He pursues it, and it pursues him.

Inside the back-courtyard pavilion of the Myriad Beasts Hall, in the main hall.

A bright-faced woman in red sat upright in a chair, her expression icy, her gaze piercing like a torch. On either side of her stood a man: to her left, a middle-aged man in long robes exuding an air of nobility, and to her right, an elder with a long beard.

"Second Uncle, what have you been up to lately?"

After observing him for a moment, she finally spoke, her tone hovering somewhere between casual greeting and interrogation.

The middle-aged man in the long robes chuckled. "Hongqiu, you know how it is. Our Myriad Beasts Hall has always had booming business, and I, your uncle, have no shortage of social engagements here in Gluttony City. Your arrival was so sudden that I rushed back the moment I received word."

A breeze swept through the hall, causing the candlelight to flicker.

"So, business at the Myriad Beasts Hall is booming?" The woman in red let out a soft exclamation. "Then why have the earnings you’ve turned in over the last few years been steadily decreasing?"

"Haha." The middle-aged man laughed again. "You still don't understand how business works. No matter how well it’s managed, profit margins are bound to fluctuate—"

"Ahem." The long-bearded elder beside them gave a sharp cough, cutting the man off. He said in a deep voice, "Xu Nanling, you must remember who you are speaking to. The Young Miss is currently inspecting the four corners of the realm under the authority of the Grand Sect Master's Token. Speak when you should, and show some respect when you should not..."

The middle-aged man seemed quite intimidated by him. Upon hearing this, he nodded slightly and said, "Elder Cangxing is right to remind me."

The three people in the hall were none other than Xu Hongqiu, the Young Miss of the Four Seas Whale Gang; Elder Cangxing of the North Whale Gang; and Xu Nanling, the manager of the Myriad Beasts Hall in Gluttony City.

With the Grand Sect Master election imminent, it was customary for an envoy to carry the Grand Sect Master's Token to inspect the four major Whale Gang branches. The purpose was to use the power at hand to uncover any potential misconduct within the gangs, thereby gaining leverage for the upcoming re-election campaign.

The power base of the current Grand Sect Master, Xu Bashan, was the North Whale Gang; he had stepped down as the leader of that branch before running for the position of Grand Sect Master. The shops in Gluttony City were crucial assets for the North Whale Gang, and the Myriad Beasts Hall was one of them, traditionally managed by Xu Bashan’s clansman and younger brother, Xu Nanling.

That was why Xu Hongqiu had come here.

After hearing Elder Cangxing’s reprimand, Xu Hongqiu spoke slowly: "Second Uncle is my kinsman after all. Whether you are polite to me in private does not matter. But in an official capacity, I expect a rigorous answer."

"Sigh." Xu Nanling sighed helplessly. "Business profits rise and fall; that is normal. In the last two years, the number of shops selling spirit beasts in Gluttony City has increased, and we’ve had to lower our prices to remain competitive. I have been laboring away at this..."

"I understand your hard work, Second Uncle. Why not bring out the accounts of the Myriad Beasts Hall for me to see? Then everything will be clear at a glance," Xu Hongqiu said suddenly.

Xu Nanling’s expression shifted. He raised an eyebrow and said, "Are you suspecting me?"

"This is a gang asset. I am carrying the Grand Sect Master's Token to audit the books; it is perfectly reasonable. Why would you say such a thing?" Xu Hongqiu stared at him coldly, without a hint of hesitation.

"Every year at the end of the year, I send the accounts to the Grand Sect Master for review, and there has never been a problem. You suddenly come here saying you want to audit the books—you are clearly suspecting me..." Xu Nanling’s face showed a trace of anger.

"Yes," Xu Hongqiu nodded calmly.

The implication was clear.

*I am indeed suspecting you. So what?*

Her frank and ruthless admission left Xu Nanling stunned. His emotions stalled, and he was struck dumb for a moment, before finally managing to choke out a single word:

"Huh?"

***

A beast’s roar suddenly shook the long street!

There had already been an incident earlier that day where a Black Wind Leopard escaped, causing quite a stir. However, the nearby cultivators hadn't paid much mind, as it was unlikely for the Myriad Beasts Hall to suffer such negligence repeatedly.

But this time, a far more terrifying demonic aura spilled out from within the Myriad Beasts Hall, and the entire city heard it in an instant.

*Boom—*

The demonic beasts kept in the Myriad Beasts Hall ranged from the first to the fifth realm, and occasionally, even sixth-realm beasts were brought here for sale. In total, there were hundreds of them.

No one could have imagined that on this very night, every single beast in the Myriad Beasts Hall would escape! As if it had been long premeditated, a Wind-Screaming Beast nearly two zhang tall and covered in sharp scales smashed through the main gate, followed by countless black shadows fleeing in all directions!

Chu Liang was just outside the Myriad Beasts Hall at that moment and happened to witness a black figure dash out. Immediately after, the Wind-Screaming Beast crashed through the wall, and beasts began running wild in every direction. He couldn't help but mutter to himself:

*Bad.*

*My Human-Faced魈!*

He immediately released his divine sense to search. Fortunately, among the hundreds of black shadows darting away, one gray-white shadow was moving almost the fastest, and he caught sight of it instantly.

"Stop!"

Chu Liang shouted and immediately gave chase. He ignored the other beasts, but this one could not get away... he had already paid the deposit!

He had previously learned just how difficult it was to catch a Human-Faced 魈; in complex terrain, even someone at the Golden Core stage like Fang Ting could not keep up. So, the moment Chu Liang took off, he deployed the flight form of his Flying Leaf Quick Blades.

*Whoosh—*

Once upon a time, he had to rely on Spirit Cat Leaping Talismans to catch up with the creature, but now, standing on his green leaf, he could barely keep up behind it.

Looking down from high above, he could see three shadows moving significantly faster than the others.

The first was that black figure that had bolted out first. This person was clearly involved in the chaos at the Myriad Beasts Hall, but Chu Liang didn't care about other people's business.

The second was the gray-white Human-Faced 魈. This malevolent creature was incredibly cunning. Unlike the other beasts running wildly in all directions, it seemed convinced that the path taken by the black figure was the safe one, so it clung tightly to the tail of the black-clad person.

The facts seemed to bear this out; while other beasts were being intercepted by the Myriad Beasts Hall and the law enforcement teams, only this one flew a great distance following the person in black.

The third was the green light of Chu Liang, who kept his eyes locked on the Human-Faced 魈, refusing to let go.

The targeted training he had undergone over the recent period was clearly yielding results. He controlled the green leaf to fly at full speed, darting and weaving through the city streets. Although it was a bit of a struggle, he never once crashed.

In terms of "micro-management" with divine sense, he was already far ahead of other cultivators at his level.

After flying for a while, he even tried to split his attention to maneuver his flying sword to launch an attack on the Human-Faced 魈!

With the wind roaring like thunder in his ears, he couldn't execute complex techniques like the Talismanic Sword Art, so he could only raise two fingers and thrust his flying sword toward the creature like a shooting star.

Regrettably, it missed repeatedly.

The three of them moved like lightning; he was chasing it, and it was chasing him!

Chu Liang had eyes only for the Human-Faced 魈 and paid no attention to the black figure. The black figure, however, ignored the creature and focused entirely on Chu Liang.

The person in black at the front had no time to look closely at what was behind him, sensing only through his divine sense that someone was following him. He couldn't guess that Chu Liang was working so hard just to catch a Human-Faced 魈, assuming instead that the person was chasing him specifically.

So, as they passed a street corner, the man in black suddenly shouted to both sides: "Stop him!"

*Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh.*

Several figures flashed out from the street corners. Two of them raised their hands to unfurl a large golden net, while the third formed a seal with his hands and cast the net into the air.

*Shoo—*

With a flash of golden light, the large net hung across the air, instantly separating the man in black from his "pursuer" behind him.

The Human-Faced 魈 let out a strange, screeching cry and flipped in mid-air to avoid colliding with the golden net. But it was a little too late to change direction.

Although there had been a gap, the distance between the three was negligible compared to their speed. As the Human-Faced 魈 hesitated, Chu Liang's green light arrived in an instant.

"Go!"

To prevent his attack from missing again, Chu Liang unleashed all his magical treasures at once.

*Hundred Sword Art!*

The flying sword shattered into a sky full of sword light, covering the area from above.

*Demon-Binding Rope!*

A red glow shot out like a serpent.

*Flying Leaf Quick Blades!*

A crescent arc vanished in an instant.

The Human-Faced 魈, seeing it had no room to dodge, bared its hideous face at Chu Liang. It didn't matter if it remembered that this was the same person it had acted viciously toward earlier in the day; it lunged directly at Chu Liang.

But a second later, Chu Liang’s attacks rained down upon it. He was a completely different person now compared to when he was in the mountains of the Southern Territory. Since the Human-Faced 魈 had no talent other than speed, how could it possibly resist?

*Sshhh—*

Almost instantly, the fierce, demonic entity dissolved back into a wisp of yin energy, pierced and dissipated by the Hundred Sword Art.

Finally...

Just as Chu Liang’s heart settled, he suddenly heard a familiar, high-pitched scream of agony coming from not far away.

"Ah—"