"Hahaha, thank you so much, Xiao Yi Xian. You actually brought us to such a wonderful place."
A familiar, faintly amused voice came from outside the stone chamber.
Moonlight Stone illuminated the area, casting the shadows of more than a dozen people on the stone wall.
"That voice is... Mu Li!"
Xiao Yi Xian clenched her teeth.
She never would have imagined that this man had followed her—and was making it sound as if she had deliberately brought them here.
She grew anxious, wanting to explain something to Xiao Yuan.
But when she turned around, Xiao Yuan was already gone.
[Damn it, so you really came here to die after all, huh? Then we'll skip the usual routine this time and get straight to killing!]
[Dog System, teach me Eight Extremities Collapse!]
[Ping, Cultivation Complete.]
At the pitch-black stone doorway, more than a dozen shadows slowly emerged from the darkness outside. The instant they did, Xiao Yuan slammed a punch into them.
"Eight Extremities Collapse!"
Boom!
The first person to step through the doorway looked to be a servant. Xiao Yuan's punch sent him flying backward into the rock wall.
Immediately afterward, eight layers of hidden force erupted together, blasting the servant's body into a mist of blood.
In an instant, a spray of red and white splattered all over Mu Li.
Mu Li stood rooted to the spot, dazed and utterly bewildered. He clearly had no idea what had just happened.
Then Xiao Yuan swung his second punch. The sound of rushing wind came with another dull, heavy impact.
Boom!
Another man fell.
Feeling the warmth and smelling the blood on his face, Mu Li finally came to his senses. His expression twisted as he roared:
"Kill that bastard!"
"Yes!"
At Mu Li's command, the dozen or so mercenaries behind him surged forward all at once. They drew their weapons and charged at Xiao Yuan with murderous looks.
Xiao Yuan's figure blurred as he swiftly retreated several steps, dodging their attacks.
"What's all that gibberish? Have a taste of my halberd first."
He gripped the air behind him, and a pitch-black long halberd suddenly appeared in his hand. He thrust it forward with a fierce sweep, tearing through the air!
Whoosh—
The halberd's spike flashed with a blinding chill as it ripped through the air like a swimming dragon, arriving right in front of a Wolf Head mercenary!
A glint of cold steel arrived first, then the spear thrust forth like a dragon!
Before the mercenary could react, he felt a razor-sharp blast of wind rushing straight at his face.
The threat of death was upon him in an instant!
Pfft!
The black halberd, lunging like a swimming dragon, pierced straight through his chest. A bone-shattering crack that made everyone's scalp tingle rang out right after!
The sheer speed left everyone's understanding of the world in tatters once again.
No one could have imagined that, despite being so heavily outnumbered, this kid would dare to fight back instead of meekly surrendering!
"Damn you, you killed my brother! Eat this!"
"Mountain-Breaking Slash!"
One man swung his blade down hard at Xiao Yuan's shoulder. A faint, earthy-yellow glow shimmered along its edge.
Mountain-Breaking Slash was a High Yellow-Tier Dou Technique he had stumbled upon by chance. It was also his signature move!
With his current cultivation as a Six-Star Dou Zhe, he had already slain who knew how many first-tier magical beasts with this strike.
He even pictured the wretched kid being cleaved to death by his blade, and the murderous glint in his eyes grew fiercer.
"Die, you brat!"
"Banner, come."
Clang—
The clash of metal rang through the stone chamber.
The man was dumbfounded.
He had never imagined that his proudest strike would be blocked by something pitch-black that looked like a rag!
Wisps of black qi curled over the rag's surface. The man seemed to hear evil spirits wailing faintly from within!
It was clearly an inauspicious object!
The others were terrified too and hurriedly backed away.
They had clearly seen the black qi gradually swallow up their brother, dragging him inside!
"W-what the hell is that?!"
"An evil object! It's definitely an evil object!"
Hearing the mercenaries' terrified cries, Xiao Yuan grinned and said softly:
"Gentlemen, please come inside the Ten Thousand Soul Banner for a little chat!"
Rustle, rustle!
It was as if the scene at the Jialie Family had replayed itself.
Xiao Yuan gave the Ten Thousand Soul Banner a wave. Countless Soul-Hooking Chains surged out amid the black qi and snatched away everyone's souls in an instant.
A few golden glimmers had appeared on the banner's originally pitch-black surface.
Mu Li had been so frightened that he collapsed to the ground.
W-w-w-what kind of monster was this?!
He had actually killed more than a dozen Dou Zhe in one go—and every one of them was a trusted subordinate of his!
Even within the Wolf Head Mercenary Group, they were a formidable force.
How had they died at the hands of some snot-nosed little bastard?!
Mu Li couldn't believe it. He wanted to protest, until a whisper as chilling as the depths of the underworld brought him fully to his senses.
"Oh, Young Master Mu Li. What a coincidence, running into you here."
Xiao Yuan carried the Heaven-Slaughter Halberd in one hand and rested the Ten Thousand Soul Banner on his shoulder as he walked toward Mu Li, one step at a time.
The smile tugging at his lips was warm and kind.
But to Mu Li, it looked no different from a demon's.
"Y-you-you-you, don't come any closer! My father is Mu She, the leader of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group! He's a Two-Star Dou Shi! If you dare touch me, my father won't let you get away with it—"
Slap!
Mu Li hadn't even finished speaking before his head was smacked to the side.
A few white teeth popped out of his mouth and bounced playfully across the ground.
A clear imprint of the halberd's tip appeared on his right cheek, which was already swollen high.
Mu Li was completely dazed by the blow.
His mind went blank.
Then a splitting pain tore through his scalp. Xiao Yuan had grabbed him by the hair and was dragging him into the stone chamber.
"N-no, no! Let me go, please! I'll give you anything you want! Please, spare me!"
At that moment, Mu Li was truly terrified.
He had thought this kid was just a weak, delicate little brat—a pretty-boy.
He never would have guessed that he was a ruthless living demon!
"Enough nonsense. I ask, you answer!"
Xiao Yuan tossed Mu Li in front of Xiao Yi Xian and pressed the halberd's tip against his throat.
If Mu Li dared make a single reckless move, his head would part company with his neck in an instant.
"Y-yes, yes! Ask me, ask me! I'll tell you everything, as long as you spare my life!"
Mu Li was nothing like his former arrogant, high-spirited self now.
He looked more like a stray dog with its tail between its legs, begging for mercy.
But even as he pleaded, the venom in his eyes hadn't faded in the slightest.
Mu Li had already made up his mind: as long as he survived and got back, he would make his father gather the entire strength of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group and kill that little bastard!
"Then tell me, how did you find out Xiao Yi Xian's herb-gathering route?" Xiao Yuan asked bluntly.
At his words, Xiao Yi Xian snapped out of her shock. A flicker of surprise passed through her beautiful eyes as she looked at him.
She knew very well that Xiao Yuan was helping her put her doubts to rest.
Her heart rippled again.
"It was Xiao Yi Xian's assistant, Lifei! That woman's pretty stupid. I only had to sweet-talk her a little and tell her she could become the future wife of the young master, and she told me everything!"
To save his own life, Mu Li no longer cared about anything else. He told them the whole story without holding back.