Unexpectedly, Shang Zisu was pulled into the arms of the scarred man.
"Stop!"
"Let her go!"
The attempts of Lou Chuanbai and Mei Zizhong to intervene seemed utterly powerless. The blood-red stains on their lips and chests were glaring.
"Let go of me!"
Shang Zisu struggled desperately, but the man simply hoisted her onto his shoulder and walked out.
Seeing this, Fu Tianlong and Wei Qi stood up without thinking, but they were stopped by Wei Guanguan and Shui Ling. "What are you doing?"
Shui Ling and Wei Guanguan asked nervously.
Wei Qi said, "He is going to do something to Sister Shang..."
"Sister Shang is good friends with Mu Ge; we can’t just stand by." Fu Tianlong added.
"What can you do? Be rational!" Shui Ling exclaimed in a low voice.
The two were immediately speechless.
"Zisu—!" Lou Chuanbai shouted loudly, clutching his chest.
However, the man left the hall with Shang Zisu over his shoulder, laughing wildly, not even considering Hua Cangzhu.
Hua Cangzhu coldly watched Shang Zisu being taken away, enjoying Lou Chuanbai’s look of utter despair.
"Hua Cangzhu, you beast! Zisu is a disciple of the Medicine Tower. How can you, as the director, indulge such wolfish behavior!" Lou Chuanbai shouted at Hua Cangzhu.
However, Hua Cangzhu indifferently replied, "She’s not my disciple. This shows how foolish her choice was back then." He hadn’t forgotten that he had first picked Shang Zisu, who was eventually snatched away by Lou Chuanbai.
That insidious smile was exceedingly dazzling, making the Tower Guardian Elders grit their teeth, yet helpless.
As Shui Ling said, they were poisoned, their spiritual power dissipated, and were no better than crippled, charging in would only result in injury and wouldn’t change the fact that Shang Zisu was taken away.
"Cough, Master." Mei Zizhong, severely injured by a palm strike, coughed up blood with every cough. Unable to stand, he crawled to Lou Chuanbai’s side, supporting each other.
The Wei siblings and others couldn’t bear to watch any longer, rushing out from the crowd to help the master and disciple up from the ground, but unfortunately, had no elixir to heal them.
Moreover, without spiritual power, Lou Chuanbai and Mei Zizhong couldn’t even open their Qiankun bags.
"Master Lou, Senior Brother Mei, are you alright?" Wei Qi asked with concern.
Lou Chuanbai gritted his teeth and shook his head.
For the first time, a cold gleam appeared in Mei Zizhong’s previously calm eyes. He looked at Hua Cangzhu and rebuked, "Release Sister Shang. I’m ready to face death or torture!"
Hua Cangzhu sneered dismissively, looking more and more pleased with himself: "Is there no one clever among you? Or are you not afraid of death?"
Under his threat, more people stumbled out of the hall, trembling as they knelt outside.
...
"It’s indeed nice under the big tree!" Successfully avoiding the layers of guards outside the Medicine Tower, Zhao Nanxing gave a thumbs up to Mu Qingge.
Mu Qingge smiled faintly, looked into the depths of the white mist in the forest, and frowned without speaking.
"What’s wrong?" Zhao Nanxing asked.
"It’s too quiet." The answer came from Xia Tianwu, instead of Mu Qingge.
Perhaps due to the difference in realm cultivation, Zhao Nanxing was only in the Green Realm, while Mu Qingge and Xia Tianwu were in the Purple Realm and Blue Realm, respectively. Thus, they seemed to sense a hint of unusual atmosphere mixed in the air.
"Too quiet?" Zhao Nanxing looked around in confusion. "It’s still quite a distance from the courtyard; normally, no one would be patrolling here, so it’s usually quite quiet."
Mu Qingge looked at him and suddenly asked, "Brother Zhao, with the only road to the Branch being blocked, is the courtyard really unaware?"
Zhao Nanxing’s eyes suddenly shrank, and he said solemnly, "Are you suggesting that the courtyard is already out of control?"
He used the term ’out of control,’ but his tone was extremely grave. The implication was clear: if the courtyard was indeed in trouble as they thought, then anything could happen.
"Let’s move quickly!" Zhao Nanxing said to Mu Qingge.
Mu Qingge nodded, and the three quickly headed toward the Medicine Tower Branch.
"If things inside are as we suspect, the main entrance might not be an easy route." Xia Tianwu turned to Mu Qingge, raising a question.
Mu Qingge nodded and said to Zhao Nanxing, "Brother Zhao, you are the most familiar with the Medicine Tower among us. Do you know of any other ways to infiltrate the courtyard?"
Infiltrate...
Zhao Nanxing pondered, pursed his lips, then looked up at Mu Qingge and Xia Tianwu, saying, "There is indeed a small path to enter, but..."
Stopping short, Zhao Nanxing only fully explained when Mu Qingge saw the so-called path with her own eyes.
"A dog hole!" Mu Qingge exclaimed, pointing at a dilapidated hole at the base of the wall, looking at Zhao Nanxing.
Zhao Nanxing showed a moment of awkwardness and explained, "It’s not really a dog hole. It’s from a collapse that was never repaired."
Mu Qingge and Xia Tianwu couldn’t help but smile wryly.
"Let’s go." Mu Qingge flicked her sleeves and said.
"Hold on." Xia Tianwu suddenly raised a hand to stop them.
Mu Qingge looked at him with curiosity in her eyes.
Zhao Nanxing also asked, "What is it, Elder Xia?"
Xia Tianwu mused for a moment, then spoke, "Once we’re inside, let’s split up to see what’s going on before taking any rash actions. Then, at an agreed time and place, we’ll meet to discuss how to resolve the situation."
This plan met no objections from Mu Qingge and Zhao Nanxing.
The three quickly distributed their directions for action.
Since Xia Tianwu was the least familiar with the Branch, he headed to the three towers within the courtyard. After all, the three towers in the Branch were almost identical to those in the Main Courtyard. For the remaining areas, Zhao Nanxing went to the alchemy area and parts where some disciples resided, while Mu Qingge covered the rest.
After agreeing, the three entered through the ’dog hole’ one after another, infiltrating the Medicine Tower Branch.
Once inside, they immediately split up, agreeing to meet at the Spiritual Consciousness Tower in one hour, as it was the least likely place to have people.
...
"Let go of me!" Shang Zisu’s struggle seemed utterly futile.
Her spiritual power was scattered by the poison in her body; now she was no different from an ordinary woman. How could she possibly succeed in resisting?
"To think there would be such a top-grade prey here!" The scarred man grinned viciously, his eyes blatantly filled with lechery.
He kicked open the door forcefully and carried Shang Zisu into an empty room.
Judging by the surroundings, it was unclear whose quarters they were.
The wooden bed in the room was the man’s target. He carried Shang Zisu to the bedside and tossed her onto the bedding.
The sudden drop left Shang Zisu’s chest heaving and her arm aching. She lay on the bed, lifting her icy face to look at the demon-like man in front of her, lips tightly pressed. She didn’t speak any further, but the resoluteness in her eyes was unmistakable.
"Stop looking at me like that." The man grabbed her chin with one hand, pulling her to him with a tone full of cold malice.
Suddenly, the man extended his slobbery tongue, licking Shang Zisu’s face, savoring the taste with closed eyes.
This act made Shang Zisu’s breath hitch, her eyes widened, anger blazing in her gaze, her body rigid and numb. When had she ever been humiliated like this?
The most hateful part was that she didn’t even have the strength to fight back!
"Delicious!" the man remarked with relish.
He opened his eyes, his gaze on Shang Zisu becoming even more aggressive.
Shang Zisu suppressed the revulsion in her heart, staring at him with a warning: "If you dare force me, I would rather die than submit!"
Smack—!
Shang Zisu was slapped onto the bed, her face burning with pain, swelling rapidly. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth.
"You dare threaten me!" the man snarled viciously.
His expression was ferocious, murderous intent brimming. It seemed he might kill Shang Zisu at any moment!
Shang Zisu gritted her teeth, hatred surging in her cool eyes, an overwhelming fear hidden within. She feared, truly feared that her chastity would be destroyed by this demon before her. How could she face the world then?
"Let me tell you something. If you serve me well, once my great ambition is fulfilled, you might even become the queen of my harem! But if you’re unwise, after I’ve finished with you, I’ll give you to my subordinates. They’re like ravenous wolves!"
The man’s cruel words made Shang Zisu’s body tremble.
If that’s really the case, she would rather die right now!
Suddenly, a resolve of death was reflected in Shang Zisu’s eyes. She climbed from the bed and rushed toward the wall.
But before she could reach it, she felt her hair being yanked forcefully, her entire body thrown back again, landing on the bed once more.
"Ah—!" Shang Zisu exclaimed in pain.
"Bitch, want to die?" The man suddenly lunged forward, pinning Shang Zisu down firmly.
He knelt on top of Shang Zisu, tugging at his own clothes, revealing his rugged muscles while forcing Shang Zisu to look at him, his expression violent. "Bitch, if you want to die, serve me well before you die!"
"Beast! Let go of me!" Shang Zisu struggled desperately, but to no avail, only arousing more interest in the man.
Tear—!
Shang Zisu felt a chill at her chest, as cold wind rushed in.
Her gaze swept across, seeing her neckline being roughly torn apart by the man, revealing her snow-white skin.
Her face turned pale, her eyes filled with despair as she was enveloped and plunged into a bottomless abyss.
"So white! So fragrant!" The man was overwhelmed by the sight of milky skin, uttering a sentence in intoxication, lowering his head to greedily suck upon Shang Zisu’s neck...
The nauseating scent lingered at the tip of the nose; the man’s proximity caused Shang Zisu’s entire body to stiffen.
Her limbs were tightly restrained, leaving not even a shred of resistance, forced to submit to the man’s actions.
’No! No! No!’
Shang Zisu cried out ceaselessly in her heart, tears of humiliation trickling down from the corners of her eyes, seeping into her hair.
She swore that if she survived, she would definitely tear to pieces the man who degraded her with endless humiliation!
Hatred shone from the depths of her eyes.
’We are disciples of the Medicine Tower, why not use poison?’ The words Mu Qingge once said suddenly flashed in Shang Zisu’s mind. At this moment, she felt deep regret.
She should have listened to Mu Qingge’s words earlier, hiding poison on herself, perhaps in her nails, scattering poison powder on her clothes, avoiding the predicament she faced now.
Poison, she had.
But she had kept them in her Qiankun Bag for contingencies.
And now, having lost her spiritual power, unable to open the Qiankun Bag, how could she retrieve the poison inside to protect herself?
’Am I to be humiliated here today? Mu Junior Brother, where are you...’ Shang Zisu perceived the crude breathing emerging from beside her ear, closing her eyes in anguish and despair.
...
’Who are these people...’
Mu Qingge concealed herself behind the tree house, observing those uniquely dressed patrol individuals.
These people were obviously not from the Medicine Tower. Yet their attire was unified, each with an identical emblem embroidered on their chests, seemingly originating from the same place.
Judging by their expressions and gestures, it appeared they were people who lived life by licking blood off the knife edge.
Fortunately, the strength of these people was not particularly high.
In Mu Qingge’s view, their abilities were somewhat uneven. In a patrol team, there were those from Yellow Realm as well as Red Realm, with the leader as a Yellow Realm Peak.
Mu Qingge thought for a moment, then silently abducted a person who was lagging behind when the patrol group passed by.
The person abruptly abducted was about to shout when he felt a sharp, pointed dagger pressed against the vital spot of his neck.
"Who are you?" A cold inquiry came from behind, as if not cooperating would lead to a throat slit.
The captive dared not shout out again, being merely of Yellow Realm Initial Rank, how could he withstand Mu Qingge’s imposing aura? Stuttering, he said, "We are from Jing Sect."
Jing Sect?
Mu Qingge furrowed her brows, completely unfamiliar.
"What have you come to the Medicine Tower for?" Mu Qingge did not delve into the background of these people, directly addressing the main topic.
"I... I don’t know either. We are following the Sect Leader’s orders, doing whatever he instructs..." The captive said with a hint of crying.
This answer did not satisfy Mu Qingge.
Her expression grew several degrees colder. She continued asking, "What happened to the Medicine Tower?"
"All... all of them were captured and poisoned by Hua Courtyard Head, locked away in the great hall over there..." The captive hesitantly revealed all he knew.
’Hua Cangzhu!’
Mu Qingge’s eyes squinted slightly, as a cold gleam suddenly appeared in her eye slits.
"Your numbers, your strength." Mu Qingge inquired again.
"We... we have four hundred people here; most are of Yellow Realm, Green Realm, with a few in Green Realm and Blue Realm. Our Sect Leader is a Purple Realm extraordinary expert. There are still six to seven hundred people outside in Sangzhi City." In order to survive, the captive cooperated exceedingly well.
Mu Qingge listened, her gaze growing colder; such strength, no wonder they dared to covet the Medicine Tower.
It’s likely that Hua Cangzhu cooperated with them because their strength within the Third-class Country was already quite formidable.
"What else do you know?" Mu Qingge asked sternly.
"I... I don’t know anything else... The Sect Leader plans to lead us to unify the Third-class Country... I really don’t know anything more..." The captive replied in panic.
’Unify the Third-class Country?’ Mu Qingge mocked with a cold laugh.
Suddenly, she chopped the captive’s neck, directly severing his qi channel, cutting off his life.
Afterward, she proceeded toward the great hall where people were held.
She indeed didn’t know there lay such ambitious individuals hiding within the Third-class Country, aiming to unify the entire Third-class Country. Just how competent were they?
And Hua Cangzhu, what role did he play in this?
With Mu Qingge’s speed, no one could possibly detect her.
The deeper she went, the more disciples of the Jing Sect she found. Their strength was also somewhat higher than those encountered earlier.
Especially around the great hall, where more than two hundred people were guarding, almost half of Jing Sect’s members within the Medicine Tower. Among them, a Blue Realm Middle Rank individual was stationed.
When Mu Qingge arrived, she happened to see some Medicine Tower disciples being escorted away by Jing Sect members following Hua Cangzhu.
Mu Qingge refrained from stepping forward to stop them, waited until they drifted far away and then made her way to the great hall.
The Jing Sect members guarding the great hall posed no threat to Mu Qingge. She quietly reached the entrance of the hall, glanced at those Jing Sect disciples facing away from her, then pushed the tightly closed door open a slit, sneaking inside.
Upon her appearance, everyone within the hall bore expressions of shock in their eyes.
"Mu Junior Brother!"
"Mu Senior Brother!"
Voices of surprise echoed but all controlled their volumes out of mutual understanding.
Mu Qingge gestured for silence, swiftly finding the Wei siblings, along with Shui Ling and Fu Tianlong among the crowd.
However, as she clearly saw those held within their arms, her eyes shrank instantly, swiftly cast with a layer of frosty chill.
In a flash, she reached directly in front of them.
"Mu Ge, you finally came! Boohoo!" Seeing Mu Qingge, Wei Guanguan cried out in excitement.
Mu Qingge quickly took the pulse of the unconscious Lou Chuanbai and Mei Zizhong, lifting her gaze to ask Wei Qi: "What happened?"
"It’s done by the person Hua Cangzhu brought! Seems like that person’s no small figure!" Wei Qi said through gritted teeth.
Mu Qingge’s brows slightly knitted, sensing poison intertwined within Lou Chuanbai and Mei Zizhong’s body along with severe internal injuries.
Swiftly extracting two vials of medicine from her bosom, Mu Qingge poured out two pills, instructing Wei Qi and Fu Tianlong to administer them.
Then, she drew out three more bottles of elixir, adding them to the previous one, handing them to Shui Ling, directing: "The elixirs inside can detoxify, distribute them for everyone to consume."
Shui Ling acted immediately, many disciples rose to assist, their mutual understanding effectively reducing the noise output, wary of alerting the guards outside.
After Shui Ling distributed the medicine bottles, she took one and ran to the Tower Guardian Elders to detoxify them.
Mu Qingge surveyed the group, instructing: "Currently, enemies outnumber us. After detoxifying, stay here, waiting for the opportunity to act. Zhao Senior Brother has already dispatched reinforcements, and Elder Xia from the Main Courtyard is here, so don’t worry, you will be safe."
"Really! That’s great!"
"We’re saved!"
"We’re saved now!"
A few Tower Guardian Elders swallowed the Detoxification Pills, feeling the sensation of spiritual power stagnation dissipate gradually, finally relaxing. One of them stood up, bowing slightly to Mu Qingge, asking: "When will the troops from Yu Country arrive?"
Mu Qingge replied: "At least two more days."
This answer brought a wave of panic among those within the great hall again.
Mu Qingge furrowed her brow.



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