“Do you know him?”
Zhong Ci looked somewhat surprised.
She had originally thought that Xiao Gui was an extremely mysterious man whose very existence was known to almost no one. She never expected Xu Mu to know him.
“Of course. I’ve met him several times in the Inner Realm. We even had a conflict once. He wanted to use a divine medicine to save his woman, but someone else took it. I happened to be passing by, and he assumed I was the one who had taken it, so he attacked me.”
Xu Mu paused before asking, “By the way, what’s your relationship with him?”
Zhong Ci had originally intended to reveal her identity outright, but who would have thought that Xiao Gui had actually attacked Xu Mu? How could she possibly tell him now?
She already had two enemies in front of her. She didn’t want to add Xu Mu to that list.
“Oh, we’re friends, more or less.”
Zhong Ci lowered her voice.
She knew, of course, that Xiao Gui had many female friends. Xiao Qiao had even told her before that she had followed Xiao Gui around and met many beautiful women.
She understood her daughter well.
Xiao Qiao had once suffered alongside her, enduring hardship and exhaustion as well as ridicule and abuse.
But ever since Xiao Gui returned, her daughter’s status had been completely reversed.
It hadn’t even been a year, yet Zhong Ci could already tell that compared to staying with her mother, Xiao Qiao preferred being with Xiao Gui.
“Hahaha! Friends? Zhong Ci, you’re not cheating on—”
The black-robed man on the other side had not finished speaking when he suddenly noticed Zhang Hongxia standing beside Zhong Ci.
Then who was the person he had been holding?
Whoosh!
A flash of light burst forth, and both people before them collapsed to the ground, blood pouring from their bodies.
Xu Mu immediately summoned the Devouring Spirit Sacred Gu. In the blink of an eye, the two corpses vanished without a trace.
He lowered his head and picked up the spatial ring from the ground.
“Mom! Are you all right?”
Zhong Ci stared at everything in disbelief. She never expected Xu Mu to save her mother.
“I’m fine, I’m fine.”
Zhang Hongxia was still in shock, her body trembling.
Xu Mu took out a black robe and walked over to her. “Auntie, it’s all taken care of.”
Zhang Hongxia hurriedly put on the robe. Looking at Xu Mu, her face filled with gratitude. “Thank you.”
[Affection +10]
Zhong Ci also bowed deeply to Xu Mu. “I owe you one.”
“It was nothing.”
Xu Mu smiled and waved a hand. “Old Chen and I happen to be in Yanjing for a meeting. We sensed the qi here, so we came over to take a look.”
As he spoke, Old Chen approached from the distance with a smile.
“A meeting in Yanjing? What kind of meeting? Something business-related?”
Zhang Hongxia studied Xu Mu curiously.
“No. You could say we work for the Environmental Sanitation Department.”
Xu Mu smiled.
“The Environmental Sanitation Department?”
As a member of a hidden family, Zhang Hongxia naturally knew about the Environmental Sanitation Department. They were official personnel with government posts.
At the very least, they were far more legitimate than someone like Xiao Gui.
“Just now, I heard you say that you know Xiao Gui?”
Zhang Hongxia continued.
“Brother Mu, are they talking about that Xiao Gui who goes around holding his daughter all day, looking for a wife?”
Upon hearing the name, Old Chen could not help asking.
“Probably him.”
Xu Mu nodded with a smile.
At this, Zhong Ci and Zhang Hongxia’s expressions both darkened.
Zhang Hongxia looked at Old Chen. “You said he’s always looking for a wife?”
“Yeah. The last time we met, there were several beautiful women around who had crushes on Brother Mu. They were obviously a perfect match for Brother Mu, but Xiao Gui’s daughter opened her mouth and asked, ‘Can you be my mommy?’”
Old Chen shrugged lightly. “The key is that he didn’t even stop her. His eyes were practically glued to those beautiful women. That father-and-daughter pair is unbelievable. The kid probably doesn’t have a mother and has lacked maternal love since she was little.”
“Old Chen! That’s enough. What does a child know? Someone must have taught her to say that.”
Xu Mu spoke from the side.
By then, Zhong Ci’s fists had clenched tighter and tighter.
“Since you’re safe now, we’ll be on our way. Be careful.”
Xu Mu bade the two farewell, then left together with Old Chen.
His purpose this time had been to rescue Zhong Ci and cut off Xiao Gui’s next plotline in advance. Since the mission was complete, there was no reason to stay.
As the first female lead, Zhong Ci was surely loyal to Xiao Gui deep down.
Xu Mu knew when to stop. If he stayed and kept badmouthing Xiao Gui, it would only make people dislike him.
Of course, Xu Mu had not said anything bad about Xiao Gui.
…
“Mom, let’s go.”
Zhong Ci supported Zhang Hongxia by the arm, preparing to lead her down the mountain.
But Zhang Hongxia pulled her hand away on her own initiative. “I’m fine. I can still walk.”
“Oh.”
Zhong Ci put her longsword into her spatial ring and said nothing more.
It was a long while before Zhang Hongxia finally stopped. Her voice rose as she asked, “How many times has it been?”
“What… how many times?”
“I’ve been captured! Your father has been captured!”
At that, tears began streaming down Zhang Hongxia’s face. “Ever since he showed up, it hasn’t even been a year, and I’ve been captured twice while your father has been captured once!”
Zhong Ci lowered her head, then said softly, “That’s the cultivation world. By taking so many rare treasures, he was bound to offend people.”
“He takes the treasures—what does that have to do with us? Sure, he let you eat them, but did he let me eat any?”
Zhang Hongxia wiped her tears with her sleeve. “Why is my life so miserable?”
She had been born into a merchant family in Yanjing and had never lacked money growing up. When her father had sent her to the Zhong family, she had originally thought she was going there to enjoy a life of comfort.
Instead, she had been targeted by the principal wife. Zhong Ci had at least lived up to expectations, displaying enough talent to silence the eldest and third wives.
But their peaceful days had not lasted long before Zhong Ci became pregnant.
Although the eldest and third wives had now been killed by Xiao Gui, Xiao Gui was constantly offending people, causing those people to come after them.
The first time they had been captured, their daughter had rescued them, but each enemy who came after them was stronger than the last.
If not for Xu Mu this time, Zhang Hongxia had no idea what would have happened.
“Mom, when Xiao Gui comes back next time, I’ll make him figure out a way to protect you both.”
Zhong Ci sighed. “The children are all grown up. Besides, Xiao Gui treats me pretty well.”
“He treats you well, all right. He can’t wait to find himself a few more wives, just like your father. I spend every day thinking about how to fight with all those women of his!”
Zhang Hongxia suddenly turned around and looked in the direction Xu Mu had left. “Why couldn’t I have found a son-in-law like Xu Mu? He’s handsome, and more importantly, he works for the government. As the family member of someone in the sanitation department, who would dare bully me?”
“Mom, stop.”
Zhong Ci drew a deep breath. Just then, a streak of golden light flashed across the distant sky.
In the blink of an eye, Xiao Gui appeared before them.
Xiao Qiao was in his arms.
“Wife, are you all right?”
When Xiao Gui saw the bloodstain on Zhong Ci’s lower abdomen, panic spread across his face.
“Mom!”
Xiao Qiao immediately jumped down and ran crying to Zhong Ci’s side.
“I’m fine.”
Zhong Ci looked at Xiao Gui expressionlessly. “It was my mother who was captured, not me.”
Only then did Xiao Gui turn to Zhang Hongxia. “Mom, who took you? I’ll make sure they pay for this.”
“No need. When will this cycle of vengeance ever end? If you kill them, the people behind them will only come after me again.”
With that, Zhang Hongxia walked off into the distance.
“Honey, what happened? Did you save Mom again?”
Xiao Gui frowned slightly, noticing that Zhang Hongxia’s expression was off.
“No. This time, I couldn’t beat them.”
Zhong Ci replied calmly.
pression Bureau] Transported to a fantasy world overrun by demons and monsters, Gu Qingfeng becomes a jailer in the Demon Suppression Prison of the Great Yan Dynasty's Demon Suppression Bureau. From this point on, bizarre cases frequently occur in the Demon Suppression Prison, once known as hell on earth and infamous for its gloomy, terrifying atmosphere! Why do the demons and monsters in the prison wail miserably every night? Why has the corpse demon, capable of transforming into various beauties, donned black stockings and switched careers to become a foot massage therapist? Why has the eye demon, expert in soul-snatching and illusions, turned into a VR headset? Why is the fox spirit performing otaku dances? Are all these occurrences a twisted expression of demonic nature, or a descent into moral depravity? After peeling away layer upon layer of mystery, all clues ultimately point to a jailer named Gu Qingfeng. Gu Qingfeng: "Hehehe... My dear demons and monsters, whose card shall we flip today?"
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
with countless casualties. As a top-tier gamer, Liu Xuan volunteered to join the fight, intending to dominate with his skills, but instead he obtained the hidden class: [Pacifist]. Unable to attack. Unable to use active skills. Fortunately, with each level gained, he acquired a new passive skill. And so, armed with a body full of passives, Liu Xuan slaughtered his way through the battlefield of ten thousand races! [You attacked Liu Xuan] [You gained the debuffs: 'Poison', 'Fear', 'Burning', 'Bleeding', 'Freeze', 'Silence', etc.] [Your attack speed has been reduced by 99%] [Your armor and magic resistance have been reduced by 99%] Warriors of the Ten Thousand Races: How the hell am I supposed to fight this?!
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
