I said...
Lin Feng lay on the rocking chair, swaying gently, without even glancing at Ning Rongrong kneeling on the ground.
"You don't really think your life is..."
He paused, his tone light and airy.
"... It must be very valuable, right?"
These words, like an invisible needle, pierced all the courage Ning Rongrong had just mustered.
Her tear-streaked face jerked upward, her eyes filled with absurdity.
What's the meaning?
He risked his life and his dignity, making the most noble and righteous decision of his life.
All I got in return was this dismissive sarcasm?
This is a hundred times more humiliating than slapping her across the face.
It wasn't just her.
Ning Fengzhi, Sword Douluo, and Bone Douluo, who were kneeling behind her, all froze in shock.
They considered countless possibilities.
The senior killed Ning Rongrong on the spot.
Or perhaps the senior is making exorbitant demands, asking for most of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect School's assets.
They even imagined that their seniors would find them an eyesore and wipe the entire Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect off the continent.
But to their utter surprise, they received this response.
A single sentence, a sentence tinged with a smile, trampled all their awareness, fear, and tragedy into the mud.
At the next table, Zhu Zhuyun, who had just swallowed a steamed bun, smiled with a sly smile, not even glancing at Ning Rongrong, and let out a sickening chuckle.
"Oh dear, this little brat probably thinks that by sticking her neck out and putting on a show of 'do whatever you want with me, you can do whatever you want with me,' she'll show some backbone and earn the senior's respect."
Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly to everyone's ears in the deathly silent hall.
"Puff..."
Someone couldn't hold back any longer, and soon, all the guests in the hotel burst into laughter.
That wasn't intentional mockery.
Rather, it's a heartfelt, pure, and undisguised laugh when you see children playing house.
These laughs were like countless red-hot steel needles piercing Ning Rongrong's face, instantly turning her cheeks bright red. She was so ashamed that she wished she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into on the spot.
It turns out that what she thought was a tragic sacrifice was, in other people's eyes, just a huge joke.
Lin Feng looked at Zhu Zhuyun and shook his head. "You should watch your mouth. At least give this young lady some face."
Zhu Zhuyun chuckled and winked at Lin Feng, as if to say: You'll dare to do it again next time.
Lin Feng talks about how others should be virtuous, but he himself doesn't seem to have that awareness.
He sat up a little straighter in the rocking chair, resting his elbows on the counter, as if he had genuinely taken a liking to it.
"Little girl, let me tell you the truth."
"Your life, in your father's eyes, and in the eyes of your two old grandfathers, may be very precious."
Lin Feng extended a finger and slowly shook it in the air.
"But here with me..."
The smile on his lips widened.
"Worthless."
"If you die here, you'll only dirty my floor. The smell of blood will spoil my guests' dining experience."
"Do you understand? Your 'I'll die to atone for my sins' act is nothing but trouble for me."
He glanced at the dazed Ning Rongrong.
"Stop with your ridiculous act of self-sacrifice."
"I have no interest in your life, your father's life, or even the life or death of your entire Seven Treasure Glazed Sect."
"Regarding your disrespectful words to me..."
"Let's temporarily label your Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect as 'a criminal under investigation'."
Lin Feng changed the subject, his gaze leisurely turning to the group of Title Douluo watching the show in the hall.
"Of course, if you insist on sticking to your previous idea and have your two grandfathers demolish my Maple Dye Pavilion..."
He hadn't finished speaking.
Bibi Dong elegantly wiped her mouth with a napkin and was the first to speak, her voice cool and aloof.
"If she dares to even entertain such a thought, I will act on behalf of the entire Spirit Hall and immediately have the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect removed from the continent."
She had barely finished speaking when a sound of someone slamming their hand on the table rang out beside her.
Qian Daoliu glared at Bibi Dong, his face full of displeasure.
" Bibi Dong, what do you mean? Are you trying to steal my job?"
"When that time really comes, it will be me, the Chief Gatekeeper of the Maple Dye Pavilion, personally leading the team to wipe out the sect! It's not your place, the Pope, to fawn over them!"
Bibi Dong raised a brow and retorted without any politeness.
"I am the only customer in your restaurant who is entitled to 'three meals a day'."
"It is my duty and a matter of course to share the burdens of my seniors."
She sized Qian Daoliu up and down, a mocking smile playing on her lips.
"Since when did it become your place, an old codger whose second serving of Egg Fried Rice was just taken away by your senior, to start yelling here?"
"You!"
Qian Daoliu's face instantly turned green.
This knife struck him squarely in the heart; he couldn't catch his breath and almost broke down on the spot.
Holy crap... how can this woman have such a sharp tongue!
At this moment, even the electronic voice of the system in Lin Feng's mind carried a tone of amazement.
[As expected of you, host, you're such a good actor... oh no, I mean, you're such a master of manipulation.]
Lin Feng mentally gave this Dog System the middle finger.
What is PUA?
I'm stating the facts; after all, I wouldn't be foolish enough to uproot the best leeks.
Listening to these two big shots arguing about "who is more qualified to have the power to destroy their sect," Ning Fengzhi broke out in a cold sweat.
But he quickly realized what was happening.
Does the senior mean... we should let it go for now?
As soon as the thought crossed his mind, a surge of overwhelming joy at surviving a disaster rushed to his head.
Without thinking twice, he and Sword and Bone Douluo kowtowed desperately to Lin Feng.
"Thank you for sparing my life, senior! Thank you for your great kindness and virtue!"
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect has finally been saved!
Even her daughter doesn't have to die!
Ning Fengzhi quickly tugged at Ning Rongrong, who was still in a daze, and gestured for her to thank him.
Ning Rongrong's mind was blank at this moment. Her courage and shame had receded, leaving only a deep-seated fear. She was so trembling that she couldn't even utter a complete sentence.
Just then, Lin Feng's gaze finally shifted from Ning Rongrong to the half-dead figure that Bone Douluo had tossed aside.
"Speaking of which, who is this?"
"I don't recall having such a person in your Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, do I?"
Upon hearing this, Ning Fengzhi didn't dare to look up and almost instantly abandoned Ning Rongrong.
He pointed at Dai Mubai, who had been knocked unconscious by Bone Douluo on the ground, his voice filled with undisguised fawning and disgust.
"Reporting to Senior, this person's name is Dai Mubai, the Third Prince of the Star Luo Empire."
Dai Mubai?
The moment those three words were uttered...
Clang!
A sharp crack shattered the silence of the hall.
In the corner, Zhu Zhuqing's chopsticks fell onto the rim of the bowl.
She suddenly raised her head, and for the first time, her usually cold face showed a violent change in emotion, with even faint bloodshot veins appearing in her eyes!
Shrek's people... actually tracked us all the way here?
But the next second, she saw Dai Mubai's empty sleeve and his body covered in blood.
Then look at where you are, in this place where even a Title Douluo has to kneel down to speak.
All the emotions in Zhu Zhuqing's eyes slowly faded away.
She bowed slightly in apology to Lin Feng, then picked up her chopsticks again, but her movement to pick up the noodles was a beat slow.
On the other hand, her older sister, Zhu Zhuyun, presented a completely different picture.