Only by becoming powerful could they escape the control of the Zhou father and son. But they were still too young and didn’t know if they would ever get the chance.

"Even if it weren’t just a guess, you wouldn’t be a match for Old Thief Zhou, not even if you really reached SS-level," Tang Xue whispered, her hands roaming over Min Wu’s body as she pinned him down. "Since you know you have no chance of winning right now, if we go into hiding, Old Thief Zhou will never give you time to grow. He’ll hunt us with everything he has."

Li Fei and his men were assigned to protect Tang Xue. They were usually respectful and obedient, appearing to follow only her orders. Two of them were even her ardent admirers. But Tang Xue didn’t dare to trust them.

"Old Thief Zhou has been famous for a long time. His Spiritual Power Level is high, his Bloodline Talent is powerful, and he’s extremely cautious. He also has several fanatically loyal men at his side. Even if you could use your Talent Ability to launch a surprise attack, it would be incredibly difficult to kill him. If the assassination fails, there won’t be a second chance." Tang Xue felt a deep sense of dread whenever she thought of Zhou Tianqiao. His reputation was formidable, and they had suffered greatly at his hands in the past.

"So, what’s our next move?"

"If Zhou Yi dies, Old Thief Zhou will never let us go," Min Wu said, worried.

"What if we leave the Secret Realm and go live on the Central Star before Old Thief Zhou has a chance to react?" Min Wu knew Tang Xue’s Spiritual Power Level was also on the verge of a breakthrough. Once she reached the Central Star, as long as her spiritual power rose to A-level, she could be matched with other Contractors. The residents of the Central Star all had powerful backgrounds; Tang Xue could use a new Contractor’s family to counterbalance the Zhou Family.

"HISS..." Tang Xue dug her fingers hard into Min Wu’s chest, and he sucked in a sharp breath of pain.

For the past three years, ever since the Zhou Family first came knocking, Min Wu had been urging Tang Xue to move to the Central Star. At the time, Tang Xue’s Spiritual Power Level had just reached B-level, qualifying her for residency there. If she had gone to the Central Star and registered her information with the Controller Protection Association, the Zhou Family wouldn’t have been able to touch her.

However, Min Wu was just an ordinary male Spirit Controller from a Low-class Star. He wouldn’t receive any special protection from the Federation. Even if he accompanied Tang Xue to the Central Star as her Contractor, with the Zhou Family’s influence, getting rid of him would be a trivial matter.

It was precisely because Tang Xue knew this and feared for Min Wu’s life that she had been forced to accept Zhou Yi.

"You keep trying to persuade me to go to the Central Star. Do you really think we’re out of options?" Tang Xue kissed Min Wu’s eyelids. He obediently kept his eyes shut, hiding the deep-seated fear and worry within them.

"Once Zhou Yi dies, Old Thief Zhou will definitely take it out on you. You’ve already suffered so much for my sake. We can’t let him hurt you now, not in this situation." It had been painful for Min Wu to watch Tang Xue swallow her pride and make compromises with Zhou Yi over the past few years, all for him.

"Which is why Zhou Yi can’t die. Not yet," Tang Xue concluded with a sigh of resignation.

"After tonight’s attack, there’s no way that Miss Ning will willingly treat Zhou Yi. What if I use my Talent Ability to go and grab her?" ’I really don’t want to make a move against Ning Xuan,’ Min Wu thought, ’but for Tang Xue’s safety, I’d do anything.’

"You survived, and your Talent Ability even upgraded, all thanks to Ning Xuan’s intervention. We can’t control Zhou Yi, but we can control ourselves. We can’t do something so ungrateful. Besides, my intuition tells me we can’t afford to offend her. We’ll have to find another way to save Zhou Yi," Tang Xue said softly.

"Miss Tang, the Young Master is not doing well! Please, come take a look!" someone shouted in a panic from outside the tent.

Tang Xue released Min Wu and got off him. Min Wu sat up, straightened her clothes, and looked at her with concern.

"Don’t come out. Just stay here and rest." Tang Xue waved a hand dismissively and left.

She arrived at Zhou Yi’s tent to find the team’s doctor, Li Fu, treating his injury. He was copying the method Ning Xuan had used during the day, cutting a small slit in Zhou Yi’s swollen, blackish-purple wound and pouring in a vial of high-grade Healing Medicine. SIZZLE. The medicine reacted faintly with the poisoned blood. Li Fu shook his head. ’It’s no use. Still not working.’

He had already tried seven or eight different types of Healing Medicine, but none had the same effect as Ning Xuan’s treatment from earlier.

Zhou Yi stared blankly at the swollen, blackish-purple wound on his shoulder. He couldn’t feel any pain. To be precise, he couldn’t feel his entire arm.

When Li Fu saw Tang Xue arrive, he bowed respectfully. "Miss Tang, I’m at my wit’s end."

Zhou Yi saw Tang Xue and turned his head to stare intently at her. "If you don’t save me, you and Min Wu are both dead," he said viciously. ’If I die, my father will sense it immediately.’

"All of you, get out," Tang Xue said to Li Fu and Li Fei.

Without hesitation, Li Fu and Li Fei both exited the tent.

"Tang Xue, so what if my communicator is broken? You still have to figure out a way to save me! Hurry up and send Min Wu to capture Ning Xuan and make her treat me." Although Zhou Yi’s tone was harsh, his subtle movements betrayed his inner anxiety.

"Why go through all that trouble? I can just treat you myself." Tang Xue flicked the dagger in her hand, plunging it into Zhou Yi’s shoulder. A sudden, excruciating pain shot through the arm that had been completely numb just a moment before.

"ARGH!" Zhou Yi cried out in agony. "Why does it hurt so much? What are you doing?"

"I’m saving you, of course. Don’t worry, I won’t let you die that easily," Tang Xue said, watching him with a chuckle.

’No one can enter or leave the Secret Realm until the Alchemist Competition is over,’ Tang Xue thought. ’I have to use this time to figure out where Li Fei and the others stand and eliminate any traitors. As for Zhou Yi... I can’t cure him, but I have ways to keep him hanging on. As long as he’s still breathing when the competition ends, Zhou Tianqiao won’t know his true condition. Then I won’t have to worry about him setting an inescapable trap for us outside. If I can just get through this for now... I’ll take it one step at a time after that.’

’Of course, Min Wu and I both need to focus on our Cultivation during this period. If we can break through quickly, we’ll have a better chance of surviving the hunt that will surely follow.’

"ARGH..." Zhou Yi’s screams of agony continued for over ten minutes. Black, poisoned blood gushed from the dagger wound in his shoulder, filling the entire tent with its foul stench.

Zhou Yi screamed himself hoarse until his cries weakened into faint groans. When Tang Xue finally pulled the dagger out, he could no longer stay conscious and passed out.

Back with Ning Xuan, Min Wu’s sudden appearance to take Zhou Yi had put Leng Yue, Lin Mo, and everyone else on high alert.