The village chief was incredibly tough. Despite the intense gazes of the group, he withstood the immense pressure and revealed nothing.
Since he wouldn't cooperate, they had no choice but to resort to force. Zhu Qiuyu grabbed the village chief by the back of his collar, opened the gate, and went out. The others immediately followed.
"Let go! I don't want to go out. We can't show up now. That madman is in a killing frenzy. Anyone who goes near him will die. Listen to me, I'm serious. Don't be impulsive. I don't want to die."
The village chief was not tall, only reaching Zhu Qiuyu's neck, so when he was lifted up by his feet, he tried desperately to kick his legs to break free, but it was all in vain.
No one paid any attention to the village chief's wailing. Even his wife and son and daughter-in-law quickly closed the door after coming out of the house, without saying they would come to rescue him.
"Mom, are we really not going to take care of Dad anymore?" the village chief's son asked.
The village chief's wife glared at him. "Your father is more capable than the three of us combined. If even he can't do anything, then the three of us are even less capable. We can't all go and die together. If your father dies, this family will already be miserable enough. We can't afford to add more casualties."
“Mother, you’re right. With Father gone, we’re counting on you.” The village chief’s son wholeheartedly agreed.
Although the daughter-in-law didn't say anything, she nodded vigorously, clearly agreeing.
The village chief's wife sighed heavily and led her son and daughter-in-law back into the house.
Zhu Qiuyu led the way, carrying the village chief, with the others following behind. Zhang Xiantao led several servants closely behind Zhu Qiuyu, and at first glance, one might mistake her for being with Zhu Qiuyu.
Zhu Lin and his group walked slowly behind, acting as if it were none of their business and they were just there to watch the excitement.
They quickly followed the sound to the place where the madman was ambushing the refugees. It was in the very center of the village, in a spacious open area similar to a threshing ground. The madman was holding a thick wooden stick and he hit his target with deadly accuracy. Those he struck immediately fainted.
The madman knocked out more than a dozen refugees in less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea. During this time, Zhu Lin and his group just watched from the sidelines and did not intervene.
After the refugees were dealt with, the madman suddenly turned around and looked over, startling everyone.
Only then did he remember what Zhu Qiuyu had said yesterday about the madman having very long hair. This was not just long, it was incredibly long, reaching down to his heels. And that wasn't all; not only was his back covered by his long hair, but his front was also completely obscured, so his face wasn't even visible.
Even more terrifying than Sadako.
The man had an animal skin wrapped around his waist, the material of which was indiscernible. His upper body was covered by long hair, making it impossible to tell if he was wearing any clothes.
"The hairy monster," Xingxing murmured, her mouth agape.
Seeing the long-haired monster rushing towards them with lightning speed, the wooden stick in his hand was the first thing to hit Zhu Qiuyu, who was standing at the front.
Zhang Xiantao was closest to Zhu Qiuyu and was about to be affected. She reacted quickly, pulling Xiao Huan beside her to the side and retreating more than ten meters away until they maintained a safe distance.
Zhu Lin and his group had already moved away from the danger zone before the madman charged at them with a wooden stick, and were now casually chatting and watching the commotion.
"This hairy monster is agile and has extremely strong attack capabilities. It only attacks and does not defend. Although its moves are completely unpredictable, each move is deadly. It seems that it has figured out its own techniques to defeat enemies. It looks like this person has been fighting fierce beasts for many years. It's more like he is hunting than fighting people." Zhu Chumo analyzed logically.
"If it weren't for the senior brother's superior skills, it would have been difficult for anyone else to dodge his attacks."
"Ouch, stop hitting me! Stop hitting me!" The one howling was the village chief. Zhu Qiuyu was only concerned with dodging the madman's attacks and didn't care whether the village chief would be hit or not. He even deliberately blocked the village chief in front of the madman to let him hit him.
After a fierce struggle, the hairy monster suddenly stopped. Because his front and back were covered by hair, no one could see which side was the back of his head and which side was his face.
Judging from the way he held the stick, he was facing Zhu Qiuyu. It seemed that he was assessing the opponent's strength through his thick long hair. After their exchange, the madman seemed to realize that the opponent's kung fu was very high and that he could not handle him.
Just as everyone was wondering what the madman would do next, he suddenly turned and ran away at lightning speed, carrying his wooden stick and dragging three people with him as he disappeared into the village in a blur.
Zhu Lin carried Xingxing on his back and chased after them. Seeing this, the others quickly followed to the swamp.
Zhu Lin stopped as he approached the swamp. He could feel the miasma getting heavier the further he went in. He wasn't afraid, but he was worried that Xingxing would be affected by the miasma, so he dared not go any further.
"The hairy monster dragged those three refugees into the swamp. Fourth Senior Brother, take Fifth Senior Brother in to take a look." Zhu Chumo knew medicine and could also calculate, so it was safest to let him and Fifth Senior Brother go into the swamp. No matter what unexpected things happened, there would be a way to resolve them.
Zhu Chumo nodded, indicating that Zhu Lin could rest assured. He then took out two pills, took one for himself, and gave the other to Zhu Yueran.
"Hey, hey, you guys..." Zhang Xiantao stomped her feet, trying to call the two back. She was annoyed that they were too slow and had just caught up, but they didn't find a chance to enter the swamp together.
She noticed with her sharp eyes that Zhu Chumo and Zhu Yueran had both taken a pill and then recklessly entered the swamp. If she were given a pill that could resist the miasma poison, she would also like to go into the swamp to explore, but unfortunately no one gave her that opportunity.
"If you're not afraid of death, then take your people in," Zhu Qingruo deliberately provoked her.
"Hmph, I won't fall for your tricks. You look so pretty, like a fairy, but you're so wicked. You're trying to trick me into the swamp with your reverse psychology. If I were stupid enough to not know what was going on, I might have actually gone in. But I'm a smart girl, and I value my life. I won't fall for your tricks and go to my death." Zhang Xiantao said angrily, hands on her hips.
Xiao Huan and Xiao Yuan, and even the only Zhang family guard, secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, the young lady was still thinking straight. Otherwise, if she had recklessly rushed into the swamp, would they have gone in to rescue her or not?
Not rescuing them is not an option. If the general and his wife investigate when they return, they will also face death for failing to protect their master. But if they do rescue them, they will all die together.
So, you should use your brain when you're born, otherwise you'll harm yourself and others.
Zhang Xiantao had no idea that her confidantes were having so much internal turmoil. She was still arguing with Zhu Qingruo with her hands on her hips. Neither of them were easy to talk to, and they argued for a long time without a clear winner.
"Hmph, I'm tired of arguing and my throat is sore. Considering you're a male, Xingxing's senior sister, and look like a fairy, I'll be magnanimous and let's leave it at that."
Zhang Xiantao found a way to save face. This junior sister was too sharp-tongued. If she didn't stop there, she would soon be unable to keep up and lose to her. Fortunately, she was smart enough to stop the damage in time.
"Since you complimented me on my looks, this fairy won't hold it against you. Actually, if you weren't so jumpy and overly curious, you'd be quite endearing." Zhu Qingruo wasn't really angry; she just found this girl very interesting, her boisterousness like a little animal with its fur standing on end, making her irresistibly want to tease her.
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