Big brother? Third brother?

Mo Huai’an was utterly astonished.

The newcomer wore night attire, his face wrapped with a mask, revealing only a pair of sharp, gleaming eyes.

When did he have such a brother?

And just as Mo Huai’an was bewildered, a package, contents unknown, came whistling through the air.

The man in black, who had thrown the package, immediately fled in another direction.

However, he had barely taken a dozen steps when a sword aura, like a flash of lightning, swiftly sliced through.

"Ah!"

A piercing scream suddenly rang out, the man in black losing his balance and collapsing on the ground.

Behind him were two bloody calves.

Zhang Yuan calmly sheathed his sword and sat down again.

At this moment, accompanied by the sound of clothes slicing through the air, several figures swiftly rushed over.

A group of martial artists in tight attire, wielding weapons at their hilt, stood before him!

"My legs!"

The legless man in black was still rolling on the ground, clutching the stumps of his legs and howling in pain.

One of the burly martial artists among the pursuers glanced at him, then shifted his gaze to the package in front of Zhang Yuan, his eyes darkening significantly.

He stepped forward, pointing at the man in black on the ground, and asked Zhang Yuan in a deep voice, "I am Huo Zhennan of the Huo Family Castle. May I ask your esteemed name, and what is your relationship with this person?"

As he spoke, this burly martial artist glanced at Mo Huai’an, his eyes showing a touch of vigilance.

Experienced people know that when wandering the martial world, one must be cautious of Daoists, the elderly, and women.

Because these types of people wouldn’t be out here without some skills.

So compared to Zhang Yuan, the one who truly made Huo Zhennan apprehensive was Mo Huai’an!

"No relation."

Zhang Yuan kicked the package in front of him back: "Take the man and the stuff with you."

"Just because you say there’s no relation, there’s no relation?"

A young martial artist stepped out from behind Huo Zhennan, shouting angrily, "This guy not only stole treasures from my Huo Family Castle but also injured several of my brothers. Who would believe there’s no accomplice?"

"You must provide a clear explanation!"

His face was full of righteous indignation, grinding his teeth with rage.

Though Huo Zhennan held him back, he did not deny his suspicion.

It was clear he wanted to see Zhang Yuan and Mo Huai’an’s reaction.

After all, Zhang Yuan and Mo Huai’an, camping beside the official road and just happening to meet both parties, appeared very suspicious!

Daoist cultivators could also be in disguise.

"Who do you think you are?"

Zhang Yuan sneered: "You think you’re worthy of an explanation from me!"

Among the martial artists from Huo Family Castle, there were three Tier Four, and the rest were all Tier Three cultivations.

This team of more than a dozen was quite formidable.

It showed that the Huo Family Castle was remarkably strong. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

But to Zhang Yuan, even if their numbers doubled, they were nothing more than a bunch of riffraff.

He just couldn’t be bothered to argue, otherwise, with their aggressive attitude, slapping their faces would have been considered courteous.

As Zhang Yuan finished speaking, all the martial artists from the Huo Family Castle were infuriated.

They all gripped their weapons tightly, and the atmosphere suddenly became tense!

"Stop!"

Huo Zhennan shouted, his expression changing unpredictably.

After a moment, he took a deep breath and cupped his fists toward Zhang Yuan, saying, "I apologize; my brother’s temperament is reckless and his words are reckless. I hope your excellency can be magnanimous, and thank you for your righteous assistance. Huo will surely repay you!"

Huo Zhennan’s sudden change in attitude left his subordinates momentarily stunned.

They looked at each other in confusion.

While Zhang Yuan waved his hand, not wanting to dwell further.

Huo Zhennan’s eye twitched slightly, then he bent down to pick up the package on the ground.

He gave Zhang Yuan a deep look and said, "Let’s go!"

A dozen martial artists from the Huo Family Castle quickly withdrew.

Of course, as they left, they took the man in black with them, including the two severed legs on the ground.

In an instant, they vanished from sight.

Mo Huai’an murmured, "So this is the treacherous martial world."

Even though he lacked experience, he understood that the man in black was clearly trying to shift the blame, attempting to pit him and Zhang Yuan against the pursuers, and then use the opportunity to escape.

Such a despicable mind!

The young mage continued, "That Huo Zhennan seems to have some discernment; he realizes we’ve been wronged."

Zhang Yuan glanced at him, "I don’t think this is over; they will come back."

Mo Huai’an froze, "Not over? Why?"

The thief had been captured, the stolen goods recovered, and since Huo Zhennan knew they weren’t accomplices but were framed, why would they return to cause trouble?

The logic didn’t make sense!

"Just wait and see."

Zhang Yuan didn’t explain further: "It’s also possible I’m overthinking it."

He didn’t see Huo Zhennan as a benevolent person; he was just uncertain about their background and was wary, so he didn’t turn hostile on the spot.

Mo Huai’an was correct; Huo Zhennan could certainly see through the thief’s blame-shifting trick.

But he wasn’t some paragon of justice!

His temporary tolerance was merely a result of weighing the pros and cons at the moment.

Once back, it would be hard to say.

The most crucial point was that Huo Zhennan’s last words clearly aimed to calm both of them down.

Thus, Zhang Yuan predicted that Huo Zhennan might very well return again.

And there wouldn’t be just those few people next time!

Mo Huai’an, though puzzled, still felt a vague sense of unease: "So what do we do now?"

As the saying goes, a strong dragon cannot crush a local snake; the opponent was indeed the local force, and he and Zhang Yuan had traveled from afar. If they really got into a conflict with Huo Family Castle, they could easily end up in a disadvantageous situation.

After all, even a fierce tiger is no match for a pack of wolves!

"We wait here."

Zhang Yuan said calmly: "If they don’t come, all the better; if they do, it’ll just be another lesson for you."

Mo Huai’an was speechless.

"Ah!"

The young mage quickly tapped his head and said, with embarrassment, "Then I’ll set up an array now!"

Recently, he had gotten used to relying on Zhang Yuan and forgot that he was a mage.

A mage from the Upper Scenic Celestial!

With that, Mo Huai’an stood up to fetch the luggage - containing the items for setting up arrays.

"Wait."

Zhang Yuan asked, "What array are you planning to set up?"

"A defense array!"

Mo Huai’an replied instinctively, "Is there a problem?"

Zhang Yuan sneered coldly, "Why not a killing array?"

He knew that the Daoist cultivators’ arrays were divided into defense, killing, trapping, refining, and illusion arrays, each serving different purposes.

Mo Huai’an shivered instinctively.

Because in Zhang Yuan’s words, there was an apparent killing intent, a chilling, bone-freezing aura!

Was he planning to kill?

The young mage was silent for a moment, then answered, "I understand."

Zhang Yuan nodded approvingly, "Good."

He watched as Mo Huai’an took out talismans and an array plate from the luggage, setting up a temporary array around the camp.

His technique was quite skilled!