Of course, Li Musheng had no intention of fleeing; he didn't even budge from his seat on the stone steps.
At the same time, Zhu Fang glanced at Yu Zhentian, who was fighting the Zhahe Seven Thieves. After a moment of hesitation, he immediately scrambled to his feet and sprinted towards the courtyard exit, completely disregarding Yu Second Sister and Yu Xian. The other martial arts school disciples and apprentices, seeing that Yu Zhentian was stretched thin, also only cared about seizing the opportunity to escape for their lives, with no thought of rescuing anyone.
"Did I give you permission to leave?"
Just then, Scum Two, who had remained motionless until now, unleashed a palm strike through the air. The tangible force slammed into the courtyard wall. It directly collapsed the entire brick wall in front, sending up dust and piling up fallen bricks and stones, precisely blocking the escape route of the fleeing crowd.
This powerful palm strike frightened Zhu Fang and the others, who all abruptly stopped before the rubble, not daring to advance an inch.
"Ungrateful disciples, all of them ungrateful!" Yu Zhentian roared. He had naturally seen all of Zhu Fang's actions. His usually most valued disciples, fearing death, had betrayed him, while the two apprentices he usually looked down upon had remained loyal. This couldn't help but fill him with mixed emotions.
"Take Second Sister and the others, I'll cover your escape!" Yu Zhentian's internal energy surged as he swept his sword horizontally, forcing back Scum Three and the others who were attacking him. Then, using the momentum, he flipped through the air, descending from the rooftop to stand before Zhang Dazhuang and Li Musheng. However, he saw that these two martial arts school apprentices were standing still, looking at each other.
"I can move Second Young Lady, but I'm not sure I can carry her and run far," Zhang Dazhuang mumbled. His aptitude for cultivation was extremely poor. After so many years at the martial arts school, he hadn't learned much martial arts; only his strength was slightly better than an average person's. Otherwise, he wouldn't have remained just a martial arts apprentice for twenty years, like Li Musheng.
However, Zhang Dazhuang ultimately put down Yu Xian and walked towards Yu Second Sister. Because, no matter how he looked at it, he was clearly stronger than Li Musheng, who was a size smaller than him.
Yu Zhentian felt a slight relief at the sight. He glanced at his second daughter. He thought to himself that if they escaped this ordeal, the first thing he would do was force her to lose weight, otherwise, at a crucial moment of life and death, no one would even be able to save her.
"Pay attention and stick close to me!" Yu Zhentian instructed in a deep voice. Then, his gaze shifted, and he realized that Li Musheng, who was nearby, hadn't moved. He was about to speak when Scum Three and the others had already surrounded them. At the same time, Scum Two moved, dropping down with his saber nearby to flank them.
"Unless you hand over the item, none of you are going anywhere." Scum Two was expressionless, his internal energy surging, his killing intent chilling. The aura he displayed was actually even stronger than Yu Zhentian's.
Seeing this, Yu Zhentian's pupils contracted, and his face immediately became extremely grim.
"Old Man Yu, that's why I say you're stingy. What's so precious that you can't bear to part with it, forcing all of us to be buried with you?" Li Musheng asked curiously. Hearing this, Yu Zhentian subconsciously glared at him. But thinking that this kid was one of the only two apprentices willing to stay and help, he took a deep breath and said, "This has nothing to do with you, don't ask any more questions!"
Li Musheng shrugged, then turned to Scum Two: "How about you tell me, what exactly do you want from him?"
Scum Two's gaze swept over Li Musheng. Seeing his seemingly callow appearance, yet daring to question him, a sinister smile tugged at his lips. "You come over here, and I'll tell you."
"Kid, are you tired of living?!" Someone from the attacking Zhahe Seven Thieves cursed. His saber swiftly descended, the blade light cutting through the air, carrying a "screaming" sound as it slashed directly towards Li Musheng.
Yu Zhentian saw this and immediately flashed forward, drawing his sword to block. But the next moment, his gaze suddenly froze. Yu Zhentian was shocked to find that the apprentice Li Musheng had completely vanished from his sight the instant he made his move.
At this moment, as the jarring clang of saber and sword echoed, Scum Five, who had attacked, was forced back half a step by Yu Zhentian's sword. But he didn't look at Yu Zhentian. Instead, his pupils suddenly widened as he stared at the spot where Li Musheng had been standing, exclaiming in surprise: "That kid... where is he?"
Upon hearing this, Scum Three and the others, who were preparing to raise their sabers and attack again, abruptly halted their movements, immediately becoming suspicious and uncertain. A living person had just inexplicably disappeared from their sight; how could they ignore it? They immediately searched everywhere for Li Musheng's figure. Just then, a voice rang out from behind Scum Two:
"I'm here now. Shouldn't you tell me?"
Scum Two's hair stood on end in an instant, his expression changing drastically. But having experienced countless martial arts battles, he reacted quickly, making a decisive move. He swung his saber behind him in a flash, as fast as lightning. At the same time, he channeled internal energy to his legs, sprinting forward at extreme speed, wanting to get away from the person behind him.
However, Scum Two's saber struck empty air, and Li Musheng's voice from behind him clung like a phantom.
"Running away as soon as I arrive? That's no fun."
As his words fell, the entire courtyard of the martial arts school suddenly became silent. The disciples and apprentices of the martial arts school hadn't yet understood what had happened when they were shocked to see that all six black-clothed figures, including Scum Two, stood perfectly still as if they were wooden or clay statues.
"I pointed their acupuncture points." Li Musheng's voice came from beside Yu Zhentian.
Yu Zhentian abruptly turned his head, and upon seeing him, he instinctively took several steps back. "You... who exactly are you?" Yu Zhentian stared incredulously at this unremarkable martial arts apprentice, his aged face filled with wariness.
Li Musheng shrugged, reaching out to pat Zhang Dazhuang's shoulder, and tilted his head: "Zhang Ge, please don't stare at me like that, even though I know you've always been jealous of my handsome face."
"Huh??" Zhang Dazhuang shook his head. After regaining his senses, he looked at the acupoint-pointed Zhahe Seven Thieves, then at Li Musheng, and then took a deep breath, saying, "Ah Sheng, you make me feel like I don't know you!"
Li Musheng chuckled, then turned to face Yu Zhentian: "Old Man Yu, these villains are yours to deal with." Saying this, he held out his hand towards Yu Zhentian: "Also, I forgot to tell you, I'm not staying at the martial arts school anymore. You promised five taels of silver after your retirement ceremony, so don't try to deduct or renege on it like before."
Yu Zhentian stared intently at Li Musheng, the shock on his face refusing to fade. "You're really that kid Li Musheng? But I remember you were clearly a martial arts good-for-nothing, how could you be this powerful..."
However, Li Musheng directly interrupted him, asking: "You wouldn't be thinking of reneging on the debt, would you?"
Hearing this, Yu Zhentian's heart jolted. He quickly waved his hand. He fumbled in his embrace for a while. He didn't have any silver on him, only a hundred-tael banknote. But before he could speak, the banknote instantly disappeared from his hand and landed in Li Musheng's.
Li Musheng grinned: "Not bad, not bad. Rare to be generous for once. I'll take this banknote!"