“Th-Thank you… are you thanking me?”
Jiang Che hadn’t expected that the girl in front of him could actually write.
The little mute, seeing that Jiang Che could understand her writing, suddenly brightened from her previously vacant gaze.
A faint smile appeared on her stiff face.
She continued holding Jiang Che’s hand, scribbling and drawing.
“Hmm… you want to know my name?
I’m Jiang Che—Jiang like river, Che like clear. And you?”
“…Xia?”
They exchanged names. Perhaps because Xiao Xia recognized only a few characters, her writing was very brief and simple.
But fortunately, Jiang Che was always able to grasp the meaning.
Xiao Xia also told Jiang Che that she had learned to read because when she was young, her family had a few books, and she was self-taught.
Like ordinary people, she had a younger brother, and her parents were still alive.
They weren’t originally from Shenxiao Town but from a nearby village, hoping to move over and take a look.
Only a few months ago, after they arrived near here, her whole family was captured. Her brother was even used in a sacrificial formation—as materials for that man called Xie Xuan to break through the Foundation Establishment Stage.
Jiang Che roughly understood the situation with the Xie Xiu.
This Xie Xuan was camping here, relying on the fame of the Shenxiao Sect; Shenxiao Town often saw people coming and going.
He specialized in capturing outsiders for sacrifices to aid his cultivation.
Such matters wouldn’t easily attract attention.
As for the so-called Xie Xiu, though the Immortal and Demon factions were opposed, their differences lay mainly in cultivation paths.
Demonic cultivators practiced the demonic path but ultimately followed their own will; they were not wantonly killing people.
Xie Xiu, however, differed from both—they didn’t rely on talent as the others did.
Their cultivation method burned essence and blood, harming both others and themselves, often requiring sacrifices. They were nearly on par with the Demon Clan, who were bloodthirsty. The Xie Xiu were no different.
Therefore, all factions held the same attitude towards Xie Xiu.
If they could escape, they might be able to notify the nearest Shenxiao Sect to come and eradicate them.
“Xiao Xia, do you have any way to leave here? This is after all Shenxiao Sect’s territory. If we can get the message out, we can be saved.”
No one knew why, but Xiao Xia suddenly panicked and wrote a “No” on Jiang Che’s hand.
At that moment, the upstairs door slammed open.
Jiang Che sensed it was that man called Xie Xuan returning and quickly urged Xiao Xia to have her hands tied again.
Upstairs.
Wu Qing and Wu Meng lounged comfortably in their chairs, waiting.
Seeing Xie Xuan return, Wu Meng was the first to speak impatiently.
“Why did you take so long? Are you gonna let them go? I bet your master’s too scared to mess with Lin Yin. Listen to me, big brother, just release them! Haha!”
Xie Xuan didn’t get angry at Wu Meng’s teasing.
The corners of his mouth beneath the cloak curved into a smile.
“My master said if we don’t release them, then we do whatever we want, heh heh heh!”
“What?”
Wu Qing and Wu Meng were shocked.
Xie Xuan hadn’t expected his master to remain so calm upon hearing about the long-missing Lin Yin.
Instead, he said to continue—the presence of Lin Yin wouldn’t affect them.
“Hey! Is your master crazy? Lin Yin’s here and he’s so calm? Isn’t he afraid she’s come specifically for you?”
Wu Meng’s tone was coarse but made sense.
At first, they had also suspected that Lin Yin’s sudden appearance was because the Xie Xiu’s matters had been exposed.
Wu Meng and Wu Qing discussed making plans to save their own backs.
After all, this was Shenxiao Sect’s territory.
“My master already said Lin Yin can handle it!
Don’t bring this up anymore! Here!”
Saying this, Xie Xuan tossed a cloth bag to the serious and thoughtful Wu Qing.
Wu Qing caught the heavy bag and found it filled with many low-grade Spirit Stones, counting ten in total.
“We promised twenty to both of you, but here are ten first! Tonight, come with me to fetch the children! After we have all the boys and girls, we’ll deliver them to my master.
Once it’s done, you’ll get another ten!
How about that?”
Wu Qing frowned in thought, looking at the Spirit Stones in his hand. Wu Meng, however, was stunned.
“Really? That’s thirty! Big brother, so many Spirit Stones, maybe enough for us to cultivate to the late Foundation Establishment Stage. We might still have a chance to reach the Golden Core!”
It was undeniable—they could earn thirty Spirit Stones just by kidnapping ordinary children.
But why kidnap in Shenxiao Town specifically?
If they only needed the Pure Yang Birthday boys and girls, wouldn’t it be safer to capture them elsewhere?
Even if their cultivation was stuck at a bottleneck and they were anxious, would they throw away their lives?
“Big brother!”
Wu Meng’s voice interrupted Wu Qing’s thoughts as he tightened his grip on his fan.
Right now, they desperately needed these Spirit Stones.
Both brothers had triple-attribute mixed spirit roots; reaching this stage was already their limit, and future improvement would be difficult.
“Alright, we accept. But if there’s danger, my brother and I will run immediately.”
“Agreed!”
For some reason, Wu Qing felt Xie Xuan’s smile grew colder.
But they couldn’t afford to worry about that now.
After all, Xie Xuan was no match for the two brothers.
His master probably wouldn’t act recklessly here either.
Meanwhile, in the basement.
Jiang Che’s keen ears had caught most of the conversation.
He hadn’t expected the other side to not fear Lin Yin, even to have ways to deal with her.
Things were getting complicated.
He had indeed thought the captors might hold back out of caution, letting him go so he could find a way to send a message out.
And he had someone in mind—Qin Zifeng.
Telling him and having him notify the sect was the best option right now.
Creak!
The sound of footsteps came down from above.
Jiang Che felt someone descending the stairs.
From the steps, it should be the Xie Xuan who tied him up.
Because of his weak body, his footsteps sounded light and unsteady.
Xie Xuan looked at Jiang Che with a greedy expression.
He could feel that Jiang Che’s constitution was extraordinary; whether as a sacrifice or a furnace, he was very suitable.
Too bad he was male!
But such a tender boy… maybe not impossible after all.
However, since he had already told his master about this, it seemed impossible to claim Jiang Che alone.
Xie Xuan swallowed, his eyes greedily scanning Jiang Che one last time before forcibly restraining himself.
Irritated, he shifted his gaze away from Jiang Che and, under the flickering dim light, swept it toward the curled-up figure in the corner, unconsciously stroking his chin.
Although Xiao Xia wore plain rough cloth, as a young woman just entering adulthood, her charm was not entirely concealed.
Noticing Xie Xuan’s gaze, Xiao Xia’s bare feet shrank slightly.
Jiang Che also sensed the shift in atmosphere. He felt Xiao Xia was afraid.
Immediately, a bad feeling rose in his heart.
What the hell does this pervert want to do now!