It took a moment for Xi Chonglin and Luo Youyou to absorb the weight of the man's words. The room seemed to darken around them as a suffocating wave of fear tightened its grip on their hearts, leaving them paralyzed under its weight.
"So… so what?" Luo Youyou finally broke the silence, her voice trembling despite the facade of indignation she tried to uphold. Her gaze fixed on Xi Yuan, but the nervousness beneath her bravado was unmistakable. "We were only looking out for the family. Xinghe harmed the flesh and blood of our kin. As the daughter-in-law of the Xis—"
"She was attacked." Xi Yuan's voice thundered through the open space like an unstoppable force, his tone sharp and unyielding, carrying the weight of his rage. A dark storm swirled in his obsidian eyes, his presence consuming the space with primal authority. "No one—no one—has mourned that loss more than her. Not you, not me, no one! So shut the hell up before I lose what little patience I have left."
