Chapter 247

Daoba Liu looked shocked; in the blink of an eye, Xiao Ran instantly recognized the man standing beside him—the very one who had extorted money earlier today!

A buzz rang in his head; his sole thought was to keep these ruffians from hurting the little one—otherwise Father Emperor would have my head when he returns!

"Run!"

Xiao Ran gave a low shout, grabbed Tuan Tuan's little hand, turned and rushed toward the fighting crowd in the open space.

Tuan Tuan looked bewildered: "……"

Why not fight the bad guys and instead run for our lives?

Although Xiao Ningxun didn't understand why, seeing Xiao Ran so urgent and noticing the opponents were many and already surrounding them, he was startled and, without hesitation, turned and ran, following them.

Xiao Er and Lu Qi had no clue what was happening; they glanced at each other, 'What are we running for? Why run? It's just a mob!'

But seeing the three suddenly turn and sprint, their bodies moving faster than their thoughts, they instantly turned and gave chase.

Thus, up front Xiao Ran pulled Tuan Tuan, Xiao Ningxun followed closely behind; in the middle Xiao Er and Lu Qi trailed behind; finally, the enraged Daoba Liu led all several dozen members of the Qingmu Gang, waving swords and sticks, relentlessly pursuing.

"Stop! All of you, stop right now!"

This chasing crowd plunged straight into the midst of the fiercely battling Stone Family Fist and Willow Leaf Sword groups.

The head of the Stone Family Fist was a man approaching middle age, stout and sturdy.

He was parrying an opponent's blade when he suddenly saw a half-grown youth pulling a delicately carved little girl rushing in panic, and he froze.

Upon a second look, those following were a gang brandishing weapons, fierce and terrifying, even more startling; when he finally made out the leader's face, his thick eyebrows shot up in anger.

"Daoba Liu?" he roared like thunder, "You low‑life scum! Dare to cause trouble before me?"

Almost simultaneously, the head of the Willow Leaf Sword, a short and capable man, also made out the newcomers; although he was on bad terms with the Stone Family Fist chief, he despised the Qingmu Gang even more for their bullying of the good.

Especially seeing that the one being chased was a young girl, his sense of righteousness flared.

He stood shoulder‑to‑shoulder with the Stone Family Fist chief and said coldly, 'Stone Brother, let's set aside our grudges for now—first we must rid Qingping Town of this harmful lot!'

Daoba Liu saw victory slipping away as the Stone and Willow factions blocked him; he grew frantic and angry, his cheek muscles twitching: 'Stone Chief, Willow Chief! This isn't your business! I only want those few today—don't meddle, or else…'

Before he could finish, the Stone Family Fist chief spat and cut him off: 'Or what? Daoba Liu, your Qingmu Gang daily bullies the villagers; now that you've fallen into our hands, you still dare to speak arrogantly?'

"Willow Brother, first destroy this rabble and rid Qingping Town of this menace!"

The Willow Family Fist chief's eyes flashed: 'Exactly what I wanted!'

In an instant, the formerly hostile Stone Family Fist and Willow Leaf Sword members united against a common foe, all turning their weapons on the Qingmu Gang.

Tuan Tuan's group had by now run out of the melee, stopped, and looked back.

All they saw was the open space already in utter chaos.

The Stone Family Fist disciples' punches were fierce and forceful, while the Willow Leaf Sword members' blades flashed.

The Qingmu Gang was nothing but a rabble, used to bullying the weak and fearing the strong; how could they match these two disciplined martial artists? In moments they were beaten to tears, fleeing with heads covered.

Tuan Tuan watched, thrilled, clapping her little hands: 'Well done! Well done!'

She turned to Xiao Er and Lu Qi beside her: 'Uncle Er, Uncle Qi, go help them!'

Lu Qi shook his head: 'Lord Master, they are locals; cleaning up their own affairs follows their own rules. We are merely passersby; intervening rashly would be improper—let's wait and see.'

Xiao Er nodded: 'Miss, Lu Qi is right. If Daoba Liu somehow gains the upper hand, we can step in later.'

Tuan Tuan obediently nodded and continued watching the fight.

Most of Daoba Liu's henchmen lay down, and the few remaining were firmly pinned by the Stone and Willow disciples.

He himself was struck in the chest by a heavy punch from the Stone Family Fist chief, staggered back, then the Willow Family Fist chief smashed the back of his blade into his knee with a thud, causing him to kneel with a 'plop,' and his iron rod clanged to the ground.

Seeing the tide turn, Daoba Liu lost all ferocity, kowtowing to the two chiefs with loud 'dong dong' sounds: 'Stone Chief! Willow Chief! Spare me! Spare me! I know my wrong!'

"From now on I will mend my ways and never dare to do evil again! I beg you two chiefs to lift your hands high and spare this dog's life!"

The Stone Family Fist chief and the Willow Family Fist chief exchanged a glance.

The Stone Family Fist chief snorted coldly: 'Daoba Liu, you and your gang have wrought endless evil in Qingping Town; how could we let you off lightly!'

The Willow Family Fist chief flicked his wrist, blade tip pointing at Daoba Liu's nose: 'You can be spared! Effective immediately, the Qingmu Gang is disbanded on the spot! If we ever see you gathering again in town to do evil, we will surely take your dog's life!'

Daoba Liu, hearing this, as if granted a great pardon, kowtowed like pounding garlic: "Yes yes yes! Disperse! Immediately disperse! Thank you, two bosses, for your mercy not to kill! Thank you……"

His hand quietly moved to the back of his waist.

Staring at his Tuan Tuan all along, sharp-eyed, saw a flash of unnatural azure light between his fingers.

"He's being bad!" Tuan Tuan shouted loudly.

Daoba Liu suddenly lifted his head, raised his right hand, and several points of cold light shot straight at the faces of the Stone and Liu family heads.

Thanks to Tuan Tuan's warning, the Stone Family head performed an iron plank, his body forcibly bending backward to dodge the concealed weapon right before his eyes.

The Liu Family head, meanwhile, waved his blade swiftly, with a few "ding" sounds, blocked all the concealed weapons aimed at him.

"Shameless dog thief!"

"You're courting death!"

The two, shocked and angry, held nothing back.

The Stone Family head, taking advantage of the momentum, swept his leg and kicked Daoba Liu, who was just trying to get up, over again.

The Liu Family head's blade flashed, precisely striking his right shoulder pressure point.

Daoba Liu let out a miserable cry, his entire arm instantly going limp, unable to move at all.

Disciples from both sides swarmed forward, binding him tightly with ox tendons.

The Stone Family head, his anger not yet spent, spat at the limp-as-mud Daoba Liu: "Obstinately insensible! Turning you over to the authorities would be letting you off easy!"

The two heads straightened their clothes, then walked together to Tuan Tuan and the others, clasping their hands in salute.

The Stone Family head's voice boomed: "Thank you, miss, for your reminder! If not for you, we two would likely have fallen to this villain's poisonous hands today!"

The Liu Family head said sincerely: "Yes, miss, your clear eyes and bright heart have given us a life‑saving favor! I offer my thanks!"

"You're welcome." Tuan Tuan asked the question she had been curious about for a long time: "Uncles, you seem to get along well, so why did you just fight?"