Fox In The Sea (2)

"Leave her alone! Young Master Lu Cheng I beg you, my sister has nothing to do with this!"

The young apothecary tried to obstruct Lu Cheng but was grabbed by his companions instead. He tried to struggle free but the more he fought back, the more they pressed him to the ground until he was in a kneeling position.

Lu Cheng then turned to the girl once more and again wanted to grab her. Her face held a look of panic as if the former bravery was but an act. Even though, her eyes remained clam like a lake without a ripple, she scanned the crowd for help.

"Can the disciples of the Lu family really do whatever they want in this city?! Are we really going to let them push us around like this? Aren't we all proud citizens of Piaoliu City? How can we let them behave like this!"

She pointed at the three men with a righteous face but what answered her was silence and a disdainful sneer from Lu Cheng. Whatever nonsense she would spew, it was completely useless.

"Do you really believe those helpless words will get you anywhere now? Look at them! Nothing but a flock of scared little sheep. As long as the Azure Flower Ghost Sect doesn't care, nobody has the right to berate the Lu family!"

His words hit many in the crowd. Just how hated was the Lu family? But he was right. Lu family was Piaoliu's second largest faction and as long as the largest one, the Azure Flower Ghost Sect, doesn't intervene, none of them would even have a sliver of chance to retaliate.

Lu Cheng's gaze swept over the silent crowd. Nobody dared to look him in the eye. All of them held their heads down low like a bunch of kinds that were being scolded.

But the girl didn't even hear his words. In that moment when Lu Cheng began to speak, she saw, through a small opening in the crowd, a person in the middle of the central-square. He leisurely sat on the rim of the waterspout fountain and held a half-eaten stuffed bread in both hands. His dark robes were all dusty and travel-worn, his skin tanned from hours under the scorching sun, all that gave him a wild and demonical charm. But what had captured her attention was neither his obvious looks of a traveler nor his decently handsome face, it was the expression he held while watching from afar. Contrary to the rest of the crowd which pretended to be ostriches, he had an obvious mocking sneer on his face. Even from far away one could still make out the disdain is his eyes.

'This man,' she thought ' doesn't even has those Lu family's disciples in his eyes.'

In an instant hope flashed through her bright eyes. If it's this man, he will surely be able to beat those horrible people! She didn't know why she was so confident about this, but something in her guts told her that he was able to fight back.

With a single smooth movement she abandoned negotiations and slipped away once more. Her charge was exactly directed on this newfound hope of hers.

Hei Su on the other hand couldn't help but frown when he saw this. Why would she suddenly try and involve him in this mess? What is wrong with this girl? Didn't he just sit here, minding his own business?

But before he could open his mouth to protest, the girl was already grabbed by the collar. In the end, she was still a normal person without any kind of power, how could she possibly outrun a cultivator.

"You are quite the brave wretch, to try and escape like this."

Lu Cheng firmly held the small figure by her collar. Her legs pitifully swayed in the air as she tried to struggle free.

The girl refused to look at him and instead shot a pleading stare at Hei Su. Hei Su on the other hand engaged in his newfound interest for his stuffed bread and used his entire attention to slowly and appreciatively, consume it.

The confidence in the girl's eyes started to waver. If she couldn't get his help, both, she and her brother would not live long.

At the thought of this she briefly closed her eyes. As Lu Cheng saw that she wouldn't pay him any attention still, he grabbed her chin with a painful force and tuned her head to directly look at him.

Her bright eyes held a great stubbornness and if a stare could kill, Lu Cheng would have been burned to the ground instantly. A shiver ran down his back. How can eyes be so terrifying?!

Lu Cheng's cheeks reddened in embarrassment and rage. How could he, a cultivator, disciple and young Master of the great Lu family, be frightened by a little girl! With one swift move he lifted his arm and slapped across the girls face. Don't underestimate how he is only at the first stage, his palm hit her face with the force of a charging boar! She was instantly knocked dizzy and spit out a mouthful of blood.

Just as Lu Cheng lifted his arm to deliver yet another slap, a fist hit him from the side.

Everything was dead silent.

The hundreds of people which didn't even dare to breathe, only had one thought: This guy is dead!

The girl who dropped to the floor held her burning cheek and blinked through the tears that flooded her eyes. In her slightly blurred sight she saw something that stunned her.

Lu Cheng sat on his behind and stared blankly at the young apothecary and his still upheld fist.

The normally kind and soft looking young man had his face distorted in an ugly rage.

Nobody had noticed when, but he managed to fight free from the other two and rushed over to defend his sister.

The girl had a very complicated feeling at this moment. Of course she was happy and excited that her brother rescued her but at the same time, this situation spelled disaster.

Before anyone could recover from the shock, Lu Cheng's companions arrived and wrestled her brother down. Lu Cheng also slowly recovered and his face started changing color from red to white to green. He had never been so humiliated in his life before. It settled at deep black, so dark as if water could leak out at any moment.

"YOU DARE TO HIT ME???!!!"

"Bastard, I'll fucking kill you!! I'll smash your head till it's fucking meat paste and leave the rest for the rats!"

Lu Cheng came cursing to his legs and stomped on the young man's head until he spat out one mouthful of blood after the other.

The scene looked so pitiful that many closed their eyes and turned their heads away. The young girl's bright eyes dimmed. She was afraid but above all there was hatred. Frustration at her own weakness, overbearing hate for Lu Cheng and disappointment at this useless life they had to live.

Her live hasn't been easy so far. Her parents died in an accident when she was still young and since then it was all on her brother to take care of them both. At first he showed a bit of talent to become an alchemist but that dream was crushed after meeting one. That wandering alchemist told her brother that he would at best become an apothecary in this lifetime. Still, an apothecary was better than a beggar. He worked painstakingly hard and was finally able to sell at the central-square. She was extremely proud of him. But now she was about to lose him as well.

Tears were flowing down her cheeks and carved white streaks into the layers of dirt. She turned her head away. She couldn't bear to watch this any longer. She was so stupid! What did she expect when she made that entrance earlier? How could she even think to make a difference? In the end she only made everything worse. Her gaze shifted once again to the young man that had ignored her before. Hei Su had finally run out of food to eat and was about to leave.

When she saw this her tears stopped and with a blank expression she stood up. While walking she could hear the wet thuds of her brothers head like a steady rhythm. She didn't look back. When she arrived in front of him, she wouldn't say a word, only her deep and clam eyes looked at him unblinking. The thoughts in her head were unreadable.

Hei Su returned her calm gaze and silently shook his head.

'No'

This had nothing to do with him.

Who would have thought that when she saw his reaction, her mouth would split into a malicious grin. She suddenly bend her back, grasp his cloth and with a heart-wrenching scream, she yelled loud and clear enough for everyone to hear.

"But Senior Brother!! Didn't you say that you could crush them like insects?! Didn't you say that the entire Lu family is nothing more than dog sh*t in your eyes?!"