Vincent Zuo’s hand, holding the wine cup, froze in mid-air.
Although Adam Su sighed inwardly at the missed opportunity, he was still quite satisfied with the outcome!
As long as the innkeeper didn’t join any of the other three factions, it didn’t matter if he joined his own or not. As long as he could drink the Soul Cleanse Brew, everything was fine!
The only fear was that Vincent Zuo would recruit him, and then they’d have to beg for the Soul Cleanse Brew and watch their faces!
“Innkeeper, are you really unwilling to join my Heavenly Serpent Mansion?”
Vincent Zuo asked in a deep voice, his hand gripping the wine cup tightening slowly…
Seeing this, Adam Su suddenly stood up and shouted:
“What? If the innkeeper wants to join, he can join; if he doesn’t want to, he doesn’t have to. Are you trying to force him? Vincent Zuo, let me tell you, if you drive the innkeeper away, my Giant Axe Gang will fight your Heavenly Serpent Mansion to the death!!”
Owen Yin and Aaron Zhao, moved by this, also stood up, pressuring Vincent Zuo and expressing their stance!
Originally, they thought the Longevity Tavern was here to carve out a piece of Qingxuan Town, but who knew it was here to sell unparalleled fine wine!
This changed everything; the Longevity Tavern had to stay, it had to stay in Qingxuan Town!
Otherwise, what would they do without the Soul Cleanse Brew?
If they had never tasted it, it wouldn’t matter, but now that they had, they were already deeply addicted.
As long as the innkeeper didn’t join the Heavenly Serpent Mansion, everything would be fine.
Vincent Zuo was already a rank ahead of them; if his Heavenly Serpent Mansion added another Immortal Venerable, it would truly become the undisputed overlord of Qingxuan Town.
Vincent Zuo’s eyes narrowed, struggling internally. After a moment, he thought of the Soul Cleanse Brew and ultimately gave in.
He wasn’t afraid of Adam Su alone, but with Owen Yin and Aaron Zhao added to the mix, he had to be more cautious.
And besides, he couldn’t let go of that Soul Cleanse Brew.
“What? From your earlier words, if I don’t join your Heavenly Serpent Mansion, you’ll take action against me?”
At this moment, Ambrose Lu, who had been lying in the rocking chair, slowly got up and stood in front of Vincent Zuo.
His calm eyes looked at him indifferently.
The tavern fell silent.
Except for Christopher Tong, who lowered his head, everyone else looked at Ambrose Lu in disbelief.
What did this mean? From Vincent Zuo’s earlier expression, he had clearly compromised. Why was the innkeeper stepping forward…
Didn’t he know that Vincent Zuo was a rank six Immortal Venerable?
In a sense, calling him the number one person in Qingxuan Town was not an exaggeration…
“Inn… Innkeeper…” Adam Su’s face showed concern, wanting to speak but hesitating.
Ambrose Lu waved his hand slightly, stopping him from saying more.
Looking into those eyes, Vincent Zuo instinctively averted his gaze, inexplicably afraid to meet them. He felt a sudden dread in his heart and then said in a low voice, “Innkeeper Lu, your Soul Cleanse Brew is excellent. If you don’t want to join my Heavenly Serpent Mansion, then so be it. I… won’t force you.”
Evelyn Zuo, hearing Vincent Zuo say this, felt her tense nerves relax slightly. She didn’t know why, but she had a gut feeling that this innkeeper was not to be provoked!
Hearing this, Adam Su and the others were shocked, looking at Vincent Zuo in astonishment.
Since when was Vincent Zuo so easy to talk to?
“That wasn’t what you meant earlier. If it weren’t for them opposing you, you probably would have tied me up and taken me to your Heavenly Serpent Mansion…”
Ambrose Lu said with a strange smile.
Vincent Zuo’s body trembled, and he forced a dry smile, “Innkeeper, you’re joking.”
“Joking?”
Ambrose Lu’s voice paused, then said coldly, “Kneel.”
Vincent Zuo’s head jerked up, thinking he had heard wrong, but the next moment, his face changed dramatically!
Under the shocked and bewildered gazes of everyone, he bent his knees and knelt heavily with a thud!
“Master Zuo, you…” Owen Yin was stunned, but before he could finish,
Vincent Zuo knelt, trembling, and said, “Senior, it was my… rashness.”
Adam Su and the others were shocked to hear this.
At this moment, how could they not understand? The innkeeper before them was a super strong expert!
Just by his aura, he had suppressed Vincent Zuo, a rank six Immortal Venerable, to this extent…
A rank seven Immortal Venerable couldn’t do this, nor could a rank eight or nine Immortal Venerable…
So… an Immortal Emperor?
Adam Su and the other three quickly knelt down!
Seeing this, Evelyn Zuo and the other Heaven’s Chosen, though still in a daze, also knelt down in unison.
Their elders had knelt, so they naturally had to kneel as well.
Ambrose Lu suddenly smiled and said softly, “Considering you had no intention to kill, I won’t destroy your Heavenly Serpent Mansion. Go kneel outside the courtyard for three days, then serve as a gatekeeper for three years.”
His words were not a negotiation but a command.
Adam Su and the others felt their scalps tingle. To make the dignified master of the Heavenly Serpent Mansion kneel for three days and then serve as a gatekeeper for three years?
If the wandering cultivators outside saw this, they’d talk about it for a lifetime.
And although three years wasn’t long for them, it would be extremely grueling in this context.
Vincent Zuo’s pupils contracted. He could already imagine the strange looks from the cultivators when he knelt outside and served as a gatekeeper.
For a top-tier faction leader in Qingxuan Town like him, this was worse than death.
It was utterly humiliating.
But he didn’t want to die, and he couldn’t die. He had important matters to attend to, and he had a son and daughter and the Heavenly Serpent Mansion to consider…
Vincent Zuo bowed his head in despair and said, “I… obey.”
“Alright, everyone, get up.” Ambrose Lu turned and lay back in the rocking chair, closing his eyes. “Finish the remaining wine and then leave.”
“Thank you, Senior.”
Vincent Zuo and the others slowly stood up, bowed, and returned to their seats in silence.
The four faction leaders were now somewhat restrained.
Adam Su picked up two wine jugs from the table, bowed cautiously, and said, “Senior, I… Adam will take my leave first.”
Owen Yin and Aaron Zhao had the same thought, picking up their wine jugs and standing up.
Just as they were about to leave, Christopher Tong hurriedly said, “Dear guests, you can’t take the wine out of the tavern, and… you haven’t paid yet…”
Immediately, Adam Su and the others trembled. They had almost skipped out on the bill and broken the rules!
They quickly looked at Ambrose Lu, who was lying quietly without saying anything, and silently breathed a sigh of relief.
They sat back down, determined to finish the precious and delicious Soul Cleanse Brew.
So, they drank in silence, occasionally marveling at the quality of the wine.
Vincent Zuo, however, drank alone, brooding.
As for Evelyn Zuo and the others, they watched eagerly from the side.
After a cup of tea’s time, everyone finally got up to leave.
“Waiter, how many Spirit Stones?”
Adam Su asked politely, his attitude unusually good.
“Dear guests, one jug of Soul Cleanse Brew costs three seven-colored Spirit Stones,” Christopher Tong replied.
Three seven-colored Spirit Stones?!
(Earlier, the Spirit Stone ratios were explained: lower-grade, middle-grade, upper-grade, top-grade, seven-colored, in a ratio of 1:1000)
Even the four faction leaders were slightly shocked by the price, but quickly accepted it. Such fine wine was indeed worth the price.
Christopher Tong, receiving thirty-six seven-colored Spirit Stones, was overjoyed, unable to contain his excitement.
In the Spirit Dust Realm, top-grade Spirit Stones were rare, and seven-colored Spirit Stones were unheard of.
“Senior, we take our leave.”
Everyone bowed to Ambrose Lu and then retreated respectfully, with Christopher Tong quickly putting away the Spirit Stones and seeing them off.
The short distance from the tavern to the courtyard gate felt like an eternity for Vincent Zuo, an extreme torment!
His face was grim, dreading the moment he would kneel before the many wandering cultivators outside.
How embarrassing and humiliating it would be…
Everyone knew Vincent Zuo’s thoughts and remained silent. Adam Su and the other three faction leaders wanted to comfort him, but the words stuck in their throats.
The young man with sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes also looked grim, unsure whether to return to the mansion quickly or kneel with his adoptive father.
But the thought of kneeling made him feel unbearable.
Soon, they reached the courtyard gate.
Outside the gate, a sea of people awaited, thousands of eyes fixed on the gate.
……
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