"Can you even speak properly? If not, shut up."
Xu Mu pulled his arm away. Though both were putting on acts, Dai Xingluo's performance was far more sophisticated.
"Then I'll shut up."
Jiang Huihui took out her phone and sent a message to the sanitation department, asking them to send people over.
Xu Mu then turned to Pan Shi and asked coolly, "Where’s your second-in-command now?"
"You little brat! Don’t think I’m some coward who fears death. I won’t say a word about our family’s affairs."
Pan Shi snorted coldly, still clutching his knee and groaning.
"You must have the authority to access city surveillance footage, right?"
Xu Mu rested his hand on Jiang Huihui’s shoulder.
"Of course. Who do you want to investigate?"
Jiang Huihui nodded.
"I need to find a silver-haired woman. About twenty minutes ago, she was near the Wuling Hongguang 4S dealership."
Xu Mu’s priority now was locating this woman.
Aside from Fang Chu’s matter, he also wanted to ask why this organization had come here so boldly.
Currently, the Xu family was also planning to establish a presence in Yang City, so he had to get to the bottom of it.
"Alright, I’ll have someone check right away."
Jiang Huihui agreed.
Xu Mu drove off. Shortly after returning to the Yang City branch office, Jiang Huihui sent him several surveillance videos.
He clicked on the first video, which showed Miao He leaving the 4S dealership in a car.
Not long after her departure, a group of over a dozen "shamate" (flamboyant youths) appeared, driving off in five Wuling Hongguang vans.
"Why would she buy so many of these?"
Xu Mu murmured as the first video ended.
Logically, a top-tier organization wouldn’t lack funds. If they needed vehicles, they’d opt for high-performance ones. Yet they’d bought five budget vans—were they hauling something?
He opened the second video, tracking Miao He’s car until it stopped at a villa.
"Yangshan Villas."
Xu Mu recognized the location—he’d been there before.
Now that he knew where she was, he decided to pay her a visit. After all, he had a valid reason: her subordinate had attacked him.
...
Yangshan Villas.
Xu Mu didn’t drive in, parking instead outside the gated community.
He walked in, his senses sharpened, taking in everything around him.
Soon, he located Miao He. The villa she was in stood alone, though the two adjacent villas were packed with shamate of various hair colors.
Xu Mu circled to the back. The villa’s fence was only about five feet tall, relying mostly on surveillance cameras.
He released a pulse of Gang Qi, shattering the cameras overhead without lifting a finger. No one would trace it back to him.
After confirming no one was nearby, he leaped lightly onto the second-floor balcony.
Pushing open the balcony door, he strolled inside as casually as if he owned the place.
At that moment, Miao He was seated on the sofa, scrolling through her phone.
As a seasoned fighter, she heard the door close upstairs.
She sprang to her feet, turning to look upward.
There stood Xu Mu, one hand in his pocket, the other resting on the railing, descending the stairs leisurely as if he were the master of the house.
"You!"
Miao He’s visible eye turned icy. "What are you doing in my home? Looking to die?"
"You’re the one courting death. Why did you order your men to kill me?"
Xu Mu walked to the sofa and sat down calmly.
"I never gave such an order—"
Miao He cut herself off, sensing something amiss. "What happened to Pan Shi?"
"He attacked me. What do you think happened?"
Xu Mu leaned back, crossing his legs. "I warned him—he only got one chance."
Miao He’s expression cooled. It seemed Pan Shi was already done for.
No point saving him now.
"Why are you here?"
She clasped her hands behind her back, a faint smirk playing on her lips. "To kill me?"
"Second-in-command of the 'Fallen Love Family.' The 'Weeping Rose'—Miao He."
Xu Mu studied her closely. "Am I right?"
Her smirk faded. "Not many know that name."
"Let’s cut to the chase. Why are you in Yang City?"
Xu Mu’s face remained impassive. "Tell me the truth, and I’ll let bygones be bygones."
"Let bygones be bygones?"
Miao He scoffed as if hearing a joke. "Did taking out one of my captains inflate your ego that much?"
As she spoke, a vividly colored butterfly emerged from behind her.
Small—no larger than a quarter of Xu Mu’s palm—it circled above Miao He’s head before drifting slowly toward Xu Mu’s back.
Miao He kept her hands behind her, her single eye narrowing to a slit.
Whoosh!
Without warning, the butterfly behind Xu Mu accelerated, lunging at him.
Bang!
Half a meter away, it collided with an invisible barrier.
The butterfly shattered instantly, dissolving into black mist before vanishing entirely.
"Gang Qi!"
Miao He’s expression remained unchanged. It made sense for someone capable of dealing with Pan Shi to be at the Gang Qi realm.
"What a surprise. I never thought I’d encounter a Gu cultivator."
Xu Mu knew this well—the plot was full of bizarre and unpredictable techniques.
He rose from the couch, a dagger appearing in his hand.
Seeing this, Miao He instantly retreated, her figure darting backward.
She spread her arms, and from her sleeves, two more butterflies emerged.
"Tyrant Butterflies!"
These two were different from the ones before. While the earlier ones had been multicolored, these were entirely gold, larger—about the size of a palm.
Whoosh!
The butterflies arced through the air, attacking Xu Mu from both sides.
Sssk—
One of them grazed the villa’s wall, leaving a deep gash in its wake.
Xu Mu kept one hand casually tucked in his pocket while the other twirled the dagger.
Just as the butterflies closed in, he suddenly slashed left and right.
Clang! Clang!
Two metallic clashes rang out.
The dagger struck both butterflies, but they didn’t die—instead, after a brief recoil, they lunged at Xu Mu again.
But then, Miao He’s eyes widened in horror. Xu Mu had vanished.
He had been right in front of her, countering her Tyrant Butterflies.
Boom!
Only after his disappearance did the floor where he’d stood shatter and collapse.
"Tell me… should I stab you?"
Xu Mu’s voice, nightmarish and cold, sounded right behind her.
Miao He realized with a jolt that he had somehow appeared at her back, his dagger pressed against the base of her neck.
A cold sweat broke out across her skin.
How was this possible?
At the late-stage Gang Qi realm, with the abilities of a Gu cultivator, she could even hold her own against early-stage Shen Tong practitioners.
Yet against this man, she couldn’t even resist.
Just who the hell was he?

nto another world, I bought a slave for the first time, never expecting the silver wolf girl to be so cute... Lin Feng: I know it's cold, but you don't have to sneak into my bed! Yuna: Just sharing body warmth, if you dare do anything naughty, I'll definitely...

【Prologue: The Beginning of It All – Use holy water to heal the saintess tainted by demonic energy, then converse with her.】 Shen Nian stared at his older sister sipping yogurt, lost in thought. So you’re telling me my sister is the saintess, and yogurt is the holy water? 【Main Quest 1: Brave Youth, Become an Adventurer! Reward: Rookie Adventurer Title.】 【Side Quest 1: Find the Adorable Kitty! Reward: 1000 Gold Coins.】 Shen Nian: "Wait, I’m a high school senior here—did some guy who got isekai’d accidentally bind his system to me?" Hold on, completing quests gives gold rewards? Titles even boost stats? Is this for real? (A lighthearted, absurd campus comedy—not a revenge power fantasy.)

ts me of treason?" "Correct. The host must return to the capital and gradually build up influence." "Wait—I have half a million soldiers, and you want me to go back to the capital to 'build influence'?" "Host, you are currently the Northern Garrison General, loyal to the Great Xia Dynasty." "Of course I am loyal to Great Xia! Absolutely loyal!" "But you keep referring to yourself as 'We'..." "Never mind the details! Summon all the regional commanders and military officers! We suspect treacherous officials are manipulating the court! They shall march with Us to the capital and purge the corrupt!" "......"

d intelligence to keep the plot moving, and sometimes even the protagonists are forced into absurdly dumb decisions. Why does the A-list celebrity heroine in urban romance novels ditch the top-tier movie star and become a lovestruck fool for a pockmarked male lead? Why do the leads in historical tragedy novels keep dancing between love and death, only for the blind healer to end up suffering the most? And Gu Wei never expected that after finally landing a villain role to stir up trouble, she’d pick the wrong gender! No choice now—she’ll just have to crush the protagonists as a girl!