Xiaoyu, are you holding your gun backward?

"Mom," Xuanxuan looked up at Rong Xianxian.

Xuanxuan's features were delicate and pretty, bearing a strong resemblance to Ning Qingyun. Her slightly chubby cheeks were round, adorable, and extremely endearing.

The child before her was a stark contrast to the skinny, dull-eyed girl she had been on the journey north in her past life.

Rong Xianxian brushed those inexplicable thoughts from her mind and gave the child a comforting smile.

The dozen or so newly arrived people came to a halt twenty to thirty meters away, forming an outer cordon.

Shang Yuege stood with a straight posture, featuring sword-like eyebrows and phoenix eyes. He exuded a refined, scholarly, and elegant temperament.

Seeing these people, Zhang Xiaoxiao seemed to regain her confidence all at once.

Unfortunately, her good mood did not last long.

"Xianxian, long time no see." Shang Yuege walked over and stopped beside Zhang Xiaoxiao, offering Rong Xianxian a bland smile.

"Long time no see," Rong Xianxian replied perfunctorily. She looked back at Zhang Xiaoxiao standing beside him and, as expected, saw a face covered in dark clouds.

"Yuege," Zhang Xiaoxiao pulled discontentedly at Shang Yuege's sleeve.

Oh, Rong Xianxian found it somewhat strange. In her past life, their encounter had occurred three months into the apocalypse, and back then, Zhang Xiaoxiao had acted all timid and cautious around Shang Yuege, showing nowhere near the trust and reliance she displayed now.

At that time, Zhang Xiaoxiao was exceptionally good at putting on an act in front of Shang Yuege. Every time she faced her, she would plaster on a warm, enthusiastic smile, yet behind Shang Yuege's back, she would resort to all sorts of petty, sinister, and vicious harassment.

Now that their meeting had been brought forward by two months, Zhang Xiaoxiao appeared much tougher in front of Shang Yuege than she had in her past life.

Ah, right. In her past life, Zhang Xiaoxiao had once mentioned through clenched teeth that Shang Yuege was a hypocrite—that he used to be so good and gentle to her, only to completely change his tune after tricking her father out of the Qingsuang Mother-and-Child Sword. He had promised to take good care of her, but now he intended to go back on his word, making him utterly heartless.

It seemed that Shang Yuege had not yet obtained that sword.

Rong Xianxian was somewhat curious about how Shang Yuege had managed to act so thoughtful and gentle toward Zhang Xiaoxiao before getting his hands on that sword.

"Brother Shang, please help me avenge this!" Zhang Linyu wailed, lifting a blood-smeared face. The sight carried quite a horrifying effect.

Shang Yuege did not have nearly as much patience for Zhang Linyu.

He made no effort to conceal the disgust on his face. "What happened just now? How did she get hurt?"

Although he loathed Zhang Linyu, they were nominally on the same side, so he had no choice but to ask.

He looked toward the others present. A burly man with a scar across his face stepped forward and said, "Her leg was kicked and broken by that kid. We didn't see clearly how the wound on her face happened. At the time, she was trying to shoot the kid."

As he spoke, his gaze drifted toward Xiao Luo.

"Humph!" Xiao Luo glared fiercely back at the scar-faced man.

The bleeding on Zhang Linyu's face had already stopped. Cui烈 (Cui Lie) had held back, not wanting her life; a single bullet was shallowly embedded in her eye socket. The massive amount of blood earlier had simply been due to the dense network of capillaries and venules around the eye. In reality, the injury was not fatal—though, of course, her eye was completely ruined. Her life, however, was out of danger.

Shang Yuege had already spotted that bullet. "Xiaoyu, when you fired just now, did you hold the gun backward?"

Wang Quirui let out a snort of laughter.

Cui Lie gave him a habitual glare.

The others at the scene now noticed the injury on Zhang Linyu's face as well.

That remarkably conspicuous bullet was just stuck there in her eye socket, with even its tail end remaining outside.

The rest of Zhang Xiaoxiao's group exchanged glances, their eyes communicating the unspoken thought: *Could that stupid woman really have held the gun backward?*

Zhang Xiaoxiao had no idea what the others were thinking, but she had seen clearly that Zhang Linyu's muzzle had been aimed squarely at that child.

Rong Xianxian had looked quite nervous just now, so it probably wasn't her doing. Who was it, then?

That person must be a cultivator.

"No, no, I didn't!" Zhang Linyu shook her head like a windmill. She felt utterly wronged; she was the one who was injured and in pain, so why wasn't Brother Shang immediately avenging her, and instead asking such a nonsensical question?

"It's them! It's Rong Xianxian, they're the ones who harmed me! Kill them all right now! Once you kill them, their weapons will be ours!" Whether Zhang Linyu had been consumed by rage or simply had a short circuit in her brain, had she still not understood Shang Yuege's attitude?

Zhang Xiaoxiao pressed down on Zhang Linyu's shoulder and whispered in her ear, "Zhang You has a machine gun."

A flash of insight finally crossed Zhang Linyu's mind.

"Brother Zhang, kill this woman!" The moment Zhang Linyu pointed a finger at Rong Xianxian and shouted, Zhang Xiaoxiao gave a meaningful look to Zhang You, who was standing in the outer perimeter.

Zhang You was Director Zhang's private bodyguard and had been with him for over a decade. Naturally, he understood Zhang Xiaoxiao's intent. Zhang Linyu was merely a mouthpiece acting on Zhang Xiaoxiao's wishes; Zhang Linyu herself lacked the authority to order Zhang You around.

He was positioned in the northwest corner, diagonally across from Rong Xianxian, while the people in the inner cordon had long since scattered out of the way.

Zhang You raised his machine gun and began to spray bullets toward the spot where Rong Xianxian and her two children stood.

*Rat-tat-tat—*

*Bang!*

Zhang You, standing in the outer cordon, crashed heavily to the ground.

What just happened?

Everyone present wore a dazed expression.

They looked at the bullet holes left on the tall, mighty, six-door vehicle nearby. The penetration power of those bullets was truly impressive.

Regaining their senses, the crowd once again felt a wave of greetings courtesy of the winter wind.

Could that woman possibly know sorcery?

Zhang You had clearly intended to shoot her; why did he suddenly spin around?

The speed at which Zhang You had turned around just then was truly faster than lightning.

"Brother Zhang... is dead." The scar-faced man ran over, tested Zhang You's breath, and said with a mixture of shock and uncertainty.

He cast a fearful glance at Rong Xianxian.

"What do you think you're doing?" Shang Yuege looked at Zhang Xiaoxiao with displeasure.

"What am I doing? Shang Yuege, what do *you* think you're doing? Xiaoyu is hurt, and now Brother Zhang is dead! You ask what I'm doing? Don't forget you're my husband!" Zhang Xiaoxiao's eyes reddened with grievance.

"If you hadn't ordered Zhang You to open fire, would he have died?" Shang Yuege furrowed his brow involuntarily.

Shang Yuege himself was a cultivator and had witnessed all sorts of diverse weapons. It appeared that Xianxian had practiced powerful techniques and possessed a weapon capable of interfering with mental consciousness.

How could an ignorant, shallow piece of trash like Zhang Xiaoxiao ever compare to Xianxian?

Not only could she not cultivate, but she lacked even a functioning brain. Did she really think she could win just by having more people?

She just had to bring humiliation upon herself. They couldn't beat them in a fight, and now that they had forfeited the threat of the weapons in Zhang You and the others' hands, they had a bargaining chip that had just been neatly eliminated. How was he supposed to salvage this situation?

Shang Yuege felt as though a stampede of ten thousand mystical beasts was roaring across his mind.

What should he do?

His teeth hurt.

His head hurt, too.

He really wanted to ditch this stupid woman and walk away!