Why did you provoke me?

Yu Meng saw that the two little ones had gone downstairs, so she followed behind.

I thought everyone would be asleep by then, but I was so wrong when I got closer.

Yu Meng stood in the shadows, her suppressed sobs escaping her lips. "Sister, do you know where we are? We've been here for a year, why won't they let us go home?"

"Have you learned what the teacher taught? This is an opportunity for further study. Instead of studying hard, you're thinking about going home." Another female voice came out, sounding disappointed and frustrated.

"But I miss my mom. They didn't say we couldn't go home for so long, did they?"

"Now that you've learned it, let us go home," her sister comforted her. "Did you memorize today's techniques? Practice them until you're proficient. There will be a test tomorrow, and you'll be punished if you fail."

"Sis, Weiwei from room 301 went out yesterday. When she came back, she was lying in bed bleeding a lot. It was terrifying. I... I don't want to learn."

"If you don't do it, you'll get beaten up. Can you handle that?"

"That's better than bleeding. Mom said that if you bleed too much, you'll die." The crying was still intermittent.

Yu Meng didn't disturb them and continued walking for a while. It was a dark room.

There were sobs coming from inside. "Okay, stop crying. I'm lying here and I'm not even crying, why are you crying?"

"Weiwei, you're the best among us, how could they treat you like this?"

"You forgot? We came here to learn how to deal with aliens. Isn't it normal to get injured a little?" the girl named Vivi comforted her.

"But is that a minor injury? You bled so much, and I have to make you go tomorrow. How can you bear it? I'm worried about you."

"It's okay, I won't die. They raised us with great difficulty, they won't really let me die."

Yu Meng didn't know what kind of alien could make people bleed. Could aliens bite people?

After walking around all the houses, Yu Meng felt like she was sick.

This is where the Jing family trains bone painters. Perhaps they are a bit strict, perhaps their methods are a bit harsh, but what does it have to do with her?

She's completely obsessed; she's actually eavesdropping outside. How utterly shameful!

I got up, intending to go find Tyrant and the little black cat. But to my surprise, the two little ones returned, and Tyrant even had something wrapped around his tentacle.

Before Yu Meng could see clearly, Ba Wang burrowed into the small backpack, and the little black cat perched on Yu Meng's shoulder.

"You came all this way just for this?" Yu Meng asked softly, stroking the little black cat.

The little black cat rubbed against Yu Meng's cheek, as if in response to her question.

For Meng, the trip was nothing special; it just meant spending some time on the Jing family's territory.

But before dawn, people had already arrived at the Jing family head's resting place.

"You're disturbing Madam so early in the morning. You'd better have something urgent to attend to." The old butler of the Jing family looked at his cousin with a mix of warning and reminder.

"Cousin, something really bad has happened. I'm afraid I can't handle this. Please help me look after things at home. Consider the things in the bottom right corner of my table as a token of my concern." His voice was very low, almost whispered in her ear.

Then she shouted loudly, "Butler, I have something really important to report! Please inform them immediately!"

The butler gave his cousin a complicated look. She was the teacher in charge of teaching the children. What important matter could she possibly have?

His cousin understood what he meant, but she didn't say anything more. She closed her eyes and nodded.

"Shall I go then?"

"Go."

Half an hour later, the beautiful woman sat in the council chamber. "Tell me," she said, "what brings you here so early in the morning to disturb my sleep?"

With a thud, my cousin knelt down. "Master, the crystal core we took out from the alien mother is gone."

The beautiful woman's hand, which was reaching for the teacup, froze in mid-air. "What did you say? Say it again."

My cousin's head was pressed against the floor. "After taking it out yesterday, I put it in a safe in the secret room. When I went to check this morning, it was gone."

"Right under your nose, you tell me something's missing." The beautiful woman's face turned ugly, and she could no longer maintain her composure.

My cousin kowtowed to the ground. "I deserve to die. I'm willing to accept any punishment. Please, patriarch, think of a way. That's the culmination of ten years of our hard work."

"Were any traces left inside the house?"

"no."

The beautiful woman pressed a button on the coffee table. "Have someone from Yulutang come here."

The old butler responded from outside the door.

"Found it. Go to Yulutang. If you can't find it, find a place yourself," the beautiful woman said to her cousin kneeling on the ground.

"Thank you, Patriarch." My cousin kowtowed again before standing up and leaving.

At this moment, the Jing family activated its highest level of defense, and everyone was required to stay in their rooms, not allowed to go out, and not allowed to communicate.

The long-haired man naturally noticed these unusual occurrences as well. He hid in a corner, watching as the number of people outside gradually decreased until there was no one left, before returning to the cripple's room.

"Something happened to the Jing family. Everyone, go back to your rooms and wait for the inspection." The long-haired man sat on a wooden board.

The lame man, leaning against the wall, looked up and asked, "Did you hear what happened?"

"No. The Jing family is very well-behaved under her management; not a single person is gossiping about it behind her back, even at a time like this."

"You long-haired one, really, even at a time like this, you don't consider your own situation and are still praising her for being cunning."

"My men won't arrive until tomorrow. Do you think they can even get in at a time like this?" the long-haired man said, getting down to business.

The cripple gave a wry smile. "Why don't you say something else? Come back tomorrow. If she doesn't suspect that today's events are related to you, you can pray to Buddha."

"You see, whatever I say now is inappropriate. Perhaps the ending you see hasn't changed us, it's just been delayed."

Enraged, the cripple threw what he was holding at the long-haired man. "You'd better shut up!"

"Let me say it again, can we hold out in this room until my men arrive?" the long-haired man said seriously.

"Didn't you set up that concealment formation?" the cripple asked, somewhat puzzled. "When did you lose confidence in your own skills?"

"There's nothing I can do. I've encountered someone who shattered my Dao heart." The long-haired man sighed helplessly. Ever since he met Yu Meng, she had been utterly unreasonable. No formation posed any challenge to her; she could even control the energy at the formation's core and adjust the formation's power.

With a sigh, the long-haired man assumed a meditation posture.

All day long, there was not a sound outside. As darkness fell, the lame man grew restless. "Aren't you going out to find out anything?"

The long-haired man kept his eyes closed and did not react.

"Sigh, let's go take a look! We can't stay here any longer."

Long hair slowly opened her eyes, waiting for his answer.

"Your people can't get in; we need to get out of this area to join them."

The long-haired man nodded, then suddenly asked, "Do you think Yu Meng might have done this?"

"Huh? Didn't Yu Meng leave a long time ago?"

"You don't understand. There are array formations everywhere here. They are the Overlord's favorite, and Yu Meng spoils them."

"Why don't you go out and see if this is the case? If it is, we've been implicated because of her. I can go and guard the gate for her after we get out."

The long-haired man sneered, "You really have no shame at all."

The cripple retorted confidently, "Is saving face more important than living?"

"Are you so sure that we can survive if we stay with her?"

"certainly."

"Then I'll go now, even if it's not the right time."