161. Xiling: Brave Girls, Go Save the Xianzhou Loufu!
"Let me go, or you'll face the consequences." Stelle's voice was icy cold, expressionless, like a heartless killing machine.
In contrast, the other's reaction was much more genuine.
"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Let go, Xiling! Let go! I'll never do it again!" March 7th cried pitifully, her eyes brimming with tears.
"March, don't scream! You have to be tough at times like this!" Stelle tried to maintain her cool image, but her raised voice betrayed her lack of confidence.
Houraiji Kyuushou and Luo Tianyi, who had teleported here, silently covered their ears.
It looks painful!
Elaina watched the scene with interest.
"You two! You're really bold, huh, daring to run around like this!" Xiling snorted coldly, releasing March 7th's ears and turning her full force towards Xing.
Seeing March 7th being released, Stelle immediately lost her cold-blooded killer facade, instantly switching to pitiful mode:
"Waaah! I was wrong! Please let me go, Xiling! I really won't do it again!"
"I doubt it!"
March 7th, having just escaped death, immediately transformed into a righteous whistleblower, pointing at Stelle and loudly accusing her, "She must be severely punished! Make her remember this lesson!"
Stelle looked at March 7th with disbelief and heartbreak at being betrayed by her best friend.
However, before she could put on her tearful monologue, Xiling's devilish claws had already precisely grabbed her other ear.
"You troublemaker! Where do you think this is? This is Xianzhou Loufu! Not our backyard! With your clumsy hands, what kind of trouble have you caused? Believe me, the Luofu laws will sentence you to ten or eight years in the Netherworld!"
"I was wrong! Really wrong! Xiling, be gentle! My ear's going to fall off!" Stelle winced in pain, repeatedly begging for mercy.
Xiling snorted and released her. Stelle immediately covered her ears with both hands, rubbing them pitifully.
"Good that you know pain. Hopefully you'll learn your lesson next time," Xiling rolled his eyes in annoyance.
At the same time, his senses, like an invisible spiderweb, had already firmly locked onto the quiet figure in the pavilion.
—The head of the Alchemy Commission, Dan Shu, and at the same time, she was also the leader of the Medicine King's secret teachings.
It was this person who gave Alchemy Commission the so-called "Cloud-Eating Dew-Gathering Pill"—and in reality, this was a poisonous pill that could induce demonic possession!
Thinking of this, Xiling couldn't help but glare at Stelle again. Startled by his gaze, Stelle darted behind Houraiji Kyuushou and Luo Tianyi for protection.
The two were quite righteous, immediately shielding her in their midst.
Xiling was almost laughing in exasperation:
"Hey! Do I look like the kind of utterly wicked person?"
Hidden behind the human wall, Xing muttered softly, "...Hard to say."
Just then, a gentle voice broke the slightly awkward atmosphere.
Dan Shu, who had been sitting quietly in the pavilion, though blind, walked with unusually steady and fluid steps. She approached Xiling and the others, her tone reassuringly sincere:
"I apologize for disturbing you all. I overheard your conversation and roughly understand the reason. Please don't blame these two young ladies too much."
She nodded slightly, facing Xiling, her words genuine:
"They saw that I was blind and alone here, and worried that something might happen to me, so they came to keep me company and talk to me to keep me company... This kindness is truly rare." Dan Shu's words were sincere.
Xiling could even feel that the apology and explanation she was expressing were heartfelt. Unfortunately, she was the leader of the Medicine King's Secret Teachings. She's a scoundrel who treats others' lives like dirt and plots to overthrow Luofu!
Her plight might warrant sympathy… but that's absolutely no excuse for inflicting harm on innocent people!
Xiling slowly closed his eyes, and when he opened them again, a perfectly measured apology graced his face, and his voice returned to its usual calm:
"I see… I misunderstood them; I was rude just now."
Xiling turned to Stelle and March 7th, his tone tinged with guilt, "I'm sorry, Stelle, March 7th. I was too hasty."
Stelle and March 7th subconsciously breathed a sigh of relief, but quickly sensed something amiss in the air.
Because… the others moved. No words, no eye contact.
Kevin, Houraiji Kyuushou, and Dan Heng, their footsteps silently overlapping, instantly occupying specific positions. An invisible quadrilateral quietly formed, and at its center was the seemingly weak and harmless blind woman—Dan Shu!
[Fire Moth Warrior]: Is there something wrong with this guy?
[I'm not Him]: Could it be... someone from the Medicine King's secret lineage?
[I'm the Savior]: Should we make a move now?
[I Don't Want to Be a Hero Anymore]: I haven't decided about what to do yet! Why are you all moving so fast?
[I'm a Witch]: Your tone has changed, so there's definitely something wrong with that guy.
[I'm Not a Foodie]: Yeah, Xiling, should I try to control her?
[I Don't Want to Be a Hero Anymore]: Let her go for now, to prevent Phantylia from noticing anything.
Dan Shu's ears were very sharp. She sensed three footsteps approaching from different directions, as if they were surrounding her.
"What's going on? What do these people want?"
Dan Shu's heart skipped a beat, but the three footsteps that had surrounded her quickly disappeared, as if it had just been her imagination, and the people were simply moving around.
Just then, Xiling's voice rang out.
"It's getting late, we should be leaving. Young lady, your eyes don't seem to be very good. Let us see you off."
"...No, no need." Dan Shu touched her eyes.
"I was born this way, I've always lived this way, I'm used to it. Thank you for your kindness, but I'll be going now."
After saying this, Dan Shu left without lingering.
Several pairs of eyes never left her the entire time. Only after she was completely gone did Stelle cautiously ask, "Was she a bad guy?"
March 7th only now belatedly realized what was happening and nodded repeatedly, "Yeah, yeah! Xiling, you guys suddenly became so serious!"
"Now you're scared." Elaina laughed and poked Stelle's cheek.
"Hmph! How could that be? I'm the famous Galaxy Baseball Man! Ask around in Belloberg, everyone knows how powerful I am!" Stelle puffed out her chest proudly.
March 7th tilted her head, looking confused.
"Huh? I've never heard of such a prestigious title. Wasn't someone affectionately called 'King of the Kids' in the underground city?"
Houraiji Kyuushou immediately nodded in agreement, her tone certain.
"Yeah, I remember Hook and the others all called you 'King of the Kids.'"
Luo Tianyi blinked, adding the fatal blow.
"That's right, Dr. Natasha said the kids in the lower district all call you that, 'King of the Kids Sister'?"
The girl's blush was more intense than any curse word. Stelle immediately began to retort.
She said she only played with them because they lacked playmates—it was a strategic friendship! Didn't she even know what "strategic" meant?!
Suddenly, laughter erupted from Ruomu Pavilion.
As the laughter in Ruomu Pavilion gradually subsided, Xiling's gaze swept over Houraiji Kyuushou, Luo Tianyi, Stelle, and March 7th, finally settling on the direction where Dan Shu had disappeared.
"Gentlemen," Xiling's voice carried a solemn, almost imperative tone, "I have an important matter to entrust to you."
The four men's eyes instantly focused on him. Xiling cleared his throat and pointed into the distance:
"On Xianzhou Luofu right now, there lurks an evil organization called 'The Secret Teachings of the Medicine King.' They operate clandestinely and pose a considerable threat. Now…"
Xiling's gaze swept over the four youthful faces, a hint of expectation in his eyes: "I need you—— these young people with limitless potential, to use your unique wit and intelligence to find this cancerous growth for Xianzhou Loufu and completely destroy it!"
The four men held their breath, their eyes focused, as if awaiting a sacred mission…or perhaps, the next crucial sentence?
Xiling coughed lightly, seemingly casually adding, "Oh, right. During this mission to resolve this problem—"
"—All your reasonable expenses… well, the Xianzhou Loufu will reimburse you."
"Yay—!!"
Stelle, March 7th, Houraiji Kyuushou, and Luo Tianyi erupted in deafening cheers, nearly jumping for joy, high-fiving each other as if they could already see a dazzling array of goods and delicious food beckoning them.
Xiling watched the group of people before him, instantly energized by the word "reimbursement," as if they'd been injected with adrenaline, and couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head.
Young people… He had no intention of providing any core information about the Medicine King's Secret Sect, such as Dan Shu's true identity.
He hoped these guys could use their own wisdom and drive to gradually unravel the mystery and find the truth through exploration and practice.
The setbacks they might encounter, the clues they uncover, the judgments they make… these valuable experiences are what they truly gain.
After all, for him, destroying a branch of the Medicine King's Secret Sect was roughly a matter of "following the mission instructions, finding the target, and then eliminating them with a single sword strike, and the experience points gained were… negligible.
But for the four of them, this was an excellent training ground.
Of course, this was also to give them something to do.