Chapter 182: Chapter 182: Ling Xiao

Pan Bai was laughing, and his henchmen were laughing too, looking at Ling Xiao like a helpless, struggling puppy.

He certainly wasn’t showing mercy by letting Ling Xiao go, even though he wasn’t afraid of any consequences of letting Ling Xiao go.

Even if Ling Xiao knew everything he did, what could he do? Right now, in the hearts of their master and junior sister, Ling Xiao was the culprit. They saw with their own eyes; at that time, Ling Xiao was the only one in the room. Even if he jumped into the Yellow River, he couldn’t wash away the suspicion.

Even if Ling Xiao went to tell the master and junior sister that Pan Bai was the true culprit, they wouldn’t believe him. They would only kill him immediately and be utterly disappointed in him. Committing a wrong and still trying to frame others, this couldn’t merely be described as lacking character.

That’s why Pan Bai could brazenly admit the truth, not even bothering to cover it up.

If Ling Xiao’s arm were severed in his current wounded state, it would simply add insult to injury, leaving him no escape.

He never intended to leave Ling Xiao a way out. If Ling Xiao died, the junior sister Susu would surely marry him, and he would become the future sect leader. However, over the years, Ling Xiao’s excellence had kindled a fire in his heart—a fire of jealousy. He wanted to drag that man down from high above, to see him smashed to the ground.

He wanted to watch Ling Xiao struggle hopelessly, hold onto hope, only to despairingly die in the end.

He enjoyed this feeling of tormenting others.

To make Ling Xiao more desperate, he signaled with his eye, prompting someone to hold Ling Xiao down, making it impossible for him to struggle even if he wanted to.

Pan Bai sneered, “Ling Xiao, you have exceptional talent, strong comprehension, and high martial arts skills. Even the Master said you’ve surpassed him, but your mistake was trying to reach beyond your station! So you brought this all upon yourself!”

The sharp blade gleamed with a cold light and was about to sever Ling Xiao’s arm.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a rock flew and struck the blade heavily, diverting its path. Pan Bai exerted too much force, causing him to lean forward, taking a step to steady himself.

He looked around suspiciously and said, “Who?”

An ancient voice seemed to emanate from all directions: “Kong Chan from Bodhi Temple is here. Benefactor, be forgiving where possible!”

Pan Bai’s face alternated between green and white. He sensed the stone that struck the blade wasn’t that powerful, but the voice coming from all directions made it impossible to pinpoint its source, indicating the speaker had high Inner Strength.

The person had already introduced themselves—Bodhi Temple!

Bodhi Temple was the most mysterious and unfathomable place. The monks with the surname “Kong” held a lofty status and were especially formidable. His words were clear, asking them to be forgiving, which indicated he didn’t intend to confront them openly.

Pan Bai’s eyes flickered as he thought. Facing off against a high monk from Bodhi Temple wasn’t something he dared, but leaving like this left him uneasy.

The master wouldn’t believe Ling Xiao, but what if this Bodhi Temple monk vouched for him?

He cunningly said, “Master, this kid is ungrateful and has committed great offenses within the sect. We are merely cleaning house! Please allow us to pass!”

The ancient voice replied testily, “Those intricate affairs of your sect, I don’t have time for. However, I am a monk, and with me here, I won’t allow you to take a life. Now scram!”

Someone whispered, “Why would a monk say ’scram’?”

Pan Bai slapped the speaker and scolded, “What do you know?”

Everyone knows that the monks of Bodhi Temple are stricter on rules than anyone, but those who are unruly not only tell people to scram, but also call themselves ’I’ and even jump up to curse.

Yet, those unruly ones hold high status in Jianghu because each one is very strong.

Pan Bai, hearing this, felt reassured. The monk meant he wouldn’t meddle in the sect’s disputes as long as they didn’t kill anyone under his watch.

He glanced over at Ling Xiao, whose arm hadn’t been severed, but who was now covered in blood due to prior heavy injuries from the master and all the wounds inflicted by them. Whether he could survive was questionable, so he might as well sell a favor to the monk.

Pan Bai immediately acted humble and said, “Yes, yes, Master is compassionate. For Master’s sake, we will spare his life!”

A fierce light flashed in his eyes as he pulled out a black pill from his bosom, quickly stuffing it into Ling Xiao’s mouth, forcing it down his throat, and then signaled for his followers to leave.

The pill was clearly poisonous.

Pan Bai was truly ruthless. Although his words spoke of sparing a life, he had no intention of sparing it at all.

After Pan Bai and his group left, Xia Wenjin rushed out of the woods, pulling out a small box as she walked. The box contained the antidote for all poisons that Kong Chan had given her last time at Shian Temple. She had always carried it with her and never used it because she could detoxify herself with her own abilities, but now the pill proved useful.

Handing the pill to Ling Xiao, Xia Wenjin said, “This is an antidote. Quickly take it!”

Ling Xiao hadn’t lost consciousness; his eyes fell on Xia Wenjin’s face—a young man with bright eyes and white teeth, with a hint of urgency in his gaze.

Yet, Ling Xiao hesitated to open his mouth to take the antidote, and his eyes cautiously scanned the surroundings.

Xia Wenjin understood his meaning and said, “There’s no master, nor any monk from Bodhi Temple… I pretended.” The last sentence was spoken with that elderly voice.

It wasn’t that Xia Wenjin didn’t want to rush out to save him, allowing Ling Xiao to suffer more. She was helpless too. The stone had exposed her current true abilities.

In her previous life, at her peak, Pan Bai and his group definitely wouldn’t be able to see her in their eyes. But now, she was not yet sixteen, and although she had begun practicing the martial arts that had made her powerful by coincidence in her past life, such skills aren’t honed in a day. In such a short time, she could not become a master.

Had she charged out recklessly, she not only wouldn’t be able to save Ling Xiao but would also put herself in danger.

She came to rescue him, naturally, she had to use the safest way.

Luckily, she had already mastered the Eight-tone Reincarnation technique, allowing her to scare people away by pretending to be supernatural.

After Ling Xiao took the antidote, Xia Wenjin immediately began tending to his wounds.

Pan Bai was truly vicious. Xia Wenjin couldn’t imagine how Ling Xiao had managed to escape with his life in their past life after losing an arm. The wounds were shocking.

After she sprinkled medicinal powder on his wounds and finished bandaging, Xia Wenjin was drenched in sweat, her forehead beaded with perspiration as daylight broke.

Throughout the process, Ling Xiao remained conscious, staring steadily at the sky and only struggling to lift his arm whenever cooperation was needed.

Once Xia Wenjin had bandaged him up like a mummy, he turned his head and said calmly to her, “Thank you!”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep