Chapter 941 - 717: Return Nest_2
Lu Xiao didn’t answer. But as the Big Boss moved, his body suddenly went taut, like a jaw clamped shut.
His expression remained calm, yet his face grew even paler. Cold sweat seeped from his brow, every muscle in his body pulled tight, veins bulging and winding along his arms as if locked in a silent contest of strength.
Mo Yan looked at his pale face, and a trace of satisfied amusement surfaced in his eyes.
He spoke slowly, leisurely, like a cat toying with a mouse, full of a certain mockery and scorn. "Did you really think I didn’t know what you’ve been doing behind my back?"
"You barged into Number Two’s banquet and snatched someone away—a female."
"You went to every length to protect her, send her off, even killed Number Two for her... Did you think you could deceive everyone?"
"Xiao, I truly didn’t expect this."
"You would have a weak spot too."
With every sentence he spoke, the pressure of his hand on Lu Xiao’s shoulder grew heavier.
A muffled, almost inaudible groan escaped Lu Xiao’s throat; the line of his jaw tightened.
His posture was still straight as a pine, like unbent, proud bones, but his hands at his sides curled into fists, and his arms had begun to tremble slightly.
His face turned paler and paler, sweat soaking the hair at his temples. Even those deep gray-blue eyes were shot through with blood, a feral red seeping in underneath.
Mo Yan released him soon enough.
Like a senior treating a promising junior, he even patted Lu Xiao’s shoulder lightly, as if that hidden bout of struggle just now had never happened.
His tone was even gentle, almost indulgent. "Xiao, I value you greatly. I want you to remember: once you’ve entered Sky City, betrayal is not permitted."
"You should be very clear about what awaits you otherwise."
Lu Xiao lowered his head; his voice was hoarse, scraped raw like sanded wood. "...I understand."
Only then did Mo Yan smile in satisfaction. "As long as you understand, that’s good. It’s just a female—however many you want, you can have. I can’t be bothered to dig into what you had with her."
"But don’t let this be the thing that trips you up."
Lu Xiao inclined his head. "Yes."
"Given how much credit you’ve earned, I’ll let this go for now. This month’s antidote, however, I’m withholding."
Mo Yan’s voice dipped, shadowed. "Don’t let me catch you again."
With that, he flicked his hand, dismissing Lu Xiao.
Lu Xiao withdrew from Liren Hall.
He returned to his own palace, dismissed all the attendants and guards around him, and shut himself alone inside a secret chamber.
At the moment the door closed, he spat out a mouthful of blood.
His whole body felt as if it had been ground to pulp; every inch of bone and blood screamed. He shook violently, couldn’t even keep his footing, stumbling and crashing to the floor.
A low, trapped-animal growl slipped from deep in his throat.
The aura around him was chaotic, his teeth clenched so hard that blood seeped from between them.
With a boom, he slammed a fist into the wall, trying to use this primitive violence as an outlet to fight the pain, but it did little good.
In the past, as long as he endured that initial wave on schedule, the pain would gradually lessen.
But recently, the duration of the agony had stretched longer and longer; Return Nest relapsed faster and faster, and each bout of suffering grew more savage.
Mo Yan had taken away this month’s dose of Return Nest.
That was his way of saying: this is punishment.
Lu Xiao’s eyes were already a blaze of scarlet.
He glanced toward the hidden compartment not far away; his Adam’s apple bobbed violently.
But in the end, he only squeezed his eyes shut, hard.
He didn’t touch anything.
He lay flat on the ground, one forearm thrown over his eyes, blocking all expression.
He simply let his chest heave wildly, then bit by bit, slowly grow still.
...
Meanwhile, on the other side—
Liren Hall.
Not long after Lu Xiao left, a tall, slender female arrived.
She looked just past twenty, still very young, with striking, refined features bearing a distinct resemblance to Big Boss Mo Yan—not the soft beauty typical of ordinary females, but a sharp, hard-edged face, heroic and crisp, taller and stronger than most Beastman females of other clans.
It was none other than the Big Boss, Horned Eagle Mo Yan’s daughter, Wu Wei.
She strode in with long, forceful steps and spoke as soon as she entered. "Father! I heard Second-in-command Sok is dead, and that you summoned Xiao. What happened? Where’s Xiao?"
When Big Boss Mo Yan saw his daughter asking about Xiao the moment she crossed the threshold, his expression turned instantly to one of bitter disappointment. He snorted coldly. "Sok—the one you kept pining for—was killed by that Xiao."
Wu Wei was stunned. "What? Why would he kill him?"
Mo Yan sneered. "Why? Why don’t you go ask him? Sok somehow caught a female from a Foreign Clan. To save that female, Xiao killed Sok."
Wu Wei’s face changed on the spot.
She’d already asked around before coming and had guessed seven or eight parts of it, but hearing the confirmed truth from her own father’s mouth still felt like a basin of ice water dumped over her from head to toe.