Ma Xuan's venomous voice echoed through the street outside the blacksmith's shop, causing a flicker of surprise to appear on everyone's faces, including Xu Mu's.
"Is he crazy, did you scare him?" Xu Mu scratched Qiong Qi's chin, looking at Ma Xuan with a hint of confusion. Ma Xuan had been aggressive and threatening to kill him just moments ago, but now he was attacking his own nephew?
"This... Uncle Xuan, didn't you say you were here to avenge Xiao Chuan? What is this now..."
"Don't call me Uncle. I don't know you!" Ma Xuan waved his sleeve, then walked to Xu Mu with a forced smile and said cautiously, "I've heard of young master Xu's great name. I didn't recognize you before. Please forgive my ignorance."
Upon hearing this, everyone's expression turned peculiar. Only the other three-stage ability users from the black market understood what had happened. They exchanged glances, swallowed, and quickly stepped forward respectfully, "Young master Xu, please forgive us!"
"Uncle..." Ma Chuan, half-dead from the slap, had just managed to crawl out of the rubble. He stared at the scene unfolding before him in disbelief. His uncle, Ma Xuan, known as "Lion's Roar" Ma Xuan, the second most notorious figure in the black market, was now bowing and fawning over that pretty boy. Who exactly was this Xu Mu?
"You wretch, are you blind? How dare you offend young master Xu! Come and apologize at once!" Ma Xuan saw that Xu Mu was indifferent to their apologies. He gritted his teeth, grabbed the severely injured Ma Chuan, and threw him before Xu Mu.
"Ah!" Ma Chuan screamed in pain, blood pouring from his wounds, revealing bone.
"Alas." Le Lingyun's shock had not yet subsided. He looked at the disheveled Ma Chuan and felt a pang of pity, remembering the years they had worked together.
"He who digs his own grave shall find no rest."
"Damn it!" Ma Chuan harbored deep resentment. His most humiliating moment was witnessed by the woman he loved. How could he not hate it!
"Who exactly are you!" Ma Chuan roared, losing his mind. With a surge of unknown strength, he sprang from the ground and lunged at Xu Mu.
*Bang!*
Before Xu Mu could react, Ma Xuan struck. He kicked Ma Chuan away with lightning speed.
"You ungrateful bastard, have you forgotten what I told you last night!" Ma Xuan felt a pang of pain but could only curse Ma Chuan angrily. In this situation, he dared not show any mercy. If he didn't deal with Ma Chuan ruthlessly enough to satisfy that plague god, their entire group might turn to dust in an instant!
"Has the matter of the Ye family spread this far?" Xu Mu pondered for a moment, guessing the reason behind all this. He had no reputation in the Myriad Beast Domain. Apart from the incident where he killed Ye family members in Blackhorn City, he couldn't think of anything else that would make a Lord fear him to this extent.
"I run the black market and have dealings with the outside world. The Ye family has been very strict lately, so I conducted a thorough investigation and found out..." Ma Xuan explained respectfully, bowing.
"The Ye family has already made their move." Xu Mu's heart tightened. It seemed his trip to Alfheim needed to be expedited. If they were caught up by their pursuers, he and Qiong Qi in their current state wouldn't be able to handle a Domain Lord.
"Tell me yourself, how do you want to handle this," Xu Mu said indifferently. He knew that the more critical the situation, the calmer he needed to be. He had to put on a show of unwavering confidence to deter these people and buy himself time.
"Name your price. As long as you're appeased, any amount will do," Ma Xuan said, gritting his teeth. He had come to terms with it; as long as he could live, he didn't care what Xu Mu did to him!
"They want to kill me," Xu Mu said, pointing at Ma Chuan and Wu Zhen, his voice devoid of emotion. "I won't kill them, but I want them unable to cultivate ever again."
"This..." Ma Xuan looked troubled. Not only was Ma Chuan his own nephew, but Wu Zhen was the son of the third-in-command of their black market. Their black market was never united; there had been infighting over profits multiple times in the past. If he also crippled Wu Zhen, their black market would truly be finished!
"He is crippled, you live." Xu Mu looked at Ma Xuan, exuding a palpable aura of death. "Or, you both die."
At these words, Ma Xuan began to sweat profusely. Yet, even then, he couldn't bring himself to deliver the decisive blow. It was only when Qiong Qi, who was being held by Xu Mu, shifted uncomfortably and turned over that Ma Xuan was startled into making his decision.
*Whoosh!*
In an instant, he vanished from his spot and reappeared before Ma Chuan. His face contorted in pain, and with a ruthless glint in his eyes, he said, "I'm sorry, nephew. If you're not crippled, we all die!"
*Splat!*
He joined his fingers and pierced Ma Chuan's Golden Core in his abdomen. The latter let out a pig-like scream. After giving him some hemostatic pills, Ma Xuan, with a grim expression, turned towards Wu Zhen.
"Uncle Xuan, calm down! Don't listen to that brat's lies! My father only has me as his son. I can't be crippled!" Wu Zhen's face was filled with terror. He scrambled backward on the ground, leaning against the wall, his voice trembling. He couldn't comprehend how Xu Mu possessed such astonishing power and background to make a Domain Lord like Ma Xuan act so subserviently. He also couldn't fathom how he would survive in this world without his abilities. Falling from grace, he might have to live like a rat in a sewer, something he absolutely could not accept!
"Master Deja, save me quickly!" Wu Zhen, seeing that Ma Xuan seemed determined to cripple him to save his own life, shouted at the top of his lungs, begging Master Deja to spare him.
"Ma Xuan, stop," to Ma Xuan's surprise, an old voice emanated from the blacksmith's shop, intervening to save Wu Zhen.
"Master, are you sure? This Xu Mu is someone who even dares to offend the Ye family. Aren't you afraid..." Ma Xuan frowned and transmitted his thoughts to the old man within the courtyard. He had known the old man for a long time, and they often traded together. Wu Zhen's father had a close relationship with Deja, but it was ultimately based on mutual benefit. Logically, Deja shouldn't risk himself for Wu Zhen.
"Young friend Xu Mu, you've come to see me. Can you do me a favor and let Wu Zhen go? He owes me a debt of gratitude." The old voice drifted over the courtyard wall.
"I'm here to make a trade with you. Letting him go might cause you to lose a lot of leverage. Are you sure?" Xu Mu asked calmly.
Deja, within the courtyard, was silent for a moment before finally making his decision. "Yes, he has helped me. Let him go."
"Very well, this matter is dropped," Xu Mu nodded, signaling Ma Xuan and the others to leave.
"I hope you are not as foolish as he is," Xu Mu narrowed his eyes, looking at Wu Zhen from afar. The latter, enduring the pain, nodded frantically like a rattle drum. He dared not seek revenge against someone who dared to offend the Ye family. He just wanted to return home and enjoy a life of ease!
"I rushed here to save you, and it seems I was worrying unnecessarily," Le Lingyun smiled, her beautiful eyes sparkling as she looked at Xu Mu. She was increasingly curious about this young man's identity. Despite being three or four years younger than her, he acted with the composure of a seasoned elder. If nothing else, his demeanor of calmly holding a tabby cat while facing a group of attackers impressed her greatly.
"Thank you all the same. You've worked hard," Xu Mu glanced at the people following Le Lingyun, all of whom were anxious three-stage ability users. He smiled sincerely. "I'll remember this kindness and will repay it."
"I'll be waiting," Le Lingyun also smiled lightly and then led the group from the Hunting Alliance away. Many people curiously asked Le Lingyun about Xu Mu, but she remained tight-lipped, not mentioning the Ye family at all.
"Then... we'll be going too," Ma Xuan and his entourage retreated nervously. Seeing that Xu Mu made no move, he took Wu Zhen and Ma Chuan and fled quickly.
Only Xu Mu, Master Deja, and Nash, hidden in the shadows a hundred meters away, remained.
"What do you want to discuss? Come in," the old voice sounded again, with a hint of curiosity. Xu Mu, holding Qiong Qi, stepped over the threshold. He walked slowly through the blacksmith's shop, which seemed to be run by dwarves. In the courtyard, various offensive and defensive implements of exceptional quality were scattered or hung. He observed them closely and suddenly realized that some of the blades were even more finely crafted than the hunting knives Xu Mu had once seen quenched under Charles's guidance.
"The dwarf race indeed lives up to its reputation," Xu Mu sighed genuinely and then opened a door, stepping inside.
Inside the room, on the bench of the blacksmith's forge, stood a short, ugly old man.
"These are some of the highest-quality weapons I've ever seen," Xu Mu said sincerely.
"I've been forging iron for decades. How could the items I create be mere trinkets?" Deja held a blacksmith's pick and hook, meticulously engraving something onto a sword. "You're here for weapons too, aren't you?"
"Enchantment, quenching, grade enhancement, even awakening weapon souls – I can do it all, as long as you have the money," Deja continued.
"Your craftsmanship is indeed excellent, but what you're talking about seems a bit outdated," Xu Mu shook his head, deliberately expressing regret. "It's truly a shame that a master like Deja, with such ancient forging techniques, cannot keep up with the times."
Master Deja paused in his work, then casually said in a slightly cold voice, "If this is your negotiation tactic, I advise you to change it."
"I've spent my entire life forging iron and have traveled everywhere. Apart from differences in cultivation realms, I've never encountered anyone whose techniques are more brilliant than mine, or who creates more practical and powerful weapons."
"Practical?" Xu Mu scoffed and then took out his handgun, placing it with a *bang* on Master Deja's forge. He said calmly, "How does this compare to the weapons you forge?"
Master Deja stopped his work and looked at the black object in Xu Mu's hand, his eyes narrowing slightly. "What is this? An improved version of a firearm?"
Xu Mu smiled and then loaded a bullet, pulled back the bolt, and casually fired at a wooden dummy outside the door.
*Dong!*
The sound of the gunshot echoed, and a trail of air followed the bullet. A small hole instantly appeared in the wooden dummy outside the door. Master Deja's pupils contracted to their smallest point. In that instant, he detected no fluctuation of spiritual energy, only the smell of gunpowder.
"It requires no spiritual energy, no gem enchantments, no rune carvings, no special quenching. With just a flick of the wrist, it can take a life from a hundred meters away," Xu Mu said with a faint smile, looking at the white smoke from the muzzle. "Compared to the weapons you forge, how practical is this?"
"They are incomparable," Master Deja said, examining the object carefully before returning it to Xu Mu, his voice grave. "I admit that its craftsmanship is far superior to mine, and its structure is complex. However, its killing range is ultimately too short to be of any crucial importance."
"Oh, is that so?" Xu Mu calmly shook his head and then pulled out an AWM sniper rifle, reaching his chest, from his spatial ring. With a *click*, he pulled back the bolt and raised it with one hand, aiming at Master Deja's forehead.
Staring at the dark metal barrel, Master Deja's eyes narrowed to the extreme. An inexplicable sense of fear washed over him.
"What about now?" Xu Mu's voice was calm, a slight smile on his lips. "Do you want to test its power, Master Deja?"