Chapter 485

"Hum!"

The long sword piercing the ground made a trembling sound.

Liu Yumei supported the hilt with her right hand and pinched the seal with her left hand.

Rays of air vortices overflowed from under her feet, producing a slight response with the canyon boundary arranged by the Liu family ancestors above.

The Dao of Feng Shui is infinitely mysterious.

Liu Yumei didn't open it, just made a little change on the basis that the outside world couldn't see the clues.

The Ling family's thunder beast was still okay, mainly this group of lunatics sent by the Ming family; they might still have life tablets stored in the ancestral house.

If too many shattered at once, or cracked step by step with extremely stable efficiency, it would be equivalent to clearly telling them that a big change had occurred here.

By then, not only would the scheduled second batch be gone, but the other party might even take the initiative to admit mistakes and stop.

At the moment, Liu Yumei was controlling the leakage of the qi of these dead people.

Not completely blocking it, but releasing it singly first, and then adjusting according to the rhythm, simulating the entire process of Xiaoyuan and the others being trapped in it and encountering crises as much as possible.

She could even control the time for the second batch outside to enter through this method.

For example, after the gifts inside were all packed and organized and things were handled, at a certain time, she would release the qi of the dead in short, high-volume batches, creating a tragic scene where Xiaoyuan's team was at their wits' end and had to block by exchanging lives.

The number of shattered life tablets had to be more in each batch than the last, until finally, it was Xiaoyuan's death, shattering a large area, and becoming completely quiet.

At that time, the people in the Ming family ancestral house could draw the conclusion that the matter was successful, thereby pushing the second batch outside to enter.

Liu Yumei went through this whole rhythm in her mind.

It was equivalent to Runsheng, A You, Zhuangzhuang... and Xiaoyuan, A Li, all dying once in her mind.

Since then, the only remaining bit of hesitation and wavering in her heart all vanished like smoke.

In Liu Yumei's eyes, a layer of faint dark red rose, and the long sword under her palm also glowed with blood.

The impulse to kill people could no longer be restrained.

The people who came in the second batch, no matter where they came from, regardless of whether there had been friendship in the past, would all be left without one.

"Ah!!!"

"Hehehe~"

Amidst the desperate screams of the Ming family, Liu Yi's crisp laughter was mixed in.

Since she was young, she had retained two good study habits.

One was taking notes, remembering clearly everyone who had bullied the mistress, bullied A Li, and kicked the family gate when it was down.

Another was, on the basis of repeatedly reviewing the notes, pondering and researching various methods of revenge and torture.

She wanted those people to all die miserably!

The mistress said her heart was small, and she had never refuted it; the mistress consciously tied her by her side, and she also had no resentment.

Because she also knew clearly what kind of thing she was in her bones.

That day, when the mistress was selecting family-born children, although she was young and ignorant, she had already realized early that she wouldn't be selected; after all, among the children of the same age, her perception of qi was the weakest; she felt she was very ordinary, and could even be classified into the crooked melon and cracked date category.

The stewards were also of the same opinion, so although she was of age, she wasn't arranged to wait in the hall, but was playing alone under the willow tree in the courtyard.

As a result, a figure stood in front of her.

She looked up at this woman who showed majesty, and a group of high-status stewards stood behind the woman, silent as cicadas in winter.

There was also a black and thin little boy standing beside the woman, scratching his head while giggling at her.

"Spread your hands."

The cute and naive little girl loosened her five fingers, and in her palm was a poisonous scorpion flowing with five-colored patterns.

The steward adults and manager nannies around were all taken aback when they saw this, and some were even sweating coldly.

The Liu family ancestral house contained mysteries, mountains and rivers were classified, and plants and animals were abundant, but this kind of thing clearly shouldn't be something that appeared here; if this thing took a bath in the meal soup, I'm afraid all the children in the courtyard would have to die suddenly.

"You raised this."

"Yes."

"Why did you raise it?"

"To bite people."

"Bite whom?"

"The tigers outside; I heard the nanny say there are many tigers carried by shoulder poles at the gate.

There are also tigers at home, but I found that the tigers at home dare not approach it; I want to raise it big and bite all the tigers outside to death."

"Stand up."

The little girl stood up obediently.

The woman's gaze fell on her and then looked at the willow tree behind her.

"From now on, you will be called Ting, Liu Ting."

Ting, describing people or flowers and trees as beautiful.

Later, after her repeated questioning, the mistress gave multiple explanations for why she chose her back then.

But there was one point that Liu Ting recognized in her heart, but the mistress never mentioned it.

She suspected that the mistress was afraid that after dismissing the outer gates, she would fall into the martial arts world and become an evil cultivator who was good at gu, and finally, under the name of the former Liu family, ruin the reputation of the Long Long Wang Liu in the martial arts world.

The mistress was the eldest lady of the Liu family and also the young grandmother of the Qin family; precisely because the mistress's surname was Liu, the Lamp-Lighter of the next generation she personally cultivated had to be surnamed Qin.

Liu Ting had always felt that the mistress was selecting a future genius for the Qin family, and for the Liu family... eliminating a future disaster.

The crying and wailing from the depths of the enemy's soul were so moving.

Liu Yi couldn't help but take out melon seeds from her pocket and enjoy them while killing.

Qi deviation? No need to be afraid; in her torture, she could make you as awake as you could be.

Of course, those Ming family members who woke up, even if they reported their family gate and performed the gate salute to her, she would think that this was a deeper qi deviation, truly a smart evil spirit!

"Puff!" "Puff!"

Two more large ladybugs that had eaten until their bellies were bulging drilled into the ground, and Liu Yi clapped her hands.

She could perceive that the mistress was now at the other end, facing the outside of the canyon, and could even more feel the murderous aura on the mistress that was getting heavier and heavier.

Liu Yi turned her head and looked toward Mu Family Village.

Temporarily ignoring the Ming family members who were constantly gathering toward her here because their clansmen were being harmed, Liu Yi turned her figure and went to Mu Family Village to take a small break.

She felt that she should go to this Mu Family Village before the mistress.

At the moment, Mu Family Village was incomparably chaotic.

But at the same time, it was one of the few areas within the range of the big canyon that was still considered safe.

In the past, Mu Family Village relied on the particularity of Tingfeng Canyon to undertake the work of helping martial arts forces deal with tricky people or beasts, and this time, the work was exceptionally big.

In the past, only one or one head was sent every few years; this time, a group was sent, no, two groups.

Under normal circumstances, the Mu Family Village would not accept this, as it already exceeds the Mu Family Village's carrying capacity; heaven knows how long the wind gales within Listening Wind Gorge would take to grind down such a massive volume, and with such a large accumulation, any slight issue could trigger chaos.

But after Mu Xueci left home with her granddaughter and daughter-in-law, Mu Qiaoshan came forward and forcibly took this work.

Mu Family Village wasn't big, but there were three factions in the village, and the representatives of the three factions were the three sons of Mu Xueci.

It wasn't palace fighting for the throne, nor could it be called fighting for interests; rather than saying these three sons organized three factions, it was better to say that these three sons each represented a kind of thought in the village.

The eldest son, Mu Qiaode, was the village chief in name and also the current head of the Mu family.

If you say it nicely, it's called a peaceful and gentle personality; if you say it badly, it's called a weak personality.

Compared to his two younger brothers, this eldest son's talent appeared much more mediocre, so he was cultivated as a successor early on.

Without considering the family having further development, this kind of family head was most acceptable to most people below.

The two younger brothers of Mu Qiaode, Mu Qiaosheng and Mu Qiaoshan, originally had no opinion on this eldest brother being the family head and didn't intend to fight at all; the two younger brothers were more obsessed with cultivation.

Actually, because the Long Long Wang Liu declined and the Liu family eldest lady dismissed the outer gates and no longer made constraints and interference on the former affiliated forces, the rules of Mu Family Village had changed a lot compared to before, or it could be called softened a lot; many things that couldn't be done when the Long Long Wang Liu was there were gradually starting to be done semi-publicly, but they were still within the scope of understanding.

Martial arts forces that had lost their big backer had to make corresponding adjustments in order to maintain survival.

The real turning point occurred when Mu Xueci strongly suppressed her youngest son and didn't allow him to light the lamp.

At that time, the Liu family madam dispatched Qin Li to light the lamp and walk the river, which was not a secret in the martial arts world.

Although Qin Li didn't have the surname Liu, at that time, he was effectively representing the two Long Wang gates of Qin and Liu.

Mu Xueci didn't allow her son to light the lamp and go to the river to compete with Qin Li; in her view, this was no different from tearing her face and competing with the Liu family.

But this kind of suppression was undoubtedly very cruel to the proud young man.

He hadn't witnessed the atmosphere when the Long Long Wang Liu was at its peak, nor had he been selected and sent into the Liu family ancestral house for training like his mother back then.

If he could go through this process, contact the Lamp-Lighter selected by the Liu family of the same generation early, learn from each other, admit defeat and be convinced, and then worship the other party as the Long Wang and follow him to walk the river, then maybe nothing would happen; but he lost to a group of air.

Mu Qiaoshan finally didn't disobey his mother, but because of this, he left the village for more than ten years; when he returned again, he brought back a wife from outside.

Lin Qingqing's identity was not a secret in Mu Family Village; although she had never made her surname public, as the cooperation and exchanges between Mu Family Village and the Ling family became more and more frequent, and the Ling family sent people to be received by Lin Qingqing every time, and the two sides were clearly as close as one family, whether her surname was Lin or Ling was very obvious.

Mu Qiaoshan had resentment toward the Long Long Wang Liu in his heart, and the infiltration of other forces in the martial arts world into the area vacated by the Qin Liu gate had never stopped, and the two sides could be said to hit it off.

After introducing the Ling family's influence into the village, Mu Qiaoshan's right to speak in the village continued to increase; many people in the village felt that since they had lost the backer of the Long Long Wang Liu, if the village wanted to continue to guard the inheritance and guard Tingfeng Canyon, they had to find a new backer, and nothing was more suitable than another Long Wang gate.

Regarding this, Mu Qiaode, as the nominal family head, chose to default to this change, neither active nor rejecting.

But at the same time, this intense change also attracted the resentment of the conservative traditional faction in the village; Mu Qiuying's father, Mu Qiaosheng, advocated that as a Liu family retainer, they had received the favor and protection of the Liu family for generations, and the glory of the ancestors was bound to the Liu family Long Wang; how could they betray the master when the Liu family was declining?

Just like this, Mu Family Village formed a pattern of two factions competing against each other and another faction muddling through.

Regarding this, Mu Xueci knew it well but was helpless; she had already felt guilty toward her youngest son, and this was no longer just a matter of dealing with her own son; not to mention that cutting off the hand of the Ling family might invite retaliation, even if the Ling family's hand was gone, other families' hands would reach in the same way.

In the previous generation, Qin Li failed to walk the river; in this generation, there was no news of a Lamp-Lighter walking the river on the Liu family side, so Mu Xueci agreed to let her granddaughter, whose talent and aptitude were even better than her youngest son back then, light the lamp.

Mu Qiuying was Mu Qiaosheng's daughter

To this, Mu Xueci responded with a single sentence: "Qiaosheng, do you want your daughter to resent you, just as your younger brother resents me?"

The old lady was weary at heart; what she pursued now was merely for the Mu Family Village to still honor the Liu family as the main house while she was still alive.

As for what would happen after she died, she couldn't care, nor could she control it.

In the old lady's view, if she were to go before the Young Lady, she would go ahead to the underworld to stand guard and wait for her; if the Young Lady went first, she would follow, and the following that remained unfinished in this life on earth would be made up for in the underworld.

When Li Zhuiyuan officially made a name for himself at the Lu Family Manor, it stirred up giant waves across the entire Jianghu.

These waves also crashed into the Mu Family Village.

Watching the main house, which was already on its last breath, suddenly ignite a trend of revival, the internal conflicts of the village that had been suppressed instantly became intense, and even tragic.

First came the news from the Jianghu that the old lady who had gone to apologize had been executed by the Liu family; Mu Qiaoshan, under the pretext of avenging his mother, led his faction to overturn the table and take action, completely seizing control of the village.

The eldest, Mu Qiaode, remained indifferent, letting things be as he handed over power that he hadn't even held in his hands to begin with.

Immediately after, the Ling family brought Lin Qingqing back to the village and arrested the unprepared Mu Qiaoshan, taking the couple along with their son and daughter into a room, setting up an isolation formation, and announcing to the outside that they were going to conduct an interrogation.

After the interrogation, the Ling family brought Mu Qiaoshan and Lin Qingqing out, announcing that the two had committed the crimes of murdering their mother and attempting to frame and slander the Long Wang's court.

They even tied the two to a pillar at the village entrance, saying they were preparing to hand them over to the Liu family.

The eldest, Mu Qiaode, still remained indifferent; he had finally realized that this already involved a power struggle between Long Wang courts, which was not something he could participate in.

No matter which side won in the end, as long as he continued to remain indifferent, he would not face liquidation.

But unexpectedly, a turn of events occurred here; this group of Ling family members seemed to have received orders from home and collectively turned against the person in charge who had brought them here. That Ling family leader fought desperately with his few loyal followers, and seeing that he could not escape, he held the Mu Family Village gorge seal and actually opened the gorge gate.

Now, Mu Qiaode could no longer remain indifferent, because he was going to die.

While desperately organizing the villagers to activate the internal village formation for defense, he loudly cursed his third brother for bringing a catastrophic disaster upon the village.

But firstly, the lightning beasts were surging, and secondly, the Ling family members could still exert their methods even if they were crazy, so the village's defense gradually faltered.

It was at this most critical moment that Auntie Liu appeared at the entrance of Mu Family Village.

Her arrival not only failed to lighten the burden on Mu Family Village but instead attracted even more Ling family members because of her.

However, being able to travel here in such a chaotic scene already demonstrated her power, especially since her green ceremonial robes were almost identical to the portraits of the successive Liu family Dragon Kings enshrined in the Mu Family Village ancestral hall.

Mu Qiaode immediately knelt down before Auntie Liu, tears streaming down his face:

"Thank heavens, the main house has sent someone to save us; my Mu Family Village is saved!"

Auntie Liu just stood at the village entrance, neither entering the village nor speaking.

Around her, a circle of pink butterflies danced; any Ling family madman who tried to approach her at this moment would be led by the butterflies into a brief state of confusion, and after losing their target, they would instinctively launch an attack on the village's defenses, longing to rush into the village to slaughter the living.

Seeing that the other party had no intention of helping, Mu Qiaode immediately pointed at Mu Qiaoshan and Lin Qingqing hanging on the pillar, listing their various crimes, including conspiring to murder their mother.

It wasn't complicated, nor was it terrifying; there was one insect pattern on each arm, and the facial part gathered at the brow center and went down to the neck, possessing both the ancient charm of the Central Plains qi refiners and the mystery of the Miao territory.

Facing the rebuttal, the couple did not act tough, but instead began to actively reflect.

Lin Qingqing: "It is all my sin, it is all my sin."

Mu Qiaoshan: "It is my sin; it is my resentment over the matter of not being allowed to light the lamps back then; it is I who had eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai, unaware of the foundation of the Long Wang's court; I deserve to die, and I should die; it is I who defied the great trend, ignorant of the height of heaven and the depth of earth, daring to oppose the main house."

The couple knew that they were doomed this time; their only hope now was that this woman before them could protect the village, because their only remaining daughter was still in the village.

Auntie Liu looked at their tearful repentance and smiled.

She reached into her pocket, took out a handful of melon seeds, and began to crack them amidst the chaotic atmosphere.

Inside the village entrance formation, a Ling family member spoke up:

"Lady of the Liu family, we are acting on orders from our family to specifically capture these two criminals and hand them over to the Liu family for judgment. However, now that disaster has broken out, we ask you, for the sake of all living beings, to take action first to resolve the disaster, lest the chaos spread and continue."

As the representative speaking to Auntie Liu, this Ling family member was full of righteousness.

This was not faked.

Because the Ling family, in order to wash away their own karma, had to arrange everything so it had nothing to do with them, this group of Ling family members had initially received orders to capture these two sinners, and halfway through, they received new orders to capture the leader who had been found violating family rules and take him back to the thunder prison, which they also followed.

However, it would actually be more appropriate to capture that leader after he returned home; ordering his subordinates to take action while he was performing tasks outside would inevitably lead to trouble, but this was all calculated by the Ling family's top brass. That leader was just the spark used to detonate Listening Wind Gorge, and this group of Ling family members were the sacrifices in the family's plan.

Mu Qiaode saw the Ling family member speaking and was so angry his head was about to smoke; at a time like this, you don't know how to hide or stay low, and you still dare to come out and show your face?

"Lady of the main house, my Mu family has served the Liu family Long Wang for generations and is loyal to the Long Long Wang Liu. Please, Lady of the main house, lend a helping hand and save my Mu family!"

However, no matter how Mu Qiaode pleaded, Auntie Liu remained unmoved.

Mu Qiaode, who was skilled at remaining indifferent, witnessed true indifference today.

"Crack... Ptooey!"

Auntie Liu spat out the melon seed in her mouth.

When she saw a group of people wearing Ling family attire appearing brazenly in the Mu Family Village, the Mu family members in this village had already been sentenced to death in her heart.

Ptooey, a bunch of turncoats, save what?

Hurry up and die, old lady is waiting to watch!

My Liu family has bestowed grace upon you for generations, but as soon as my Liu family fell into trouble, you immediately changed your allegiance; well then, let's see the outcome of changing your allegiance. Hehe, look, aren't you being used by others as fuel to be burned up?

"Crack! Crack! Crack!"

The cracks in the formation grew heavier, and finally, it could no longer hold and collapsed.

Hmm?

The moment the village formation shattered, Auntie Liu's eyes revealed confusion as she looked toward an area deep in the village; her insects told her there was still a group of living people there.

The Ming family madmen who rushed into the village first jumped onto the pillar and tore Mu Qiaoshan and Lin Qingqing, who were tied there, to shreds.

Just as they were about to continue rushing into the village to slaughter, Auntie Liu raised her hand, and a wall of insects rose up, pushing the Ming family madmen back out of the village and blocking them outside.

Mu Qiaode and the other Mu family members breathed a long sigh of relief, and many of them collapsed onto the ground.

Fortunately, the Lady of the main house was only punishing the sinners and had no intention of venting her anger on the entire Mu family.

Ling family member: "Many thanks to the Lady of the Liu family for lending a helping hand. The current plan should be to notify the outside first, so we can ask the family to send reinforcements to quell this disaster."

Auntie Liu ignored him; she was waiting for the insects she had just sent flying into the village to return.

At this moment, a little girl squeezed out of the crowd, knelt under the pillar, and wailed, calling for "Father, Mother."

While crying, she swept her gaze toward Auntie Liu standing there, her eyes revealing deep resentment.

"You are clearly so powerful, why didn't you take action earlier to save my father and mother..."

The girl was still young and didn't understand the affairs between adults, nor did she understand the struggles of the Jianghu; she only knew that the woman before her had the strength to easily block the group of terrifying madmen outside.

Auntie Liu looked down at the little girl.

The little girl was frightened and stopped crying.

Auntie Liu sighed, walked up to the little girl, reached out to touch her head, and said softly:

"Remember, in this Jianghu, people must first learn to rely on themselves, rather than purely counting on others."

The little girl burst into tears, crying even louder than before.

She grabbed Auntie Liu's hand and cried out:

"I have no father anymore, no mother anymore, and no brother anymore; I don't know what I should do, what should I do..."

The insects Auntie Liu had sent flying into the village returned, informing her of the specific location of that group of people.

Her hand lifted from the girl's head.

The girl's hands still continued to grab Auntie Liu's wrist, crying and begging:

"What should I do, what should I do..."

Auntie Liu: "Then let me test you, do you remember what I just said?"

"Wu Wu Wu Wu... people must first learn to rely on themselves... cannot count on others..."

The little girl recited while crying, trying hard to hide the resentment in the depths of her eyes.

Auntie Liu's palm vibrated, and the girl's hands were shaken off.

She stopped crying and looked blankly at the green-clad figure walking away from her toward the village.

"As long as you remember it, now, start practicing."

Auntie Liu waved her hand, and the insect wall blocking the village entrance dispersed. The Ming family madmen gathered outside screamed and rushed in, and the little girl located under the pillar bore the brunt of it!

The people of Mu Family Village were not ordinary folks, but facing this group of Long Wang family madmen, they were clearly not enough; what was even more terrifying was that this group of madmen was also vast in number.

In an instant, screams rose one after another, and the interrupted bloody slaughter officially began.

The Ling family members formed a formation and resisted bitterly; the Ling family member who had spoken to Auntie Liu earlier swung his lightning whip while shouting:

"Lady of the Liu family, how can you be so cold-blooded and ruthless, where do you place the morality of the Jianghu!"

"Hahahahahaha!"

Auntie Liu didn't look back, her figure continuing to advance into the village.

Since she could remember, she had seen countless instances of Jianghu morality.

Amidst Auntie Liu's laughter, the Ling family's formation was broken through by the Ming family madmen.

In the village, there were people fleeing everywhere, and demonic-like hunters could be seen everywhere.

Auntie Liu walked to a large iron gate, pointed her fingertip forward, and a large number of insects rushed in, corroding the restrictions on it.

"Clang!"

The iron gate collapsed.

In the dungeon below, a group of Mu family members were imprisoned; besides the young and strong, there were also elderly and children.

A man stood with his wife at the very front, spreading his arms to protect everyone else behind him.

Mu Qiuying looked very much like the man's wife.

The man was named Mu Qiaosheng, and he was Mu Qiuying's father.

Previously, Mu Qiaoshan had led his people to seize control of Mu Family Village by way of a sneak attack; Mu Qiaosheng and his supporters were either poisoned or beaten and injured, and along with their families, they were all imprisoned in the dungeon.

The insects swarmed toward Mu Qiaosheng, corroding all the shackles and seals on him and his wife, granting them freedom.

Mu Qiaosheng looked at the clothes on Auntie Liu and asked tentatively:

"Are you, Lady of the main house?"

Auntie Liu: "Unlock the shackles of the others; if you want to survive, use this as the center to build a formation. I will defend, and you will assist.

Remember, no matter who from the village runs over to seek shelter outside, if you dare to let even one in, I will wash my hands of all of you and stop caring."

After speaking, Auntie Liu leaped up to the very top of the dungeon, first propping up four insect walls, and then opening a gap to let the Ming family madmen in one by one.

Mu Qiaosheng and his wife unlocked the shackles of the others and led everyone out.

Although the insect walls were tall, they could still see what was happening in the village; there was slaughter everywhere, and wailing everywhere.

Mu Qiaosheng closed his eyes tremblingly, shed two lines of tears, then shook his head and said to those around him:

"Help the Lady of the Liu family guard the formation!"

The Mu family members were not all useless; the cultivation shown by this couple who could give birth to Mu Qiuying even made Auntie Liu's eyes light up.

Even though this group of Mu family members led by the couple were all injured and had not yet been cleared of the residual poison, they still formed a very significant help.

Perhaps, being able to not follow the crowd during this period, nor wanting to find other hills to cling to, and still insisting on self and tradition, already represented a kind of foundation.

It was no wonder that Mu Qiaoshan had to rely on sneak attacks and poisoning to take down his second brother and his supporters.

Auntie Liu curled her lips; their strength was indeed not bad, but being able to be successfully attacked by others despite having good strength was also a kind of uselessness.

However, the good thing was that they were Mu Qiuying's parents.

Not having stood on the wrong side and being preserved was helpful for her little Yuan's arrangements and use of Mu Qiuying, and it was also more convenient for little Yuan to reorganize this outer sect inheritance.

Forget it, forget it, with little Yuan here, why am I racking my brain?

Auntie Liu immediately reflected, repenting for her distraction, and refocused her attention, torturing the Ming family madman at hand, first torturing him until he was clear-headed, then torturing him until he was half-dead, and finally peeling open his body, extracting his soul, and releasing a large ladybug.

As she killed more and more, the Ming family madmen gathered outside also became more and more numerous.

Gradually, Auntie Liu's insect walls showed signs of instability.

Auntie Liu frowned.

This was because she was not alone; she also had to protect this group of Mu family members below.

Mu Qiaosheng noticed Auntie Liu's struggle and urged everyone to continue increasing their efforts to guard; this was a survival instinct, and he was very afraid that the Lady of the Liu family would view them as a burden and abandon them.

Now, screams could no longer be heard outside, which meant that the entire Mu Family Village should only have them left now.

Auntie Liu summoned a small snake with wings and said to it:

"Dead wood, are you done on your side? Come and help quickly!"

The small snake flapped its wings and flew up, constantly making sounds:

"Come and help quickly! Come and help quickly!"

Before the small snake could fly far,

"Boom!"

A figure rushed out, knocking over a patch of Ming family madmen.

Qin Shu's figure appeared.

Auntie Liu immediately waved her hand, taking the small snake back into her sleeve, and said to Qin Shu with dissatisfaction:

"Are you done already?"

Qin Shu nodded and said: "Yes."

"You really have no sense of romance at all; what a great opportunity, and you didn't even enjoy it properly."

As she spoke, Auntie Liu clawed her hand, and the Ming family madman wrapped in Gu insects before her, like a toy finger puppet, let out a shrill scream quite fittingly.

Qin Shu: "But, I..."

Auntie Liu: "What, are you still unconvinced after I said a few words to you?"

Qin Shu: "But, I was facing a bunch of beasts."

Auntie Liu heard this and fell silent for a moment.

That's true; torturing people here and getting feedback is quite interesting.

If Qin Li were there torturing lightning beasts with great enthusiasm, that would be truly insane.

"I'll help you."

"Then you must hold back your strength; breaking an arm or a leg is enough, don't crush them to death for me!"

"Yes."

Qin Shu began to hold back his strength when punching.

With him here, Auntie Liu immediately had no pressure and could concentrate on constantly trying out various whimsical ideas she had had before.

Even the Mu family members here were able to relax because no madmen could get close.

Mu Qiaosheng led a portion of the people to continue keeping watch, letting his wife go and help treat the severely injured and poisoned.

At this moment, a figure appeared here.

Liu Yumei glanced at Liu Ting, who was playing on the roof with undiminished enthusiasm, then swept a glance at Qin Li, who was "handling gently" for her below, and scolded Qin Li:

"You just spoil her!"

Qin Shu, scolded by the matriarch, gave a start, and his punch strength didn't hold back, blasting a Ming family madman into nothingness, body and soul.

Auntie Liu saw this and shouted angrily at the figure below who was much younger than herself:

"Old lady, the family head finally let us come out to play, can you not be such a killjoy!

Hmph, you wait, after we go back, I will secretly complain to the family head and have him not let you come out next time."

The sword in Liu Yumei's hand began to spin.

Auntie Liu shrank her neck in fear; when she made mistakes as a child, Ah Li would take the blame, and the old lady would only whip Ah Li with her sword, but she was also scared to death watching from the side.

But she still gathered her courage again and said:

"Am I not right, Elder Liu?"

Auntie Liu moved her fingertips, and the Ming family madman before her echoed:

"Ah! Ah!"

Liu Yumei rolled her eyes at her, but was also amused to the point of laughter.

Mainly because Liu Ting was playing around here, delaying time.

Liu Yumei had no interest in torturing these mad beasts and madmen; her target was the second batch that would enter next.

But she was embarrassed to say clearly that she couldn't wait to play either, so she could only helplessly prepare to turn and leave.

Just at this moment, Mu Qiaosheng knelt down and kowtowed to Liu Yumei:

"Greetings, Young Lady!"

Liu Yumei stopped and looked at Mu Qiaosheng behind her.

"In my mother's room, there hangs your portrait; you are exactly the same as the one in the portrait."

This "exactly the same" was definitely not just a similarity in facial contours, nor was it a junior, because even the temperament and charm were indistinguishable; it was absolutely the person herself.

Liu Yumei: "Take me to your mother's residence."

"Yes, Young Lady."

Mu Qiaosheng stood up and walked over to lead the way.

On the way, whenever Ming family madmen attempted to approach, they were all flicked away by sword Qi.

Liu Yumei also showed mercy and didn't behead them, letting them continue to go and play for Ah Ting.

Thinking about it, there was still quite a lot of time.

After all, given the strength little Yuan showed on the river, it was normal to be able to hold on for a while longer.

Actually, don't look at it as the lightning beasts and Ming family members here being like kittens and puppies to the three of them; that's because they are adults holding sharp blades.

Paying a little attention to the method and beating these kittens and puppies to death one by one is indeed not difficult; but if they were children, even holding sharp blades, they wouldn't be able to wield them for long.

The gorge boundary here shouldn't be able to stop little Yuan, who is proficient in the way of formations and the Qi-Gazing Art.

But if the people inside wanted to try to open the boundary, the second batch already prepared outside would definitely use the excuse of preventing chaos from overflowing to consolidate and maintain the boundary, not allowing it to be opened from the inside.

This bunch of guys, in order to kill little Yuan, must have considered every aspect.

Mu Xueci's residence was behind the Mu family ancestral hall, and usually, one had to pass through the side door of the ancestral hall.

Liu Yumei entered directly through the main door and arrived at the Mu family ancestral hall.

Besides the spirit tablets of the Mu family ancestors, the ancestral hall also enshrined portraits of the Liu family Dragon Kings.

Liu Yumei lit incense and paid her respects here.

The Qin family had always traveled the river alone, while the Liu family needed to build a team.

The stories of the Dragon Kings were passed down by word of mouth, and the Long Wang's attendants were also legends in a generation of Jianghu.

This ancestral hall was an indispensable part of the Liu family's history.

Liu Yumei's gaze lingered one by one on the portraits and spirit tablets here.

Unfortunately, what is past will eventually pass.

People born in the heyday will naturally think that all of this is deserved and will inevitably continue for a long time.

Only after experiencing decline and fragmentation will one wake up to the fact that there is no such thing as "taken for granted" in this world.

Mu Qiaosheng stood by without saying a word.

When Liu Yumei continued to walk inside, he immediately followed and helped open his mother's bedroom door.

Mu Xueci's bedroom was very simple, and Liu Yumei was familiar with the few decorations inside; they were all things she had once gifted her.

"When I saw your mother, she had already become a charred corpse."

Mu Qiaosheng took a deep breath, his eye sockets turning red, and he bit his lip until it bled.

Although he had been imprisoned in the dungeon, he knew what was happening outside; the person responsible for guarding that place had long since told him about it.

But because Mu Qiaode had not spoken, the guard could only pass the words to him, but could not open the prison door to let them out.

"Young Lady, it is my Mu family's lack of virtue that led to a scourge in the family."

"You say it like that, as if you're blaming all of this on the fact that my Liu family has lost power."

Mu Qiaosheng immediately knelt down: "I have absolutely no such intention, please, Young Lady, see clearly!"

"Get up, don't kneel, and keep your voice down, it's quite noisy."

Mu Qiaosheng stood up and said in a low voice: "Causing the current situation is my fault; I failed to make a decisive decision, and I also didn't..."

"Alright, alright, don't mention these anymore; the sun isn't called out by a rooster."

Mu Qiaosheng nodded in agreement.

"Your mother committed suicide; she knew her daughter-in-law wanted to kill her."

Mu Qiaosheng's face revealed shock.

"However, your mother probably didn't know that her son also wanted her to die.

If she had known, she probably wouldn't have been embarrassed to commit suicide at my doorstep; she was thin-skinned, I reckon she would have committed suicide at home?"

Mu Qiaosheng: "I... I don't know."

"Your mother was not a good family head, and neither was I; we, well, we were both spoiled by the glory of the previous generation.

Alright, you go out, I'll rest here for a while."

Mu Qiaosheng took his leave, walked out of the room, closed the door, and stood at the entrance himself.

A series of changes had occurred, and with so many people dying around him, he also needed to calm his mind.

He blinked his eyes hard, then reached out to touch them, finding they were already dry and could no longer shed tears.

Liu Yumei lay down on Mu Xueci's bed.

Mu Xueci's husband's surname was Qiao; he was a matrilocal son-in-law and had passed away early.

But on this bed, there were two pillows.

Liu Yumei remembered that when she was young, Mu Xueci was very pedantic, always talking about the etiquette of lord and subject, but she insisted on pulling her onto the bed to accompany her for a nap.

She herself fell asleep, but Mu Xueci said afterward that this was the greatest torment of her life so far, and that the pillow was really uncomfortable.

She laughed and scolded her for being useless, picked up the pillow, and threw it at her.

Now here, she saw this pillow again; Mu Xueci had kept it until now.

On the bed board hung a painting; the person in the painting was exactly the same as herself lying here now.

Liu Yumei slowly closed her eyes.

She felt that if it were fitting, she should have a dream right now, a dream of her youth, where they were all still there.

But beautiful dreams can never come true, just like her seemingly young face right now; fake, it is fake after all.

She just slept like that until it was finally quiet outside, with no more screams from the Ming family madmen, and no more laughter from Ah Ting.

It's over.