Chapter 46: Begging the Master to Save the Children—Their Plight Is Truly Heartbreaking
“Who’s making all the noise?”
His midday rest disturbed, Chu Xiaoyu appeared unhurriedly.
He approached with light steps, his expression utterly calm, betraying neither joy nor anger, sorrow nor delight.
One step, two steps, three steps…
Suddenly, the raucous air fell silent; all things grew still.
“Sir!”
Fatty Niu and Iron Fan both greeted him with utmost respect.
Wolong Qingtian and the gathered disciples sensed, to their horror, that everything before their eyes had been halted in a bizarre, unnatural stasis, as if seized by some dreadful, evil power—all utterly motionless.
What terror was this, that such things could happen in the mortal world? Was it the work of men, or of nature itself?
“Master, what… what is happening? Why has everything stopped?”
It was truly terrifying.
“M-Master, I can hardly keep my knees from buckling in worship…”
The force pressing upon them sent a chill through their bones, sharp as a knife’s edge.
It hurt—a deep, cutting pain.
“Who are you people? Why have you broken into my farm?”
Chu Xiaoyu’s voice was cold and devoid of feeling as he questioned them.
He pressed down upon them, his presence as oppressive as a mountain.
Though Wolong Qingtian was a grandmaster of the highest order, before Chu Xiaoyu he felt like a mere child before a formidable and domineering ancestor—unable even to draw breath, let alone muster his skills.
Never could he have imagined that such a terrifying being existed in the world.
No! Perhaps this man was no longer human at all, having transcended the very concept.
“W-who… what are you?” Wolong Qingtian stammered, crushed by Chu Xiaoyu’s overwhelming aura.
Chu Xiaoyu’s expression remained frosty. “How odd. You burst into my farm, yet have no idea who I am? I must say, you’re quite amusing.”
Amusing indeed—were they sent by a monkey to make fools of themselves?
“Sir, shall we bury them in the orchard as fertilizer?” Fatty Niu asked, brimming with mischief.
“Very well. If you wish, do as you please,” Chu Xiaoyu replied, going along without hesitation.
“Ah… no, please! We know we were wrong!”
The crushing sense of dread made them tremble.
Wolong Qingtian’s knees nearly gave way.
His own composure was barely intact, unlike his disciples, who fared far worse.
Each was pale with terror, bodies shaking uncontrollably.
Why was this young man so fearsome?
He seemed a demon sprung from the abyss—no, something even more terrifying.
I can’t take it anymore!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Several disciples, unable to withstand the overwhelming and uncanny pressure, fell to their knees.
Grandmaster, your humble disciples admit our wrongs—please, spare us!
“What are you doing? Get up! All of you, up!” Wolong Qingtian bellowed at his kneeling followers, furious.
But those already on their knees lacked the strength to rise.
The force pressing on them was simply too much—they only wanted to survive, to live on like ants, nothing more.
“Heh, I see you’ve still got some backbone,” Chu Xiaoyu remarked, a hint of appreciation in his gaze for Wolong Qingtian’s resolve. “But since all your disciples are kneeling, you might as well join them. Birds of a feather flock together.”
With a gentle wave of his hand, the still air seemed poised to rend apart.
A howl—Wolong Qingtian felt his body seized by an immense force, driven to his knees.
He struggled desperately, only to discover in horror that he was utterly immobilized.
He—a famed grandmaster from Lingnan—forced to kneel before his disciples, and before this mere youth, no less.
Death before dishonor!
Never!
Wolong Qingtian fought with every last ounce of stubborn pride.
“It’s useless. You’re but an ant, futilely trying to halt a chariot. Kneel!”
Suddenly, with a dull thud, even the grandmaster could do nothing but obey before such a presence.
A faint smile curled at Chu Xiaoyu’s lips. “This is your punishment. Do you know why I’m punishing you?”
None of the kneeling Wolong clan dared to answer.
Fatty Niu and Iron Fan watched the spectacle, delighting in their misfortune.
Chu Xiaoyu continued, “Because you trespassed on my farm without my permission. That is the first reason.”
“And second, you disturbed my midday rest. For these two reasons alone, you could die a hundred, a thousand times over.”
“You… you cannot kill us,” Wolong Qingtian protested, his eyes blazing. “You killed two of my disciples first. As their master, if I did nothing, I would be unworthy of the title. I—”
“Whether you’re worthy or not has nothing to do with me. You barged into my farm, spoiling for a fight. That’s where you’re in the wrong.”
As he spoke, Chu Xiaoyu took note of the Wolong clan’s details.
They were, on the whole, decent people, with no serious crimes to their names.
“Master, Master…”
Just as Chu Xiaoyu was pondering how to deal with them, an urgent voice broke the silence.
Members of the Su family arrived in haste, clearly troubled by some calamity of their own.
“Master, please save the Su family!”
Old Master Su Qingshan and the Su family fell to their knees before Chu Xiaoyu, their sincerity clear in every gesture.
Chu Xiaoyu frowned. “What is the meaning of this?”
Su Qingyi replied, “Master, our family is on the brink of destruction.”
“What has happened?” Chu Xiaoyu asked, puzzled.
Su Qingyi explained, “Master, because of those two disciples, the Wolong clan has turned their wrath on us. They’ve sworn to wipe us out from the Eastern Capital. The Wolongs are a martial family; we are but ordinary folk, powerless to resist their tyranny.”
Master, please save the children—the children have suffered enough.