Dapeng's Time Travel Life

Chapter 179 The Crisis of Trust Rift Intensifies

Inside the warehouse, magical light clashed, and shouts of battle filled the air. The fight between Zhang Peng and Pan Liwei had reached a fever pitch; each clash of spiritual energy caused violent tremors, shaking the warehouse shelves until they teetered on the brink of collapse, scattering spiritual herbs and pills across the floor. Lin Wan'er and her family disciples engaged in a fierce battle with Pan Liwei's men, the two sides locked in a stalemate.

Xia Lijuan was also fighting fiercely, her figure weaving through the crowd, unleashing the magic she had painstakingly honed. However, amidst the intense battle, Zhang Peng's gaze occasionally drifted to Xia Lijuan, stirring complex emotions within him. He recalled the past; Xia Lijuan had deceived him many times, those lies like sharp thorns piercing his trusting heart. Although she now worked diligently within the family, those past deceptions lingered like a shadow, impossible to dispel.

"Zhang Peng, watch out!" Xia Lijuan suddenly shouted, a black beam of magic shooting towards Zhang Peng's back. Zhang Peng instinctively dodged to the side; the beam grazed his clothes, scorching a patch. He turned to look at Xia Lijuan, his eyes filled with gratitude and confusion. Xia Lijuan met his gaze, opened her mouth, but said nothing.

At this moment, the defensive formation activated by Su Yao took effect, enveloping the warehouse in light and trapping Pan Liwei and the others inside. Upon seeing this, Pan Liwei's expression changed drastically. He frantically attacked the formation, trying to find a way out.

"Zhang Peng, do you think you can trap me like this?" Pan Liwei roared, "You will all die today!" He unleashed a forbidden dark technique, and the dark power around his body became increasingly dense, forming a powerful oppressive force that made it difficult for everyone to breathe.

Zhang Peng gritted his teeth and mobilized the power of the Dragon Ball with all his might, the golden light and dark power clashing against each other. Lin Wan'er also increased her spiritual power output, her wood-type spells wrapping around Pan Liwei like vines, attempting to restrict his movements.

During a lull in the fighting, Zhang Peng noticed that Xia Lijuan seemed a bit off. Her eyes were darting around, and her movements had become sluggish, as if she were hiding something. Zhang Peng's suspicions grew stronger, and he decided that he had to find out Xia Lijuan's true thoughts after the battle.

As the battle continued, the family disciples gradually gained the upper hand. Pan Liwei's men fell one by one, and he himself was also forced to retreat steadily by the combined attacks of Zhang Peng and Lin Wan'er.

"Hmph, you guys are ruthless!" Pan Liwei saw that the situation was not good and knew that he could not win today. He suddenly unleashed a powerful dark barrier to block everyone's attacks, and then took advantage of the chaos to rush towards the weak point of the defensive formation.

"Oh no, he's trying to escape!" Zhang Peng shouted and immediately gave chase. Just as Pan Liwei was about to break through the formation, Zhang Peng arrived and unleashed a full-force attack, repelling him.

"Trying to run? Not so easy!" Zhang Peng said angrily.

Pan Liwei's face darkened; he knew he had no chance of winning today. "Zhang Peng, we'll settle this score another day!" he said viciously, then cast another dark spell, creating a cloud of smoke. Taking advantage of the obstructed view, he successfully escaped the warehouse.

The battle ended, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. But Zhang Peng remained vigilant, his gaze fixed on Xia Lijuan. Xia Lijuan lowered her head, avoiding his eyes.

"Xia Lijuan, come here." Zhang Peng's voice was icy cold, devoid of any emotion.

Xia Lijuan slowly walked up to Zhang Peng, her head bowed even lower. "Zhang Peng, I..." She started to speak, but Zhang Peng interrupted her.

"Are you hiding something from me? Your behavior during the battle was strange." Zhang Peng stared intently at Xia Lijuan, trying to find the answer in her expression.

Xia Lijuan hesitated for a moment before saying, "Zhang Peng, I... I do have something to hide from you. Pan Liwei came to me before and threatened me to help him, otherwise he would hurt the people I care about. I dare not tell you, for fear of bringing trouble to the family."

Zhang Peng was shocked; he hadn't expected Xia Lijuan to choose to hide the truth again. "So you're just going to take the blame yourself? Do you know that this could harm the entire family?" His voice was filled with anger and disappointment.

Xia Lijuan cried and said, "I know I was wrong, Zhang Peng. I really didn't want to betray the family. I was just too scared."

Lin Wan'er stepped forward, looked at Xia Lijuan, and said softly, "Xia Lijuan, we are a family. We should face any difficulties together, instead of bearing them alone."

Su Yao chimed in, "Yes, we're all family, we share the burdens."

Zhang Peng took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. He knew now wasn't the time to pursue the matter; the family had just weathered a crisis, and there were still many things to deal with. But Xia Lijuan's concealment had deepened the rift in trust between them.

"Let's leave this matter aside for now. In the future, no matter what happens, you must not hide anything," Zhang Peng said coldly. Then he turned around and began to arrange for the family disciples to clean the warehouse and repair the defensive formation.

Xia Lijuan stood there, tears streaming down her face. She knew she had once again broken Zhang Peng's heart and plunged her family into danger. She secretly vowed to prove her loyalty through her actions in the future.

However, what Zhang Peng didn't know was that although Pan Liwei had escaped this time, he had already colluded with a more powerful dark force. This dark force was secretly plotting a larger conspiracy, and the Zhang family of cultivators would become their primary target.