Chapter 1837: Chapter 1836: An Unexpected Encounter

"Alright, let’s go in!" Zhang Xiaohao called out.

Waving the folding fan in his hand, he walked with Zixin towards the city gate.

"Halt!" As soon as Zhang Xiaohao and Zixin reached the city gate, they were stopped.

"Ten mid-grade spirit stones per person!" A Black Armor Guard said, exuding an aura of hostility.

"Okay." Zhang Xiaohao nodded.

He slapped the storage bag at his waist with his right hand and took out twenty mid-grade spirit stones, handing them over.

"You can go in now, but remember—no flying within the city! If we catch you flying around the city, you’ll have to either pay ten thousand yuan worth of top-grade spirit stones, or you’ll die!" The Black Armor Guard said coldly.

Saying this, he stepped aside to let Zhang Xiaohao and Zixin through.

"Let’s go." Zhang Xiaohao called out.

He walked with Zixin towards Luanxing City, taking only three steps before the sound of hurried footsteps echoed behind them. A group of sturdy men, led by a rash big man, approached swiftly, a hundred of them exuding an air of menace.

The rash big man handed two high-grade spirit stones to the leader of the Black Armor Guards, whispered a few words, and the Guards stepped aside to allow them to pass.

"Interesting! We ran into friends, let’s go inside first." Zhang Xiaohao said playfully.

He walked with Zixin into the city, stopping at the city gate, playing with the folding fan in his hand, looking teasingly at the rash big man and his group.

The rash big man’s group walked in a swaggering manner, which could be described as swaggering like bastards.

"Brother Niu, why did you give that Zhou Bapi two high-grade spirit stones just now? That’s our income for ten days to half a month!" A younger man asked in confusion.

"Do you think I wanted to? In our line of work, we often go in and out, and there are many of us. If we followed the rules, we’d have to pay several times more! Now, with just two high-grade spirit stones, we can enter the city, no matter how you calculate, we’re making money." Brother Niu said proudly.

"Ah! Brother Niu, look, that evil star followed us to Luanxing City!"

"What evil star? This is Luanxing City! Even those at the Mahayana Realm wouldn’t dare act recklessly here!" Brother Niu retorted annoyed.

He turned around, following the direction pointed by the younger man, only to find Zhang Xiaohao’s gaze meeting his. Their eyes locked awkwardly in the air.

"Run!" Brother Niu suddenly shouted dramatically, leading his group in an attempt to escape.

Whoosh!

Zhang Xiaohao’s figure flashed, directly blocking their path.

"Man Niu, is it? Not even a greeting for an old friend, are you leaving already?" Zhang Xiaohao said playfully.

"Who are you? Do we know each other?" Man Niu said with a grimace.

"We’re all smart people, let’s not play dumb while pretending to be ignorant." Zhang Xiaohao said, shaking his folding fan.

Seeing Zhang Xiaohao, the other members of the Black Mountain Army surrounded him immediately.

Gripping their weapons tightly, they surrounded Zhang Xiaohao, looking as if they would fight to the death if Zhang Xiaohao dared to harm Man Niu.

"Not bad! Your brothers are quite loyal to you!" Zhang Xiaohao smiled and nodded.

"Sir, could you not follow us around? I’ll give you back two top-grade spirit stones, would that be okay? Please, let us go!" Man Niu pleaded with a tearful face.

"Don’t worry, I’m not here following you, even us meeting this time was a coincidence." Zhang Xiaohao explained.

Man Niu rolled his eyes, looking skeptical.

"I’ll wait for you at the inn ahead. After you arrange things with them, come over by yourself." Zhang Xiaohao said.

With that, he walked with Zixin ahead.

Watching Zhang Xiaohao and Zixin’s retreating figures, the younger man spoke urgently.

"Brother Niu, you mustn’t go! If he changes his mind and attacks you, that would be terrible."

"Yes, Brother Niu! If you go, we’ll go with you! Even if we die, he won’t harm you!"

"Brother Niu, if things get really bad, we can ask the City Lord Mansion for help! I refuse to believe that they’re stronger than the City Lord Mansion!"

The surrounding younger men all spoke hastily.

Man Niu remained silent, pondering for a while before speaking.

"I trust him! He’s not the type to go back on his word. If he were that kind of person, he could’ve killed us in the wilderness, and we wouldn’t have survived! Alright, it’s decided." Man Niu said decisively.

He took a storage bag from his waist and handed it to the late Void Refining realm big man who had spoken earlier.

"This contains all the spoils from our outing, along with those two top-grade spirit stones. Distribute these later. I’ll go ahead! If there’s an emergency, follow the usual protocol to contact me!" Man Niu instructed.

"Brother Niu, are you really going? What if he means you harm?" 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

"It’s settled, don’t try to persuade me anymore, everyone go back!" Man Niu insisted.

He turned and walked ahead.

"Not bad! No wonder these hundred people follow him so loyally, even when facing danger, they never retreat." Zhang Xiaohao said with a smile.

"Yes! That kind of character is truly rare! It’s hard to understand how someone like him survives in the harsh environment of the Spirit Realm." Zixin agreed, nodding.

"Let’s go! We’re going in." Zhang Xiaohao called out.

He walked with Zixin into a nearby inn, and as they entered, a shopkeeper promptly greeted them.

"Sir, are you looking for accommodation or a meal?" The shopkeeper asked ingratiatingly.

Zhang Xiaohao tossed a mid-grade spirit stone over.

"Prepare a private room near the window for us." Zhang Xiaohao ordered.

"Thank you for the tip, this way please!" The shopkeeper respectfully ushered them, lowering his posture even more, leading Zhang Xiaohao and Zixin upstairs.

A moment later, he led them to a private room on the third floor.

"Sir, is this satisfactory?" The shopkeeper asked.