement or higher—it was the Cailai Gambling Den’s enforcer, “Iron Fist Liu.”
Hearing the commotion, Brother Nine rushed out from the side door.
His clothes were disheveled and his eyes were sunken as he tried to block the path.
“Boss Liu! Give me a few more days! I… I will definitely get the money together!”
Brother Nine’s voice trembled as he spread his arms to block the way.
Iron Fist Liu sneered.
Without waiting for the boss to speak, his fist, as large as a cattail fan, swung out wrapped in a fierce wind!
Bang!
Brother Nine blocked hastily but was sent staggering back.
Despite having a cultivation at Level 4 of Qi Refinement, he was incredibly fragile.
Then came a rain of punches and kicks.
Iron Fist Liu’s moves were ruthless, specifically targeting the chest and abdomen.
Brother Nine shielded his head and screamed.
Blood sprayed from his nose, and his cheekbones instantly became bruised and swollen, adding new wounds to a face that had not yet healed from the old ones.
He was beaten until he rolled on the ground, his robes covered in dust.
“Refusing a favor only to be forced!”
The gambling den owner spat.
“If you don’t pay today, I’ll go inside and ask the Ling family for it!”
Brother Nine struggled to get up, but he suddenly fell to his knees, clutching the owner’s leg tightly.
Tears and snot flowed freely.
“I beg you… don’t alert the household! If I lose this job, I… my whole family will starve! I’ll sell myself, I’ll work like an ox or a horse, anything!”
His forehead hit the bluestone floor with a thud as he kowtowed, humble as an ant.
But the owner simply kicked him away in disgust.
“Get lost! The Ling family must be blind to keep a piece of trash like you!”
Iron Fist Liu took the opportunity to land a kick to the solar plexus.
Brother Nine curled up on the ground like a tattered sack, coughing up bloody foam, unable to get back up.
The crowd from the gambling den swaggered away, leaving only Brother Nine shivering in front of the Ling residence like an abandoned stray dog.
Seeing this scene, Pan Hu gave a cold smile.
He knew the time had come!