Before he entered the formal process, Li Chonglou clearly had an attitude of wanting to strike first, but once he entered the formal process, he could immediately withdraw. This was not something an uninformed person could do!
Qi Jing and the other looked startled, then reacted.
Dong Wen gritted his teeth and said, "Is that how Master's matter is just going to be dropped?"
Yuan Bei did not answer him but shifted his gaze to Li Chonglou.
"You want proof, right? Fine, I'll give it to you."
Yuan Bei took out a golden token from his embrace and threw it directly at Li Chonglou.
Li Chonglou took it, and the token felt special, like metal but with the coldness of stone. It was clearly not an ordinary item.
One side of the token was engraved with the words "Commoner," and the other side featured a lifelike golden dragon with eight claws. Just looking at the carving, one could feel a sense of inexplicable pressure.
This thing actually had the same aura as the treasures he had obtained from the underground world.
Li Chonglou certainly did not doubt the other party's identity, nor did he recognize the token. This was all just going through the motions.
He immediately threw the token back and said coldly, "Even if you are from the Commoner's Association, you don't have the right to kill people arbitrarily!"
This was an interrogation, and it also shifted the problem to another point of contention.
Yuan Bei said in a deep voice, "I will give you an explanation afterward, but today, all of you must come back with me!"
Come back with you?
Wouldn't that be like sending a sheep into the tiger's mouth? Li Chonglou said coldly, "An explanation afterward? If I can't give an explanation to my people today, how can my company continue to operate?"
Yuan Bei frowned, "You are Li Chonglou, the boss of Tonggu Mingjin Company, right? We from the Commoner's Association always keep our word. If we say we'll give you an explanation, we will! But we will also take away the people we want to take!"
Li Chonglou sneered, "What great authority! Does that mean whoever your Commoner's Association declares guilty is guilty?"
Yuan Bei suppressed his anger and said, "Let me say it again: we in the Commoner's Association always operate according to rules. If we are wrong, we admit it, but rules are rules. If you continue to be uncooperative, don't blame me for being impolite!"
Once a matter entered the formal process, they could not act arbitrarily. This was why they did not reveal their identities immediately upon arrival. However, this restriction on arbitrary action had conditions.
If the other party still refused to cooperate after their identities were revealed, they would have a legitimate reason to use force!
This kind of dominance was one of their privileges as a powerful force!
Dong Wen's eyes lit up, and he was ready to make a move. According to the rules, as long as Li Chonglou refused to cooperate again, he would no longer have to worry about any damned rules!
However, to their surprise, Li Chonglou was unusually firm at this moment.
"I don't care about your rules! All I know now is that your people killed my employees. If this matter is not resolved, I don't care who you are, none of you will leave today!"
Li Chonglou stared coldly at the three men and suddenly raised his right hand.
"If they want to fight, we will fight to the end!"
Dong Wen's eyes lit up again, and he quickly looked at Yuan Bei, "Brother Bei, did you hear that? They are not cooperating!"
Yuan Bei, however, frowned, "Don't act rashly yet."
"Why!"
Isn't this the best time to make a move? Dong Wen couldn't understand why Yuan Bei hadn't given the order to attack!
Yuan Bei shook his head but did not explain.
In fact, it was difficult to say directly. He understood very well that although Li Chonglou's attitude was tough and expressed his unwillingness to cooperate, his main point was that his own people had killed someone first. If this was not resolved first.
Any action taken at any time would be on their unjust side!
With this in mind, Yuan Bei couldn't help but say to Li Chonglou in a deep voice, "We did kill the person. What kind of explanation do you want?"
At this moment, he had given up the idea of acting immediately. As long as Li Chonglou and his people agreed to go back, he would have plenty of ways to retaliate!
The most important reason was actually strength.
If Li Chonglou and the others had normal cultivation strengths, he could have taken them back and dealt with the matter later. But now, he couldn't see through the strength of the group in front of him.
Although they were several realms weaker than him, the situation had become like this! If a fight to the death were to occur here and their own strength was further depleted, the matter would far exceed their original plans and intentions.
Yes, he had reservations.
This was the real reason for his repeated concessions!
And how could Li Chonglou not know Yuan Bei's intentions? Similarly, his goal was to prevent the other party from taking his people away at all costs!
Zhou Tong and Hai Yan had already retreated behind the crowd. Except for Hai Yan, who hadn't experienced a major scene and was still a bit slow to react, Zhou Tong had already regained his composure.
Fearing that Li Chonglou might agree, he specifically came to his side and whispered, "Brother Li, we can't give them a reason to take us away. There is finally someone targeting us behind the scenes!"
Li Chonglou looked at Zhou Tong with surprise. He didn't expect that an ordinary person could see through things so clearly.
Yes, he had already realized this.
Logically speaking, a force that could be on par with the General Bureau would not be ignorant of how to govern with the tide.
No matter how powerful a force was, if it did not know how to be low-key and win over the hearts of the people, it would eventually be overthrown by others! Where there is oppression, there is resistance. This is an eternal truth.
The immediate escalation of conflict, and even treating them as if they were not normal people at all, was contrary to common sense.
There could only be two reasons for this outcome: either they were inherently like this, and this was their style of operation.
But if that were truly the case, Li Chonglou believed that the Commoner's Association could not have existed for so long, unless they were the sole dominant force in Shangjing!
However, in reality, there were the General Bureau and the War Association, which were on the same level as them.
Therefore, it could only be the second reason: someone was deliberately targeting them! The three people in front of him were just pawns of that person!
Li Chonglou had understood this as early as when he returned and saw the ruins. After all, he had asked Elder Tie, and although the Commoner's Association was strong in its dealings, it was not arrogant enough to disregard all sense of proportion.
Li Chonglou nodded and comforted him, "Don't worry, leave it to me."
Then he said to Yuan Bei, "It's very simple. First, I need to know why you killed my employees. What unforgivable death penalty did they commit, or what?"
Yuan Bei's eyes narrowed slightly, and just as he was about to speak, Li Chonglou continued, "Second, you came out of nowhere and wanted to take people away, and you even killed my employees. They are all ordinary people with parents and children! I have reason to suspect that you might be imposters!"
Yuan Bei couldn't help but say, "Didn't I already show you the proof!"
Li Chonglou sneered, "I got my hands on it just now. Does that mean I'm also a member of the Commoner's Association?"