NOVEL NEXT Chapter 84: Searching for Robbers!
Burning Sun Peak… Inner court…
Late night… The fire sticks were placed in line along the walls.
Inside the modest stone house near the 3rd aura tree, a faint lamp flickered. Fatty Lambu lay groaning on the bed, his body swollen with bruises and ugly purple welts.
Jia Kai sat by his side, watching over him with furrowed brows. Both had been awake the entire night, anxiously waiting for Mo Han.
The creak of the door startled them.
Jia Kai jumped up, her eyes narrowing in alert. But the moment she saw the masked figure step in, carrying a faintly glowing storage ring in his palm, her jaw dropped.
For a second, she stared at Mo Han in stunned gaze.
"You… you actually brought the storage ring back?!" Jia Kai blurted out, half relief, half disbelief.
"Brother Han!" Lambu struggled to sit up, wincing with pain. "Don't tell me you… you really—" His words stuck in his throat when Mo Han tossed the storage ring casually onto the table.
"Y-You actually got it back?!" Jia Kai and Lambu cried in unison.
Mo Han pulled the mask from his face, his expression calm, almost too calm for someone who had just assaulted the sect master's son. "He'll never know it was me. I left no trace."
"But how?" Jia Kai pressed, his voice dropping to a whisper. His eyes darted around the room, as if expecting spies to leap from the shadows.
"Did you really beat him?" Fatty Lambu asked in a doubtful gaze.
Mo Han made a low chuckle. "Don't worry. I just gave enough beating for him. Also, I made it look like a robbery. Took not only our ring but a few other trinkets lying around his chamber. Even scattered the shelves, broke a box or two. When he wakes up, he'll curse thieves, not suspect me."
Lambu's round face lit up despite the bruises. "Brother Mo, you're ruthless! Disguising yourself as a robber… haha! That Yao Fan must be choking with anger right now." He tried to laugh but immediately clutched his ribs, groaning in pain.
Jia Kai wasn't convinced so easily.She stepped closer to Mo Han, lowering her voice. "Mo Han, you've stepped onto a dangerous path. If Yao Fan finds out, it won't just be him—it'll be the whole sect breathing down your neck."
Mo Han's eyes flashed, sharp as a drawn blade. "Let him suspect all he wants. He touched my brother. He thought he could trample people like dogs. If I didn't strike back, what kind of man would I be?"
The firmness in his tone silenced them both. For a while, the room was quiet except for Lambu's shallow breathing. Finally, Jia Kai sighed and nodded. "Then we'll stand with you, whatever comes."
Mo Han gave a faint smile. "That's enough."
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Main Peak..
As the sun rays hit on his face, Yao Fan woke up from the unconcious state.
The bleeding bruises brought immense pain all over the body.
"Ahhh~!"
A furious roar shook the entire northern wing. Yao Fan stormed out of his chamber with wild hair and bloodshot eyes. His clothes were hastily thrown on, and his face was still swollen from the beating he had received in the night.
Behind him, servants trembled as they tried to gather the mess from his ransacked room.
"Useless trash! All of you!" Yao Fan bellowed, kicking over a wooden chair. "Some rat dares sneak into my quarters and you idiots didn't even notice?! Where were you dogs guarding the steps?"
Soon, Main peak disciples gather in hurry to see what's happening.
Yao Fan turned towards them and began shouting on their faces. "Idiots… fall in line. I have a doubt on you guys."
"What happened, Young Master?" Jong asked in concern.
"Bahhkkk…!" Yao Fan directly kicked Jong. "Go and fall in line. A rat robbed my things last night. It must be one of you." Yao Fan shouted.
The main peak disciples lined up, heads bowed, their hearts sinking. No one dared to meet his eyes.
"You! You! And you!" Yao Fan pointed at them one after another. "Step forward!"
Three young men shuffled ahead nervously.
Yao Fan clenched his fists, trembling with fury. "I was robbed under your watch! Do you know what this means? The entire sect will laugh at me! I'll skin you alive if I find out you were slacking!"
The disciples stammered. "Y-Young master, we never left our posts—"
"Shut up!" Yao Fan roared, then suddenly sneered. "Fine. If you dogs claim you're loyal, then show me your fists. Let's see how much strength you really have."
The disciples blinked in confusion. "Our… fists?"
"Line up!" Yao Fan barked.
One by one, the main peak disciples reluctantly stood in a line, holding out their clenched fists. Yao Fan walked past them, staring with narrowed eyes. Then, to everyone's shock, he began measuring their punch size by pressing his hand against theirs.
"What's this? You call this a fist?" he jeered at one disciple, slapping the boy's hand aside. "Pathetic! Even a kitchen maid could hit harder!"
He moved to the next. "Too soft. Do you practice or do you massage old women all day?"
The disciples' faces turned red with humiliation, but no one dared to talk back.
By the time Yao Fan reached the end of the line, his anger had only grown. He struck one of the disciples in the stomach with his knee, sending him sprawling. "Trash, all of you! No wonder someone snuck past so easily! From today onward, you'll train twice the hours. If you can't even guard a door, then don't bother calling yourselves main peak disciples!"
The hall was silent except for the groans of the disciple on the floor. Yao Fan turned back, his eyes burning with humiliation and rage.
"Find me the rat who dared steal from me. I don't care if you have to turn the sect upside down. Bring me his head!"
The disciples bowed, their faces pale. But in their hearts, resentment brewed. They had done nothing wrong, yet the young master was venting his anger on them like toys.
Little did Yao Fan know—the "rat" he was searching for was sitting quietly in the stone house below the peak, calmly sharing breakfast with Fatty Lambu.
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Tq:-)