The Tu Family Stronghold Lord grew anxious, pressing her with repeated questions.
But though Huang Wan spoke the truth every time, her answers never addressed what was asked.
The Tu Family Stronghold Lord never got what she wanted, so she turned a hostile gaze toward Doctor Wu Xiao.
Doctor Wu Xiao was also stunned: "Impressive, truly impressive! This Mushroom Person's willpower is extraordinarily powerful. Although she has completely lost her reason and is in a state of total madness, it is precisely because of this that she is even purer — every action she takes comes from the depths of her heart. She would absolutely never betray her tribe, even if the tribe itself cast her out. My apologies, Stronghold Lord — I am powerless here."
"You—" The Tu Family Stronghold Lord seethed with anger but forced herself to hold back. "Then I shall ask Master Wu Xiao to go rest."
In the cell, only the Tu Family Stronghold Lord and Huang Wan remained.
The Stronghold Lord looked at Huang Wan with a cold sneer: "No matter. Even if you've gone mad, I can still make use of you. If I can't crack you open, that's fine — I'll capture more Mushroom Person high-ranking members and have Master Wu Xiao work on them. I refuse to believe I can't squeeze the location of your Mushroom Person tribe out of someone!"
Thus, in the next dreamscape, Meng Qiuzhen transformed into Huang Xiaomi.
At his side were the elite Gu Masters of the Mushroom Person tribe.
Under the cover of deep night, they had already infiltrated into the Tu Family Stronghold.
"Brother Xiaomi!" Fang Tu secretly received them.
Over the years, Fang Tu had also received care and guidance from Huang Wan and Le Tu, embarking on the path of cultivation. She was now a Second Transformation Gu Master.
She had benefited greatly from Huang Wan. Due to their shared fate and circumstances, she had always held the Mushroom People in high regard.
"How are things?" Meng Qiuzhen asked immediately.
Fang Tu replied: "The Stronghold Lord has everything prepared on her end. Tomorrow morning, she will carry out a public execution at the execution grounds — Huang Wan Auntie will be beheaded! As for where Le Tu is being held, I've already found out."
"Good. We'll split into two forces. One group heads to the execution grounds to set up an ambush and prepare. The other goes to rescue Le Tu and hand him the set of Gu Insects we've prepared." Meng Qiuzhen issued his orders.
The sky gradually brightened.
Just as Huang Wan was about to be publicly beheaded, Meng Qiuzhen led the Mushroom Person Gu Masters in a sudden assault on the execution grounds.
"As expected, you came." The Tu Family Stronghold Lord laughed heartily.
"Everything went exactly as the Stronghold Lord predicted!" the Elders praised endlessly.
"Mother!" On the other side, Le Tu also arrived with a rescue force.
The Tu Family Stronghold Lord frowned: "So in the end, you chose their side! Very well — today I shall uphold justice and eliminate my own kin, correcting all past mistakes. Kill them — both mother and son! Capture as many other Mushroom People as you can."
A chaotic battle erupted.
The Tu Family Stronghold quickly gained the upper hand — this had been their trap all along.
The Mushroom Person tribe had anticipated this, but there was no other choice. Huang Wan was the former Witch — she knew far too many tribal secrets and absolutely could not be left in the Tu Family Stronghold.
Huang Xiaomi and Le Tu were thrown into a desperate fight, surrounded by powerful enemies on all sides.
"Who would have thought there would come a day when we'd fight side by side," Le Tu said, looking at Huang Xiaomi with a bitter smile.
Meng Qiuzhen suddenly broke into a grin: "Don't worry. Our reinforcements have arrived."
At the critical moment, the dreamscape shifted once more, and a massive number of Mushroom Person Gu Masters poured into the battlefield.
The Mushroom Person tribal chief had gone all-in, leading the entire tribe in a frenzied assault on the Tu Family Stronghold.
Succeed or perish!
Burn the boats!
Most of the Tu Family Stronghold's high-ranking members were at the execution grounds, leaving the stronghold's defenses temporarily weak. The Mushroom Person army actually broke through checkpoint after checkpoint, driving straight into the heart of the stronghold.
A brutal, devastating battle erupted.
The Stronghold Lord and the tribal chief were both at the Fifth Transformation — they clashed against each other head-on.
The joint efforts of Le Tu and Huang Xiaomi became the key factor that broke the stalemate.
They knew each other far too well. Though it was their first time fighting together, their coordination was remarkably seamless.
Both possessed Fourth Transformation cultivation. Once they joined forces, their combined power surged dramatically — even the Tu Family Stronghold Lord could not withstand them.
In the end, the Mushroom Person tribe achieved a great victory, and the Tu Family Stronghold suffered a crushing defeat.
The surviving Gu Masters fled to the dungeon, where they mounted a desperate last stand, clinging to their final breath.
The Tu Family Stronghold Lord was gravely wounded and on the verge of death, captured by the Mushroom Person tribe.
"Mother, what's wrong with you? How did you end up like this?"
In the chaos of battle, Le Tu had taken injuries without hesitation to finally rescue his mother — only to discover that Huang Wan had gone completely, irrevocably mad.
But Huang Wan turned to Huang Xiaomi: "My child, my child — I want you to live happily and safely for your entire life. That's why I named you Le Tu. Come now, give your mother a smile. Be cheerful."
"Mother…" Le Tu wept, tears streaming down his face. "It's all my fault. If I hadn't rashly charged in, you wouldn't have fallen into the Stronghold Lord's trap! You wouldn't have ended up like this!"
Just then, Wu Xiao was brought over in chains.
He immediately begged for mercy: "Don't kill me, don't kill me! I know what happened to your mother!"
"Speak!" Le Tu roared.
The gravely wounded Tu Family Stronghold Lord, however, let out a cold laugh: "Hahaha — your mother is beyond saving. She's gone completely mad. That's right — I ordered it, and this esteemed Doctor Wu Xiao was the most direct perpetrator."
"You're all going to die!!!" Le Tu's face twisted with fury, and he was about to strike.
But Huang Wan suddenly stopped him: "Don't kill, don't kill! That's not good — you must be kind to others. You little rascal."
"Mother, you finally recognized me." Le Tu broke down in tears.
*Slap.*
Huang Wan suddenly slapped Le Tu across the face, leaving him stunned.