The Starmist City had changed a lot since his last visit.
Duncan keenly felt that things were different from when he rushed out of the city on a horse. While nothing was different on the surface and people went about their work in the usual manner, anyone with a sharp eye can tell that the city had undergone some change since their last visit.
Not to mention Duncan who was now a cultivator.
Duncan decided that it would be best to gather some information before he set out to do what he came to do. So, Duncan fixed his destination to a bar, whose wine he had been wanting to try out for a long time, and made his way over.
The guard at the entrance took one look at his travel-worn clothes and tried to stop him from entering. But, the moment he met Duncan's eyes, he froze and took a step back without speaking anything.
Duncan merely smiled at him and walked inside without saying anything. But, the guard had goosebumps all over his body due to a simple gaze from Duncan. His legs shivered and he only let out a breath after seeing Duncan enter.
Duncan didn't care much about the state of the guard. In his mind, it was only natural that the guard was afraid of him. With his strength, Duncan would have taught the guard a severe lesson if he had dared to speak any nonsense.
When he didn't have any money and was weak, the guard would have beaten him up for daring to enter here. Even if he didn't beat him, he would have at least humiliated him for thinking about entering this bar.
Now that his strength was above the guard, why couldn't he beat him up if he dared to speak nonsense? Should he still bow his head and smile at the guard? That was pure nonsense.
This is the world where the strong ate the weak. There was nothing wrong with the guard preventing him from entering if he was weak. But, if he dared to prevent him when he was strong, then the guard can only be called ignorant. If such an ignorant person isn't taught a lesson, when will he learn?
What is power? This was power. Once, he wasn't even eligible to enter this bar. Now, he can waltz in without any worries. Even if someone wanted to stop him, they couldn't. This was the purest expression of his increase in power.
Duncan liked this feeling a lot. He suddenly had the urge to show off a little. In the sect, most of the senior brothers and other members of the sect were more powerful than him. He didn't dare act arrogant there. But here, he was feeling a bit empowered and wanted to feel this power a little bit more.
With such a thought, Duncan chose a table close to the bar and sat down. He leaned back and made himself comfortable. He didn't care about the dust on his clothes dirtying the upholstery. He arrogantly put his legs on the table in front of him and relaxed without paying attention to anyone else.
Duncan's actions didn't escape the eyes of the others present in the bar. A few of the patrons frowned seeing Duncan's antics, but they didn't say anything. It was as if they were waiting for the owner to kick Duncan out.
But, Duncan didn't care about these strange eyes one bit.
Soon, a middle-aged man with a severe frown appeared before Duncan. He looked at Duncan with disapproving eyes. Rather than speaking, he tried to pressure Duncan with his eyes, as if wanting to see Duncan reduce his arrogance.
Duncan glanced at the man and sneered inwardly. However, when Duncan saw the contempt and disapproval in the man's eyes, something within him stirred a bit. Even though he didn't care about this man's opinion, it just didn't sit well with Duncan.
"Bring me your best wine and some spirit beast meat," Duncan ordered nonchalantly.
"Ahem," the middle-aged man coughed and looked at Duncan in anger. "I am the manager of this bar."
"So, aren't you here to serve customers? If this isn't your job what the hell are you doing here? Send someone who can bring me what I ordered," Duncan replied flippantly not giving any face to the man.
"Mister, we don't serve your kind here," the middle-aged man said arrogantly. "We have certain standards for customers. Not any ignorant roadside bum could eat here. I don't know how you fooled the guard outside, but I think…"
The middle-aged man's voice faltered suddenly. His entire body started sweating as Duncan used targeted pressure to envelop the middle-aged man. The pressure formed due to the release of his entire peak Spirit Sea realm cultivation slammed into the man and made his knees go weak.
"What did you call me?" Duncan asked softly looking at the man as if he was daring the man to say it again. The feeling deep within him stirred even further when the man called him a roadside bum.
The manager gulped in fear. The manager was a cultivator at the peak of the Qi Gathering realm. It was this capital that allowed him to be in charge of this well-known bar in Starmist City. In Starmist City, this level of cultivation can be said to be above average in general. Hence, he hadn't paid much attention to customers usually.
Even though he was a bit neglectful of the customers, he knew that his major backing was the family behind him. And this bar was one of their top businesses in the city. So, any issue in the bar will be dealt with severely by him. With the virtue of his cultivation and family backing, he was used to acting arrogantly in the bar.
He knew very well who can be offended and who couldn't be. Most of the regular customers of the bar are wealthy people and a select few cultivators who rarely drop in. He knew each and every one of them. A person like Duncan who came from out of town will never enter such a bar with such shabby clothes.
Hence, he didn't think much. Seeing such a shabby person occupying the bar, he had come over to deal with him severely. Even if that person was an independent cultivator, he wasn't afraid due to his family background. But, when Duncan exerted his pressure, it became clear to him that this wasn't some ordinary loose cultivator.
He had only felt this kind of pressure in the presence of his patriarch. He never expected such a young person to possess this much power. Hence, he miscalculated and used some loose words at the beginning. Now, he didn't have the guts to answer Duncan's question at all.
"Esteemed guest, kindly forgive me for my ignorance. I will ask someone to serve you immediately," the manager stammered out in a hurry.
"No," Duncan said looking at the manager squarely. "You will serve me personally."
The manager hesitated a bit. He didn't mind serving Duncan. But, the loss of reputation that would follow was not something he is willing to bear. If Duncan was dressed better, it wouldn't be much of an issue. This was the world where strong reigned supreme. So, it wasn't a big deal.
But, Duncan was currently dressed in shabby clothes filled with dust and grime. If he served such a person, then his reputation would take a huge hit. However, there was no good way to refuse it either. He had already offended the man who was sitting arrogantly with his words earlier. If he refused, then who knows what this cultivator would do.
"Heh, so am I unworthy of your service as well?" Duncan pressed with a mocking smile.
However, there was a cold glint in Duncan's eyes. If the man dared to say something stupid, Duncan was ready to kill him on the spot. Apart from the City Lord's mansion, there wasn't anyone he was afraid of in the city. So, Duncan wasn't worried about creating an issue here.
The man had already called him a roadside bum. He should feel lucky that he only used his pressure to intimidate him until now. If he spoke nonsense even after this, then there was no need to be polite. Something about this man's earlier disdainful eyes had already irritated Duncan. Right now, he really had the urge to kill.
The man's face became chalk white when he felt Duncan's killing intent. The moment he met Duncan's eyes, the man knew that any negative answer will result in his death. In those eyes, he only saw death.
Lamenting his bad luck, the man assured it wouldn't be a problem and ran off to bring the items Duncan ordered. Duncan watched him go with cold eyes. The surrounding people felt surprised seeing the scene and they all hurriedly vacated the bar, not willing to be in the vicinity of Duncan.
Duncan didn't pay them much attention. But, there was a frown on his face. Right now, the thought of killing the man had come to him suddenly. He didn't know why he reacted so strongly to those contemptuous eyes. His temper wasn't this bad originally. Was it some side effect of his cultivation?
ραΠdαsΝοvεl ƈοm Duncan pondered with a frown.
He didn't dare to neglect this. He knew that some cultivation techniques have very bad side effects that might become a serious problem down the line. So, he was a little bit concerned about his sudden behavior.
Soon, the man came over with Duncan's order. Looking at the empty bar, the man's heart pained a little. But, he didn't dare to show his distress in front of Duncan. He obediently served Duncan his order and retreated into the distance.
Duncan didn't pay attention to him. His thoughts were filled with his sudden behavior change. He wanted to know why he reacted so strongly to that man's contempt. He wasn't someone who lost his temper easily. And this kind of bullying wasn't something new to him either. As a spirit stone miner, he had experienced far more than this.
So, why did he react so strongly….
*****
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