"Are you sure it was her?"
Liu Ming questioned the burly man beside him, who hurriedly replied, "Cousin, there's no way I could be mistaken. I saw that woman in blue set up a formation for the Guo family with my own eyes. It was incredibly powerful-even seven or eight Qi Condensation cultivators working together couldn't break it."
"So that's how it is." Liu Ming gave a sinister chuckle. "Truly, who could have known that the old man's lost horse would turn out to be a blessing? Our target this time was supposed to be Old Xu. We deliberately baited him into striking first and violating the Market's ban on fighting, then planned to have Senior Xu personally subdue his second-tier Fire Crow. Who would have thought some Foundation Establishment cultivator would pop out of nowhere and ruin everything? But it seems my luck isn't bad after all. Isn't this a turn for the better? If we capture this woman and make her set up formations exclusively for the Liu family, she'll be a tremendous asset."
At that thought, delight spread across the group's faces, and lust even blazed in a few pairs of eyes.
"These two women aren't bad. It would be a waste to keep them in the Liu family just to set up formations. Why not have them give us a little entertainment now and then?"
Everyone's imagination stirred at those words, and knowing looks passed between them. Liu Ming chuckled as well, then immediately gestured for silence and stealthily followed the women.
With their meager cultivation, Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei never noticed Liu Ming's group following behind them. Still, they had spent the past few years cautiously guarding against just such a thing. After all, the Fu family was far from the only family that wanted to forcibly confine them and make them its dedicated formation masters.
Xin Ruoyin hurried onward with Xiao Mei, laying down a Lost Track Formation from time to time. These formation flags cost little, but they could confuse low-level cultivators' spiritual senses, leaving them unable to tell which way to go.
This made things miserable for Liu Ming and his followers. Left with no choice, Liu Ming had to break the formations through brute force, and the moment he attacked, he exposed their presence.
Xin Ruoyin had only laid the formations behind them as a precaution, but now repeated booms rang out from within them. Someone was clearly trying to smash through by force.
"You're cautious enough for both of us, Miss. Someone really was following us."
Xiao Mei could not help praising her, but Xin Ruoyin felt no joy at all. She analyzed the situation calmly. "Judging by that relentless barrage, there must be more than one or two of them. Xiao Mei, we can't get tangled up with them. We have to leave at once."
Just as Xin Ruoyin was about to take Xiao Mei's hand and leave, a deafening crash erupted behind them. Though the Lost Track Formation was easy and inexpensive to set up, its defenses were equally weak. Under the combined assault of Liu Ming's group, it finally broke.
"Little wenches, let's see where you can run!"
Seeing that they had already been exposed, Liu Ming finally dropped all pretense, his expression turning vicious.
Xin Ruoyin had no choice but to throw out more formation flags. These hastily arranged formations were not very powerful, however, and Liu Ming's group soon broke through them again. Even so, they bought the two women some time.
The two were almost back at their residence, where Xin Ruoyin had long since set up several formidable formations.
"Miss, as long as we get home, we can activate the powerful formations and make sure these scoundrels never come back out!"
Xiao Mei waved her fist, brimming with confidence. Xin Ruoyin was equally certain. She knew the formations she had laid herself. Unless a Foundation Establishment cultivator came to their aid, those pursuers would find it very difficult to leave once they entered.
Just as delight appeared on their faces, an immense oppressive aura descended. Its pressure was so tremendous that the instant Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei sensed that terrifying cultivation, their legs began to tremble and their faces turned as white as paper.
The newcomer was actually a fat man with a face full of flabby flesh. He looked utterly comical, yet Xin Ruoyin and Xiao Mei could not laugh at all, for the cultivation he had just displayed was unmistakably at Foundation Establishment.
This fat man was none other than Xu Yan of the Heavenly Star Sect, who had conspired with Liu Ming and the others earlier.
Xu Yan did not even glance at Xiao Mei. He stared straight at Xin Ruoyin, then looked toward Liu Ming's group behind her. Seeing that they had yet to break out of the formation, he nodded approvingly.
"Not bad. Your mastery of formations is indeed impressive. If they hadn't notified me with a Sound Transmission Talisman, you really would have escaped."
Xu Yan suddenly sneered. "But now that I'm here, you have no chance of getting away. Young lady, I don't want to kill you. You'd better stay obediently and become a dedicated formation master for the Liu family."
"Don't even think about it!"
Xiao Mei could not hold back those words, but Xu Yan promptly waved his hand. From several yards away, he struck her hard enough to send her flying several more yards, blood spraying from her mouth. He had still held back; otherwise, that single blow would have killed her.
"Xiao Mei!"
Xin Ruoyin's expression changed drastically. She hurried to Xiao Mei's side to examine her injuries, only breathing a sigh of relief when she found they were not fatal. Behind her, Xu Yan approached at an unhurried pace.
"Relax. I can see how deeply you care for each other, so I didn't kill her. But if you keep hesitating, I can't say whether I'll be able to control my strength next time."
Faced with a Foundation Establishment cultivator's threat, Xin Ruoyin's face was deathly pale. She let out a long sigh. "You needn't say any more, Senior. I'll go with you, as long as you let Xiao Mei go."
"Miss, you can't go with them! They'll imprison you for the rest of your life, shut you in a little room that never sees daylight, and make you design formations for them." Xiao Mei grew frantic at her words, but with her injuries, she could barely even stand. There was nothing she could do.
Xin Ruoyin gave a desolate smile, already resolved to die. She rose to her feet and was about to walk toward Xu Yan.
Just then, Xu Yan's expression suddenly changed, though he had been utterly confident until that moment. He hurriedly looked toward a spot in the air behind him. Xin Ruoyin paused, then looked in the same direction and was immediately startled.
At some point, a beautiful little boat had appeared and hovered in midair. A handsome young man in blue stood aboard it. It was Lin He!
"Miss Ru Yin still owes me a great debt, and she hasn't repaid it yet. I'm afraid she won't be able to go to the Liu family and become their dedicated formation master."
Without waiting for Xu Yan to react, he swiftly waved his hand. The pair of red flying knives he had obtained from Han Tianya shot out at once. These flying-knife artifacts excelled at surprise attacks, making them all but impossible to guard against. Driven by Lin He's powerful Foundation Establishment magic, they were naturally unstoppable against a group of Qi Condensation cultivators.
Two streaks of red light swept in an elegant arc around the men. Wherever the razor-sharp knives passed, they slit the throats of Liu Ming and his followers, killing them before they could even cry out.
In mere moments, Liu Ming and his followers, who had been so full of life just now, were dead to the last man. Such thunderbolt methods had Xiao Mei clapping in delight, while the corner of Xin Ruoyin's eye twitched violently. Even Xu Yan's expression turned exceedingly ugly.
Lin He had struck far too quickly. Before Xu Yan could come to their aid, he was the only one left on his side. Moreover,
he had now gotten a clear look at Lin He's face. This was the unfamiliar Foundation Establishment cultivator who had ruined his plans earlier.
Xu Yan spoke in a low voice, his expression extremely grim. "You! First you ruined my plans, and now you're meddling again. Have you grown tired of living?"
"Heh, I never expected the esteemed Garrison Commissioner of the Heavenly Star Sect Market to collude with these Liu family scum and bully two defenseless women. If word of this got out, people would laugh their teeth out."
One hovered in midair while the other stood on the ground, with several dozen yards separating Xu Yan and Lin He. Sparks seemed to flicker where their gazes met. Battle hung on a hair trigger.