192: The Xiao-Wang Duo (Part 2)

"Keep a close eye on everything! Don't think you can slack off just because the Prince isn't here these past couple of days."

"The Prince gave orders to strictly monitor work ethic recently. If anyone messes up, being fired will be the least of their worries!"

A skinny youth in black stood incessantly lecturing at the entrance, next to various goods continuously passing through security checks.

All goods first had to pass through three layers of Formation detection to confirm their origin was clear and that they contained no prohibited or dangerous items.

Only after confirmation were they moved to the manual inspection stage.

Staff first had to judge whether the goods could harm or strongly interfere with Divine Sense. If so, they were tagged and handed over to a Nascent Soul Stage steward for review. If not, the staff completed the audit themselves.

Just then, a large crate was opened, revealing four marinated whole roasted lambs.

The inspector looked momentarily dazed, his eyes slightly dimming. He then swept it with his Divine Sense, confirmed there were no issues, and prepared to close the lid and hand it over to a dedicated person to be sent to the warehouse.

"Wait!"

The skinny youth instantly flashed next to the inspector and grabbed the hand that was about to close the crate.

The inspector jumped, unsure how he had offended this "Living King of Hell."

"Master Xiao, do... do you have any instructions?"

The youth didn't answer, merely pulled him up with a gloomy expression, removing his specialized glove. The hand beneath the glove was wrapped in a bandage, faintly seeping blood and medicinal odors.

Next, the youth stuck out his long tongue and slowly licked the back of the other man's hand, staring intently at him.

The other inspectors nearby felt a chill run down their spines.

The inspector thought his virtue was in danger today, but remembering the children he had to feed at home, he could only grit his teeth and endure it... "You were injured and didn't report it? Do you have any idea how precious these foods are!"

The youth suddenly shouted, harshly scolding him, and flung him back into his seat.

"The Prince is a Nascent Soul Cultivator, how sharp is his Divine Sense! If even a trace of this medicinal or bloody smell clings to the goods and ruins the Prince's mood, can you bear the responsibility?"

"It looks like you don't want this hand anymore!"

As he spoke, a sharp dagger flipped between his fingers, and he looked ready to press it down and chop off the man's hand.

The scene was bloody and cruel. No one around dared to intervene, and several female Cultivators turned their heads away in discomfort.

The inspector was also stunned, never expecting to lose a hand over such a minor oversight.

No matter how sensitive the Prince was, surely he wouldn't take a life for just a bit of smell, right?

Besides, if even specialized gloves couldn't block it, wouldn't the moment the crate was opened count as contamination to the Prince?

He seriously suspected that this Living King of Hell was just using the opportunity to indulge his perverse hobby.

Knowing he couldn't escape, he still begged for mercy.

"Master Xiao, Master Xiao, please spare me! I won't dare to do it again!"

The youth laughed even more wildly. His hand went up, the blade came down, and blood splattered.

"There won't be a next time."

However, the expected severed hand did not happen. That strike only cut off the head of one of the "whole roasted lambs."

The blood spurted out from the sheep's body.

The head rolled away, and the sheep's body rapidly transformed into a human shape —it was actually an infiltrating Cultivator!

Seeing their companion killed, the neighboring "whole roasted lambs" also started moving. But before they could escape a few steps, several Flying Needles shot from afar, accurately piercing them and immediately triggering an explosion.

However, the explosion radius was warped and compressed by some spatial power, confining all the blood and flesh fragments within a fist-sized spatial sphere, preventing them from scattering.

The youth's expression soured; his newfound excitement was completely ruined.

"Tch, you old man didn't need to butt in, I could have handled it myself."

The steward sitting on the other side retrieved the Flying Needles and said calmly.

"You just finished lecturing your subordinates about being serious during this special period, yet you let your playful nature run wild? Is that appropriate?" After speaking, he took a sip of tea and gently spat out the foam.

Only then did the inspector realize he had made an error in his check, and he hurriedly moved to kneel and beg for forgiveness.

But before he could kneel, he was held up by a force. Looking up, he saw that the one who intervened was the youth.

"I said there's no next time —that means I, your old man, am letting you off this once. Don't you understand?"

"If you're injured, go back and rest. The Prince's Manor isn't so unreasonable as to trouble a sick person."

"Yes, yes, thank you, Master Xiao! Thank you, Master Xiao!"

The inspector never imagined that the usually strict and eccentric Lord Xiao would be surprisingly reliable at a crucial moment.

After he retired to rest, someone quickly took his place. The corpses and bloodstains were also cleaned up by specialized personnel.

The youth returned to the old man's side, looked at the busy crowd below, and showed annoyance again.

"Tch, this is annoying."

"It's so lively over in Kaifeng, but they specifically won't let me go."

"I finally got some fun, and you had to ruin it."

"Old Man Mo, you owe me a jar of good wine!"

Elder Mo merely smiled faintly and pushed a cup of tea toward him.

"Xiao Teng, you should really change this rogue temperament of yours."

"Once this matter is over, our status will change. You must restrain yourself in many ways and adopt a proper attitude."

"Do you still want to enter the palace?"

"Tch, this is annoying." Failing to get compensation, Xiao Teng became even more depressed.

"Whose side are these Truth Cult people on anyway? It's almost over, and they're still sticking spies in our territory. Do they not want to survive?"

"Characters who try to play all sides never come to a good end."

Hearing Xiao Teng's complaints, Elder Mo pointed at him and laughed.

"You know, you actually look a bit like an official now."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Teng immediately straightened up and adjusted his collar. "Really? Then tell me, what kind of official does my posture resemble?"

Seeing his ridiculous, dressed-up appearance, Elder Mo chuckled maliciously.

"You look like someone from the Inner Palace Secretariat, hahaha."

"Go to hell!"

When Xiao Teng heard the man imply he was a eunuch, he was so angry he kicked over the table. Fortunately, Elder Mo had been prepared and instantly teleported to the side, taking the tea set with him.

However, in the eyes of the crowd below, Elder Mo and Xiao Teng remained sitting upright in their high positions, gravely monitoring the entire area.

No one noticed that two small crates had already been quietly delivered into the warehouse... In the corner of the warehouse, one small crate was constantly opening and closing, with white foam oozing from the seams.

"Quick! Hurry! Give me the antidote, I can't take it anymore!"

The other crate nearby quickly shifted over and stuffed a Medicinal Pill inside the first crate.

Soon, the crate, which had turned slightly purple, returned to its original state, then transformed into a person holding a vase. That person was Xiao Sheng.

"Ugh —"

Not long after taking the antidote, Xiao Sheng hugged the vase and started vomiting.

He still had plenty of food made by Zhou Yan stored in his Storage Pouch. Coupled with his habit of not fasting and always indulging in large meals, the vomiting completely ruined a finely crafted porcelain vase.

On the other side, Wang Yao also took the antidote and revealed his human form. He casually stuffed the handful of herbs he was holding into his Storage Ring and subtly moved a few steps away from Xiao Sheng.

Ignoring Xiao Sheng, who was still "detoxing," he turned to examine the warehouse. The space wasn't large; it seemed to be only one of the Prince's Manor's many storerooms.

"I really didn't expect to sneak in this easily... It's a good thing you thought of this trick, or we would have been done for."

Recalling the scene just moments ago, Wang Yao still felt lingering fear.

That youth and old man were both at least Nascent Soul cultivation levels. They actually personally oversaw the inspection point and used their Divine Sense to scan carefully, completely unafraid of backlash from objects that could harm Divine Sense.

If they had followed Wang Yao's original idea of hiding directly inside the crates, they would probably have been dealt with on the spot, just like the other infiltrators.

Fortunately, Xiao Sheng came up with another method.

That was to disguise themselves as crates while holding onto some piece of cargo as they entered.

This way, everyone's five senses would first register the "crate," and only afterward would they notice the goods inside.

Even if someone didn't follow the procedure and scanned the goods early with their Divine Sense, the illusion created by the first glance would still make them perceive them as ordinary crates.

Xiao Sheng, who was pale from vomiting, leaned on the vase and managed to stand up, weakness mixed with smugness.

"Of course! When I step up, I'm worth two! I haven't been wandering the land for all these years for nothing."

In reality, Xiao Sheng had originally just thought that holding something while pretending to be a crate would be a more comfortable position; being cramped inside a crate was too suffocating.

However, since he had achieved success, this naturally became proof of his "farsighted planning."