Chapter 972: Mu Yizhou
"Yun… Yun… Senior Brother Yun Che..." Watching Yun Che actually crush Liu Hang's foot, Feng Mo, who had just been about to stand up, fell back to his knees instead, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets in shock, his words momentarily failing him.
Yun Che's words caused Liu Hang's pupils to instantly contract to the size of a pinhole. The demonic sneer before him, the excruciating pain in his foot, and the sound of his bones being crushed made him realize with stark clarity that this Yun Che was the ruthless man who had crippled the chief hall master's own nephew and then crippled Ji Hanfeng right in front of the chief hall master.
Not defeated, not severely injured—regardless of whether it was Li Mingcheng or Ji Hanfeng, both were directly crippled, and rumors suggested there was almost no possibility of recovery. His viciousness was simply astonishing.
And that extremely vicious man was now stepping on him!
At that moment, he finally realized one terribly frightening thing: a person who dared to cripple even the chief hall master's nephew wouldn't dare to cripple him?
True terror frantically sprouted in his heart and soul. The trembling from his body's pain transformed into trembling from fear. He reached out to cover the Ice Phoenix Inscription Jade on his shoulder and screamed in terror: "Cousin… save me… someone wants to kill me… save me… save me!! Ah!"
Yun Che stomped his hand down onto the snow and said coldly, "I'll say it one more time: obediently hand over every single Snow Silk you have on you, or else…"
"I'll hand them over… I'll hand them over…"
Liu Hang was scared, truly scared. Enduring the severe pain in his foot, he didn't even dare to circulate his profound energy to suppress the injury. Trembling, he reached into the Ice Phoenix Inscription Jade and took out four Snow Silks, holding them up to Yun Che with a face full of terror.
But Yun Che didn't reach out to take them. Instead, he sneered: "Liu Hang, it seems your ears aren't working well. I said all the Snow Silks you have on you, and you just pull out this little bit to fool me? If you're this disobedient, the consequences will be severe."
"No… no," Liu Hang quickly shook his head in panic: "Snow Silks are very rare. I really only have this many on me…"
"Senior Brother Yun Che," Feng Mo said urgently: "Our Cold Snow Hall disciples can only receive one Snow Silk every three months. Usually, we use them right away. Four are a whole year's supply—that's already a lot…"
"Ahhhhh!!!"
Before Feng Mo finished speaking, a sharp scream suddenly rang out. Yun Che's foot viciously stomped down on Liu Hang's calf, ruthlessly breaking his leg bone as well.
"Are you ready to obediently hand over all the Snow Silks now?" Yun Che leaned down, staring at Liu Hang's twisted face in pain, and said slowly.
"I… I only… have this many on me… Even if you kill me… I couldn't have… any other Snow Silks…" Liu Hang's entire body was convulsing, every word laced with deep pain.
"Heh," Yun Che's lips curled: "It seems you won't shed tears until you see the coffin."
Yun Che reached out, and a broken sword flew out from the snow, pinched between his fingers. The sharp blade slowly descended, stopping just above Liu Hang's lower abdomen as his pupils dilated in an instant: "I'll help you think back one more time—do you have any other Snow Silks on you? If you remember well, that's fine. But if you remember badly, you might be a cripple for the rest of your life."
Looking at the broken blade less than half an inch from his lower abdomen, Liu Hang's face turned deathly pale without a trace of color. He could have ignored threats from others because this was Cold Snow Hall, and no one would dare to cripple an official Cold Snow Hall disciple. But this person in front of him—he had the nerve to cripple the chief hall master's nephew in public!
He was a madman who, even after he had invoked the name "Mu Yizhou," still unhesitatingly crushed his foot bone and leg bone!
"No… no… no, don't! I remember, I remember!!" Liu Hang was utterly terrified. His hand fumbled toward the Ice Phoenix Inscription Jade and suddenly pulled out twenty-nine more Snow Silks. His hands were trembling uncontrollably; the moment he took them out, they scattered all over the ground.
Together with the previous four, it was a total of thirty-three Snow Silks.
Feng Mo's mouth fell open, completely speechless.
"These… are all… they really are all…" Having handed over these Snow Silks, Liu Hang seemed to have all his strength drained away, completely collapsed, his mouth only able to utter trembling pleas for mercy.
He had only kept a small portion for himself; the rest were meant to bribe the vice hall master, discipline officers, and others—same as every year.
"Heh, seems you've been pulling this shady business for a while." Yun Che swept his hand, gathering all the Snow Silks into his grasp. With a casual flick of the finger holding the broken blade, a cold light flashed, and the blade viciously stabbed into Liu Hang's left arm, piercing straight through his arm bone.
A pig-slaughtering scream rang out, but Yun Che had already turned around, not bothering to look at Liu Hang again. He strode over to Di Kui.
Yun Che's viciousness and Liu Hang's miserable state had already scared Di Kui out of his wits. The moment he saw Yun Che's gaze turn to him, Di Kui nearly lost his soul. He threw himself to the ground and, in the fastest possible way, took out all the Snow Silks from his Ice Phoenix Inscription Jade, shrieking: "These are all my Snow Silks… I really only have this many… Please spare me… spare me… I won't dare again."
Even Liu Hang had ended up in such a state; how could Di Kui dare to have any illusions?
Yun Che took the six Snow Silks Di Kui offered, then stepped on his left arm.
"Waaaaahhhh!!!!"
Di Kui clutched his arm, rolling painfully in the snow. Yun Che turned sideways, glancing askance: "Liu Hang, you should learn from your lackey. Obey earlier, and you'll suffer less."
Liu Hang lay face down on the ground, his whole body convulsing, not daring to say a single harsh word, only hoping this nightmare would end soon.
Yun Che walked back to the stunned Feng Mo and shoved all thirty-nine Snow Silks into his hands: "This is the compensation they owe you. If you think it's not enough, go break a few of their arms and legs."
A total of thirty-nine Snow Silks was an enormous resource for a Cold Snow Hall disciple.
Feng Mo was certainly delighted by Liu Hang and Di Kui's fate, but more than delight, he felt fear because Yun Che had acted too boldly and viciously. He was even starting to feel a bit of pity for Liu Hang and Di Kui.
"No, no," Feng Mo said, holding the pile of Snow Silks in a fluster.
"I told you, this is their compensation to you. It's what you deserve. It has nothing to do with me. Besides, I probably wouldn't need them anyway." Yun Che said with a smile.
Feng Mo shook his head and said urgently: "The Snow Silks are a small matter, but… Senior Brother Yun Che, you not only saved me but also stood up for me, and this many Snow Silks is… However, if it's true that Liu Hang's cousin is a head disciple of the Ice Phoenix Palace, then… it's a big problem! You should leave here quickly. Liu Hang might have already sent a sound transmission to that cousin of his."
"Don't worry about me." Yun Che said nonchalantly: "After all, I am an official disciple of the Ice Phoenix Palace, and the palace master takes special care of me. Since we're both disciples of the Ice Phoenix Palace, they can't do much to me. Besides, they were the ones in the wrong, and they deserve it."
"But…"
"Junior Brother, what are you doing here!"
Just as Feng Mo was about to say something, a slightly hurried girl's voice came from behind.
Mu Xiaolan descended from the sky, and suddenly saw one person covered in blood and another rolling and screaming in the snow. She was momentarily stunned.
"Senior Sister," Feng Mo hurriedly bowed.
"Isn't this Little Blue… uh, Senior Sister. How did you know I was here? It can't just be a coincidence, right?" Yun Che asked with a puzzled expression.
Mu Xiaolan said impatiently: "You've got some nerve asking! After you entered the Ice Phoenix Palace, you didn't collect your monthly allowance for three consecutive months. Master ordered me to collect it for you and bring it to you, but you weren't in your cultivation room, so I had to follow the aura of your Ice Phoenix Inscription Jade to find you here. What happened here? What's with those two people?"
Follow the aura of the Ice Phoenix Inscription Jade? That thing has that function?
"Senior Sister Xiaolan," Feng Mo remembered Mu Xiaolan's name and quickly explained for Yun Che: "These two are from the same hall as me. They tried to rob the Snow Silks I just received. When I refused, they beat me up badly and even broke my arm. Luckily, Senior Brother Yun Che arrived and taught them a lesson for me."
As he spoke, Feng Mo showed Mu Xiaolan his injuries.
"Oh, I see. Those two are despicable. But Junior Brother Yun Che, you were way too ruthless. You could have just driven them away and reported it to the Cold Snow Hall discipline officer. Hitting them so hard will likely bring trouble." Mu Xiaolan habitually scolded Yun Che.
"..." Yun Che pursed his lips, too lazy to respond. Feng Mo shrank his neck, wanting to speak but hesitating.
"You!" The indifferent attitude of Yun Che made Mu Xiaolan puff up her cheeks in anger. She turned her head and looked at the blood-soaked Liu Hang, saying worriedly: "You didn't cripple him like you did three months ago, did you… Ah!?"
Mu Xiaolan's voice suddenly stopped, and her eyes widened: "Liu… Liu Hang!?"
"Oh? You know this guy?" Yun Che asked sidelong.
"He… he… he…" Mu Xiaolan's face completely changed color, and she stammered: "He is Liu Hang… one of his cousins is Mu Yizhou of the Ice Phoenix First Palace, and his female cousin is Mu Luoqiu of the Ice Phoenix Thirteenth Palace. He… you…"
"Oh, so what?" Yun Che snorted lightly.
"Y-y-you… you big idiot!!" Mu Xiaolan's heart churned with panic. She stomped her foot, wishing she could scold Yun Che to pieces: "Don't you know that his cousin Mu Yizhou is the head disciple of the First Palace! That is, the strongest disciple of the First Palace! He's now at Divine Soul Realm Level 10! The kind of person who could crush you with one finger! In three years, he might even be qualified to participate in the Profound God Convention. His female cousin Mu Luoqiu is also among the top hundred in the Third Palace. They belong to the same big clan, which has great influence in the western part of Yin Xue Realm, and in Binghuang Realm, they always look out for and protect each other. And you actually… you actually…"
Mu Xiaolan hurriedly grabbed Yun Che's sleeve: "Anyway, let's leave here quickly and go find Master! Otherwise, if Mu Yizhou and Mu Luoqiu find out, it'll be…"
"Heh, isn't it a bit late to leave now?"
A voice heavy with aggression suddenly came from above. Hearing this voice, Mu Xiaolan, who was anxiously spinning around, froze on the spot, her face turning pale.
Meanwhile, Liu Hang, who had been lying motionless, suddenly stirred as if he had heard a divine melody, struggling to roar: "Cousin, I'm here… Cousin!"