No one dared to answer, nor did anyone dare to move.
Everyone stared intently at the coffin, praying that the somewhat ancient talismans would still be effective.
Unfortunately, the talismans seemed to have exhausted their power.
With a violent and rapid tremor, the talismans exploded.
Unbound, the coffin lid was violently thrown open amidst a blinding light!
A figure quietly emerged, standing in mid-air, silently observing the people below.
That cold gaze was akin to the dark and eerie total solar eclipse in the sky!
For some unknown reason, Professor Li and the others all involuntarily knelt down, as if worshipping a living god!
"It's not you." The person from the coffin scanned them and shook their head.
Clearly, there was no need for Professor Li and the others to answer; they had already negated their previous question.
"It's from a very distant place. She's calling for help."
The person from the coffin gazed into the distance, as if their eyes could pierce through the void and see scenes miles away.
"Ling Xi Ying Sha!"
The person from the coffin suddenly raised their index finger and pointed towards the distance.
Instantly, a drop of blood welled up from their fingertip, then swiftly vanished into the air.
At the same time, in Sucheng, miles away.
The little girl, whose neck was being held, suddenly saw a blood-red phantom appear behind her.
The phantom cast a cold glance at the middle-aged man, then pointed a finger at his forehead.
The next second, the middle-aged man felt as if he had been struck by a heavy blow. He cried out and was sent flying backward.
He lay on the ground, convulsing like a twitching dead dog.
"He... he killed someone!"
The onlookers' faces turned pale with terror as they shouted.
"No! If he had truly killed him, it would be a good thing. The problem is that he's not dead! When he recovers, this little girl is in for a lot of trouble!"
Then, someone corrected with a grave expression.
If a snake is not killed, it will cause endless trouble.
If the middle-aged man had truly died, the little girl would have been saved.
But with the middle-aged man alive, the little girl would inevitably face his enraged and desperate revenge!
The little girl also seemed to realize this, her small face filled with fear and unease.
...
"Hmm?" The person in the coffin, miles away, frowned as if they had seen the situation in Sucheng.
"He's not dead yet."
"Ever since the Sages severed the connection between heaven and earth, only my sect could ignore the shackles of the world and perform magical arts and divine powers, collectively known as Fang Shi. I didn't expect that after all, we would still be worn down by the world, and our magic would be weakened to this extent."
"It seems this is what is called the Age of Dharma Decline."
The person from the coffin muttered to themselves, as if recounting a shocking secret that history had never recorded and no one had ever told.
"Since that is the case..." The person from the coffin's eyes flashed, and they looked towards Sucheng again. "If you don't kill the snake, you'll be harmed by it. I can only resort to other means."
With that, the person from the coffin closed their eyes, seemingly entering a state of meditation.
A moment later, they suddenly opened their eyes: "What a coincidence, there happens to be a seed within the affected area. I shall awaken this seed and let it play its role!"
As the person from the coffin spoke, an invisible divine sense, which could not be seen or touched, crossed miles like radio waves, reaching a certain manor in Sucheng.
Inside that manor in Sucheng, an old man who was dozing suddenly woke up from his dream.
Having been in a high position for a long time and accustomed to concealing his emotions, he, for the first time, showed a look of shock on his face.
He then stood up from his recliner without hesitation, like a puppet receiving a command, and headed towards the distance.
"Old Master!" Several bodyguards were greatly alarmed and hurried to follow.
However, no matter how the bodyguards inquired, the old man did not answer where he was going, and instead, his footsteps became even more rapid.
Thus, they rushed all the way and arrived by a secluded road.
In the middle of the road, a little girl stood fearfully, looking at a middle-aged man lying on the ground.
"Insolent little bastard... How dare you hit me!"
"Since you were born without a father, I will discipline you in place of your father! Let you know that there are some people you cannot afford to offend! If you offend them, you will die!"
The middle-aged man on the ground suddenly opened his eyes, his expression ferocious, and he shouted sternly.
Then he flipped over and sat up, raising his palm the size of a fan high, and swung it with all his might towards the little girl's face.
Judging by the force of this blow, the middle-aged man seemed determined not to stop until he had beaten the little girl to death with one slap!
"Stop!"
Suddenly, the old man, who seemed like a puppet, shouted.
He took a step forward and stood in front of the little girl.
"What, you want to be a hero? Have you even peed to see what you are!" the middle-aged man sneered at the old man and spat.
The old man ignored the middle-aged man and coldly said to the bodyguards who followed behind him: "Tell him: what I am."
The bodyguards, with expressionless faces, walked up to the middle-aged man.
One of them suddenly grabbed the middle-aged man by the throat and slowly lifted the two-hundred-plus-pound man from the ground!
"Did you just say: some people will die if you offend them? Then, it's a coincidence, this person you call 'what am I' happens to be someone who will die if you offend them!" the bodyguard said, his voice chillingly cold.
The middle-aged man clearly realized something was wrong, his breathing difficult, and he asked with difficulty, "Who... who... is he?"
"Ma! Zhen! Bang!"
Boom!
The three words spoken by the bodyguard struck the middle-aged man like a bolt from the blue, leaving him stunned and speechless.
It was Ma Zhenbang!
A prominent magnate throughout the entire S Province!
The mere Sucheng was just a small backyard for the Ma family!
The middle-aged man never dreamed that he had offended such a powerful figure!
The middle-aged man instantly became terrified and stammered an attempt to explain, "Old Master Ma, I... I didn't mean to... I really didn't know it was you..."
However, before he could finish, he was stopped by a gesture from Old Master Ma.
"I don't like listening to him talk. Find a way to make him shut up."
Hearing this, the bodyguard twisted the middle-aged man's jaw.
With a crack, the middle-aged man's jaw dislocated. He instantly became mute and could no longer utter a word!
Old Master Ma nodded with satisfaction: "Much quieter now."
Then he squinted at the little girl, seemingly pondering why he had come here through some unseen force to rescue such a small child.
After a moment of thought, Old Master Ma bent down, stroked the little girl's head, and said, "There are many bad people here. Grandpa will take you away, okay?"
The little girl was already terrified and bewildered, saying nothing but nodding desperately.
Old Master Ma smiled, picked up the little girl, and was about to leave.
However, as he was leaving, he suddenly said, "Investigate this fellow's background. Since he likes to bully others with his power, let him go to a place with many people to bully."
The middle-aged man instantly collapsed to the ground, despair etched on his face.
Old Master Ma's "place with many people" was none other than prison!
With the dirty deeds he had done when he rose to power, he would likely spend the rest of his life in prison, even if he didn't die!
Old Master Ma's words had directly sentenced him to death!