The final bolt of lightning struck.
At last, the clouds fell silent.
Meng Xiuchen collapsed to the ground, unable to rise. His face was blackened, and black smoke curled from his mouth.
The rest of the Meng family lay limp on the ground, trembling.
Meng Qing's face had gone pale. His hands and feet quivered slightly, and blood seeped from the corner of his mouth.
The earth-shaking commotion here had drawn the attention of others in the Immortal Realm; a crowd rushed this way.
Meng Qing vanished in a flash.
Behind them, Lu Zhiyuan came racing over on a flying beast.
Seeing this scene, he stopped the flying beast in astonishment.
The flying beast immediately sprawled on the ground, tongue hanging out as it panted heavily, clearly exhausted.
He cried out in surprise, "Anli? What is this...?"
The bloodthirsty smile at Meng Anli's lips vanished at once. She explained awkwardly, "Lu Yao is fine."
"Child, you're the one who's hurt."
He strode to her side and pulled out a handkerchief. "Your aunt stuffed this into my hands. It's clean—hurry and wipe yourself off. It hurts badly, doesn't it? I have medicine."
Meng Anli's eyes grew faintly damp. "I didn't feel any pain just now."
But now, all of a sudden, it hurt a little.
Was she being too delicate?
"Anli!" Lu Yao rushed over with the people from Gui Class and surrounded her.
"How are you?"
Seeing the blood all over her, Guang Ling gritted his teeth. "The Meng family has truly gone mad!"
Mo Ziqian took out a medicinal pill. "It stops bleeding. Take it quickly."
Meng Anli lowered her lashes, hiding the redness in her eyes as well.
Her face was deathly pale, blood staining the corner of her lips. Large and small wounds covered her body, visible to the naked eye, some still steadily spilling blood.
With her lashes lowered like that, the sight made everyone's hearts twist.
Most tragic of all, her own family had inflicted those wounds.
The atmosphere was heavy with grief.
Guang Ling deliberately made his tone light. "Hurry and eat it. It's not easy to get something from Ziqian's hands."
Mo Ziqian rolled his eyes at him. "Am I that stingy?"
The other disciples of Gui Class answered in unison, "Yes!"
"Pfft." Meng Anli laughed despite herself. The tension holding her together abruptly loosened. "Then I'll take it."
But before she could take it, her legs gave out and she fainted.
"Anli!"
Lu Yao hurriedly caught her.
The others crowded around anxiously as well.
Lu Zhiyuan said heartbrokenly, "Spread out a little."
Guang Ling hurriedly motioned for the others to move back.
Mo Ziqian poured the pill into Lu Yao's hand.
Lu Yao held it to Meng Anli's lips. "Anli, open your mouth and take the medicine."
But Meng Anli's teeth were clenched tight, as though she were enduring immense pain with difficulty.
Guang Ling said anxiously, "Should we pry her mouth open and feed her?"
"Are you crazy?" Lu Yao placed her fingers on Meng Anli's pulse, and her large eyes instantly turned red. "Fire poison has burned through her internal organs. She has multiple wounds so deep that bone is visible, broken ribs, and fractures in many places."
"Damn it, is the Meng family even human?"
Furious, Guang Ling kicked Meng Xiuchen, who had just woken up, squarely in the head. He instantly fainted again.
The smile had long vanished from Mo Ziqian's face. "Just because Anli defeated Meng Xiuchen in a sparring match, he bore a grudge and wanted her dead."
"Why are the Meng family so vicious?"
"Anli is still their biological younger sister."
"During that sparring match, Anli didn't even injure him, yet he brought the Meng family to strike with deadly force."
The watching immortals were horrified as well.
"The Meng family just never stops. First her eldest brother beat her, now her third brother has beaten her. Is there any way left for Anli to live?"
"Anli is truly pitiful."
"..."
Lu Zhiyuan said anxiously, "Girl, quickly take Anli back and dress her wounds."
"Mm."
She wanted to help Anli to her feet.
Guang Ling said, "I'll carry her on my back."
Lu Yao choked up. "Her ribs are broken. She can't be carried on someone's back."
"Then I'll hold her."
"Watch her legs. They're fractured too." Lu Yao placed her in Guang Ling's arms.
Guang Ling held her with utmost care.
The others from Gui Class clustered around him as they left.
They left behind a crowd of furious immortals, all spitting curses at the Meng family and Meng Xiuchen.
Only after everyone had left did Meng Qing reappear. He grabbed a corner of Meng Xiuchen's robes and took him back to the Meng family.
When he carefully placed Meng Xiuchen in the main hall, Meng Liangmiao rose excitedly. "You brought her back?"
"Yes..." Before Meng Qing could finish, Meng Liangmiao kicked Meng Xiuchen in the ribs.
Crack!
A crisp sound rang out.
Meng Xiuchen groaned in pain.
"Not Meng Anli?" Meng Liangmiao flipped him over. Seeing his condition, he raised his head and demanded, "How is it Xiuchen? Where is Meng Anli?"
Meng Qing recounted what had happened.
Meng Xiuchen's gloomy, pale face instantly turned even whiter.
"Many immortals saw it?"
He remembered how, last time, it had been because of public gossip that he had ended up in such a state.
He struggled to sit up and asked Meng Qing, "What about you?"
Meng Qing said calmly, "I was worried someone would recognize me, so I concealed myself before they arrived. After they left, I came out again and brought Third Young Master back."
"Good." Meng Liangmiao beamed. "That's good."
Meng Qing lowered his eyes.
He had followed the eldest young master for more than ten years and had long understood his temperament.
He looked like a gentle jade, every inch the image of a good man.
But...
Meng Liangmiao instructed him again, "Lu Zhiyuan will surely make a mountain out of a molehill again. Xiuchen was seen by everyone, so there's no way to argue his case. Spread the news that everything was Xiuchen's own idea."
Meng Qing had expected this long ago and was not surprised.
"Yes."
Meng Qing lowered his head in acknowledgment, then turned and left.
He had wondered before—would a man like the eldest young master truly save him when he had been crippled?
Would he truly bring him food and medicine every day?
He remembered what the eldest young lady had said.
Someone as resilient and kind as the eldest young lady might truly have saved him.
He had to find out.
Inside the room, Meng Xiuchen woke just in time to hear every word of his eldest brother's final sentence.
He said in disbelief, "Eldest Brother?"
Meng Liangmiao gently helped him sit up.
"Third Brother, you'll have to endure this injustice. But everyone already saw you. Your eldest brother went through something like this before—it was truly like having a hundred mouths and no way to explain. Even though I begged the Crown Prince to speak to the Heavenly Emperor... you saw the result."
"Everyone saw me?"
Meng Liangmiao told him what had happened after he fainted.
Meng Xiuchen cursed furiously, "Meng Anli, how despicable!"
"Yes. Now that your second brother's inner core is gone, if I lie low and bide my time, I may still have a chance to rise again. I can't be dragged into this again. You'll have to suffer this grievance."
Meng Xiuchen could only swallow this bitter fruit, but he hated Meng Anli even more.
"Meng Anli, it's either you die or I die!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, he clutched his chest and sucked in a pained breath.
"Rest first. I'll go call the Medicine Immortal."
Meng Liangmiao walked out and saw Meng Zhao standing by the door.
Meng Zhao wore a cold expression as he stiffly called out, "Eldest Brother."
Meng Liangmiao's expression paused. "Don't take what I said to heart either. We've all suffered losses at Meng Anli's hands. We need to stand together."
"I know," Meng Zhao said, looking at him with icy eyes. "Eldest Brother."
"Mm."
Meng Liangmiao hurried away.
Listening to Meng Xiuchen's wails from inside, Meng Zhao cursed under his breath, "Useless piece of trash."
Then he turned and left as well.
Before you continue