104: Chapter 104 Return

Poison King Valley.

After Meng Li left, Xiao Yuer, Jiang Yu Feng, and Ha Ha Er followed his instructions and began searching the surrounding area for Su Ying and the others.

The three of them searched and called out for a while, but to no avail.

Ha Ha Er wondered aloud, "We've searched everywhere, but there's no one. Could Meng Li have guessed wrong? Maybe they were already captured by the East Factory, or perhaps they escaped Poison King Valley earlier, and the East Factory followed them out, only to run into Meng Li and Miss Jiang?"

Xiao Yuer shook his head. "No."

"Aside from Liu Xi, the East Factory doesn't have any real experts."

"Even with the Black-Clad Arrow Squad, Big Dad, Second Mother, and the others couldn't have been captured so quickly."

"The fact that you, Fifth Dad, were able to break through and bring us the news is proof of that."

Ha Ha Er had fought with Witch Hand, Witch Foot, and several others before breaking through. Recalling the fight now, he felt their Martial Arts weren't particularly high—at least not enough to easily take down Big Mouth Li and the rest. However, the East Factory had numbers and the arrow squad. Since Big Mouth Li and the others had to protect Yan Nantian and Chang Bai Cao, a collective breakout would be difficult.

He nodded in agreement, then asked in confusion, "Then where could they have gone?"

Jiang Yu Feng pondered, "At that time, the entrance to Poison King Valley was crawling with East Factory men. After you broke through, Senior Ha, they must have tightened security."

"So, it's unlikely Su Ying and the others would have run toward the valley entrance."

"It's more likely they retreated further back."

"Exactly!" Xiao Yuer agreed. "Let's look in the back mountain!"

The three of them headed toward the back mountain, calling out as they went. Before long, they arrived near the Quicksand Pool.

Su Ying and the others, hiding in the cave beneath the Quicksand Pool, immediately looked delighted upon hearing their voices.

Mu Rong Xian was the first to exclaim excitedly, "It's Little Fishy! Little Fishy is back!"

E Tongtian added, "And Miss Jiang and Fifth Grandmaster."

Su Ying frowned. "Where is Meng Li?"

Chang Bai Cao was also puzzled. "Indeed, why don't we hear Meng Li's voice? Did he not come back?"

Su Rushi said, "That's unlikely. Meng Li's main purpose for this trip was to bring Jiang Yu Feng to meet her Master. Since she is back, there's no way he didn't come."

Hearing this, Tu Jiaojiao said suspiciously, "Could there be something wrong with the people outside?"

Big Mouth Li said to Yin Jiu You, "Third Brother, your Lightness Skill is the best. Go out and take a look. If anything seems off, retreat immediately."

Yin Jiu You hummed an acknowledgment and drifted out like a ghost.

Immediately, Big Mouth Li pulled out the Butcher Knife tucked into his waist and said to Du Sha, "Fourth Brother, stay alert."

"Alright," Du Sha replied, tightening his grip on his broadsword.

A moment later, Yin Jiu You returned with more muffled humming.

Before Du Sha and the others could translate, another person jumped down—it was Xiao Yuer...

A short while later, everyone returned to the living quarters of Poison King Valley.

Looking at the dilapidated houses and the messy courtyard, Chang Bai Cao couldn't help but sigh, "What a tragedy!"

Seeing this, Xiao Yuer comforted him, "Uncle Chang, as the old saying goes, if the old doesn't go, the new won't come. These houses have been used for many years; why not tear them down and rebuild? Think of it as a celebration of your return and your family's reunion."

Big Mouth Li added, "Exactly. We might as well build a few extra rooms so we can stay here too."

"You want to live here?" Chang Bai Cao looked surprised.

Du Sha asked, "What, are we not welcome?"

"Of course not," Chang Bai Cao denied. He stroked his beard and continued, "We were neighbors on Demon Island for nearly twenty years, and now we've left the island together and faced danger together. If you want to live here, I, Bai Cao, naturally welcome you."

"However, the layout needs to be replanned."

"After all, this isn't Demon Island, and the number of people has changed."

"I have Su Rushi and Ying'er now, and Xiao Yuer has Miss Mu Rong."

"Besides, building houses isn't something that can be done overnight. We need to find a place to stay first."

Big Mouth Li and the others agreed.

Xiao Yuer said, "Uncle Chang is right. Let's tidy up the place first and see which houses can be kept as temporary shelters. We'll discuss the planning and rebuilding later."

"Fine."

"Sure."

"No problem."

Everyone agreed.

Then, Xiao Yuer asked Su Rushi, "Auntie Chang, do you have any Corpse Dissolving Water or something similar here?"

Su Rushi was taken aback, then shook her head. "No."

Although she was known as the "Poison Queen" and was an expert in poisons, she rarely dealt in killing, so she hadn't prepared any poisons like Corpse Dissolving Water.

"Little Fishy, what do you need Corpse Dissolving Water for?" Mu Rong Xian asked.

Xiao Yuer replied, "There are many bodies of East Factory Guards near the valley entrance. They need to be dealt with promptly, or there will be trouble."

Mu Rong Xian finally understood.

Xiao Yuer continued, "Since there's no Corpse Dissolving Water, we'll have to cremate them. Big Dad, Third Dad, Fourth Dad, Fifth Dad, let's go take care of it."

"I'm coming too," Mu Rong Xian said.

Xiao Yuer refused, "Don't go. The scene is very bloody; I'm afraid you'll have nightmares tonight if you see it."

Ha Ha Er also said, "Xiao Yuer is right. You'd better not go."

Jiang Yu Feng added, "Senior Sister, the scene is indeed unpleasant. I'll go along; I'll wait for Meng Li to return while I'm at it."

Hearing this, Su Ying said, "I'll go too, and restore the Poisonous Miasma in the forest while I'm there."

Seeing both Jiang Yu Feng and Su Ying going, Mu Rong Xian immediately refused to be outdone and insisted on joining.

Xiao Yuer had no choice but to agree.

A short while later, they took some tools and walked to the valley entrance.

Upon seeing the mangled remains scattered across the ground, Mu Rong Xian's face turned pale instantly, and she couldn't help but bend over and vomit.

While patting her back to comfort her, Xiao Yuer said helplessly, "I told you it wouldn't be pretty, but you insisted on coming."

Big Mouth Li, Du Sha, and Yin Jiu You had blood on their hands before, so they didn't have much of a reaction.

Jiang Yu Feng and Ha Ha Er had seen it earlier, so they were unfazed now.

Su Ying, being a physician, had seen many bloody scenes, so she only frowned slightly. "With them in this state, we'll have to use brooms to sweep them up."

With that, she began wielding a broom, clearing a clean patch of ground nearby.

Big Mouth Li cut a few branches to use as brooms. As he gathered the fragments, he asked in confusion, "To end up like this, did Meng Li use gunpowder?"

Xiao Yuer replied, "No. First, he used True Qi to manifest a wall, then compressed that wall of Qi into a sphere and launched it into the Black-Clad Arrow Squad. Then, the True Qi sphere exploded, sending those guards flying. When they hit the ground, they ended up like this."

While chopping wood, Du Sha said, "Based on what you're saying, Meng Li's Martial Arts are even stronger than we anticipated."

"Even Yan Nantian didn't have such methods back then."

Big Mouth Li and the others all nodded.

Su Ying said, half-puzzled and half-worried, "Then why hasn't he returned yet?"

Just as she finished speaking, a figure drifted over.

"Meng Li!"

...