Trouble at the Door

Fang Ye's arrogance did not last long before a burst of searing pain struck his face.

A tremendous force sent him staggering sideways. When he finally regained his senses, he saw Fang Qiong staring at him coldly.

"Cousin, what are you doing?"

He widened his eyes, unable to believe what he was seeing.

"Idiot. Since when did the Punishment Hall start arresting people without investigating first?"

Fang Qiong's face was dark. He kicked Fang Ye again, sending him flying outright.

The outer sect disciples of the Punishment Hall nearby were so frightened by the sight that they froze where they stood.

This sudden turn of events had left them at a loss as well.

Fang Qiong had no intention of explaining himself to them. Turning to Ye Xiu, he forced a smile onto his face.

"Junior Brother, there must be some misunderstanding here."

Feeling the full, abundant spiritual energy emanating from Ye Xiu, Fang Qiong could not conceal the alarm in his eyes.

Not only had Ye Xiu not died, he had even leaped straight to the ninth layer of Qi Condensation.

Fang Qiong had no idea what had happened in between.

But his naturally cautious temperament kept him from tearing off all pretense just yet.

Ye Xiu's ninth-layer Qi Condensation strength was already enough to make him wary. At a time like this, stabilizing the situation and making plans for the long term was the proper course.

At Fang Qiong's words, an almost imperceptible chill flashed through Ye Xiu's eyes.

Fang Qiong truly had no shame at all. He had personally framed Ye Xiu and sent him into such a deadly predicament, yet now he was turning around and dumping the blame on someone else.

Still, this worked out nicely. Fang Qiong had operated within the Yin Harmony Sect's outer sect for many years, and Ye Xiu was not confident that he could deal with him without repercussions.

Since the other party was willing to offer him a way out, he might as well watch and wait for now.

"The Punishment Hall barged into a disciple's private residence and tried to arrest him at will. Misunderstanding or not, it would still sound rather ugly if word got out..."

A smile curled Ye Xiu's lips.

Fang Ye's face darkened in anger at those words. "What do you mean? Since when does the Punishment Hall need to answer to the likes of you—"

"Thirty spirit stones per person as compensation. Does that sound acceptable to you, Junior Brother?"

Before Fang Ye could flare up, Fang Qiong behind him spoke on his own.

"Cousin, how can we compensate him? This guy is still suspected of defecting from the sect—"

Under Fang Qiong's icy stare, Fang Ye's voice gradually weakened.

Seeing his cousin still trying to stir up trouble at a time like this, Fang Qiong finally lost all patience and delivered another vicious kick.

"Bastard! Junior Brother Ye has reached the ninth layer of Qi Condensation. He will soon break through and enter the inner sect. You call a genius like him a defector?"

"Have the Punishment Hall's information checks stopped using their brains? Get over here and apologize to Junior Brother Ye, now!"

Fang Ye had only just struggled to his feet when he was kicked to the ground again. But this time, the Punishment Hall disciples who usually followed his lead had no time to care about him.

The disciples looked at Ye Xiu, who stood to the side with his hands behind his back, and felt the pressure radiating from him. They could not help sucking in cold breaths.

Ye Xiu was merely a newly inducted disciple. How could he possibly possess ninth-layer Qi Condensation strength?

Instinctively, they wanted to reject the answer, but Fang Qiong—the senior brother they usually relied upon—was the one who had said it. Who would dare question him aloud?

They exchanged glances, then reluctantly took out their spirit stones under Fang Qiong's watchful gaze and lowered their heads one by one to apologize.

Ye Xiu waved a hand as though it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Since it is a misunderstanding, clearing it up is enough. But from now on, I do not wish to be disturbed while cultivating."

Fang Qiong piled a somewhat stiff smile onto his face.

"Rest assured, Junior Brother. I guarantee that no one so blind will come bothering you again."

The two exchanged smiling pleasantries for a while before Fang Qiong found an excuse to leave.

The remaining Punishment Hall disciples hurried after him. Before they left, they did not forget to carry away Fang Ye, who was sprawled on the ground.

Inside the outer sect's Punishment Hall:

The atmosphere was visibly oppressive.

Fang Ye gritted his teeth. "Cousin, so what if Ye Xiu is at the ninth layer of Qi Condensation? As long as we make this defection charge stick, would he dare resist the sect—"

A trace of gloom appeared in Fang Qiong's eyes. "Idiot. Is a ninth-layer Qi Condensation cultivator someone you can casually frame?"

"Those with hope of Foundation Establishment all enter the inner sect's examinations. If you idiots provoke him again, you will only dredge up all the filthy business from before."

"So we're just letting this go?"

Fang Ye was clearly unwilling to accept it, while the Punishment Hall disciples beside him all wore pained expressions.

They had each paid thirty spirit stones in apology. How many disciples would they have to extort before they could save that much again?

"Let it go? Hmph. The inner sect promotion examination is coming soon. That brat obtained some fortuitous opportunity, so he certainly will not miss it."

A cold glint flashed through Fang Qiong's eyes. "When the time comes, let him see the difference between a stroke of luck and years of careful groundwork."

At the same time, Ye Xiu's smile gradually cooled within the courtyard.

Of course, he would not simply reconcile with Fang Qiong.

When Fang Qiong framed him, he had not left Ye Xiu even the slightest chance of survival. Now that he saw Ye Xiu had grown powerful, he wanted to simply let it all pass? Where in the world was there such a good deal?

But Ye Xiu had only just entered the sect and was unfamiliar with its inner workings. If he acted rashly and happened to violate some taboo, the losses would outweigh the gains.

His mindset was steady. With his ability to travel between the two worlds as a safety net, his lower limit would never be low.

In that case, what harm was there in letting Fang Qiong live a few more days?

After what had happened today, the other party would surely keep a lower profile for a while at the very least.

And now, Ye Xiu finally had the chance to return to that apocalyptic world.

He had not forgotten that Xu Hualing was still waiting for him over there.

Ye Xiu reset the warning formation in the courtyard, then returned to his room. He closed his eyes and sat cross-legged, his figure gradually blurring away.

In the apocalyptic world, inside the secret room.

Xu Hualing gripped the token tightly in her hand.

Nearly ten days had passed since Ye Xiu saved her that day and vanished once more.

During that time, zombies had passed by more than once. Fortunately, with the formation Ye Xiu had left behind, she had weathered every crisis safely.

But staying in that dim underground chamber for so long was torturous in the end.

"There are only enough supplies left for three days. If Brother Xiu still doesn't come back..."

After checking the remaining food, Xu Hualing let out a sigh.

She did not know what she would do once the supplies ran out. She could only hope that Ye Xiu would return soon.

Screech, screech...

A piercing sound came from the steel door above the basement again—the sign of a zombie horde attacking.

Xu Hualing tightened her grip around the token and activated the protective formation according to the incantation Ye Xiu had left her.

Amid a series of crackling sounds, the temperature in the air gradually rose.

Outside the door, flames sprang into existence from thin air and clung to the zombies as they burned. Before long, the zombies had been reduced to ash.

Hearing the howls outside gradually weaken, Xu Hualing heaved a long sigh of relief.

She turned around, intending to rest for a while, when a sudden change occurred.

Thud, thud, thud...

The thick iron door suddenly began shaking without stop, as though some enormous object were slamming into it.

Xu Hualing's pupils contracted, and she hurriedly activated the token again.

But this time, the flames that had never failed before lost their effect.

The impacts outside grew faster and faster, and even the steel door began to deform.

Through the twisted gap, Xu Hualing could see an enormous blue-gray figure continuously ramming against it.

The instant she saw that monster, Xu Hualing's face went stark white.

"The Tyrant? How could it be? How could this monster appear here?"

In a panic, she formed the incantation again and activated the token. Yet although the flames clung to the Tyrant's towering body, they failed to slow it in the slightest.

With a deafening boom.

The door finally could not hold any longer and shattered into pieces.

The Tyrant's scarlet eyes stared fixedly at Xu Hualing inside through the gap in the ruined doorway.

Before her terrified gaze, those massive, bulging hands seized the doorframe and violently tore it apart...