"How do you feel after seeing so many Foundation Establishment seniors?"
Walking ahead with his hands clasped behind his back, Wang Xianmao asked the youths behind him.
"The roasted spirit goose was delicious, and the spirit tea was authentic eighth-grade. It was my first time drinking it, and it certainly lived up to its reputation."
Yulou's summary left Yu'an bewildered.
'Brother, have you been infected by me?'
'Sorry, I couldn't help it. I really didn't mean to.'
"Hahaha, good! Bringing you along wasn't a waste!"
What surprised Yu'an even more was that the Patriarch was actually satisfied with Yulou's nonsense answer.
Yu'an was certain that if Uncle Rongyuan had been the one asking, and he had given an answer about only focusing on the food, he would have received a ten-hit combo of tough love.
As they passed the temporary stall area set up in Clearbrook Market, Gao Jian's shouting rang out."You're exactly the one I'm arresting! Let me tell you, I've had my eye on you for a long time!
Going from stall to stall with your goods, pretending to buy things when you're actually selling them.
How dare you sell your wares in secret without paying the stall fee!
Who gave you the nerve?
What do you take our Clearbrook Market Security Patrol for?
Did you really think we couldn't tell?"
Gao Jian and his subordinates, all dressed in the standard outer disciple uniforms of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect, were ruthlessly beating a rogue cultivator whose cultivation base was around the mid Qi Condensation stage.
The despicable man reached out to snatch the bag from the rogue cultivator's arms, but the cultivator rolled around on the ground, clutching the bag for dear life.
"I didn't! You're framing me!"
Seeing the man unwilling to part with his wealth to avert disaster, Gao Jian cursed.
"Get out of the way! Don't block me!"
Hearing this, his subordinates quickly released their grip on the rogue cultivator.
They were afraid; that dog Gao Jian didn't care who he hit when he started swinging.
The disciple of Jiang Baobian drew the Spirit-Binding Rope from his waist and viciously lashed the rogue cultivator.
"You're nothing but bandits!"
The rogue cultivator activated a protective Stone Armor Talisman, shouting at the top of his lungs.
He hoped someone would notice his suffering and deliver him from this plight.
Being called a bandit didn't fluster Gao Jian at all. He sneered and barked.
"Excellent! You even dare to slander the Security Patrol of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect. Just as I thought, a malicious bandit cultivator!"
The label 'bandit cultivator' was a basket that could hold anything, and Gao Jian certainly knew how to maintain order.
Arresting more 'bandit cultivators' brought in wealth while boosting his performance record.
The surrounding rogue cultivators tending their stalls watched the brutal conflict in dead silence. Though they clenched their teeth so hard they nearly shattered, none dared to utter a word or take a single step.
Gao Jian's cultivation base was only mediocre, but behind him stood Jiang Baobian, and behind him, the Red Lantern Illumination Sect!
Noticing the conflict, Wang Xianmao stopped in his tracks. Yulou realized that the Patriarch was looking at the crowd in the distance.
Following the Patriarch's gaze, he spotted a squad of Immortal Alliance Emissaries within the crowd, dressed in white robes with black rhinoceros horn belts.
They were the Immortal Alliance Emissaries who had accompanied Perfected Danri. The duty of the Immortal Alliance was to govern all cultivators beneath the heavens.
Even the Purple Palace and Golden Core ancestors of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect had to submit to the Immortal Alliance's order on some level.
"Watch closely. Soon, you'll understand what the Immortal Alliance truly is."
Pulling the two boys to his side with spiritual energy, Wang Xianmao transmitted his voice to them.
Yu'an watched the Immortal Alliance cultivators approach the dispute between Gao Jian and the rogue cultivator with some anticipation, not yet understanding the Patriarch's underlying meaning.
But Yulou already understood.
He looked at the screaming rogue cultivator, his gaze complex.
In this rogue cultivator, Yulou saw a reflection of the Wang Clan under the oppressive might of the Red Lantern Illumination Sect.
Gao Jian ruthlessly exploited and tyrannized the rogue cultivators.
The Red Lantern Illumination Sect ruthlessly exploited its subordinate forces, bleeding them dry for tribute.
One was direct and obvious, while the other was merely veiled in an illusion of respectability.
In essence, they were exactly the same.
The squad of Immortal Alliance Emissaries gradually approached the dispute, and the crowd of onlookers naturally parted to form a path.
The Immortal Alliance had arrived; would justice finally prevail?
Seeing the Immortal Alliance Emissaries approaching, the rogue cultivator crawled toward them as if grasping at a lifeline.
"Seniors of the Immortal Alliance, save me! Seniors of the Immortal Alliance, save me! He's framing me! He's framing me!"
Gao Jian put away his Spirit-Binding Rope, put on a show of bowing, and explained to the newcomers.
"Fellow Daoists, this is a bandit cultivator harboring evil intentions. Our Clearbrook Market Security Patrol discovered his scheme and is currently apprehending him!"
The rogue cultivator instantly grew frantic. He crawled to the feet of the Immortal Alliance cultivators and grabbed the lower hem of a female cultivator's robe, trying to plead his case and beg for help.
However, the late-stage Qi Refining female cultivator from the Immortal Alliance flipped her hand and hurled a seal-shaped magic weapon, smashing it directly into the rogue cultivator's head.
"How dare you defile my dharma robes?"
Seeing that the Immortal Alliance Emissaries couldn't be bothered to stick their necks out for a rogue cultivator, the panic in Gao Jian's heart vanished entirely.
"Fellow Daoists, I can handle this. I can handle this."
He channeled his spiritual energy and lashed his whip precisely across the rogue cultivator's spine.
With just one strike, the rogue cultivator was flattened against the ground.
The rogue cultivator lay there, coughing up large mouthfuls of bloody froth. His pupils were vacant, and his life was clearly hanging by a thread.
"You're all... you're all... you're all..."
He murmured, trying to say something more, but Gao Jian brought the whip down on his head, violently cutting off his anger and resentment.
"Crack!"
Red and white matter spilled out. The rogue cultivator would never speak another insolent word.
The female cultivator whose robe had been grabbed now had blood splattering her clothes. Glaring at Gao Jian, she spat.
"Blind fool!"
As she spoke, the female cultivator threw her seal-shaped magic weapon at Gao Jian.
Seeing the incoming magic seal, Gao Jian suddenly felt a dawning realization that he had just swapped places with the rogue cultivator.
'Oh no, I'm the one being bullied now!'
He had always known that Immortal Alliance cultivators were arrogant, but he'd never imagined they could be this outrageous.
Even with Jiang Baobian as his master, Gao Jian didn't dare truly conflict with Immortal Alliance cultivators.
Facing the enraged woman, he could only rely on his spiritual energy to maneuver, attempting to stall for time.
It was then that Wang Xianmao finally made his move.
But to Yulou's shock, Wang Xianmao was helping Gao Jian!
Green spiritual energy shot out like silken ribbons, instantly crossing several dozen meters to catch the magic seal.
The moment the aura of a Foundation Establishment cultivator was revealed, the nearby Qi Refining cultivators immediately noticed Wang Xianmao.
This was a Foundation Establishment cultivator! Usually, they were as elusive as divine dragons. For many of the Qi Refining cultivators present, this was the first time in their lives seeing a Foundation Establishment senior with their own eyes.
The Patriarch took a few steps forward and spoke to Gao Jian with a hint of reproach.
"Alright, that is enough. Little Gao, I was just having a meal with your master. He's looking for you, so hurry up and go see him."
Yulou understood that these words were meant for the Immortal Alliance Emissaries.
'I am at Foundation Establishment, and the person you are striking has a master who is also at Foundation Establishment.'
'The vast majority of Foundation Establishment cultivators in Wunan are part of the Immortal Alliance system. We see each other frequently, so let's call it a day.'
Gao Jian looked at Wang Xianmao, shot a quick glance toward the Immortal Alliance cultivators, and finally said, "Yes!"
He signaled his subordinates to drag the rogue cultivator's corpse away, bowed to both Wang Xianmao and the Immortal Alliance cultivators, and scurried off in a wretched state.