Chapter 458: The Captain

Fang Yue was stunned.

He stared blankly at the scene outside.

A group of white-clothed Guards and black-clothed Guards circled the Martial Arts Captain, whose clothes were torn and his body filthy.

Yet none dared to attack—only circling, as if intimidated by the Martial Arts Captain.

"Your acquaintance?"

Tian Erjun frowned.

Sneaking into the Green Office is a grave offense; without just cause, the Green Office has the authority to execute on the spot.

But judging by Fang Yue's expression, they seemed to know each other, so it didn't matter.

He waved his hand, dispersing the crowd, then sized up the man before him.

His entire body was packed with muscle, indicating solid foundational training.

Yet from his aura, he seemed no more than Second-rate Realm.

Yet why did he feel an inexplicable tremor of dread facing this man?

It shouldn't be— I'm Xiantian Realm!

Tian Erjun was puzzled; beside him, You Sisi turned her face away, as if unwilling to look at the ragged Martial Arts Captain.

But occasionally, she stole glances with the corner of her eye, as if she'd never before seen a boy's muscles.

"Captain Ye! Thank heavens! Thank heavens! You're alive!"

The Martial Arts Captain rushed over excitedly; before Fang Yue could decide how to respond, he was crushed in a tight embrace.

Strong man… locks man?

Shh—

You Sisi, who had just been sneaking glances, suddenly widened her eyes at the sight.

Only when she noticed Tian Erjun looking at her with a questioning gaze did she quickly turn her back to Fang Yue and the others.

"Captain Wu, how did you end up like this? By the way, after Mo Cun was destroyed, how did you escape? Are the others still alive?"

Seeing the Martial Arts Captain, Fang Yue's thoughts suddenly cleared.

On the night the village was wiped out, he had only seen the heads of An Shenyi and others floating in the Black Cloud of the Wu Rain tribe.

Since Mo Cun had been entirely destroyed, he had assumed everyone in the village was dead.

But now, the Martial Arts Captain stood before him—did that mean others had survived?

At Fang Yue's question, the Martial Arts Captain's excited expression froze.

He fell silent for a moment, then recounted, with heavy sorrow, what had happened after Mo Cun's destruction.

After Mo Cun was destroyed, there had still been hundreds of survivors, led by the Martial Arts Captain, who set out along a relatively remote route toward Qingsi County.

"Is Chen Xiaomiao alive? Is my sworn sister An Dong'er alive?! What about Niu Niu—did Niu Niu die? Where are they? Why aren't they with you inside the Green Office? Are they waiting outside?"

Fang Yue asked rapidly, his voice rising with excitement.

For the first time, Fang Yue truly felt the strange emotion of meeting an old friend in a foreign land.

Chen Xiaomiao aside, Niu Niu had been with him for a long time and had even taken the blame for him—if Niu Niu had made it to Qingsi County, Fang Yue was naturally glad.

And then… his sworn sister, An Dong'er!

During his time in Mo Cun, An Shenyi had repeatedly said that if the An family fell, he would entrust An Dong'er to Fang Yue's care!

Although An Shenyi's imagined enemy had been the Extreme Ice Sect.

But the outcome was no different.

Mo Cun was destroyed, the An family wiped out—only An Dong'er survived!

Fang Yue believed that An Dong'er, a defenseless girl, had survived only because An Shenyi had sacrificed everything in the An family to protect her.

This could be glimpsed from the Martial Arts Captain's extreme and fractured personality after rescuing An Dong'er.

Even so, Fang Yue was still glad—so long as old friends were alive.

Yet as Fang Yue fired off these rapid-fire questions, he noticed the Martial Arts Captain's expression slowly turning cold and grim.

That suppressed, furious emotion, though silent, infected everyone around him.

Fang Yue's face changed.

"Why such a look? Are they…?"

"Yes… it's all my fault! I failed to protect them!"

The Martial Arts Captain clenched his fists and began recounting what happened after leaving Mo Cun.

After leaving Mo Cun, the Martial Arts Captain began teaching Chen Xiaomiao and An Dong'er Martial Arts.

Chen Xiaomiao, of course, was already his disciple—he'd recognized her potential.

But An Dong'er was something else entirely: she learned everything at lightning speed, her strength surging rapidly, like a prodigy from legend, terrifying even the Martial Arts Captain.

This made Chen Xiaomiao sour with envy, watching helplessly as An Dong'er, who had never trained in Martial Arts before, soared from zero to Third-rate Realm, then continued accelerating!

According to the Martial Arts Captain, An Dong'er had already reached the mid-stage of Third-rate Realm; with continued training, she might break through to Second-rate Realm before reaching Qingsi County!

Her progress was astonishing—truly prodigious!

The Martial Arts Captain was stunned, then threw himself fully into teaching An Dong'er.

It was then that something happened.

Their group was ambushed by several strange creatures.

The group was scattered; the Martial Arts Captain and the survivors were driven to the edge of a cliff, cornered by the deadly creatures.

Two strange creatures attacked An Dong'er and Miaofa simultaneously.

Trembling, the Martial Arts Captain rushed forward and chose to save An Dong'er, watching helplessly as Chen Xiaomiao was hurled over the cliff.

Under this shock, the Martial Arts Captain unleashed his Golden Thread power once more—golden light erupted from his body, his strength exploding as he slaughtered the creatures.

He had thought Miaofa was surely dead, but unexpectedly, Miaofa crawled up from the cliff's edge.

Originally, she had grabbed a tree branch beneath the cliff and hadn't fallen.

Captain Wu was delighted that Miaofa was still alive, but Miaofa developed a grudge in her heart.

After reassembling the scattered villagers and reaching the next village, Chen Xiaomiao subtly distanced herself from them.

But she always showed up at every assembly; yet after someone saw Chen Xiaomiao walking closely with a physician, she gradually drifted away from the group, lingering at the margins.

When they finally gathered to leave that village, Chen Xiaomiao voluntarily proposed leaving the team.

"You're staying in this village?" Captain Wu blinked in surprise, puzzled by his disciple's choice.

But Chen Xiaomiao gazed up at the sky at a forty-degree angle and spoke with a touch of tragic literature: "Just a brief pause, then I'll set out again."

"???"

"You're still my master, I just don't want to go to Qingsi County anymore."

"Then where do you want to go?"

"The world is vast—I want to see it. If fate allows, we'll meet again."

"???"

In the end, Captain Wu couldn't persuade Miaofa to return, but he left someone behind in the village to wait two extra days, then sent them galloping to catch up with the team.

They later learned that after they left, Chen Xiaomiao had departed with another group.

That unfamiliar team was led by a man wearing a horse-head mask, accompanied by the village physician and a blind girl with iron shackles binding her hands, barefoot and trailing behind the group.

(End of Chapter)