Under the intense pain, Zhou Yan's cheeks instantly turned a liver-like color.
He gritted his teeth, his eyes bloodshot, yet he dared not resist.
He knew that if he dared to fight back, he would be met with two slaps.
"Splat!"
At this moment, another masked man in black directly picked up a cleaver from the table and plunged it into Zhou Yan's abdomen, blood gushing out.
"Ugh..."
In this instant, Zhou Yan's face contorted into a ferocious grimace. The pain sent his whole body into spasms, blood trickled from the corners of his mouth, and he clutched his stomach, groaning in agony.
"Zhou Yan, you still want to run? Where do you think you can escape to?"
"Let me tell you, you can't escape."
"We have already gathered all the disciples of the Zhou Yan family. They are right below the city wall. If you don't give Miss an explanation today, you won't be allowed to leave!"
One of the masked men in black spoke with a cold sneer, his gaze malevolent, filled with resentment and hatred.
"I... I..."
"Zhou Yan, do you have any more excuses?"
"I know Miss must like you very much and cannot bear to see you suffer. If you obediently hand over the Zhou Yan family's assets and commit suicide as atonement, I might spare your life."
A masked man in black, at the seventh level of Qi Refining, looked at Zhou Yan and said sinisterly.
"No... no..."
Zhou Yan's face was deathly pale, his lips trembling.
How could he not understand that if he truly handed over his family fortune, death would await him.
Moreover, Zhou Yan believed that his father would definitely kill him, and would never let anyone who harmed Zhou Wan go unpunished.
Thinking of this, the beautiful and moving face of Zhou Wan flashed through Zhou Yan's mind, and his eyes became slightly moist.
"Zhou Yan, you are unwilling?"
"Then don't blame us for crushing flowers!"
A masked man in black, at the eighth level of Qi Refining, said.
They were all cultivators at the ninth level of Qi Refining, which was already a top-tier existence in this mortal world. Even in those super sects, they would be considered core strength, so they had no fear of an ant like Zhou Yan at the seventh level of Qi Refining.
"Zhou Yan, you'd better obediently hand over the family's resources!"
A masked man in black, at the eighth level of Qi Refining, shouted coldly.
"No, I cannot hand over the family's possessions, otherwise, Miss will die!"
"And... and..."
Zhou Yan spoke with a tremor, but still could not utter a complete sentence in the end.
"And what?"
"And what?"
A masked man in black raised an eyebrow, his eyes narrowing into a slit.
"I don't want Miss to die, I don't want to see Zhou Family Fort destroyed!"
"If you don't hand over the Patriarch's inheritance, then Miss must die. Choose, do you choose death, or do you choose to live?"
"Zhou Yan, you still don't know, do you? The most cruel thing in this world is when it's not you who dies, but the one you love."
Another masked man in black also laughed.
They had all been cultivated from Zhou Yan's side and understood him to some extent, so they knew his weakness.
Zhou Yan was the second son of Zhou Family Fort, the fiancé of Zhou Wan, and also the fiancé of Zhou Wan.
"Zhou Yan, if you choose to live, then you can live very well, and even gain a higher status."
"If you choose to die, then you will never see Miss again. Tell me, how should you choose?"
"Heh heh, Zhou Yan, you should feel honored!"
Zhou Yan and another masked man in black at the ninth level of Qi Refining displayed mocking expressions on their faces.
"Zhou Yan, even if you don't choose to die, we will send you to prison."
"We will beat you three times a day, once a day, until you confess your guilt."
Zhou Yan's body trembled. His heart was filled with grief and despair.
"I'll hand it over, I'll hand it all over!"
"I... I am willing to give the family fortune to you!"
"Hahaha, it's good to be sensible early on, to avoid suffering bodily pain."
"Zhou Yan, we are your brothers, don't make us look down on you!"
The two masked men in black burst into laughter, and as they spoke, they helped Zhou Yan up and led him towards the city wall.
...
"Miss..."
Zhou Yan was brought to the city wall by them.
At this moment, Zhou Wan had woken up. She lay on the bed, her expression haggard, tear stains on her face, her eyes extremely red, and tears like a rabbit's constantly rolling down.
"Brother Zhou Yan, are... are you alright?"
When Zhou Wan saw Zhou Yan appear, she quickly sat up, her voice full of worry, and asked.
Her voice was choked with sobs.
"Miss, I... I'm fine."
Zhou Yan looked at Zhou Wan, shook his head, and forced a smile.
"It's good that you're fine, it's good that you're fine!"
"Brother Zhou Yan, how are you? Don't lie to me!"
Hearing Zhou Yan's words, Zhou Wan breathed a sigh of relief. She grabbed his arm and asked eagerly.
"I'm fine, just a little weak. I'll be fine after a little recuperation."
Upon hearing this, Zhou Wan finally relaxed completely, a sweet smile appearing on her pretty face. "Brother Zhou Yan, since you're fine, let's go home quickly. My parents are very worried about you, they really want to see you!"
As she spoke, Zhou Wan took Zhou Yan's hand and prepared to get out of bed.
"Ouch!"
But after taking only two steps, a piercing pain shot up from Zhou Wan's ankle.
"Hiss!"
Her delicate eyebrows furrowed, her pretty face instantly became frosty, she gently bit her lower lip, and a look of pain appeared in her beautiful eyes.
"Miss, how are you?"
"Miss, quickly let your servant have a look."
The maid next to Zhou Wan, seeing her expression, quickly said.
"No need, you can all leave now."
"Yes, Miss."
The two maids replied respectfully.
Then, the two of them walked out of the room and closed the door.
"Miss, are you alright?"
Zhou Yan's heart was filled with worry. He supported Zhou Wan as she walked towards the inner part of the room and asked.
"Mm, it's nothing, just a slight pain in my ankle."
Zhou Wan shook her head, tears streaming down her face, but her eyes were filled with sweetness.
"Miss, you've suffered injustice during this time."
"I'm fine."
Zhou Wan shook her head, a sweet smile appearing on her pretty face.
"Brother Zhou Yan, I'm truly sorry for making you worry during this period."
"It's just..."
"It's just what?"
Seeing Zhou Wan hesitate to speak, Zhou Yan asked.
"It's just, what should we do now?"
Zhou Wan asked with some worry.
"Miss, don't worry. As long as we are alive, we will be fine. I will definitely find a way to keep you alive."
Zhou Yan patted his chest and promised.
"But, they..."
"They wouldn't dare to do anything to us, don't worry. Leave this matter to me, I will find a way to make them give up!"
Zhou Yan's tone was filled with determination.