Universe Infinite Canteen

Joyful times are always fleeting, and soon after returning from the ski resort, everyone was back to their busy work.@@novelbin@@

Soon, it was time for Ma Lu to go out and gather ingredients.

He placed the Bug Egg on top of his head and entered a state of meditation.

When he opened his eyes again, he was already standing in front of Deng Youtai's grave.

By chance, there was a young couple nearby who had just finished paying respects to their ancestors and were preparing to leave.

Seeing Ma Lu appear out of nowhere, the woman was so frightened that she sat down on the ground, and the man, also with a face full of terror, screamed, "A ghost!"

Ma Lu originally wanted to explain, but felt it was too much trouble and simply cocked his head and stuck out his tongue.

The couple screamed in horror and ran away.

After they left, Ma Lu retrieved the clothes he had hidden last time, changed into them, picked up his sword, and then returned to the city.

As soon as he entered the city, he felt that the atmosphere was somewhat different from when he had left.

Not only were there fewer pedestrians on the street, but also the passersby were hurrying, and the shops along the street had closed their doors in broad daylight. Stay tuned for updates on My Virtual Library Empire

Ma Lu hadn't gone far when suddenly a group of beggars wielding wooden sticks rushed out of an alley and surrounded him.

The leader was a fat beggar with a round belly, his gaze toward Ma Lu was quite unfriendly.

"Who are you, do you have a Hero's Post?"

"Hero's Post, what is that?" Ma Lu hadn't expected that in the few days he hadn't logged in, they had updated to a new version. He was about to humbly ask for advice.

Suddenly, the fat beggar exchanged glances with those around him, then raised the wooden stick in his hand and jabbed at Ma Lu without warning, shouting as he did so.

"Everyone, get him! Tonight, Steersman Hao will take us to Drunken Goose Tower for a feast."

"Hmm?"

Before Ma Lu could understand the situation, he was jabbed with the sticks and dragged into the fray.

Opposite him, the beggars were lined up on the street, all wielding sticks but in a variety of stances.

Some held their sticks over their heads, some thrust forward with their sticks... among them was a young boy about ten years old, sniffing as he dragged his stick behind him.

They were primarily an undisciplined mob.

The ones who truly looked like disciplined fighters were only the fat beggar and another tall beggar.

Both started in the same stance, with the right foot firm on the ground, left foot stepping forward into a feint, toe touching the ground, right hand holding the stick above the right ear, and pushing down with the left hand gripping the middle.

After getting into position, the fat beggar called out to Ma Lu, "Boy from Heavenly Dragon Sect, you are surrounded by us. You stand no chance against eight, so surrender quickly without suffering more."

"I'm not from the Heavenly Dragon Sect, and do you count the ten-year-olds when you tally up people?" Ma Lu asked with a weird expression.

"What's wrong with being ten? At ten, I can still whip your ass!"

Though the young boy looked as thin as a monkey and had hardly any flesh on him, perhaps because he had been mingling with gangs from a young age, he had learned to talk tough despite his youth.

Because he had acknowledged Zhu Qianyuan as his cheap senior brother, Ma Lu didn't want to make an enemy of the Beggars' Sect.

But since these people had surrounded him inexplicably, if he didn't show his power, they would probably not easily back off.

The fat beggar took the initiative and played the first card, which was a Heart Method Card.

Ma Lu looked at it and remarked, "Ah, it's the Minor Eternal Spring Technique, truly the most widely circulated inner strength mental method in Jianghu, with such a high duplication rate."

However, this Minor Eternal Spring Technique was merely cultivated to the 1st Level by the fat beggar, barely an entry-level skill. Besides giving him a slight boost in True Qi, this Heart Method Card had no effect on healing.

Yet, despite this, the other beggars still looked at the card with eyes full of desire.

After all, it was a Heart Method Card. Although the Beggars' Sect was the largest sect in the world, most of its members were just like workers in an electronics factory.

They might say they worked for a Fortune 500 company, but their job was still just screwing in bolts.

And while a Fortune 500 company at least provided social security, the lowest members of the Beggars' Sect had to fend for their own basic needs.

On regular days, they were scattered, begging in the streets and alleys, only being gathered by their superiors for tasks when something happened.

Struggling even to meet their basic needs, let alone practice martial arts.

Of course, their numbers were more than enough to deal with ordinary people. With a couple of martial practitioners among them, they could handle the average denizen of Jianghu.

But this time, they were not facing ordinary martial artists.

After patiently waiting for the opposite side to play a round of cards, it was finally Ma Lu's turn.

He played a card of the Minor Eternal Spring Technique as well, but it was the Great Perfection edition, instantly gaining 6 points of True Qi.

The beggars across from him stared wide-eyed, and the fat beggar's eyelids twitched as a strong sense of foreboding arose within him.

He quickly turned and shouted towards the entrance of the alley, "Quick, Mantou, find Steersman Hao and ask him to bring people to save us."

In that alley, another even younger beggar was hidden, around seven or eight years old, not involved in the card game, but kept as a backup by the fat beggar, specifically to respond to such situations.

The Beggars' Sect, being the local snakehead in Qingzhou, especially with many high-ranking members gathered in Yuchang County and numerous experts present, could certainly hold out for a while until reinforcements arrived.

But by that time, it was uncertain how many would still be breathing.

Especially the first one targeted by Ma Lu, was almost certainly on a path to death.

Thinking of this, all the beggars involuntarily shrank their necks, and the few who had been the loudest earlier had now grown quiet.

The young boy who had just been bragging about beating Ma Lu's butt into blossoms was now pale as clay, frightened to the point that he could hardly grip his stick.

Mantou was indeed obedient and upon hearing the command, he began to run to fetch help; but the next moment, he was lifted off the ground by someone.

"Hey, little beggar, so eager to go somewhere?"

The speaker was a big bearded man, who clearly had Barbarian lineage, with deep-set eyes, a high nose, thick body hair, and a pair of blue eyes.

"Let me go!" Mantou tried to look fierce, which only amused the Barbarian Big Man, who burst out laughing.

The fat beggar recognized the newcomer's identity and couldn't help exclaiming, "Green-eyed Ghost, you are the Green-eyed Ghost, Yit!"

As he spoke, his voice trembled, and his body soon followed, wetting his pants.

It wasn't that he was particularly cowardly; rather, the fearsome reputation of the Green-eyed Ghost was just too notorious.

The man named Yit didn't waste words, he motioned at the fat beggar with a tilt of his chin, "Release him, or I'll eat you all, starting with this little one. His skin is the tenderest, hehehe."

Already intimidated by Ma Lu's martial prowess, the appearance of the even more terrifying Green-eyed Ghost thoroughly crushed the beggars' will to fight.

They all pleaded for a truce, and once Ma Lu agreed, they dispersed in a tumult, not even bothering to save Mantou.

Yit sized up Ma Lu and, without wasting words, grinned and said, "Come with me."