Looking at the old signboard, it didn't seem to be an imitation. The words on the signboard matched Yao Ruoxian's description as well. There was the aroma of wine and meat inside, so it should be an inn.
What surprised Miao Yi the most was that there were coconut trees in twos and threes all around him. There were actually coconut trees in the desert?
As for the outer wall of the inn, it was made of round logs, appearing both thick and old.
The environment of the inn consisted of a circle of earth walls that were as high as the shoulders, with stables and sheds inside. The inn was in the middle.
Miao Yi grabbed Cheng Yingwu and jumped off the eagle's back. Then, he cautiously scanned his surroundings and retreated to the entrance of the tavern.
At this moment, a streak of purple light and two streaks of red light landed outside the shop. They were an old man with a ponytail, a voluptuous woman in a flowery dress, and a man with thick eyebrows and big eyes.
"Father, Mother, Big Brother!" Cheng Yingwu's elder sister and brother greeted the three newcomers.
"The six leaders of the Hive Gang are all here!" A bystander who was watching the show from the sidelines laughed.
Miao Yi, who was already at the entrance of the store, felt a chill run down his spine. It seemed like the Hive Gang was a family. That old man with a Purple Lotus cultivation must be Cheng Yaowei.
The old man with a ponytail and loose robes stared at Miao Yi at the entrance of the shop and asked, "What's going on?"
"Fourth Sister slipped up and fell into someone else's hands," Cheng Yingwu's second sister explained.
"This girl doesn't know the immensity of heaven and earth. It's only a matter of time before she falls into someone else's hands. She's already lucky that they didn't kill her." Cheng Yaowei coldly snorted and stepped forward, "Friend! Since you don't want to kill her, just let her go. I, the Hive Gang, promise not to cause you any trouble in the future. "
From the looks of it, the other party wouldn't dare to make a move in this courtyard. However, Miao Yi still didn't feel safe. He immediately kept Cheng Yingwu into the beast sack and tucked away the Qilin Spear in his hand. Then, he retreated into the tavern. Cheng Yaowei and his family followed suit, giving off a feeling that they were about to gang up on Miao Yi.
A waiter with a white scarf draped over his shoulder welcomed them and said with a smile, "Everyone, I'm here. There were eighty tables and eighty rooms in the shop. You could eat, drink, and stay there. Those who paid were all customers. If you don't have to pay, I won't accept you. The shop is too small to accommodate so many idlers. "
Miao Yi scanned his surroundings. The space inside wasn't small, and there were quite a few tables set up. However, there weren't many guests. It seemed rather deserted, probably because it was too late. A man dressed like a scholar was lying on the counter, dozing off. He turned his head and said, "I want the best food and wine on the table. I have something to discuss with Head Keeper Cheng."
"Alright! Please come in and enjoy a table of top-notch dishes! " The waiter led Miao Yi to the innermost table by the wall. He removed the white towel from his shoulder and quickly wiped the table and chairs, before inviting them to take a seat. "Please wait for a moment. The dishes will be served soon." He then left.
Miao Yi sat down. Cheng Yaowei and the woman each took a seat, while Cheng Yingwu's eldest brother, second sister, and third brother stood behind them.
"Head Steward Cheng, may I know the names of these people?" Miao Yi looked at them and asked.
Cheng Yaowei couldn't help scrutinizing Miao Yi a few more times. He realized that this guy had a calm demeanor, and wasn't the least bit afraid of him.
The flowery clothed woman beside him had already introduced herself. "Wu Qunfang!"
"Cheng Yingfei, Cheng Yingxia, Cheng Yingxiang." Cheng Yingwu's eldest brother, second sister, and third brother all announced their names without hesitation. Their faces bore some resemblance to each other. All of them stared coldly at Miao Yi. As expected of a family.
Cheng Yaowei said, "Kid, don't talk nonsense. What will it take for you to release my fourth brother? "
Miao Yi didn't want to waste his breath on him. "I want to know who's trying to kill me!"
Cheng Yaowei: "We don't know who the employer is. We only work for money and only contact the middleman. Unless the employer comes to us directly, that would be more likely."
"The middleman should know. Help me pry it out of his mouth. Then I will return Cheng Yingwu to you. "Miao Yi immediately stated his conditions.
Wu Qunfang said, "Kid, not to mention that we can't pry the information out of the middleman's mouth, even if we could, we wouldn't do it. The Hive Gang only has a foothold in Flowing Clouds Dune Sea because of their fists and reputation. If we really betray our employer, we won't be able to stay in Flowing Clouds Dune Sea anymore. I think you should change your conditions! "
Miao Yi shook his head. "Whether or not you can stay in Flowing Clouds Dune Sea is none of my business. All I know is that your daughter is in my hands. I just want to know who the employer is!"
Cheng Yaowei said solemnly, "Release my daughter, and the Hive Gang will promise not to touch you in the future. Consider it our loss this time. We will follow the rules and compensate the middleman twice as much as we promised and withdraw from this mission. That's our bottom line. Don't even think about anything else! "
Miao Yi smiled. "Boss Cheng, you seem to have misunderstood something. You're the ones begging me, not the other way around. Your daughter is in my hands!"
Cheng Yaowei said, "So what? Let go of Little Four, and we'll let you go. Otherwise, I guarantee that you'll die a horrible death the moment you step out of Tempest Tavern. You better stay here for the rest of your life if you dare! "
Miao Yi scoffed. "I'm no gentleman. Your daughter is quite pretty. I can't guarantee that I won't do anything untoward to her."
As soon as he said this, Wu Qunfang and her three children were instantly enraged.
Cheng Yaowei slammed the table and stood up. He glared at Miao Yi and said, "I've had six wives and over twenty children in my life. All of them are still standing before you. As for the others, they died in various ways. Two of my wives and four of my daughters were raped, then brutally murdered. There were even some who had their bodies stripped naked in front of me, but I didn't back down at all. There's no other reason than because if this family collapses, none of us will have a good life. I can't possibly ruin the Hive Gang's reputation just because of one person's life. I'll drag the entire family down with me. Do whatever you want to Little Four. I'll avenge her later. If my children are all dead, I'll have more. That won't be a threat to me! If you don't send Little Four safely out of the tavern before sunrise, then don't ever step out of the tavern again. Let's go! Prepare to collect Little Four's corpse! "
With a wave of his hand, he beckoned for his wives and children to leave together. Wu Qunfang glanced back at him with a hint of sorrow in her eyes. However, she still turned around and followed her husband resolutely.
Miao Yi's expression twitched. The method that could threaten Cheng Yingwu was completely useless against this old man. He was a little too stubborn. He never thought he'd run into someone like this. As a newcomer to Flowing Clouds Dune Sea, he finally had a taste of how stubborn Flowing Clouds Dune Sea's people were.
"Wait!" Miao Yi shouted as he stood up.
The entire family stopped in their tracks and turned around. Miao Yi smiled bitterly and asked, "If I let her go, can you guarantee that you won't come after me?"
Wu Qunfang immediately replied, "The Hive Gang's word is our word. For the sake of our word, we're willing to sacrifice our own daughter's life. Do you think your life is worth more than my daughter's?"
Miao Yi was silent for a moment, then said, "Then I'll add another condition!"
Cheng Yaowei scoffed, then turned around to leave. However, Wu Qunfang grabbed her husband's arm and advised, "It won't be too late to say anything after you hear him out. If he goes overboard, then just ignore him." That was her daughter after all. She turned to Miao Yi and said, "Tell me what you want to say first."
Miao Yi slowly said, "If I want to leave Flowing Clouds Dune Sea, you must ensure my safety! This is also my bottom line. Someone is trying to kill me now, and I don't even know who it is. If I can't leave this place safely, then I'll just end up dead. I might as well drag your daughter down with me! Your daughter almost took my life. I've already given you enough face by not killing her yet. Don't force my hand! "
This wasn't an overboard request! Wu Qunfang glanced at her husband. Seeing that he wasn't saying anything, she quickly replied, "Fine! I promise you! "Then, she looked at Miao Yi expectantly.
"I hope you'll keep your word!" Miao Yi pulled Cheng Yingwu out from the beast sack, then released her in front of everyone. Then, he casually tossed her out.
Wu Qunfang caught Cheng Yingwu in her arms, and the siblings behind her immediately surrounded her. An Eighth Grade Red Lotus shone on Wu Qunfang's forehead. She was clearly in the middle of channeling her arts. Meanwhile, the layer of frost on Cheng Yingwu's body was growing thicker and thicker. It was obvious that the yin poison in her body was being forced out.
A moment later, the layer of frost around Cheng Yingwu exploded and fell to the ground with a loud bang. Under her mother's channeling, Cheng Yingwu slowly opened her eyes. When she saw her mother, she weakly called out, "Mother."
Her vitality had been damaged by the cold Yin energy for too long. Fortunately, she was treated in time. Otherwise, she would've been crippled even if she didn't die.
After examining her, Wu Qunfang said to Cheng Yaowei, "It's nothing serious. Her vitality was just damaged by the cold Yin energy. She'll be fine after some rest."
Cheng Yaowei nodded, then glanced at Miao Yi. He didn't expect Miao Yi to return the things he stole from his daughter, so he turned around and said, "Let's go!"
Just like that, the entire family left.
Miao Yi felt a little helpless. He originally wanted to use Cheng Yingwu as a hostage to find out who was behind this. Who would've thought he'd run into such a tough family? He glanced at the other tables and sat down as well.
Soon, a waiter came in with a tray of food and wine. He smiled and said, "Please enjoy!"
'The taste is not bad!' As Miao Yi slowly ate, he observed the interior of the tavern. Other than its tidiness and cleanliness, there wasn't anything special about it. At most, it had an exotic feel to it. He wondered what kind of person the owner of this tavern was. Even a Purple Lotus expert like Cheng Yaowei didn't dare to cause trouble here.
However, it was already late at night. There weren't many customers around, and the owner wasn't around either.
When he was almost done eating, Miao Yi shouted, "Bill please!"
The waiter came over and bowed, saying, "Ten thousand Gold Crystals!"
Miao Yi was taken aback. He pointed at the items on the table and exclaimed, "Ten thousand Gold Crystals for something like this?"
The waiter smiled and said, "It seems this is your first time here, Sir. It's fine. I'll explain it to you. This is the rule of this tavern. As long as you enter, it doesn't matter what you eat, it's still ten thousand Gold Crystals. You can even exchange ten Orbs of Will for it. If you really don't have money on you, you can bring something with you. I'll immediately get someone from the Chamber of Commerce to help you exchange. Also, this isn't just for the food and wine. We'll also give you a guest room for free for a day. Of course, it doesn't matter if you stay or not. We'll still charge the same amount. We're not trying to rip you off. "
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