"Senior Brother Feng is right!" Mo Hua nodded and beckoned to call over the waiter. He pointed toward the stage at the cultivator dressed as a woman:
"I want 'her' to join me for a drink!"
The waiter hesitated, looked at Mo Hua with renewed respect, then went up and summoned that "woman" down.
The "woman," realizing she had been "roll-called," looked somewhat flustered.
The waiter pointed at the three members of Mo Hua's party. The "woman" narrowed her gaze and then, with her head bowed submissively, began walking towards them, though her steps gradually slowed.
Mo Hua said, "He's going to run..."
Ouyang Feng immediately dashed forward, stretched out a large hand, and tried to capture the "woman."
But the "woman" was prepared and retreated rapidly with a movement technique that emitted faint golden light.
Ouyang Feng failed to catch her and continued to pursue her, but he was blocked by a stranger.
The man, with a frivolous smile, said,
"Taoist Friend, you seem like a fine figure of a man, so why are you so ruthless towards the fairer..."
Ouyang Feng, impatient, didn't wait for him to finish and kicked him away, then resumed the chase after the "woman."
The "woman" ran ahead, this time without any pretense, clearly a man with an extremely proficient movement technique.
Murong Caiyun unleashed the Five-colored Spirit Light, delaying the "woman's" escape.
Mo Hua raised his hand halfway, then paused, his mind ticking over, and switched from the Water Prison Technique to the Fireball Technique.
He fired Fireballs at the "woman" one after another without care for accuracy.
His casting of the Fireball Technique was very casual.
Most of the Fireballs missed the "woman" and crashed into the tavern instead, causing a shower of flames and explosions, creating utter chaos.
Such a place, masquerading as fine but really a Land of Fireworks, couldn't be left alone...
Mo Hua made up his mind and unleashed his power without holding back, quickly turning a good portion of the tavern to ruins with his Fireball Technique.
Pink curtains burned, stages collapsed, and from behind the tavern came a cacophony of screams from both men and women.
The tavern owner was pale as a ghost.
He was running a secret brothel near the Qian Xue State Boundary, something that must not be exposed to daylight, or he would suffer the direst of consequences.
But he dared not act.
For he could tell that both Ouyang Feng and Murong Caiyun had high levels of cultivation and were not to be trifled with.
The tavern was a din of uproar and disarray.
The "woman" took the opportunity to escape, running north along the street.
Ouyang Feng went after her.
"Chase her!" commanded Murong Caiyun decisively.
"Right!"
Mo Hua nodded, taking the chance to slip away amidst the chaos.
The noise outside also drew many other cultivators; some from the Xie family and some from the Taoist Court.
The Cultivators from the Taoist Court, seeing the disheveled men and women in the tavern, knew without a doubt what kind of wine was being sold there.
Under the broad daylight, they were obliged to investigate.
The Xie family also recognized the fleeing "woman" as a traitor from the Sever Gold Sect, the very one they were hunting for.
Thus, both parties began the pursuit of the fugitive who had disguised himself as a woman.
But the traitor, transformed into golden light, was swift and sharp, making him difficult to catch.
After several streets, they suddenly lost sight of him.
The Xie family cultivators were enraged and cursed relentlessly.
Both Ouyang Feng and Murong Caiyun furrowed their brows, while Mo Hua watched intently.
He saw everything.
The traitor turned at a street corner, hid in a dark alleyway, and within a few breaths, he had changed his appearance completely, donning an inconspicuous and ordinary male cultivator's attire and yet another visage.
"Is this... Yi Rong?"
Mo Hua's eyes gleamed with curiosity and, pointing with his hand, he whispered to Ouyang Feng,
"Senior Brother Feng, that man!"
Ouyang Feng was taken aback. He was eager to ask how Mo Hua knew, but there was no time for questions, and he instinctively chose to trust Mo Hua's judgment.
Pretending to be casual, Ouyang Feng slowly approached the male cultivator.
But the man, alert as ever, immediately took off at a run the moment Ouyang Feng came within thirty feet of him.
Seeing the golden light on his movement technique, it indeed belonged to that betrayer!
Ouyang Feng drew his sword and continued the pursuit.