The fairy forced me to marry into her family, so I retorted by throwing myself into the Pool of Fate

The door to the seaside courtyard was half-open, and when Li Ping entered, the courtyard was empty.

Just as they were about to take a step, the curtain to the inner room was lifted, and a disciple of the Mu family, supported by someone, limped out.

The man's face was as white as paper, his left trouser leg was torn in half, and the white cloth wrapped around his calf was soaked with blood.

Li Ping stepped aside to make way for the two, watched them leave, and then lifted the curtain to enter the inner room.

The room was dimly lit, the window was half-open, and the sea breeze blew in, making a stack of papers on the table rustle.

Mu Fangxu stood with his back to the door, leaning against the windowsill with both hands.

Li Ping walked to his side and glanced at him.

Mu Fangxu frowned deeply, his brows furrowed into a deep frown, his face filled with intense worry.

"You know about the underwater cave, right?" Li Ping asked.

Mu Fangxu didn't turn his head, but simply nodded heavily: "Someone just reported that."

Upon hearing this, Li Ping was at a loss for words.

He wanted to say something comforting, but when the words came to his lips, they felt light and airy, and saying them would only make things feel meaningless.

So he stood there without saying another word.

Mu Fangxu didn't say anything either.

The two remained silent, the only sound in the room being the lapping of waves outside the window.

After a long time, Mu Fangxu suddenly spoke up.

"Was it wrong of me to set up this scheme to lure cultivators to my cave?"

His voice was very soft, as if he were asking Li Ping, or perhaps asking himself.

"We've searched that cave thoroughly," Li Ping shook his head. "From top to bottom, inside and out, there's nothing unusual about it."

Who could have predicted that a skeleton would suddenly appear?

Mu Fangxu didn't reply, remaining motionless like a stone statue.

Looking at him, Li Ping knew how tense he was.

Li Ping has witnessed firsthand how much effort Mu Fangxu has put into making Xikou Market what it is today.

Increasing patrol frequency, clearing out looters and repairmen, baiting underwater caves to divert water... every single thing is done with the market's benefit in mind.

He was more upset than anyone else after this happened.

"Stop doubting yourself," Li Ping said again, his tone a few degrees harsher than before. "It's not your problem."

Mu Fangxu finally turned his head.

He looked at Li Ping, his eyes bloodshot.

"real?"

Li Ping nodded heavily.

Mu Fangxu looked at him for a moment, his expression softening slightly. Just as he was about to say something, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside the door.

A disciple of the Mu family lifted the curtain and entered, his face filled with anxiety.

"Senior Brother Fang Xu, a large number of cultivators are flocking to the market, and the market is in some chaos now."

Mu Fangxu's expression suddenly changed: "Why is this happening?"

The disciple replied, "The situation has been investigated. The white skeleton has emerged from its underwater cave and slaughtered several surrounding islands."

The monks, filled with fear, fled to the marketplace seeking refuge.

Upon hearing this, Li Ping frowned.

He had already heard about the skeleton's methods from Mu Ming: flying through the air, killing with a single blow, and sucking people's life essence.

This level of evil spirit, placed in the open sea, is like a wolf in a sheepfold.

The cultivators on the surrounding islands were lucky to escape.

Mu Fangxu remained silent for a moment.

He knew why these monks had come to Xikou Market.

Compared to the other two neighborhoods, Xikou Neighborhood has always had the heaviest defenses due to its proximity to the Black Sea and the presence of many bandits in the surrounding area.

The Mu family disciples numbered over a hundred, all at or above the mid-stage of Qi Refining, with several at the late-stage of Qi Refining.

In addition, there's the array covering the market, and Mu Zhihe stationed here.

Looking across the outer sea, this defensive strength is second only to the three Foundation Establishment families' clan territory.

Even if three or five Foundation Establishment cultivators join forces to attack, they can still use the formation to maneuver until the Mu family comes to their aid.

But the opponent was not a cultivator.

It was a skeleton.

A powerful, unpredictable, and mysterious skeleton.

Mu Fangxu wasn't sure if he could hold them off.

But he didn't think much about this issue. As the person in charge of the market, his first priority was not whether he could win, but to prevent the market from descending into chaos.

Once chaos erupts, the market will collapse on its own without the need for bones to fight it.

"Go," Mu Fangxu said quickly, "Summon the patrol team..."

"No, just notify each team leader individually and have them gather their team members and immediately patrol the market."

"Those who have already entered the market are ignored, but those who haven't entered are all stopped."

Upon hearing this, the disciple's expression hardened slightly: "Not a single one of them?"

Mu Fangxu glanced at him, his meaning clear: you heard me right.

Seeing his resolute expression, the Mu family disciple asked no further questions, simply said "yes," and turned to leave quickly.

The room fell silent again.

Li Ping composed himself and said, "In my team, Mu Ming and Mu Junyi are both injured and cannot patrol for the time being."

Mu Chengyuan, on the other hand... is trapped in an underwater cave and can't get back.

Upon hearing this, Mu Fangxu was stunned for a moment.

He was silent for a moment, then said in a low voice, "I'll report this to the clan and have the compensation distributed to his family."

Li Ping nodded, said nothing more, and turned to leave the courtyard.

……

……

Outside the east gate of the market, a dense crowd of people blocked the entrance.

Hundreds of cultivators huddled together, some covered in blood, some barely clothed, and some carrying unconscious companions in their arms.

Behind them, small boats continued to dock at the shore, each one packed with people.

All eyes were fixed on the tightly closed door.

A shirtless, burly man stood at the front of the crowd, pounding his fist on the door, making it bang loudly. "Why can't we come in? Isn't Xikou Market always open to customers? I've spent at least eight hundred to a thousand spirit stones in the market, and now you're just closing it down like that?"

Upon hearing this, the crowd behind him erupted in commotion.

"Yeah, why should we?"

"Where are the Mu family members? Come out and speak!"

"We make a living offshore, and now that we're facing disaster, is your Mu family just going to stand by and watch us die?"

The shouts and curses rose and fell, one wave higher than the next.

Behind the gate, a group of Mu family disciples stood ready.

They stood in a row, holding their magical implements and talismans in their hands, their eyes warily fixed on the crowd outside the door.

No matter how the cultivators outside shouted or pounded on the door, these disciples remained motionless, as if cast in iron.

Mu Jizhou stood at the front of the line, his hand on the storage bag at his waist.

Just then, an old man suddenly stepped out from the crowd.

The old man had white hair and beard, a thin build, and wore a blue long robe.

When he came out, he simply pressed his hand down lightly, and the surrounding noise gradually quieted down.

The monks quickly made way for them.

The old man nodded slightly, as if he had long been accustomed to this treatment.

He walked slowly to the door and looked at Mu Jizhou through the door panel.

"Mu Jizhou, is it really impossible to enter the market now?"

Mu Jizhou's expression changed when he saw the old man.

The old man's surname was Mo, and he was quite well-known in the independent cultivators' circle in the Xikou area.

He was not known for his cultivation level, but he had earned considerable prestige among independent cultivators because of his kind and warm-hearted nature.

If anyone has a problem and comes to Old Mo, he will usually lend a hand.

Mu Jizhou had dealt with him before, not in a deep sense, but they had a certain degree of kinship.

Upon hearing the question, Mu Jizhou could no longer pretend he hadn't heard it.

He sighed, his voice filled with helplessness: "Old Mo, this is an order from above."

Old Mo asked again, "Even if I pay, I still can't get in?"

Mu Jizhou's expression became even more troubled.

He opened his mouth, then spoke with difficulty: "Mr. Mo, this isn't about money."

The current situation...

Before he could finish speaking, Old Mo had already turned away.

He faced the crowd and calmly said, "You all heard what happened just now, didn't you? The Mu family is heartless and unwilling to protect us."

The crowd immediately stirred.

Some cursed, some sighed, and some silently wiped the blood from their faces.

Old Mo raised his hand, silencing the commotion once more: "However, I do know of a secluded island, hidden from ordinary people. Is there anyone willing to go there with me?"

After he finished speaking, the crowd fell silent for a moment.

Then a male cultivator with bloodstains stepped forward.

"Since Elder Mo is willing to lead the team, count me in."

Old Mo waved his hand and said modestly, "It's not about leading a team, it's just about supporting each other."

No sooner had he finished speaking than another person stepped forward.

"Since we can't get into the market from here, we might as well go with Elder Mo to avoid it."

"If we stay here, who knows when that skeleton will come crawling over?"

Then comes the third one.

the fourth.

the fifth.

More and more people emerged from the crowd and gathered around Old Mo.

The cultivators who were still hesitating looked at each other and began to waver.

In the end, among the hundreds of cultivators gathered outside the East Gate, more than half were willing to follow Elder Mo.

As they were leaving, the chatter of the monks drifted back intermittently.

"Old Mo is right. It's better to stick together than to wait here and die."

"The Mu family won't even let us in the door, what can we hope for?"

"If you ask me, those skeletons are acting strangely. They might come to the market and slaughter everyone first, and we'll be able to avoid a disaster by not being able to get in."

"That makes sense. With so many people in the market, all filled with bloodlust, it would be strange if those skeletons didn't come looking for them."

"Let's go, let's go. It's more reassuring to stay under the Mu family's nose with Old Master Mo."

The expressions on the faces of the Mu family disciples grew increasingly grim as they listened to these words.

Mu Jizhou stood in front of the door, watching the group of people walk away, his expression shifting between anger and uncertainty.

It's true that he knows Mr. Mo.

But he had just clearly seen that the faces of the cultivators who first stood up to echo Elder Mo were all unfamiliar.

Whether the bloodstains on these people are real or fake is hard to say, but their coordinated manner of speaking and acting seemed to have been pre-arranged.

Mu Jizhou had a general idea of ​​who Master Mo was.

He is indeed kind-hearted.

But to say that he would leave safe markets and take people to a remote island to escape disaster doesn't seem like a simple act of kindness.

Mu Jizhou narrowed his eyes.

He neither chased after them nor tried to stop them.

The order from above was not to let anyone in, and where those people went was not his concern.

"Keep your spirits up and don't let your guard down," Mu Jizhou said.

The disciples responded in unison.

Several small boats were seen approaching the shore on the distant sea.

The newly arrived cultivators jumped off the ship and ran breathlessly to the east gate. Seeing the tightly closed gate and the Mu family disciples standing guard, and hearing that Elder Mo had led his men elsewhere, their expressions varied.

Without saying a word, some people turned around and chased after Old Mo's group.

Some people stood in front of the door, refusing to leave, pleading again and again to let them in.

Some people even sat on the ground outside the gate, took out pills and dry rations from their storage bags, and set up camp right there.