Chapter 216: Disgusting

The woman in black skirt neither feared nor angered, only sneered and said:

"Look, none of the courtesans took interest in you. According to the Baixiang Pavilion's procedure, you now owe six thousand gold."

As she spoke, the woman in black skirt made a token gesture to collect payment, yet clearly this group could not afford the full sum.

At that moment, the hemp-clad elder said nothing, merely raised his hand and seized.

The surrounding heavenly qi coalesced into a palm, instantly restraining all six courtesans in the hall and dragging them before him.

"A Heaven-and-Mortal?"

The woman in black skirt's pupils shrank instantly, her face pale with shock; as a Wudaoda Sect master, her body erupted with qi, and she vanished backward in an instant.

Even though Baixiang Pavilion was property of Luoshen Peak, it was merely an unremarkable brothel; as a madam, her strength stemmed only from Luoshen Peak's emphasis on the pavilion's daily fortune.

To be honest, the moment she entered the hall, she had already scanned Li Musheng and his companions.

She sensed the hemp-clad elder's internal qi was tightly contained, assuming he was at least a Grandmaster-level martial artist—but she never imagined he was a practitioner of the Heaven-and-Mortal Realm?

Not to mention, how could she possibly discern the true depth of a Heaven-and-Mortal practitioner?

If he had even a shred of awareness regarding Luoshen Peak's existence, he would never risk his hard-won martial cultivation by coming to Baixiang Pavilion to provoke death.

In that instant, the woman in black skirt decided to flee immediately—but before she reached the door, a palm imprint of qi descended instantly, slamming her down onto the floor.

The terrifying force shattered her thick martial qi, rupturing her internal organs; she spat a mouthful of blood and lost all mobility at once.

The gulf between a Wudaoda Sect master and a Heaven-and-Mortal practitioner was like heaven and earth; moreover, the hemp-clad elder was no ordinary Heaven-and-Mortal—dealing with the woman in black skirt required no more than a single move.

The large men and servants in the hall, witnessing this, all turned pale with terror and immediately scrambled to flee.

Yet before they had taken even a few steps, a terrifying wave of qi hurled them back, slamming them to the ground with cries of agony.

Seeing this, the scar-faced man snapped out of his despair and burst into loud, joyous laughter:

"Good, good, good! I thought your Baixiang Pavilion was so mighty—now you're all down on the ground. Go ahead, stand up and kill me if you dare!"

As he spoke, he strode to a nearby large man and kicked him hard, sending him flying.

Still unsatisfied, he punched and kicked two others beside him.

Meanwhile, the hemp-clad elder calmly instructed the six courtesans before him:

"Ladies, you may now attend to this old man."

Hearing this, the six young women before him showed fear—but upon glancing at the woman in black skirt's broken state, they hesitated no longer.

Instantly, each moved to serve: pouring tea and wine, massaging shoulders, pounding backs.

Beside them, the girl in pink watched this scene, gritting her teeth, her face icy as frost, shouting at the hemp-clad elder:

"We need to leave!"

Yet the hemp-clad elder made no move, only whispered inwardly:

"Leaving Baixiang Pavilion isn't hard—this mere brothel can't touch us. I'm currently considering how to resolve this without hindering our departure from Bailian City and infiltration into Luoshen Peak."

At that moment, one courtesan peeled a longan and fed it personally into the hemp-clad elder's mouth; the girl in pink saw this and flew into a rage:

"I'd believe you, you rotten old man, before I'd believe a ghost!"

Hearing this, the scar-faced man, having vented some of his hatred, suddenly turned his head toward them.

Seeing the hemp-clad elder so comfortably indulged, he rushed over, eager and pleading:

"Old Master, could you spare me one or two courtesans? Let me enjoy some too?"

But the hemp-clad elder waved his hand—clearly, he would not give up even one.

The scar-faced man's face twisted in frustration, yet the memory of the hemp-clad elder's earlier strike was still fresh—he dared not utter even a single word, only muttered inwardly:

"Old bastard, hoarding six all to yourself—can you even handle it?"

Then he clenched his teeth, scanned the room, and finally fixed his gaze on the wounded woman in black skirt.

The next instant, his eyes hardened; he stormed over, seized her hair, and yanked her up:

"You stinking bitch, old and ugly, and you still looked down on me? Pah!"

As he cursed, he slapped her twice across the face—powder flaked off her cheeks, leaving two bright red palm imprints.

The woman in black skirt, powerless to move, glared at him with cold, furious eyes:

"You… dare to die!"

"Still cursing me? I'll show you my power right now."

The scar-faced man sneered, tore open her dress, clearly unable to reach the courtesans, now determined to vent his rage on this vile woman.

But the next instant, Li Musheng and the hemp-clad elder both spoke to stop him.

"Disgusting!"

The girl in pink spat the word, glared at the hemp-clad elder and Li Musheng, then turned and walked out of the hall.

The hemp-clad elder made no move to stop her, instead turning to Li Musheng and saying:

"If the Young Master desires a courtesan, you must claim one by your own strength—I will not yield one."

Hearing this, Li Musheng glanced at the cluster of courtesans surrounding the hemp-clad elder, then frowned and shook his head:

"No need. I'm afraid of catching a disease."

At this, the six courtesans all grew grim-faced.

The hemp-clad elder also paused, his aged face shifting through expressions; after a moment, he narrowed his eyes and asked Li Musheng:

"Then I truly don't understand—why did the Young Master insist on dragging me here to claim all the courtesans of Baixiang Pavilion?"

Li Musheng raised an eyebrow and said:

"Nothing much—I just wanted to see how poisonous this tumor of Luoshen Peak truly is."

Before arriving at Baixiang Pavilion, he had indeed intended to relax here—but he had been thoroughly disgusted by Luoshen Peak.

The hemp-clad elder's gaze flickered uncertainly, then he whispered inwardly with a thoughtful expression:

"Could the Young Master be from the Great Li imperial court?"

Upon hearing this, Li Musheng did not deny it, merely nodding his head lightly.

The hemp-robed old man abruptly sat up straight, his turbid gaze fixed on Li Musheng as he said:

"This old man already knew earlier that Young Master must be no ordinary person. Young Master dragged this old man into this matter without cause here in the Hundred Fragrance Pavilion, and this old man does not blame Young Master for it."

"But now there is an extremely important question in this old man's heart that I wish to ask Young Master."

(End of chapter)