Xiao Mu's eyes narrowed as he fixed the gaunt man with an intense gaze.

The gaunt man had the face of a hawk; despite his frail build, he exuded an aura of strength. To Xiao's surprise, the man was a peak power at the Fourth Realm.

Stone Soul was extremely fear-stricken by this man. Under his fierce gaze, he instinctively pulled back, stammering, "Perfected Ying, you...you..."

Without warning, the gaunt man known as Perfected Ying lunged at Stone Soul. He grabbed Stone Soul and shouted, "Speak up! Where is my brother I've been howling for? Why have you returned and he has not?"

"Perfected Howl...he...he died in the Demon Secret Realm." Stone Soul replied hastily, his voice pleading and full of panic.

"What?"

Perfected Ying, taken aback, roared with fury, "How is it possible that you survived but my dear brother didn't? How did he die?"

Stone Soul had somewhat regained his composure, "Perfected Ying, please calm down. This time, we encountered Beings of the True Realm, and suffered massive losses. Perfected Howl was killed by them."

"A Being of the True Realm?"

"What? A Being of the True Realm?"

"Someone encountered a Being of the True Realm?"

"Who managed to escape alive after facing a Being of the True Realm?"

...

As soon as Stone Soul's words left his mouth, the term 'Being of the True Realm' reverberated throughout the hall. The Mutated Beings in the hall were all taken aback and directed their gazes towards Stone Soul.

It's rare for Beings of the True Realm to appear in the Demon Secret Realm. When they do, it usually spells death for anyone there.

Few managed to escape from Beings from the True Realm.

Any Demon Secret Realm that has a Being of the True Realm is often obliterated, leaving no survivors.

The fact someone had survived after an encounter with a Being of the True Realm was indeed shocking.

"Nonsense!"

Perfected Ying refused to believe Stone Soul's tale, angrily shouting, "Had you encountered a Being of the True Realm, you would not have come back alive. Tell me how my dear brother truly died?"

"This..."

Stone Soul wore an expression of hopeless resignation.

Indeed, Perfected Ying's suspicions bore some truth. If they had truly faced a Being of the True Realm, the chance of Perfected Howl surviving would unquestionably have been higher than Stone Soul's.

"Perfected Ying, everything I've said is true. We indeed ran into a Being of the True Realm. Perfected Howl was killed by a demon that reached the True Realm Status. As for why I survived... it is all thanks to Mr. Xiao."

As he said so, Stone Soul looked over towards Xiao Mu.

"Mr. Xiao?"

Perfected Ying was taken aback and turned his attention towards Xiao Mu.

His sharp eyes quickly discerned Xiao Mu's cultivation level.

Furious, he yelled, "A mutant at the mid-stage of the Fourth Realm can handle a Being of the True Realm? Stone Soul, how dare you deceive me?"

Enraged, he swung his hand towards Stone Soul's head.

The intensity of his anger made it seem as if he were about to kill Stone Soul right there and then.

"Perfected Ying, please spare us! Perfected Howl's death was caused by a Being of the True Realm and had nothing to do with me." Stone Soul screamed, struggling to dodge Perfected Ying's attack. However, a whiff of purple mist emitted from the center of Perfected Ying's open palm.

The mist was imbued with a strange aroma that, upon contact with Stone Soul, left him weakened and unable to resist.

"Hehe! Perfected Ying, there's no need to resort to violence in the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall."

A grey, mud-like arm suddenly stretched out, stopping Perfected Ying's hand.

Xiao Mu was surprised to see that the owner of the arm was a Mud Bodhisattva at the peak of the Fourth Realm, just like Perfected Ying.

"Mud Bodhisattva! You dare to obstruct me?" Perfected Ying was furious as he turned to face the Mud Bodhisattva.

"Thank you, Mud Bodhisattva, thank you!" Stone Soul, a mixture of fear and relief, bowed deeply to the Mud Bodhisattva.

"No need for formalities!"

The Mud Bodhisattva nodded at Stone Soul, then chuckled at Perfected Ying, "Perfected Ying, starting a fight in the headquarters of the Alliance isn't good. Even if you have strong backers, I don't think they'd be able to handle the consequences of murder."

Perfected Ying's face changed slightly. After a few moments of contemplation, he glared icily at Stone Soul, "We'll settle our score later. I swear to investigate my brother's death." He turned to leave the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall after throwing Mud Bodhisattva one last venomous look.

The Mud Bodhisattva maintained a calm and warm expression all along. After Perfected Ying had left, he saluted Stone Soul and Xiao Mu before he also took his leave.

"Who? Who escaped from the hands of a Being of the True Realm? Shouldn't you step forward?"

Just as Mud Bodhisattva left, a middle-aged woman at the peak of the Fourth Realm stood up at the job desk in the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, her gaze fixated upon Xiao Mu and Stone Soul.

Her name was Song Dai, said to be a sentient old pine, and incredibly powerful. Song Dai, who generally did not frequent the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, was its overseer. It was Xiao Mu's first encounter with her.

Taking tasks on a first-come-first-served basis was the usual practice. However, teams that had encountered Beings from the True Realm were an exception; their situation was so rare and survival chances were so slim, making them eligible for priority handling.

"Didn't you claim to have encountered a Being of the True Realm? Why are you not stepping forward now? I suppose your so-called encounter with a Being of the True Realm is fictitious?"

A man with dual wings on his back standing next to Xiao Mu tauntingly declared when he noticed Xiao Mu and Stone Soul's hesitation.

"He Bei, stop blathering nonsense. How do you know we are not stepping forward?" Stone Soul retorted angrily, recognizing the winged man.

"Then hurry up, I am eager to know what this so-called Being of the True Realm looks like." He Bei continued to mock, making no effort to hide his ill-will.

"Mr. Xiao, shall we go?" Stone Soul, glaring at He Bei, gestured to Xiao Mu.

Xiao Mu nodded, taking an additional moment to commit He Bei's image to memory.

Ever since his arrival at the Alliance, he had realized that almost every Mutant of the Beast Race he had encountered was hostile towards him. Because of this, he constantly needed to be on guard to prevent potential attacks.

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