Chapter 277: Heartbroken and Crying

Di Zian raised an eyebrow. “You’re not trying to trick us into leaving so you can steal the tributes inside, are you?”

“Of course not!” The man’s denial was weak.

Clearly, he was feeling guilty.

“Black-hearted, foul-mouthed, and asking for a beating.”

Ah Bao pursed her lips, her small face turning cold.

The man snorted, but suddenly his face twisted in pain. “Ahhh, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts!”

“Boss, what’s wrong?”

“Cramping… cramping… it hurts, waah, quick, slap me, slap me!”

The underling: “? Isn’t that a bit much?”

“Just do it, it hurts so bad—”

The underling immediately gave him two slaps, and only then did the man’s mouth stop cramping.

But the person behind him hit so hard that the man’s mouth started bleeding.

The tyrant and his group coldly watched this scene. They thought, “Of all the people to provoke, why did you choose to mess with my daughter? Now that your foul mouth has been slapped, have you learned your lesson?”

“Boss, boss, look! That little girl is holding gold in her arms!” A few people immediately noticed the small golden statue in Ah Bao’s arms.

The man, whose face was now bruised and swollen, became malicious. “I’ve heard there’s gold in this ruined temple. We’ve searched for it for so long without finding anything, but now it turns out they have it. Brothers, let’s take it!”

A swarm of people rushed forward. Since they were already infected with the plague, they didn’t care whether the others had it or not.

Though they knew they were doomed, their greed for wealth hadn’t diminished in the slightest.

“This is outrageous! Robbery in broad daylight, is there no law anymore?” Di Zian shouted angrily.

“Law? There’s no one governing Lingnan anymore. It’s already on the brink of becoming hell on earth. Who cares about the law? Survival is all that matters now. Hand over your valuables!”

Di Chenyu, Di Zian, and the eldest prince all moved to protect the tyrant and Ah Bao.

General Lei stood in line with the three princes, kicking one of the attackers away. “With this general here, try making a move!”

“General? Your surname is Lei, right? Oh, turns out you really are a high-ranking official. Why don’t you run away already? Staying in Lingnan is as good as signing your death warrant.”

“The emperor is here! Who dares to act recklessly?”

The man burst into laughter. “The emperor? Stop trying to scare us. The emperor is thousands of miles away in the capital. There’s no way he’d come here! It’s been a year—a whole year! The emperor has ignored Lingnan, letting it nearly die out. And you expect us to believe he’d come? Who do you think you’re fooling?”

The Tyrant Emperor’s face darkened, though he surprisingly didn’t get angry. Despite their vile behavior, the man had spoken some truth. The plague in Lingnan had gone on for too long, and he was indeed too late.

“The court never abandoned Lingnan. It’s you filthy people who’ve ruined this place. You’re the true cancer here!” Feng Batian said coldly.

“We’re victims too! Give us the gold!” The man’s eyes gleamed with greedy malice as he saw the gold statue in Ah Bao’s arms. “Little girl, hand it over!”

The man’s hand was just about to touch the golden statue in Ah Bao’s arms when—

The sky suddenly darkened with rolling clouds, and a fierce wind began to howl.

“Ah! The gods are angry, boss!”

“Nonsense! If the gods had any power, this place wouldn’t have turned into a ruined temple. Don’t forget, even the statue of the Plague-Dissipating God is broken!”

“The dog’s butt is going to get burned!” Ah Bao pouted, her little face serious.

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning struck down, hitting the man squarely on his butt.

“Ahhhh!” The man jumped up, clutching his backside.

“Hahaha, he really got struck by lightning!” Ah Bao clapped her small hands in delight.

The man no longer cared about grabbing the golden statue. “Boss, let’s get out of here. Something’s not right.”

“There’s no divine power here! The gods have no power!!!” The man, furious and in pain, kicked away a broken wooden board, revealing a pile of fragments underneath.

The fragments emitted an evil aura that instantly surged toward the group.

The group fled in a frenzy, wielding their iron shovels as they ran away.

At the same time, the protective talismans on everyone’s bodies began to glow.

[Those fragments—]

Ah Bao felt a sharp pain in her chest, a deep sense of discomfort.

She ran over and started picking up the fragments, piece by piece.

“What are those fragments?” The eldest prince asked, curious.

“It’s the statue of the Plague-Dissipating God,” Lian’er whispered. “After the plague began, the god was no longer worshiped. The people could barely survive themselves. They believed the god had abandoned them, and everyone who worshipped him died of the plague. Later, they brought all the statues from their homes here to be destroyed.

There are many fragments like these around here, and the ones inside the house were once the statue on the altar.”

“No wonder the altar is empty now. So there was a statue there before,” Di Zian sighed. “Was the plague really spread from here?”

No one answered his question.

“Sister, what’s wrong?” Di Chenyu, who was closest to Ah Bao, noticed her small body trembling.

Ah Bao carefully picked up the fragments, trying to piece them together.

[It’s Liang Yan… How could his statue emit such an evil aura? He’s the Plague-Dissipating God, immune to all poisons and evil. How could this happen?]

[Liang Yan hates the cold the most. His statue shattered here, in the dead of winter. How did he survive?]

Ah Bao’s heart ached, her nose tingled, and her eyes turned red as tears began to fall uncontrollably, like pearls on a broken string, dripping onto the fragments.

She kept trying to piece the statue together, again and again. But every time she managed to fit the pieces together, the statue would collapse once more. Finally, she collapsed into Di Chenyu’s arms, crying her heart out.

“Waaaaah! Sixth Brother…”

The group couldn’t bear to watch. They had never seen Ah Bao cry so heartbrokenly. The little girl was only one and a half years old, usually very mischievous. Even when she fell or fought with the other little rascals, she never cried.

But now, seeing a pile of broken fragments, she was crying so hard she could barely breathe.

Di Chenyu, heart aching for his sister, patted Ah Bao’s small shoulder. “Sister, what’s wrong? Tell your brother, maybe I can help.”

Ah Bao lifted her tear-streaked face, her long eyelashes still wet with tears. “Brother, I want to take these home.”

She pointed to the fragments beside her.

[My dear Liang Yan, I’ll take you home. I’ll get justice for you! Whoever bullied you and made you like this, I’ll kill them!]

Ah Bao cried and fumed internally.

Di Chenyu wiped her tears. “Alright.”

Lin Xuanzhi and General Lei were stunned.

Heavens above.

Did they just hear the little princess say she was going to get justice for the Plague-Dissipating God???

Hearing the little princess’s inner voice, it seemed she knew the Plague-Dissipating God. That’s the Plague-Dissipating God—a deity!

A being from the ethereal void!

The two exchanged a silent glance.

General Lei thought: Could Lin Xuanzhi also hear the little princess’s inner voice? No way, right?

Lin Xuanzhi wasn’t idle either: Seeing Old Lei’s dazed expression, could he have heard the little princess’s inner voice too? How is that possible?