"There aren't any waiters in this city."

The young man placed the wine and meat on a clearly polished table and then turned around to speak to Han Yu with a peculiar tone.

Han Yu hadn't expected to encounter someone so soon, feeling a bit startled.

To Han Yu, the young man's keen instincts told him that this individual wasn't ordinary.

In this ghostly region of Qingzhou Prefecture, apart from cultivators, ordinary people wouldn't come here. Yet, the person before him didn't reveal a trace of True Essence, which was extremely strange.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have approached him earlier. It was just surprising that, aside from his odd cultivation, the fellow seemed a bit out of sorts.

A person staring blankly at the city wall is one thing, but a cultivator rushing into Qingzhou Prefecture without any knowledge is rare.

Han Yu awkwardly smiled and intended to leave.

The young man appeared pensive; he was indeed curious about Han Yu and softly called out to him just as Han Yu was about to turn and leave.

"If you're hungry, sit down and have some food with me."

He was indeed a bit hungry. As Han Yu hesitated, the young man gently laughed and reminded him, "This is the only place you can get food in the entire city; there's nothing to eat outside."

"Then I'll take you up on your offer."

As Han Yu awkwardly sat down, three or five people quietly entered the tavern, each holding a rabbit, and went directly to the kitchen.

It wasn't long before they came out with cooked rabbit meat.

Meanwhile, as if it had been planned, people began entering one after another, each carrying various items, mostly small wild animals.

The entire tavern was rather quiet; the seated crowd didn't disturb each other. Han Yu looked on curiously as the young man explained beside him, "If you plan to stay in this city, you'll have to cook your meals here."

The whole of Qingzhou City was completely devoid of human life; only passing cultivators rested or ate here briefly.

This tavern was the only place where cultivators could cook their meals.

"So the first rule here is not to cause trouble within the tavern; otherwise, you'll offend not just one or two cultivators but all of them!"

The young man picked up a piece of meat, chewed contentedly, and said slowly.

"Then why is this place deserted?"

Han Yu was most baffled by this.

The young man paused with his chopsticks, displaying an even more surprised expression than Han Yu.

"You don't know? Then why did you come here?"

Han Yu was taken aback by the counter-question; perhaps all the cultivators coming here had a purpose.

Feeling inclined to ask for more details, the young man waved his chopsticks, saying, "It's too long to explain; let's eat first and talk later."

With that, he patted the Big Gourd at his waist, took it out, shook it a few times, filled two bowls, and handed one to Han Yu.

"Eating meat without wine is incomplete; come on, have one!"

The young man raised his bowl boldly, and Han Yu hesitantly followed suit.

An intense spicy flavor stimulated the taste buds but quickly faded away. After a bowl, Han Yu remained calm, while the young man's face turned red in an instant.

Seeing Han Yu unaffected, he couldn't help but cover the gourd's mouth, saying, "You're using cultivation to dissipate the alcohol; I won't share anymore, such a waste."

Han Yu smiled wryly, for it wasn't his cultivation dispersing the alcohol; his robust physique simply neutralized it. He could even consume poison, so mere alcohol was nothing.

With no good explanation, he could only smile back.

The young man poured another bowl for himself, remarking, "If you can't get drunk from drinking, then you're an anomaly."

After downing the second bowl, the young man's face grew redder, yet he seemed to thoroughly enjoy the slightly tipsy state, appearing quite at ease.

"I haven't asked your name."

Han Yu realized belatedly that after chatting over meat and wine, they still hadn't introduced themselves.

"I am Han Yu."

"I am Huangfu Liang."

As the two warmly introduced themselves, a figure suddenly rushed into the tavern with wind and fire.

Han Yu turned, following Huangfu Liang's gaze, and saw a woman enter. She was plump, wore blue garments, had a plain face but strikingly thick eyebrows painted on, and exhibited actions with some masculine traits.

Why say so? Because at this moment, the woman was swaggering in, carrying a deer.

Her eyes scanned the tavern, lingering for a few moments longer on Huangfu Liang before glancing at Han Yu several times.

"Don't make eye contact, turn back quickly."

Huangfu Liang suddenly spoke softly, kicking Han Yu under the table.

Once Han Yu turned away, the woman seemed to snort coldly and swaggered off to the kitchen.

Huangfu Liang exhaled slowly and then spoke seriously to Han Yu, "Another rule in the city, don't provoke her."

When a man speaks like this, it often means he has already had trouble with her.

Sure enough, Huangfu Liang looked fearfully toward the kitchen, quietly saying, "A few days ago, I had a few extra drinks, and when leaving, I commented that her face didn't match her figure."

"And then what?"

Curious, Han Yu asked.

Huangfu Liang's expression turned rueful as he silently downed another bowl before speaking.

"You can't understand; before meeting her, I hadn't been beaten in years."

——

"Sect Leader, I'm scared of dying too!"

Ye Hei's face looked mournful, his eyes fixed on his sect leader.

"The pills are gone, and now you want me to notify the other sects. If they don't believe me, fine, they'll just detain me and find you for explanations."

"What if they believe me and decide to kill me on the spot…"

The other sects might still discuss calmly, but the Mo Family…

"If the Mo Family learns the pills are gone, will they happily kill me and then come to you for explanations?"

Ye Hei lamented, speaking to Bian Renjie.

Bian Renjie's expression stiffened; while other sects might be unpredictable, the Mo Family…

He dared wager that if news of the pills disappearing from his hand got out, the entire Mo Family would celebrate like a festival.

What a dilemma!

"If it's difficult, should we leave it for now?"

Ye Hei looked hopefully at him, speaking.

Bian Renjie's face turned instantly dark, retorting.

"Do you want to flip the table? Eight Great Sects are sitting at it."

After pondering a while, Bian Renjie gritted his teeth painfully, then spoke.

"You still have to go, be straightforward, tell them the pills are gone and vanished on their own; regardless of belief, we, at Unparalleled Tower, are willing to compensate."

"Remember, when saying it, your expression should be sincere, especially with the Mo Family, whether you return whole depends on you."

Ye Hei, being Bian Renjie's most competent aide, had to handle such crucial matters; he couldn't shirk this and could only leave with a sorrowful face.

Watching Ye Hei leave, Bian Renjie's face remained grim.

What a mess this is?

Even if some sects believe it, the pills vanished at Unparalleled Tower; this incident will definitely cause severe losses.

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