It was obvious she didn't need to hide.
Because after she steadied herself, she realized that Ruo Xie's hands were raised to his front, emitting white light.
And about half a foot in front of his palms, a sword tip was steadily hovering.
Looking past the sword tip, one could see it was a precious sword, its blade sharp. Even when still, one could feel the killing intent emanating from it.
Looking further back, the one holding the sword was a man in black.
The man's face was grim, his eyes fixed on Yi Zhi Xie as if he wanted to bite him to death, yet he was unable to move.
After a while, both men retracted their hands. Ruo Xie simply lowered his arms to his sides, while the man in black stumbled back a few steps.
The man sheathed the sword in his hand, a smile playing on his lips as he began to clap, saying, "Good, good! As expected of Yi Zhi Xie. Even after leaving that place for a hundred years, staying in this place devoid of spiritual energy for a century, you can still hold your own against me without losing an inch. It seems I underestimated you."
Yi Zhi Xie glanced at him calmly, saying nothing.
At this moment, it was Na Mu Zhong who stepped forward and said sternly, "Wu Er Shan, what are you doing here? Have you forgotten the command... not to allow anyone to disturb my husband and me? Are you tired of living, openly defying orders like this?"
Wu Er Shan's face contorted for a moment upon hearing Na Mu Zhong's words, but he quickly regained his composure.
"His elder doesn't reside there anymore; he's traveled far. It'll be 800 years before he returns. By the time he does, your bones will have turned to dust. What will you do then?"
Wu Er Shan chuckled as if his words were already a foregone conclusion.
Na Mu Zhong's face turned ashen, but she remained composed, saying, "He's gone, and you dare to come? Just you? We wouldn't fear a hundred of you."
Wu Er Shan's face darkened instantly, his breathing becoming heavy.
"Na Mu Zhong, what's so great about following this guy? Senior Brother likes you so much, you..."
Wu Er Shan's expression shifted multiple times, and finally, for reasons unknown, he spoke in a relatively pleasant tone.
However, based on his words, Shen Xiao Yan deduced that he was working for some Senior Brother. Otherwise, given Na Mu Zhong's earlier disdain, he wouldn't have remained calm.
Na Mu Zhong looked at him coldly but said nothing.
Wu Er Shan had intended to make Na Mu Zhong flustered, or perhaps make Yi Zhi Xie jealous.
But in the end, it seemed he was the one who looked foolish.
Wu Er Shan snorted coldly, then his expression turned gleeful. "Do you think I came alone?"
Upon hearing this, Na Mu Zhong and Yi Zhi Xie's faces turned extremely grim.
Wu Er Shan finally saw the reaction he desired and couldn't help but burst into laughter. "Are you still going to pretend? Weren't you just acting all nonchalant?"
"Where are the others?" Yi Zhi Xie asked in a deep voice.
"Guess," Wu Er Shan said, a lewd and contemptible smile appearing on his face. He rubbed his right index finger against his lips and continued, "Even though this place has no spiritual energy, the women here are quite attractive. The brothers have come all this way, naturally, we must have some fun."
"Summon them all to me."
Yi Zhi Xie's face became terrifyingly grim, his words like an unquestionable command.
"You want me to summon them? What do you think I am? And what do you think you are? Oh dear, Yi Zhi Xie, have these hundred years been in vain? You're still so arrogant."
Wu Er Shan's mood brightened considerably due to Yi Zhi Xie's agitation.
Yi Zhi Xie knew he was being impetuous, but he couldn't control it.
These people here only knew some martial arts.
And some weaker women didn't even know how to fight.
In such a situation, encountering Wu Er Shan and his group was like facing ants – utterly weak and awaiting death.
Although Yi Zhi Xie didn't consider himself a good person, he wasn't a villain either.
Especially since he had lived here for a hundred years and understood the people. While there were some cunning and selfish individuals, the majority were genuinely kind.
All they sought each day was to have enough to eat and live a slightly better life.
"Wu Er Shan, I'll say it again. Summon everyone who came with you," Yi Zhi Xie said once more.
Shen Xiao Yan could tell that Yi Zhi Xie was on the verge of exploding with rage.
Shen Xiao Yan, who had only known Yi Zhi Xie for two days, could tell. For Wu Er Shan, who had known Yi Zhi Xie for hundreds of years, it was surely even more apparent.
Perhaps recalling something terrible, Wu Er Shan shivered all over.
"What?" Yi Zhi Xie sneered, continuing, "Remembered something?"
Although Shen Xiao Yan didn't know what Yi Zhi Xie was referring to, she could guess it must have been something significant, or Wu Er Shan wouldn't have shown a hint of fear.
That expression flashed by, and Wu Er Shan regained his composure.
After a moment of thought, he gritted his teeth and said, "What if I summon them? In that state, you'll only die faster. Since you're so eager to die, don't blame me."
After speaking, Wu Er Shan placed his right hand flat against his chest. A flash of light appeared in his hand, revealing something resembling a token.
Shen Xiao Yan could only see intricate patterns on the back of the token, but Wu Er Shan's movements were too fast for her to see the front.
Wu Er Shan spoke to the token, "You all come. Urgent."
Afterward, the token vanished from his hand.
Shen Xiao Yan felt a pang of regret, but there was nothing she could do. She could only continue to watch.
"Shen Xiao Yan, this is Yi Zhi Xie."
Suddenly, a voice echoed in Shen Xiao Yan's mind. It was Yi Zhi Xie's, but instinctively, she looked at Yi Zhi Xie. He was still standing there, expressionless, not looking at her, and his lips hadn't moved.
Moreover, it seemed no one else had heard that sentence.
Had she imagined it again?
Just as Shen Xiao Yan was about to speak to Zheng Wei, she heard Yi Zhi Xie's voice again.
"Don't move, and don't ask. Just listen to me now."
Before Shen Xiao Yan could react, she froze on the spot.
She could indeed hear Yi Zhi Xie speaking, or rather, no one else could hear him.
This was somewhat similar to communicating mentally with Luo Luo, Shen Xiao Yan thought, and tried to reply, "Can you hear me?"
"That's great. I knew my feeling was right. You are indeed different." Yi Zhi Xie's voice was filled with joy upon hearing Shen Xiao Yan's reply.
"Do you have any way to hide the children in a safe place for now? I'm afraid the fighting later might affect them."
Hearing this, a stampede of wild horses ran through Shen Xiao Yan's mind.
If he knew this, why did he choose to come to them at this specific time?
Was it because, as he had just said, he sensed something different about her?
Regardless of Shen Xiao Yan's thoughts or her anger, she could only suppress them for now.
Because even if she turned against Yi Zhi Xie now and told Wu Er Shan that their relationship with Yi Zhi Xie was very superficial, having only met yesterday, Wu Er Shan likely wouldn't believe her.
Even if he did, he would likely adopt a "better safe than sorry" attitude and eliminate them.
"Luo Luo, take all the children into the space."
Shen Xiao Yan suppressed the myriad of thoughts in her mind and said urgently to Luo Luo.