Gou Zai Fei Men made up myths

The atmosphere was heavy in the side hall of the city lord's mansion. Cold sweat poured down Deacon Liu's forehead, and the photographic stone and the tattered account book in his hand felt like two red-hot branding irons.

Before him sat a middle-aged cultivator with a haggard face and sharp eyes. He was none other than Zhao Yuanming, the nominal supreme ruler of Black Mountain City. His cultivation had been hovering at the early stage of Foundation Establishment for many years, but he had been unable to break through.

"Liu Neng, where did you get this thing?" Zhao Yuanming's voice was low, with a slight, almost imperceptible tremor.

Although he is now in a weak position, he is still the lord of a city and has some insight.

He was all too familiar with that blurry mark on the ledger! And the eerie runes and the corner of the beast cage that he caught a glimpse of in the recording stone all pointed to a possibility that made his heart pound!

"Reporting to...Reporting to the City Lord!" Deacon Liu knelt down with a thud. "It was...it was brought by a brother and sister who claimed to be independent cultivators this morning. They said...they said they found it near an abandoned mine outside the city."

"They left their things and left. I... I felt this matter was of great importance and dared not delay, so I came to report to the city lord immediately!"

"A rogue cultivator? Found him?" A glint flashed in Zhao Yuanming's eyes, his fingers unconsciously tapping the armrest. Too much of a coincidence! A coincidence that sent chills down one's spine!

He vaguely remembered the brother and sister; they seemed to be the ones who had accepted the bounty to investigate the demonic beast. Did they genuinely discover it by chance, or... did they have ulterior motives? Were they deliberately passing this hot potato to the city lord's mansion?

He picked up the recording stone and infused it with a wisp of spiritual power. In the image, the eerie, blood-tinged runes flashed by, and a corner of a steel cage could be vaguely seen nearby, inside which a huge black shadow seemed to be writhing.

This is definitely not a natural monster's lair! These are signs of human captivity and control!

The blurry "Li Ji" mark on the account book points the finger directly at the Li family, which has been in the limelight in recent years!

"The Li family... Li Maocai!" A fierce glint flashed in Zhao Yuanming's eyes. He had long suspected that someone was behind the demon beast incident, but he lacked evidence and was wary of the Li family's current power, especially since there were rumors that they had also made connections with "Liuyunfang".

Unexpectedly, they dared to be so audacious as to control demonic beasts and wreak havoc on the city! Are they trying to completely sideline him as the city lord, or are they taking this opportunity to eliminate their rival Wang family, or even... even his Zhao family?

"Lord, how should we deal with this matter?" Deacon Liu asked cautiously. "Should we immediately send people to seize the Li family's properties and arrest Li Maocai?"

"Foolish!" Zhao Yuanming rebuked. "How can you possibly take down the deeply entrenched Li family with this dubious 'evidence'? You'll only alert them and suffer the consequences!"

He stood up and paced around the hall, his mind racing. A direct confrontation with the Li family was a lost cause for the City Lord's Mansion, given its insufficient strength. He needed to leverage external forces!

Whose help should we rely on? The Wang family? Although the Wang family and the Li family are mortal enemies, Wang Xiong, the head of the Wang family, is an old fox who won't act until he sees a clear benefit. Without solid evidence, he will never easily take action.

The Zhao family? He, the city lord, is surnamed Zhao, and his relationship with the main family is delicate. Would the main family completely break ties with the powerful Li family for the sake of him, a city lord from a collateral branch?

Unless... the Zhao family can see tangible benefits, or... huge risks.

Zhao Yuanming stopped, a resolute glint in his eyes. He looked at Steward Liu and lowered his voice to give the order:

"Liu Neng, immediately take my token and secretly go to the Zhao family mansion in the north of the city. Seek an audience with Elder Zhao Kuo, present this item, and say... say that I, Zhao Yuanming, have important matters to discuss with you, concerning the future of Black Mountain City, and even... the survival of the Zhao family!"

He made copies of the photographic stone and the tattered ledger pages, and handed the copies to Liu Neng. He had to keep the originals; they were his key bargaining chips.

"Furthermore," Zhao Yuanming added, "send people to keep a close eye on the Li family, especially their movements at those manors outside the city! Also, find out the background of that 'rogue cultivator sibling' who sent the evidence!"

"Yes, Lord City Lord!" Liu Neng accepted the order and hurriedly left.

Zhao Yuanming sat alone in the empty hall, looking at the original document in his hand, his expression shifting between anger and uncertainty.

Who exactly are these "unaffiliated siblings"? Did they send the evidence to use someone else to do their dirty work, or... do they have other motives?

The stagnant waters of Black Mountain City are finally about to be stirred up. And will his dilapidated ship find a glimmer of hope in the storms to come?

Meanwhile, inside Room A of the Yuelai Inn.

Su Xiao was analyzing the situation for Shi Tie and Wang Hu.

"The evidence has been 'unintentionally' delivered to the city lord's hands." Su Xiao said calmly. "Zhao Yuanming is not stupid; he will surely see the key to this. But he is outnumbered and dares not confront the Li family alone, so he will definitely seek allies."

"Who are you looking for? The Wang family? Or the main branch of the Zhao family?" Shi Tie asked.

"The Zhao family is more likely to be the head of the family."

Su Xiao analyzed, "Zhao Yuanming is, after all, a member of the Zhao family. Their fortunes are intertwined; if one prospers, the other prospers; if one suffers, the other suffers. Moreover, if this can be used to bring down the Li family, the Zhao family will benefit the most. The Wang family... is more likely to remain on the sidelines and wait for an opportunity."

"So what do we do next? Just wait and watch the show?" Shi Tie rubbed his hands together, eager to get started.

"No," Su Xiao shook her head, a glint of wisdom flashing in her eyes, and said, "We need to add fuel to the fire. The Li family, realizing they might be exposed, only have two choices: one, destroy the evidence and distance themselves; two... in desperation, create even greater chaos, muddy the waters, or even... kill them to silence them!"

She looked at Sun Xiaolan and Li Tiezhu and instructed them, "Xiaolan, Tiezhu, continue to keep an eye on the rumors circulating in the city, especially those concerning the Li family, the demonic beasts, and the movements of the city lord's mansion. Wang Hu, you have the highest cultivation level, so secretly keep an eye on the area around the inn and see if there are any suspicious people tailing you."

"Yes, Senior Sister Su!" The three accepted the order.

"Senior Brother Shi," Su Xiao said, turning to Shi Tie one last time, "we may need to prepare for the worst. If the Li family really decides to take the risk and releases even more powerful demonic beasts, or... directly targets us 'insiders'..."

Shi Tie grinned, patted the iron rod beside him, and said confidently, "Don't worry! I've been itching for a fight for ages! Who cares about these demons and monsters? If they come, it'll be perfect to test my newly mastered 'Mountain-Shaking Strike'!"

Just as the City Lord's Mansion was secretly contacting the Zhao family and Su Xiao and others were on high alert, the undercurrents beneath the seemingly calm surface of Black Mountain City were becoming increasingly turbulent.

In the west of the city, deep within a secluded manor belonging to the Li family, lies a secret underground chamber.

Li Maocai, the head of the Li family, a middle-aged cultivator (eighth level of Qi Refining) with a sinister face, was looking at the steward kneeling in front of him with a livid expression.

He held a secret report he had just received in his hand—people from the City Lord's Mansion had secretly contacted Zhao Kuo, an elder of the Zhao family!

"Useless! All of you are useless!" Li Maocai kicked over the incense burner in front of him, scattering ashes everywhere. "Who leaked the information? How could that stronghold have been discovered? And evidence left behind?!"

The kneeling steward trembled violently: "Master... Master, please calm your anger! That stronghold was extremely well hidden; I didn't know... I don't know why..."

"Don't know? You think you can get away with just saying 'I don't know'?!" Li Maocai's eyes flashed with murderous intent. "That piece of trash Zhao Yuanming actually dared to join forces with the Zhao family to deal with me? Fine! Since you're so ruthless, don't blame me for being ruthless too!"

A glint of madness flashed in his eyes: "I was planning to wait a few more days until 'that beast' was completely tamed before making a move... but now it seems I can't wait any longer! Pass down the order to activate 'Plan B'! Release the 'Crypt Tarantula'!"

"Target... the City Lord's Mansion and the Zhao family's warehouse in the west of the city! I'm going to throw Black Mountain City into complete chaos! Let's see who dares to oppose me then!"

"Master, please reconsider!" the steward exclaimed in alarm. "Those tarantulas are wild and untamed. If they are released, they may harm innocent creatures. If it is discovered that we are responsible..."

"Find out?" Li Maocai sneered. "By the time they find out, Black Mountain City will have changed completely! As long as we create enough chaos, we can take advantage of the confusion to kill Zhao Yuanming, then frame the Wang family or those clueless rogue cultivators. Who can do anything to me then? Go now!"

"Yes...yes!" The steward scrambled back.

Li Maocai stood alone in the secret room, looking at the eerie beast-controlling array diagram drawn in blood on the wall, a ferocious smile on his face.

Let it be chaotic, the more chaotic the better! Only in chaos can the Li family profit from the chaos and truly control Black Mountain City!