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Receiving Feisi’s distress call, Zhu Xuanji, prioritizing the greater situation, immediately departed the Molten Lava Immortal Palace.

Cultivators entering the Molten Lava Immortal Palace were guided by auspicious light; however, they did not receive this treatment upon leaving.

Nevertheless, Meng Kui could not stand idly by.

After he intervened and disrupted the beast formation, Zhu Xuanji managed to escape, soaring into the sky.

Moments later, he entered Cloud City and met with Song Fuli and Feisi.

Song Fuli cupped his hands, his face filled with anticipation and urgency: “Lord Zhu Xuanji, I have long heard of your esteemed name!”

“The auction is imminent, but our auction items have all been stolen.”

“I traveled a great distance, yet unexpectedly fell prey to thieves in Fiery Persimmon Immortal City. Now, I can only rely on your power.”

Zhu Xuanji nodded: “Fear not, I will certainly exert my utmost effort in this matter.”

Arriving at the scene, Zhu Xuanji wasted no time, immediately employing his signature technique.

Root Tracing Art!

Innate Ability – Golden Eyes!

In an instant, he saw Yang Chanyu and Sun Lingtong colluding, fabricating the goods, and placing them on the shelves.

The truth was revealed in a flash!

Zhu Xuanji sighed, dispelled the magic, and cast a deep gaze at Song Fuli.

Song Fuli’s face was full of urgency: “Lord Zhu, what say you?”

Feisi was also at his side, intently watching Zhu Xuanji.

Zhu Xuanji nodded slightly: “I have found it… It was Yang Chanyu and Sun Lingtong who did it.”

“Even though the two concealed their tracks, they could not escape my Golden Eyes. After a thorough inspection, I have uncovered the truth.”

“The Emptiness Sect!” Feisi gritted his teeth, saying hatefully.

“The Emptiness Sect…” Song Fuli also clenched his fists, revealing an angry expression.

He looked at Zhu Xuanji and Feisi: “The key now is how to recover my precious goods from their hands.”

“Lord Feisi, I recall, upon entering the city, seeing the ruins of Golden Core cultivators battling. How did you respond to me then?”

“You said there was no problem, that Fiery Persimmon Immortal City was quite safe, and that the City Lord’s Mansion had the situation under control.”

“But now, look!”

“Evil demons are rampant in Fiery Persimmon Immortal City, and my goods were so easily stolen.”

“What do you say about this matter? Your City Lord’s Mansion must give this victim an explanation, mustn’t it?”

“We Cloud Merchants have traveled this path, facing countless risks, doing a difficult business. Is it easy?”

“Who would have thought, we did not fall along the way, but instead had our treasures stolen in an Immortal City!”

Feisi’s face showed embarrassment, forcing a smile, and could only try his best to appease: “Brother Song, rest assured. We will pursue with all our might and recover your goods.”

Song Fuli spread his hands: “The auction is to be held in two days. In such a short time, can you recover it?”

“Moreover, the news of the auction has already spread.”

“If it cannot be held, what will become of our Cloud Merchants’ reputation?”

“Oh dear!”

Song Fuli was so anxious that he slapped his thigh, truly looking as if he was going to burst with anger.

Feisi’s face was solemn. He also knew that recovering the goods from the true disciples of the Emptiness Sect in such a short time would be extremely difficult, with little hope.

But this matter, he had to handle it, and he had to handle it quite properly and skillfully!

He took a deep breath and immediately stated: “I will immediately pay my respects to Lord Meng Kui and report this matter, requesting the City Lord to make a decision!”

Before leaving, Feisi glanced at Zhu Xuanji, pleading with the latter to continue the investigation.

Zhu Xuanji nodded, readily agreeing, but also stated that he could only do his best and could not guarantee any investigative results within two days.

Feisi sighed, cupped his hands, and withdrew.

He transformed into a long虹 and flew directly towards the summit of Fiery Persimmon Mountain.

Zhu Xuanji, however, remained, and smiled softly at Song Fuli: “Brother Song, there is a very interesting matter I must inform you of.”

“According to my recent investigation, when Yang Chanyu and Sun Lingtong stole the treasures, they were not here, but within the body of the Cloud Whale.”

Song Fuli immediately raised his eyebrows: “What do you mean by that?”

Zhu Xuanji clasped his hands behind his back, gazing out the window at the Cloud Whale floating in the sky: “Your caravan’s precious goods being stolen within the Cloud Whale’s body is different from being stolen in Fiery Persimmon Immortal City.”

“In the former case, the responsibility primarily lies with your side. In the latter case, if responsibility is to be pursued, the City Lord’s Mansion of Fiery Persimmon Immortal City is the main party.”

“Am I right?”

Song Fuli took a light breath and chuckled: “Lord Zhu, you must not speak carelessly. If you accuse our side of fabricating, concealing, and disguising it as being stolen in Fiery Persimmon Immortal City, you must have true evidence.”

“Although you are a divine constable, you are from the Southern Bean Royal Family, and your camp is on the side of Fiery Persimmon Immortal City. Therefore, your testimony cannot be considered as evidence.”

Zhu Xuanji snorted coldly, turned around and stared at Song Fuli, his gaze becoming very sharp: “You also know that I am a member of the royal family. Even if I don’t have evidence, so what? Can I not deal with you?”

Song Fuli took a slight step back, as if avoiding Zhu Xuanji’s sharpness, his tone soft yet firm: “Within the Southern Bean Kingdom, you are the host, and we are guests. It is naturally easy for you to deal with us outsiders.”

“If you truly wish to deal with us, we can only accept our fate.”

“However, how could the esteemed Lord Zhu Xuanji do such a thing?”

“Divine Constable Zhu, who has always advocated for Fang Qing, is the Golden Core hallmark of the Southern Bean Royal Family. How could he act against someone merely suspected without evidence?”

“I, Song Fuli, do not believe it!”

By the end of his speech, Song Fuli’s expression was resolute, and his tone was decisive.

At this moment, the confrontation between the two Golden Cores surpassed the clash of blades and swords!

Zhu Xuanji couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows.

He stared intently at Song Fuli, his sharp aura receding, his tone softening: “You have indeed investigated my situation thoroughly, even knowing my usual adherence to Fang Qing’s actions.”

“In that case, does your side also wish to partake in a share regarding the Molten Lava Immortal Palace?”

Since the conversation had reached this point, it was pointless for Song Fuli to continue concealing.

He simply stated frankly: “Yes, after hearing about the recruitment decree issued by your esteemed sovereign, we set out for this place.”

“As Cloud Merchants, we are always driven by profit.”

“Our side has carefully studied the recruitment decree and thoughtfully considered it. We are also qualified, aren’t we?”

Zhu Xuanji chuckled lightly and nodded: “Of course you are qualified! As a member of the Southern Bean Royal Family, I welcome this and look forward to our joint efforts even more.”

Seeing Zhu Xuanji smile, Song Fuli also chuckled, greatly easing the atmosphere in the room.

He said in a deep voice: “I have felt Lord Zhu’s sincerity!”

Song Fuli was referring to the fact that Zhu Xuanji had clearly investigated the truth earlier, that Yang and Sun had stolen the treasures within the Cloud Whale, but the latter had not revealed it, instead concealing it for the Cloud Merchants.

Zhu Xuanji was a member of the royal family and had to consider the interests of the Zhu family.

His intention in concealing was very clear: to win over Song Fuli and his group.

After all, in the competition for the Molten Lava Immortal Palace, Zhu Xuanji would likely eventually face Meng Kui.

Zhu Xuanji was a Golden Core, while Meng Kui was at the Nascent Soul stage, the difference in cultivation between them was astonishing.

Therefore, Zhu Xuanji wanted to form alliances, trying to win over Song Fuli’s group, who possessed the Cloud Whale, in an attempt to use the Cloud Whale to slightly resist Meng Kui.

The turn of events was beyond Feisi’s expectation.

He flew to the summit of Fiery Persimmon Mountain and paid his respects to Meng Kui.

Meng Kui gazed at the Cloud Whale in the distance, remained silent for a long while, and then nodded slightly. He authorized Feisi to negotiate well with the Cloud Merchants and allowed him to concede a portion of the benefits.

Meng Kui, considering his own political achievements, chose the lesser of two evils and could only choose to win over the Cloud Merchants.

“Who would have thought, that I, an old man, would one day be restricted by a spirit!”

Meng Kui’s gaze penetrated the layers of clouds and mist, overlooking the entire Molten Lava Immortal Palace, harboring hidden anger.

In his view, the attack on Fiery Persimmon Mountain by the Five Elements Artillery Tower was the work of the Flood Dragon Fire Spirit. Even if a certain cultivator cooperated, the Flood Dragon Fire Spirit, as the palace spirit, absolutely could not be avoided, at the very least it was a major accomplice!

“In the future, when my Meng family controls the Immortal Palace, I will certainly severely deal with this Flood Dragon Fire Spirit!”

“However, the immediate priority is to secretly contact this palace spirit and feign compliance.”

During this time, Meng Kui had ordered his subordinates to try repeatedly, constantly contacting the Flood Dragon Fire Spirit, but had not succeeded, making no progress.

“Zhu Xuanji should know some secrets. The relationship between the Southern Bean Royal Family and the Three Sect Grandmasters is quite close, but probing him about this requires immense caution.”

Meng Kui’s eyes were deep: “Zhu Xuanji is sharp-minded. If he were to realize that the palace spirit harbors ulterior motives, it would be much more troublesome.”

Meng Kui temporarily concealed the secret of the palace spirit. In his opinion, Zhu Xuanji, representing the Southern Bean Royal Family, had always been his main competitor.

Zhu Xuanji, on the other hand, secretly reached an oral agreement with Song Fuli to form an alliance, attempting to use the weak to resist the strong.

Song Fuli, leveraging the competitive relationship between the royal family and the local authorities, wanted to recover the losses from the stolen treasures and had great hope of success.

The overt and covert games played by the three parties greatly consumed their respective energy and time. Ning Zhuo, on the other hand, thus gained breathing room.

Molten Lava Immortal Palace.

The Flood Dragon Fire Spirit suppressed its excitement and once again took the initiative to contact Ning Zhuo: “Young… Young master ah… Good news, Zhu Xuanji has left, he has left the Immortal Palace.”

“The time for us to act and eliminate Ning Xiaohui has arrived!”

Yang Chanyu also confirmed Zhu Xuanji’s movements.

Sun Lingtong infiltrated Ning Zhuo’s side and transmitted his voice to the latter: “Brother, I’ve figured it out!”

“That Song Fuli is also a shrewd merchant! He should have discovered the goods were stolen long ago, but he suppressed it, moved the fake goods into the Immortal City, and then fabricated the crime scene to claim compensation from the City Lord’s Mansion.”

“The gossip about the stolen goods has spread throughout the entire Immortal City. This is likely instructed by Song Fuli in secret, intentionally circulated to exonerate himself and to pressure the City Lord’s Mansion.”

“Zhu Xuanji’s departure from the Immortal Palace this time is to investigate this major theft case.”

“Since he is not in the Immortal Palace at the moment, it is indeed a good time to act.”

“I will make a move, and Yang Chanyu will guard secretly, eliminating this major hidden danger besides Ning Xiaohui!”

Sun Lingtong was eager to act.

However, Ning Zhuo frowned deeply, pacing back and forth in the room several times.

“No, wait a little longer.” Ning Zhuo hesitated and struggled, but in the end, he temporarily held Sun Lingtong back.

Sun Lingtong did not understand, but decades of tacit understanding made him realize that Ning Zhuo’s choice must have its reasons.

“Alright, I will follow closely behind her and wait for your notification at all times.”

“Contact me using the Human Life Thread!”

“You only need to say the word, and I will act immediately.”

Sun Lingtong and Ning Zhuo reached an agreement.

The Flood Dragon Fire Spirit waited and waited, but did not see Ning Zhuo or Sun Lingtong make a move.

It stomped its feet on the throne in frustration.

It kept roaring: “Ning Zhuo, Ning Zhuo! What are you waiting for, what are you still hesitating about?!”

“Act, hurry up and act!!”

“That Ning Xiaohui is about to get a position, sigh! Truly, one cannot scheme with a fool!”

Roar, roar

The Flood Dragon Fire Spirit was so anxious that it tilted its head and spat out a pillar of fire.