Anthony's question left him speechless, not expecting the direction it spiralled to.

Chu Lan turned to A'Jiu.

"Who is that person?"

She smiled and sighed heavily.

"He's young master An. He's from a powerful cultivation family, and was passing by, so Miao Miao invited him in to rest. His family seems to have sent him out to gather real life experience for his coming of age, probably to inherit the legacy of his family. However, he's not from this place. He said his family is quite far away and he stopped by another friend's place before he continued his journey which brought him here. His horse is a spirit horse with cultivation and intelligence. It doesn't eat grass, only fruits and cereals. His clothes, his manners and the items he has all look very expensive. Whoever he is, his family is definitely loaded. Why do you ask?"

Chu Lan smiled awkwardly.

"Oh it's nothing. I just haven't seen him before, and his clothes were quite striking, I was merely curious."

A'Jiu smiled and nodded.

"That's right, young master An has quite the striking presence." She whispered, returning her attention to the scene before them.

"Young friend, why are you trying to slander me? What could I possibly gain by poisoning the dishes? I was not even a staff, just another guest visiting. Why will I…"

Anthony suddenly smiled without warning.

"Alright! There's nothing to get worked up about. Why are you fidgeting? Since you know the meaning of slander, why are you trying to pass the bucks to the girls by accusing them of murder? They're such innocent and cute little things, don't you think you will frighten them to death? In terms of having the ability to poison the dishes, you look like a more likely candidate. Hahaha." Anthony said, laughing it off as if he was making a joke.

The man's expression froze over, and he was barely holding back his desire to kill Anthony.

"Hey, you, you're accusing others to save your lover, isn't that right? Throwing brothers under the cart for a beauty." One of the man's accomplices shouted, trying to make Anthony look bad.

Anthony smiled lightly.

"Lover? I didn't know I had a lover in this mountain village. Please, do enlighten me on the identity of this lover. Who is she? "

"You can lie all you want. You have been with the girls ever since I arrived, they're always accompanying you. That's why you're willing to slander innocent people to protect your lover and her evil friends. You're shameless and wicked. Who knows if you were the one who instructed them?"

Anthony laughed loudly at this.

"So funny. I just arrived in this place a few hours ago. This was never my destination, I was merely invited in to eat. Yet, someone is trying to rope me into the quarrel of you uneducated locals. Do you have a death wish talking to me like that? If not because of my detour to this place, you will never be qualified to see my face. If you speak one more slander against me, I will have you provide the proof. And if you fail to do that, hehehe."

Anthony's temperament changed from that of an easy going youth, to an arrogant master from a powerful family in an instant to suppress them, and also feel them out. He smirked at that moment, most of the trouble makers were lower ranked cultivators who just began their martial arts journey with a non-existent talent. His aura made everyone around tame for a while and he scoffed, dispelling the pressure with a wave of his hand.

"What were you saying before?" Anthony asked with a huge smirk on his face.

"We may not be able to challenge you, but if you insist on protecting these sinners today, we will fight to the death." One of the thugs disguised as locals shouted.

"If they don't give us an explanation, we won't let her go." Another shouted. At this point, Miao Miao was crying weakly, unable to make a sound.

Anthony chuckled and looked at the crowd with one hand behind him.

"Do you prefer the explanation or do you want your loved ones to be saved?"

His question made a flicker of panic show on the hired thugs' faces.

"What nonsense are you talking about? The poison is said to be incurable and it has already seeped deep into their body system. Carelessly making such claims and raising false hope is despicable. Even if you want to save your friends, raising the hopes of the victims' family members is a very cruel thing to do. Besides, the doctor just now who is the best in the area said there was no cure. How can you claim that it's possible to save them?"

"Who said they can't be saved? He couldn't, but it doesn't mean others won't. Since I'm here, I won't let them die." Anthony said calmly, still smiling magnanimously.

Chu Lan quickly stepped forward on seeing things about to veer off track.

"Young master An, you must not act recklessly. If you rashly step in and make a mess it won't look good. Even if you're eager to help and make a good impression, you shouldn't be impulsive and make promises you won't be able to keep."

Anthony smirked, convinced that Chu Lan had something to do with the poison.

"Make a mess, for who exactly? All of you here already think they're as good as dead. What harm could it possibly do if I take a gamble on them? Is there anything worse than death that could happen to them? If I succeed, they will live and have a chance to survive this disaster. But if I fail, it would be that same death anyway, by then it won't be too late to make a decision. I think it's better than folding our hands as they suffer such agony!" He shouted, his voice loud and persuasive.

"I think the young master is right. It won't hurt to check them out. I truly don't want my son to die." A woman from the crowd wailed.

"But…" Chu Lan began, only to be cut off by Anthony.

"Chu Lan, you keep trying to stop them from being saved, determined not to give them the slightest bit of chance. Could it be that their death would benefit you? Is there a plan or conspiracy we're not aware of here? Why do you seem so eager to let them die and watch Miao Miao get lynched to death? I thought you're friends with them. But your actions make it seem as if you're one of those people plotting this." Anthony shouted, making Chu Lan clench his fist in rage.

"Very well then. Don't blame me for not reminding you. If you make a fool of yourself after all your loud boasts, let's see what you will look like then. I kindly reminded you to avoid getting involved in a mess that could ruin your reputation, but slander is the thanks I get. I truly misjudged you." Chu Lan said out of shame, totally livid.

"I understand your good intentions. But if I watch them die without doing my best to help, I will not be able to sleep at night. How could I bear to watch all these people in sorrow? Even if my reputation will be ruined, it's alright, as long as I did my best. It's better to regret my actions than to regret because I didn't do anything." Anthony said with a deep breath, feigning the aura of a righteous saint.

"Well said. That's what someone from a righteous clan should be like." Someone shouted. Soon cheers and shouts of support from the guests drowned out that of the people trying to create trouble and sow discord, temporarily diffusing the tension.

Anthony smirked at Chu Lan and he scoffed, glaring at Anthony. His eyes held barely hidden resentment as he walked away, probably to come up with a plan B.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.