Chapter 387. Sneak Attack
Drizzling rain, a desolate alley.
A young girl cornered and beaten against a wall.
This scene was all too familiar to Xia Feng, stirring up buried childhood memories. Before meeting Sister Yi, he was bullied by his peers daily, being cornered against walls was commonplace.
So, seeing this triggered a sense of unease within him.
The blond-haired boy leading the group clutched his wooden stick defensively as he saw an adult approach, emerging from a sports car. “Who- who are you?”
Xia Feng’s dark eyes briefly swept over the girl in the back. Her calves and arms were bruised, her face cut by a small knife, her hair disheveled, making her look like a beggar.
Xia Feng smiled gently, “What are you guys doing here?”
Seeing the adult seemed approachable, the five boys relaxed. The blond-haired leader pointed at the girl behind him and grinned proudly.
“We’re teaching this traitor’s daughter a lesson. You know, you should check online, Uncle. Her name is Chen Xiaoshui, she used to be quite famous. Her father was a Nightmare Clan spy, her grandfather was a White Emperor City rebel, and her mother is a prostitute. Not a single good person in her family.”
Indeed.
Ever since the “White Emperor Incident,” the White Emperor City rebels had been frequently dragged out and condemned. Their story remained popular, especially online.
It had become so popular that marketing accounts produced videos about the “White Emperor Incident.” Discussing this event could generate massive traffic; with a bit of luck, likes could skyrocket by tens of thousands, even millions, overnight.
Because of this, to tap into the immense traffic derived from this historical event, many started digging into the family information of the rebels.
Once the families’ details were exposed online, the consequences were predictable. People sent their condolences with counterfeit money and knives, threw feces at their homes, broke in to steal, and even committed murder in public. They justified these actions as “eliminating traitors for the empire” and righteous deeds that should be pardoned.
This madness initially lasted for three years before gradually fading from public view, but its popularity remained high, making it a prime subject for generating income.
Seeing Chen Xiaoshui, Xia Feng recalled a meme he had once seen of her: “A black and white photo of a girl with a creepy smile, captioned ‘My grandfather is a good person!'”
It was likely meant satirically: Stop defending yourself; would a bad person admit to being bad?
Later, this meme became a popular reaction image for when someone was caught lying.
Xia Feng held his forehead, took a deep breath, and thought. Luckily, he was old-fashioned and only liked using smiley face emojis in his chats.
But honestly, sometimes knowing the full story was quite painful. He really wanted to hit someone.
He continued to smile and slowly walk forward.
Seeing the man’s apparent interest, as if he also wanted to join this righteous judgment of traitors, the blond-haired leader chuckled proudly, his face alight with excitement.
“Uncle, I know what you want to do. You want to film the trial and post it, right? Fine, but you have to give me fifty percent of the video’s revenue.”
Xia Feng’s dark eyes calmly asked, “What did you call me?”
The blond-haired boy was startled for a moment.
“Uncle… uh—” *BANG!!!* Before he could finish speaking, Xia Feng slapped him across the face, sending him spinning through the air before crashing against the damp wall.
The alley wall cracked and splintered. The boy’s swollen face bled as he collapsed to the ground, crying out in pain.
“I’m so young, yet you called me Uncle?” Xia Feng stepped on his cheek, looking down at him with a frown. “Do you not respect me?”
Seeing this, the other four men became enraged, thinking they had encountered a lunatic.
This man had a scraggly beard and looked like he was in his forties or fifties. Not calling him Grandpa was already a kindness!
Noticing their expressions, Xia Feng recoiled slightly. He had almost forgotten he was disguised and no longer possessed his exceptionally handsome features.
“But what’s with the angry look? Are you suspecting me of being a Nightmare Clan spy?” Xia Feng said with displeasure. “How dare you slander me, a dignified Second-stage Spirit Master! It seems you’re seeking death!”
“A Second-stage Spirit Master?! What are you talking about?! When did we call you a spy!”
The five boys retreated in terror. “Uncle, uncle, we didn’t say you were a spy—”
“No, I say you did, so you did,” Xia Feng said with a gentle smile, slowly advancing.
Soon, piercing screams echoed one after another in the dim, drizzling alley.
The five boys didn’t understand why this uncle had suddenly targeted them. Chen Xiaoshui was equally bewildered.
She peeked through her fingers, trying to catch a glimpse of what was happening outside. But the next moment, she heard the man’s deep voice say, “It’s a bit bloody, close your eyes.”
*This uncle is a good person,* she thought inwardly, obediently closing her eyes.
A few seconds later, she felt the rustling of a trench coat shielding her from the drizzle from above.
The girl looked up. Her left eye was bandaged, and her only remaining shallow green right eye opened in confusion, reflecting the tall figure of the man with the scraggly beard.
The man tossed a pocket watch to her. She caught it with a fumbling hand and looked at it doubtfully. Inside the slightly opened watch, a faded, old photograph of her grandparents and mother was tucked away, along with her childhood home address written on the back.
“I’m your grandfather’s friend. I know your grandfather wasn’t a rebel. Do you want to come home with me?” Xia Feng felt that his influence within the Peach Organization couldn’t be limited to just the Half-dragon legion; he needed to develop some human subordinates.
Their talents and ages were unimportant. He had ways to awaken their potent spirit artifacts.
Of course, this girl was quite young.
Only ten years old.
But it wasn’t a significant issue. Besides, he had promised Li Zaishi he would look after his daughter. Now that his daughter was missing, he would look after her granddaughter instead.
Looking at the large hand the man extended, the girl glanced down at the pocket watch in her hand. After a two-second pause, she tightly clutched the watch, looked up, nodded firmly, and silently extended her small hand to hold the man’s large one.
Xia Feng patted her head and smiled warmly. “From now on, I’ll be your brother. You can call me Brother Feng.”
*Brother?* The girl looked at the man’s somewhat rough face and tilted her head. She had thought this older uncle was going to adopt her as a daughter.
Xia Feng purified the girl’s bruises with a cleansing spirit robe, and while bandaging her wounds, he asked curiously,
“According to the information I have, your mother’s whereabouts are still unknown. Do you know where she went?”
Hearing the uncle’s question, the girl’s expression tensed slightly, and her small hands clutched her skirt. However, after meeting the uncle’s sincere gaze, she bit her lip and whispered,
“Dong Sheng Fortress. Mom was captured and taken to that Military Base.”
*That place again.* Xia Feng frowned. Just as he was about to ask more, his eyes narrowed instantly. He hugged the girl and stomped his foot.
He spun, igniting black flames, instantly tearing apart and engulfing their afterimages.
Xia Feng, holding the girl, teleported to the rooftop of a low brick tile house, his trench coat billowing.
The drizzling sky showed signs of turning into a downpour, with heavy rain beginning to fall. Amidst the rain curtain, three bizarre figures vaguely appeared.
They surrounded Xia Feng.
“Thump, thump—”
The Calamity Demon Heart reacted.
They were three five-eyed Nightmares! One even emanated a terrifying six-eyed aura.
Xia Feng frowned. It wasn’t the Black Moon Holy See, nor the Golden Sparrow. It was the Nightmare Clan coming to kill him? What was going on? He had concealed himself so well; he shouldn’t have been exposed.
Could it be the pursuers of the person behind the Saint司 Edict? Xia Feng wondered.
But Saint司 Yi Qin’s spirit artifact belonged to the Three Saint Star Gods, a power of the Star Gods. How could it be connected to the Nightmare Clan?
