Qing Mao's Estate

Seeing that Mu Bai had won back their dignity, Xi Bazì and Sweet Potato Boy immediately perked up, and even their wounds no longer seemed to hurt. It was especially satisfying to see the insufferably arrogant Mo Dekun looking as nervous and meek as a grandson.

Xi Bazì was the sort of dog who swaggered on his master's strength, a fox borrowing Tiger Might. Twitching his two wisps of mustache, he pursed his lips and spat straight into Mo Dekun's face. Cold sweat ran down Mo Dekun's skin, and he felt ready to kill, but with Mu Bai's Spirit Light Sword pointed at the top of his head, he dared not lash out at all.

"Young brother, I was wrong. Please put away your golden sword. I'll return to my peak to cultivate right away. From now on, I'll treat my fellow disciples as my own brothers and never look down my nose at them again..."

Mo Dekun did not want to endure this wolfman's nagging and Xi Bazì's insults under the threat of the Spirit Light Sword, so he could only yield and beg for mercy. As the saying went, a wise man understood the times; a true man should know when to bend and when to stand tall.

"Mm-hmm, a teachable lad. Let's leave it at that today, then. It really is hot..."

Mu Bai withdrew the Spirit Light Sword and could not help loosening his White Wolf Hide coat again. Mo Dekun viciously wished to recover his dignity at once, but he was deeply wary of that White Wolf Hide coat, afraid that if he failed, he would fall into Mu Bai's hands again.

"Brother Bazì, Brother Sweet Potato, shall we keep going?"

Xi Bazì and Sweet Potato Boy straightened their clothes and hair, then followed Mu Bai toward Qing Mao's Estate with their heads held high.

"Who exactly is that man?"

"I heard Xi Bazì call him 'Elder Mu'?"

"What 'Elder Mu'? Where did an Elder Mu come from? Our sect has no such person!"

"He's no ordinary fellow, though. Even Senior Brother Mo was..."

Mo Dekun stared fixedly at Mu Bai's retreating back, covered in snow-white White Wolf Hide. Watching him swagger away, his anger grew fiercer with every glance. He wished he could immediately stab a bloody hole through that great white back!

While Mu Bai had been threatening Mo Dekun with the golden sword pointed at his head, a quick-witted disciple had already sent a voice transmission to Mo Dekun's elder brother, Mo Deqian. Both brothers studied under Shi Linchuan, and Mo Deqian was already an elite disciple of the Spirit Taming Sect.

Learning that his younger brother had been bullied, Mo Deqian hurried over, just in time to see Mo Dekun glaring viciously at Mu Bai's receding white back as though his own father had died.

"Dekun, was that the man who humiliated you?"

"Ah..."

Mo Dekun suddenly let out a fierce roar, startling Mu Bai, who had already walked away. He turned around to see what madness had seized Mo Dekun now.

"His Soul Power couldn't withstand a single blow! What right did he have to humiliate me? He's only wearing a big white fur coat!"

"What?"

Mo Deqian looked over coldly. Sure enough, that man was draped in white fur, particularly glaring beneath the brilliant sunlight.

"Then your big brother will strip that dog hide off him!"

Mo Deqian was a soul cultivator at the middle third level, with profound Soul Power. Flying through the air, he caught up to Mu Bai in an instant and drove a heavy straight punch toward his face. Mu Bai threw a punch as well. With a bang, their fists collided, and both men retreated several yards.

A numbing shock ran through Mu Bai, and his right arm trembled slightly. Their exchange had seemed evenly matched, but Mo Deqian had only been driven back because he was in midair with nothing to brace against.

"You do have some ability. Quite a physique!"

Mo Deqian's physical strength was even greater than Mu Bai's, but he wanted to teach the man before him a brutal lesson with an overwhelming advantage. He immediately summoned his longsword, sending a sky full of sword shadows sweeping toward Mu Bai. However strong Mu Bai was, he could never withstand an all-out strike from a third-level expert. In that critical moment, just as he was about to summon the Three-Legged Crow Cauldron to cover himself, a longsword abruptly thrust into the sword shadows. Sparks flew with a series of clangs, stopping Mo Deqian.

"Thirteenth Sect Heir?"

The newcomer was tall and slender, with jade-like elegance and the bearing of someone in high office. He was none other than Zhou Dekai, the Spirit Taming Sect's thirteenth Sect Heir.

However, it was not the thirteenth Sect Heir who had drawn his sword to save Mu Bai. A Sect Heir of such a great sect always had powerful guards accompanying him; naturally, there was no need for him to act personally.

"Mo Deqian, this is restricted sect ground. Do not hurt anyone."

Zhou Dekai spoke gently, neither hurried nor slow, yet his words brooked no question.

"Sect Heir, he humiliated my younger brother Dekun first. I had no choice but to teach him a little lesson!"

Zhou Dekai frowned slightly, displeasure appearing on his handsome face.

"I acknowledge my mistake. I'll leave at once!"

"Mm..."

Mo Deqian dared not defy Zhou Dekai's wishes. He could only suppress his anger and leave with Mo Dekun.

"We'll find another chance to teach him a lesson!"

The Mo brothers left, and Zhou Dekai did not give Mu Bai much thought either. His clothes were merely a little strange. He soon departed with his people as well.

To Mu Bai, that scene had been nothing short of an escape from death. He kept inwardly cursing himself: he had to keep a low profile, had to keep a low profile. "Keep your head down and your looks plain, and you'll live a long life..."

After all that commotion, the three of them wilted. No topic could stir their interest, and they walked in silence all the way to Qing Mao's Estate.

Qing Mao's Estate was exceedingly grand as well. Before they even approached the main gate, they saw one or two hundred women and young ladies in lavish clothes and heavy makeup chattering away, already standing with their necks craned and looking eagerly about. Who knew where they had gotten the news? Several dozen were also carrying or leading young children, making for quite a spectacular scene.

Another seven or eight burly middle-aged men paced anxiously, rubbing their hands as they waited.

When they saw Mu Bai and the others approaching, the hundred or two hundred women instantly erupted into an uproar and swarmed forward like bees spotting nectar.

"Husband, you've made your wife wait so miserably..."

"Beneath the longing tree, I speak of longing; I yearn for you and resent you, yet you know nothing..."

Like hungry wolves that had not seen flesh and blood in ages, the heavily made-up women scrambled to seize Mu Bai, sobbing and wailing. Tears streamed down their faces, along with running noses, in an utterly heartbroken display.

Fortunately, Mu Bai had a fairly sturdy frame. Only after exerting the strength of nine oxen and two tigers did he finally break free.

"Aunties, madams, and big sisters, you've got the wrong person. I'm not your husband."

"We respectfully welcome Father home!"

Still panting, Mu Bai had yet to find his footing when seven or eight middle-aged men, accompanied by several dozen half-grown children, suddenly dropped to their knees in greeting. His mighty frame shuddered, and he nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.

"What? Father! May I ask, uncles, are you ill?"

Mu Bai's jaw nearly dropped. He was still a child himself; he truly could not be their father. He immediately leaped back several yards.

Seeing this, Xi Bazì and Sweet Potato Boy clutched their stomachs with laughter, casting their unpleasant experience along the way all the way to Java.

"That's right, Father." The burly man at their head bowed his head and replied, "Whoever holds Elder Qing Mao's Elder Token is our father!"

"Yes, yes! Whoever holds Elder Qing Mao's token is our husband..."

Xi Bazì and Sweet Potato Boy rocked back and forth with laughter. Seeing Mu Bai's mortified expression, they could only restrain themselves and step forward to speak.

"Ladies and young masters, Elder Mu has traveled a long way. Why not invite him inside to rest first..."

"I'm not tired, not tired at all. Since I've only just arrived, Brother Bazì, Brother Sweet Potato, sorry for the trouble, but please show me around some more..."

Mu Bai hurriedly turned around, blinking frantically as he pleaded with the two of them.

Xi Bazì immediately understood. "Of course, of course. We really ought to help Elder Mu get familiar with the surroundings first."

Mu Bai was just about to leave when the crowd of "wives, concubines, and children" behind him burst into loud sobs, crying, "Husband!" and "Father!"...

Mu Bai felt as though pounds of goose bumps were about to fall off his body. How could he dare stay here as anyone's "husband" or "father"? He immediately urged Xi Bazì and Sweet Potato Boy to hurry away.

The crowd behind him surged forward together as though facing a parting in life or death, reaching out to clutch Mu Bai's White Wolf Hide coat. It felt so smooth and soft, so luxurious and imposing.

"There's no food left at home..."

I knew becoming a ready-made husband and old father couldn't be that easy. So they wanted support money.

"Aunties, big sisters, uncles, little brothers and sisters, I don't have any Soul Crystals either..."

Faced with their fierce, relentless onslaught, Mu Bai was almost in tears.

"How could you wear such a precious white fur coat if you had no Soul Crystals?"

"You brought a treasure back for the sect master. Didn't you get a reward?"

The crowd wailed to heaven and beat the earth, clutching Mu Bai's White Wolf Hide coat and refusing to let go. If he had any other clothes to wear, Mu Bai would definitely have stripped it off and given it to them on the spot!

"I did. Here, this white jade token. You can have it if you want."

Mu Bai took out the Elder Token and held it out to the crowd. Everyone backed away, and no one dared accept it.

"Not even one Soul Crystal?"

"No. To be frank, in all my life, I've only seen Soul Crystals twice. I'm completely cleaned out right now, but you can't feel me up..."

"Tch, you wretch! What did you come back for if you have no Soul Crystals? You might as well have died out there, so we could find someone else!"

The middle-aged men were also bitterly disappointed. "Let's go. What a waste of feeling! We could've played several rounds of gambling in this time! Hmph!"

Within a few breaths, the more than two hundred people before him vanished without a trace, like autumn wind sweeping away fallen leaves. Mu Bai could not help shivering and hurriedly pulled his collar tight.