Chapter 004: No Way

"Forgive us, sirs! We would never dare to mine the mysterious stone without permission. Our family has lived in Qiaotou Village for generations, and we are all law-abiding citizens," Aunt Qiao pleaded tearfully, crawling to the man in the blue robe and trying to grab his sleeve, only to be disdainfully kicked to the ground by him.

"Lies! I can smell the scent of the mysterious stone on you. You can't deceive my warhound," the man angrily shouted, as two disciples of the Tian Dao Sect, also dressed in blue robes, quickly approached.

One of them grabbed the eleven or twelve-year-old girl from the ground, allowing her torn clothes to fall to the ground.

The girl struggled, but was knocked to the ground by a heavy slap and couldn't get up for a while.

Aunt Qiao screamed and abandoned her husband, crying and crawling towards the girl, shaking off her own coat and draping it over the girl's shoulders, calling out repeatedly, "Xiao Ya, Xiao Ya."

"Mother, mother!!" Qiao Ya clutched her mother's coat tightly, her knuckles turning white, her small face filled with confusion and dizziness.

Four or five swords with a cold light pointed at the chests of the Qiao family, "Tell us again, where is the mysterious stone mine. Tell the truth, and we will spare your lives, otherwise, don't blame the Tian Dao Sect for being merciless!"

Suddenly, the sound of galloping hooves came from a distance, kicking up clouds of dust and forcing everyone to step aside, quickly creating a wide passage for the approaching horsemen.

Qiao Mu struggled for a moment, quickly broke free from his father's embrace, and jumped to the ground, running towards the Qiao family.

"Qiao Qiao," Mother Wei Ziqin exclaimed.

The sound of hooves stopped, and a group of a dozen or so black-clad youths dismounted skillfully, leading their horses to the side, making way for a wide passage.

As the evening fell, a young man in white, with flowing black hair and an untainted white robe, slowly approached on horseback, a hint of a smile on his lips, exuding a gentle and charming aura that captivated everyone's attention, except for his gaze, which was fixed on the expressionless little girl, his smile deepening as his eyes were filled with amusement.

The evening breeze gently blew, carrying an indescribable sense of oppression in the air, causing everyone to fall silent, their eyes fixed on the approaching white-clad handsome youth.

Qiao Mu glanced coldly, then calmly withdrew his gaze, boldly pushing away the swords with a shove, pointing back with his small arm, his cold eyes fixed on the leader of the blue-robed men.

This action provoked the anger of the blue-robed men, "What are you doing? How dare you!?"

"Daring! Daring! Daring! How dare you make a commotion in front of His Highness!" Several portly officials hurriedly ran forward, trembling, and knelt down in a rush, "We pay our respects to His Highness Prince Lian, we didn't know His Highness had arrived, we have been remiss in welcoming you, please forgive us, Your Highness."

The officials gestured for everyone around them to kneel and pay their respects, "Kneel, all of you, kneel!"

A group of ignorant villagers! They have no sense of propriety! They dare to look directly at His Highness Prince Lian, it's simply outrageous!

All the villagers, as if under a spell, knelt down in fear, bowing their heads and prostrating themselves, not daring to look up.

The blue-robed men of the Tian Dao Sect, who were holding the warhound, also dared not act rashly. Although they did not perform the same grand gestures as the villagers, they also knelt on one knee, crossing their chests with one hand, respectfully saying, "Disciples of the Tian Dao Sect, pay respects to His Highness Prince Lian."