Chapter 76: Chapter Thirty-One【Tail-End Needle】 (Part 1)

Light footsteps sounded outside the door; it was the little girl who had walked in, and she said softly, "In fact, you've already stirred up trouble!"

Ande Quan gazed at the little girl, his eyes showing boundless relief.

The little girl fixed her clear, beautiful eyes on Hu Xiaotian and said, "My grandfather and I have offended a powerful gang of enemies; they've been tracking us all the way, and Grandfather suffered these grave wounds while protecting me. He killed several of them, but some still live, and with their abilities they'll soon track us here."

Hu Xiaotian said, "What does this have to do with me? I helped you save a person; that's it. Let's just leave now and part ways amicably." Although he wasn't afraid of trouble, he didn't want to get involved; these two were strangers to him, and there was no need to risk danger for their affairs.

The little girl said, "I have something important on me that I just threw down the cliff; the enemies are chasing me to get it."

Hu Xiaotian said, "I have no interest in your affairs at all—bye!" He lifted his foot, ready to leave.

The little girl calmly said, "If the enemies find me, I'll tell them I gave the thing to you! Assistant Magistrate Hu Xiaotian of Qingyun Xian, Xichuan!"

Hu Xiaotian's body went rigid; I thought, "I've been warned repeatedly not to expose their identities—damn it, who the hell is this, actually leaking my information out."

Hu Xiaotian slowly turned his head; this little lass is ruthless—since she said it, she'll surely carry it out. Leaving aside what important item she holds, just from Ande Quan's wounds we can tell their enemies are extremely formidable. If that enemy really believes her words and also learns my official residence, wouldn't they come straight to assassinate me at my office gate? Hu Xiaotian smirked, thinking, "Even if I have to resign this ninth-rank post, I won't be threatened—no way."

The little girl seemed to see through his thoughts and said softly, "You are the sole son of the current Third-Rank Minister of Revenue, Hu Buwei; your future father-in-law is the Jiannan-Xichuan Military Governor, Li Tianheng. My enemies are not ordinary folk; even if your father and father-in-law joined forces, they might not be able to protect you. You could just walk away—have you considered what the consequences would be?"

Upon hearing this, Hu Xiaotian felt a chill run up his spine to his brain, his back drenched in cold sweat. I thought, "How old is this little brat, to be so scheming and vicious? Damn it, this is clearly a plot to drag me onto a pirate ship—she's obviously trying to screw me over!" What further enraged Hu Xiaotian was not knowing which bastard had leaked his details so thoroughly. Could it be Murong Feiyan? Damn! This woman simply cannot be trusted; at a crucial moment, she'll screw you over without hesitation.

The little girl, believing she had everything under control, gazed arrogantly at Hu Xiaotian and said, "So you had better cooperate obediently, escort me and my grandfather to Harmony Prefecture; after that we'll go our separate ways, and thereafter pretend we never met."

Hu Xiaotian let out a heh-heh laugh.

The little girl, unaware why he was laughing, stared at him coldly.

Hu Xiaotian said, "Threaten me? Little girl, your idea is not bad, but despite all your scheming you've overlooked one thing."

The little girl fixed her bright eyes on Hu Xiaotian, showing a hint of bewilderment.

Hu Xiaotian said, "One is old and gravely wounded; the other is an underage child. I originally reached out a helping hand out of pity, but I never expected you not only to be ungrateful, but to repay kindness with enmity and scheme against me. Aren't you afraid of provoking me into a kill-and-silence? I could give you utter destruction—a single torch to burn this place to ashes, leaving not a bone for your enemies to find. How then could you frame me? And how would they know you'd met me?"

The little girl's face changed; although her schemes were meticulous, she was still not an adult, and compared to Hu Xiaotian, an old monster in cunning and plotting, she still fell short by a margin.

Actually, Hu Xiaotian was just threatening her with words; he had no real intention to kill and silence. Although he does not scruple over methods, he hasn't yet reached the point of wanton slaughter. In fact, the little girl's earlier words had already subdued Hu Xiaotian; he realized this trouble was likely unavoidable, and whether he helped or not, he would have to help.

"Halt!" the little girl shouted sternly.

Hu Xiaotian stopped there and slowly turned around—not because he was obedient, but because he felt a bit curious, yet he didn't know what trick the little girl might pull next. He saw her gripping a rectangular black box, aiming it at him, her beautiful eyes flashing with killing intent. Though the box appeared harmless in appearance, Hu Xiaotian understood that since she could produce it and point it at him, it certainly wasn't a simple toy.

Such a gesture at this distance would previously have been the formidable stance of someone holding a pistol. Hu Xiaotian didn't dare be careless; he narrowed his eyes at the underage lass, cracked a smile, and put on an innocent expression: "Little sis, don't be mischievous, okay? It's not good to scare people at the drop of a hat—what do you do if you scare someone? Even if you don't frighten them, scaring the flowers and grass is still not good."

The little girl's face held not a trace of a smile as she said coldly, "I'm not trying to scare you; this box is the Violent Rain Pear Blossom Needle, one of the world's seven most lethal hidden weapons. No matter how high your martial arts, within three zhang there is absolutely no chance of survival—do you think you can dodge it?"

Hu Xiaotian knew the little girl was almost certainly not just talking big; although he felt nervous inside, his expression remained calm as he said, "Little sis, I don't think I've done anything to offend you. Even though you're young and may not understand repaying kindness, we shouldn't repay kindness with enmity, right? How about we part ways here—you take your sunny path, I'll take my narrow bridge, and let this Orchid Hermitage Temple be yours to recuperate in. Farewell, farewell!" Hu Xiaotian turned to slip away, but the little girl said, "If you move a single step, I'll have you dead on the spot."

The air was fresh and humid, yet suddenly a bloody smell arose; every pore of Hu Xiaotian's body tensed up. Ande Quan, however, gazed at the scene with a smug smile, as if everything happening had nothing to do with him.

Murong Feiyan was passing through the front corridor, presumably heading to the rear courtyard; Hu Xiaotian gave her a glance, but unfortunately he and Murong Feiyan had not achieved tacit understanding, so he never expected danger to arise on his side, and she simply walked past under his nose.

Hu Xiaotian sighed, finally nodded, and said, "All right, let's cooperate—why make it a life-or-death showdown?" He slowly turned around, but the little girl's hand still gripped the black box, pointing it at his chest.

Hu Xiaotian smiled and said, "I've already agreed—why won't you put the box down?" A stalling tactic: first coax her to put down the Violent Rain Pear Blossom Needle, then we'll talk.

The little girl nodded; the black box lowered slightly, then she pressed the trigger, and a Lan-colored ray shot out instantly. Hu Xiaotian had no time to dodge, feeling as if his left arm had been bitten by a mosquito.

Hu Xiaotian yelled "Ow!" and pulled up his sleeve—only to see a tiny red dot on his left arm; the fired needle had clearly pierced into his muscle.

The little girl said coldly, "This needle is the Seven-Day Soul-Severing Needle; I'll spare your life for now. As long as you safely escort us to Harmony Prefecture, I'll give you the antidote—but if you try any tricks along the way, you'll die of poison in seven days."

Hu Xiaotian stared at the little red dot, involuntarily sucking in a cold breath. This girl is only eleven or twelve—how can her heart be so vicious? As the saying goes, "Viper's tongue and hornet's tail are not poisonous; the most poisonous is a woman's heart." Even a little girl can be this ruthless; I've been careless all along, lived two lifetimes in vain, and ended up falling for a yellow-haired brat's trick.

The little girl then retracted the black box; the killing intent on her face vanished instantly, as if nothing had happened. Her pure, flawless little hands gently smoothed the messy hair at her forehead, she exhaled and said, "Now we can sit down and have a proper talk." Having grasped Hu Xiaotian's life and death, she naturally held the initiative in this matter.

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