The middle-aged man saw him still clinging tightly to his leg. At that moment, the turtle swiftly scurried over, opened its mouth, and bit his other leg, giving Tangxin Tangyuan a chance to escape.
“Iron Mountain, why are you so slow? It’s just capturing two little brats, and you’re actually being held up by a cripple and a turtle.”
Another person had arrived—a young man not much older, dressed in military green.
He grabbed Tangxin Tangyuan, tucked her under his arm, and was about to leave when he suddenly let out a sharp cry and threw Tang Yuan onto the ground.
“You little rabbit brat, daring to bite me!”
As he spoke, he lifted his foot and kicked Tang Yuan, sending the small child flying.
“Tang Yuan!”
“Brother!”
Tang Xin kicked her little legs and, with a fierce growl, bit down on the man who was holding her.
The man, in pain, cried out and then struck her twice, making little Tang Xin burst into loud sobs.
As she cried, she released her bite, but when the man bent down to grab Tang Yuan, she bit him again, this time on his waist.
Enraged, the young man yanked her down and raised his hand to choke her neck.
At the same time, he tightly gripped Tang Yuan’s neck.
“Stop! Let them go!”
“A cripple, yet your life is quite tenacious. Why don’t you just die for me!”
The middle-aged man finished speaking and forcefully kicked him away.
The divine beast Black Tortoise, seeing its little master about to be choked to death, could not tolerate this.
It immediately prepared to transform, but before it could move, it sensed its master’s aura and held back.
Jiang Manman returned at that very moment.
Witnessing the two children on the verge of being choked to death by the young man, Jiang Manman flew into a rage and charged at the man.
She drew a Flying Sword from her Dimension and swung it directly at the man.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to use a Talisman; it was just that none of her storage items contained any Talismans that could be activated at the early Qi Training stage.
She resolved to create some low-level Talismans for emergencies in the future.
Seeing her charging with the sword, the young man tried to use the child in his grasp as a shield.
But Jiang Manman swiftly twisted the Flying Sword in her hand and cleanly severed the young man’s hand that was choking Tang Yuan.
“Dare to lay a hand on my children? Die!”
She lifted Tang Yuan and immediately stored him in the Spirit Spring Dimension of the Refreshing Heart Glass Tower.
At the same time, her sword moved with precision and speed once more, slicing off the head of the young man whose hand she had just severed.
After storing Tang Xin in the Spirit Spring Dimension as well, she did not spare the corpses on the ground, directly sending them into the Blazing Sky-Burning Hell.
She hurled her Flying Sword, piercing through the back of the man who was trying to flee upon seeing the situation turn sour. Walking over to him, she similarly stored him in the Blazing Sky-Burning Hell.
With a cold expression, she headed toward Tang Changsheng, kicking a troublesome turtle far away along the way.
Divine Beast Black Tortoise: “Master, let me explain. This realm restricts my transformation.”
Jiang Manman couldn’t care less about its explanation; she didn’t want to hear it right now.
Approaching Tang Changsheng, she crouched down to check his condition. Despite multiple stab wounds, he was still alive—his vitality was remarkably resilient.
“Can you hear me?”
Tang Changsheng’s fingers twitched slightly as Jiang Manman’s voice reached his ears.
“Your injuries are severe; you should be aware of that. I’m giving you a chance to take you to the Thunder Realm. Whether you survive will depend on your fate.”
Tang Changsheng’s hand twitched slightly as he managed a weak nod.
Jiang Manman’s house was located in the western part of the village, relatively secluded, and usually no one would come by.
She directly sent Tang Changsheng into the Thunder Realm.
Inside the Thunder Realm, lightning flashed and thunder roared, with the intensity of the lightning gradually increasing from the lowest level toward the interior.
Seeing the person she was carrying resembled a ragged doll, Jiang Manman dipped him into the Spirit Spring and then carried him back into the Thunder Realm.
She retrieved the Jade Slip she had given him from his person, stuffed it into his hand, and then turned to leave.
She went to check on Tang Xin and Tang Yuan in the Spirit Spring.
As for the two individuals in the Blazing Sky-Burning Hell, she would later delve into their memories.
Tang Yuan and Tang Xin were severely injured. The two little ones lay separately in the Spirit Spring, their feeble state evoking deep pity.
Jiang Manman extended her Divine Sense into their bodies to examine them thoroughly. Both children had sustained serious injuries.
Tang Yuan, in particular, had scrapes on his small face, two broken ribs from being kicked, and minor internal injuries.
Tang Xin’s injuries were relatively lighter, but her neck bore dark bruises from being choked—clearly, someone had tried to strangle her to death.
Damn it! Once she found out who these people were, she would destroy their lair.
Given the circumstances, the only option was to let them slowly recover in the Spirit Spring, nourished by its energy.
She then went to the center of the Spirit Spring, determined to break through to the third level of Qi Refining this time, so she could help the two children channel Qi into their bodies and speed up their recovery.
With this in mind, she swallowed an Essence Cultivation Pill meant for Foundation Establishment Cultivators.
The powerful medicinal energy surged through her meridians, causing her entire body to swell like a balloon.
Her meridians were shattered by the impact, but fortunately, the Spiritual Fluid at the center of the Spirit Spring was more potent.
It could repair her ruptured meridians. The process of having her meridians torn apart and then restored was excruciatingly painful.
To break through the barrier of the third level of Qi Refining, Jiang Manman didn’t actually need to take the Essence Cultivation Pill.
But she was furious—furious at her own incompetence, especially when the two children were injured and nearly lost their lives.
As for that Xuanwu, what could be expected from a creature that had just hatched a couple of days ago?
If she had reached the third level of Qi Refining earlier and been able to externalize her Spirit Energy to draw a few Talismans to protect the two children, today’s incident would never have happened.
Even if this mortal body was inadequate, she was no novice in the World of Cultivation. Yet, after several days, she still hadn’t reached the third level of Qi Refining.
She had almost lost her two precious disciples because of it.
Driven by sheer determination and resolve, she was determined to break through to the third level of Qi Refining this time.
Her meridians were repeatedly shattered and repaired, and the barrier of the third level of Qi Refining eventually became as fragile as paper, breaking at the slightest touch.
Not only did she break through the third level, but she also easily shattered the barriers of the fourth, fifth, and even the sixth level of Qi Refining, only stopping at the seventh level.
Exhausted, she fell into a deep sleep.
Meanwhile, in the Thunder Realm, Tang Changsheng lay discarded like a ragged doll. The wounds on his body had healed after being dipped in the Spirit Spring.
After an unknown amount of time, his hand twitched, and his entire body convulsed before he slowly opened his eyes. He reached out with the Jade Slip in his hand, a bitter smile tugging at his lips.
Then, he clenched the Jade Slip tightly, closed his eyes, and resolved to grow stronger, cultivate immortality, and form a Nascent Soul to rebuild his physical body.
When he opened his eyes again, his gaze was filled with determination. He turned to look at the Thunder Realm and began crawling toward it, one laborious movement at a time.