Chapter 576: Chapter 576: Afraid She Won’t Come, Yet Afraid She Really Will

The village was suddenly filled with the cries of children and the angry questioning and scolding of their families.

A glint of cold light flashed as a long knife was drawn, and the villagers who had been questioning and scolding opened their eyes wide in fear.

Just as the sharp blade was about to slash across a villager’s neck, a steel ball flew with tremendous force, striking the knife wielder’s hand with precision.

The man felt a sudden numbness in his wrist, and instinctively let go of the knife. The knife, which had been about to cut the villager’s neck, lost its momentum and fell with a "clang," splashing mud mixed with melted snow.

For two seconds, the air seemed to freeze, and there was no sound in the entire clearing.

Suddenly, the man let out a howl of pain, a scream of extreme endurance and unbearable agony, breaking the stagnant silence.

The villagers who had just been questioning and scolding hurriedly carried their children and ran back, stopping only behind the woman with the slingshot.

"Village chief..." Upon seeing her, the family finally felt at ease.

Qin Yao turned around and nodded to the frightened children, gesturing for all the villagers to return home.

The villagers did not hesitate for a moment, immediately hiding inside their homes, leaving only a thin crack in the door to observe the situation outside.

Yin Le glanced at her master, nodded towards Ah Wang, signaling him to lead the four Da Lang siblings back.

Ah Wang nodded, knowing the consequences his lineage might bring, picked up the Dragon and Phoenix Twins, signaled Da Lang and Second Lang to follow, and went home first.

Soon, only Qin Yao and Yin Le were left in the clearing, facing an entire troop of ominous Black Knights.

The man who had been hit finally stopped howling, got off his horse to pick up the knife, and was about to charge at Qin Yao.

But after only two steps, the leader stopped him with a shout.

Yin Le’s surprised gaze swept over the speaker, then she turned immediately to Qin Yao and said, "Master, he is the man named Bai who lives in Manager Fan’s inn."

No sooner had Yin Le’s words fallen than the man’s piercing gaze shot over at the master and disciple.

"Are you the female village chief of Liu Family Village?" Bai He asked tentatively.

His plain features, due to the Black Knight attire, carried an air of imperious authority that brooked no defiance.

Qin Yao merely glanced at him indifferently and did not answer.

She stared at the man with the knife, walking forward step by step, releasing an overwhelming aura of killing intent, as if looking at a dead man.

The opponent thought she was about to make a move and was extremely wary, holding the knife in front of him. When lifting the knife, he touched the wrist that had been struck by the slingshot, a piercing pain almost made him drop the knife.

Qin Yao sneered, bending down to pick up the fallen steel ball, wiped the mud and water off with her sleeve, and retreated to the roadside.

"There are many elderly and children in the village, who move slowly, so you all better be careful while moving around," she said, looking up faintly.

Her expression made it seem as if she had not been the one exuding intense killing intent just moments ago.

Bai He narrowed his eyes deeply, feeling utterly uncomfortable with this woman, but he was not here for these lowly villagers.

He had important business and seeing Qin Yao’s attitude of indifference as long as the villagers were unharmed, he felt he couldn’t do much with her.

He cast a harsh glance at the unruly subordinate, spurred his horse, and led his people past Qin Yao and her disciple, continuing towards the deepest household of the village.

"Master?" Yin Le looked worriedly at her master as that group of people walked off into the distance, "Should we follow and take a look?"

Qin Yao nodded, and began to walk.

Yin Le breathed a sigh of relief and quickly followed.

Last night, the grandmaster hadn’t returned all night, he should be accompanying Mr. Gongliang in the Lotus Courtyard now. If the grandmaster were to block those people from taking Mr. Gongliang, that wouldn’t be good.

The master and disciple to follow the group led by Bai He, who noticed them, frowned deeply, and watched the master and disciple with a look full of warning.

However, as they neared the Lotus Courtyard, the two stopped and didn’t continue forward.

Thinking they were concerned about implicating the village, they had come to check up, rather than intending to interfere.

Seeing the two stand still and no longer follow, Bai He withdrew his gaze and waved to his subordinates.

Soon, the Black Knights quickly spread out, surrounding all the entrances and exits of the Lotus Courtyard.

The people in the Lotus Courtyard had already noticed the commotion outside, and upon seeing the situation, Shi Tou A Gu and the Qi Family guards immediately rushed out of the gates to block Bai He and the others from entering the courtyard.

As soon as the two sides met, it was an explosive stand-off, drawing their weapons at each other, the atmosphere was tense to the extreme.

Meanwhile, inside, Liu Ji and Qi Xian guarded Gongliang Liao on both sides, their eyes filled with tension.

The incident happened suddenly, and the reactions of Qi Xian and Liu Ji, who already knew the news, were completely different. The young Qi Xian looked at Gongliang Liao with some discomfort, thinking that the teacher had made the choice himself. Unable to hold back, he asked in a low voice:

"Teacher, are you really going to leave?"

Upon hearing this, Gongliang Liao chuckled softly, "Not by my will."

He did not blame his disciple for doubting him, only smiled bitterly, not expecting the Crown Prince’s men to arrive so quickly.

He should have expected this, the moment he saw Zhen Yubai, he should have anticipated the current situation.

He lifted his cloudy eyes and looked outside the courtyard, seeing the Black Knights clad in sophisticated equipment, and compared them with the Qi Family guards dressed in ordinary clothes without even soft armor. The old man shook his head without any expectation.

"Jing Xuan, make your men stand down, they are no match for the Black Knights." Gongliang Liao instructed Qi Xian.

Qi Xian was shocked, not following the instructor’s command to order Shi Tou and the others to retreat. He only knew that if it was not the instructor’s wish, then as a disciple, he should comply with the instructor’s wishes to protect the elder.

The young man anxiously looked at Liu Ji, "Junior brother, didn’t you just say that Madam is definitely on her way? If Madam acts, then there would be no need to fear these Black Knights."

This last sentence was directed at Gongliang Liao, hoping to reassure the instructor that as long as he did not want to leave, the disciples would certainly protect him.

Liu Ji was too anxious to meet Qi Xian’s expectant gaze. He already knew Qin Yao’s stance last night; she had said she wouldn’t intervene and certainly wouldn’t act.

Yet Liu Ji couldn’t help but stretch his neck and look outside, thinking maybe, just maybe, the iron-hearted wicked woman might soften a little!

But rationality told him that offending the noble, the entire Liu Family Village of over two hundred people could be done for.

At this moment, Liu Ji was extremely conflicted inside, afraid that Qin Yao would not come, and also afraid she might actually come.

Seeing the two sides at the door about to clash, Liu Ji suddenly came up with a clever idea, looking down at Gongliang Liao, "Teacher, perhaps you could pretend to leave with them for now, and once out of Liu Family Village’s boundary, I’ll bring Madam to rescue you!"

This way, there would be no worry about implicating the entire Liu Family Village. Liu Ji almost adored his clever mind for coming up with such a brilliant plan.

A plan this brilliant, however, made Qi Xian frown; he had been focused on getting Madam to resolve the current dilemma, and only upon hearing Liu Ji’s words did he remember the villagers of Liu Family Village.