Chapter 248: Chapter 248: Give Him a Punch

"Nonsense. It was obviously you," the hook-nosed youth said coldly.

"Ridiculous. With so many people here, did anyone see me make a move? I didn’t even lift a finger, so how could I have attacked?"

A member of the Law Enforcement Team immediately went to question the crowd. He returned a moment later, shook his head, and said, "Captain, the man really didn’t make a move."

"He injured me with a Soul Power blast. How could anyone else have seen it?" the hook-nosed youth said.

"HAHAHA." Ye Xuan couldn’t help but burst into laughter. "Judging by your attire, you’re also a Soul Refiner, and not a low-level one. There are other Soul Refiners here, too. Let me ask you: do you really think it’s possible for me to injure you with a Soul Power blast without anyone else noticing?"

Hearing that both men were Soul Refiners, the expressions of the Law Enforcement Team members shifted. The Floating Light Assembly was about to begin, and countless Soul Refiners from the Thirteen Nations Alliance were gathering here. It was the Law Enforcement Team’s duty to prevent conflicts that might tarnish the reputation of the Celestial Gold Kingdom.

Both men were Soul Refiners, and so young at that. They were likely talented disciples from some kingdom, which made the Law Enforcement Captain instantly conflicted about how to handle the situation.

"But it was clearly him!" the hook-nosed youth roared. "Officers, arrest him already! Is this how your Law Enforcement Team upholds the law?"

The Law Enforcement Captain shot him a cold look. "Do you have any proof?" he asked, his voice chilly. "If you have evidence that he injured you with a Soul Power blast, we’ll take him away immediately. Without proof, we can’t just take your word for it."

"You..." The hook-nosed youth’s face fell. He knew perfectly well that Ye Xuan was the one who had attacked him, but he had no way to prove it.

He also knew that the Law Enforcement Team likely believed him, but without evidence, their hands were tied.

"Fine, kid. Just you wait," the hook-nosed youth said icily, his gaze toward Ye Xuan filled with venom.

"Alright, if there’s nothing else, you can all disperse. Don’t just stand around crowding the place," the Law Enforcement Captain said with a wave of his hand.

"Hold on." Ye Xuan suddenly spoke up. "Officers, your timing is perfect. Are all the shops in your Meili City this crooked? Why is it that after I buy something, not only do I receive no protection, but I’m also repeatedly threatened and even told to hand over my purchase? Is this how shops in Meili City do business? If so, you might as well just be robbers. What’s the difference between this and being common bandits?"

The members of the Law Enforcement Team were about to leave, but hearing Ye Xuan’s words, they stopped and turned to the shop owner. Their gazes were icy as the captain asked, "Is what he says true?"

The shop owner’s heart skipped a beat. "Officers, it’s a misunderstanding, just a misunderstanding!" he said hastily. "The transaction wasn’t complete, that’s why this whole scene occurred. I certainly didn’t force anyone to hand anything over. Besides, I already returned the Profound Tickets he gave me."

Seeing Ye Xuan refuse to back down, the owner grew anxious. Though he was a first-grade Soul Refiner and held a respectable status, the entire Celestial Gold Kingdom was prioritizing order among the various nations during the Floating Light Assembly. His shop held no special privileges.

Ye Xuan sneered. "A fine ’the transaction wasn’t complete.’ We clearly agreed on the price, and you accepted the Profound Tickets. Now you have the nerve to say the deal wasn’t done? You’re twisting right and wrong, calling black white. Or are the rules of commerce in Meili City different from the rest of the Thirteen Nations Alliance?"

"But I gave you the Profound Tickets back!" the shop owner said anxiously.

"You unilaterally gave them back. Did I agree to that? The moment you saw a higher offer, you tore up our agreement to reclaim an item that was already sold, just to conduct a second transaction. Heh, the Celestial Gold Kingdom truly lives up to its reputation as the leading power in the Thirteen Nations Alliance. So arrogant, so domineering, so shameless," Ye Xuan sneered.

"You’re spouting vicious slander! Officers, I did no such thing!" The shop owner’s forehead was slick with cold sweat. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

"Whether I’m slandering you or not, plenty of people who were here earlier saw what happened. The point is, it would be one thing if the shop owner had simply reneged on our deal. But to make more money, he ganged up with another customer to threaten me! Officers, if you hadn’t arrived when you did, I would have already been ’taught a lesson’ for refusing to back out of our transaction. I have faith in Meili City. I’m sure Meili City will see that justice is done."

"I..." The shop owner’s heart sank, but he was at a loss for words.

The Law Enforcement Captain pondered for a moment, glanced at the onlookers, and then nodded. "I understand the situation," he said. "State your demands."

Ye Xuan immediately replied, "Excellent. Thank you, Captain. You truly handle matters with fairness and impartiality. It seems the Celestial Gold Kingdom does live up to its reputation as the leading kingdom; there are still rules here."

With that, Ye Xuan shot the shop owner a cold glare. "My first demand is for him to apologize to me in public. My second demand is compensation."

"Done," the Law Enforcement Captain said, turning to the shop owner. "Apologize to him."

"Yes... I’m sorry," the shop owner stammered, his face beet red. "I was blinded by greed just now. Please, sir, be the bigger person and forgive my foolishness. Give me another chance." Apologizing in front of so many people was utterly humiliating; he wished the ground would swallow him whole. His heart seethed with hatred for Ye Xuan. ’Damn brat, making me apologize to you in front of all these people! Just you wait. As long as you’re in Meili City, I’ll find a chance to get rid of you or my name isn’t worth dirt.’

Under the crowd’s watchful gaze, the shop owner finished his mortifying apology.

"The apology’s done," the Law Enforcement Captain said. "Now, how much compensation do you want? Name your price."

"My demand for compensation isn’t much," Ye Xuan said lightly. "Just ten Tier Six materials."

The moment he spoke, the crowd erupted.

Ten Tier Six materials? He called that ’not much’? What a joke! Selling off this entire shop probably wouldn’t be enough to pay for ten Tier Six materials.

"You... That’s impossible..." The shop owner was so furious he was trembling.

The Law Enforcement Captain frowned. "Sir, isn’t your demand a bit excessive?"

He was also feeling a bit annoyed. Ye Xuan’s demand was outrageous. The shop owner couldn’t meet it even if his life depended on it.

Ye Xuan said calmly, "He doesn’t have to pay. Instead, he can just take one punch from me."

The Law Enforcement Captain’s gaze toward Ye Xuan turned icy. "Fighting is strictly forbidden inside Meili City’s shops, let alone killing. Surely you understand that?"

Ye Xuan replied, "I’m aware of that. You can rest assured, Captain. I don’t intend to kill him; I just want to land one punch to vent my frustration. You know, if you hadn’t arrived, what they had planned for me would have been far worse than a single punch. This request isn’t too excessive, is it? Besides, with my strength, one punch won’t kill him. I doubt I could even make him cough up blood."

"Of course, if he’s not willing, he can just provide the ten Tier Six materials as compensation. I’m a very reasonable person."

The onlookers were secretly speechless. This youth looked young, but he was full of wicked cunning. Just like with the hook-nosed youth suddenly coughing up blood—though no one knew exactly what had happened, they were sure this kid was behind it. Now, he wanted to punch the shop owner, using the ten Tier Six materials as a bargaining chip. It wasn’t going to be a simple punch.

Those who understood what was happening were already pitying the shop owner. ’One punch,’ they thought. ’Given this young man’s ruthlessness and methods, it won’t be a light one.’

The Law Enforcement Captain looked at the shop owner. "It’s your choice."

He couldn’t be bothered to get more involved; he just wanted the matter resolved as quickly as possible.

The shop owner gritted his teeth, his expression shifting several times before he finally spat out, "Fine. I’ll take the punch."

"Good," the Law Enforcement Captain nodded, then said to Ye Xuan, "Go ahead and punch him. Let’s get this over with."

Clearly, in his eyes, this was a trivial matter.

Hearing this, Ye Xuan stepped forward without the slightest hesitation and slammed a fist into the shop owner’s chest. He then dusted off his hands, stepped back, and cupped his fists toward the Law Enforcement Captain. "Since things are settled here, I’ll be taking my leave."

The Law Enforcement Captain glanced at the seemingly unharmed shop owner and nodded. Ye Xuan then turned and left the shop.

"Feeling pretty proud of yourself, aren’t you, kid? Just you wait." The hook-nosed youth followed Ye Xuan out the door, delivered his threat, and then swaggered away.

Ye Xuan didn’t spare him a thought. With a cold smile, he disappeared into the street.

Inside the shop, a few employees hurried over. "Boss, are you alright?"

The shop owner shook his head. He had been bracing for a vicious blow from Ye Xuan, but surprisingly, the punch had no effect. He hadn’t felt a thing, not even a twinge of pain. He sneered internally. ’Looks like that kid is all talk. When it came down to it, he didn’t even have the guts to strike a heavy blow.’

"Officers, thank you for all your trouble," the shop owner said, cupping his hands toward the Law Enforcement Team. Although they hadn’t taken his side, he knew he would be dealing with them for a long time to come, so he still offered a few polite words.

"Try to be more careful from now on," the Law Enforcement Captain chided. "Especially with the Floating Light Assembly starting. Don’t stir up any more trouble."

"Yes, yes, I’ll keep that in mind," the shop owner said, feigning deference despite his inner scorn. In his mind, he was already plotting his revenge on Ye Xuan. ’To open such a large shop in Meili City, I have my connections,’ he thought. ’Finding information on that kid won’t be hard. If he has no powerful backing, and I don’t get payback for this, how will I ever hold my head up in Meili City again?’

The Law Enforcement Captain knew what the owner was thinking but said nothing. With a wave of his hand, he turned and left with his team.