Liu Ergou's broad chest and powerful abs kept replaying in Xu Yulan's mind.
It left her flustered, her face burning red.
Fortunately, she came to her senses in time and splashed her face with cold water several times, which finally managed to calm her down. However, when a cool breeze blew past, Xu Yulan knew she would have to change her clothes again…
As for Liu Ergou, after the initial shock and the whole Marrow Cleansing affair, he had returned to normal. He was standing naked in the courtyard, which was exposed and drafty on all sides, so it was hardly a good place to be standing around in a daze.
After hastily rinsing himself off, Liu Ergou ran back to his room, completely naked. He rummaged through his wardrobe for a set of clothes, put them on, and finally breathed a long sigh of relief.
Feeling the immense power coursing through his body, Liu Ergou resolved to practice the Body Cultivation Technique every morning without fail, never slacking unless the sun itself failed to rise.
Although Liu Ergou had been busy all night, he didn't feel the least bit tired. On the contrary, he was brimming with energy. Tossing and turning in bed, he was restless and unsure what to do.
Just as he was growing bored and fidgety, he suddenly caught his medicine box out of the corner of his eye. Then it hit him—he had gone up the mountain to gather herbs yesterday. He needed to sell them today. If he didn't, the herbs would go to waste!
At this thought, Liu Ergou didn't hesitate. He shot out of bed, went outside, and checked his back-basket. When he saw that the herbs inside were only slightly wilted, he let out a long sigh of relief.
He immediately shouldered the basket and shouted toward the house.
"Sister-in-law, I'm going to town to sell the herbs! I'll be back this afternoon!"
Without waiting for a response from Xu Yulan, Liu Ergou eagerly departed.
Having cultivated the Body Cultivation Technique, Liu Ergou's speed was incredible, and it only took him a few minutes to reach the village entrance. He had originally planned to take the village tractor to town, but he realized he was likely too early, as there was no sign of it.
Liu Ergou was a little frustrated. He glanced at the road leading to town, then back at the village behind him. In the end, he decided to just walk.
After all, it wasn't too far. At his current pace, he could be back by noon at the latest.
With that, Liu Ergou stopped hesitating and took off toward town at a run.
Along the way, Liu Ergou moved as if on wings. He ran for several kilometers without his face flushing or his breathing growing heavy, as if he were just out for a casual stroll. At this inhuman speed, he covered nearly half the distance in just over an hour.
Feeling thirsty, Liu Ergou reached into his basket for his canteen, intending to take a drink. Just then, however, he heard a woman's desperate cries for help.
"You… don't come any closer!"
"It's broad daylight! What do you want to do to me!"
"Help, help! There are hooligans here! Is anyone there?!"
Hearing the cries, Liu Ergou frowned.
Someone's harassing a woman? How brazen!
With that, he got up and prepared to head in the direction of the voice to see what was happening. Just as Liu Ergou stood up, a man's voice reached his ears.
"Heh heh, go ahead and scream. Scream your head off. Even if you scream your throat raw, no one will come to save you! Haven't you noticed the time? We've been watching you for a while and picked this moment specifically!
"Be a good little girl and just do as you're told. After I've had my fun, I promise I won't hurt you! I'll even let you go! But if you don't cooperate… well, don't blame me for getting rough. Look at that delicate skin of yours. You wouldn't want it to end up with a scar, would you?"
The man's words sent Liu Ergou from frowning to seething with rage. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ novel[f]ire.net
So they timed this. This was premeditated!
Not daring to delay any longer, Liu Ergou sprinted straight toward the sound of the voices. In a mere dozen seconds, he arrived at the scene.
There, he saw five shifty-looking men—an ugly, misshapen bunch—leering at a cornered girl while spewing filth. The girl was cowering, too afraid to move.
When Liu Ergou saw the five men, he frowned again. He recognized them. They were a gang of petty thugs from town. They wouldn't dare do anything too serious, but they were infamous for their constant theft and pilfering. Liu Ergou knew them because whenever he came to sell herbs, he would see them extorting 'protection fees' from the other vendors.
Simply put, they were a bunch of lowlifes who couldn't amount to anything. But he never expected that these five would be so audacious today, daring to harass an innocent woman!
Looking at the five men before him, Liu Ergou bellowed, "What the hell do you think you're doing! Are you trying to assault someone here?!"
He shouted with all his might. The sound was like a crack of thunder, leaving the five men's ears ringing. They were stunned into inaction.
It took a full ten seconds before one of them finally recovered. The first one to snap out of it turned to look at Liu Ergou. He saw a man with eyes as small as mung beans and a neck so long he resembled a turtle.
"Kid, what the hell are you yelling for!" the turtle-like man snarled as he whipped a small knife from his belt, brandishing it threateningly. "Are you tired of living?!"
At the same time, the others came to their senses and turned to face Liu Ergou.
"Fuck, where did this bumpkin come from, daring to meddle in our business! Does he really want to die?" said a man with rat-like features.
As he spoke, all five men started walking toward Liu Ergou.
It was then that Liu Ergou finally got a clear look at the girl they were harassing.
"Xiaorou?!" he exclaimed in shock. "Aren't you supposed to be at school in the city? Why are you back all of a sudden?"
Hearing the familiar voice, the girl froze for a moment before she immediately recognized who was speaking.
"Brother Ergou?! What are you doing here?!"