Chapter 1561 - Good Intentions Turned To Harm

The woman lunged with terrifying speed, whipping up a violent gale as she struck at the pirate leader.

"The Two Polar Palm! How do you know about the Two Polar Palm?" the pirate leader blurted as he recognized the technique instantly.

The palm strike split into two opposing forces, and the suffocating pressure left him deeply unsettled.

That recognition alone proved the beautiful woman's status, as even in the Spirit Martial Astral Domain, this palm technique ranked among the outstanding techniques.

With a loud explosion, the pirate leader erupted with a powerful aura at the seventh-level Void Realm and used his cultivation to suppress her. When their palms collided, the backlash still forced them both to retreat.

"You're a disciple of the Mei Clan!" the pirate leader said, his face turning terrifyingly grim the moment he identified the beautiful woman's background.

At the mention of the Mei Clan, a trace of pain flickered across the beautiful woman's eyes.

"Big Brother, since she's a disciple of the Mei Clan, we can't let her leave! We have to get rid of her!"

The other pirates raised their weapons at once and swarmed forward, each one carrying decent cultivation.

"Kill the man and take the woman alive," the pirate leader ordered.

The pirates moved in unison and charged straight at the burly man, aiming to kill him on the spot.

The woman's figure flashed, and she appeared before the burly man in a heartbeat.

"Husband, take Xiao Yi and run. I'll hold them off," the woman said, thrusting their daughter into her husband's arms and choosing to stay behind to buy them time to flee.

"Since you're a survivor of the Mei Clan, don't dream about leaving tonight!" the pirate leader roared, his voice carrying far, and the pirates still raiding the surroundings rushed over.

The battle exploded on the spot, and the woman struggled to hold them back while the pirate leader pinned her down and refused to let her break free.

The burly man had cultivation only at the Primal Origin Realm, and the child in his embrace made him even more constrained. A saber dropped from above, and he dodged with great difficulty, then clenched his teeth and charged head-on into the incoming blade, trying to drag the pirate down with him.

But the gap in strength was brutal, especially after that earlier palm strike had already sent him flying. If the saber fell, it would kill the burly man and the child in his embrace together.

The woman tried again and again to break through the encirclement, but the pirate leader held her down like iron. Just as the saber was about to descend on the burly man, a cold ray flashed as a droplet of seawater shot out and knocked the saber aside.

"Who is it?!" Everyone froze and swept their gaze around, trying to find the mastermind.

Several other guests stayed at the inn as well, yet none of them had shown themselves through the entire ordeal. Incidents like these had long become part of daily life there, and although the pirates in the Three Realm Sea Region looked chaotic, they all maintained connections with each other.

In the Three Realm Sea Region, one could offend anyone except pirates, and the pirates dared to run wild precisely because they had powerful backing.

Liu Wuxie still didn't step out, hoping the pirates would understand the warning and withdraw.

"Since you refuse to step out, don't blame us for being ruthless," the pirate leader said, his eyes turning ferocious.

"Burn the entire island! I'll see where you can keep hiding!" At his order, the pirates poured barrels of fire oil everywhere, planning to burn down every building on the island to force the meddler to reveal himself.

A flicker of murderous intent slid through Liu Wuxie's eyes. He only meant to stop needless killing, yet the pirates proved even more ruthless than he had imagined, ready to burn down the entire island on a whim.

To them, human life weighed less than dust.

"They're just ordinary people. Why make things difficult for them?" Liu Wuxie said as he stepped out from the shadows and appeared before the pirates, releasing his aura at the first-level Earth Immortal Realm and forcing all of them to retreat.

The pirate leader's face turned terrifyingly grim. He was only at the seventh-level Void Realm and knew he couldn't match Liu Wuxie, so he blew a whistle and soon received a response from the shore as he called for his companions.

In just a few breaths, a black figure appeared on the street, giving off an aura at the fourth-level Earth Immortal Realm. The instant he arrived, fear flashed across the woman's face.

"The Life-Reaping Hand, Soul Reaper," the woman whispered, recognizing the black-clad man immediately.

"You recognize me? It looks like you're truly a survivor of the Mei Clan," Soul Reaper said, glancing at the woman before turning his eyes to Liu Wuxie.

The pirate leader had already briefed him on what had happened earlier.

"You dare to interfere in the affairs of the Seventy-Two Caves' pirates? Are you tired of living?" Soul Reaper asked in an eerie tone as he looked at Liu Wuxie.

In the Thousand Islands Sea Region, the pirates of the Seventy-Two Caves were infamous, and everyone knew them. The strongest cave lord stood at the pinnacle of the Heaven Gaze Realm, and that strength alone was terrifying.

This group ranked 71st, yet no one dared to provoke them. The pirates had long allied, operating separately and only uniting when a crisis arose, and that unity gave them absolute dominance over the Thousand Islands Sea Region.

If they fought individually, others would have wiped the pirates out long ago.

"I have no interest in your disputes. This family of three is just ordinary people, and I hope that you will let them off," Liu Wuxie said, cupping his hands at Soul Reaper.

Since he had witnessed it, he couldn't pretend it never happened, especially when the little girl was barely a year old.

"Since you insist on interfering, don't blame us for what happens next," Soul Reaper said, and a Life-Reaping Talisman shot toward Liu Wuxie. That was the origin of his nickname, and it was said that he took lives whenever he attacked.

Time had erased his real name long ago.

Cold light flashed through Liu Wuxie's eyes. Did these people truly think he feared them?

The talisman reached him and shattered in an instant, releasing strange sounds that pierced Liu Wuxie's soul sea. Dizziness struck him, as if something tried to extract his soul by force.

Soul Reaper clearly wasn't an ordinary pirate if he could inscribe the Life-Reaping Talisman. Such talismans were rare and often used to guide or expel souls, and if someone's soul went missing, they could even use the Soul-Summoning Talisman to guide it back.

Against most opponents, the Life-Reaping Talisman could deliver an expected effect and catch them off guard.

Before it could fully take hold, a faint radiance spilled from the Heavenly Dao Book and devoured the talisman.

Soul Reaper's expression hardened at once. After all, his Life-Reaping Talisman had never failed him before, yet tonight someone had shattered it with absurd ease.

"Who are you, and why have you come to the Thousand Islands Sea Region?" Soul Reaper asked. He finally lost his composure, and he also couldn't find any fishy stench from Liu Wuxie, which meant Liu Wuxie wasn't a native of this sea region.

After all, those who lived in the Thousand Islands Sea Region often carried a fishy smell on them.

"I'm nobody, and I only hope that you people know where to stop," Liu Wuxie said. His aura settled, then condensed into a heavier suppression that crashed down on the pirates.

Although he appeared to be at the first-level Earth Immortal Realm, the pressure he released felt even stronger than Soul Reaper's.

Soul Reaper's eyes darted around, and for some reason, he couldn't muster the courage to attack again. The ease with which Liu Wuxie had dissolved his talisman left him deeply unsettled.

"We're leaving," Soul Reaper said, refusing to take the gamble as he led the pirates away, and the warship sailed off under the cover of night and vanished into the darkness.

After the pirates withdrew, Liu Wuxie turned around and headed back toward the inn.

The woman ran over and called out to Liu Wuxie. "Benefactor, please wait!"

"Do you need something?" Liu Wuxie asked. He had intervened out of principle and nothing more, and he didn't want to entangle himself with strangers.

"Thank you for saving our lives. Please accept my bow," the woman said, moving to kneel.

Behind her, the burly man also looked at Liu Wuxie with gratitude because without Liu Wuxie help, his family would've died.

"It's nothing," Liu Wuxie replied, lifting a hand to stop the woman from kneeling.

When he finished, he turned and walked away, leaving the family of three behind. Even after being stopped, the woman still bowed deeply toward Liu Wuxie's silhouette.

"Husband, the Tri-Glyph Island is no longer suitable for us. We have to leave tomorrow at dawn," the woman said. With her identity exposed, the pirates would surely return, and they had to flee before daybreak.

"Alright," the burly man said, nodding as he carried their child back to the shop.

Liu Wuxie heard every word clearly, and a bitter smile tugged at his lips. He couldn't tell whether he had made the right choice by saving them tonight.

"Hold it right there!" The innkeeper stepped forward and blocked Liu Wuxie from entering.

"Why are you stopping me? You have accepted my astral stones," Liu Wuxie asked with a frown.

"Your actions have brought disaster to the Tri-Glyph Island," the innkeeper said, heartache twisting into anger across his face, convinced Liu Wuxie never should have meddled.

The other shops along the street opened as well, and everyone stepped out to stare at Liu Wuxie, hostility burning in their eyes.

"I brought disaster?" Liu Wuxie asked, pointing at himself in genuine confusion.

"You shouldn't have saved them. If they died, the pirates would have left at that. Now that you intervened, they'll come back and kill all of us," the innkeeper yelled hysterically, certain Liu Wuxie had shattered the rules that kept them alive there.

The pirates had no humanity in them, and they had nearly burned down the entire island earlier, which alone showed how ruthless they were.

Liu Wuxie frowned, wondering if his good intentions had backfired, yet he still couldn't have watched a child die in front of him, and his conscience remained clear about what he did.

"Young man, you should leave now. We don't welcome you here," an old man said as he stepped forward, trembling on his cane. The Tri-Glyph Island had stayed calm for decades, and now it would have to face catastrophe.

Everyone began urging Liu Wuxie to leave at once.

"Brother, they're right. You should leave before the pirates return," the other guests in the inn said. Like Liu Wuxie, they came from elsewhere, yet all of them carried a faint fishy smell that proved they often roamed the Thousand Islands Sea Region.

"Since that's the case, please tell me what I did wrong," Liu Wuxie asked, turning to look at the middle-aged man, still unable to understand how saving a life had become a mistake.