Chapter 11: The Pavilion Master’s Attitude

"I’ll give the Pavilion Master face and spare your life," Mo Qianqian said. He grabbed a pen from the nearby table, flipped it upside down, and viciously drove it downward, aiming straight for a very sensitive spot on Kong Mingcheng’s body.

"Hmph, I knew you wouldn’t dare—"

Before Kong Mingcheng could finish, an agonizing wave of pain tore through that exact spot.

"AHHH!" A bloodcurdling scream rang out, like a stuck pig being slaughtered.

SQUELCH!

Blood sprayed out. The pen’s shaft was embedded diagonally into the wooden floorboards, pinning a certain body part to the ground.

Standing to the side, Shi Muyao was utterly dumbfounded. Did Mo Qianqian really just destroy Kong Mingcheng’s manhood?

BANG!

The room’s door was violently kicked open. Several people appeared in the hallway, including a stern-faced old man—the Pavilion Master of the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion.

Seeing the scene unfold before them, the newcomers froze in shock. A pen was stabbed upside down into a very specific area on Kong Mingcheng’s body. That entire area was soaked in blood, looking painful just to witness.

"You... you dare lay a hand on Elder Kong?" one of the elders shouted in anger.

"Kill him! Kill him for me! AHHH!" Even though Mo Qianqian had already moved his foot away, Kong Mingcheng was in too much agony to move a muscle. He never could have imagined that Mo Qianqian would actually go through with it, directly crippling his manhood.

Several elders moved to attack.

However, the Pavilion Master immediately barked, "Stop!"

The group ground to a halt.

Downstairs, a crowd of people from the first floor surged up the staircase, drawn by the sheer volume of the horrifying scream. Among them was the gorgeous woman.

Seeing Kong Mingcheng pinned by a pen in such a sensitive area, the crowd was left speechless.

"This... this..." The gorgeous woman wore a look of pure disbelief. What was she looking at? Inside the room, the Deputy Elder had been pinned to the floor by a pen? How was this even possible?

"Pavilion Master, I am Shi Muyao, representing the Shi Family to negotiate the medicinal herb trade. This... this..." Shi Muyao stammered, momentarily at a loss for how to explain the situation.

"Kong Mingcheng tried to sleep with my woman right in front of me as a condition for agreeing to cooperate with the Shi Family. He even made a move, so I crippled him," Mo Qianqian explained on her behalf.

"Mo Qianqian, you’re spitting venom! Ah!" Kong Mingcheng screamed, letting out another agonizing wail. He reached out to feel the area, only to realize that everything there was shattered and gone.

The Pavilion Master frowned. He knew exactly what kind of person Kong Mingcheng was. He had just promised that Spirit Master to cooperate with the Shi Family, yet something like this had to happen today.

The gorgeous woman hastily chimed in, "That’s right, Mo Qianqian is slandering Elder Kong! This Mo Qianqian is a sinister and cunning man. You can’t trust a word he says!

"When he first came in asking to see the Deputy Elder, I told him the Deputy Elder was busy. But he insulted me, saying I wanted to act like a whore while demanding a monument to my virtue.

"He even threatened that if I didn’t take them to see the Deputy Elder, he would make me mysteriously disappear. He claimed that even with his cultivation crippled, he wasn’t someone I could afford to provoke.

"And this bitch, Shi Muyao, conspired with him to brutally harm the Deputy Elder! Pavilion Master, you must bring them to justice!"

Mo Qianqian was speechless. She sure had a way with words, even twisting his insult into her defense. This woman was truly a menace, willing to say anything just to frame him.

"Rong’Er, you..." Shi Muyao was also stunned. She hadn’t expected the other party to spout such blatant lies. "Pavilion Master, Mo Qianqian absolutely never said such things, nor did we ever threaten her," she hurriedly explained.

"You didn’t? Then what is this? Kill him! You must kill this animal, Mo Qianqian!" Kong Mingcheng cursed through excruciating pain.

The group of elders grew restless again. No matter the reason, destroying a man’s manhood was an incredibly cruel tactic. It was a massive provocation against their Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion!

"Enough!" the Pavilion Master roared. "Kong Mingcheng, do you think I don’t know what kind of trash you are?

"Over the past few years, I’ve turned a blind eye to your actions out of respect for the Central Earth Headquarters. I didn’t expect you to go further and further out of line.

"From this moment on, you are expelled from the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion."

The Pavilion Master then turned his fierce gaze toward the gorgeous woman. "And you! You’re expelled from the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion as well!"

"What?" The gorgeous woman’s body trembled violently. She was being expelled? Weren’t Mo Qianqian and Shi Muyao the ones who had brutally attacked the Deputy Elder? Why was she the one getting kicked out? Why would the Pavilion Master side with them? How was this possible?

She came from a humble background; it was only her position at the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion, along with her connection to Kong Mingcheng, that allowed her to live such a glamorous and respectable life. If she could no longer work here and Kong Mingcheng was also expelled, she would lose absolutely everything.

"Pavilion Master, I... I didn’t do anything wrong..." she cried out, pleading her innocence.

"Pavilion Master, you... why? Why?" Kong Mingcheng was equally bewildered. Wasn’t the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion supposed to be working with the Qin Family and the Chen Family to suppress the Shi Family? As an elder of the Pavilion, he had been reduced to this state, and Mo Qianqian had blatantly stomped on the Pavilion’s reputation. Why was the Pavilion Master punishing him instead? Directly expelling him?

"I’ve already made the reason perfectly clear!" The Pavilion Master turned to Shi Muyao. "The Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion will continue its medicinal herb cooperation with the Shi Family. You two, come with me."

Shi Muyao was in a daze. She had thought they would be lucky just to make it out of the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion alive. Instead, not only did the Pavilion Master not punish them, but he was actually going to continue the partnership with her family?

"Pavilion Master, don’t forget that I was sent by the Central Earth Headquarters! My backer is the Kong Family!" Kong Mingcheng yelled.

"Drag them out of the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion!" the Pavilion Master ordered with a wave of his hand, already heading toward the third floor.

"Yes, sir!" The other elders unconditionally obeyed the Pavilion Master’s command.

Mo Qianqian and Shi Muyao followed the Pavilion Master upstairs.

"NO! Mo Qianqian, I’m going to kill you!"

"Please, no! Pavilion Master, I was wrong! I’ll change, I swear I’ll change..."

Kong Mingcheng and the gorgeous woman’s desperate wails echoed through the halls.

Soon, Mo Qianqian, Shi Muyao, and the Pavilion Master entered a room on the third floor—the Pavilion Master’s private office.

"Shi Muyao, I’ve reviewed the partnership between the Shi Family and the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion. It was ten thousand taels of trade per month," the Pavilion Master said directly. "Since the recent suspension of our cooperation has caused trouble for the Shi Family, how about I increase the quota to thirty thousand taels?"

"Yes, that’s absolutely wonderful! Thank you, Pavilion Master!" Shi Muyao said, brimming with excitement.

The Pavilion Master promptly took out a contract. Shi Muyao signed it on behalf of the Shi Family, and the Pavilion Master affixed his personal seal.

With the business concluded, the Pavilion Master saw them out. Mo Qianqian and Shi Muyao soon left the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion.

Stepping onto the bustling street, Shi Muyao could no longer hide the excitement on her face. "Tell me, you crippled Kong Mingcheng, so why did the Pavilion Master not only forgive us but also agree to cooperate, even tripling our quota?"

Mo Qianqian naturally knew that the Pavilion Master was betting on the favor of that "Spirit Master." But he couldn’t reveal that, so he bluffed, "Maybe I hit the right person?"

"Hit the right person? What do you mean?" Shi Muyao asked, confused.

"I mean exactly that—hitting Kong Mingcheng. Didn’t you hear the Pavilion Master? Kong Mingcheng was sent by the Central Earth Headquarters. He’s just a parasite ruining the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion’s reputation. But to give the headquarters face, the Pavilion Master couldn’t act against him personally.

"By crippling Kong Mingcheng, didn’t I do exactly what the Pavilion Master wanted? Partnering with us is just the perfect excuse to kick Kong Mingcheng to the curb."

"Is that really it?" Shi Muyao rubbed her head, half-believing and half-doubting his explanation.

"We secured the order anyway, so why worry about the details?" Mo Qianqian reasoned.

"True..." Shi Muyao nodded. Suddenly, she cast a meaningful glance at him. "You said earlier that I’m your wife?"

"In name only," Mo Qianqian clarified.

"Actually, it wouldn’t be impossible for it to be more than just in name," Shi Muyao said abruptly. She stared at him with a sly glint in her eyes, as if trying to read his reaction.

Mo Qianqian froze, momentarily unsure of how to answer. Saying no seemed a bit hurtful. But saying yes... well, they didn’t exactly have any emotional foundation. Their "marriage" had just been an accident.

After a brief moment of thought, he avoided answering directly and instead countered, "So, you’ll share a bed with me tonight?"

"In your dreams!" Shi Muyao scoffed playfully, dropping the subject. Yet, a trace of joy lingered on her face.

"Yaoyao!"

Right at that moment, a voice rang out. Mo Qianqian and Shi Muyao watched as a familiar figure suddenly darted out in front of them. It was none other than the gorgeous woman who had just been expelled from the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion.

She immediately grabbed Shi Muyao’s sleeve and pleaded through her tears, "Yaoyao, please save me! You have to save me!

"I—I know I was wrong! I apologize to you both! Yaoyao, for the sake of the many years we’ve known each other, please beg the Pavilion Master for me! Ask him to let me stay at the Ten Thousand Spirits Pavilion, please?"