"What do you mean by engaged? Even men with wives and children come here to relieve their stress."

The waitress clicked her tongue and barely managed to hold back her thoughts. She really didn't want to let this potential customer escape, especially since the Top Pearl of the Pavilion was about to perform. In her experience, a young man like Xu Mo wouldn't stand a chance against the innocent charm of that beauty. Once he saw her perform, he'd be hooked. And just like that, their Dreamcloud Pavilion would gain another regular—and she'd earn a decent commission for bringing him in.

"Young Sir, I apologize for trying to stop you earlier. I truly meant no offense. I only wanted to let you know that the Pearl of the Pavilion is performing today. She'll be playing a musical piece—nothing disrespectful. She'll be fully covered and hidden behind a curtain. Only her silhouette will be visible."

Xu Mo listened in silence. If the waitress was telling the truth, then there shouldn't be anything inappropriate. But now that he understood the nature of this establishment, he felt the urge to get out of there—fast.

Suddenly, an idea flashed in his mind. A clever smile played on his lips. He nodded to the waitress, reassuring her with a warm expression.

"I'll stay," he wrote on a piece of paper and handed it to her, then gestured for a glass of water and took a seat.

He paid in advance for the water. The moment the waitress turned her back, Xu Mo vanished.

A drunken customer nearby happened to witness it. His eyes widened, and his drunken haze evaporated instantly. Mortals rarely encountered cultivators—and almost never those of the Golden Core Realm.

In the blink of an eye, Xu Mo reappeared at the far edge of the village. His heart raced in his chest. While he hadn't felt any danger earlier, now that he had escaped, he prayed no one had noticed his sudden disappearance.

After a few moments, he calmed down and began strolling casually through the village streets, ears tuned for any rumors about him. But he heard nothing—no whispers of the Hidden Dragon Sect. Maybe the rumors Wu Ming mentioned weren't circulating among mortals but cultivators instead.

Using his Drifting Steps technique, Xu Mo moved swiftly toward the nearest city. Not a village—an actual city.

After two hours of running, the silhouette of a city finally appeared through the thinning forest.

These cities were separated by dangerous, dense woodlands—almost forbidden territory for mortals. But for someone like Xu Mo, now a Golden Core Realm cultivator, crossing such terrain was trivial. He had long concealed his presence, harmonizing his energy with the Dao of Nature. His Dao of Silence was surprisingly compatible with other Daos—not in the sense that he could use them, but because of one of the properties he'd uncovered since entering the Stillflow Veins, the second stage of the Dao of Silence following the Quietheart Realm.

As he approached the city gate, a sharp command stopped him.

"Stop!"

Two guards stepped forward. Not because they sensed his cultivation—he'd cloaked himself well—but out of standard procedure. Xu Mo didn't intend to break any rules.

"I am from the Hidden Dragon Sect. I've come to explore the city," he said, presenting his upgraded disciple token.

The guards studied the token intently. It was unlike anything they'd seen before—crafted from high-grade spiritual wood and embedded with a refined spirit stone. A true symbol of status.

One guard frowned. "How do we know this isn't fake?"

Xu Mo blinked. "Fake? Why would I need a fake token just to enter a city?"

The guards remained skeptical. Xu Mo could sense their doubt. They couldn't feel any Qi emanating from him, and both were in the second level of Qi Condensation Realm—too low to sense a Golden Core cultivator cloaked in silence.

"You doubt whether I'm a real cultivator?" he asked, his voice calm.

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They didn't respond. But before Xu Mo could say anything more, he felt a powerful aura approaching—swift and oppressive.

Galloping hooves echoed through the air.

Xu Mo looked up and saw a luxurious carriage drawn by three massive horses, each the size of two grown men. The horses galloped through the air, their hooves striking invisible force like stone.

The aura he sensed from the carriage was strong—similar to that of his sect's ancestor, maybe even stronger.

The carriage didn't stop at the gate. It soared directly into the city's airspace.

The very guards questioning Xu Mo moments earlier didn't even try to stop it. They bowed their heads and stepped aside without a word.

Xu Mo took advantage of the confusion and slipped inside the city. He had shown his identity token. Whether they believed it or not was no longer his concern.

As he entered, whispers filled the air.

"Has the time finally come? I never thought our city's top genius would end up like this. It's disappointing I can't do anything for her."

"Oh, shut up, you faker."

"What do you mean? If I had the power to rival the Immortal Clans, I'd teach them a lesson."

Xu Mo overheard many such discussions. Clearly, the people were familiar with those in the carriage. But one phrase caught his attention—Immortal Clan.

He frowned.

There were no Immortal Clans in their domain—at least, none known. That meant they were outsiders, likely from another domain. Still, Xu Mo found it amusing they would openly use the term "Immortal" in their name. Perhaps one of their ancestors had truly ascended long ago.

He bought a grilled corn cob from a vendor and started munching as he observed the unfolding scene.

He had no intention of provoking such powerful people. Whether he could fight them or not was beside the point. His Villain status was still active—and no matter how noble his intentions, he would always end up the one who got slapped by the protagonist.

...

A few hours passed.

Then suddenly, that same overwhelming aura flared up again.

A loud explosion echoed as the roof of a nearby clan estate blew open.

It was the same place where the carriage had landed earlier.

A young man stepped into the air, wearing celestial white robes. He bore the insignia of a prestigious clan.

"I, Bai Yuntian of the Heavenly Sky Clan, hereby dissolve the engagement!"

Xu Mo sighed. He pitied the girl—but something inside him whispered she would rise again.

Still, even though his instincts urged him to help her, he didn't move an inch.

What disturbed him more was Bai Yuntian himself. Xu Mo felt a strange, unfamiliar sense of rivalry—something he hadn't experienced in a long time. He wasn't the type to feel competitive.

The young man's cultivation was clearly at the peak of Golden Core Realm, and he appeared to be around Xu Mo's age. However, cultivation wasn't just about realms—it depended heavily on the core. Xu Mo had a Ninth Grade Core, which required far more spiritual energy to advance, but in return, gave him overwhelming power—enough to defeat almost anyone below the Soul Formation Stage, provided they didn't possess absurd bloodlines or divine techniques.

"Bai Yuntian, don't think I'll forget this! I'll come for you once I recover!" the girl shouted defiantly.

Xu Mo took another bite of his corn, amused. His enhanced vision let him see everything clearly from afar.

"If you dare, then form a three-year agreement with me," the girl declared. "After three years, I'll challenge you. Do you accept?"

Xu Mo raised a brow. Now that's new. I haven't experienced this kind of scenario from a female lead's perspective.

Bai Yuntian laughed.

"Even if I gave you a million years, you wouldn't reach my feet. And even if by some miracle you did—don't forget, my ancestors stand behind me. They'll eliminate you long before you pose a threat."

He spread his arms arrogantly. "Not that it matters. In a thousand years, I'll have already ascended."

Xu Mo internally winced. So shameless. Then again... he remembered Long Chen. If Long Chen had a powerful family behind him, he might've been even worse.

A hollow sensation stirred in Xu Mo's chest. Seeing Bai Yuntian's unshakable confidence in his clan, and the way the girl's clan—weak and powerless—stood protectively in front of her despite knowing they couldn't possibly match an Immortal Clan... it stung. Their strongest cultivator was only in the Golden Core Realm.

"To know their exact strength," Xu Mo mused, "I'd have to fight them."

Bai Yuntian tossed a jade box to the girl's clan. The man who caught it—likely her father—bowed deeply.

"Young Master, I beg you... Please ignore my daughter's foolishness. We accept the compensation. Please, do not hurt her."

He knelt to the ground, forehead pressed down in humiliation. Bai Yuntian sneered and placed his heavy boots on the man's head.

A bystander finally snapped.

"Young Master," he called, voice shaking with restrained fury. "Please don't humiliate someone's family in public. Even you should understand—accumulating good karma is never a mistake."

The moment the words left his mouth, silence fell.

Even the wind seemed to stop.

The crowd parted. Xu Mo realized—too late—that he was standing right in the center of the cleared path.

A man in his thirties stood before him. Behind him, a woman and a small child—likely his wife and daughter—sobbed quietly.

Xu Mo didn't speak. He simply stepped aside and used his Dao to veil their sounds from the crowd.

The man's legs shook. His friends, his neighbors—people he'd known for years—began to distance themselves as if his mere presence brought doom.

Xu Mo turned his head. The little girl cried out, reaching for her father. Her mother placed a trembling hand over the girl's mouth, desperately trying to silence her.

Xu Mo's expression remained unreadable as he spread the Stillflow Veins—a domain of the Dao of Silence—and gently erased all sound from the scene.

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