“You don’t have certification from the Array Symbol Master Guild, yet you’re selling array symbols privately. This is simply a heinous crime!” The man with the bushy beard spoke through gritted teeth, making unsuspecting people think he was the embodiment of justice.

Apparently, only array symbol masters certified by the Array Symbol Master Guild could sell array symbols. Furthermore, buyers wouldn't trust those who weren't certified. However, Chen Xiao was an exception. Everyone had seen his array symbol skills firsthand. Even without certification, people trusted him.

As for the "heinous crime" the bushy-bearded man mentioned, that was an exaggeration. He was simply trying to intimidate Chen Xiao because of his young age.

Chen Xiao was not one to be trifled with. He glared and said, “What makes you say I don’t have certification from the Array Symbol Master Guild?”

“Yeah, what makes you say Mr. Chen doesn’t have certification?”

“You’re slandering him! We won’t allow you to bully people with your power!”

“That’s right, without evidence, you’re just making false accusations!”

At this moment, the crowd who came to buy array symbols also felt indignant. They questioned the bushy-bearded man one after another. People are like this: once their interests are harmed, they won’t stand idly by. And now, in their hearts, their greatest loss would be if Chen Xiao was taken away and couldn't sell them array symbols.

The bushy-bearded man didn't expect Chen Xiao to have such high prestige among this group. He was overwhelmed by the questioning and, in his panic, blurted out, “What do you know? Young Master Zuo told me personally that the Array Symbol Master Guild has no record of this kid’s certification!”

“Heh heh!” Chen Xiao chuckled coldly and said in a deep voice, “So you admit you were sent by the Zuo family?”

“I, I…” Only then did the bushy-bearded man realize he had let something slip. But since things had come to this, he simply said stubbornly, “Hmph, Young Master Zuo was just providing me with evidence. Don’t try to muddle the waters with me. You broke the law first; are you going to resist arrest now?”

“Who broke the law?” Chen Xiao said dissatisfied, “Are you saying selling privately is illegal? But I haven’t sold anything yet. What makes you say I broke the law? Ask them if you don’t believe me.”

Hearing Chen Xiao’s words, the crowd knew that Chen Xiao didn’t have certification from the Array Symbol Master Guild. But so what? As long as the array symbols were real, who cared about some bird certification?

So they said in unison, "That’s right, Mr. Chen hasn’t sold anything to us."

Chen Xiao folded his arms and looked at the bushy-bearded man with a smile, as if to say, "What can you do to me?"

The bushy-bearded man was both angry and anxious. He was angry that Chen Xiao didn’t take him seriously at all, and anxious that he was about to ruin the task Young Master Zuo had given him.

“Damn it, I say you broke the law, so you broke the law!” The bushy-bearded man cursed in a fit of anger. “Men, tie him up for me!”

As soon as the bushy-bearded man finished speaking, the constables behind him immediately took out ropes.

Just as Chen Xiao was about to resist, he heard Old Wang say with a sneer, “Chen Xiao, don’t move; let them tie you up. Once you’re tied up, it won’t be so easy to get untied.”

Hearing Old Wang’s words and seeing his confident expression, Chen Xiao immediately felt relieved, stretched out his hands, and said, “Come on, hurry up and tie this young master up!”

The officers holding the ropes hesitated a bit. They knew that the bushy-bearded man was acting under the instructions of Young Master Zuo, but they weren’t. There was no benefit for them if things went well, but if they offended the wrong person, they wouldn’t have a good time. And they had just seen Chen Xiao’s prestige among the crowd. They wouldn't believe Chen Xiao didn’t have some ability even if they were beaten to death.

At this moment, the bushy-bearded man’s expression was also a bit uncertain. Although Young Master Zuo had investigated Chen Xiao’s background and told him everything, he didn’t know Old Wang’s identity. But there was no turning back now. The bushy-bearded man sneered and said, “Hmph, don’t listen to their bluster. Tie him up for me. I’ll take responsibility if anything happens.”

Hearing the bushy-bearded man’s words, the officers holding the ropes could no longer hesitate. After all, the bushy-bearded man was their boss, but they were careful when they acted, tying Chen Xiao with the rope very gently, for fear of hurting him.

“Take him away!” The bushy-bearded man ordered.

“Hold on!” Old Wang stopped him. The bushy-bearded man wanted to ignore Old Wang, but he saw Old Wang take out a sound transmission talisman from his pocket and transmit, “I’ll give you one incense stick’s worth of time. Come here immediately, or you’ll bear the consequences!”

The sound transmission talisman was just a very low-level array symbol. As long as they established a connection with each other’s sound transmission talisman, they could use it to transmit sound in the future.

The sound transmission talisman was not a rare item, but the bushy-bearded man was completely relieved. He was sure that Old Wang was bluffing. In his mind, the more people like Old Wang who put on a show of strength, the less real ability they had.

Moreover, he felt that Old Wang was just a small array symbol shop owner. Even if he knew some powerful people, he would never dare to speak to the other party like that. He looked at Old Wang like he was watching a joke and said with a sinister smile, “Keep acting, keep acting. I’m not leaving today. I want to see who you can bring here.”

Chen Xiao just watched all this silently. This matter didn’t need to be so complicated in the first place, and Old Wang’s purpose in doing so was to show him his power. So he guessed that the person coming would definitely be of considerable importance. The bushy-bearded man was about to face a great disaster and didn’t even know it; it was truly laughable.

Just then, a tall horse came galloping from afar. It stopped in front of the Zheng Yi Pavilion, and the person on the horse pulled the reins, dismounted, and came directly to Old Wang. He cupped his fist and said respectfully, “Old Wang, I wonder why you summoned me?”

This was a slightly overweight middle-aged man. Although his appearance was ordinary, he faintly had the aura of a superior. Old Wang acted as if he didn't see him and didn't speak, leaving him hanging there, showing off his status.

Seeing that Old Wang didn’t speak, the middle-aged man was so anxious that he was sweating. He could say that he owed his current position to Old Wang’s guidance, so no matter how Old Wang treated him, he didn’t dare to get angry, let alone ask what had happened. He just stood there respectfully with his hands cupped.

The bushy-bearded man carefully looked at the middle-aged man for a while, but he couldn’t recognize who he was. He cursed inwardly, “Tch, what’s with all the acting?”

Old Wang was silent for a while, and when he felt that the time was right, he snorted and said, “Hmph, keep your subordinates in line. Don’t let them do things that help the wicked do evil.”

Only then did the middle-aged man dare to turn around slightly. He saw several officers tying up a young man with ropes. Although he didn’t recognize the young man, these officers were under his control. He breathed a sigh of relief and had a plan in mind.