The barrier could only block sounds from inside; sounds from outside could still flow in. Liu Zhaomei had been keeping an eye on Zhu Qingqing all along. Seeing her panicked expression, she immediately stepped forward to help.
She grabbed Zhu Qingqing’s arm and exerted all her strength, but Zhu Qingqing didn’t budge an inch.
Liu Zhaomei also panicked. She had never encountered such a strange situation. She turned her head and asked, “Ouyang Mu, Situ Shen, was it you two?”
Ouyang Mu himself looked stunned. He had initially thought Zhu Qingqing was pretending to deceive him, but seeing the genuine panic on their faces, he snapped back to reality and said, “It wasn’t me.”
Situ Shen’s smile vanished completely, and he frowned. “It wasn’t me either.”
Aside from the four of them, only the black-robed man and the shopkeeper were present.
The shopkeeper’s cultivation level was too low to restrain Zhu Qingqing.
That left only the black-robed man.
The hearts of all four sank.
To effortlessly restrain a Yellow Realm cultivator, one would need at least Mystic Realm cultivation.
The strength of cultivators is ranked from low to high as follows: Yellow, Mystic, Earth, Heaven, Spirit, King, Immortal, Emperor, and Divine.
These nine major realms are each divided into nine levels, with the first level being the lowest and the ninth level the highest.
A Mystic Realm first-level cultivator could easily defeat dozens of Yellow Realm ninth-level cultivators.
All four of them were only at the Yellow Realm. Even if they gave it their all, they might not survive a single move from the black-robed man.
They were completely outmatched.
Zhu Qingqing’s face turned pale. She was done for.
She had misjudged the black-robed man’s temperament and had thoroughly offended a powerful cultivator.
Zhu Qingqing didn’t want to die. She quickly pleaded to Fu Ruheng, “S-senior, this junior knows she was wrong. This junior should not have harbored ill intentions toward you. Please forgive me.”
If her legs hadn’t been immobilized, Zhu Qingqing would have knelt on the spot.
Her arms trembled with fear, and her ingratiating expression was utterly distorted.
Fu Ruheng didn’t look at Zhu Qingqing’s face. Instead, he stared at her sunken legs.
Zhu Qingqing had come to cause trouble for him, but before she could even create any trouble, it had already been resolved.
The familiar approach that came rushing toward him was undoubtedly that person’s doing.
Thinking of that person lurking by his side all along, Fu Ruheng felt inexplicably pleased.
Especially that person’s childish and clumsy way of protecting him made his heart tingle, as if he had eaten Sichuan peppercorns—a numbing, tingling sensation.
Fu Ruheng’s lips were as pink as cherry blossoms. He curled them upward, and the tips of his ears flushed a delicate pink.
His heartbeat was much faster than usual.
Fu Ruheng’s silence made the four of them, including the shopkeeper, tremble with fear.
Nothing was more terrifying than a sudden silence, especially from a powerful cultivator with such an inscrutable aura!
Outside the screen, Ruan Ruoyin was having a blast.
She glanced at Zaizai, and her heart immediately clenched.
The Chibi Character was wrapped in a black robe, likely with his head lowered, quiet and still, as if silently conveying his grievances.
Ruan Ruoyin’s heart ached so much!!
These despicable villains! Zaizai had lived for eighteen years, bullied for eighteen years, and even when buying medicine, he was still being bullied. They really didn’t treat Zaizai as a human being!
Ruan Ruoyin glared fiercely at Ouyang Mu, whose eyes were darting around. It was this person who had tricked Zhu Qingqing into harassing her dear Zaizai!
Zaizai had no strength at all. If she weren’t here, he might have been exposed as a powerless facade.
In that case, Zaizai could have been tortured terribly.
Ruan Ruoyin instantly recalled the scene when she first saw Zaizai at the beginning—wounds deep enough to reveal bone, blood flowing uncontrollably—and her heart ached even more.
Her precious, beloved Zaizai was nothing but a toy for others to bully at will…
Her eyes slightly reddened, Ruan Ruoyin grabbed Ouyang Mu and pinned him against the wall.
Then, with a pull and a push, she slammed Ouyang Mu repeatedly into the wall.
Although Ouyang Mu’s appearance wasn’t bad, Ruan Ruoyin found it utterly repulsive.
Even downright disgusting!
She held back none of her strength, and Ouyang Mu was battered senseless.
Everyone present: “…”
They didn’t even sense any spiritual power fluctuations, yet Ouyang Mu was being brutally beaten right before their eyes!
It was like a ghostly apparition…
Witnessing Ouyang Mu vomiting blood repeatedly from the impacts, they all gasped in shock.
Even with Mystic Realm cultivation, could a physical body withstand such high-frequency collisions?
Zhu Qingqing’s lips trembled as she stared fearfully at Ouyang Mu’s miserable state.
That… that black-robed figure actually knew Ouyang Mu was the mastermind who had incited her.
Could he ignore the barrier set up by the barrier stone?
Didn’t that mean the black-robed figure’s strength was at the Earth Realm?
Only Earth Realm strength could ignore a barrier set by a barrier stone!
Watching the black-robed figure standing there casually, not even moving a finger, while Ouyang Mu at Yellow Realm Ninth Layer was tortured like a dog over and over again, Zhu Qingqing felt a chill in her heart.
Zhu Qingqing thought with relief, Thank goodness I was only incited—the black-robed figure merely immobilized me. If I were being picked up and slammed down like that…
Biting her lip with mixed emotions, she couldn’t help but envy the black-robed figure’s cultivation.
The Earth Realm… truly something to aspire to.
The person she had to swallow her pride and flatter was nothing but a pawn for others to toy with.
If she had such strength, why would she bother reasoning with Ouyang Mu? She’d just take action directly.
Zhu Qingqing sank into melancholy, while Situ Shen, Ouyang Mu’s friend beside her, had long lost his relaxed demeanor.
His hand holding the fan trembled uncontrollably.
Damn it, even though I didn’t tell Zhu Qingqing to provoke the black-robed figure, I am still Ouyang Mu’s friend. There’s no guarantee the black-robed figure won’t take his anger out on me.
Situ Shen grew frantic and fished something out from beneath his wide sleeve.
With a forceful squeeze, he crushed it.
There’s no other way—I have to call the elders for help.
His Situ family also had Earth Realm experts—three of them, in fact. If he summoned them all, he was confident they could protect him.
No matter how formidable this black-robed figure was, he couldn’t handle three opponents at once, right?
His father was already half a step into the Celestial Realm!
Setting aside his unease, Situ Shen quietly tried to minimize his presence.
But Ouyang Mu gave him no chance to fade into the background.
Mumbling incoherently, he cried for help, “Brother Situ, save me!”
“Quickly crush the talisman the Situ family head gave you and have him bring people to rescue us.”
Situ Shen stiffened.
He nearly spat out a “f*ck” through gritted teeth.
You damn Ouyang Mu, are you out of your mind?
Asking me to call for help right in front of him—aren’t you just throwing me into the fire?
Originally, he hadn’t done anything to anger the black-robed figure, but after Ouyang Mu’s words…
Well, now he’d offended the man too.
Situ Shen wanted to cry.
He deeply regretted why he had ever taken a liking to Ouyang Mu and become his friend.
At this life-or-death moment, he was pitifully dragged into the mess.
Situ Shen forced a smile uglier than crying. “Brother Ouyang, what are you talking about? Since when do I have a talisman from the family head?”
“Have you forgotten that I’m not favored by the family head at all? How could he possibly give me something to call for help?”
Ouyang Mu was in excruciating pain from being thrown around, gasping for breath, yet his mind remained exceptionally clear. He understood that if Situ Shen didn’t call for help, he would be beaten to death.
Using his spiritual power to protect his heart meridian, he urgently said, “Brother Situ, what are you afraid of? As long as you call the Situ family head and the others over, we could take on ten black-robed men!”
Situ Shen: “…”
At that moment, he just wanted to shut Ouyang Mu’s mouth.
Damn it, it would take some time for his Situ family members to arrive!
Originally, if Ouyang Mu hadn’t spoken up, he could have played it safe and held out until help arrived.
But with this idiot Ouyang Mu shouting like that, the black-robed man was now targeting him directly!
Situ Shen’s mind raced as he tried to salvage the situation: “Brother Ouyang, you really remembered wrong. The one with the family head’s talisman is another disciple of the Situ family, not me. My talent isn’t worth the family head’s cultivation!”
Ouyang Mu: “…”
Bullshit! He had been friends with Situ Shen for years—how could he not know Situ Shen’s standing in the Situ family?
Situ Shen was deliberately refusing to save him, just to watch him suffer!
Fine. He had considered Situ Shen a close friend, but it turned out Situ Shen never saw him as one at all.
He just stood by, watching him get tortured.
He had truly misjudged Situ Shen!
If he ever got a chance to survive this, he would definitely beat Situ Shen to death!
Filled with resentment, Ouyang Mu couldn’t bear the thought of Situ Shen getting off scot-free. He shouted frantically, “I didn’t remember wrong, Situ Shen. You have that talisman, you definitely do.”
After a pause, Ouyang Mu realized something and his chaotic gaze fell on Situ Shen’s sleeve. “I get it now, I get it. You’ve already crushed the talisman. You’ve already crushed it.”
“Hahahaha, Situ Shen, you really know how to save your own skin, calling for help without a word.”
Situ Shen: “…”
What an idiot.
If Ouyang Mu hadn’t shouted, he could have held out a little longer, and his family members would have arrived to save both of them, wouldn’t they?
Situ Shen stiffly glanced at the black-robed man.
He found the black-robed man staring back at him.
Only a pair of dark, ink-black peach blossom eyes were visible, devoid of any emotion, cold as a murderous beast.