Volume 1, Chapter 25: Zhang Yu'er

Rising from the grass, he continued to advance, crossbow held cautiously in his grip. Upon reaching the woman’s side, he saw that she was in the bloom of youth; though bound tightly and gagged, her beauty remained breathtaking. At this moment, she was kicking her legs, her eyes filled with terror.

"I am no evildoer, merely a traveler passing by. I can save your life, but you must not make a sound. Tell me, what happened? Are there others around who abducted you?" Li Chen, his face masked, asked in a low voice as he used his short blade to slice through the cloth gagging her.

"Over there! Be careful—" The moment the gag was cut, the woman shrieked. At the same time, a sense of danger surged in Li Chen’s heart; he reacted with lightning speed...

Hearing Shi Shanxing’s words, the others felt a lingering shiver. If not for Yang Jun’s expert marksmanship, it might well have been them lying on the ground instead of the members of the Taotie Squad.

Ye Lishang closed her eyes and turned her head back into Xiao Heng’s embrace. Xu Huan, as if waking from a dream, hurriedly retreated and pulled the door shut.

Lu Yalan sat on the bed, feeling utterly drained. She had prepared herself to force her way past Mother Qian if necessary, but she hadn’t expected the old woman’s attitude to soften the moment she displayed some resolve.

"Indeed, one emanates an aura of dark death, while the other radiates the vitality of light. It seems the God Race is not entirely devoid of interest," Bilim remarked with a chuckle.

After the dust settled, Jing Tao could not find the figures of Yuan Zhen and his companion, so he paced about, attempting to track their scents.

"It is only rumored that figures of the Demon Earth and Demon Warriors were spotted within. Judging by their techniques and methods, it is tentatively guessed to be the influence of the Demon Realm, but nothing more is known..." Tian Yun shook his head as he explained to the old man.

Tang San ignored the ambiguity in Dai Mubai’s words. Though his head throbbed as if it might split, he gazed at his left hand with excitement.

For humanity to survive and thrive, encroaching upon the territories of spirit beasts is hardly an incomprehensible act.

As Lin Bei reached out to touch the tentacle, the rabbit suddenly went berserk, unleashing a ferocious kick at him.

***

The entire launch sequence, from ignition to entry into space, took very little time before the ship stabilized and began its normal voyage. Qin Yun headed straight for the training room on the topmost deck of the warship.

"If you do not mind, Princess Ruoxi, pray come inside to talk." Upon realizing that the Princess had been watching over him all this time, the dying embers in Ying Kang’s heart were reignited.

Her face flushed even redder. Embarrassed, she lowered her head, then snuck a glance at the man. Seeing he was not angry, she let out a sigh of relief.

After inspecting Mount Yuezhao, A-Jiu and Lan He were both satisfied. Ye Ziqing would handle the design of the villa; they only needed to think about how to build and decorate their own courtyards.

He looked down at her in disbelief. "Lu Qingqing, what are you saying?" She had gone from being strong and unyielding to pleading with him in agony to keep the child. Now that he had decided to accept everything, she was telling him she didn't want the baby?

Sun Xiao kept talking, not knowing how else to comfort Qiao Xia. She regretted the trip deeply, for it had left her friend alone to face the whims of fate.

A sound like clashing metal exploded in everyone’s ears. Sparks flew as their attacks canceled each other out, and a force of counter-vibration erupted from the point where the fist, blade, and halberd met.

Perhaps frightened, Shen Shi drove straight back to the villa in one go. Yuan Linkai was startled to see him return with such a grim expression.

"Jiang Juelei has been protecting you so well lately, and it seems you intend to stay by his side forever. Your father misses you and the child dearly, which is why I am forced to act this way," You Kelian said, feigning helplessness and disappointment, though his eyes darted constantly toward Yulia.

"Mother, Brother, I’m feeling a bit unwell today, so I’ll be leaving first." Neither of them noticed that Meizi hadn't smiled once from the start; instead, her expression grew increasingly sorrowful.

"Then follow me." Ling'er seemed to believe Su Muyue, leading her deep into the backyard until they reached a Buddhist shrine. Only then did Ling'er slightly shift the statue to reveal a secret passage.

The red-haired youth suddenly turned, crimson light erupting from his hands and instantly engulfing the dozen people behind him.

As he spoke, cracks appeared all over his body, and he suddenly exploded. The area for dozens of meters around turned into a wasteland, and the remains of his body fell from the sky.

To have the strength to carry her off, it must have been a man. Who had she offended? Who sent this person? Was it Zhou Shu'an? Gao Wanqing? Or perhaps... Sun Zhiyun?

Listening to Zhou Yu'an’s reply, it was clear that something had happened between them.

Chu murmured, and a tea set appeared before her. With a flick of her fingertips, a stream of clear spring water flowed into the teapot. Then, a spark of fire flew from her hand to the base of the pot, and soon, steam was rising from the water.

***

As the two disciples stepped onto the martial arts arena to spar, a notification sound rang in Lin Yan’s ears.

"Mrs. Xu, to be honest, I really don’t think much of you," Lu Xin said mercilessly, expressing her inner dissatisfaction.

Mo Chu fell silent for a moment, lost in thought, while Zhao Changge and Su Mobai stood quietly by.

"You’re still as easily teased as ever," Lu Jinran’s words were filled with amusement. His voice was naturally captivating, and when he smiled, it sounded even better.

Just as they were speaking, Xiao Jue approached from a distance. He wore a white robe embroidered with leisurely cloud patterns. At a palace banquet, a prince in casual wear?

I took it and drank greedily, only then feeling a hint of sensation in my parched throat.

Hmph, at the end of the day, it was because she had been too self-centered before, thinking that by not getting involved, she could avoid getting her shoes wet.

If this was the ultimate goal and could indeed make things convenient for everyone, no one would oppose it. But Aurora felt that the Revolutionary Commune had many more pressing matters, and this was not a high priority. To invest so much manpower and resources for this goal was simply not worth it.

You still dare to say that a certain channel and DreamWorks are mortal enemies? They are getting along quite well—the boss even went to work as a news anchor. You can shut up now.

Three days ago, he called to notify Mubai to come back and report. He originally expected the other party to appear at the school, but three days had passed, and he hadn't even caught a glimpse of him.

"Haha, Boss, don’t say that. If you didn’t have the skill, you couldn’t have beaten me. I just thought of something, that’s all. You don’t have to put it that way; it’s making me feel embarrassed," George Hill said with a laugh.

In modern times, a farm owner can control thousands of acres of land, which is conducive to the development of intensive agriculture.