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

Upon hearing this, Su Mei's expression changed drastically.

She stood up abruptly, her voice rising sharply: "When Li Ping came to Wenxiang Tower to listen to music that day, did you have designs on him?"

Ma Dao remained silent.

Silence is consent.

Upon seeing this, Su Mei's face instantly darkened, and she could no longer suppress her anger.

"You heartless bastard."

"Don't you know how long I've been hiding here?"

She poked her finger into Ma Dao's forehead and gritted her teeth, saying, "A full ten years."

"You finally managed to gain a foothold, and now you're turning around and targeting the Mu family."

"Do you know that this might expose me?"

Su Mei trembled with rage: "Finding someone from the Mu family is one thing, but you had to choose that live-in son-in-law. He's the most conspicuous person in the entire Mu family! What's wrong with your brain? Did you eat it like a dog?"

Ma Dao listened quietly, without uttering a single word in rebuttal.

Su Mei cursed for a long time, but seeing his nonchalant attitude, her anger suddenly dissipated.

She took a deep breath and said coldly, "Just how addicted are you to gambling? So addicted that you'd risk your life?"

The saber remained silent.

Seeing this, Su Mei didn't want to say anything more; it was pointless.

She turned around, her voice returning to its cold tone: "I will contact the gang, and you will be moved away in three days."

After saying that, she walked towards the door without looking back.

Su Mei paused as she pushed open the door.

A woman stood outside the door, wearing a white dress, her blue eyes standing out in the night.

Su Mei was taken aback: "Little sister, what brings you here in the middle of the night?"

Ruan Ling'er and Su Mei were about the same height, slender and delicate. Her features were not stunningly beautiful, but they had an indescribable charm, especially her blue eyes, which were like a pool of seawater. Looking at them for a long time would make people feel slightly dizzy.

"elder sister."

Ruan Ling'er spoke softly, but her gaze went past Su Mei and looked into the room: "I heard some noise from here, so I came over."

As she spoke, she started to walk inside.

Su Mei instinctively reached out to stop her: "There are only sabers inside, nothing to see."

Ruan Ling'er paused in her steps.

She looked up at Su Mei, a strange glint in her blue eyes.

The next moment, she suddenly ducked down and crawled under Su Mei's arm.

Su Mei couldn't stop her in time and quickly turned around, but Ruan Ling'er was already standing in the room.

Ma Dao, who was on the bed, had taken the medicine and was already unconscious.

He lay there, barely breathing, covered in blood, like a rag doll.

Ruan Ling'er looked at him, her mouth agape in surprise. Then, her blue eyes began to scrutinize Ma Dao's entire body.

From the face, to the chest, to the arms, and then to the legs.

Finally, her gaze settled on the dantian of the saber.

Suddenly, Ruan Ling'er's blue eyes lit up.

The light was faint and fleeting, like the phosphorescence left behind by some kind of fish swimming in the deep sea.

She twitched her nose slightly, as if sniffing something.

"younger sister?"

Su Mei's voice came from behind, tinged with doubt: "Don't you usually hate him the most? How come you have time to care about him?"

Ruan Ling'er turned around, her expression having returned to normal.

"Are you concerned about him?"

Ruan Ling'er smiled, her voice soft and gentle: "Isn't it because I'm worried about you, sister?"

Upon hearing this, Su Mei felt a warmth in her heart and a smile appeared on her face.

"Don't worry." She walked over and put her arm around Ruan Ling'er's shoulder. "I'm at the eighth level of Qi Refining, so I wouldn't dare to mess around with Ma Dao. Besides, he's seriously injured now, so he can't cause any trouble."

Ruan Ling'er nodded obediently and let Su Mei put her arm around her as they walked out of the room.

Su Mei closed the door and walked side by side with Ruan Ling'er down the corridor.

"Sister, be careful these next few days," Su Mei whispered. "Ma Dao has offended the Mu family this time. Although he's just a son-in-law, the Mu family is not to be trifled with. Try to stay home as much as possible, lest they target you."

She paused, then added, "Especially that Li Ping. Ma Dao said he was defeated by Li Ping. Although I don't know the specifics, that son-in-law is definitely not simple."

Ruan Ling'er listened quietly without responding.

Su Mei continued, "I've been hiding in Xikou Market for so many years, I can't let that idiot Ma Dao expose me. If you notice anything amiss, tell me immediately."

"Okay, sister."

Ruan Ling'er responded with a soft, light voice.

Su Mei went on to say some more things to be aware of, but as she was talking, she suddenly realized that the people around her were no longer responding.

She turned her head and saw Ruan Ling'er staring blankly at the end of the corridor, seemingly lost in thought.

"Sister?" Su Mei called out.

Ruan Ling'er suddenly snapped out of her daze and blinked, "Hmm?"

"What are you thinking about?"

"It's nothing."

Ruan Ling'er shook her head and revealed a faint smile.

Su Mei looked at her and felt that something was wrong, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She thought about it and assumed that Ruan Ling'er was not in good spirits because she had been woken up in the middle of the night.

"Did you remember what I just said?"

"I've got it," Ruan Ling'er replied.

The two continued walking forward, with Su Mei whispering instructions, and Ruan Ling'er nodding in response from time to time.

……

……

With the matter of the calamity cultivator settled, there were no further developments.

Life in Xikou Market returned to normal. Patrolling, cultivating, and occasionally going to Wenxiang Tower to listen to music, Li Ping's life seemed to have returned to its original trajectory. The ambush that night with Ma Dao was like a pebble thrown into a lake, creating ripples before falling silent again.

That day, Li Ping had just finished his patrol and was about to return to his residence when Mu Fangxu blocked his way.

"Li Ping, are you free? Come visit me." Mu Fangxu's tone was warm, completely different from his previous businesslike demeanor.

Li Ping glanced at him and nodded.

The two arrived at Mu Fangxu's residence, a small courtyard by the sea, where the dock could be seen from the window.

Mu Fangxu personally brewed tea, and the two sat facing each other. After chatting for a few minutes about the current situation in the market, Mu Fangxu got straight to the point.

"I've found out the background of two of the three cultivators who surrounded and killed you that day."

Li Ping paused slightly as he held the teacup, then looked up at him.

Mu Fangxu continued, "According to intelligence, there has been no unusual activity in the Great Black Sea recently, except for Man Du and Feng Yuan, who rushed back to their lair half a month ago and have been in seclusion ever since. As you said before, the three Tribulation cultivators were injured in an infighting fight, so it's likely that the other two cultivators besides Ma Dao that day were them."

Li Ping nodded calmly: "What's their background?"

"They are both experts at the eighth level of Qi Refining," Mu Fangxu said. "They are quite famous among the Tribulation Cultivators in the Great Black Sea. Man Du is a body cultivator with exceptional physical strength, making him difficult to harm with ordinary magic weapons. Feng Yuan, on the other hand, is a magic cultivator with insidious poison techniques. The two of them work together seamlessly, one engaging in direct combat and the other secretly releasing poison. Over the years, they have killed quite a few cultivators."