Tian Jiang's initial plan was to have the young man infiltrate the village to scout the situation. However, his dull wit somehow entangled him with Mu Anxiao. Still, she supposed she hadn't explained things clearly herself, so she wouldn't criticize the young man too harshly.
"Since things have come to this, you must protect Mu Anxiao," she said.
"That's not right," the young man said, hesitating as he looked at Tian Jiang's calm expression. "Proprietress, since that's the case, why don't you just deal with those two inside the shop? That would save me a lot of trouble."
Tian Jiang hesitated in response. "Since that's the case, I will..."
Mid-sentence, her palm, which was emitting a green light, suddenly felt a burning sensation. She swallowed her words, her face turning pale. "You go, and remember to keep Mu Anxiao safe." Saying this, she turned and ran off.
The young man watched Tian Jiang's hurried departure with a bewildered look. He pondered for a moment, muttering, "What's the purpose? Why did you ask me to find out the purpose? What purpose could they have? This mess..." He hit the table, "I don't even know what to do."
Lu Bing stood in the distance watching the young man's frantic figure, not daring to speak.
And so, the young man, still confused, followed them to the village. Mu Anxiao had been trying to resist all along, but the young man couldn't keep up with her pace. Throughout the journey, he dealt with Villager Number One and Villager Number Two with a fawning demeanor, completely disregarding Mu Anxiao's safety. Mu Anxiao was verbally abused the entire way and, due to her stubbornness, was directly taken to the entrance of the Lin Jiao.
Immediately, Villager Number One tore a piece of cloth from his body, balled it up, and stuffed it into Mu Anxiao's mouth. With the assistance of Villager Number Two, her hands and feet were bound with chains.
"Go down and think about it properly," he said, pushing Mu Anxiao into the Lin Jiao.
Fortunately, the cellar wasn't deep. Mu Anxiao didn't feel any pain after falling.
"You stay in there and think about it," Villager Number One called down from the cellar entrance, looking into the pitch-black depths.
The young man chuckled twice at Villager Number One and crouched down, picking up a wooden plank. "I'll do it."
"You are from the Cultivation Sect; how can we let you do this?" Villager Number One said.
The young man shook his head slightly. "It's fine, let me do it."
Mu Anxiao lay on the pile of dry grass, inhaling the damp, pungent smell of blood. Despair washed over her. "It's over," she thought. She looked up at the rapidly disappearing light spot, wanting to cry but unable to.
Above, the young man stood up, dusting off his hands. "She was quite arrogant all the way here."
"Indeed," Villager Number Two agreed.
Villager Number One glanced down at the cellar. "To be honest, I only asked you to come here to have you capture that demon."
"Why capture a demon?" the young man asked.
The young man had wanted to ask this question earlier, but due to Mu Anxiao's stubborn resistance, he hadn't dared to open his mouth.
"To be honest, three bullies died here, killed by a woman. But there's a matter of… if your people and our villagers… those three bullies, having committed grave sins during their lives, if… if they were directly sent down like this, it would affect all of us in the village. So… you gave us a solution." Villager Number One spoke without regard for whether Mu Anxiao could hear below.
Hearing Villager Number One's words, Mu Anxiao's heart ignited with hope. She thought, "If they only ask for it, I can… find a way to escape." With this thought, she narrowed her eyes and listened intently.
"What solution?" the young man asked timidly.
Villager Number One said, "The solution is… find someone, and force that person to admit to killing those three bullies, and moreover… take all the sins of the three bullies during their lives upon themselves. This way, they will be judged… innocent, and our village will be safe."
Upon hearing this, the young man's heart began to feel uneasy.
Mu Anxiao understood their words. She suddenly recalled everything the wolf demon had experienced here, and what the wolf demon had told her. She thought, "I know, the men they caught all ran away, and finally… they thought that a woman had killed the three bullies, so they targeted me. And the wolf demon happened to return, so they thought…" Midway through her thought, she suddenly felt a sharp pain in her stomach, and she stopped thinking.
The young man, based on his understanding, pondered Villager Number One's words, then looked down at the plank covering the cellar and asked, "You mean… you want to kill her?" He pointed below.
"Not kill," Villager Number Two shook his head.
The moment Mu Anxiao heard Villager Number Two say "not kill," she endured the pain and perked up her ears to continue listening.
"Not kill? But I heard… you meant to kill her, didn't you?" the young man asked, confused.
"That was the initial thought, but it's not the thought now," Villager Number One said, stepping forcefully onto the wooden plank of the cellar.
Mu Anxiao flinched and closed her eyes slightly.
The young man was also startled and asked, "Why?"
"She is my younger brother's future wife. If I kill her, where will I find a wife for my brother?" Villager Number One said coldly.
The decision to consider Mu Anxiao as his younger brother's future wife was made by the young man after seeing her. As for why he took a liking to Mu Anxiao, there was only one reason: Mu Anxiao resembled a woman his younger brother had encountered. He thought that perhaps his foolish younger brother had forgotten his experiences with that woman, but he himself… would never forget.
"Why must it be her?" the young man asked.
Villager Number Two was also puzzled by this. "Yes, why must it be her? You saw how wild Mu Anxiao was on the way back. Wouldn't it harm your brother to betroth her to him?"
Hearing Villager Number Two's words, Mu Anxiao felt a sense of relief, but considering Villager Number One's volatile temper, her mood became heavy again.
"If she dares to bully my brother, I won't let her off either," Villager Number One said sarcastically.
"Why must it be her?" Villager Number Two asked again.
However, Villager Number One didn't want to share the secrets hidden in his heart with anyone. He glared at Villager Number Two and turned to walk away.
The young man did not get the answer he wanted and became depressed.
Villager Number Two patted the young man's shoulder and walked away.
The young man followed Villager Number Two without hesitation.
Mu Anxiao lay on the ground, her body covered in a cold sweat, her vision blurred. Gradually, she sank into an even deeper despair.