After Zhang Ergou and the others saw that no one was chasing them from behind, their tense minds relaxed, and they slowed their pace.
"This junior brother, running so fast, what are you doing? Is senior brother so scary?"
Suddenly, a sharp voice echoed from ahead, startling Zhang Ergou instantly.
Looking up, he saw a young man in a purple Daoist robe standing in front of them with a smile.
His face was adorned with a benevolent smile, appearing harmless.
Zhang Ergou quickly realized that this person was the leading disciple he had seen at the cave entrance earlier.
"Heh heh, hello senior brother, it's just dawn, we were exercising!"
Seeing the other's smiling demeanor, Zhang Ergou feigned ignorance and replied.
However, his inner vigilance remained high.
"Is that so? I thought you juniors were running because you were afraid of us!"
The young man in the purple Daoist robe did not show any anger upon hearing this. Instead, his smile grew even more pronounced.
Looking at the other's beaming face, Zhang Ergou's confusion deepened.
What was this senior brother's deal?
"Since you juniors enjoy exercising so much, let senior brother accompany you. Junior brother, what do you say?"
The young man in the purple robe maintained his amiable expression, but his words sent a chill down Zhang Ergou's spine.
While he said he was accompanying them for exercise, wasn't it essentially a threat to beat them up?
Seeing the other's smiling face, Zhang Ergou felt as if he were facing a formidable enemy.
"Junior brother, don't be so nervous. Senior brother is just discussing it with you!"
The purple-robed youth's smile was incredibly deceptive. If Zhang Ergou and the others hadn't seen him leading people to search for them earlier, they might have actually believed his words.
"What, do you juniors not agree?" The purple-robed youth continued to smile, but his tone gradually turned cold.
"Senior brother, we were just out for a casual exercise. How could we trouble you to be our sparring partner!"
Zhang Ergou said, gritting his teeth. He wanted to avoid a confrontation if possible. The four of them had not yet broken through to the Golden Core stage.
Moreover, Chi Yu had warned him before descending the mountain not to use spiritual energy unless absolutely necessary. Zhang Ergou had no confidence when relying solely on physical strength.
"Senior brother is in a good mood today. The morning spiritual energy is abundant, which is a good time for practicing skills. You juniors are also practicing, why not spar together?"
The purple-robed youth's words were so eloquent that they left no room for refusal.
However, if they actually fought, Zhang Ergou and the others would undoubtedly be the ones getting beaten.
"Senior brother, junior brother didn't mean it like that. After all, we are newly entered disciples of the inner sect. Our cultivation is far inferior to yours, and we are definitely no match for you."
"Why don't you consider letting us go?"
Zhang Ergou said with a fawning smile, trying to appease the other.
Lin Yichen, Xiao Qingyu, and Wang Teng echoed in agreement: "Yes, senior brother, please let us go."
"Let you go? What are you talking about? Did senior brother trouble you?" A hint of displeasure flickered across the handsome face of the purple-robed youth, his brows furrowed.
He seemed dissatisfied with Zhang Ergou's words.
"No, no, absolutely not. Senior brother is not that kind of person!" Zhang Ergou, Lin Yichen, and the others quickly shook their heads and denied it.
"We misspoke. We hope senior brother will not take it to heart."
"Good. Since you admit you misspoke, doesn't that mean you should do something? Senior brother mentioned accompanying you for a spar earlier. You should at least give me that face, shouldn't you?"
The purple-robed youth's expression relaxed once more, and his signature smile reappeared.
If Zhang Ergou and the others hadn't seen this youth's expression change before, they would have been truly fooled by that smile.
Seeing that they couldn't escape, Zhang Ergou and the others exchanged glances, seeing a hint of solemnity in each other's eyes.
Although the purple-robed youth smiled, the pressure he exuded was palpable.
His cultivation was at the mid-Golden Core stage. Even without releasing his aura, the invisible pressure made their scalps tingle.
"What do you say, junior brothers? Have you considered it?" The purple-robed youth's voice was calm, but his sharp eyes were fixed on Zhang Ergou and the others.
"Senior brother, aren't you making things difficult for us?" Xiao Qingyu, unable to bear the pressure any longer, complained.
It's over!
Zhang Ergou and Lin Yichen exchanged glances, seeing helplessness in each other's eyes.
Just as they feared, this purple-robed youth was clearly here to cause trouble and was looking for an excuse to act.
And Xiao Qingyu's single sentence had provided it perfectly.
"Haha, this junior brother speaks well. Making things difficult for you, you're quite right. Senior brother happens to be free today and will make things difficult for you juniors!"
The youth laughed instead of getting angry. In his eyes, these few people were merely playthings.
"Ah, I'll fight you!" Xiao Qingyu, unable to stand the scrutiny any longer, charged at the other with his two large hammers.
"Oh, quite courageous!" The purple-robed youth's expression remained unchanged as he watched Xiao Qingyu charge, showing no signs of panic.
Xiao Qingyu's hammers left deep pits in the ground as he charged, but when he was less than ten feet away from the purple-robed youth, he found he couldn't get any closer.
It was as if he was blocked by an invisible barrier.
Xiao Qingyu swung his hammers to strike, but his subsequent actions made Zhang Ergou and the other two, who hadn't yet moved, gasp in shock.
Xiao Qingyu's swing speed slowed down drastically, like a slow-motion scene. And Xiao Qingyu, realizing he couldn't advance, wanted to retreat but couldn't.
He was completely restrained, as if held by an invisible giant hand.
Zhang Ergou, Wang Teng, and Lin Yichen saw a look of horror in each other's eyes.
They knew Xiao Qingyu's strength all too well. Among cultivators below the Golden Core stage, Xiao Qingyu was definitely among the top-ranked.
Furthermore, with his twin hammers and the killing power they unleashed with spiritual energy, even an early-stage Golden Core cultivator would have to avoid hisιθ.
Yet, under the control of this purple-robed youth, he couldn't even muster the strength to attack.
Could this be the Senior Brother Qin they had heard about in the cave, an inner disciple with mid-Golden Core stage cultivation!
"Attack!" Zhang Ergou commanded in a low voice. Seeing their brother restrained, they naturally couldn't stand by and do nothing.
Lin Yichen and Wang Teng nodded and charged at the purple-robed youth from different directions.
As they ran, Lin Yichen and Wang Teng unleashed their spells and skills. Unlike Xiao Qingyu, they didn't charge directly at the purple-robed youth.
Instead, they circled around him. Judging by their positions, it seemed they intended to surround him.
The purple-robed youth, seeing their actions, was not alarmed. On the contrary, the amusement in his eyes grew more apparent.