Go and capture those thirty-six fierce villains.

Qin Ning looked at the corpse on the ground and sighed softly in his heart.

Despite rushing as fast as they could, one of them still died.

"Who goes there!"

The wealthy merchant noticed Mei Niang's unusual behavior and turned around abruptly. Seeing the strange figure suddenly appear at the door, he took a half-step back in fright, pointing his short knife at Qin Ning. "Trespassing on someone else's property! According to the laws of the Great Xia Dynasty, I have the right to order my servants to beat you to death!"

"I am Bai Gu, a Mohist..." Well, he probably wouldn't mind using Brother Ji Heng's name at this time. Qin Ning took a step forward, looking at the short knife in the other party's hand with a sneer, "The laws of the Great Xia Dynasty also stipulate that murder is illegal, and you still did it."

"These people were bought; they are all of low social status. As their master, I naturally have the right to dispose of them as I see fit!"

The wealthy merchant, his voice sharp and menacing, moved stealthily toward the window, preparing to summon the guards of his residence.

"You bought their people, not their lives."

Qin Ning's shoulders trembled, and the little black cat wearing a demon mask suddenly darted out, its sharp claws slicing across the man's wrist.

The short knife clattered to the ground.

"I've taken care of everyone in your household who can move, so you don't need to call for help."

Stepping on the short knife on the ground, Qin Ning was actually a little surprised. He didn't expect that this wealthy businessman surnamed Qian was really just an ordinary person who hadn't even embarked on any cultivation path.

"You... hiss~ What do you want? I have silver, I have lots of gold, I can give you anything!"

The wealthy businessman clutched his wrist, his expression no longer as cold as before, and his voice trembled slightly.

"You're not aloof anymore..." Qin Ning said indifferently.

"I'm not interested in money."

"Then...then I also have land deeds, I have a house in the East City, I..."

"I want the tree in your arms."

The wealthy businessman's mouth gaped open, his expression stunned. Suddenly, a pleading look appeared on his face: "This tree has been passed down from my ancestors. Here's what I'll do: I'll give you all my assets. Just let me go, and just don't want this tree."

Qin Ning scoffed, "How dare you say that? Of all the things your ancestors could have left you, why did they have to leave you a vicious tree that loves to drink human blood?"

"You know how to use this treasure!" The wealthy businessman exclaimed in surprise, his wrist suddenly raised and aimed at Qin Ning.

Whoosh!

A soft whirring sound filled the quiet, dimly lit room as a crossbow bolt with a bluish arrowhead shot out from his sleeve, aiming straight for Qin Ning's throat.

The raccoon dog, which had been positioned between the two men, leaped into the air, swung its little paw, and sent the crossbow bolt flying back, which, by sheer coincidence, struck the wealthy merchant in the knee.

"you......"

The wealthy businessman's face quickly turned ashen, and blood flowed from his mouth.

Clearly, the arrowhead was coated with a potent poison.

Seeing the other person collapse to the ground, their breath growing extremely weak, Qin Ning stepped forward, bent down, and smiled, "Do you know? I have a way to immediately cure this poison in your body..."

"...Save...me..."

The wealthy merchant struggled to hand over the purple clay pot in which he had planted dead wood.

"But I don't want to."

Qin Ning took the purple clay basin, a cold glint flashing in his eyes beneath the demon mask.

"Wait a little longer, someone will come to save you." After quickly stopping the bleeding, Qin Ning said this to Mei Niang, who was completely stunned on the ground. He carried the little fierce creature outside and, upon reaching the door, turned back and emphasized again.

"Remember, I am Mo Zhe Bai Gu."

...It's so embarrassing to introduce myself like this. I don't know how Brother Jiheng manages to say it every time.

Luckily, I was wearing a mask.

Arriving at the center of the courtyard, Qin Ning's palm crackled with lightning as he prepared to grasp the withered tree branch covered in golden leaves.

Suddenly, all the golden leaves on the dead tree fell, and a human face materialized on the two finger-thick branches.

"stop!"

"I am... Stop! I told you to stop!"

The arrogant voice gradually turned panicked, and a lightning bolt struck the withered wood with his palm. In an instant, the object, along with the falling golden leaves, transformed into specks of light, drifting towards the [Thirty-Six Great Ferocious Talismans] within Qin Ning's spiritual platform.

The golden tree appears no different from ordinary deadwood. When nourished with blood and flesh, it will grow three golden leaves daily; thereafter, one more leaf will grow every seven days, and the nourishment must be continuous. When it has grown thirty-three golden leaves in a single day, the golden tree withers, and a vengeful spirit arises...

"This creature has actually developed sentience; I wonder just how many lives that wealthy merchant has taken."

He casually tossed the purple clay basin aside and felt the white pages that had been illuminated in his mind. A moment later, an extremely warm and gentle power flowed through his mind, through his meridians, and into the dantian in his lower abdomen.

The purple radiance representing the origin of life in the Qi Sea increased by more than ten percent.

However, this time, the little evil [Golden Tree] did not bring Qin Ning any new supernatural powers.

"One small ferocious beast is worth more than ten days of my hard training. At this rate, it will take me at most two months to advance to the eighth-grade Refinement Realm. If only the small ferocious beasts I subdue in the future were all such useless ones." He sighed softly, then his expression suddenly changed.

The Bagua amulet slipped from his sleeve, still emitting a white light and scalding hot.

"There are ferocious creatures within a mile radius?!"

The incantation was cast, and the divination result showed the Dui trigram, which was due west. Qin Ning, with the cat, scaled the walls and over the houses, traversing the entire Qian family mansion with the cat, and arrived in front of a high courtyard wall.

He leaped onto the courtyard wall and cast a spell on the Bagua compass in his hand again, only to find that the direction still pointed due west.

Behind this wall is a narrow alley, and on the other side of the alley is the mansion of a wealthy merchant.

Qin Ning squatted on the wall and hesitated for a moment, when he heard faint noises coming from the Qian residence behind him.

It must be Brother Jiheng who has arrived with his men... He decisively climbed down the wall and entered the alley, stuffing the mask on his face and the cloak covering his body into the little black cat's mouth.

The person and the cat discreetly left from the back.

Qin Ning wasn't afraid of Bai Gu finding out what she was doing in this wealthy merchant's mansion. Bai Gu was simple-minded, and the two had a certain level of acquaintance.

What he feared was the order within Beian City.

Once he finds out that the wealthy businessman surnamed Qian died at his hands, even if the matter is considered righteous from a moral standpoint, it will be very troublesome to investigate.

That's why Qin Ning chose to involve Bai Gu in the game. With the Mo family behind him, dealing with these matters would be much simpler for Bai Gu than for someone like Qin Ning, who was all alone.

Qin Ning returned to Fulai Inn with a normal expression. On the way, she bought a local specialty snack from Bei'an City—roasted lamb leg—to give to the little black cat as a treat.

Cultivating inner peace, I calmly taught the little black cat to read.

Sleeping in anger.

Tomorrow he plans to first visit the location of the evil spirit, and then go to the pharmacy to check on the clinic.

......

Drunken Flower Pavilion.

Tuo Yu'er's ticket for tonight only fetched 30 taels of silver.

This left the madam, who had been determined to make her the top courtesan, slightly disappointed. However, she was confident, relying on her fifty years of experience in the industry.

We can definitely produce a unique courtesan who is both beautiful and talented.

The highest bidder followed Tuo Yu'er upstairs. He was an ordinary-looking young man in his early twenties, dressed in a scholar's robe.

The door creaked shut.

Tuo Yu'er's smile faded, and she walked casually to the table, picked up a piece of fruit, and took a big bite.

Then she looked at the man standing by the door and said, "What are you doing here? Has the plan changed again?"

The man in the scholar's robe gave a wry smile: "The plan remains unchanged. I'm here to run errands, Sister Yu'er."

As he spoke, he carefully took out a bamboo tube from his pocket and poured out a palm-sized scroll.

"A high-ranking official came and distributed this scroll to all the brothers in Suzhou, saying that if they had seen it, they should report it immediately."

"Who is it that warrants such a large fuss from the family?"

Tuo Yu'er threw the half-eaten fruit back into the plate, walked up to the man, took the scroll, and pointed to the bed curtains.

"Don't just stand there, go and rock the bed."

The man in the scholar's robe looked helpless, but still obediently walked towards the pear wood canopy bed.

A creaking sound rang out.

Tuo Yu'er returned to the table, casually opened the scroll, and her relaxed body suddenly tensed up before quickly relaxing again.

On the small scroll, the figures depicted were none other than Qin Ning and the cat.