The middle-aged man hadn't expected Evan Lin to talk back like that, and his face froze for a moment. His companions, meanwhile, shot him mocking looks, making him feel utterly humiliated. "Kid, do you even know who we are? You dare talk to me like this—are you tired of living?"
Evan Lin filled his own cup and chuckled, "This is Lumastream City, right? If I remember correctly, killing isn't allowed here. Do you think I'd be afraid of you? The auction's about to start—if you don't want to end up dead, you'd better behave. Otherwise, you might not even know how you died."
"Heh, you’ve got guts, kid. Lumastream City is our Left Palace Lord’s turf. So what if I kill you? The City Lord’s a friend of ours—he won’t care what happens to you. Get lost, or don’t blame me for getting rough." the middle-aged man said.
Evan Lin didn’t respond and kept drinking by himself. Just then, one of the women in the group noticed the golden bird perched on Evan’s shoulder and said, "What a beautiful little flyer! I really like that bird. Man Niu, go get that golden bird for me. If you make me happy, maybe I’ll grant your wish."
The middle-aged man’s face lit up instantly. "Yu-sister, you mean it? You’re not just teasing me, right?"
"Believe it or not, it’s up to you. Don’t say I didn’t give you a chance," the woman replied.
Evan glanced at the woman—she looked to be about thirty, with some decent features, but her eyes were filled with a blatant, vulgar lust that made her seem downright cheap.
"Kid, hand over that golden bird on your shoulder and I’ll let this slide. Otherwise, you’ll regret it," the middle-aged man barked at Evan.
By now, Evan had pretty much finished his meal. He really wasn’t interested in making trouble with these small fry. He stood up slowly and said, "I’m done eating—you can have the table now. But if you’re after my bird, that’s not happening."
The middle-aged man saw how Evan refused to give him any face. "So you don’t know what’s good for you? Then you don’t deserve to live in this world. Die!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the middle-aged man lunged at Evan Lin, reaching straight for Goldwing. Evan dodged the grab with a subtle shift and moved away from his original spot.
"I don’t want to kill anyone, so don’t force my hand. Otherwise, you’ll be lying here next," Evan Lin said coldly, then headed for the tavern door.
The middle-aged man couldn’t believe Evan Lin was treating him like he was nothing. Furious, he swung a palm, aiming to kill Evan on the spot in the tavern.
But the man was only mid Ninth-Heaven Arch-Immortal Realm—nothing but an ant in Evan’s eyes. The rest of the group just sat down, quietly watching him try to kill Evan.
"Old Goldwing, this guy’s way too annoying. Kill him," Evan Lin said quietly to Goldwing.
Goldwing flickered in a burst of motion—a flash of golden light, then he was back on Evan’s shoulder. The whole thing took barely a blink. The middle-aged man froze in place, his raised palm stuck in midair, as if time itself had stopped.
Evan swaggered out toward the tavern door, completely ignoring the group. The woman snapped, "Man Niu really is useless—can’t even catch a little bird. And you think you’re man enough for me? Keep dreaming."
But the middle-aged man still didn’t move. A puddle of blood slowly spread at his feet, and when the others saw it, they rushed over—only to find he was already dead, with no trace of life in his body or Immortal Infant.
Dead—just like that, in front of everyone. No one had expected it. The killer was obviously the youth with the golden bird on his shoulder, but nobody saw how he did it. All they saw was a flash of gold.
There was a fist-sized bloody hole in the man’s chest—his internal organs were pulverized, and his Immortal Infant was shattered too. He died without making a sound, which was almost impossible to believe.
After a long silence, one of them finally spoke: "Who is that guy, anyway? How could he kill Man Niu in an instant? We didn’t even see it happen—it’s just too weird. Boss, did you see anything?"
"I didn’t see it clearly either, but I’m sure it had something to do with the golden bird on his shoulder. That flash of gold must have come from the bird, but I still don’t get how it killed him—the bird never left the kid’s shoulder," another middle-aged man said.
"Big brother, no matter what, we have to avenge Man Niu. We need to report this to the City Lord of Lumastream City. The auction’s about to start, and someone dared to kill in Lumastream City—that’s a huge deal. I’m sure the City Lord will give us justice," the woman who wanted the golden bird said.
"That guy’s no ordinary person—the only thing we know is he’s got a golden bird on his shoulder. So let’s go straight to the City Lord’s Mansion and tell the City Lord," the man called boss said.
The two of them left the tavern right away. Just then, the middle-aged man’s body collapsed to the floor, drawing the attention of everyone inside. The guests at the next table saw it too—"Someone’s been killed! There’s been a murder in Lumastream City!" one shouted.
The whole tavern erupted—someone had actually dared to kill in Lumastream City; they must have a death wish. The woman quickly told everyone about Evan Lin’s killing, describing the golden bird on his shoulder as well.
In no time, every patron in the tavern was talking about the owner of the golden bird. Some even said he was Evan Lin, the youth who’d appeared like a shooting star at Newcapital City’s auction a century ago. Now that a hundred years have passed, maybe he’s really come back.
Everyone thought it was highly likely, and the story spread like wildfire—getting more exaggerated with every retelling. Soon, word that Evan Lin had come to Lumastream City and killed someone was all over the city.
When the City Lord of Lumastream City heard the news, he paused in surprise, then flew into a rage. "No matter who it is, if someone dares kill in my city, they must be executed on the spot. Doing this on my turf is a direct slap in the face. Send two Immortal Lords to kill him as a warning to everyone!"
Meanwhile, Evan Lin was wandering the streets of Lumastream City, uninterested in the auction. He just wanted to see if he might run into anyone from Dream Spirit Sanctuary or Xuantian Pavilion…
(Keep it up—more to come this afternoon!)