The scale of the banquet was not very large, with only seven or eight tables filling the front courtyard of the City Lord's Mansion. The various leaders of the factions present were mostly familiar with one another; even if they were not close, they were aware of each other's existence in the city.
Sitting at the same table as Ke Luoda were the leaders of smaller factions like the Fist Mountain Gang, or rather, most factions in the city were like the Sand Crocodile Gang, having only one external strength expert.
"Sand Crocodile, long time no see, hope you are well," said Wan Yan, the leader of the Fist Mountain Gang, looking at Ke Luoda with a smile like a tiger.
As for Li Qing and his confidant, who were following behind Ke Luoda, they were completely ignored by everyone present. After all, the City Lord had invited the prominent faction leaders in the city, and those like them, who had no notable reputation and were not even external strength experts, naturally did not attract much attention.
Li Qing was quite pleased with this; he tried his best to minimize his presence, cautiously observing everyone present with his peripheral vision.
Ke Luoda had always maintained a neutral stance in the city. In response to Wan Yan's greeting, he merely smiled and clasped his fists: "I am well, Wan Gang Leader. Your martial arts have improved again; it seems that reaching the internal strength level is just around the corner!"
"Hahaha, if it were that easy to reach internal strength, our Great Rock City would not have only two internal strength practitioners," Wan Yan waved his hand and laughed.
Ke Luoda silently added in his heart, plus this young man beside me, it should be three.
As time passed, the leaders of the various factions in the city had mostly arrived. Factions like the Great River Gang and the True Martial Gang, which had two external strength experts, could be considered first-rate forces in the city.
Just as Li Qing was still observing, an elderly voice echoed from outside the mansion.
"Hahaha, City Lord Qin is indeed aging like fine wine; it seems you are about to reach the transformation of qi level!"
As the voice fell, an elderly man in a blue robe with white hair stepped in. He was full of vitality, but the most striking feature was his red nose. The newcomer was none other than Ge Wen, the president of the Red Fish Chamber of Commerce!
As soon as this internal strength expert appeared, all eyes in the courtyard were drawn to him. Even Li Qing curiously scrutinized him for a while, wanting to see what kind of person this renowned internal strength expert in the city was.
Soon, another slightly hoarse voice rang out from within the mansion.
"Hmph, old Ge, if it weren't for the trouble you've caused recently, making the relationships among the faction leaders so strained, would I, at my age, still have to come out and show my face?"
The City Lord, Qin Xiu, then made his appearance. He wore a white robe, exuding an ethereal aura, looking less like a martial artist and more like a recluse who had distanced himself from the mundane world.
Qin Xiu leaned on a cane, slowly stepping out. At this point, the two prominent internal strength experts of Great Rock City had all appeared!
Seeing this, Li Qing instinctively restrained his qi and blood, trying to lower his presence to the minimum. Among martial artists, as long as one did not deliberately reveal their cultivation level, it was still quite difficult to perceive others' martial arts realms if they wished to hide.
Of course, this was not absolute; there were always some unexpected occurrences. For example, Yang Xing among the heroes of Sheng Tian Liangzhou had a peculiar internal martial art that allowed him to sense others' qi and blood, thus determining their approximate martial arts level.
Facing such individuals, even if one wanted to conceal their martial arts realm, it would be extremely difficult. Internal strength experts could temporarily control their qi and blood, but could not do so for long; it was estimated that only upon reaching the level of a Transformation of Qi Master could one perfectly control themselves.
As Qin Xiu and Ge Wen took their seats, the courtyard fell silent, with everyone looking towards the City Lord, waiting for him to speak.
"Thank you all for coming. At my age, it is truly an honor that you faction leaders still give me face!"
"However, to be frank, I called you all here today under the guise of celebrating my birthday, but I believe everyone knows the real reason."
As his words fell, Jia Dachun, the leader of the Great River Gang, could not help but let out a cold snort.
"Hmph!"
In response, Qin Xiu was not bothered; he merely smiled and continued, "When I first took power in Great Rock City, I said that we must maintain order, and that harmony brings wealth. We should not resort to violence at the slightest provocation; any issues can be discussed calmly."
"Over the years, it has been manageable. Although there have been some frictions, we have managed to get by!"
"Unlike now, where people are quick to threaten to wipe out entire factions, making this old man truly anxious!"
Upon hearing this, many people in the courtyard began to murmur inwardly.
This old fellow still feels anxious? When you first took office, you had blood on your hands, and not a little at that.
In other words, Qin Xiu was able to sit in the position of City Lord because he had fought his way up.
However, it was precisely because of this that everyone respected Qin Xiu from the bottom of their hearts.
"Alas, if only everyone could be like Ke Gang Leader of the Sand Crocodile Gang, I wouldn't have to worry so much," Qin Xiu continued to speak to himself.
Many people exchanged knowing glances with a hint of amusement at Ke Luoda, who was known to avoid trouble in the city.
This surprised Li Qing; he did not expect Ke Luoda's way of dealing with matters to be quite similar to his own.
Called out by name, Ke Luoda's heart skipped a beat, and he forced a smile, cupping his fists towards those around him.
At this point, Qin Xiu sighed lightly and said, "Jia Dachun, you have been the most restless lately. How about this: do me a favor, and let this matter pass?"
Not knowing where he found his courage, Jia Dachun, facing the City Lord whose martial arts were a level above his, actually argued back:
"City Lord Qin, it's not that I don't give you face, but three of our men have indeed died. If we let this matter pass, how can I maintain the trust of my subordinates?"
Suddenly, the atmosphere around them became tense, as if a pin drop could be heard.
Li Qing raised his eyebrows slightly, curiosity flickering in his eyes. Where did this Great River Gang leader find his confidence?
Could it be that he had also reached the internal strength level?
This was getting interesting; how would City Lord Qin handle this matter?
Li Qing watched the unfolding drama with great interest, adopting a mindset of enjoying the show without caring for the trouble.
Indeed, Qin Xiu's expression darkened slightly. He lightly tapped the table with his fingertips, seemingly pondering something.
"Jia Gang Leader, if you wish to provoke a war between factions, I cannot agree to that."
"However, I will have someone investigate this matter thoroughly, and when the culprit is found, I will hand them over to you. How does that sound?"
(End of Chapter)