"Spare me, sir! Please spare me!"
Luo Bu dropped to his knees with a heavy thud, pleading through his tears as his body shook like a sieve.
"Spare me..."
Mo Cheng was so frightened that his face turned paper-white. With a thud, he sprawled on the ground, pressing himself tightly against it and banging his forehead hard enough to leave a bloody mark.
In Mo Cheng's eyes, though the young man before him was young, his methods were vicious, and his strength unfathomable.
If he set aside his dignity now and showed the other man enough respect, perhaps there was still a glimmer of hope that he might get out alive.
As long as he survived...
He gritted his teeth in secret. Once he got back, he would find a chance to avenge himself for today.
"Qing Lin..."
Xiao Fan quietly watched the scene, then suddenly spoke without warning.
"Yes!"
Qing Lin answered in her clear, bright voice.
"I'm going to teach you a second lesson..."
Xiao Fan spoke one word at a time.
"What is it, young master?"
Qing Lin lifted her head, her eyes full of concentration.
"When you pull up the grass, you have to get rid of the roots! Since you've provoked them, you have to kill every last one!"
Xiao Fan's gaze burned as he stared at the people kneeling before him, killing intent spilling from his eyes.
"Otherwise, they'll go back and fetch reinforcements. You beat the young ones, then the old ones show up—it'll be a never-ending nuisance..."
Of course, there was something else he didn't say.
If they ran into someone blessed with great fortune, and he failed to pull up the roots, letting that person escape, then he'd be leaving a snake alive to bite him later.
But that was a rare occurrence. Even if it did happen, this emperor could simply slap the person to death.
"Remember that?"
Xiao Fan's voice suddenly sank.
"I remember!"
Qing Lin nodded hard and answered loudly.
"Hahahaha! Xiao Fan's right! If someone makes an enemy of you, you have to wipe them out!"
Xiao Li laughed aloud, his laughter filled with a sense of relief unlike anything he'd ever felt before.
He clenched both fists, excitement shining in his eyes. The resentment that had built up inside him for so long seemed to gush out like a flood at that very moment.
His sworn enemies were finally going to be gone! How could he not be excited?
The people kneeling on the ground felt a bone-deep chill shoot from their feet to their heads. It was the terror of death.
"You little—"
Knowing that his end was near, Luo Bu suddenly jerked his head up, eyes bulging with fury, ready to curse Xiao Fan to vent his rage. But before he could get the words out, Xiao Fan's expression turned cold, and he casually made a gesture.
In an instant, the skies changed. A gigantic palm blotting out the heavens came crashing down with the force of a landslide and tsunami.
The wind howled like the wails of ghosts, the ground shook violently, and flying sand and rocks swept through the air as if the end of the world had arrived.
With a deafening crash, everyone from the Sand Iron Mercenary Group—including Mo Cheng—was instantly swallowed by the terrifying force.
The ground was smashed into a huge pit, and the surrounding earth cracked apart.
One fissure after another, like vicious giant pythons, snaked outward in every direction.
Xiao Ding and the members of the Desert Iron Mercenary Group witnessed the astonishing scene.
They were all so stunned their jaws dropped, their faces full of disbelief.
"C-Captain, just who is your clansman?"
One member asked in a trembling voice, awe and shock filling his tone.
"How can he be so powerful..."
Another muttered to himself.
"Me? I have no idea..."
Xiao Ding smiled wryly and shook his head, his face full of helplessness and wonder.
He gazed at the enormous pit and felt that he knew far too little about this clansman of his.
With power like that... Was he already a Dou Wang?
No... A Dou Wang couldn't be this powerful. Could he be a Dou Emperor?
Hiss...
Xiao Ding drew in a sharp breath.
"The young master is incredibly powerful! He once destroyed all the bad people on an entire planet with a single palm!"
Hearing the others' discussion, Qing Lin immediately raised her chin and declared proudly.
Apparently, she'd taken the story Xiao Fan told her last night as a chance to show off, and couldn't wait to share it.
"S-So powerful!"
The others had no idea what a "planet" was.
But based on Qing Lin's description and the terrifying strength Xiao Fan had just displayed, they all felt it must be some kind of immensely powerful force.
They couldn't help but marvel.
[ Ding! Everyone is utterly convinced by your exploits. You have gained 5,000 Bragging Points! ]
Xiao Fan's lips curled slightly into a faint, almost imperceptible smile.
He hadn't expected this little maid to be such a good hype woman. Perhaps he could put her to great use in the future.
"I'll leave the rest to you..."
Xiao Fan turned to look at Xiao Ding and the others, his tone as calm as still water, as if everything that had just happened were no more than a trivial matter.
"No problem. Xiao Fan, go get some rest..."
Xiao Ding laughed heartily, the gloom in his heart swept away.
Not only had they successfully resolved the crisis today, but he had also witnessed the incredible strength of his clansman.
He couldn't help looking forward to the possibility that the Desert Iron Mercenary Group might use this opportunity to rise to prominence.
Xiao Fan yawned and stretched, then ambled toward the camp.
Qing Lin followed close behind him like a little tail.
One member of the Desert Iron Mercenary Group saw them and murmured with a complicated look in his eyes, "Qing Lin really picked the right person to follow..."
"Yeah..."
"If I went and followed him now..."
A female mercenary who thought herself quite beautiful spoke up.
"Hmph! Don't even think about it. She earned that spot..."
Xiao Li snorted, a hint of disdain in his voice. His words instantly shattered some people's fantasies.
Hearing him, everyone lowered their heads and fell silent.
Xiao Fan returned to camp and pushed open the door to his room.
Before he could step inside, a petite figure shot past him like lightning and rushed in.
"Hmm? What are you doing?"
Xiao Fan frowned and lifted Qing Lin up by the scruff like a little chick.
Qing Lin flailed desperately in the air, her two smooth legs kicking wildly, but she couldn't break free of Xiao Fan's grip.
"Y-Young master, the desert nights are cold! An important duty of a maid is to warm your bed!"
Qing Lin's face flushed red as she hurried to explain, looking both adorable and ridiculous.
At those words, Xiao Fan felt his vision go black and nearly lost his balance. Without another word, he tossed Qing Lin outside, then slammed the door shut with a bang.
To make sure that was enough, he casually set up a defensive formation, leaving nothing to chance.
Bang, bang, bang!
A quick flurry of knocks came from outside the door.
Qing Lin's voice came through it: "Young master~ Y-Young master! I'll warm your bed!"
"Otherwise, the bed will be so cold..."
Her voice carried a hint of coquettishness, yet also a stubborn determination, making her both exasperating and amusing.
Unfortunately, Xiao Fan was already lying on the soft bed, paying no attention to the voice outside.
He yawned, rolled over, and soon fell fast asleep.
Outside, Qing Lin knocked for quite a while. When Xiao Fan didn't respond at all, she finally gave up.
She turned around in a huff and headed toward her own little room.
Moonlight fell on her, illuminating her modest chest as it rose and fell gently. She was clearly quite upset.
"The young master is so mean..."
As she walked, Qing Lin muttered under her breath, looking as if she'd suffered a terrible injustice.
She only wanted to do her duty as a maid properly.
The maids in those great clans all did this. Why couldn't she?
If she didn't do this, would the young master stop wanting her?
Qing Lin kept glancing back as she walked, all kinds of thoughts flitting through her little head...