Didn't Expect Them to Be Enemies

No sooner had Xu Mu and the others left than Yue Menglong arrived in front of the formation.

Seeing them use the formation to leave, she couldn’t help laughing. “You didn’t actually think this was a way out, did you? I never expected you to walk right into the cage yourselves.”

…

At the same time.

Elsewhere in the ruins.

Xiao Gui was locked in a fierce battle with the Painted Skin Sect's vice sect master. Even though his opponent was an eighth-stage expert, she still couldn’t gain the upper hand against Xiao Gui.

At first, the two sides had been evenly matched. But as time passed, Xiao Gui grew stronger and stronger, while the vice sect master gradually fell behind.

Zhong Ci was becoming increasingly shocked. She had already thought highly of Xiao Gui’s strength, but she never expected him to surpass even her imagination.

If things continued like this, Xiao Gui would definitely be able to capture his opponent alive and force them to hand over his daughter.

Yet no one had expected that, just as Xiao Gui was about to win, a black-robed woman wearing a mask descended from the yellow smoke high above.

Boom!

With a single palm strike, she sent Xiao Gui flying.

“Sect Master, you’ve finally arrived. The killing formation we set up didn’t work. That brat has a high-grade Boundary Flame in his possession,” the vice sect master said as she wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth.

If she could kill Xiao Gui, she would certainly claim this treasure for herself.

Unfortunately, she couldn’t defeat him and had no choice but to inform Hua Ming.

“What?” Hua Ming stared at Xiao Gui in the distance. She hadn’t expected him to possess such a treasure.

“Xiao Gui, are you all right?” the woman protecting Zhong Ci immediately called out.

“I’m fine.”

Xiao Gui shook his arm slightly. He hadn’t expected a ninth-stage expert to appear as well. This was going to be troublesome.

Most ninth-stage experts were famous throughout the world, and as far as he knew, none of his enemies matched this woman’s identity.

Hua Ming frowned slightly. The two black-robed figures in the distance were clearly both women.

She was just about to ask why Xu Mu hadn’t come when several more figures appeared in the yellow smoke high above.

They were Xu Mu and the others.

Hua Ming looked at the figure above and growled, “Xu Mu!”

She hadn’t expected these people to split up and act separately.

“Die!”

Hua Ming punched toward the sky, and the terrifying pressure seemed to scatter the yellow smoke overhead.

Xu Mu could clearly sense that the attack was almost equivalent to the final burst of power he could unleash with all his strength.

Whoosh!

Xu Mu immediately used Starshift. The sky-piercing green radiance vanished before it could even touch him, and in the next instant, it appeared above Xiao Gui’s head.

“Damn it!”

Xiao Gui looked up at the descending green radiance. It was practically a curtain of heaven, covering the entire sky.

He once again took out the Boundary Flame in his hand and unleashed his maximum strength.

Rumble…

The spreading green light covered almost everything around them. It continued for nearly ten seconds before slowly dissipating.

When everything around them finally fell silent, Xu Mu and the others had all been blasted away.

Zhong Ci and the woman beside her in the distance were sent flying as well. Their fragile ice defenses were completely incapable of withstanding the impact.

Fortunately, the main force of the attack had been directed at Xiao Gui.

Fu Jinyu was utterly dumbfounded. What kind of power had that been just now?

Was this the kind of opponent Xu Mu had to face? His own strength at the second level of the World-Breaking Realm seemed completely insignificant by comparison!

Chen Xuan grinned. “The battlefield on Mu-ge’s side is way more exciting. That was insanely fierce—terrifying!”

“Xu Mu! You’re courting death! You’re on their side, aren’t you?” Xiao Gui turned toward Xu Mu in the distance and roared.

Zhong Ci immediately rushed forward and stood in front of Xu Mu. “Xiao Gui! Calm down!”

“Calm down? Wife, if that attack had actually hit me, I would’ve been seriously injured at the very least—even if I didn’t die!”

As Xiao Gui spoke, his eyes suddenly widened.

Xu Mu had released Xiao Qiao, who had been wrapped in a black robe, from in front of him.

When Zhong Ci saw this, tears of excitement immediately filled her eyes. She rushed over and hugged Xiao Qiao tightly. “Little Qiao! Are you all right?”

“Xiao Gui, if that attack had hit me, I would’ve been seriously injured at the very least too. But Xiao Qiao would have died for sure.”

Xu Mu looked toward Xiao Gui in the distance. “Do you think I made the wrong choice?”

Xiao Gui was rendered speechless.

Seeing this, Zhong Ci hurriedly asked, “Xu Mu! What exactly happened? Why is Xiao Qiao with you? And how did you end up here?”

“While carrying out my mission, I happened to be in a ruin. I saw that Xiao Qiao had been tied up. The enemies were too powerful, so we found a teleportation formation. We originally thought it would take us out, but we never expected it to teleport us here instead.”

Xu Mu recited the excuse he had prepared earlier.

“Mom! This time, I have Xu Mu, this old… uncle, to thank. If it weren’t for him, I would’ve died. Boo-hoo!”

Xiao Qiao buried her face against Zhong Ci’s chest, then looked toward the approaching Xiao Gui and sobbed, “Dad, those bad people hit me. It hurts so much!”

When Xiao Gui saw Xiao Qiao’s swollen cheek and lips, his anger surged.

Just as he was about to turn around and demand answers, Yue Menglong’s figure slowly descended from the sky.

Xiao Gui stared at the centipede-like stitch marks across Yue Menglong’s face, and his brows gradually furrowed.

“Immortality… the Thousand-Skinned Woman!”

Xu Mu’s expression suddenly changed. These two couldn’t be old friends, could they?

He immediately checked their filial piety values and finally relaxed.

Their filial piety values toward each other were both negative. Xiao Gui’s was even worse, reaching -4. There was clearly a deep-seated grudge between them.

“You know her?” Zhong Ci asked from the side.

“She’s a member of Immortality. They once slaughtered the sect I belonged to, and I killed quite a few of their people as well,” Xiao Gui said quietly. “I never expected the Thousand-Skinned Woman to make a move personally.”

By this point, Xu Mu was practically laughing inside. So they had already been enemies from the beginning? That was wonderful.

“Xu Mu, you never expected this, did you? You ran straight into the cage,” Yue Menglong said with a faint smile.

Xiao Gui glanced at Xu Mu. He hadn’t expected the two sides to have a grudge against each other as well. He began thinking about how to make them fight to the death first, allowing him to reap the benefits afterward.

“Yue Menglong, the grudge between us has nothing to do with anyone else. Let them go!”

Xu Mu pointed toward Xiao Qiao and Zhong Ci.

[Favorability +20]

Zhong Ci was deeply moved. This matter clearly had nothing to do with Xu Mu, yet he had been the first to ask for her and her daughter to be allowed to leave.

[Favorability +5]

Xiao Qiao was also somewhat incredulous. She had constantly cursed at Xu Mu when they first met, yet at the critical moment, he had acted like a real man.

Xiao Gui’s expression immediately darkened. Xu Mu had said exactly what he had been about to say.

That was his wife and daughter. What right did Xu Mu have to speak for them?

“Heh heh! Xu Mu, I’m a bad person. Why would I possibly let these hostages go?” Yue Menglong said with a smile. “All of you men, kill yourselves. Once you’re dead, I’ll release the women.”

At that moment, Hua Ming whispered a few words into Yue Menglong’s ear.

After hearing this, Yue Menglong’s smile grew wider. “Xiao Gui, right? Hand over the Boundary Flame you’re holding.”

“In your dreams!”

“Dreaming? Do you really think kidnapping your daughter meant all I did was slap her a few times?”

Yue Menglong raised one finger, and a red glow began to flicker faintly.

Xiao Qiao suddenly clutched her head, tears streaming down her face. “It hurts! It hurts so much!”