Nether Civet Zhu Zhuqing (II)

Dai Mubai had only just arrived and settled in Suotuo City when Zhu Zhuqing followed close behind, traveling a thousand miles.

She had pursued him all the way here, only to encounter Lu Jia, a thug through and through, by a twist of fate in this frontier town.

Countless thoughts flashed through Lin Chen's mind in an instant, and an excellent idea took shape.

This was an opportunity sent by heaven!

With her nether civet martial soul, which specialized in ultimate speed, Zhu Zhuqing possessed exceptional talent, an unyielding temperament, and outstanding combat prowess. She would also become one of the Shrek Seven Devils, giving her boundless potential.

But now, that opportunity lay right before him.

He could step in and save Zhu Zhuqing from danger, then seize the chance to win her over and guide her into joining Spirit Hall.

First, this would allow Zhu Zhuqing to rely on Spirit Hall's immense power to resist the Star Luo Zhu Family's oppression and shackles, escaping her tragic fate.

Second, since he had joined Spirit Hall, he would surely clash with Tang San in the future. Snatching away a member of the Shrek Seven Devils in advance would break apart their core lineup and deprive Tang San of a powerful ally.

As long as Zhu Zhuqing sided with Spirit Hall, Tang San's future Shrek lineup would be incomplete, its combat strength greatly diminished.

Tang San's smooth sailing to the top would surely become a road riddled with obstacles.

At the thought of Tang San suffering setbacks and struggling to take even a single step in the future, Lin Chen felt a surge of pleasure he could barely conceal.

Such a perfect opportunity was right before him. He absolutely could not miss it!

His decision crystallized in a flash of lightning. His gaze grew firm, his mind made up.

Without drawing attention, he slowly withdrew from the packed crowd of onlookers, slipping out of everyone's sight.

He took paper and a pen from his Storage Soul Tool and quickly wrote a line.

—Teacher, save me.

Once he finished, he gave a light wave, summoning Liuli, who had been obediently waiting nearby. He gently held the note to her mouth and hurriedly instructed her in a low voice:

"Liuli, take this note to Teacher Mo Yuan right away. As fast as you can!"

Highly intelligent, Liuli immediately understood. She obediently gripped the note in her mouth, lifted her three tails, and became a streak of three-colored light, racing toward the town's inn. In an instant, she vanished at the end of the street.

With his backup arranged, Lin Chen had no more worries holding him back. He turned, strode straight through the crowd, and hurried to the edge of the battlefield.

By now, the battle had grown increasingly perilous, and Zhu Zhuqing had fallen completely onto the defensive.

The prolonged high-speed struggle and constant expenditure of soul power had rapidly drained both her stamina and her reserves.

Her rank was already lower than Lu Jia's, and his martial soul countered hers, while his movements were bizarre.

On top of that, the mercenary group's members had secretly blocked her escape routes, waiting for chances to hinder her. Under pressure from every side, she was already exhausted in body and mind.

Her tight black clothes were damaged in several places, the torn fabric exposing slender patches of fair skin. Several shallow red claw marks had appeared on her body, clear signs that she had suffered numerous minor injuries during the struggle.

Her movements gradually became unsteady, her elusive speed dropping sharply. Exhaustion filled her eyes, and her breathing grew rapid and uneven. Her once fierce, swift attacks slowed completely, leaving her barely able to defend and evade.

A few breaths later, her soul power was utterly depleted, and she could no longer maintain Martial Soul Possession.

The pitch-black glow of her martial soul slowly faded. Her long, sharp black claws and the twitching black cat ears atop her head all vanished. She left her possessed form entirely, returning to her original appearance as a cool, breathtakingly beautiful girl.

With her strength spent and her soul power exhausted, Zhu Zhuqing staggered back several steps. Her face was pale, her body swaying on the verge of collapse. She had completely lost the ability to keep fighting.

Lu Jia wore a mocking, lecherous grin as he closed in step by step, intent on continuing his abuse.

A young man's clear, steady voice suddenly rang across the clearing, calling him to a halt.

"Stop!"

The clear voice carried powerfully, instantly cutting through all the surrounding chatter and reaching everyone's ears.

Lu Jia abruptly paused in his advance, slowly coming to a stop before turning toward the voice.

When he saw that the speaker was merely an inexperienced youth of seventeen or eighteen, tall and straight-backed but still somewhat immature, without the slightest aura of a powerful expert, intense mockery and disdain flashed across his face.

He sneered, his flippant, taunting tone dripping with contempt:

"Oh? Where did this brat come from? You still stink of milk, and you haven't even grown a full patch of hair, yet you dare play the hero rescuing a beauty?"

As his words fell, every gaze focused on Lin Chen, and the crowd instantly went quiet.

Everyone thought the youth was far too impulsive. He was hurling an egg against a rock and would surely suffer badly for it.

Taking advantage of the instant Lu Jia's attention shifted to Lin Chen, the exhausted Zhu Zhuqing forced her weary body onward. She quickly dodged sideways and staggered to Lin Chen's side, her tense body remaining vigilant, her cool eyes filled with wariness and unwillingness to yield.

Seeing this, Lin Chen stepped forward and firmly shielded Zhu Zhuqing behind him. Standing tall, he faced Lu Jia head-on, his gaze calm and steady, neither servile nor overbearing.

His cold gaze swept over Lu Jia, and his voice was calm but edged with severity:

"You're a Soul Elder, a full-grown man, yet instead of cultivating or doing anything worthwhile, you harass a lone girl in public, using your strength to bully the weak and your age to prey on the young. Have you no shame?"

That righteous rebuke instantly froze the mocking smile on Lu Jia's face.

Publicly scolded and condemned by some nameless youth before the townspeople, Lu Jia felt he had lost every scrap of face. Fury surged straight to his head, and the frivolity in his eyes gave way entirely to savage rage.

"Brat, you're courting death!"

With an angry roar, Lu Jia stopped toying around. The Yellow Soul Ring around him instantly lit up, and three Soul Rings—one white, one yellow, and one purple—rose and pulsed. His Soul Elder aura erupted, and the fierce pressure of his soul power came crashing toward them.

The next instant, he shot forward, his body twisting unnaturally like a venomous snake emerging from its hole. With a sharp rush of wind and chilling murderous intent, he lunged straight at Lin Chen!

At the same time, the other members of the Iron Tiger Mercenary Group, who had been watching from the outskirts, all turned cold-faced. They slowly shifted into an encircling formation, closing in little by little around Lin Chen and Zhu Zhuqing.

"Finish this quickly. Don't delay our next assignment!"

One mercenary barked coldly, his tone utterly ruthless.

Several Soul Masters surrounded them in layers, sealing every escape route on all sides and trapping the pair in the center.

Danger descended in an instant.

Lin Chen's expression tightened. Reaching behind him, he gently took hold of the weak, exhausted Zhu Zhuqing, then abruptly shifted his footing and pulled her into a swift sideways dodge, narrowly avoiding Lu Jia's vicious lunge.

His strike missed, but after landing, Lu Jia did not restrain himself. Instead, he grew even more brazen.

His body twisted slightly, his joints giving off a series of faint cracks. His speed suddenly surged, far exceeding what he had shown while fighting Zhu Zhuqing.

"Heh heh heh—"

His strange, piercing cackle rang across the clearing, making people's scalps prickle and sending chills through their hearts.

"Little bastard, you still dare dodge?"

Lu Jia's eyes were sinister, and a savage grin spread across his face.

"Stop wasting your strength struggling. Be good and surrender. Once Uncle catches you, I'll give you both something to remember!"

Hearing those lewd, arrogant words, Lin Chen felt a wave of intense revulsion, an uncomfortable chill spreading through his body.

He despised nothing more than vile scum who used their strength to bully the weak.

Every escape route was now sealed. The Iron Tiger Mercenary Group kept pressing closer, their encirclement shrinking. There was no chance of breaking through and escaping into the crowd.

Left with no choice, Lin Chen could only keep shifting and dodging with Zhu Zhuqing, relying on nimble footwork to evade Lu Jia's swift attacks and barely hold his own.

As he dodged the vicious onslaught, Lin Chen silently prayed in mounting anxiety.

Teacher Mo Yuan, hurry! If you're any later, something terrible really will happen!

Lu Jia's attacks grew increasingly savage and overpowering. His serpentine movements were bizarre and unpredictable, every strike lunging straight for a vital point. The pressure intensified, leaving Lin Chen less and less room to dodge.

At that very moment, when their lives hung by a single thread!