After having its momentum lost to gravity, the shadow dug a human-shaped trench into the ground before naturally coming to a halt a distance after.

*Crack*

“AAAAHHHH! AHHH! IT HURTS! IT HURTS! IT HURTS! AAHHHHAHHHAHH.”

A cracking sound filled the air, followed by a shrill scream. Hearing the scream, seriousness took over Yuan Mo’s expression. Like a blur, he disappeared from his original spot, appearing at the edge of the trench. His two eyes peered through the dust cloud, looking at Samuel holding his shoulder while flailing around like a fish out of water.

“Stop moving about and stay still,” Yuan Mo ordered.

Hearing the voice, Samuel’s watery eyes opened a crack. Seeing the vague silhouette of an old man he had grown familiar with in recent days through the dust cloud, Samuel’s expression eased.

However, just as he turned to get up, and by extension, tried to move his right arm, his expression stiffened and a bloodcurdling scream soon followed, escaping out his mouth, as if he were being tortured as inhumanely as one could imagine. Remembering Yuan Mo’s words, Samuel puffed up his cheeks before biting his lower lip. Clear drops garnered the corners of his eyes, adding a comical touch to his miserable appearance, making him look both laughable and pitiable at the same time.

Looking at the boy, the corner of Yuan Mo’s lip twitched. Walking up to Samuel, Yuan Mo bent down, touching at the side of Samuel’s neck. Following the touch, the latter felt a mildly warm current surge through his neck for an instant before subsiding as if it never existed. If not for the still-fresh feeling of a distinct temperature, he wouldn’t believe as if anything happened.

Thinking of the implications, a cold sweat broke out on the back of his neck,Terrifying! Absolutely terrifying! If he wanted to harm me… hah, I’m glad I’m on the same side as—Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Stop! Stop hurting already!

Like a small kid he was, Samuel began tearing up. However, almost as soon as he began tearing up, he bit his lip, holding back his tears. I-I’m a man! Real men don’t cry! I have to be strong! Ahhhh, no, I don’t want to be strong. Just stop it from hurting.

Countless contradicting thoughts went through the boy’s mind. Afraid of pain, the boy dared not move, bitterly holding back his tears to keep his non-existent valiant image from shattering completely.

Seeing the boy on the verge of sobbing, Yuan Mo sighed. “Just how did you break your shoulder on something like that? Alright, get seated, I’ll connect it back.”

A few screams and sobbing sounds later, Samuel sat upright in the trench he made, looking as if he would cry at any moment, his expression unusually rich. However, from the corner of his eye, he could see Shi Mei occasionally peeking glances before turning away, her expression as cold as always.

However, he failed to notice the involuntary twitch at the corner of her lip, alongside her brows wrinkled with slight concern.

Feeling the indifferent gaze of the girl younger than him, a sense of indignance washed over Samuel. As if a spark had been lit, he stopped biting his lip and puffed up his chest, acting like the alpha in the room. Instead of writhing in pain, Samuel looked at Yuan Mo with a desperate gaze, like that of a predator.

“Do it! Fast! Before I change my mind and start screaming!” Samuel bellowed. However, the more he spoke, the more his voice began to falter.

Although Yuan Mo gave the boy an amused look, he didn’t dawdle and grabbed Samuel’s arm and shoulder firmly.

Feeling the grip, a cold sweat broke out on Samuel’s forehead. He turned his head to look at Yuan Mo. Eyes filled with a gaze like that of a child begging to be spared a beating, he said, “Actually, let’s not do it this way. It’ll hurt a lot. Knock me out first.”

Yuan Mo rolled his eyes before reaching his hand into the pocket of his robe and pulling out a handkerchief. Shifting his gaze between Samuel and his handkerchief, his brows sank. His hand moved, shoving the napkin into the boy’s mouth.

As soon as Samuel’s hand reached out to remove the handkerchief, his eyes rolled back into their sockets, revealing their whites. Saliva trickled down the corner of his mouth. His body twitched once every few moments, but other than that, he had no reaction whatsoever, as if he had fainted.

Looking at Samuel acting this way, Yuan Mo had an urge to slap him on the back of his head, as if to hopefully knock some sense into this unruly brat. And unsurprisingly, he did just that.

*Whack!*

A crisp sound filled the surroundings. Looking at his wrinkled hand, Yuan Mo muttered, “I think I understand why little Zhu enjoys hitting little Diego this much.”

Without standing on ceremony, Yuan Mo’s hand moved.

*Whack!* *Whack!* *Whack!*

Three whacks echoed through the surroundings. Yuan Mo clenched and unclenched his palm, his face filled with an entertained look. Nodding in satisfaction, he patted his clothes before walking out of the trench, his face as calm as always.

However, just as he took one step, he stopped. Looking at Samuel with a forgetful expression, his hand reached for the boy’s mouth, in particular, for the very handkerchief he had stuffed inside before reconnecting the boy’s arm to muffle his scream.

Looking at the drenched piece of cloth in his hand which still dripped with saliva, Yuan Mo exhaled. A ball of flame lit up in his hand for a second like a slightly longer firework, converging around the handkerchief.

As soon as the flames dispersed, the handkerchief slowly floated down onto Yuan Mo’s palm, barely warm enough, as if it were just ironed out. Reaching out with his other hand, Yuan Mo cleaned his hands with the napkin as he walked away from the scene with a placid expression like nothing happened.

On the other hand, Samuel’s head buzzed. The back of his head felt both hot and numb at the same time. Meanwhile, waves of pain radiated out of his shoulder, albeit not as intensely as before.

He opened his mouth just about to say something when Yuan Mo’s voice sounded out. “Alright, you need some rest and I’m also tired. Let’s go back for today. We’ll come back here tomorrow again. Hopefully, you’ll be more attentive the next time.”

With his jaw hanging wide open, Samuel got up, yet to recover from the shock.

The group of three thus headed out towards their abode. The way back was a lot quieter than before as Samuel still stayed silent, processing the events that just happened while Yuan Mo and Shi Mei both chose not to speak a word, be it out of shock or some tacit understanding.

Suddenly, Samuel broke the thin veil of silence, “Teacher Mo, what was that thing?”

Without looking back, Yuan Mo answered, “Just a piece of log. Although, I remember it being a heavy one. If you were attentive, you wouldn’t have fallen for such an obvious trap. Although, with your obliviousness, you strutted past other traps there, so I suppose there’s some merit in that.”

Samuel nodded. “You’re right. I should’ve paid more attention. But even so, why did you hit me on the head? And I can understand once, but why more after that? My head is still spinning.”

Yuan Mo looked down at his palm in amusement. However, the voice that came from his mouth sounded as still as before. “Putting that aside, is your shoulder alright? With such an impact, I thought a bone or two in your arm would’ve been crushed. Surprisingly, it was just a dislocated shoulder.”

Scratching the back of his head, Samuel replied, “I didn’t get hit by that thing up front. It just grazed my arm. But just that was enough to send me flying. Thinking back, I really am lucky. What if it hit me head on?”

Thinking about the matter, Samuel involuntarily shivered.

The chat between Yuan Mo and Samuel flourished on the way back, whereas Shi Mei listened from the side with no participation as usual. Surprisingly, as if having decided tacitly, neither of the two brought up Samuel’s comical appearance after being hit. Inwardly, Samuel felt gratified towards this attitude.

Having returned to Yuan Mo’s cottage, Samuel directly headed back to his room while declining dinner. Laying down on his bed, he thought back to what he remembered of the trap filled mountain and began preparing himself mentally.

At an unknown point, the scene before his eyes blackened. The next he saw, the sun shone brightly overhead. The pain in his arm had already subsided enough. Without waiting for Yuan Mo and Shi Mei, Samuel traced back the path from yesterday, arriving at the foot of the mountain.

Peering through, his gaze landed on the trace of yellow amidst the green. His eyes turned sharp as he charged forward.

While charging, his appearance filled with a valiant resolve like that of a soldier. Raising his morale, he shouted, “Damned mountain, be prepared to bow before Lord Samuel! It’ll be your greatest honour—”