"Can't I come?" Mu Li shrugged and asked with a smile.
"Of course you can." Xiao Chen paused, then smiled faintly.
"Sorry, but these things are far too important to our Wolf Head Mercenary Group. With them, we can easily swallow up every faction in Qingshan Town. Only then will we have the standing and strength to expand outward. I have no intention of setting my sights on this tiny town alone," Mu Li said calmly.
"Hand the things over, you two. As long as you obediently give them up, I can let you join the Wolf Head Mercenary Group. Once I take charge of the group, I certainly won't treat you poorly!" Mu Li said earnestly.
Hearing this, Xiao Yan couldn't help laughing. He rubbed his nose and shook his head mockingly. "A mercenary group without even a Da Dou Shi dares to act this arrogant?"
"At least killing you two will be very easy." Mu Li smiled faintly, murderous intent chilling his smile.
"Hand them over, and I'll leave your corpses intact." Folding his arms across his chest, Mu Li lost his patience.
Xiao Yan was utterly speechless.
His gaze swept over the rank badges on the chests of the dozen or so mercenaries completely blocking the stone doorway.
These mercenaries were all around four- or five-star Dou Zhe.
Mu Li himself was only at the six-star level.
He could thrash a lineup like this even while carrying the Heavy Xuan Ruler on his back.
"Ancestor?" He looked at Xiao Chen.
"Kill them. Leave none alive," Xiao Chen said coldly.
He had never had much of a favorable impression of Mu Li to begin with.
Now that the fellow had personally come seeking death, he would naturally oblige him.
Mu Li stood in the middle of the stone doorway with his arms folded, watching the two youths feigning composure with mockery all over his face. A sudden thrill of a cat toying with mice rose in his heart.
In his view, the two before him were so young that there was no way they could escape this many people surrounding them.
What he hadn't expected was that Xiao Chen and Xiao Yan had never considered escaping at all.
Hearing his ancestor's command, Xiao Yan naturally hesitated no longer and charged straight ahead.
Yet in Mu Li's eyes, this was no different from a moth flying into a flame.
"Attack! Finish them!" Seeing that his opponents actually dared to resist, Mu Li abruptly pointed at Xiao Yan, his icy voice brimming with murderous intent.
At their young leader's command, the surrounding mercenaries immediately tightened their grips on their weapons. Then, roaring in unison, they viciously closed in on Xiao Yan to kill him.
Watching the mercenaries close in, Xiao Yan exhaled softly and lowered his stance slightly. His right hand gripped the Heavy Xuan Ruler on his back, then drove it heavily into the hard ground before him.
Several cracks rapidly spread out through the ground around the ruler.
Everyone froze at the sight.
Immediately afterward, Xiao Yan became a blur. Unable to withstand even a single move, the surrounding mercenaries fell one after another.
Finally, he charged straight at the shocked Mu Li.
Mu Li reacted quickly as well. Raising his sharp longsword, he thrust it toward Xiao Yan's lower abdomen at a vicious, treacherous angle.
But the corners of Xiao Yan's mouth curved slightly. He sidestepped the sword, then raised his palm and clenched it into a fist, smashing it viciously toward Mu Li's chest with a fierce sound of compressed air.
The fierce wind of the oncoming punch made Mu Li's expression change drastically. Shock surged through his heart. This fellow is actually a Dou Shi!
As the thought flashed through his mind, Mu Li gritted his teeth and hurriedly circulated all the Dou Qi in his body to defend himself.
Bam!
The next instant, Xiao Yan's iron fist slammed heavily into Mu Li's chest.
Blood immediately sprayed from Mu Li's mouth. His breathing stopped outright, and his body crumpled to the ground.
Xiao Yan turned back, his face eager for praise, only to discover that Xiao Chen was no longer behind him.
Xiao Chen's voice came from the dark passage. "Take everything useful off their bodies."
Hearing this, Xiao Yan shook his head helplessly.
He had wanted to put on a good performance before his ancestor.
He hadn't expected his ancestor to pay no attention to his fight at all.
True enough. In his ancestor's eyes, that fight might have been nothing more than children playing house.
Night receded, and morning light spilled from the horizon, shining into a white tent.
A woman awoke from sleep, then put on her clothes.
She wore a pale white dress. Although her looks could not be called peerless, she was still a rare beauty.
Her face, with its serene smile, exuded a fresh, ethereal air.
That distinctive air greatly enhanced her charm.
Most stunning of all was her willow-slender waist, cinched by a green sash.
Her waist was delicate and slender, a tantalizing sight.
Hearing the familiar voice outside that disgusted her, Xiao Yi Xian slowly curled her rosy lips into a cold smile.
Sighing helplessly, she slowly walked out of the tent.
Outside the tent, seven or eight mercenaries stood guard, tightly blocking the entrance.
A man was confronting them with a gloomy expression.
When they saw Xiao Yi Xian emerge, the mercenaries hurriedly bowed to her.
"So it's the third leader. Weren't you in town? What brings you here so suddenly?" After smiling faintly at the mercenaries, Xiao Yi Xian turned toward the deeply gloomy He Meng and asked with a smile.
"Hehe, nothing much. Our leader just has some matters to discuss and would like to invite you to visit our Wolf Head Mercenary Group." His gaze swept behind Xiao Yi Xian. He Meng frowned, then smiled.
Nodding slightly, Xiao Yi Xian waved the mercenaries away and took two steps forward. "Third leader, what might this be about?" she asked with a smile.
"Xiao Yi Xian, don't play dumb." He Meng smiled, a sinister chill in his expression.
His gaze swept over the tent behind Xiao Yi Xian again as he said indifferently, "Given your reputation in Qingshan Town, I wasn't particularly inclined to lay a hand on you before. I was worried about offending those independent mercenaries."
"But things are different now. The leader is very angry, and he insists on having you brought back."
"Brought back?" Xiao Yi Xian froze briefly, then gave a mocking smile.
She looked toward the surrounding mercenaries, who had already risen.
Although she didn't know what had happened, these mercenaries were her support.
She believed that as long as they were here, He Meng wouldn't dare attack her.
But a ruthless glint flashed through He Meng's eyes as he said darkly, "Xiao Yi Xian, you're thinking far too simply. That's right, if this were anything else, I really would be wary of these independent mercenaries. But this time truly is different."
Seeing He Meng act this way, Xiao Yi Xian finally realized the gravity of the situation, and her pretty face immediately paled slightly.
What exactly had happened?
That evening.
The Wolf Head Mercenary Group's compound.
Several figures sat in a hall filled with a somewhat oppressive atmosphere.
At the head of the hall sat a middle-aged man with a deeply gloomy expression.
Tapping his fingers lightly on the table, he was the first to break the silence in the room.
"Last night, my son Mu Li went missing. Eventually, he was found dead in a cave beneath a cliff." The middle-aged man's somewhat hoarse voice slowly rang out.
This middle-aged man was none other than Mu She, leader of the Wolf Head Mercenary Group.
"What does that have to do with me?" Xiao Yi Xian's pretty face was icy.
"I suspect you and the people around you did it." Mu She glanced at her and spoke indifferently.
"On what grounds?" Xiao Yi Xian asked through clenched teeth.
"Instinct," Mu She said gravely.
"You!" Xiao Yi Xian clenched her fists.
"Mu She, aren't you afraid the Myriad Medicine Pavilion will bring people to attack the Wolf Head Mercenary Group?"
"Hmph, I've already had people spread word that you, Xiao Yi Xian, obtained the belongings left behind by some powerful expert, including a Xuan-tier Dou Qi cultivation method."
Mu She sneered. "Your medical skills may be excellent, but your own strength is far too lacking. And not everyone in this world is a good person. There will always be greedy fellows who will find ways to get those supposed belongings from you."
"If the people from the Myriad Medicine Pavilion come, do you think they'll come to save you, or to demand those belongings?"
"Once you leave here, do you think you'll be facing friends, or enemies?"
Before you continue