The shadow was startled by the sudden voice, trembling violently. As it turned around, a staff shimmering with mysterious spiritual patterns came crashing down like lightning.
There was no time to dodge. Huang Zitang quickly tilted his head, narrowly avoiding a watermelon-crushing blow to the head. The staff then landed heavily on his shoulder, accompanied by a cracking sound of his shoulder blade breaking.
Huang Zitang let out a scream, his body tilting to one side before crashing heavily to the ground. He spat out a mouthful of blood, his face turning as pale as paper.
"Mu Xiaochuan, how... how do you have such strength?" Huang Zitang was both shocked and frightened.
"Isn't this a surprise for you?" Mu Xiaochuan said, stepping forward and placing a foot on Huang Zitang's body. "From what I saw earlier, you were planning to cripple my leg. So, what do you think I should do?"
With Mu Xiaochuan's foot on him, Huang Zitang was filled with fear, but all he wanted now was to save his life. "Brother Mu, I was wrong. Please spare my worthless life."
Mu Xiaochuan sneered, speaking playfully, "You don't want my life, and I won't take yours. Choose one: keep an arm or a leg?"
Huang Zitang finally came to his senses, realizing that the person in front of him was no longer the submissive Old Mu. He might really end up crippled here. Hastily, he pleaded, "Brother Mu, I was wrong. I didn't recognize your greatness. This is all my savings, a gift for you, hoping you'll spare me this time." With that, he quickly used his good arm to take out his storage pouch, removing his mark and handing it to Mu Xiaochuan.
Mu Xiaochuan accepted the storage pouch, finding it filled with treasures: hundreds of spirit stones, several bottles of elixirs, and even a low-grade spiritual artifact sword.
After a moment of thought, Mu Xiaochuan smiled and said, "Since you're so sensible, I'll let you keep one more. Choose, an arm or a leg?"
Huang Zitang knew he couldn't escape this time. Thinking that his arm wouldn't heal anytime soon anyway, he gritted his teeth and said, "A leg."
"Alright then!" Mu Xiaochuan raised the staff and smashed it down on Huang Zitang's other good arm.
"Brother Mu, not this one... Ah!" Huang Zitang tried to explain, but the staff had already struck, bringing with it a heart-wrenching pain that almost made him faint.
"Alright, get lost. Come back when you have time!" Mu Xiaochuan said with a grin.
Huang Zitang struggled to get up, seeing Mu Xiaochuan's smiling face as that of a devil. He was utterly terrified. "Goodbye, Brother Mu, I'm leaving!"
Watching Huang Zitang's retreating figure with both arms hanging down and the storage pouch in his hand, Mu Xiaochuan felt a rush of satisfaction.
Sure enough, he heard his favorite sound again.
"Ding, congratulations to the host for successfully teaching a lesson and avenging yourself, gaining 20 Thrill Points."
***
These days, Mu Xiaochuan was in high spirits, feeling refreshed. Ever since activating the Thrill System, the world seemed brighter. At work, after his morning display of power, Zhan Hongtao and others completed their tasks excellently, requiring no attention from him.
What thrilled him even more was that, in the quiet of last night, he had sneaked into Liu Ruyan's cave abode seeking affection, and she had agreed. With the magical power granted by the Thrill System, he had completely shaken off his previous lethargy. As his cultivation base improved, his appearance underwent a dramatic change. His once-wrinkled face became smooth and firm, and his hair turned black and thick. It was as if he had become ten years younger, radiating youthful vitality, a completely new person.
Liu Ruyan's gaze at him also carried a different meaning, with a touch more tenderness.
"Ding, congratulations to the host for feeling joyful in body and mind, gaining 20 Thrill Points."
Hearing the system prompt, Mu Xiaochuan couldn't help but laugh wildly in his heart. Enjoying the beauty's tenderness while gaining Thrill Points to enhance his cultivation, this was truly a godlike life!
That day, as usual, Mu Xiaochuan went to the Yunqi Peak hall for a routine cleanliness check.
Approaching the hall, he saw a familiar figure bending down to pick up trash. The figure was thin and frail—it was Su Qianmeng.
"Little Meng, what are you doing?" Mu Xiaochuan walked over and asked in confusion.
Su Qianmeng looked up, saw it was Mu Xiaochuan, and quickly stood up, a bit flustered. "Deacon Mu, I'm picking up trash."
"Picking up trash? Isn't this Lin Banxian's job?" Mu Xiaochuan frowned, immediately understanding the situation.
Lin Banxian was the laziest among them, always looking to shirk duties and bully honest people. Su Qianmeng, being gentle and timid, was surely being bullied by Lin Banxian.
"Where is Lin Banxian?" Mu Xiaochuan asked sternly.
Su Qianmeng trembled with fear, stammering, "Lin Banxian said he wasn't feeling well today and asked me to clean up and pick up the nearby trash for him."
Mu Xiaochuan had long been displeased with Lin Banxian, who relied on his little cleverness to slack off and bully the weak.
Well, there's a path to heaven, but you choose not to take it; there's no door to hell, yet you charge in. Just as he was thinking of dealing with him, the opportunity presented itself. Are the Thrill Points coming too?
He turned to Su Qianmeng, a warm smile on his face, raising an eyebrow and speaking softly, "Xiaomeng, help your senior brother feel a bit better, will you?"
Proofreader & Editor: Peter Pan