Chapter 501: Fairy Tail

Lucy followed closely behind, her face full of worry: "I don't know, it seems like someone is causing trouble outside."

Li An also quickly walked out of the guild, only to see a group of people in black robes standing at the guild entrance, led by Jose, the Guild Master of Phantom Lord. A sly smile played on his face, and a malicious glint flickered in his eyes.

"Listen up, people of Fairy Tail!" Jose shouted loudly, his voice sharp and piercing, "Someone from your guild committed a crime—they actually stole important supplies from our Phantom Lord guild! Today, you must give me an explanation!"

The moment these words were spoken, the members of the Fairy Tail guild immediately exploded into an uproar.

"Nonsense! How could our Fairy Tail possibly do something like this!" Natsu shouted angrily, his fists clenched tight, and the flames on his body began to burn fiercely, as if he might charge forward at any moment to throw a punch at Jose.

"Exactly, stop slandering us here!" Lucy also retorted loudly, her eyes full of anger and grievance.

Li An looked at the scene before him, a cold laugh rising in his heart. He knew Jose had come here deliberately to provoke them, wanting to use this opportunity to bring down the Fairy Tail guild. He quickly calmed down and reached out to stop Natsu, who was about to charge out.

"Natsu, don't act rashly." Li An's voice was low and steady. "They came here deliberately to provoke us. We can't fall into their trap."

Natsu turned his head, looked at Li An, his eyes full of unwillingness: "But, they've gone too far! We can't just let them slander us like this!"

Li An patted Natsu on the shoulder and said: "I know, but we need to respond calmly. Trust me, I'll make them show their true colors."

After saying this, Li An strode forward and walked up to Jose. His gaze was firm and sharp, as if it could see through Jose's very heart.

"Guild Master Jose," Li An said coldly, "you say someone from our guild stole your supplies. Do you have any evidence?"

A flash of panic crossed Jose's face, but he quickly regained his composure: "Evidence? Hmph, of course we have evidence. Your guild's supplies suddenly increased while ours decreased—isn't that evidence enough?"

Li An laughed coldly in his heart; he had long anticipated Jose would say exactly this. He said unhurriedly: "Guild Master Jose, what you've said doesn't hold water. Our guild's supplies increased because we completed several large-scale missions and received generous rewards. As for your supplies decreasing, perhaps it's because of poor internal management on your end."

0..........

Jose's expression shifted slightly; he hadn't expected Li An to respond to his provocation so calmly. He snorted coldly and said: "Hmph, stop arguing here! Today, you must give me an explanation, otherwise, our Phantom Lord guild will not let this go!"

Just as the two sides were at a stalemate, Li An suddenly had a flash of inspiration. He recalled some clues he had discovered earlier while investigating the supply shortage incident. A bold idea formed in his mind—perhaps he could use this opportunity to expose Jose's conspiracy.

"Guild Master Jose," Li An suddenly said, "since you're so certain it was someone from our guild who stole your supplies, how about we conduct an experiment?"

Jose looked at Li An in confusion: "What experiment?"