Chapter 143: You’re the Monster

Upon entering the courtyard, she discovered that the house contained a dozen or so rooms. The courtyard was strewn with numerous wooden basins and stones. Chu Bing's peripheral vision caught sight of a pitch-black wooden staff, and her gaze suddenly locked onto it as she noticed dried bloodstains caked at the tip.

Her breathing abruptly quickened, and a chilling thought flashed through her mind.

"Screech." Ergouzi had already walked up to the door of one of the rooms, pushed it open, and stepped inside. Collecting her thoughts, Chu Bing hurried to follow him.

The room was pitch black, and nothing could be discerned at a single glance.

However, Chu Bing heard dozens of faint, ragged breaths.

Guiding her gaze by the sound, she saw a dozen or so ragged children huddled in the corner.

Their flesh was torn open with horrifying wounds, covered entirely in blood. Every single child's breath was so feeble that they seemed on the verge of losing their lives at any moment.

Chu Bing's heart constricted violently!

The oldest of these children appeared to be no more than ten years old, while the youngest were merely three or four. Curled up into tight balls, they stared timidly at Ergouzi with eyes full of terror, frightened to the absolute extreme.

Ergouzi walked up to a small child and gave her a casual kick. "Playing dead, are you? I heard someone here refuses to accept discipline? Today, Master will teach all of you what it means to resign yourselves to fate!"

The young girl on the ground let out a weak moan from the kick, which, upon reaching Chu Bing's ears, drove the fury in her heart to its absolute peak.

Unforgivable!

With that, Ergouzi spotted a soft whip resting on a table. He grabbed it directly and raised his arm to lash it across the little girl's body.

Before she could even consciously process her actions, Chu Bing raised her arm and intercepted the whip mid-air.

"Crack."

In everyone's eyes, the whip appeared as though it had been frozen in the middle of its arc. Ergouzi's expression changed dramatically; he pulled back with all his might, but the whip remained completely motionless.

Because of his struggling, the concealment array on Chu Bing's body failed, gradually revealing her physical form.

Watching Chu Bing materialize right before his eyes, Ergouzi was so stunned and terrified that he stumbled backward in panic. "Who are you? You—you're a monster!"

How could anyone possibly appear out of thin air? This woman simply had to be a monster!

With an icy expression, Chu Bing seized the whip, weighed it in her hand, and lashed it fiercely back at him.

I'm a monster? Beasts draped in human skin like you are the real monsters!"

Gritting her teeth with a cold snarl, Chu Bing wielded the whip as if it were a living creature, striking Ergouzi with pinpoint accuracy.

Terrified out of his wits, Ergouzi backed away frantically until his foot tripped over a stone, sending him crashing heavily to the ground. He took several of Chu Bing's lashes directly, howling in agony.

His screams prompted the children in the room—who had previously been huddled together with their heads covered—to tentatively open their eyes and peek out with eager curiosity.

Chu Bing did not turn around, fearing that the expression on her face might frighten the little ones.

"...Don't hit me! Don't hit me! It wasn't me! It was Uncle Wang! It was him!"

Pale with fright, Ergouzi rolled back and forth on the ground.

With a look of utter disgust, Chu Bing withdrew her whip.

This Uncle Wang must be none other than Old Man Wang.

A flash of ruthless intent crossed her eyes; as for this chief culprit, she certainly had no intention of letting him off lightly.

"Stay right here and behave!" Chu Bing kicked Ergouzi aside, then turned and walked toward the children.

As she drew closer, the children shrank back into a tight cluster, clearly terrified of her.

Softening her expression, Chu Bing slowly crouched down and spoke in a gentle tone, "Don't be afraid, little ones. I'm here to save you."

No one answered. All the children simply stared at Chu Bing with innocent, pitiful eyes.

Her heart softening further, Chu Bing made her voice even more tender. "I'm not lying to you. Once Big Sister catches the bad people here, I'll send all of you back home, okay?"

Perhaps the word "home" caused the children to lower their guard at last. Finally, one little child raised a hand and said timidly, "Big Sister, there are lots and lots of bad people. You won't be able to beat them. You should run away quickly."

A wave of warmth pricked at Chu Bing's eyes, and she was just about to continue comforting the children when a sudden commotion echoed from behind. Ergouzi had actually seized the opportunity while Chu Bing was talking to the children to scramble up and bolt outside!

"Help! Someone has broken in! Uncle Wang, save me!" Panting heavily and gasping for breath, Ergouzi tripped and took a massive tumble right in the middle of the courtyard. However, the noise he made successfully alerted the two guards stationed outside the door.

The two young men immediately shouted to alert the others, and within moments, the villagers had surrounded the entire courtyard.

Chu Bing's expression shifted slightly. By herself, she cared nothing for these villagers, but she had a dozen or so defenseless little children right behind her!

The children inside remained unaware of the commotion outside, huddled tightly together and weeping softly.

Hearing their cries wrenched at Chu Bing's heart. She had no choice but to lower her voice to comfort them. "Don't be afraid. Just wait right here while Big Sister goes outside to beat up all the bad people, okay?"

The children kept their heads tucked in without speaking, until the same child who had raised his hand earlier timidly piped up, "Big Sister, you must be careful."

Reaching out to pat his head, Chu Bing stood up and walked toward the exit.

She closed the door behind her, standing as a solitary barrier on the outside.

Her slender, slight figure stood firm like a towering mountain.

The courtyard was packed with villagers, every single one of them wearing a vicious expression. Some clutched knives while others held axes, glaring at Chu Bing as if she were a piece of fat meat sitting in their cooking pot.

Reaching back to touch the soft whip at her waist, Chu Bing looked icy and detached. "Which one of you is Old Man Wang?"

The crowd slowly parted, leaving a path just wide enough for a single person to pass. A stooped old man leaning heavily on a cane slowly made his way out from the back.

Stepping to the forefront, he tilted his head up to look at Chu Bing, a warm, grandfatherly smile gracing his face. "Young lady, you've come to the wrong place."

Chu Bing raised an eyebrow. No one could have possibly imagined that Old Man Wang would possess such a benevolent and kind appearance, completely indistinguishable from any ordinary grandfather.

Yet a human-faced beast like this had actually led an entire village into human trafficking, destroying countless families in the process!

Chu Bing let out a cold laugh. "I haven't come to the wrong place. I came specifically for the likes of you."

Her declaration sparked a wave of unrest among the villagers, and the gazes they directed at her grew even more hostile.

Unfazed, Chu Bing drew the soft whip, flicked it lazily through the air, and asked casually, "How many years have you been doing this? How many children have you kidnapped?"

Seeing Chu Bing's actions, Old Man Wang's expression shifted, and his voice turned frosty. "So you're a martial artist. It seems we have another busybody trying to play the hero."

He shook his head and let out a sigh. "In this day and age, heroes rarely meet a good end."